The Evening Standard's journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
This week, Lucy’s top money-saving tips include keeping the children diverted on a budget, cut-price workouts and how to look beautiful for less.
Time to make some dough
Families whose children are already itching for expensive days out during the Easter holidays, take note — there are cheap options to be had. The brains behind Save.co.uk have drummed up some suggestions: “Make your own playdough — mix a cup of plain flour, tablespoon of oil, half a cup of salt, cream of tartar (for elasticity), food colouring and a cup of boiling water, then stir and knead. Get the children to help you make it and we guarantee it’ll provide hours of fun. Break out old-school board games — classics such as Monopoly, Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit or card games or visit your local library for free books, films and music. Treat your children to a special breakfast — you’re normally rushing the kids out the door in the morning but time off school lets you spend some quality time together at the most important meal of the day. Whip up pancakes, omelettes or baked goods. And to get out the house, cinemas always run lots of Easter break deals. They often show cheap screenings on the weekends, have special deals for teenagers and two for one children’s tickets.” Or if the weather is bearable, check out visitwoods.org.uk with listings for free outdoors activities all over the country.
Lucky gym
Feel the need to run off the calories of Easter eggs, but want to do so within the warmth of a gym? Visit payasugym.com to pocket a £5-worth of credit without paying a penny, which can then be used for day passes to gyms across London.
That free and easy look
Instead of paying a visit to your usual stores to buy favoured make-up, consider going online to pick up beauty products if you already know which brands and potions you want to buy. The websites feelunique.com and strawberrynet.com both offer brand-name make-up ranging from Lancôme to Rimmel, Bare Minerals to Dior, with prices discounted by as much as half. For the mop atop the make-up, there are cheap haircuts aplenty in London: local colleges run “model nights” where you can have your hair done cheaply or for nothing but they can take hours longer than usual. There are also discount spa deals at group-buying site Wahanda.com, with spa breaks or day visits, facials, massages and more across the capital and further afield.
