Frugal january

I have been using everything we have this month and still have lots more food in the freezer i am going to see just how long i can make it last , not because we have too but because there are quite a few things i want to get done this year , I want to makeover the front garden, New kitchen at a bargain price and a new cooker. so any money saved will go towards all this.

Yesterday i picked up three pastry flan cases from the co op 10p each , They were a month out of date but i figured they are only flour , fat and sugar so guessed they would be ok ,I made custard with old fashioned custard powder , I just made it a bit thicker than normal , then topped it off with tinned peaches , I don't normally buy convenience foods  unless they save me money. It tastes lovely too.

 But i wouldn't be without my store cupboards , we are not within walking distance of shops and that together with health issues sometimes prevent us going out .

This is just one cupboard.

This is what i made from my cupboards this month.

I made all this from store cupboard last year too  

  Some more bargains this week , The chocolate was out of date too but i used that same decision to buy it as the pastry cases that sugar is a preservative 

 The Art Deco Mirror was £2.00 at a jumble sale last week. 

The sign was £2.00 at a local bric a brac market its not original but i don't mind i love it  and its fits well with my other signs in the kitchen.

So this got me in the mood for rearranging the shelves in the living room 

Then i have been overwintering my begonias with this frame i knocked together out of scrap wood.

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A versatile recipe

This is  frugal/time saving  recipe that i use for all the cakes/puddings below , It's a one stage recipe 

I am old school and use pounds and ounces, 

6 oz  butter , this must be at room temperature and the consistency of really soft margarine ( which i never use in any of my baking it's always butter for the best taste) 

If it's not very soft use the defrost setting on a microwave until it is.

6 oz sugar,

8oz  SR flour.  

3 large eggs.

1 1/2 tsp baking powder.

3 tbsp milk 

vanilla essence.

put it all together in a mixer or hand held mixer and mix until its a dropping consistency. I bake it on gas 4 in the centre of the oven until it's cooked. 

Add tinned/fresh fruit  , top with a quick jell 

Add Apples  and cinnamon to make dorset Apple cake.

Add fruit or jam to make baked puddings.

line a pastry case with jam then top with sponge , Ice when cooled , My take on bakewell tart without the almonds 

Lemon drizzle cake.

Butterfly buns 

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Another update

For the people who don't follow me on Instagram , Here are just a couple of things i have done in my blogging absence  

The cupboard i had my linen in that was  given to me by my friend mel , I loved it but it was starting to look tired so here are the before and after photos.

This is it now.

We used the william morris style wallpaper to decorate the chimney breast in the living room , The spare was used to line the cupboard.

I made some curtains for our bedroom , If you remember i was waiting for some to come along from a jumble sale or car boot , It didn't happen , Then my friend mel gave me a lot of fabric of which this butterfly fabric in blue i used to make the curtains , she gave me the linings fabric and tape too , 
She is amazing , 
so they didn't cost anything but my time to make.
I have some fabric left so will cover the ottoman when i get around to it. They fit in well with the blue and white of the  bedroom.

I have also been trying to find  an Eiderdown to fit in there instead of my red one that has lost a lot of feathers , Over the past year i ordered three , not one of them fit just right either by size or design needless to say  i got my money back by re selling them for a little bit more than i paid for them to cover all the fees and postage.
Here are two of them.
So now i am going to have a go at making one so its just right.

II did find however one for the spare room that fits in well it was damaged  so i got some lace butterfly  repaired the holes and used the butterflies to cover the stitching .

This was my last jumble sale haul , nothing was over £1.00

I wanted to share my best christmas presents , The watch was off my daughter with some heated rollers plus lots of other gifts and the brooch is off my friend mel .

There are lots of bargains to be had in the shops with food after christmas i managed to get this marzipan , Its now in the freezer like everything i buy that's reduced.

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Popping back into blog land to see if i want to be back

Hello , If you are still there any of my old 110 followers 

A Happy New year To you all 

It's been a difficult year one way or another but i am hoping to put it behind me and have a better 2020 , Christmas was really quiet and upsetting as i lost my dad in April so it's the first christmas without him , I didn't make or bake anything for christmas this year 

 To be honest i have not been in the mood but after sampling bought christmas cakes , biscuits  etc i have decided that's not going to happen again 

 I have plans for next year i am 60 in july and want to pass my driving test before i am too old, I am struggling with the hazard perception though, My husbands health issues made me realise there needs to be more than one driver ,I miss jumble sales and car boots  we don't go anywhere now that will stress him out.

As you can see from my photo all my grey is nearly through  and i am happy with it and the money i save , I have lots of things that i want done to he house in the new year so  every penny counts , I have still bought some beautiful vintage items which if i carry on blogging i will share with you , Also my bargains , baking and creations 

This sewing box was a gift to myself for christmas. 

We had to have a walk in shower fitted because my husband loses his balance, I hated it but its not to bad now i have my bits and bobs around me.

This was an absolute bargain  £10 from a charity shop.

The garden looked amazing this year i wish i could find my before photos so you can see the difference 

 Its the front garden that needs doing next year so will do before and after photos of that.

My Dad 

xxxx