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October 2023 Money Review
After almost a year, I’m back with another money review woo! This is my first full month post-gap year and I’m feeling a lot better about my situation than I did last month 😅 I’d always assumed that I’d find a “normal person” job once I got back from my year of travel but the closer the end got the less and less this idea appealed. I LOVE the flexibility and randomness of the life I’ve built over the past year and I have found a way to extend it and kinda just keep going – temporary seasonal work!! These types of gigs usually last a couple of months, often come…
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9 Ways To Get FREE Books
New books are soooo expensive!!! But reading as a hobby doesn’t need to be expensive! Thanks to the good ole internet there are tonnes of ways to get free books nowadays (beyond your classic local library – although that is a FAB way!). Now I know what you’re thinking, “free is never really free” but I promise you it is possible to get books for free!! I’m a massive bookworm (I easily read over 100 books each year) but I would be bankrupt if I paid for every single book I read. I have personally used the majority of these suggestions and can testify to their legitimacy! Related Reading: So…
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How Does Trusted Housesitters Work? – The Entire Process
Trusted Housesitters is a site I found by chance one day whilst watching a random youtube vlog. It was so long ago that I can’t for the life of me even remember which or whose vlog it was. But I am SO thankful that I found it!! So how does Trusted Housesitters work? This post will explain the process from start to finish! After verifying that the site was legit, I stalked it for a couple years before investing in a membership. This was mostly down to one of the requirements being that you must be 21 and I wasn’t at the time, plus I was still at uni so…
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13 Day USA Roadtrip – How Much I Spent!
Hello, ello, ello, long time no blog post!! But I’m back from my best summer yet working as a camp counsellor at a sleep away camp in the West Virginian mountains. I have soooo much to share about my experience at camp and of course the finances surrounding it but I thought I’d kick it all off with a spending roundup from the roadtrip I did with a few new friends once we left camp. We spent almost two weeks together travelling from West Virginia up the coast to NYC (where we met up with some fellow counsellors, one of whom was kind enough to host us) and then onwards…
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£5k Hustle Challenge – How I did it in 7 1/2 months!
I am currently on a gap year after graduating uni back in July 2022. My intentions for this year were to slow down a little bit, do some travelling and decide what my next move is going to be. I’d set aside a pot of money (£5k to be exact) to cover all costs associated with the year. But I soon found out I’m not the type of person who can just sit idly all day. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love a sofa day but I need to be doing something. Enter the £5k hustle challenge! Disclaimer – This post contains some affiliate/referral links which means that I…
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Gap Year Budget Update – 8 Months In
8 months done and dusted!!! That means I graduated 9 months ago 🤯 Wtf!!! I still frequently refer to myself as a student because I just haven’t got over it yet 😂 These past 8 months have been absolutely amazing and have really made me stop and think about the life I want to create going forward. I frequently change my mind on what I want to do next and I don’t think I’ll make a final decision until I absolutely have too. Anyway, enough of my indecision, the end of the month means only one thing around here… it’s time to break down last months spending 🥳 You may have noticed…
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I failed… My £5k Budget is Gone
After 200 days of full time travel, my £5k gap year budget is all gone! I have spent every single penny having an absolutely wonderful time. Ok, so technically I failed. When I initially set this budget I wanted to make it last the entire year, including all the costs associated with my summer job as a camp counsellor. But it soon became apparent that this just wasn’t going to happen. Transportation costs between destinations were way higher than I thought they would be. I actually ended up spending nearly double the amount I’d originally allocated to this cost. I also got carried away a couple of times (especially when…
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Long Haul Budget Flights – Are They Really Worth It?
A flight across the Atlantic is a little different than a quick two hour Ryanair one to Spain so the question is are long haul budget flights worth the savings? Or are you best sticking to the big, well known brands for this type of travel? Keep reading to hear all about my experience. During my time at uni, my go to procrastination site was Skyscanner and I would immediately look up flights to NYC. Dreaming of just packing a small bag and heading out there for a weekend – 16 hours of travel for two days makes sense right?? Anyway a few years back I remember always seeing a…
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Kindle Unlimited, Is it Worth it?
On the first day of 2023, I went onto Amazon to buy an ebook for my mum as she uses my kindle account. It was £3.49 to buy or I could get it through kindle unlimited by paying 99p for a three month membership – absolute no brainer!! But is Kindle Unlimited worth it? Let’s break it down… I’d already technically saved money and got the ebook at a bargain price. But being the frugal person I am, I made the absolute most of having the membership these past three months. Plus it’s really helped get me out of a reading slump I was in towards the end of 2022!…
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March Budget Update – £5k Gap Year
Already a quarter of the way through 2023 😱 Where is the time going? Absolutely insane!! But the end of another month means only one thing in the finance space – it’s time to review and reflect on the month, so here is my March budget update 😄 March has been a kinda chilled one for me, well compared to my previous months that is 😂 My big 5 month trip came to an end and I started leg 3 of my gap year, which is only going to be 6 weeks. Mostly down to visa restrictions but also because the budget is starting to look a little tight! New here? Let…
