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This week has been half term so I was already fully prepared for not being as frugal as previous weeks however come the end of the holidays I realised I had actually done quite well!
I’ve mentioned before but we are policy holders with Vitality and get, amongst some other cool free stuff, free cinema tickets for us all every week (as long as we keep our steps up!) so had planned to head to Vue to see Coco…. for FREE but due to technical difficulties with the app (and the fact we were super busy this week with house work and decorating!) we didn’t end up getting there!
Our local Boots was closing down and last week we nipped in (totally unintentionally!) on their last day of trading. I have never known since living up here for 10 years+ why they felt the need to have two Boots chemists across the road from each other for like but it seems for whatever reason it’s only this week that they had decided to close the smaller one of the two. On the counter they had a basket and the lady mentioned that everything within was just 10p…. I was straight in there & certainly didn’t need telling twice!
I had shared this week over on our Facebook and Instagram pages that it was rumoured this week would be the start of 25% off Sainsburys TU clothing sale; well the said rumour was true and it began on Tuesday! We tend to get our school uniforms from there as I don’t feel Asda’s last the kids a term particularly their white/coloured t-shirts so I will certainly be popping in for some of those as soon as I can.
On Tuesday we nipped to Ikea; the closest Ikea to us is now Sheffield (previously Leeds) and because of that it’s only really somewhere we go when we specifically need something. It’s a good job it’s 50+ miles away a because if you’re anything like us, you cannot go to Ikea and NOT spend money can you?! If you are following our family vlogs over on YouTube you will know we are currently moving the children bedrooms around and decorating (again!) and we already had in mind a few things we NEEDED to get and their prices.
Did you know though Ikea actually offer a discount/loyalty card? It’s not guaranteed you will save money on your purchases, but every week they have new deals and discounts available for those with an Ikea Family card so before you even head there be sure to sign up (for free!) – you can do it online so you needn’t waste anytime there or you can do it in store. We’ve been part of the ‘Ikea Family’ for years and although I have no idea where my card is we always check in at the entrance to pick up a temporary card that we hand over at check out. Unfortunately you don’t know whats in the ‘family deals’ until you get there and see them in person as they aren’t advertised online. The two bedside cabinets that we had in mind for my eldest were marked up as £35 but with a ‘family card’ they were reduced to just £29 each! Totally unexpected but very much welcomed as we are already well over budget !!
Our last and final frugal purchase this week was made only yesterday; we nipped into B&Q to start on my youngest bedroom (it’s never ending is it!) we knew it was coming but it does nothing for my anxiety when I see the credit card coming out for every purchase we make! Not necessarily in a bad way, I mean we have the cash…. don’t worry – we don’t accrue interest and everything is paid off in full or moved over to an interest free balance transfer credit card but even though we are prepared it still gives me a scare! We noticed the paper we have had our eye on was reduced from £12 to just £9 so although we aren’t ready yet to paper we of course picked up the rolls that they had. We are going for a princess/Belle inspired library style big girl room; not Disney but certainly beautiful, princess-y and pink !! I can’t wait to share with you when it’s all done – the paper is similar to this but pink not purple (and of course more importantly not full price!)
So how frugal have you been this week? I would love to hear in the comments down below and if you too would like to join in with us by sharing what frugal and thrifty things you’ve been up to this week – even it’s just a picture of one of your #5frugalthings over on Instagram we’d love to see them!
You don’t have to share five things you’ve done though, anything thrifty or frugal that you’ve been working on would be perfect… small steps and all that!
Thanks for reading & be sure to go check out the ladies I mentioned at the very start of this #5frugalthings link up for more hints and tips on saving money ?
Hope this helps!
Kirsty x
4 Comments
Been doing some frugal DIY too. I like Ikea but would end up coming out with loads of stuff I just don’t need. That’s not frugal!
What a great week you’ve had!
You get free cups of tea with the IKEA family card too and it’s amazing when the sales are on x x
Thanks for joining in with the five frugal things linky this week x x
Great tips I think I would have just bought everything in the Boots basket! I do love their sales when they are just clearing shelves. Over the years I’ve had some amazing bargains from Boots!
Fab tips here thank you thanks for linking up with 5 frugal things https://family-budgeting.co.uk/thrifty-half-term/