Looking Back

4 of the 5 rescued and rehomed ponies at Frugaldom

Hello to all who read these frugal blogs! I hope you all had a lovely Christmas season and that you enjoy Hogmanay and the new year festivities.

I've just been updating the old forums, the ones that go back to 2010, as Ive found it impossible to retrieve the most recent ones that fell out of our reach when the software and operating platform changed. Not to be completely outdone, I succeeded in retrieving these old ones and have now redirected the domain www.frugalforums.co.uk towards them for our 2019 frugal living and working challenges. (Everyone is welcome to join us, it's free!)

Anyway, while unlocking previously archived sections of the forums and updating them as I went along, I stopped at the letter 'B' - it's alphabetical - and began reading about all our ideas and plans for the future. It's where I found this and saw just how far we had come over the past 8 years and showed that my longterm aims hadn't realy changed, apart from the fact that finding several like-minded others has, so far, proven to be impossible.

 Oct 20, 2010 #7

In the wake of today's spending review, a thought struck me when listening to the heated debates about the housing crisis, social housing and council rents. Affordable housing is still absent, in my opinion, for all of those people who don't want or can't get mortgages. If housing associations and others are going to be encouraged to provide more affordable homes, why do we still see so many derelict or crumbling properties? I would love the opportunity to develop a derelict site into a profitable business with the potential to expand on that and bring others into the game plan. All around us are derelict houses - small collapsing cottages  left to rot because owners who have inherited them can't agree how to split any proceeds from sales, or else left to rot in an effort to avoid tax. Removing the roof to avoid the roof tax has long, since, been abolished (as far as I am aware) but we now face the "problem" of these properties costing their owners up to 40% in capital gains tax. I just don't get it! Surely, in this economic climate, 60% of any surplus property sale in the pockets of the owners must be worthwhile. It has to beat zero with a crumbling wreck as your personal responsibility.

One excellent frugal business proposition would be for workers' co-operatives to raise the capital to purchase these unwanted properties to turn them into viable microholdings for those who are prepared to invest in their own futures. The cost of a brick, afterall, is still the cost of a brick. It shouldn't be too adversely affected by where that brick gets laid. Waste land, scrap land, disused sites, abandoned sites... the list goes on and on, yet the right to participate in any such project is curtailed, once again, by finances and the need for ludicrous amounts of cash. A group of like-minded individuals working for the benefit of all could surely earn a living by dividing the spoils, assuming they were able to amass the funds needed to initiate such a project in the first place?

My search continues for that first, elusive piece of land that could start the ball rolling. I don't have 50,000+ in the bank to buy a tiny building plot, nor do I intend borrowing it, but I'd be prepared to invest in a project where nobody squabbled about percentages and hours of work they contributed to the end result. All things being equal, (which they aren't) 1000 man hours equates to almost 6,000 even on minimum wage.

Frugaldom, as a complete microholding package, is a viable business proposition. We aren't setting out to become millionaires, we're setting out as frugal entrepreneurs in the hope of realising dreams. For me, money in the banks just won't pay in the long run, not with inflation running at more than twice the BoE base rate.

============================End==========================

Making Progress in March

Making Money (and Music) Plans

Good evening to anyone who happens to be reading. It's been another hectic day of work at the computer screen and, to be perfectly honest, I haven't cooked any meals, haven't been out the door and haven't done any housework. I threw some mix in the breadmaker first thing this morning and, thankfully, it turned out alright. I had bread and homemade soup for lunch, but it was 9pm by the time I ate my pudding! On the plus side, this means I didn't spend any money today, so that is good.

In order to save, I need cash; in order to have cash I need work and when you are single with no car and relying on home-based self-employed, that work needs to pay. We are now approaching the end of the tax year, so I have been doing some extra book-keeping, selling extra web content and have invested in having a brand new web site designed - I wanted something lean, clean and simple from which I can begin propagating and cultivating some of my wacky money saving and money making ideas.

We're not out of the woods yet but, at 9.44pm this evening, the new site went live! I now have 60 days 'Warranty' during which time I need to learn everything there is to know about it. Fortunately, I enjoy a challenge, I love writing and I'm not afraid to ask for relevant answers to pertinent questions. :)

The new site went live tonight.

Now I just need to rebuild all the pages, link up all the blogs and channel some creativity into it. The new forums, although not yet filled with all the topics from the old ones, are ready and waiting for new members. As always, being a part of any of the NYK challenges is totally free and we are always here to support frugalers.

From tomorrow, this blog will be published live on the new site where my ever-so-helpful techie dude has made it possible for us to share and comment while also keeping a running commentary of ALL the topics covered, not just money saving and frugal living. Don't worry, the blog will still come across here too, but I'm trying to make it as easy as possible for me to work from absolutely anywhere without having to spend a fortune on new computer equipment and some rather expensive software. Tonight, I am posting in both places just to try out the new system.

Tobermory, Isle of Mull, photo by Leslie Barrie.

Now off to have some reheated coffee and then bed to dream of the next big frugal adventure when we jet off to Balamory! OK, it's actually Tobermory on the Isle of Mull and we're not flying, we're back-packing up there with a tent, but my golden wellies should get to accompany me for their first trip away from Frugaldom.

I now have four weeks to 'drop a dress size' and fit back into the walking gear that I haven't needed since the Tinto hill walk in October! And yet, still, I ate lemon drizzle cake and custard for pudding! Sigh... I'll start the diet tomorrow. :)

Day 18 of Making it in March is about making Progress

It's Great Saving Money but we Need to Earn it First

Please note that this blog post is not selling you anything, it is simply giving you the story of Frugaldom so far.

