Monday
I was off work today on annual leave but it's cold and raining so it's days like today that I just want to spend money! But I was good today. I went to visit a friend of mine who is going to live in Cyprus next week (lucky thing). We said originally that we would meet for breakfast at a local deli, but she had so much to do at her house, she changed the arrangements last thing to meet at home and she would make breakfast for us both! Result…a saving of approximately £10.
I did buy my sister a birthday card and found some stamps in my purse so I spent £2.50. I also went to our friends allotment today and picked up some vegetables – beetroot, carrots, spinach, sweetcorn, leeks and lettuce, so saved myself around £8 by not buying from the supermarket.
Tuesday
I worked from home today which helps me not spend any money. I made a huge veggie lasagne on Monday, so I saved a portion of this for my lunch today too so saved spending any money on lunch. I didn’t leave the house, only to go into the garden to water my plants and hang my washing out. No money spent today! Bonus.
Wednesday
Today I worked from the office. Normally lunchtime would mean me taking a walk into town and buying food from somewhere. I’ve not been back into the city since lockdown and still feel a bit nervous about going in, so I stayed in the office and bought a vegetable wrap from our onsite cafe, the Tuck Inn which was £2.50. No more spend on this day!
Thursday
I worked from home again today. I had to go shopping for some foodie bits as we were running low, so I popped to my local Aldi and spent £9.65 on bread, eggs, milk, prawns, fish, mince, cheese and fruit. Essential grocery shopping so hopefully doesn't count!
Friday
Today is my day off. I went to visit my old boss today in Sheffield. We were going to go for a picnic in the local park but because it was so hot, we decided to have lunch at the house and go for a little walk later on when it got cooler. I had to put in petrol for my journey but that was all that I spent today. Petrol cost me £15, essential though?
Saturday
Today we went out to a music festival which was being held outside due to social distancing, so I spent money today! But I've hardly spent anything Monday to Friday this week. We met with some friends for lunch at Larwood and Voce which I paid for and that was £63 for me and my husband. This is quite a lot to spend on lunch, but we had mains, puddings and wine. My husband then bought the drinks for the rest of the day and a cab home.
Sunday
Sunday is a day of rest at home! I had made a Thai vegetable curry on Friday morning and popped it in the freezer so we got this out and had this for lunch today. We had made a late brunch too and then went for a walk after lunch. We like to have a lazy day on Sundays, watching films, snoozing and eating nice food…and not spending money. My husband ordered some takeaway food later on but he paid so all good!
The verdict
I think that I have actually done really well this week. I was making sure I was aware of my spending and I definitely made some choices to not spend. Monday to Friday I only spent £5 which I was proud of. My No Spend Week will definitely help me going forward to be more careful what I spend my money on and make a conscious effort to save as and where I can. My total spend excluding grocery shopping and petrol was £68 for the week.
Your No Spend Week?