Tenner Week Spring Clean 2016: Sunday Stocktake
Hello! Want to save some money AND get your home spick and span in time for the Spring? You’ve come to the right place. Today is ‘day zero’ for our latest Tenner Week budgeting challenge, and the theme this time around is Spring Cleaning.
This is an optional ‘Sunday Stocktake’, and if you can spare a few minutes to run through it then it should make the week a lot easier and thriftier too.
We’re going to take stock of:
- Food and drink
- Cleaning supplies and equipment
- Entertainment and leisure stuff
For the food stocktake, have a look around your home and make a written note of all edibles. This will help to make you feel like there’s enough to eat, to prevent food waste, to highlight important things you might run out of, and to help with making a menu for the week.
Look in the fridge, freezer and cupboards. Most of us have plenty to use up that we might have even forgotten about. Then do an extra check for things that might have been overlooked such as cake tins, biscuit barrels, fruit bowls, veg racks, teas, coffees and worktop canisters.
If there’s time, take a few moments to work out a menu based on what you already have – aim for minimum extra grocery shopping during the week. Make sure some of your meals are really quick and easy, or can be reheated the next day and eaten as leftovers.
Next, move on to the cleaning products and equipment, as we’ll be doing some Spring Cleaning through the week. Make sure you’re stocked up on common things you already use. It’s okay to pick up one or two things today, but don’t go overboard as we’re trying to keep costs down. For natural cleaning, for example, you might like to be stocked up on distilled vinegar, a lemon or two, and some bicarbonate of soda.
Cleaning equipment can be checked too. You might like to chuck a duster or two in the wash, or dig out an old t-shirt that’s moved on the become a cleaning cloth. Alternatively, you could empty the vacuum cleaner, or change an old mop head. You’ll only need the basics, so don’t worry about having anything expensive to hand. I’ve just washed and dried a couple of microfibre cloths, which seem to make cleaning quicker and easier.
And finally, think about anything you might already have for entertainment and leisure. For example, you might have a DVD or Blu-Ray you haven’t watched yet, or a pre-paid meal voucher you could cash in, or some cinema or theatre tokens from Christmas, or a free code for online movie streaming, or books you haven’t read, or craft supplies you could make something fun with. You could also use taxi app credit to get yourself home after a free event, and so on. Try to have at least one fun thing to do during the week, even though the main theme is Spring Cleaning.
Have a good Sunday Stocktake if you’re joining in today! See you again tomorrow for the official start to Tenner Week, which will include the full Spring Clean daily schedule.