Over the past 15+ years I have been involved in many money saving projects, worked within many industries and, throughout, maintained my status as a self-employed individual. Along the way, making significant income has never been my priority - I don't know why, I am simply not motivated by money. Getting the best bang for my buck, however, is a definite motivator when it comes to spending... when needs must, you understand.

Recently, I was sharply reminded that buying a fixy-up house for cash and then focussing almost all of my attention on how to develop the property in the most cost effective way may not be the best thing to do, especially if I intend actually living here for any length of time. For starters, property development works ONLY if the completed project is sold at a rate that both recoups all original investment and generates sufficient profits to warrant the equivalent of a fulltime income over the period of the project. Hmm...

As I said recently, we are now 3 years into what I consider to be a 5-year project but while concentrating on this, I have taken my eye off my own long term financial prospects. Creating a self-sustaining microholding is all well and good but the economic and political climate in which we live dictates that we must deal with hard cash. Put bluntly, no amount of berries picked from the fruit garden nor eggs laid by the poultry will pay ordinary household bills, nor will they pay the costs of maintaining my self-employed status. Cue some speedy research!

NYK, Frugaldom on Facebook

I haven't focussed much attention of Facebook but am assured that we 'need' to be there because 'there' is where everyone else is, apparently. If you use Facebook, please consider visiting my NYK/Frugaldom page and clicking the 'like' button so I know people are seeing it. Thanks.

NYK's Scottish multimedia sites preparing for upgrade

The NYK websites have been hanging around since the late 90s, changing now and again in between years of neglect during the more trying times that have included divorce, 10 house moves, daughter's engagement and then wedding, the birth of 2 grand children and the tragic, sudden deaths of more family and friends that I could ever have imagined possible. Just staying financially afloat has been the main focus, but so far so good. Having never had the security of a well-paid professional career, I can't miss it - hence the reason I think I'd feel cash rich if I ever managed to earn myself the UK's minimum wage!

Earn a living, I must! And that's why I now need to spend so much time pulling everything back together again, in an effort to earn the income that I need in order to budget for my frugal lifestyle of the future. I decided to call UK2, my web hosting company, on their 0800 free phone number after logging into my long-suffering control page. I was shocked at how out-dated everything was! But I couldn't believe my luck when I saw the half price sale for upgraded web services, so an investment has been made! I'm calling it an investment because I am hoping that the new and fully interactive site will pay for itself then begin earning me a small income before the house project is completed.

Fast approaching 50 and no longer a tech-savvy frugal babe, I've had to employ the services of a professional to pander to my every online need! We are currently working on design concepts that can encompass everything from blogs, forums, social media and PR/marketing/advertising opportunities to the online book shop and arty stuff, so it's a real challenge. (Sneaky peek at Wilbur, my flying pig, trying out a new page layout.)

Working on the new interactive version

Now we all know I blog and those who know me personally know I could talk for Scotland if given the opportunity, so communicating with the outside world is always a major concern of mine - I live a rural lifestyle of frugality but I place a very high value on social interaction - I'm sure it's what keeps us sane when things get tough. I've been using Twitter for a long time but only relatively recently decided to link it up with the frugaldom challenges. I love my number-crunching, so I decided to do a quick bit of research into how necessary it is to have a decent Twitter following... and proved my own point! Social media is not the be all and end all of succeeding in building yourself a customer base for your self-employment. See for yourself...

Researching aspects of social media

I won't name the businesses connected to the above figures but, suffice to say, you wouldn't expect many serious start-ups or home-based entrepreneurs to wish themselves into the unenviable position of the final listing - would you? I would!

Contrary to everything that the marketing and business gurus are saying, that tiny 260 followers Twitter account belongs to the Startups Award for 'Home-based freelance Business of the Year 2013'! I wonder if Catherine Kennard is a frugal living fan?

In conclusion, today's 'Making in March' has been all about making progress towards becoming self-sustainable in both home and working life by making plans for my frugal business empire.

The big question is, can I do all of this without incurring any debt and, at the same time, fit in my next crazy mini-adventure with my wacky friends? I am running out of time to chase the aurora borealis this winter, so I think we should infuse a little more excitement into this frugal life before the time comes to spend every minute in the garden. Better still, if the new website plays nicely on my Kindle or iPod then I may not even need to come indoors to check on my work status this summer! How great would that be?

Already setting budgets, checking travel costs, accommodation costs and route options while comparing notes with willing frugal friends! :)

Graphic above courtesy of http://www.blessedaretheweird.com/ and UK2 is an affiliated link. In their favour, their 0800 Freephone help is great, especially for someone of us whose knowledge of anything tech doesn't even stretch as far as working the TV remote control!

Day 9 of Making it in March - Bread and Butter Pudding

Day 9 of 31 - Making Something Different Every Day in March

It's Sunday, I had a friend visiting this afternoon, I haven't done any crafting, but we did get a second duck egg and not one, but TWO chicken eggs from our feathered friends in the garden, so that made my day!

 

Friend brought me a carton of milk from the village store while on her way here, so that will take me up to 5 empties for another project that I want to try - making a vertical garden using a pallet, cup hooks, garden canes and recycled milk cartons. 'Mishy' from sunny Suffolk will be running this year's 'vertical growing pods' challenge in the Frugal Forums. My delay in starting this project is that I get so few plastic milk cartons here - I mostly get UHT in the waxed cardboard litre cartons. I'm saving what I can and will ask a neighbour if they'll save me some.

 

Back to today - what did I make?

