An update on progress at Frugaldom

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What is frugal living? This is a question I am still being asked, as it still comes as something new to many. It is NOT self-imposed poverty or about trying to live like Tom and Barbara in 'The Good Life'. It's about balancing your life with your income in a safe and sustainable way. This is where my frugal living adventure has taken me so far...

Our online challenges run from 1st January through to 31st December every year. The first one began in 1999 but it wasn't until 2007 that the decision was made to take the main project fully online. We have the frugal blog, frugal shop, frugal forums, frugal entrepreneurs, our own chat room and now, to celebrate each and every one of these successes, we have our Frugaldom project and we have introduced frugal breaks to enable those on low incomes or with tight budgets the opportunity to get away from it all and have an affordable holiday.

That takes care of what I have been up t for the past 16 years but we are now nearing the end of our various 2015 money saving, money making and frugal living challenges and preparing to start all over again. If you would like to join us, please follow the link to the forums and register a free username then spend some time browsing. In the meantime, I am going to bring myself up to date with where I am at with the writing and blogging as that is, after all, why I set out to stretch the pennies in the first place. Writing doesn't often net you much of an income so frugal living allows for life on a tight budget while saving for all the other things you want out of life.

Out of interest, I attempted to bake a 25p loaf to find out if it is still possible to do so. The answer to this is yes - if you use nothing more than 375g of cheap bread flour, a teaspoon of the cheapest dried yeast and a pinch of salt. There's no oils, butters, milk or other additives in these loaves, they are basically flour and water with the raising agent added. Tastes OK to me!

My favourite handmade and homemade item of all time has to be my woolly blanket. I knitted two for this household and then knitted one for my youngest grand daughter, who received it as a Christmas gift last year. The blankets get knitted in strips, using up all the odd balls of wool you can find. Each strip gets knitted to the required length, depending on the intended use for the blanket, then the rows get sewn together to create the finished blanket. While doing last year's, I was able to take a little time an show eldest grand daughter how to knit. She now wants a blanket of her own, so I will eagerly encourage her to knit it herself. I love my knitted blanket! It has more than served its purpose, having been relocated to the caravan. But now I need another one for using at the house!

Everyone who knows me knows that I love filled doughnuts - usually jam, apple or custard. It became a bit of a standing joke a very long time ago, when one particular friend would seldom arrive without making a trip via what was then known as Dunkin' Doughnuts but then supermarkets began selling in earnest - mass produced doughnuts! It's a sad fact that we can now buy these for about 12p but for frugal lifers such as me - it is a very affordable luxury and one that's even better served up as a gift. So... I made it my rule quite some time ago that business meetings had to include doughnuts, preferably supplied by whoever is visiting me to talk business. That's how I discovered chocolate custard doughnuts! I hadn't even heard of them until last month! Thank you Mr L, who took the time to call me and rhyme off the supermarket selection from which to make my choice! Much appreciated!

Some people have fallen out with me over the past year owing to my decision to spend my own hard-earned cash in a local supermarket. I'm afraid to say that I don't care - if it costs less to buy the product than it does for me to make it, then it's a luxury best delivered by a local driver whose income depends on these very supermarkets. Without them and their ridiculously cheap basic foodstuffs, we of the frugal living ilk would seldom afford ourselves such indulgences.

November saw the final completion of the yard fencing. We still don't have a full bathroom or a cooker in the kitchen but we do have two paddocks or corrals and the barn yard fully fenced! My grand daughters absolutely love going out to Frugaldom for the day. We can pack a picnic, wrap up warm and they take great pleasure in investigating the latest developments. Now that the barn has been sectioned into several workable indoor stalls, the youngest is convinced that she can fill them all with little ponies! But she is equally excited by the prospect of planting trees, growing food, painting, crafting and organising yard sales at the Trading Post, which is what we call our bartering barn and its newly enclosed space.

The first snow of the year arrived but it didn't lie at Frugaldom. We have had wind, rain, hail, sleet and snow plus about four different storms that bring flood alerts to the area but only the hills have the snow lying - so far. If the trees are anything to go by, I would hazard a guess at a mild winter but we have already had several good frosts and freezing temperatures.

I don't often share family photos, almost never if truth be told, but this has to be one of my favourites. The girls had lifted the ice off the top of one of the water butts at the barn and were using it as a round window - holding it together to see if it would mend after it broke in two. It didn't mend but it did stay frozen for the next two days after this photo was taken.

