A Thrifty Mrs At BrocanteHome

Alright my little Munchkins, ready to meet the second of my wonderful guest bloggers?
A Thrifty Mrs will be well known to many of you so I am delighted to have the honour of her committent to bringing her scrumptiously thrifty ideas over to us on a regular basis. While I could wax lyrical about all that is great about her blog, I thought you might prefer to get to know her in her own words, so without further ado…
“Hello! I’m Thrifty, I’m a radio journalist, voice over artist(e ?!) and blogger based in the northwest of England. I’m cheap, really cheap. I’m out for a bargain wherever I may go, be it in charity shops, flea markets, supermarkets or vintage fairs, I’ll find the cheapest item and fall in love with it.”

How long have you been blogging?

Oh a long time. I’ve been blogging on Live Journal and similar platforms since I was at uni but I started A Thrifty Mrs  in 2008, moving to the current site in May of 2009.

What difference has blogging made to your days?

Blogging takes up a fair amount of my time but that’s no bad thing! I think if you’re really into blogging you make subtle little changes without really even realising. For instance, I take my camera everywhere, not just for blog fodder but to document my life; and I hope that’s improved my photography skills (or editing the bad attempts at photography) somewhat. As a journalist I always carry a notebook with me to jot down quotes or ideas, the back section of which now has blog ideas jotted down in shorthand. Thanks to my snazzy little phone I can blog on the go and tweet or chat to my blog readers where ever I might be. I’ve been inspired by and met a lot of lovely people through blogging so the hard work is worth it.

Tell us about your blog…

It’s a bit of a mixed bag really. It focuses on the fact that I don’t have much money and how I overcome that in various different ways. I’m twenty-seven so really, I’m setting up home with my husband (Mr Thrifty). I’m learning how decorate on a budget, how to keep my house clean and tidy (to a fashion) cheapily but also in a way that won’t cause me to cough up a lung or hurt our environment. Plus putting clothes on our backs almost exclusively from thrift shops and vintage fairs. In brief my blog follows me through the adventures of a enjoying a young marriage and all that comes with it when you have million dollar dreams and a fresh air reality. That all sounds a bit dour but I like to think it’s fun.

What kind of housekeeper do you consider yourself to be?

The kind of housekeeper I consider myself to be and the actual reality are possibly very different creatures!
I make great attempts at being organised, some of my attempts work, some fail miserably.
My kitchen and bathroom are always clean and tidy the rest of the house is errrm, rustic shall we say? Although that said, people do pop round for a cuppa without calling first and I’m never as shamed face as I used to be when I lived with five other students. I think that’s called the middle ground.
I’m very much about the pretty things. The dusting can go overlooked if I have a vase of flowers on the dining room table and the fairy lights twinkling in the background.

Do you have a favourite housekeeping “bible”?

I found a book at a bootsale last year called ‘The Creda Housecraft Manual’. It’s from 1957 and is filled full of long forgotten useful tips, it’s surprising how often I turn to it. Otherwise my housekeeping bible is the Internet, I read a great many blogs and websites which are full of ideas for keeping your house ticking over.

Tell us about your house…

Mr Thrifty live in rented a two up, two down, bay windowed, terrace house in Manchester. Our street turned 100 this year and we had a street party. It’s great to have that kind of knowledge and connection of where you live. Sadly our house hasn’t retained much of it’s period features (it was remodelled in the seventies) but it is much larger than the house we moved from at the start of 2010. It’s jam packed full with books, candles and records.

Favourite Puttery Treat?

I adore the idea of washing delicate lace by placing it in a jar of soapy water and shaking. It’s a treat for your lace and a cheeky workout for the bingo wings too. Great idea Alison!
You are going to love her. This I know for sure. Only gin has the power to get me through the day??She’s my kind of girl!  So take a hop, skip and a jump over to A Thrifty Mrs, say hello  and get ready to tighten those purse strings in scrumptious style…