 

The extra milk and the eggs are a clue - the duck egg shell has been kept to make another tiny planter and the eggs got combined with the milk not to make French toast for breakfast, as I'd envisaged, but bread and butter pudding!

 

Frugal bread and butter pudding

 

Ingredients

 

Eggs

Milk

Bread

Margarine

Sugar (I used my homemade vanilla pod sugar.)

Sultanas

Cinnamon

 

Method

 

I used 3 slices of homemade bread with the crusts removed - these get turned into breadcrumbs and go in the freezer. Cut the bread to preferred size and spread with margarine/buttery spread. Sit these in an ovenproof dish, sprinkle with sultanas or raisins, sugar and cinnamon, then repeat for the next layer of your sandwiches. Beat the egg and milk together (as though for scrambling) then pour it over the contents of the dish. Add another sprinkle of dried fruit, sugar and cinnamon then cover the dish in tin foil and pop it into the oven until the egg mix has baked. Mine took about 40 minutes at 180 Deg C in the mini oven.

 

Bread and butter pudding

This is very filling, so the 3 slices of bread is sufficient for 4 servings, at least. We ate ours hot with a little extra milk over the top. You can microwave this dish and it cooks in minutes, but I was already cooking rice to go with some sweet chilli chicken. It did mean that I was able to warm all the plates on top of the mini oven and have a warm kitchen.

 

Making... Important Decisions!

 

Owing to the nature of Frugaldom, it derives very little by way of income. Let's face it, you read this for a reason and it's not because you have a huge income and millions in the bank. My blog caters for a very specific section of society - those living below the breadline. I am a genuine frugaler who genuinely lives on my £4,000 and I earn less than minimum wage: I NEED to be frugal. I NEED to steer clear of debt and attempt to save to protect my own future. But I also NEED to earn my income in the first place. For the majority of my working life I have been self-employed, which means no unemployment or sickness benefits to fall back on and no employer paying my tax and insurance, or even guaranteeing me an income in the first place.

 

However...

 

Online is where my business exists and that is where I need to focus my energy. I have several blogs, forums, websites and social media accounts so I have had to give this a great deal of thought to help determine the right route to take.

 

 

If you would like to follow Frugaldom on Twitter for the frugal living, money saving, penny pinching, budget busting, cost cutting blogs that include baking, making, cooking, crafting, gardening and recycling, then you should follow @Frugaldom

 

 

If you would like to follow NYK Media, where I write and blogs for my income while pursuing a career as a frugal entrepreneur with an active interest in horse racing (it can be frugal, I tell you!), then please follow the newer account @Frugaleur Just as we have money-saving and money-making challenges on the forums, so too do I have money-saving and money-making Twitter accounts, blogs and websites.

 

Back to normal tomorrow with the workaday things and ever hopeful of some sunshine soon. We ended up with more fog here this afternoon, then the rain returned this evening. I need to get into the garden soon!

 

NYK, Frugaldom

Now You Know - it really is frugal.

'Now You Know'

As you may know, we began life as ‘Now You Know’, hence the NYK, away back in 1998. A group of us got together to try and beat the budget and try to afford to build businesses, create comfortable homes and generally live a good life that would lead us safely out of debt.

 

Along the way, many fell off the wagon. In fact, if I’m perfectly honest, the current day group of frugal living challengers includes not a single one of the original group, although there are still a couple of them on the side lines who are still battling on bravely to keep their heads above water.

 

‘Now You Know’ began as an online newsletter and then developed into what was then known as an e-zine (an electronic magazine), before becoming what, to my knowledge, was the first online Scottish newspaper.

 

In 1999, we went into print, publishing a monthly newspaper. It didn’t last long – the big boys don’t like the little people playing with their toys and by toys, I mean advertising revenue. But that’s an entirely different story.

 

The premise of the entire project was always, always, always to help others find ways of affording to do things they may, otherwise, not have afforded. Whether it was providing virtual or office support for home-based business, networking to promote one another, assessing budgets to help deal with debt, or even just demonstrating how to feed a family for a week on a tenner, it was always fun and frugal.

 

Now, 15 years later, we are able to turn out not one, but two daily ‘newspapers’, and all at a cost of zero pounds. I earn nothing from the publications, nor do I have full editorial control or any rights to any advertising revenue, but I no longer need to pay a graphic designer and a printer £1,000 each month, nor do I need to pay a distribution company, an advertising salesman or the overheads of a busy office.

 

Over the past 15 years, I have been stripped clean of all those costs and do you know what? I wouldn’t have them back if you paid me.

 

So, friends of NYK and Frugaldom alike – this is the current version of ‘Now You Know’, still covering Scottish news, views, reviews, stories, pictures and it sometimes even spills over into Frugaldom.

 

If you want to become a part of it, there are a number of things you can do:

 

Follow @Frugaldom on Twitter

Like the Frugaldom page on Facebook

Join the free Frugal Forums

Follow this Frugal Blog

 

Whatever you decide to do, remember we are about helping one another and making life and work affordable. We have challenges galore, including those for frugal entrepreneurs, new cottage industries, crafting, frugal living, writing, blogging, artwork, cooking and starting a new home-based business.

 

Just like Richard Branson, we began out journey with a small newsletter. Unlike Sir Richard Branson, we didn’t turn it all into a highflying multi-national phenomenon, but that, dear friends, would not have been frugal living.

 

I often wonder how much debt is owed by big business and who, ultimately, pays all that back in the event of a collapse. I was saddened to see that in the case of MPG Printgroup, it is likely to be around £10,200,000.00 (according to administrator's report). That has to adversely affect many. It must be affecting every one of the 210 employees and their families. That’s another 210 families that could suddenly be thrown into what this nations deems ‘poverty’ (based on their income) and I think that is just wrong.

