SKINT IN THE CITY

Hey Skint pals, 

A quick post from me here as I just have to let you know about this great offer. Shell is currently offering the chance to buy £20 of fuel for just £10, via offeroftheday.co.uk. Here’s the link you need.

This is limited to the first 100,000 buyers, so get in there fast if you fancy it! You’ll receive a Shell loyalty card in the post which you use to claim your whopping fuel discount. It can be spent on fuel at any Shell service station.

I’ve just grabbed the deal – I’ll go now and let you do the same! 

Best of luck.

Skint xx

PS – If you miss this deal, here’s a post I did before about saving money on fuel in other ways.

Hey Skint pals,

What are you up to this weekend? Shopping for diamonds, anyone? In keeping with the living the high life on a shoestring tagline I occasionally like to bring you news of how you can really splash out for less. A little bit frugal, a little bit Fendi, that’s us Skint girls. And when we think of splashing out, few things make bigger waves than some nice shiny diamonds, right? So when the folks at Diamond Manufacturers approached me with this guest post about how to save money on diamond jewellery I thought that you might be interested in learning how to get your rocks for less.

After all, with the Easter bank holiday weekend fast approaching, many couples will be using the extra days to take a romantic break and pledge their undying love. Marriage proposals always spike at bank holiday weekends, and even if that’s not your style, you might just decide to buy yourself a cheeky little sparkler after reading this. If any of you do decide to bag yourself some rocks over Easter you will let us know won’t you? Even better, send in the pics!

Over to you Diamond Manufacturers:

Cheaper than you think

Everyone’s surely heard the phrase ‘Diamonds are a girl’s best friend’, right? It’s easy to see their appeal: clean, luxurious and great to look at even for the millionth time. The cost of diamond jewellery can be too much for many people looking for that perfect gift, but believe it or not it is possible to buy it on a tighter budget!

Tying the knot for less

If, for example, you’re buying an engagement ring, there are a few tricks you could use in order to get a great piece of diamond jewellery without breaking the bank. Vashi Dominguez from Diamond Manufacturers offers these tips to save money on diamond jewellery:

• Choose a diamond that’s less than 1ct or 0.5ct – this will save you a lot of money without making too much of a difference in the diamond’s quality.
• Diamonds that are nearly colourless rather than completely colourless are cheaper, and when used in jewellery, the difference is hardly noticeable.
• Don’t be put off by any stones that have minor imperfections – again, they can hardly be seen without use of a powerful microscope, and are much, much cheaper.
• Using a bezel setting will help to make a diamond appear bigger. This will mean you might be getting more for less. It circles the stone in the ring.
• Diamonds set in white gold rather than platinum is cheaper, yet few people would know the difference!
• Try to set a ring with some side stones – this makes diamond jewellery look more impressive without setting you back too much.
• Buy your diamonds online. This lets you easily compare prices online to find the best deal and can help save you as much as 80%.
• If size really matters to you, consider buying a diamond that’s pear-shaped. This gives the illusion of looking larger, so you get more sparkle for your  cash.

What about you, Skint pals? Ever snagged a bargain on some serious rocks? Or did you find another novel way of declaring your undying love? We’d love to know.

Have a great weekend.

Skint x

Hey Skint pals,

Happy Sunday to you all! Hope this coming week is a good one. What would make it brilliant for you? Winning £300 maybe? You might just have hit lucky here then! This week, Skint in the City has worked together with fellow bloggers, The Savvy Scot and The Money Principle, to bring you a bonanza-tastic chance to win money – £300 cash no less, sponsored by myvouchercodes.co.uk! Yep, 300 smackers (more than $450) to spend on whatever takes your fancy.  Sadly, I’m barred from entering, but if I could I’d be planning to put the winnings towards a little Easter getaway.

Not being the most organised type, my holiday planning generally kicks off around May, when many of the best bargains have gone. But this year I am smugness itself, having already booked my Easter hols. Admittedly I can take little of the credit for getting my finger out so promptly. You see, this year we are going away with a couple of pals and their families and it’s their get-up-and-go that galvanised me into action – otherwise I’d likely still be dithering over holiday websites till a week before take-off.

I’ve spoken before, here, about the many benefits – financial, social and others – of renting a villa with pals and this Easter we’re doing it. Six adults, six kids in a villa in Portugal. Chipping in this way really makes a massive difference in terms of cost – a six bedroom villa with a pool and great views, split three ways, is both cheaper and far more luxurious than any of us could have gone for on our own. And by buying and cooking food together, eating in round the table etc we’ll be saving money without trying too hard. The other massive benefit of this type of break I think is that children seem to magically disappear when they get together with others, banding together and generally steering clear of the adults all day. More fun for them and more chill-out time for the grown-ups too.

