Your birthday is an event that comes once (or, if you’re the Queen, twice) a year. Other than being a blatant reminder that you’re getting older, and are thus another year closer to death, it’s also a good excuse to spoil yourself with some much needed treats. However, if splashing out isn’t your thing, it’s also…
Tag: £5
The library: a money-saving miracle of Christmas
December has barely begun and already I could fill an article with ideas on how to haemorrhage money whilst attempting to have a ‘holly, jolly Christmas’. From polystyrene cups of mulled wine at £4 to fairground rides for a fiver, you name it – I’ve been fleeced. But kids need entertaining over the festive period…
It’s a #GiveOrGift kind of Christmas
Christmas is a time for giving, right? A lot of work places celebrate the festivities with a classic game of Secret Santa. Such a game often results in the receiving of gifts that will probably either be re-gifted or, if they’re that rubbish, might just be binned, mentioning no names. Times this by the amount…
Bookworms unite! How to buy books on a budget
Last year I had to give myself a stern talking to. My book-buying habit was getting out of control. For some people it’s shoes, or make-up or you know, hard drugs, but for me I just couldn’t resist popping into any bookshop I passed, and I rarely came out empty handed. My bookshelves rejoiced but…
Tempted to host foreign language students for extra cash? I did (and survived)
Whenever the bank balance looks unhealthy, I use the spare room to host students and teachers from local language schools. They stay for a fortnight, you give them bed and board, a packed lunch and the bus timetable. In return, you get paid (around £250). This works well, if you have extra space in your…
How to brew your own beer
Beer is ace. I interviewed my best mate and all round good egg, Andy, who has mastered the knack of making tasty ales of all descriptions. How long have you been brewing? About three years, I started out with kits. How long, or how many attempts, did it take til you made something drinkable? I…
Recycling rage? Sometimes saving the planet is an expensive business
What a game this recycling is turning into. Here I am, yours truly, a very keen recyclist (is that a word?) While I use lots of rubbish to make pieces of fine art, with all other rubbish I have to admit defeat and commit to the recycling pile in my cupboard. All the time I am hoping that…
How to avoid the ‘Mamas & Papas Money Spell’…and still feel like a good mum
My daughter turned four last week, and I think it’s taken me until now to wean myself off the retailer’s ‘baby bundles’ nectar. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t just the hormones (and then the giddy new mum feeling) that made me splurge; I’ve always been a seasoned shopper. But somehow the minute I fell…
Glutton for gluten-free? The true costs of my coeliac’s disease
Right, shall we clear up a couple of things early on? I am a coeliac. This means that I have coeliac’s disease. I am, consequently, medically intolerant to gluten. I am not doing it as a diet and I am not self-diagnosed. Thank goodness we got that sorted out. It’s not that I have anything…
Running tips for absolute beginners
Obviously I am the odd one out among the Mouthy bloggers who all seem to be part of a running club, or training for a marathon, or at least running to work every day. I occasionally run for the train. And sometimes when I’m at the gym, I also do 10 minutes on a treadmill.…