 

But I digress – this was supposed to be a blog post about how to get your free daily copy of ‘Now You Know’ to accompany your free daily copy of The Microholding Daily.

 

NYK, Frugaldom

What's In Your Pocket?

Keeping up with Modern Technology

"We want people to celebrate life’s ‘little wins’. We’ve all experienced the momentary thrill of finding money in our pockets that we didn’t know was there... You can spend the money in any way you want, as long as it gives that feel-good feeling to you, or someone you know."

The invite arrived from those lovely people at MoneySupermarket as part of their 'What's In Your Pocket' blogger competition. On acceptance of their money challenge, I was given £20 cash to indulge myself! I think I've made the most of my little windfall!

As an extreme frugaler attempting to live on a revolving budget of less than £4,000 a year, the thought of shelling out £20 on sheer luxuries is a very daunting prospect! I gave up the car in favour of a bike in December 2012 and then lost a chunk of my income at New Year. And lest we forget, there's a major renovation project ticking along, albeit very slowly, while Im also trying to organis my fundraising trip of a lifetime to climb Ben Nevis in May. Budgets are tight, finances have been allocated and contingency plans made. But this spending 'challenge' is different - it's completely free money - it's exciting!

Getting away from it all was certainly my first thought, but that's not the easiest (or cheapest) thing to do when you live in a rural location with no car and no public tranport. It would cost the entire £20 just to get a taxi to the nearest Co-op and back, IF I could locate a taxi! Moving swiftly on...

My microholding project! Creating, establishing and maintaining a debt-free, self-sustainable lifestyle that combines outdoors with indoors in an effort to provide both food and an income - that is the whole basis of Frugaldom. It means working between house and garden while maintaining communications with the outside world. We've no mobile signal here, there's no phoneline in the office/studio space outdoors and this is my current telephone!

I bought this phone/fax/copy machine secondhand for £20 in 1998. It plugs straight into the phone socket and needs electrical connection for the copier or fax to work, but I no longer use those.

Using the telephone depends entirely on being 'there', which is in the livingroom, standing by the window and almost in direct line with the television. If anyone's trying to watch said television at the time a call comes in then they can't, it's as simple as that. Any calls taken or made are from this one location.

So, my frugal friends, you can imagine my sheer delight when I suddenly found myself with £20 to spend on absolutely anything and spotted these!

Yes! I have, at long last, moved up in the technological world of modern telecommunications and have now ordered two magical little handsets so that anyone can take or make a call from anywhere around Frugaldom. Amazing as this may seem, I have been without a cordless phone since we moved here and it is one of the most annoying things EVER when you call a company and they ask you to follow on-screen directions at your computer! My computer isn't even in the same room as the telephone! (I will, of course, keep the old phone so we can make calls during power cuts.)

Not only will these wireless handsets benefit the entire household, they will instantly resolve the problem of not hearing the telephone ringing when up the stairs, in the kitchen or out in the garden. I can simply take a handset with me! :) These will make life so much simpler during the gardening months when trying to juggle veg-growing with waiting in for calls or even just chatting to friends or family.

I am so utterly delighted with my purchase that I'm like the cat that got the cream. Even although many of you may think it's a ludicrous thing to have done with the money, you have to remember that I live a frugal life of make do and mend with zero leeway in the budget for frivolous or luxurious spends. I have no sorce of income apart from wha I earn from home. There are no shops around me, no buses or taxis, no entertainment venues, cinemas, health clubs or fast food takeaways. We don't have a pub nearby and there are none of my friends within safe walk of here after dark. Finding my precious bargain was how it was meant to be - otherwise, why were these reduced to £19.99 on the very day that I found myself with a magical £20 to spend?

The penny change has gone into my charity box, as I'm currently fundraising (see www.mcgonks for details of the Port to Fort Challenge) and saving all my spare change for the local lifeboat.

Thank you, once again, MoneySupermarket for another EPIC, fun money adventure.

NYK in Frugaldom.

Edited In: "We thought you'd like to know that we've dispatched your item(s). Your order is on the way, and can no longer be changed."

YEAH! My new phones are on their way! I am going to feel like a highflying, eccentric, overly-indulgent, wealthy and extremely lucky lady when I am sunbathing on my patio sipping my glass of homemade champagne whilst nibbling on freshly picked strawberries or quail egg salad sandwiches, while chatting to all and sundry from around the globe - possibly even filing my nails in between times. Luxurious convenience is on its way! :)

When Potentially Good Sites go Bad!

Some People Just don't want to be Helped!

I thought long and hard about this before posting, as it actually involves a string of potential civil or criminal offences along the way, mainly the following:

• Misuse of personal information
• Defamation
• Fraudulent impersonation and deceit
• Copyright infringement
• Impersonating a business

So, readers of Frugaldom blog, I am going to quietly slip back into journalistic mode and am presenting this article to you as a factual report, rather than a factually based blog post. Seriously, we cannot take such things lightly and although I have almost dismissed any thoughts of pursuing the matter, I would very much appreciate some feedback.

Here in Frugaldom, we work from home, as you all know, witing, crafting and offering an assortmnent of art-related works, virtual admin and publishing services. We use sites like O-Desk, E-Lance and People Per Hour. So, it comes as no surprise that we occasionally get paid by others to post in forums, while having the benefit of knowing who else is involved in the set up and running of such sites. That's how we found DS and his forum site - when he was advertising to hire posters for his new forum.

