Another website with great offers

FreeinUK describes itself as the "home for Free Samples, Free Stuff and Discount Vouchers". Running since 2001 it also list 100s of free competitions, Discount Voucher codes and Sale information from all over the UK.

Their hot offers this week are:

1. Switch to Scottish Power and Save on your bills

2. 3 Month Free broadband, TV and phone! (from Virgin)

3. Keep in contact with the latest mobile phone craze - Qeep

And they also talk about:

- 5% Off From Halfords
- Avon Free handbag, jewellery bag and delivery
- £10 off your first order at Littlewoods - plus Buy Now, Pay Later
- Chocolate Trading Company - Mother's Day offer

Worth bookmarking, I feel: http://www.freeinuk.co.uk/

Free delivery at cotton traders!

Recently I wrote about a special offer from Cotton Traders who are renowned for their well made, comfortable casual clothing. This winter I ordered packs of economically priced winter warm socks for my male family members and last year bought my husband a warm fleecy jacket that is smart too.

I must admit though I do try to avoid paying postage when buying online and wait for offers which are postage free. This week I was pleasantly surprised to get such an email from Cotton Traders offering free postage on everything in their catalogue for the next seven days. If I find something I need or like I might just take advantage of this offer!

The bottom line is to never go for offers on things you don't need or want. Free postage is great when you you need something but perhaps not if you are just scouring the site just in case....

Free pashmina from Saturday's Telegraph

Remember earlier in the week I was telling you about the "free today" offers in some of Saturday's newspapers. All it takes is a bit of organisation.

Well, here's a heads-up.

In tomorrow's Daily Telegraph (21 Feb) there will be an offer for a free pashmina "worth £19.99". You'll need to buy the Telegraph, then go to your nearest Tie Rack to claim your free pashmina. If you don't regularly buy the Telegraph (£1.90 on a Saturday), think carefully before proceeding. Is the pashmina worth that?

Be prepared. Take a pen and a pair of scissors when you go to your buy your paper. Cut out the form, fill it in, and take it Tie Rack

And guess who spotted this offer? Ah yes, my daughter!

Best current online coupons

Today's Daily Telegraph has an article about "online discounts", many of which we have searched out, and talked about on the blog before.

"Bargain hunters," it says, "are increasingly using the internet to combat the effects of the recession and find the latest banking deals, money-off coupons and financial advice."

GOOD! That's why we're here.

Here are some the best current online deals:

1. greenandblacks.com - 10% of all orders. CODE: GBVAL09

2. pizzahut.co.uk - 50% off delivery for orders over £30. CODE: FOWO501XN

3. dixons.co.uk - Save 2% onall orders over £149. CODE: FEB2

4. thebodyshop.co.uk - 15% off all orders. CODE: DHAD000262

5. redletterdays.co.uk - 10% off all orders. CODE: VCODES08

Happy shopping.

Get your weekend newspaper freebies

My daughter called it "embarrassing", and my wife gave me one of those looks, but I say they'll get used to it and love it soon.

What have I done?

I've started taking advantage of the "free today" offers on the front of some of Saturday's newspapers. All it takes is a bit of organisation.

So over the last two Saturdays I've come home with a box of Thorntons chocolates, a bottle of Body Shop Body Lotion and a bar of Galaxy chocolate - all free! The first two were from sequential Saturday Telegraphs and the latter was from last Saturday's Daily Express.

To do this smoothly and easily you have to be a little bit prepared. So take a pen and a pair of scissors when you go to your local town centre to buy your weekend paper. Check out the offers, turn to the page, cut out the form, fill it in (not always necessary) and take it the shop with the offer (these have been Thorntons, the Body Shop and Superdrug to date).

As always, be wary of making false economies. So only buy the newspaper you would normally buy, and be sure to check or uncheck all the correct boxes to say you DON'T want any junk email, mail or phone calls. Read the fine print carefully.

Enjoy your freebies!

Million Dollar Baby arrived today

I thought I'd update you about my purchase of the DVD Million Dollar Baby that I told you about a couple of weeks ago. I was told about this film by a friend and co-writer ( I am partner at
www.writeitclearly.com ) It is a story about a woman boxer and I thought this would be relevant to the book we are planning to write which is partly about boxers.

Anyway as I said, postage is free on www.play.com and bargains are to be had. And how right I was. There was a good second-hand (used as new) copy of Million Dollar Baby. The price? Just £1.79!

