Just how do you save £10,000 a year?

Simply by cutting back on all luxuries apparently, including toilet roll!

I had to make huge savings from all areas of my life when I was made redundant. I managed to save around £8,000 a year but this woman has managed to save £10,000 a year by cutting out luxuries – maybe I failed because I didn’t give up toilet roll?

Thrifty mum, Zoe, realised her shopping habits were costing her up to £11,000 a year so she decided to make a change.

Zoe quit her job of 10 years as an auditor to pursue her dream of living a non-wasteful, environmentally friendly life.

Zoe said: “Before I changed my lifestyle, I was spending so much cash on ‘green’ products without really knowing how environmentally friendly they really were or whether I was actually getting good value for money. I crunched some numbers and took a good long hard look at what our expenses were and was shocked by the figure. I knew that some changes had to be made and set myself eco-challenges to try and achieve the goals I wanted. After a year of making simple changes like making leftovers last, growing our own fruit and veg, buying clothes from charity shops and getting my kids’ toys from swaps, I was amazed by how much we’d save. I could now afford to quit my job and devote myself to this lifestyle full-time”

Some of the changes Zoe made;

• Washing with just water and cloths – saving of £50
• Stopped buying toilet roll
• Stopped buying toothpaste
• Cutting out shampoo and conditioner, instead opting for an olive and oil soap – saving of £140
• Grows vegetables in a bathtub in her garden
• Takes packed lunches on trips out instead of eating out
• Gets books from the library instead of buying them
• Shopping in charity shops

Zoe said: “In the end though I did decide to return to toilet roll and I shampoo my hair every couple of washes. Most of us spend way too much without really thinking about it. I’m convinced that everyone could save money and help the planet if they made some simple changes.”

I would love to know how far you would go to save money and would you ever consider giving up toilet roll?