Personally, I was not hired to post on the above forums, but I did offer my services free to help out a business partner, who was being paid to post. However, all was not well and things on the site just didn't appear to me to be run in a sufficiently professional manner to warrant any more of my free help. Indeed, one incidence forced me to withdraw my services completely, including removing many of my previous posts. That's when the site administrator decided to log into MY POST and rewrite it!

My typing is not great, of that I shall freely admit, but I do know the difference between 'i' and 'I'. Likewise, I know the difference between 'lose' and 'loose', so the mere fact that he chose to include the phrase, 'saw looser', which I think is supposed to mean 'sore loser', makes this all the more laughable. For the purposes of  providing police evidence, should the need arise, I have screen printed the relevant posts, which include the following proof positive of when the illegal act took place:

"Last edited by djs on Thu Sep 20, 2012 7:08 am, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: Frugaldom leaving That Forum Site and removing/changing posts out of spite. The other users require an explanation to this."

I would like to let it be known, in no uncertain terms, that I did NOT leave 'That Forum Site' out of spite, nor did I write the ridiculous comments in that blog post - I left the site to dissociate myself from what I deemed to be a very unsuitable and unprofessional organisation. Nothing more, nothing less. For Mr Shackleton (I presume) to have felt the petty need to doctor one of my posts in such a despicable manner, reflecting so negatively on my character, I feel no guilt in publishing this report to alert others to the abuse they lay themselves open to when registering to use a forum. I hope DJS's mum and other associated forum members are proud of his achievements. I wish them every success with their project but people need to play be the rules, keep it fair and represent honesty.

I'm trusting the forum owner will have the good grace to remove the incriminating posts from www.thatforumsite.com but also hope he is aware of the fact that the pages are now cached by search engines and logged as evidence.

Frugaldom.

For anyone interested, here is the link to the post that alleges to be written by Frugaldom/NYK Media

Micro McGonks? How Much Cuter can it Get?

When Recycling Develops into an Obsession!

Good evening readers and followers of all things frugal. As you will know, my obsession with challenge setting has continued to flourish over the years, each Hogmanay (31st December) bringing a whole list of new challenges to be faced during the following year. 2013 will be no different, except that we launched the Frugaleur (frugal entrepreneur) Challenge in late November, in order to allow ourselves adequate preparation time without being hampered (pardon the pun) by the annual festive celebrations. 2013 is going to be my biggest push towards zero waste, combining it with my eco-arts project to recycle as much as possible into something worthy of developing into a micro-business. I'm not looking to stock superstores, I'm just looking to make the most of whatever I can in the hope of earning a few pennies extra towards the upkeep of Frugaldom.

 

Clan McGonk went 'live' at the weekend, which is when I made my first ever sample of the furry little critturs available to view online. I like to refer to these as my frugal pets and I'm sure you can see why it is so easy to become attached to them. But they have many secrets to divulge over the coming year. They have places to go, people to see and the whole wide world is their playpark, assuming anyone wants to get involved. Feel free to browse the Frugaldom Store at http://frugaldom.ebid.net and I will happily sell you a McGonk that's been handmade here in Thrift Cottage, Frugaldom. For those of you who prefer to make your own, I'll put together a simple to follow 'how to' post very soon.

 

This evening, I found myself forced to play my next hand early, after someone mentioned keychain McGonks. So that is what you are looking at in the top photograph... but I call them micro-McGonks. This one has a keyring attached, so he can always be seen hanging around the place, looking cute and looking towsled. These are much smaller than the McGonks, as you can see by the first photo and, once again, I used shredded paper as stuffing, a button for a nose, scrap of fabric for his hat and then added the luxury of wobbly eyes and a tiny pompom. So there you have it - Frugaldom is not only the home to Clan McGonk, we have also developed our very own micro-Mcgonk. As many of you know, microholding is one of the other things that we are attempting here - everything 'smallholding' but on a much tinier scale.

 

Once again, I would like to thanks all of those friends and associates who are kind enough to donate me their offcuts. I do have to make one not so frugal admission, though. I invested another £6.44 into my 2013 Frugaleur Challenge after I spotted some fabulous off cuts of furry fabric listed on eBid. I guess I should really give you a run down of how my participation in the Frugaleur Challenge is going, so here it is, as briefly as possible.

 

2013 Frugaleur Challenge - to set up a frugal enterprise that will help pay some bills or, at worst, convert a home-based hobby into a self-funding passtime (so it doesn't drain any of your much-needed financial resources).

 

Starting 'investment' limit = £50 maximum

 

Spends to date = £30.22 including .com and .co.uk domain names

 

Sales to date = £21.77 after deduction of PayPal fees

 

The above means that of my original £50, I currently have a balance of £41.55 and I am hoping to be able to recoup the full £50 before the 1st January. At that point, the hobby of recycling one thing into another will need to sustain itself. Fortunately, the act of writing the little stories for the series doesn't cost anything more than my time and the brain-ache of trying to keep everything interesting and entertaining while thinking 'recycling'!

 

Hoping a few of you will join me for the McGonk-making workshop soon and I'll look forward to sharing my frugal fun.

 

Frugaldom

www.frugaldom.com

 

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Moneymaking Challenges

2013 Frugaleur Challenge

12th - 18th November is Global Entrepreneurship Week so this is a good week to launch our new challenge.

With just over 7 weeks remaining of 2012 I decided it was time to start planning ahead and setting some new challenges for 2013. Times are getting hard, income is at an all time low and spending at an all time high, so I need to look especially hard at redressing this balance before things get out of hand. OK, I've no rent or mortgage to pay now but the truth is, there wouldn't be enough income to cover rent if it had to be paid! Something, somewhere, just isn't adding up correctly.