This morning I received my bargain DVD in the post. I'll let you know my viewing experience but I'm sure I'll love it.

For book lovers, read on

If you love books and just about get enough to read to keep you going, there are several options for good sources of reading matter at low cost or even for free. Of course the public library comes to mind here. However you do have to avoid fines, especially if, like me, you get carried away when choosing your books. Now you can renew those books online that you haven't quite finished in time - just find your local library website and look at your membership card with your PIN number on it. Renewing your books has never been easier.

It is also useful to know that if you have a longterm illness or disability you may be exempt from fines altogether - just enquire at the desk for this concession. Of course the other great thing about libraries is their regular sales of old or unwanted books. These sell typically at 40p or a couple of quid for large illustrated hardbacks. For example I recently picked up a lovely big book about the history of musical instruments - extremely fascinating even to a non musician such as myself.

The thing is part of my work as writer for www.WriteItClearly.com and part owner of
www.ebook-library.net is finding unusual information. As I am an avid book collector anyway I find these book sales both interesting and useful. I hope, fellow book lover, that you do too.

Cotton Traders - a free gift

I love Cotton Traders as I find their clothes comfy and good for casual wear. They have some lovely warm socks and other thermal underwear for our cold spells - not over yet in the UK!

Now they've extended their range to include bedding and also more formal attire. It's good to look out for their promotions - this month there is a beautiful free gift of a Country Diary floral throw for spends of over £30. So if you are thinking of buying something you need anyway, this is the right time to shop at www.cottontraders.co.uk

They have just opened a new store in The Galleria in Hatfield. For me however as a home-based proofreader and writer - for details of our services see www.WriteItClearly.com - online shopping is the best option. I can always find interesting promotions online too!

Enjoy a Valentine's meal in the recession

Apparently there is some debate about whether it is “acceptable” to use money-off vouchers to pay for a romantic dinner for two.

Well, you won’t find any arguments against them on this site. We’re committed to saving you money, and helping you Find Your Fortune.

With Valentine’s Day on our doorstep, here are a few places you can save money off your meal.

These restaurants are found in many places around the country. They all currently have offers: Strada, Prezzo, Chez Gerard and Bella Italia.

These may still be out of range of some would-be romantics in these hard times, so what about this? Jon Makan, a Malaysian restaurant in central London is offering a menu on Valtentine’s Day on which every dish costs just £1. You can register online to book a table.


If you really want to impress, then how about the Georgian Restaurant in Harrods? Here you can get a three course meal on Valentine's Day for £35. A bargain considering the venue!

If you’re a bit more strapped for cash than Harrods will wllow then try "eat out for a tenner” or for "under £15" at Lastminute.com.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

European Youth Card Association

If you are aged 26 or under, you could benefit by owning a EURO<26 card.

The European Youth Card Association promotes youth mobility and information with their cards.

The EURO<26 card gives young Europeans access to information, mobility, culture and participation, through a range of services, discounts and advantages. The EYCA hopes that the EURO<26 card will encourage young people to explore their world with better information, and become full citizens of modern Europe.

The European Youth Card Association represents 62 youth card organisations across 41 European countries, with more 4.3 million young people aged under 26 owning a card.

The EURO<26 youth card provides under 26s with information through various channels: annual guides, magazines, newsletters, and helpdesks.

Check out the EYCA website now.

Bargain DVDS all postage free

Whenever I need to look for a DVD that I want or has been recommended to me I now always turn to www.play.com as I am sure to find what I want. There is such a huge choice - I believe they have everything! Like Amazon there are options for new and used and you can sell your unused disks there too. The best news is that everything on this site is postage free even for just one item. You don't have to wait very long for delivery either. Why pay postage when you don't need to? Why rent when you can buy and can resell later if you choose? This seems the much better option by far!

As a writer and partner in www.writeitclearly.com I really enjoy what I do! This is especially so when I need to watch a nice DVD to help me on with my creative writing. At present I am about to research female boxers and have been told about a good film called Million Dollar Baby - I can't wait to see it! What a good excuse to sit and watch a film... I think I'll order it from play.com now!

Commission free travel money

If you're going on holiday and want to order some foreign currency why not use the Post Office? At 0% commission there can't be a better deal and you can easily change back any remaining cash on your return.