Being on a caravan holiday park for part of the time means getting to know all the neighbours and those neighbours now know that leftovers needn't be binned - we can use anything and everything to save it from being wasted. This was the remains of an out of date bag of wholemeal flour that got made into a loaf for feeding to the birds. Having the oven on in the caravan means not needing the gas fire lit, so baking is an ideal way of killing two birds with one stone during cold weather - pardon the cruel pun! The girls like watching for the more unusual birds that they don't see in the garden at home, so they are easily tempted to sneak out to the bird table with leftovers whenever they are staying the weekend.

This is one of the Jays that has started frequenting the bird table since putting out the homemade bread. They are normally really shy birds that can be heard more often than seen, so it's great seeing them land so close. The woodpecker hasn't taken too kindly to having such noisy visitors, but there's always food enough for them all at the feeding station.

And now, to bring your right up to date with how things are going here, I have the fire lit, the solar fairly lights have been charging in the window in preparation for decorating the big Christmas tree at Frugaldom and the house is feeling quite toasty, despite the howling winds and sooty flecks wafting around the living room after a huge back draught sent a cloud of smoke down the chimney when someone opened the back door while I was kindling the fire.

With winter on its way and all the trees from the new trees planted, I can now rummage through my wool stash and get to work on the next multi-coloured, knitted blanket. I looked out my big size 7.5 needles, cast on 40 stitches and have already begun knitting the rows that will create the first strip of blanket. They call it 'stocking stitch' but to me it s nothing more than plain knitting with zero complications. Sat in my chair by the fireside with the cat sprawled asleep by the hearth is actually rather festive, so I will probably start thinking about retrieving the tree from the cupboard at the top of the stairs and get that decorated next weekend. Hopefully, I'll also hear back from John the apple man, letting me know when the Galloway Pippin apple trees will be delivered for planting.

For 2016, I plan to progress as usual with my various projects and challenges but have decided that the time has come to cut back on the hours spent working at earning a 'decent' living and more time spent working at making the most of what life has to offer - the wealth of friends, family, health and happiness. I'm also planning on getting back to regular blogging.

Posted by NYK Media as part of the Frugal Blog

Well, here’s what I have been doing during my somewhat lengthy absence from frugal blogging – taking the next step in providing our frugal friends, families and fellow money-saving challengers the opportunity to sample Frugaldom life for themselves.

Escape to the country and enjoy a frugal holiday.

Get back to nature in the Scottish countryside with a short break to sample rural living at a price you can afford. Try our budget self-catering accommodation in a holiday caravan at Three Lochs in the beautiful Dumfries and Galloway region of southwest Scotland. Relax and unwind, bring your walking boots, swimming costume, fishing rods and/or golf clubs and avail yourself of some Scottish hospitality, safe in the knowledge that your Frugal Break won't break the bank!

Followers of Frugaldom (Facebook, Twitter, Website, Forums or Blog) will know that our main aim is to make a good life affordable to all and that should include a break from the norm. Our answer to this is to give you the opportunity to find out about Frugaldom for yourself, right here next to the project.

We are now offering this comfortable, 3-bedroom static caravan, which is fully equipped with all the basics you will need for sampling our frugal lifestyle, for short breaks and frugal holidays. For added luxury, the following are all available FREE to our guests:

• WiFi
• Satellite television (free channels only)
• DVD player
• Indoor heated swimming pool
• 9-hole golf course
• Fishing loch
• Nature walks
• Squirrel hide
• Wet weather family games supplied (cards, board games, dominoes etc.)

We enjoy an elevated position here with views of nearby Loch Heron and the surrounding countryside and wildlife. There is easy access parking by the caravans and you are guaranteed to have frugal neighbours who can show you the sites and give you a tour of Frugaldom, which is less than a mile's walk, cycle or drive from the holiday park. (For the more adventurous, there are tent pitches available.)

The caravan is accessed by 4 steps leading up onto the 40' wooden decking, which provides adequate outdoor seating for enjoying lazy afternoons and evenings in the sunshine. A container garden provides fresh herbs for cooking and freshly picked sweet gale, grown nearby at the Frugaldom project, helps deter our Scottish midges. The location is adjacent to a small woodland where we have our bird feeding stations, which can be viewed from the caravans.