 

Prices are escalating on everything while the Government has allowed an extra £75 BILLION of new money to be pumped into the system, diluting the value of the pound as it goes. They don't seem to reflect this devaluation when they spout off inflation figures, so we're left wondering how much our pound is going to be worth by the time we reach retirement age, especially if we fail to generate sufficient income to make up all these shortfalls. It's scary stuff!

 

Fired up with enthusiasm, I set to work dusting down old projects that had to be shelved in the past for a variety of reasons, mainly personal circumstances and finances. I began the relaunch of www.scottishwebdirectory.com and hope to gradually fill the pages with everything Scottish and I'm equally hopeful of incorporating a few affiliate links that may cover the costs of running the project, plus earn a bit extra. We're talking pennies here, not pounds... even if the site only generates 35p profit each day, that's enough to cover the cost of annual Class 2 National Insurance Contributions. Of course, it doesn't help when so few people actually want to be linked to a free directory - this part has me baffled! I don't understand why people wouldn't want even a tiny bit of extra promotion for their own businesses, especially when it is offered free. (Comments regarding this peculiar state of affairs are very welcome.)

 

Next up, I need to plan ahead for the frugal living and frugal working challenges that are conducted through the Frugaldom forums. Sometimes I wonder if it's worth it? Nobody actually needs the forum, few read it and even fewer post on it. It's a bit like blogging - there's no real purpose to it other than sharing parts of your daily routine and lifestyle with a handful of strangers in the hope that it entertans, amuses, enlightens or even helps them in some small way. Money isn't the be all and end all of this life. Which brings me back to income.

 

Love or loath money, we all need it, but it isn't always easy to find the enthusiasm, determination or even the confidence to launch yourself headlong into a new business venture or land yourself a well-paid job that you love doing. That's why the frugal working challenges are kept low budget, in an attempt to make them affordable to all.

 

Just as we have frugal living challenges, so, too, we have frugal working challenges, based on the pricipal that anyone can be a entrepreneurs, even when following a frugal lifestyle. Anyone can set themselves up a frugal micro-business with very little cash outlay. Indeed, the 2012 challenge had a maximum start-up budget of just £10. Succeeding in turning a profit and generating a significant income seems to be down to some sort of single-mindedness that tells you to keep going, against all odds. To this end, I'd like to remind you that Sir Richard Branson began his enterprising rise to fame and fortune off the back of, I think, £3 he borrowed from his mum back around 1966. This, he used to pay for the printing of his first 'magazine'.

 

Opportunities to become a frugal entrepreneur, or fugaleur, as I now call them, are all around us, we simply need to grasp the opportunities as soon as we spot them. Had someone set aside £3 back in 1966, their money would now be worth just under £50 (plus whatever interest accrued) so that's the starting figure for the all new 2013 Frugaleur Challenge.

 

If you would like to 'play along', you'll find details at www.frugaleur.com along with a link to the relevant section of the Frugaldom forums. Could 2013 be YOUR year?

The Great 2012 Frugaldom Financial Challenge

Join us in the great 2012 Frugaldom Challenge.
Money saving, cost cutting and frugal living.

Knowing your bottom line while living and working within your means is a great lifestyle. It enables you to pursue the lifestyle you choose at a price that's affordable to both you and your business. Set your sites on making 2012 more affordable.

Beat any recession by knowing your bottom line, both in the home and at work. The cost of living is one thing, but few ever stop to consider the cost of working, financial or otherwise.

Set your budget based on what you already know and join us in the great Frugaldom Challenge in 2012.

Frugaldom - Kingdom of the Frugal Entrepreneur! It is NYK Media's free forum for frugal living, self-sufficient(ish) microholding and moneysaving in all things. It is home to the great 2012 Frugaldom Challenge.

We have been running these challenges online for the past five years, encouraging small businesses and individuals from throughout the UK and overseas to pursue their dreams of living and working within a debt free environment, striving for a better, happier life.

By analysing all our costs, prioritising all our needs over wants and focussing our attention on how we, as real people, can adapt to what many call frugal living (and working), it is possible to free up precious time that can be spent elsewhere, be it with family and friends, pursuing hobbies you may never have imagined possible or exploring the realities of world travel.

Naturally, it follows on that this challenge will also free up much-needed cash that can be spent elsewhere.

Regardless of your current financial situation, it is always possible to improve upon it. Perhaps you have been burdened with debts or have had to face the prospect of bankruptcy, or maybe you are unable to pursue a fulltime career because of family committments, health issues or other circumstances beyond your control. There are countless reasons for finding yourself in a financially precarious situation, but there are always escape routes. We simply need to know where to look.

By joining us in the 2012 Frugaldom Challenge, you will be joining like-minded individuals currently engaged in many different real-life situations.

We have maintained a very dedicated following, each with their own story to tell, but now the time has come to spread our wings and encourage many more to pursue their dream of a better life.

Businesses opportunities have been created from home, debts have been cleared, health and fitness issues overcome, mortgages paid off in full, houses bought for cash and even the dream of owning a racehorse has been realised.

Frugal living and working may not be for everyone but for many it is their lifeline to future security and happiness.

Knowing that all important bottom line and then designing a new lifestyle around it is what can make dreams come true.

NYK Media has created a landscape of opportunity into which anyone can venture, where like-minded others go about their daily lives, sharing their trials and tribulations, supporting their fellow Frugaldom challengers and sharing an enormous amount of information, help and companionship.

