20/04/2014

Three Way's To Save Money



From a young age I've been money conscious (the stars of 'Superscimpers' would be proud) I'm a little weird in the sense of I enjoy saving, I like to see money grow. In Secondary school I managed to secure myself a few cleaning jobs for family friend's (glamorous I know.) Although the wage was peanuts (at the time it seemed like millions) I learnt that if you work hard, you earn money (drilled in from a young age.) Although as I say these jobs didn't pay well I loved having the opportunity to save and although I didn't quite realise it at the time working and earning really taught me the value of money, and the key difference between 'wanting' and 'needing' items.

Without sounding like my mum (scary) saving is so important, there's no harm in starting young too (friends of a similar age still think it's crazy that I have a pension.) My main purposes for saving are rainy days, a car and eventually my own place. I have lots of little money boxes scattered around my room for loose change you'd be surprised how quickly they all add up. I also have an ISA account for larger savings, if you have an ISA (like me) the most effective way to use this is to set up a 'direct debit' (assuming you have a regular monthly salary) this allows the money to build and also allows you to budget money knowing your savings have automatically been taken out. When setting up the direct debit I also recommend a realistic figure, remember a small amount is better than nothing.

So here are my three tips for reducing monthly outgoings (for everyone this will be different, as everyone has different lifestyles but for anyone who's similar to me this may be helpful!)

1. Subscriptions

Come on hold your hand up we're all a little guilty of this one. Whether it's home/garden magazines (like my mum) or the latest beauty boxes we are all likely to have had some subscription service at one point in our lives. The majority of subscription services are not contractual (meaning you should be able to cancel at any point.) I was previously a subscriber to Birchbox which I really truly did enjoy receiving. Priced at £12.95 they seem pretty affordable right? £155.40 a year, still sound attractive? Thought not. When I worked out how much the yearly cost of Birchbox was I simply couldn't carry on with my subscription. Although to some £155 may not seem much, for myself it was money I'd rather see in my ISA. So after reviewing my personal finances I cancelled all subscriptions (no more Allure for me *insert sad face*) All the money that was previously going on subscriptions I now save in my ISA.

Total saved- £277.40 per year (by cancelling all subscription services, I'm now a boxless beauty blogger.)

2. APP Subscriptions & Gym Membership

If you own android/Apple products it may be worth checking any in app subscription services, although most apps only charge 69p for monthly renewal this can add up if you have several apps with the charge plus if it's not an App you use why keep it! To check any in app subscriptions go to iTunes-Open Account- iTunes Store- Purchase History.

A few months ago I also cancelled my gym membership, this saves me a total of £32 per month. If you have a gym membership find out your monthly payment, view price list and see how much a single session would cost (I know in my gym this was £5 a time) work out how many sessions in the gym/pool etc you would need to make your money back does it balance? If not, cancel. Don't worry you're not banned if you find yourself missing the gym you can always reactivate your membership or pay for single sessions. If you're not getting your money's worth it's really not worth keeping- and think of all the extra money you'll save.

Total I saved - £392 per year (whoa, that much money saved from cancelling my gym membership and app subscriptions.)

3. Spend your money

I know what you're thinking how will spending money save me money but hear me out. What I actually mean is don't pay by card and limit online spending. I like to call this form of shopping 'blind spending' let's face it most online stores now save card details with one click of a button you've spent. Swipe your card, enter your pin- again it doesn't really feel like you've spent a penny. Ladies and gents go old school, draw money out, hold money, budget with money. If anything I think this brings back the reality of spending. When you start the day with a purse full of money and end it empty, it brings back the harsh reality of spending and also allows you to think about your money more and limit impulse buys.

So there are my 'tips' I'm not sure if this post will be helpful to anyone but here are the three things I did over the past few months in order to get my finances back on track. For anyone who wants to start saving I would firstly recommend sitting down with pen and paper work out monthly outgoings/incoming -include small thing's e.g transport to work, weekly food bill. This will allow you to see how much money you have left and how much potentially you will be able to save.

What are your top  tips for saving money? I'd love to know, any help is greatly received as I've seriously been curbing the spending over the past few months.

P.S Totally unrelated but I recently got Pinterest I'm addicted if you'd like to follow you can here
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22 comments

Rachel Reviews And Muse said...

Really great post! I am just a serial spendthrift! I don't know why and I can't help it, I keep spending till it's all gone... then I borrow and spend more! it's so unhealthy but I don't know how to change. Luckily I am very sensible with my 'joint' money so it does not affect my family at all. Rach xx

Anonymous said...

Good tips! The subscriptions definitely build up... sometimes when you get something once a month you don't even realise you have paid for it until it suddenly appears on your doorstop. I need to get on top of that!!

www.jasmincharlotte.com

beautylovesbooks said...

