MY FIRST STEP TO BEING FREE FROM DEBT.

As I write this, I am currently £2,667.66 in debt (and that is only my bit, my partner owes around the same amount of money), all because of various reasons, like trying to buy everything me and my other half need before my daughter arrived, needing to secure a new home really quickly as I was living in a bedsit, and just the fact that I wasn't as responsible as I should have been and I was very depressed, full of anxiety and heavily pregnant- these things are not good at what should be the happiest time of my life.

Over a matter of months, I got myself into more and more debt, and what hit me was last week, when I got paid, after going on a weekend trip away, we ended up spending WAY more than we thought we would, and were totally broke, with £5.00 in cash, and £28 between 2 credit cards left to last us till my payday, which was every friday, and we still had to buy formula, nappies, food,top up the electric meter and buy travel for myself to get to work.

This indeed, was one of the tightest months we have ever had, especially cos I had to resort to a payday loan in order to afford the rent. The first thing I thought when this happened was "sh*t, what am I gonna do?" and panicked so much! I think you could officially say that we we JUST surviving on the breadline.



So first of all we thought about what we had in the cupboards, and went to Sainsburys local to snap up a few staples to last us till Friday. We got a combination of things to make sweet chilli chicken, spaghetti bolognese, sausage and mash and pasta bake, which all came up to, say £8. That then left me to buy things for the baby and top up the meter and travel- then it came to me that the gates at the train stations that I use are usually open when I do my night shifts, so I could get away with not touching in with my oyster card, only then needing £10 (cheeky, but necessary!). Then I remembered that the local convenience shop sells formula a lot cheaper than the supermarkets, so that was £6.99 spent. It felt empowering that we still were on a roll even as broke as we were. Then there was the electric meter- I topped up £15 and was an eco warrior with the electric usage in the house, making sure everything was switched off and unplugged while not in use. Surprisingly all this left us with money left over! With lunch, I get a free meal at work, which was lucky, but my partner doesn't so he had to survive on pasta bake till I got paid (sorry hun!).

But after I got paid I thought "we are NOT getting ourselves into this position again!" and had so much drive to get myself and my Mr out of debt and on our way to financial freedom, as we both want so much in our lives. and be able to afford even the most basic things for our child without going totally broke. And I took steps towards financial freedom. I drew up a budget, I started meal planning, but most of all, I did this:



This was one of the toughest things to do because I thought, what if I need the money on my credit card for an emergency? and then decided to have an emergency fund jar for times that we need stuff and don't have the money. I think it's time I grew up and took active steps to gain some control back in my life.

Ify Katherine xo

HOW TO SAVE MONEY WHEN YOU'RE A NEW PARENT

Hi guys, long time no post! I'm still getting used to the mummy routine, but I am still on that mission to be fabulous whilst skint. :)

Anyway- I have a great way to save money on baby things- especially when you're a new mum and super broke like myself.


BABY CLOTHES
I found that baby clothes bundles have been a real life saver for me. I can honestly say that up to now I have only spent about £60 on baby clothes- and my little one is only 7 months old! It's so nice to want the best for your baby, but at the end of the day, it's not worth making yourself so poor just for your baby to look nice in a much-sought after dress/top/t shirt/trainers if they are only going to grow out of them in a few months. Buying in bulk really does work out much cheaper in the long run, and you sometimes get more than you thought you'd get, it works out so much in your favour.

OWN BRAND NAPPIES
Buying own-brand nappies  are so good (Tesco loves baby and Aldi "mamia" ones are my fave). I didn't think I would be buying these before my baby arrived but it does the job really well and is just as good as Pampers, plus you're saving yourself soooo much money.

BEDS AND CHANGING TABLES
With baby beds, there isn't any need to buy things like moses baskets or changing tables, they really are a waste of money in the long run, one thing I don't regret doing is using a cot bed, my daughter has slept on it since she was 4 months old and she wouldn't sleep anywhere else now. If you want to change your bubba on something other than your bed or floor, then the top from your chest of drawers would do nicely.