Now it gets even easier as you can order your currency online at www.postoffice.uk - available are 70 foreign currencies. You can click online and then collect from any post office. You can also opt for guaranteed next day delivery to your home using Royal Mail Special Delivery.

And the other good news is that you can sell back what you haven't spent on 0% too! The Post Office has been voted Best Foreign Exchange Provider for two years running now.

Big Green Switch

As a nation, we are creatures of habit. If it ain't broken, don't fix it seems to be the British mentality. However, sometimes just by changing the order of things, we can make savings and not just financially, and the Big Green Switch is a good place to start. If you want to save the earth then visit the site. Not only does it give excellent advice on great green products, including:

• Energy-saving gadgets
• Low energy light bulbs
• Composting equipment
• Water-saving devices
• Eco-laundry products ...but it also gives away some amazing prizes. Click here to access the site.

The Rich Life Letter

I subscribe to a number of email feeds but one I look forward to more than any other is the Rich Life Letter from Lewis Geary. These are just a few of the topics he's covered recently ...

• The TRUE meaning of "dead money"?
• The easy way to make £432.68 a month
• Maybe it's time to think about what YOU want...
• Are you needlessly GIVING AWAY £5658 a year?

It doesn't really matter if you take his advice or not but it does make interesting reading and it gives hope that someone out there is willing to share his experiences of making money virtually out of nothing. Simply click on this link - it costs nothing!

Is the FTSE 100 worth a punt? Month Two

It's a month since we "invested" £100 in the FTSE 100. It stood then at 4,505, having risen 19% from its low-point in November 2008.

On Friday night, a month later, it had unfortunately fallen to 4,291.87, so our virtual £100 has fallen to £95.27. It was a fall of 4.73% in the month.

It reached a low of 4,052 on 22 January (a fall of 10.06%), so we're grateful it's come back from that level.

Anyway, onward!

Let's put another £100 into the pot at this point. So we've got £95.27 from our first month; now we've got another £100 invested at 4,291.87. That's a current total of £195.27 for a total of £200 invested.

Let's see what happens in a month's time. See you on the 9th March!

Please note that this is for discussion only, and nothing in this blog constitutes advice.

Scottish and Southern Energy follows British Gas lead

Following British Gas's price cut recently, Scottish and Southern Energy has become the second energy firm to cut prices for customers.

SSE, with nine million domestic customers, is cutting average electricity prices by 9 per cent and gas prices by 4 per cent from 30 March.

Sadly, the scale of today's cut compares poorly with the price rises pushed through last year when wholesale costs rocketed. Last August SSE put electricity prices up by 19.2 per cent on average, while gas bills soared 29.2 per cent.

There are six big energy suppliers in the UK. The four other are npower, E.ON, Scottish Power and EDF and these look set to follow suit now.

Today's cut from SSE is its first since March 2007.

Another way to make money is to be a shareholder of SSE. It is expecting a rise of at least 9.1 per cent in full-year dividends.

Save money on your Radio Times

Do you buy the Radio Times every week? It's gone up in price again (as it does every New Year), now costing £1.10 a week.

But you could "Get 6 issues for just £1"!

"What's the catch" asks the RT advert, and then tells you there isn't one. Not quite true, in my opinion.

This is how it works. If you sign up (by sending in the card in Radio Times or by completing a form online or by phoning in), you actually have to sign a Direct Debit form, so you are committing yourself to many more than the six issues. However, it does say you can cancel your trial subscription (afetr receiving the fourth issue), and will only pay a pound.

They're relying on you to forget to cancel or to say, "oh, might as well carry on," but if you really want to pay just a pound for six issues, put a note in your diary and cancel your trial subscription after four issues. Simple really.

Where do you go for the best savings rates?

Savings rates at banks and building societies are sinking faster then the pound (and that's saying something!). Is there anywhere that you might get a decent rate?

According to the Sunday Telegraph (1 Feb), these are the best rates:

EASY ACCESS ACCOUNTS
Scarborough BS Balance Builder 3.87%
Yorkshire BS eSaver 3.75%
Alliance & Leicester eSaver 3.60%

CASH ISA
Leeds BS (5 year fixed rate) 4.00%
Scottish Widows Instant cash ISA 3.60%
Alliance & Leicester Easy ISA 3.50%

FIXED RATE BONDS
Bradford & Bingley 1 year 4.05%
West Bromwich BS 3 year 4.00%
Northern Rock 5 year 3.85%