Nice tips. I am subscribed to a lot of things at the moment, I need to reconsider it.

Lauren J said...

Although I'm not the best at saving money, I love seeing my bank balance grow. I like to withdraw a certain amount of money each month and limit myself to only spend that, it definitely works for me. All these tips are fantastic, thank you for sharing them x

daisy-drops

TheJulyRose said...

When you realise just how much beauty boxes add up to over a year I think it is really quite shocking!
Amy x | A Little Boat Sailing

Madi Brown said...

Madi Brown is really into saving these days Rinica, so your blog post rings in as being on point. No PREMIUM channels on cable, so I just have to keep myself entertained. I love being the star of my own show anyway.

For Reals,and Love you the most,
Madi Brown
http://Madibrown.com

Catherine C. said...

I'm awful at saving but recently canceled my Netflix and Spotify premium to see how much I miss them... we'll see! I totally agree with the cash thing - have been doing this since the start of this year and it makes a surprising difference when you can see your money disappear!! Great post x

Cat
consumingbeauty.blogspot.com

R. said...

Nothing wrong with saving money when you can! For me the biggest extra expense used to be buying food and coffees and stuff like that out. It can add up really fast! Improving your home cooking skills and investing in a Thermos for hot drinks can save a lot of money in the long run.

Rosie said...

Great tips, I gave up my gym membership at the start of the year because it was too expensive and I wasn't enjoying it. Instead I do home workouts and I feel so much happier after doing them than I did went I went to the gym and I look forward to it.

Unknown said...

This is a really great blog, you don't realise how much subscriptions can build up, I do have a gym memebership but for £10 a month I think it's worth it, I also have netflix but when I'm at uni and I'm bored it's something easy to watch and with so many channels and watching it every night it's worth the £6 a month, I think people have to think whether what they're paying for is worth it, maybe people should look if there is a dupe for an expensive product they want instead of getting it straight away, as a student I can't afford the expensive stuff so have to get the cheaper versions, I still love my makeup though!
http://emhasrednails.blogspot.co.uk/
x

Unknown said...

Thanks for comment/stopping by :). Glad you enjoyed the post, I think I'm slowly getting there, was a time if I liked something I had to buy there and then whereas now I can walk away (it takes so much restrain though and I often miss out :() That's the best way to be though :D x

Unknown said...

Hey there, thanks for stopping by glad you enjoyed (was unsure wether to post this or not!) I totally agree when I reviewed my direct debits I had tenners coming out here and there and I was like huh what are all of these things I'm paying for! Happy I'm back on track it's staying there that's the hard part haha! x

Unknown said...

Thanks for comment, glad you enjoyed! It defo makes you think when you sit down and review thing's I feel like I was wasting lots of money on various subscriptions! x

Unknown said...

Thank you for the comment, really glad you enjoyed was worried about posting as I didn't really know if it was useful or not. I'm the same it's so nice on payday having a full account haha. I think it really works if you set a budget, although all the deals and offers can be very tempting! xx

Unknown said...

Thanks for comment Amy, Oh gosh I know…I kept thinking £12 a month it's really not that bad but when I saw the figure for the year it is shocking, plus since cancelling in all honesty I haven't missed them that much, plus you can always buy a one off box if it takes your fancy x

Unknown said...

Hi Madi, thank you for the comment I think everyone's in the same boat with trying to save. I like your thinking! ;) x

Unknown said...

Hi Cat, thanks for stopping by ooh I did the same with my Netflix but I went crawling back (I just had to finish watching a few series haha!) It does right? Such a simple thing to do but it does limit my spending x

Unknown said...

Thanks for comment, great tip Rebecca I totally agree all of those Starbucks coffee's on the way to work do add up! Also lunches I find add up…that's something else I need to get better at making my own lunches for work :) x

Unknown said...

Thanks for comment, I'm exactly the same I think I've stuck to my at home work outs more than I ever did going to the gym. With affordable DVD's on amazon, and free youtube fitness videos you're pretty much sorted :) x

Unknown said...

Thanks for the comment, I agree completely £12 per item or what ever quite easily adds up. £10 a month is a total bargain I think if mine would have been a little cheaper I perhaps would have reconsidered. I cancelled my Netflix but then got it back I missed it too much haha. I agreeI'm always searching for dupes, it pains me when I like something that's expensive haha x

Alexis Crawford said...

This has pretty good ideas in it! For magazines, I pay up front for the whole year, so it's only 12-20$ a year instead of 5$ a month!

lexi // thelittlebrunette

Unknown said...

Thanks for comment, glad you enjoyed. Great tip I actually think your right sometimes paying up front for things rather than spreading the cost works out better :) x

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