WEANING
You really don't need to buy jars of food for your baby, you can either blend the food as you're making your own, or batch cook them and put it in the freezer and cook them as you need them. Jars of food are so expensive and probably doesn't have as much nutrients as cooking it from scratch.

SKINT AND FABULOUS RECIPE- LEFTOVER WEDNESDAY PRAWN FRIED RICE

This recipe is especially good, if you have leftovers or are low in stock of food and you are sooo hungry! I always have some rice in the fridge left over and wonder what I could create that is easy, yet healthy and enjoyable?

Then I thought- I have some prawns in the freezer too, why don't I make some fried rice!

It is very cheap to make, yet plentiful!

Ingredients:

1 pack frozen prawns

3 mugfuls brown rice

1 tbsp salt

2 eggs

1 tbsp soy sauce

1. Get 3 mugfuls of rice and wash out the starch before cooking for 20 mins. 
2. Leave to cool down- this will mean it would cook a lot better. If you have some rice in the fridge, you are already halfway there!
3. Heat the wok/large frying pan with a little drizzle of oil and fry up the prawns. If you find that there is water left after cooking the prawns, drain them before adding the rice.
4. Gradually add the rice, and add the eggs into the mix, and stir in. Add salt and soy sauce for flavour.

SKINT AND FABULOUS RECIPE- CHILLI CON CARNE WITH RICE AND SALAD

Hi guys-

I made this delicious and oh-so-purse friendly recipe for you guys to try at home- you don't need much and you would fill yourself up so quickly- and its something you can easily whip together for a hearty lunch the next day too!

Ingredients: to serve 2-3 people

500g mince beef (pork is also a nice and even cheaper alternative)
1 can chilli kidney beans
1 sachet Colmans Chilli con Carne pack
handful of crispy salad
1 can chopped tomatoes
2-3 mugfuls of brown/white rice, with equal parts water
1 stock cube
1 chilli

tip: having a rice cooker is handy if, like me, you're a lazy cook and don't like to faff about when you want to make other things and, you want to make other parts of dishes at the same time without worrying about burning the rice!

1. wash 2-3 mugfuls of rice in cold water to get rid of all the starch, and quite frankly- taste a lot better! put in equal amounts of water to boil/put in the cooker and cook. 
2. whilst cooking the rice, cook the mince on a medium heat till brown and add a stock cube. add the sachet for the chilli con carne into the mixture and add a bit of water.
3. add a can of chopped tomatoes and kidney beans and stir. Leave to simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. serve with salad, and sour cream (if you like!)

MY TOP 10 TIPS TO SAVE MONEY

Hi guys,

It has been a while since I wrote anything on here- I've been really busy juggling motherhood and sorting out things around the house, and now working and slowly working on my business!

Anyway, here are my top 10 tips this month to save money and stay fabulous.

1. Buy your beauty products in bulk. That way, you can focus your money on other things, AND avoid having to run to the shops just as you have run out!
2. Be bargain shop chic. I personally love shopping at charity shops, £5 bargain shops and sales on the high street. Sometimes, when you go to these places, you can piece more unique outfits, as less people are likely to want them. Also, vintage shops are ones that are not to be missed- when you buy a good quality product it can last a lifetime. Also, there are sometimes sales where you can fill a bag for £10- you cant say no to a bag full of bargain buys, now can you?
3. Put aside a small percentage of your income every week or every month (however often you are paid), and buy all the things for yourself or your family that you would need!
4. If you think you need new clothes, have a look in your wardrobe first. You may find something in there that you haven't worn in a long time that you would like to wear again, and you haven't had to spend anymore money on it. If you still want new clothes- have a clothes swap party with your friends and see if you can get some new lovely things without opening your purse! Or if anything, if you haven't checked it out already, mobile app depop is great for swaps.
5. If you haven't got much money to decorate your home, or your tenancy doesn't allow decorating but you still want to give it a homely touch without spending so much, you can just make do and mend! turn old t shirts into cushion covers, old fabrics as curtains, or spray paint furnishings that you would buy from a cheap/bargain/charity shop and make it look very much distinctive!
6. If like me, you are a mum, and don't have a lot of money to spend on your family, then the best way to cover yourself is to buy own-brand products. Everyone that knows me knows that I am an advocate for Sainsburys Basics/Tesco Everyday Value/ASDAs own products. The branding may look awful but believe me when I say that the taste is not! Some products are even healthier than the more expensive ones so definitely give it a thought. Even with nappies- Tesco Baby nappies are really, really, good! Almost like Pampers. :)
7. Get a nectar card/tesco clubcard! the more you spend, the more points you save, especially when you use your nectar card for spending on eBay/Expedia, which means more discounts for holidays- its a win-win situation.
8. If you don't mind secondhand clothing for your baby- I recommend you buy a clothing bundle on eBay- you can get them as cheap as £15 for a bin bag full of products. You can easily resell them as your bubba grows out of them and make your money back.
9. If you have time, batch cook your meals every 2-3 days. It saves so much electricity, if you have an electric only property and equally as much gas!

