Everyone wants to save as much of their hard earned money as possible, and with rising costs affecting most households, saving has become more challenging and more important.
Luckily, saving money can sometimes be simple and might even be fun. It’s not always sacrifices and going without, sometimes it can mean learning a new hobby in order to do things yourself. Other times it can be oddly satisfying to cut back when you realise how wasteful you were being.
Let’s look at some ways you can save some cash…
Learning A New Skill
If you’re someone who has a particular knack for getting handy or creative, taking up a hobby like upholstery or woodworking could make use of what you have, rather than splashing out on new furnishings.
You may hate your current sofa, but reupholstering it is better than spending hundreds or perhaps even thousands on a new one.
With the help of some tools and materials, you can add some new padding to the inside of the sofa, and a new fabric covering on the outside, leaving things brand new without breaking the bank.
Tools and materials needed include:
- Upholstery beginner kit (to start you off or you could buy everything separately)
- Hammer (or magnetic hammer for easier experience)
- Tack claw
- Upholstery staple gun (vary in size and power depending on thickness of material used)
- An array of nails, staples, straight needles and curved needles in different lengths
Insulate And Get The Most Out Of Heating
Heating is a big topic when it comes to saving money. You shouldn’t have to suffer in a bitter cold, so start insulating instead.
Simple draught excluders can help to stop heat escaping under doors, you could even upholster a cushioned one – this could actually be a great first project for beginners.
Draught excluders can be woollen fabric or adhesive strips, depending on their placement. If you have a chimney that isn’t used but lets it cool in, one of the best things to use is a product called a chimney sheep. Its woollen material is breathable, meaning you are less likely to have condensation problems.
Go Through Your Subscriptions
It might sound obvious, but checking through all of your subscriptions could help you identify ones you don’t use and cut them out. You might not think it’ll save much, but each subscription could be costing you £100+ a year.
Do you really use Spotify or Apple Music that much? When was the last time you used a specific streaming service such as Netflix or Disney+? If you haven’t used it in the last month, it’s a waste of money. If you’re paying monthly rather than a yearly deal, see if cancelling makes any difference to your routine.
To really save some money, you could try out subscribing to Netflix (or whichever streaming service you use) for just one month, reactivating your account whenever something you really want to watch has been added. Who knows, not having a subscription every month might even help you decide what to watch, as there’ll be more pressure to watch it before time runs out!
It’s not just TV and movies, everything is a subscription service these days. It can add up, becoming some of our biggest outgoings.
Think about things you don’t use enough to justify paying for – are you getting the most out of your gym membership? Or is it better to cancel it, and do a workout at home instead? You could save £20 a month, or £240 a year!
The same could be said for online subscription services for PlayStation, Xbox and so on. Are you gaming enough to justify that £15 every month? Or is it better to just get the subscription for a month you’ll actually use it, maybe when a big game comes out, and cancel it after.
Turn Off Electrics and Get Smart Devices
You should make sure you turn plugs off at the wall when not in use, as even a phone cable that isn’t currently charging your phone will still use some power. To make turning plugs off easier, try using smart plugs that enable you to switch everything off remotely. Standby mode is also a big offender, so turn things off fully instead.
Don’t forget to check the efficiency of appliances that you buy too, there’s usually a rating from A to G.
Start Saving
Whether you want to learn a new hobby or not, these are just a few suggestions to help you save, so try some out and see the difference it makes.
