Black Lion Guest House What's On - Reflect Magazine

30 Saving Money31Save Money This Summerby Sarah RossThe summer is fast approaching, leavingmany of us worrying where we’ll findextra cash for holidays, ice creams anda few glasses of our favourite tipple. Ifyou’d appreciate a little extra cash inyour pocket for the summer monthswhy not give some of Reflect’s moneysaving tips a go...Ebay and AmazonGetting rid of unwanted items couldn’t be easierthanks to the worldwide auction website Ebay. Fromclothes, toy and household items, to cars and eventstickets, these days you can pretty much get rid ofanything online and make good money in the process.Amazon is also a great way to make money out of allyour unwanted books, CDs and DVDs, without therisk of selling for less than you would like and theproceeds go straight into your bank account, hasslefree.When it comes to clothes, we all have pieces that wedesperately cling on to, hoping one day we’ll be slimenough to squeeze into again or that they’ll eventuallycome back into fashion. The truth however, is thatthese clothes will no doubt continue to sit in ourwardrobes, unloved and unworn. The experts reckonthat if you’ve not worn an item of clothing in the lastyear, chances are you’re never going to wear it again,so set aside some time for a clear out and cash in onyour unworn clothes.Start selling at www.ebay.co.uk or www.amazon.co.ukFreecycleFreecycling – or free recycling – is not only great forsaving money, it’s also great for the environment too,as it helps to prevent unwanted items from headingstraight to a landfill. However, the best part is thatit’s so easy! Anyone with an unwanted item can posta message on their local Freecycle website; if youwould like to own the item on offer, you can send amessage to arrange collection. You must sign up tothe network to be able to post or read any messages,but it is free to join and free to leave a post.The Freecycle Network was started in Tucson,Arizona six years ago by Deron Beal, who helpednon-profit organisations by providing them withfree recycled items. The craze has since gone global,with 85 countries reported as having some form ofFreecycling organisation.Not only can you pick up freebies, you can alsoget rid of any unwanted items, including furniture,computers, clothes and toys. Just because you nolonger like or need an item, doesn’t mean someoneelse wouldn’t appreciate it. This type ofrecycling also means you can help others whocannot afford to purchase such items. Visitwww.freecycle.org for a list of East Midlands’locations with Freecycling Networks.Haircuts and Beauty TreatmentsEven when money is tight, we all still need apampering and with summer just around the corner,we all want to look our best. When it comes tohaircuts, many of us end up spending more than wecan afford, but by switching from your usual salonto having your hair styled at a local hair and beautycollege, you could easily save yourself a fortune. Witha simple trim starting from under a fiver and a widerange of colour treatments at bargain prices, yourhair will look exactly the same, but your purse willfeel so much better! Many beauty treatments, suchas brow shaping and tinting, are also available for afraction of salon prices. Visit your local college formore information and a price list.Online SurveysIf you’re looking to top up your income, or justwant a little extra cash for your summer holiday,completing online surveys can easily make you somequick cash the easy way. Survey website, Ciao, pays£1 to £5 per questionnaire completed, and onceyou reach the £5 mark, you can deposit the moneystraight into your bank account. They also pay you torecruit new members; for every new person you getto sign up, you will be rewarded with 50p. It mightnot sound like much, but providing you have plentyof friends and family, you can easily pocket a few quid.You might have to complete a few surveys in orderto start making money, but with most taking only acouple of minutes to complete, it can be well worththe effort. Sign yourself up today at www.ciao.co.ukValued Opinions is another market research website,which not only allows you to give your input on newproducts and services, but also rewards you withvouchers to many of our top High Street stores.From Marks and Spencer to Miss Selfridge, Tesco toBoots, if you’re a regular at any of these stores it’swell worth the effort. Typical rewards for completingonline questionnaires range from £1 to £5, but youmay also bag £50 for filling their specialist surveys.What are you waiting for, log ontowww.valuedopinions.co.uk and start clicking.Saving in the SupermarketThe weekly shop is one of our biggest spends, sowhen