Spiesandliea
VIP Member
there you go, just saved myself £12 #frugal£12 ( well £9 plus £3 postage) for matches
- Notice
I think that is really harsh and totally uncalled for. We’re here to discuss IGers not their children.
Not sure if you're being sarcastic or not
but yes, I'm sure it's just part of their MO. Houses in that area were going for around £700k at the time they bought theirs (I think someone mentioned this earlier upthread) and they've invested quite a bit doing it up so far. People who are skint don't buy furniture from Habitat and Loaf, don't go on several holidays a year, don't paint their walls with F&B and don't buy houses in that price range. Not criticising them for it and maybe they're feeling the pinch a little at present but I think it's obvious they're not poor.
Lovelivelie
New member
Oh I’m so glad I found this site! Alex has always wound me up.
I met her about 6 years ago at a press event I was running and she was the most boring person I’ve ever had to sit through a dinner with, all she did was bang on about how poor she was and how she saves money by being ‘frugal’. She said all of this while scoffing free food and drinking free wine, she then trotted off home with her goodie bag of free press samples and into a waiting cab supplied by our brand and taken home. I then had to pack up the event, get everything back to the office and then get a night bus home as I was so skint I only had about £10 left until pay day. After that I thought she was the biggest wanker and tried my best to avoid the boring bastard.
Got a mate who knows someone who did PR for her a couple of years back and apparently her and husband dearest are mortgaged up to their eyeballs so not the best person to take money advice from.
I met her about 6 years ago at a press event I was running and she was the most boring person I’ve ever had to sit through a dinner with, all she did was bang on about how poor she was and how she saves money by being ‘frugal’. She said all of this while scoffing free food and drinking free wine, she then trotted off home with her goodie bag of free press samples and into a waiting cab supplied by our brand and taken home. I then had to pack up the event, get everything back to the office and then get a night bus home as I was so skint I only had about £10 left until pay day. After that I thought she was the biggest wanker and tried my best to avoid the boring bastard.
Got a mate who knows someone who did PR for her a couple of years back and apparently her and husband dearest are mortgaged up to their eyeballs so not the best person to take money advice from.
BarefootAndReading
Member
I'm new here, hi!
I generally don't mind her, her house or style. I like the fact there is minimal accepting gifts and free clothes (I know we will all have different ideas about how frequent 'minimal' is. but s hes not telling us she has something new to 'show' us/shes obsessed with X #gifted multiple times a week or even month like some do) and so it fees more genuine when she does talk about a product even though she mostly does that when she's paid to.
But, my god, i get so wound up by their food and kitchen situation. They bought that house 3 or 4 years ago... did they tear out their existing kitchen when they moved in expecting to be gifted one because I don't understand how they have had no kitchen? She claims it was frugal not to buy an oven when they moved in because it mightn't suit their final kitchen design and be a 'waste' of money so they have existed on a combi-microwave-oven, a single plug in hob/stove, and kettle. However you can get an electric oven complete with grill and hob for under £400 which isn't expensive over 3/4 years, less than a tenner a month to be able to actually cook plus they wouldn't have needed to buy the combi-oven thing. In the meantime the lack of oven has meant they've spent that on takeaways, deliveroo and convenience food. And the bit that really annoys me is that every time she shows that situation she acts like a martyr when it's actually choice they've made. It feels like begging for someone to gift them a kitchen.
She once showed a lidl receipt banging on that a £35ish food shop did them for the week, and i was really impressed (as a couple we spend about £75ish a week including cleaning/hygiene products ect so i wanted to see how we could reduce that cost slightly) but when i paused i noticed there wasn't a single piece of meat, fruit or veg; it was mostly pasta, bread, pesto, oven pizza's ect. So little nutrition. I feel really harsh saying this, but this woman always used to go on about how bad her skin appearance is however if you put shit in you get shit out. You might only spend £20 per person on food a week but the later health costs of that kind of diet, and the fact you 'need' an expensive skin care routine to compensate seems like the wrong way to prioritise that.
I generally don't mind her, her house or style. I like the fact there is minimal accepting gifts and free clothes (I know we will all have different ideas about how frequent 'minimal' is. but s hes not telling us she has something new to 'show' us/shes obsessed with X #gifted multiple times a week or even month like some do) and so it fees more genuine when she does talk about a product even though she mostly does that when she's paid to.
But, my god, i get so wound up by their food and kitchen situation. They bought that house 3 or 4 years ago... did they tear out their existing kitchen when they moved in expecting to be gifted one because I don't understand how they have had no kitchen? She claims it was frugal not to buy an oven when they moved in because it mightn't suit their final kitchen design and be a 'waste' of money so they have existed on a combi-microwave-oven, a single plug in hob/stove, and kettle. However you can get an electric oven complete with grill and hob for under £400 which isn't expensive over 3/4 years, less than a tenner a month to be able to actually cook plus they wouldn't have needed to buy the combi-oven thing. In the meantime the lack of oven has meant they've spent that on takeaways, deliveroo and convenience food. And the bit that really annoys me is that every time she shows that situation she acts like a martyr when it's actually choice they've made. It feels like begging for someone to gift them a kitchen.
