Welcome back to Broke in Bristol – the blog that helps you save money, make money and live life to the full on a budget. I’m Ms Broke in Bristol and I’ve got 10 tips that will save you money this week!
From dreaming about how I can get my decorating done for free to getting my hands on free stuff, it’s been another busy, bargain-filled week for me. What’s been particularly great about this week though is that local businesses have been getting in touch to offer exclusive discounts for other Broke in Bristol readers. Please do send an email to hi@brokeinbristol.co.uk if you’d like to get involved. Together, we can save each other hundreds of £££s!
Skills swap
DIY season might be in full swing in the Broke in Bristol household but unfortunately I’ve come to the realisation that DIY is not one of my strong points! I’d much rather ask a professional to do it but I can’t afford to pay one. If, like me, you’re struggling with something but can’t afford to pay to get the experts in, you might want to check out a site called Bristol Lets. It stands for Bristol Local Exchange Trading System, and it’s a site dedicated to swapping skills within your local community. Gumtree also now has a skills swap section, although much of it is dedicated to swapping language skills there are a few ads for other services on there as well.
Free music lesson
Little Miss Diva is the musical one in our family so when Roisin Mcmenamin got in touch to offer Broke in Bristol readers a free taster music lesson in either piano, cello or music theory my ears pricked up! Based in BS13, she’s just moved to Bristol from Edinburgh and is now working hard to establish her music tuition business here. She teaches the ARBSM exam syllabus for those who wish to achieve graded certificates, as well as guiding those who just want to learn for fun. Check out her website and don’t forget to mention the blog when taking advantage of her great offer.
Free wine
This has got to be my favourite offer of the week! Free wine, yes really, I mean does it get any better than this? Oh, have just realised it’s a competition giving you the chance to win a bottle of free wine and its not a bottle for everyone and am slightly less enthusiastic now. Never mind, I’ll give it a go anyway, click here for your chance to enter too!
Half price massage
Another reader, Rosie emailed me to say she’d love to offer an exclusive deal for readers of this blog. She is offering an hour of realignment therapy for £17.50, instead of the usual price of £35. Based in Coombe Dingle, BS9, Roseanne Newman uses the Bowen technique to help reduce aches and pains and you can read more about how this could work for you by clicking here.
Theatre tickets for a fiver
If you’re a student in Bristol you can pick up theatre tickets from just £5. Arts Ping is a scheme for all students currently studying at University of Bristol and University of West of England, giving you access to a range of last minute offers for shows and events at Bristol Old Vic. Sign up to Arts Ping and get last minute ticket offers sent directly to your phone via text message. All you need to do is text PING followed by your full name and email address to 07786 202430.
£1 a pint!
I remember when my local Ritzy used to host £1 a pint night every Friday in Burnley, Lancashire. Although it seemed like a good idea at the time, the end of the night was never pretty! Now that I’m slightly more sophisticated (ahem) and living near central Bristol, I may well head on down to The Crown in St Nicholas Market for lunch one day this week. You can pick up a pint for just £1 with all sandwiches at lunch time and all burgers bought during lunchtimes and evenings.
Cut your mobile phone bills
If you’re paying more than £10 a month on your phone bill, you could be paying too much. If you’ve already paid for your handset, check out Three’s sim-only tariff which costs £9 a month for one year unlimited minutes and texts and 4GB of 4G data.
Get £24.99 for free!
I’m a big fan of Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis and I would even go as far as to say he’s my guilty crush! Anyway I digress, good old Martin has an exclusive credit card deal on his site this week and if Martin says it’s a good deal, then I’m in! Apply for an M&S credit card and you could receive a free £25 gift card just for spending a penny! Not only that, but it’s a good way to spread payments as it comes with 25 months no interest on shopping and balance transfers. I’m going to use it to pay for the decorating materials I’m going to need to sort out the Broke in Bristol house this autumn. You can get the deal here.
Free pizza (for the kids!)
Now Little Miss Diva is going to love this one and I’m sure your kids will too! After all, what kid doesn’t like pizza? Head on down to your local Pizza Hut as it’s currently running a new promotion where kids eat free between 3 and 5pm on weekdays. Or get a sitter and enjoy 33 per cent off your entire food bill after 7.30pm.
Sell your phone
With the new iphone 7 and 7 plus going on sale this Friday, some of you may be hoping to get your hands on the latest model which will set you back around £599. That aint cheap, so if you really must have the latest version, make sure you make some money back by selling your old phone or trading it. You’ll be happy to know that I’ve already checked out the best rates for you – and I’d definitely recommend trying Envirofone or Mazuma Mobile.
That’s my 10 ways to get stuff for free or for cheap in Bristol this week. Do you have any tips of your own? If you hear of a cheap local deal or event please email hi@brokeinbristol.co.uk and we’ll do our best to spread the word. Don’t forget to like our Facebook page, so that you never miss an update! We’ll be back on Thursday with our top picks of free and cheap things to do with or without the kids. See you then!