This is a completely free forum with an accompanying blog where anyone can participate at whatever level they feel most comfortable. It can be as anonymous as you want, with no need to divulge personal details. All that you require is a username and the will to succeed.

Make 2012 your year. With 366 days, there's plenty of time to leap at the chance of taking charge of your finances in a way that will reap you longterm benefits.

NYK Media invites you to take this free opportunity to become part of a great community.

Join us now at http://www.frugaldom.com/

NYK Media
www.scottishmultimedia.co.uk

Tales from the Frugaleur (Frugal Entrepreneur).

First month of 2011 almost over and the real challenge begins on 1st February. I've invited a few of the Frugaldom forum members, Twitter followers and Facebook friends to join me in this mini challenge - few are responding.

The challenge is to start with £10 cash and use it to begin our journey towards becoming frugaleurs - frugal entreprenuers. Can we turn a profit on our original investment within 10 weeks. The object of the game is to generate sustainable profits, but this is just the start. In order to beat the banks, we need only increase the £10 by around 6.7p, so it really shouldn't be much of a challenge.

So, time for me to clear the way to getting started for Tuesday 1st February 2011. I'll be documenting every step of the way, so feel free to comment, join in or just keep reading for the entertainment value alone.

There's a dedicated forum thread for this challenge HERE. Please feel free to visit.

Join us in the fun, frugal forum at http://www.frugaldom.co.uk/
Read the Frugaldom Blog at http://www.frugaldom.com/
Follow Frugaldom on www.twitter.com/frugaldom

Life as a Frugal Entrepreneur: Self Sufficient Working

The Frugaldom understanding of self-sufficiency is one of self-sustainability. It's about earning your own living and then spending accordingly, living within your means, regardless of how great or how meagre these may be. It's a lifestyle choice. Frugaldom is freedom from debt by way of living and working in frugal ways.

Over the past few years we have organised various challenges relevant to moneysaving, clearing any debts and building a lifestyle that fits in with the whole ethos of sustainability. With a little bit of planning, this lifestyle can enbrace greener living or a more environmentally-friendly way of conducting business within the household and workplace. Frugaldom is about taking on the responsibility of providing for yourself and, hopefully, being able to share skills, goods and services in a way that can both benefit others and cover all associated costs.

True, cash free self-sufficiency, in my opinion, isn't legally possible within the UK. In order to live and work, we need shelter and that shelter incurs a tax. In order to live we need food and water - we could attempt to rear and grow all of our own food and pump our water from a well, but in order to do so there are welfare issues and legislation to be considered - these things cost money. We still need to earn and, as long as we earn, we need to pay taxes where and when due. Some might trade and barter or move around but, at the end of the day, everyone needs an income and earing that income costs money.

True Frugaldom means the ability to provide all things for the household in order to sustain a chosen lifestyle and afford everything that it entails. There should be no need for State hand outs but neither should there be an aversion to seeking financial help where and when genuinely needed.  In this respect, it is time to start building our self-sustainable business in order to help secure our future.  We are our own employers, without working (for ourselves) we can neither pay ourselves nor keep a business running.

On the surface, it's always handy to grow whatever fruit and vegetables you can, as everything you can produce from home is one less thing you need to spend money on, allowing you to focus your hard-earned cash elsewhere. Over the past few years we have documented the costs involved in setting up a garden to produce as much as possible, including eggs from the assorted poultry. We can make each micro-project self sustaining or cash-neutral; hens lay eggs, selling the surplus can pay for their keep. Quail lay eggs and are quickly hatched and reared - the sales of surplus birds and eggs can cover the costs. Cash generated from any source can be used to neutralise each of these individual budgets, each of these projects can be built up to combine into one business. It's what microholding is about - all these small, self-financing pieces of the jigsaw fitting together to form a much bigger picture - that picture is your business of the future.

Christmas and all the festivities have now passed and we're halfway through the first month of the new year. For those who are still relying on other people's money, the credit card and bank statements will be arriving, reminding you of the dire state of your finances. But not for all of us. For the debt free, each statement is a reminder that there is an alternative route, one that can and should be followed carefully if Frugaldom is to be achieved.

I have estimated that for every £1,000 it costs you to exist each year, you NEED to save £2.75 each and every day that you're not earning. So, if life is costing you £12,000 a year, you need to save £33 for every day that you won't be earning, weekends included. The figures are simple - the less life costs you, the less pressure you are under to earn or save extra.

Building a business isn't so different. Everything has to pay for itself, some things need to pay more to cover the inanimate objects that house them, some need to cover the cost of storage and distribution. In the case of gardening, plants need to cover the cost of the patch of land they take up each and every day it takes them to grow - fertiliser, protection from pests, time in planting, tending and harvesting... consider all costs, don't ever assume that because you did it that your time is completely free.

Any legislation governing what you do needs to be accounted for, just like the costs involved in owning a car to enable you to go about your daily life. If that car costs you £500 to have it parked in the driveway for 365 days of the year then that's almost £1.37 that needs to be earned every single day without even driving the car. (The figures get much bigger when you factor in the percentage that's needed to cover tax and National Insurance etc.) Only by analysing the true costs of living and working can we begin to understand the basic principles of self-sustainability and self-sufficiency. After 10+ years of lifestyle planning, 2011 is my year of Frugaldom business planning.

Fel free to follow Frugaldom on Twitter or join me in the Frugaldom Forums

A Bit More About the 2011 Frugaldom Challenge

2011 will be year 5 for many of the followers of the Frugal Living Challenge, so here's an introduction for anyone wanting to join us in the new year. It's all about getting out of debt, living within your means and making savings wherever you can. For some, it has now developed towards self sufficiency, becoming stay at home parents, retiring early or else setting up their own homebased business. Whatever you decide is right for you, be it business or homelife, a little bit of austerity goes a long, long way.