She once showed a lidl receipt banging on that a £35ish food shop did them for the week, and i was really impressed (as a couple we spend about £75ish a week including cleaning/hygiene products ect so i wanted to see how we could reduce that cost slightly) but when i paused i noticed there wasn't a single piece of meat, fruit or veg; it was mostly pasta, bread, pesto, oven pizza's ect. So little nutrition. I feel really harsh saying this, but this woman always used to go on about how bad her skin appearance is however if you put shit in you get shit out. You might only spend £20 per person on food a week but the later health costs of that kind of diet, and the fact you 'need' an expensive skin care routine to compensate seems like the wrong way to prioritise that.
The lack of awareness with the £2 comment really leaves a dirty taste in my mouth. I do actually quite like Alex but it’s insensitive particularly at the moment (tongue in cheek or not) to be saying things like that when there are people literally on that bread line with no idea when their next meal is coming and their power to be turned off at any second. Having £2 in the bank because you renovated a kitchen is no comparison
Greencatfysh
VIP Member
I think she’s definitely preg again especially in these latest photos. Not surprised she hasn’t announced anything after what happened. That’s exciting for them! Hopefully they can sort their house quickly and actually have room and money for a new baby 
MissHavisham
Chatty Member
I understand the irritation if she's being less than truthful about what they spend on their weekly shop. Especially if she's conveniently leaving out the Oddbox and restaurant meals/takeaways. And why even try and only spend £25 on a family weekly food shop? Unless you're truly on your uppers I mean, which they're not. But to me this just shows that they're clearly not foodies, and that's fine. There are more than enough of those to go round! And I'm not into the mummy-martyr thing of 'she should have been batch cooking at the end of her pregnancy' or 'she should be cooking meals rather than having a takeaway'. Nah. She's not the only parent in the house, but she is the one who's recently given birth.
I wonder if she feels the blog name she chose way back when is now a bit of a millstone around her neck. People are obviously going to look at so many of her choices and think 'well that's not frugal'. Personally I look at some of her supposedly frugal decisions, like not spending the money to ensure she had a functioning back garden for the past four years, or cooking off a slow cooker and plug in ring thingie for four years rather than buying an interim electric cooker and hob, and scratch my head and think 'bonkers'.
I wonder if she feels the blog name she chose way back when is now a bit of a millstone around her neck. People are obviously going to look at so many of her choices and think 'well that's not frugal'. Personally I look at some of her supposedly frugal decisions, like not spending the money to ensure she had a functioning back garden for the past four years, or cooking off a slow cooker and plug in ring thingie for four years rather than buying an interim electric cooker and hob, and scratch my head and think 'bonkers'.
Cato & Grey sounds just like some wanky tile company The Frugality would be right onto
Spiesandliea
VIP Member
Do you know what I don’t find frugal, spending £60 on a wall calendar
Dillydilly
Active member
That’s it really. She has a very ordinary life and seems to have removed herself from the fashion scene. For financial reasons, she has to keep a presence on SM and it must become tedious to have to make a run of the mill day seem interesting.
A few years ago, Bloggers were more useful - they researched and showed us clothes and fashion across a wide price scale. They did the leg work for us - where to find the perfect pair of jeans or shoes, etc. They wrote interesting (mostly) blogs. Then they turned into influencers, going to event after event, promoting brands, showing off gifts, using filters so we all think they have perfect skin and make-up and so on. Forming girl gangs.
AutumnDays
Chatty Member
Moaning about the cost of children’s shoes but thinks it’s ok to spend and encourage others to spend £9 (plus £3 postage) on a box of matches.
Boutros-Boutros Ghali
VIP Member
Those renovations won’t be cheap....she claims she only pays herself £35k, even if he takes the same salary I do wonder how they afford that house/nursery fees etc on that salary. We moved from London for that very reason, we couldn’t afford a house and the thought of paying nursery fees on top of we had a child seemed impossible, let alone doing renovations that’ll likely cost in excess of £50k, and my partner and I earned six figures combined. I wish people would be more honest. I could only afford to buy my London flat because my Mum died and I was left enough money for a decent deposit, had that not been the case I’d probably still have been living in a shared flat with no chance of homeownership....she’s another one with family money selling an unattainable lifestyle but pretending it’s all hard work and saving the pennies
Avocadoontoast
Active member
With regards to the kids shoes, you really don’t need your child to be wearing brand names shoes. There are plenty of high street stores that sell perfectly decent shoes for children. The logic of scrimping on your child (second hand shoes, second hand bed & mattress, second hand clothes and scrimping on food), yet splashing out on household items such as spoons and soap dishes etc makes no sense to me! Their priorities are so off! Buying a house you can afford to do up makes no sense either. Affording something does not mean remortgaging and putting it on credit cards. They are in debt to the hilt, I don’t understand living a life like this, champagne 
lifestyle on lemonade 
money!
* can’t afford to do up
lifestyle on lemonade money!* can’t afford to do up
Avocadoontoast
Active member
She advertises Oddbox or whatever it’s called, does meal planning and shopping lists and gives us all (most of us probably cook more than her) advice regarding food, yet she cooks bugger all and needs her dad to send over a precooked roast! The mind boggles. How have these 2 not grown up since Uni! It’s like they’re still stuck in their student life.