The open plan kitchen is fully equipped with gas cooker, microwave, toaster, fridge freezer, electric kettle and slow cooker plus everything you need for an enjoyable self catering holiday. There is a small shop on site for any additional items you may need, but we can include basics like tea, coffee and sugar.

The main living and dining areas are spacious, light and comfortable with adequate seating for friends and family. The caravan has 1 double room, one twin room, one single room with space for travel cot, which can be provided, and a foldaway double bed in the living room.

Bring your camera to catch a shot of the resident woodpeckers or watch for the red squirrels. The area has an abundance of wildlife and a good population of owls. If you are lucky you may spot a red kite or white tailed sea eagle soaring overhead between here and Frugaldom.

Prices start from £50 per night plus £5 per person for linen pack. You can, of course, choose to bring your own bedding and towels to save a few pounds extra.

We accept PayPal and all bookings must be paid in full a minimum of one week prior to arrival. Optional extras are available, like grocery packs and outdoor activities such as pony trekking, bike hire, air rifle shooting, archery, clay pigeon shooting, boat hire and fly fishing.

There is a small shop and laundry facilities on site, plus the indoor heated swimming pool, children's activity play area, BBQ hut and small skate park for use by residents and holiday makers. A woodland walk takes you around Loch Heron.

We should be able to start taking bookings from next week and I have already made a start on putting together a few photos and details for the webpage, which can be found at www.frugalbreaks.co.uk

NB: Frugal Breaks will offer booking concessions to 'Friends of Frugaldom' for any crafting, artwork, fitness, equestrian, tree planting, wild food foraging or other outdoor workshops we may organise.

Published by NYK Media as part of the Frugal Blog – helping make the good things in life affordable.

Inside a Tiny House

Have you ever wondered what the inside of a tiny house looks like?

Wonder no more!

NYK has managed to meet up with Mark and Jen from TinyHouseUK and fully investigate what tiny houses are really like…

I love them!

Read all about it and see the photos here

If Mother Nature didn't inspire art, there would be no inspirational art. 'The Arts', as a term, always invokes visions of landed gentry, stately homes, museums, galleries, theatre and multi-million pound investments, but art is all around us and it is totally FREE! You just need to take a closer look.

Spring is taking its time in arriving here in Frugaldom but we are managing to inch our way along the list of garden jobs whenever the weather permits. As you know, we have already laid in most of the foot path through the garden, so it now extends to the bottom of the micro-orchard. Next, we need to sort out the remains of 'rubble mountain', which H reduced by around 6' in height. This year, it has been levelled enough to sow some potatoes to help break up the soil and prepare it for greater things in the future. Read more here

Nature - The Greatest Artist of All Time.

Frugal Holiday to the Scottish Isles

Who needs the Caribbean when we have golden sands, shimmering turquoise sea, azure sky and sunshine in Scotland. Yes, this really is Scotland and it really is April. (This is a photo blog, apologies for any slow loading.)

You can reach Glasgow from most places, so that's where we headed in order to set off on our whirlwind, whistle stop frugal tour. I was very lucky in that I was able to hitch a lift from Frugaldom to Lanarkshire, so £10 covered my share of the fuel costs. As it was Easter holiday weekend, I spent four nights with family and friends before setting off on our island hopping adventure.

Being based in Wishaw gave us easy access to Glasgow, so we opted for open return train tickets at a cost of £40, allowing us to travel from our original destination via Glasgow Central, Queen Street and then on to Oban, which is a lovely little harbour town on the Argyll coast. It was a bit overcast when we left Glasgow but the clouds lifted the further north we travelled… Read more (photo blog includes my home made souvenir.)

A photo diary about walking and frugal footwear!

Farewell to my faithful, frugal foot-friends!

My annual challenge budget for clothing and footwear normally comes in at under the £100 mark and this needs to include everything, so it helps to know where savings can be made when footwear is important.

This fun and photo-filled blog post is the tale of my old boots and the many miles they have trudged over the past year, showing without a shadow of a doubt that you can, indeed, get plenty of mileage from just a few pounds. In fact, looking back at this, I think I should award ‘Regatta Outlet’ the Frugaldom badge of excellence.

This is not a sponsored post, this is simply a look back over how well my frugal footwear has served me and I hope that it helps others in making decisions about taking up walking as a hobby rather than sitting it out because you don’t have the right shoes or boots.

Click here to read more and see what I think is an amazing little photo album