Always Read The Label

Normally when I go to the supermarket I have my route planned, I know the areas I want to shop in, the things I want to buy and a fair idea how much it’s going to cost me. There are certain items you need to watch out for and here are a few that have jumped out at me over the past week.

Milk

Just because it’s own brand, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the cheapest. This is true in at least one major retailer.  It’s also worth checking the price per ml, it is often cheaper to buy in 1L cartons than it is to buy a large 3L jug.  Today I saved €0.31c by buying branded milk in 1L size jugs rather than a 3L own brand jug of milk.

Sugar

Details are so important here. In a large local retailer you can buy 2 packet sizes of caster sugar; 1kg and 500g. They are both in a similar colour bag, with similar shelf size. However it’s €1.09 for 1kg of caster sugar and €0.98 for 500g.

Bread

If you like to buy crusty baguette rolls then a package of 3 large rolls will set you back between €1-€2.50 depending on where you shop. A full baguette stick in equivalent length to 3 rolls end-to-end will cost between €0.75-€1.50.

Butter

This is interesting because salted butter is a staple in many Irish households. However the amount of salt contained within the butter varies according to the brand you buy. Kerrygold has 2% salt content Tesco own brand, while cheaper by a long shot has 3% salt content. In this instance I’d recommend you stretch the budget a little bit.

Toys

Walking along the toy aisle in Tesco earlier I spotted some cards for a LeapPad that were reduced. The 5-year-old happens to have one of these toys and has been driving me demented looking for a new game.  The idea is you buy one of these cards, then type in their unique code online and you get store credit. They were just over €5 for the card, which represented good value considering the value on the card was £15. In my head I did a calculation and figured he would get a great game for that price.

Then I got home and tried to credit the account. The credit was in Sterling and I have an Irish account in Euro. There is a way around it but it took a while and there was a bit of stress while I figured it out. Was it worth it? Well the amount I paid for the card was about 1/4 of the recommended retail price. Still I can see why they were on sale now.

So it just goes to show that I don’t always take my own advice!

If you’re looking for a way to celebrate today, International Day of Happiness, do check out the gorgeous video shared by Scoil Fhursa over on Parentie. Parent.ie is a new collaborative venture by a group of Irish parents with a wealth of experience and I’m honoured to be one of them.

I’ve found myself struggling with the small stuff lately as things are extremely busy at home. Andrea’s piece on ways to balance work and home couldn’t have come at a better time.

Happy Thursday!