Wait up – serendipity alert! I’m writing this in a cafe and, as fate would have it, the people next to me are, at this very second, talking about Portugal. The guy is saying that his sister is thinking of buying somewhere in Portugal since prices are reasonable and the Portuguese people are lovely. So, there you have it – my holiday choice validated by a bit of impromptu eavesdropping! If you won the £300, what holiday destination or activity would you put it towards? Let me know by entering the competition.You can choose to just enter once or – by Liking, Tweeting etc – you can gain lots more chances to enter. Just click here to enter:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Best of luck pals. Skint x

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Photo credit: Bleacher Nation

Hello Skint pals and a big welcome to all of Skint’s new readers, who signed up after reading the Huffington Post piece last week. Delighted to have you here.

Something different today. In the first of an occasional series of guest posts, freelance energy writer Tara West gives us her take on ways to save money on staying cosy this winter. Over to you Tara . . .

When the temperatures drop and the days seem to get shorter, your first instinct may be to get home in a hurry and blast the heat so that you and your family can stay warm. However, you may start to regret your energy-dependent heating once you get the electric and gas bill.

There are ways for you to stay warm without burning through your household budget. Follow these six tips for a warm winter.

1. Use the fireplace.

If you’re lucky enough to have a fireplace indoors, you should consider using it more often. Not only is this an excellent way to cut down on your heating bill but it can also bring your family together for some quality time. Make your fireside evenings extra special with a warm drink and holiday treats, and your family will soon be longing for cosy winter nights even in the warmer seasons.

2. Get a thermostat with a timer.

These simple devices can go a long way in saving you money on your energy bill, especially during the winter. You can programme your thermostat to operate at a lower temperature during the day when everyone is at work or school so that you never have to bother with changing the temperature manually. A good rule of thumb is to keep it between 60 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit while you are at home and to lower it to the 50s when you are away.

3. Bundle up!

Even when you are inside, wear layers of comfortable clothing to keep your body temperature up. Investing in a few pieces made of wool or fleece for your winter wardrobe will ensure that you always have a sweater or two to slip on when you get chilly. And don’t forget about long johns and thick socks for your lower extremities.

4. Compare energy rates.

Even the most frugal homeowners sometimes find that their bills are too high. If you have taken every measure possible to lower your energy bill and it is still too high, consider switching to a different provider. You can look online to uswitch to compare energy prices, including your current rate, with other companies in your local area.

5. Fill in cracks and holes.

Brr. Don't even go there.

One of the most costly mistakes a homeowner can make is to not maintain the insulation of his or her home. Make sure to insulate the usually drafty places such as the attic, and check the weather-stripping on all the doors in the house. If your windows are made of single-pane glass, you may also want to consider replacing them with insulated glass.

6. Change your light bulbs.

If you are still using old-model incandescent bulbs, switch them for more energy efficient fluorescent bulbs or LED lights. These newer bulbs use far less energy while providing the same wattage of light, and they usually come in the same sizes and shapes as incandescent bulbs.

Thanks Tara – great tips there. While Tara’s been writing this, I’ve been busy whittling down my best-ever vintage bargains and will share them with you in the next post.

See you all soon – and as ever if you’ve got any pals that you think would like to receive Skint in the City’s regular posts please forward to them. The more the merrier round here.

Skint x

In the crazy mixed-up world that is magazine publishing, the September issues of all the glossies go on sale this week, ie the start of August. Don’t ask me why. Anyway, they’ve got some lovely treats in store for us this month, so we’ll forgive them for messing with out heads.

Fashionistas know that September’s magazines are the biggest of the year, packed full of predictions for what’s going to be hot style-wise this autumn and winter. And with so much competition around, they’re all vying for our sales this month – meaning great deals for skint girls. Elle goes on sale tomorrow, and on the cover you’ll find a Mavala nail varnish, free. The varnish normally retails at £4.10, and the colours available are red, coral or the ever-so-fashionable grey. With Elle costing £3.80 it’s worth taking a look. In fact, nail varnish freebies are becoming such a staple on the glossies that skint girls could go the whole of their lives without ever paying for another bottle.

Red magazine is offering a free full-size bottle of Balance Me body wash, normally retailing at £8. Red costs £2.80 so that’s quite a bargain in Skint’s book. Red’s website is also currently offering readers £10 off of any £60 spend at flash sale site Achica. Skint profiled Achica as part of our flash sale site post in May. Flash sales often discount luxury brands by around 70% and this Achica deal covers home and garden furniture, bedlinen etc.

Over at Vogue, their legendary September issue also has a freebie, the first in the magazine’s almost 100-year history. Normally the Vogue September issue flies out of the shops – hell, they even made a film about it – prompting Skint to wonder why they need to give us extra enticement this year. Things not quite what they used to be? So, they’re giving away a DVD of ‘the season’s must-know trends’ which apparently include androgyny and tartan. Vogue – you gotta have it, don’t you? If only to remind yourself what you can’t afford – and what you’d never waste money on, even if you could. It is a good way to cram up on all the autumn/winter trends, then find your own creative ways to bag their high-end style for a fraction of the price.