it comes to buying our food we’re all lookingfor a bargain. Whilst ‘3 for 2’ offers and BOGOFs –buy-one-get-one-free – items seem like a giveaway,often they won’t save you as many pounds as youthink. Instead, planning your meals ahead and doingyour shopping armed with a list can reduce youroutgoings, as you’re less likely to buy food that youdon’t need. Choosing foods that are in season willalso be cheaper as they are in good supply and Britishproduce will also come minus the air miles. If you’reunsure what fruit and veg are in season right now,simply head to www.eattheseasons.co.uk for all theinfo you need. Online shopping is also a great way toavoid the tempting displays of the real supermarketshelves.Aiming to cut down on the 8.3million tonnes of foodwe throw away every year and save you up to £50 amonth on your shopping bill, Love Food Hate Wastegive great ideas on what to do with your leftovers.Whether it’s boiled spuds, cheese, cooked meat ortinned fruit, the website allows you to click on thetype of food that needs eating and gives you tastyrecipe ideas. With handy hints on portions sizes andhow to correctly store food, it’s an all round winnerfor saving you cash. Visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.comto start reducing your food bill.When it comes to reduced items, the craftiestshoppers are the ones who shop at the right time.Knowing when to shop means you can find staplefoods, such as bread, milk and meat, at bargain pricesand since these can all be frozen, you can stock upon what you need and store them in the freezer untilyou plan to use them. All of the major supermarketsvary when it comes to reducing items, but Sundayafternoon’s early closing makes this one of the besttimes to grab a bargain. Usually items start beingmarked down around 3pm, but you may also findreductions on week nights after 7pm.Supermarket Downshift ChallengeAnother way to make a huge saving on your foodshopping is to swap your usual brand for the onebelow. Starting with the most expensive, productsare usually placed in these brand levels: premiumbrand – such as Finest or the Best, manufacturer’sbrand – for example Kellogg’s or Heinz, supermarketbrand – Tesco’s or Asda’s own brand, no-frills brand– such as Value or Smartprice. By dropping from yourusual brand to the one below for every single itemyou buy, you can make massive savings, and the greatthing is that you probably won’t notice any differencein the taste.Travel CostsWhether you’re travelling to work, visiting relatives,planning a day out or taking a holiday, travel costs cantake a big chunk out of your budget before you’veeven got there, but there are a few easy ways tosave money on your travel expenses. If you’re a dailycommuter, the first way to save some easy cash is bypurchasing a weekly, monthly or annual ticket, whichmeans more expense upfront, but big savings in thelong-run. Secondly, try booking advance tickets forany planned journeys as these are often priced at justa fraction of tickets purchased on the day. You don’teven need to book them weeks in advance as you canstill pre-book your ticket on the Internet the morningyou plan to travel. These are still classed as advancedtickets and the result makes a big difference.The third method requires some research beforebooking, but the effort will be worth it as you mayfind yourself saving up to half your ticket price. Bysplitting the tickets for your journey, instead of buyingone ticket that covers all your stops and changes, youmay find your fare is cheaper. For example a MeltonMowbray to London fare becomes cheaper by havingtwo separate tickets - Melton Mowbray to Ketteringand then Kettering to London – rather than buyingjust the one ticket. Go to www.moneysavingexpert.com for more tips.Online Clothes SwappingIf you’re a shopaholic with a free-falling bank balance– but still can’t quite kick the need for that new pairof shoes – don’t panic, just change your shoppingfor swapping. Online clothes swapping websites havehad a major boost since the recession hit, as manyof us desperately tried to curb our spending. The ‘BigWardrobe’, with over 70,000 items just waiting tobe traded, and ‘What’s Mine is Yours’, who have sawa 33% increase in traffic during the credit crunch, arejust two examples. These websites have everythingfrom High Street to designer, vintage to up to theminute fashion, for women, men and children andthere are thousands of unwanted items waiting tobe swapped or sold. So, whether you’re looking forcash, or a change of image, you can easily get rid ofall your unwanted garments and exchange them forsomething useful.Visit www.bigwardrobe.com andwww.whatsmineisyours.com to get started.