And finally, plan your meals, every week. I follow a meal plan, up to a months worth, so you get variety every week and not get so bored. If you also buy your groceries online, save that bus fare/petrol and have it delivered to you!

Happy Scrimping- and don't forget to stay fabulous ;)

Ify Katherine xo

WAYS TO MAKE MONEY: PAID SURVEYS ONLINE

Lately, I have been looking at ways to make extra money, and I remembered a few years ago that I used to do paid surveys online to top up my income. I didn't want to just rely on one survey that only pays 50p per survey and would take months to get any rewards, so I joined 3 websites:

inboxpounds.co.uk
valuedopinions.co.uk
uk.mysurvey.com

Personally, I find these pretty boring and tedious, BUT the rewards make up for it, and if you're not in a hurry, you can spend a half hour a week to it which isn't much. It's also great if you want to make money for doing very little, as you can make up to £5 per survey or get vouchers for places such as Boots, Amazon, Topshop or Sainsburys!

These surveys can be a bit spammy, so if this is something you would like to do, it's best to get another e-mail so you can go through it at your own leisure.

Have an awesome day, guys!

Ify Katherine xo

P.S. HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope you have enjoyed what you have read so far and I hope you keep on reading more of these posts, as 2015 is going to be great over at Skint and Fabulous!

MONEY FIX: HOW TO CREATE AND STICK TO A BUDGET

With Christmas come and gone, it's all easy to forget about the trauma of buying your loved ones so many presents, as well as prepping for the dinner- until you realise how much you have spent and realise how much you gone into your overdraft/credit card limit and spend the rest of the year paying it all back. I have been guilty of that in the past myself, and for the new year, why not break the vicious money cycle and become more organised and realistic with how much you can afford to spend- you can save a lot of headache later on.

1) Create a savings account, especially for Christmas and Special Occasions
Start up a standing order to come out of your income every week/fortnight/month and by the end of the year you have a nice mountain of money to spend and NOT feel guilty. For example, I try to save £20 a month, and by November I have a decent amount to spend.

2) Create a budget, a realistic one
If there's any time to start streamlining your finances, now would be a good start. Take a look at say, 3 months worth of bank/credit card statements and see where you can make the necessary cutbacks. All those "little treats" you've been having do add up in costs, so if you can, make that treat once a month, or once a week at most.

3) List the names of people who you are buying for and how much money you would spend
This way, you are only buying for those people, and no one else, and you maintain your focus to stay on budget,

4) Buy 3 meaningful gifts for each loved ones and then no more.
You don't need to buy loads of presents- you really don't. One Christmas I spent about £500 on my family members and I don't think they really used all the gifts I got, and I just made myself more broke for no good reason! Just by getting the things they need as opposed to buying in bulk would be better appreciated. If you do have to buy in bulk, at least do it the smart way and buy these things on sale as opposed to buying at the full retail price.

I hope you do find these tips helpful!

Lots of Love,

Ify Katherine