What did you do this bank holiday weekend? Visit friends? Picnic in the park? I spent much of it reading the fantastic Freedom by Jonathan Franzen – and steering clear of the shops. See, I promised myself that until I sold all of my unwanted clothes culled during the Wardrobe Audit, there would be no new ones. And I’m not there yet.

One of my pals called me in a state of great excitement last night after using her bank holiday Monday to snag herself a cut-price designer handbag at an out-of-town discount outlet. These places are great for bargains – if you can call spending £400 on a handbag a bargain, that is. (Half-price or less, though – that’s got to count for something argued my mate).

If online shopping had been around then, think they'd have been queuing?

For those who don’t want to venture to those massive shopping outlets (I’d rather stick pins in my eyes), I’ve been checking out some flash sale websites. Much more Skint’s thing – you can shop whilst sipping wine, without speaking to a soul. Flash sale sites are basically websites that advertise massive sales at very short notice for a limited time only, typically just 24-36 hours. So, you’ve got to be speedy to get what you want, but the savings can be massive.

You generally have to sign up first – often just your name and email address – then you’ll get notified before a sale starts. Brand Alley is one of the best known, bringing together quality fashion, homes and beauty brands, with big big discounts on well-known names. More and more luxury brands are getting in on the flash sale action too, using sites like Gilt and Achica to advertise their goods. There’s typically a 70% price reduction on flash sales of luxury brands – though remember that the goods will have been expensive to start with, so some of the prices may still seem quite steep. But, if you know you’re after some shoes to make Carrie Bradshaw green, or a top-of-the-range handbag at a knockdown price these sites are definitely worth checking out before you hit the town.

Ooh, I would if I could . . .

There's nothing more romantic than a clinch on the platform . . .

What with the recent sunshine and a bonanza number of bank holidays this month, Skint’s thoughts are turning to travel. All the extra days off in April are the perfect opportunity to check out some new cities across the UK, catching up with friends.

This month I’m letting the train take the strain, because I’ve discovered a sneaky way to slash the price of train travel.

Split Ticketing is perfectly legal and so simple I can’t believe we’re not all doing it. Basically instead of buying one ticket for your whole journey you buy separate tickets for each of its consituent parts. You still catch the same train at the same time and that train stops in exactly the same places, but you hold two separate tickets and save yourself a bundle.

For example, you want to travel from A to C. Now, before I discovered split ticketing I’d have gone online and booked a ticket straight through. If the train stops at B however, you might find it works out much cheaper to buy two tickets: one from A to B, then a second from B to C. It’s amazine the money you can save. Here’s an example:

A Manchester to Edinburgh ticket costs £150. The train stops at York. By split ticketing, buying one from Manchester to York, then another from York to Edinburgh the total cost is £92.20, meaning a whopping saving of £54.80! Let me stress again, skint pals, you needn’t get off the train, change trains or put yourself to any other uneccessary hassle – it’s simply a quirk of the great mess that is the British train ticketing system! So, sit back, relax, and put the money you’ve spend towards buying something fabulous when you reach your destination. Selective austerity – dontcha love it?

Think they do split tickets on the Orient Express?

It’s quite possible to work out the best split ticket deals for yourself – after finding out the standard through-ticket price for your journey, just find out where the train stops on your intended route and see if you can get the constituent parts cheaper than the whole. However, as with everything on the web, there are sites that will do the hard work for you.

Here’s one and here’s another – bon voyage!

How’s your make-up bag looking these days? While mine’s respectable enough on the surface, I know that if I dig into the darkest corners I’ll find a gloopy, dried-out old mascara lurking next to an ancient tissue. Well, lucky me! Being a little sluttish with cosmetic hygiene is about to pay off this week, thanks to an offer on Clinique mascara.

From Monday 17 Jan-Sunday Jan 30 just take an old mascara tube to any Clinique counter at your nearest Debenhams and trade it in for a free sample of Clinique High Impact or High Lengths mascara. Your old mascara can be any brand – not necessarily Clinique – and the offer is limited to one per customer.

Bet most of us can dig up an ancient tube of mascara, but if not I don’t suppose there’s anything to stop skint girls buying one at the pound shop and taking it along: necessity being the mother of glamour and all that . . .

Worth a flutter, surely . . .

If you’re planning on hitting the sales over the next couple of weeks, check eBay for gift cards before you go. See, up and down the country at Christmas, people were receiving unwanted gifts: a jar of bath salts, a Christmas jumper – we’ve all been there. But there’s one unwanted gift that is a real bonus to skint in the city girls and that’s the gift card / gift vouchers.

People often receive them for stores they don’t like and then sell them online. Of course, the only way to do so however is for less than the voucher’s face value – oh happy day! eBay has tons of gift cards for sale just now, going for maybe 20% less than their actual value. 

Of course you need to be careful: it would be easy to fall for a confidence trick here, so wherever possible follow up with some questions to the seller before buying or, if they’re in the same city, you could try to meet at the actual store to verify the value of the card before you hand over your money.

Oh and next year, don’t give your great-granny those Agent Provocateur vouchers, okay? We all know what your game is.

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