Jane at brand new frugal blog From Spending to Saving is offering a rather fabulous prize of £400 Amazon vouchers in her new competition, which is open to bloggers and closes on 22nd May 2013. By the very nature of our hobby, us compers are naturally thrifty so I had to get involved with my five top tips to save cash.
This competition is being sponsored by Which Offshore, a site offering advice for expats on offshore investments - and as part of our competition entry, Jane wants us to tell her a good reason to choose an offshore pension. I reckon one of the best reasons is that in an offshore scheme there is typically no minimum age before you can withdraw ALL your money. And if there is a minimum age, sometimes it can be as low as 50.
Ahhh, living in Spain and retiring at 50... now wouldn't that be nice?
Get Lucky
Do you like to get something for nothing? Of course you do - that's why you read this blog! Comping is about the thriftiest hobby you can have, as you can win big without spending a penny - all it needs to cost you is time. Stick to web, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram comps if you want to keep your hobby free - although switching from your usual brand if there's an on-pack 'purchase necessary' promotion can reap big rewards.Be Appy
Downloading free apps for your smartphone can save you a fortune. Get into the habit of checking the deals before you go out shopping or deciding where to eat. My favourites are Shopitize and Shop Scan Save - which give you cashback on groceries, and VoucherCloud. If you're on O2, then make sure to check O2 Moments regularly for freebies from Halfords, Hotel Chocolat and more. Some apps give you entry into prize draws when you use them too!Total Rubbish
You can get great freebies simply by taking other people's rubbish home. Bear with me - it's not as bad as it sounds! I live in a student area of Nottingham and you'd be amazed at the things my neighbours leave outside their houses at the end of term… last week I put the rubbish into the communal bins and returned home with three new rolls of giftwrap and an Ikea chair for my son. Make regular visits to your council recycling site too - get friendly with the staff and you can return home with kids toys, garden pots, furniture and all sorts. As a 'green' mum I always prefer to give second-hand items a new lease of life! On a smaller scale, discarded pop bottles and crisp packets often have competitions on - and you're doing a good deed by picking up litter too.Go Compare
We all know about the big comparison websites and hopefully wouldn't dare buy car insurance without them - but how often do you compare prices on your regular grocery shop? www.mysupermarket.co.uk is a great place to check offers on your favourite products, so you can always find them at the cheapest price. Competitions where you need a receipt for a product are really popular at the moment - if the product doesn't need to be from a certain shop, check online before buying so you can be sure to find the best deal.Points make prizes
Make the most of loyalty and points schemes - Tesco Clubcard, Nectar and Avios points can be exchanged for family days out and holidays. Keep an eye out for competitions offering points as prizes too - I've won thousands of points with Tesco on Twitter, Nectar on Pinterest and Avios on Facebook in the last month or so!This competition is being sponsored by Which Offshore, a site offering advice for expats on offshore investments - and as part of our competition entry, Jane wants us to tell her a good reason to choose an offshore pension. I reckon one of the best reasons is that in an offshore scheme there is typically no minimum age before you can withdraw ALL your money. And if there is a minimum age, sometimes it can be as low as 50.
Ahhh, living in Spain and retiring at 50... now wouldn't that be nice?