Frugaldom is set in rural southwest Scotland, so the budget we set here is not always suitable for everyone, but it's readily adaptable to suit all budgets. For example, we don't have superfast broadband, we don't live on a bus route and we don't live within easy walking distance of any shops, banks or post offices. The bins are over a mile from the house, so recycling and a zero-waste attitude towards most things is very helpful.


 If you have a basic knowledge of spreadsheets, you are welcome to download a copy of my simplified budget HERE. It excludes the cost of keeping the garden and livestock, as these things must be self-funding in order for them to become part of our self-sufficiency challenge and part of the homebased business.


I work with the free programmes available to download at http://www.openoffice.org/ but the spreadsheet has been saved into an Excel document for ease of use. Open Office allows for many different formats, so it's a very frugal office suite.

How to get started.


Join us in the Frugaldom challenge forum so you can keep in contact and compare notes wth others with similar aspirations. We're all in it to cut costs, kill debt, increase savings and simplify life. The 2011 set of challenges also incorporates setting up homebased cottage-style industries, so there will be plenty of information available - good, bad and downright ugly. The good life isn't all good, it gets messy and it gets complicated but we can all work though the problems together.


You need to calculate your entire annual income then deduct all unavoidable/neccesary bills and debt payments etc to reach your actual budget amount that is left for running the household/living.

If you work, any costs relating to having that job (transport, lunches, childcare, work clothing etc) are classed as unavoidable costs. These items are essential in order for you to do that job and are nothing to do with the cost of living. Deduct all of these from your annual income.

Once you have a figure that's left over for all payments you have control of, then you work back through a prioritised list, starting with necessary things like power, heating, water, household bills, food etc. In my opinion, getting those priorities right is key to the success of coming in within your budget while keeping up with necessary bills. If there's anything left over, use it to kill off any debt starting with the one that costs you the most by way of interest or other charges. If you have small debts, I prefer to kill these off first so it's fewer payments going out the bank.

My personal budget is £4,000 so I prioritise it from most important needs to basic, non-essential wants.

Rent (or mortgage), council tax and water payments are non-negotiable, so these are the first things deducted from the annual total.

Any debt payments that need to be made on a regular basis - loans, HP, contracts.

The cost of your job (if relevant) as per above.

Regular, essential prescription medications.

Any other regular, unavoidable payments

Once you have deducted all of these things, you should arrive at your annual housekeeping budget.

Always Prioritise: Needs, not wants.

Group 1
Food - basic staple diet, zero rated VAT
Essential toiletries
Electricity
Oil/Gas/Coal/Logs (where applicable)
Basic clothing
Home insurance (where applicable)
Essential travel - bus, taxi, car share etc

Group 2
Baby Food/Formula
Disposable nappies
Foods & drink incurring VAT @ 17.5% (20% after Jan 2011)
Telephone
Internet
Mobile Phone
Television (basic Freeview)
Non-essential travel - bus, taxi, car share etc


Group 3
Household pets
Gifts
Hobbies
Subscriptions (TV, newspapers, magazines, films)
Holidays
Beauty & Health related
Cosmetics
Costume jewellery
Socialising
Entertaining
Eating out
Alcohol
Cigarettes
Cars
Caravan/campervan/Tent
Private health
Private pension plans
Personal insurance
Timeshare
Shares in racehorses
Off the peg designer wear
Latest electronic gadgets
etc., etc., etc...


Group 4
Designer fashion - direct from the London, Paris, New York, Milan catwalks
Fine jewellery
Original art
Gold
Executive class cars
Cruises
Cosmetic surgery
Racehorses
Holiday home
Yacht
Wine collection
Country estate
Helicopter
Private jet
You get the picture...


Group 1 relates to things we couldn't or shouldn't live without, although we are still in control of how much we spend on each.


Group 2 comprises of quite basic items but, to someone having to really cut down to help avoid bankruptcy or at risk of losing the roof over their head, these things can be classed as non-essentials. We can survive without them.


Group 3 is made up of examples of things that are extras to running a frugal household - luxuries that many cannot afford but we tend to indulge in a few of them when the cash is available. But we need to always keep in mind the consequences of spending on these things at the expense of clearing debts or adding to our savings.


Group 4 is just a few ideas for once you're completely debt free and have accrued enough savings to enjoy some decadent living. Where Group 2 may read 'George' brand from Asda, Group 4 would read something like Chanel, Gucci or Prada etc.


Anyway, you all get the picture. These are examples of how I would prioritise sample lists, but I'm not suggesting everyone differentiates in the same way I do. By my way of thinking, Group 3 items should never feature in any budget where there are arrears on any form of debt. Household pets is a very tricky one for many. Obviously, if the pets are already there and you can't bear to part with them, allowances need to be made and all animal-related costs incorporated into the budget, but it will probably be at the expense of something else. Gift buying is another tricky one but a true frugaler would be able to make something of some description, even if it was just some baking, homemade preserves or handcrafted items. We shouldn't really need a budget for gifts but we all like to give them, so best be aware of what you're prepared to spend without it affecting how much you can afford on Group 2 items. Worse still, it should never affect the ability to pay Group 1 items.


Please let me know if you think I have prioritised anything into the wrong category or if I've missed out any necessary basics. Also, please remember that this is just my personal thoughts on the matter. Your priorities may be different from mine.

Join us in the fun, frugal forum at
http://www.frugaldom.co.uk/