A millionaire businessman, Matt Stockdale, is launching a new energy company – charging gas and electricity at cost. Fat cats, begorrah!

The company is called At Cost Energy. It isn’t up and running yet – at the time of writing, an application to become one of OFGEM’s licensed energy supply companies is going through the system – but prospective customers are being invited to register their interest at the At Cost Energy website. There is no obligation to sign up, but At Cost Energy is hoping for an indication of how much energy it may need to buy, with a view to going “live” later this year.

I have registered – this initiative is timely. E.ON’s buffoonery is beginning to get on my wick;  we were recently moved from monthly direct debit to quarterly invoices, without any warning, and landed with a stonking great bill. Not amused.

From the At Cost Energy website:

Welcome to At Cost Energy – where we believe gas and electricity are a necessity to live, not a luxury!

We challenge why ANY company should be allowed to profit from something that in our founder’s opinion, is a basic human right.

As the name suggests we offer gas and electricity AT COST, no hidden extras, no flashy London offices, no pretty water feature in reception, no shareholders, no director bonuses, just the same gas and electricity you use currently, but AT COST!

The only thing that changes when you switch to At Cost Energy is the name at the top of the bill and the lower amount you pay at the bottom!

No misleading ploys, no introductory offers, just gas and electricity… AT COST!

[At Cost Energy]

Rationing was first introduced in the UK during the First World War (1914 – 1918). It was reintroduced in the Second World War (1939 – 1945), when we grew only a third of the food that needed – and U-boats were polishing off the boats that brought in supplies from overseas. The UK wasn’t the only country to ration food and other goods during wartime – the U.S. rationed petrol and certain food products, and other countries also adopted rationing systems – but in our case, rationing was relatively severe and prolonged. We didn’t bin our ration books until 1954.

Here is the amount of food allocated to each adult, weekly (below). Not surprisingly, housewives became extremely resourceful (and skinny).  All sorts of recipes were concocted. Make Do And Mend became a way of life.

Being a 1940s Domestic Goddess sounds pretty wretched though:

With food so scarce many women acted on the principle ‘what the eye doesn’t see . . .’ or even, on occasion, ‘what the eye does see . . .’ One London woman, who dropped the family’s entire butter ration on the kitchen floor, simply scraped it back on the dish for an important guest, though her small son made pointed remarks on the subject at table. A Birmingham woman, whose husband’s dinner was knocked out of her hand, pushed it back on to the plate and ‘tidied it up’ with some more gravy so that ‘the poor man never knew until long after the war’. A King’s Lynn woman saw a neighbour who had dropped half a dozen eggs in the gutter when pushing her pram scraping them up; she scrambled them for supper. Even doctors relaxed their customary standards. A Westmorland doctor who found her weekly joint covered with maggots ’scraped them off and roasted the joint again’. She also salted down butter in a large bedroom jug. ‘One morning I found a mouse drowned in the salty water,’ she remembers, ‘but I used the butter.’

This extract and others (below) are from a terrific book by Norman Longford called How We Lived Then: A History of Everyday Life During the Second World War.

I’d like to thank all the bloggers who submitted posts for this Festival of Frugality. It was difficult to make Editor’s Picks. But without further ado, here they are:

Editor’s Picks: The Onions

The taste of this humble vegetable, so long taken for granted, seemed suddenly the peak of gastronomic pleasure, partly because with meat rationed by value, not weight, stews, which used the cheapest cuts, were in favour. At least two Odes to anOnion were written in 1941… In February 1941 a one-and-a-half pound onion, raffled among the staff of The Times, raised £4 3s 4d and in March, when one woman remarked at a first aid lecture in Chelsea that she did not cry if she wore her gas mask when peeling onions, every woman present instantly shouted, ‘Where did you get them?’ Onions became popular prizes at socials and one wartime Girl Guide in Accrington can still recapture her pride at winning one in a treasure hunt, in honour of which her mother baked a special pie.

These posts are the Onions: worth baking a special pie for!

Cathy Stucker presents Finding Money posted at Cathy Stucker. This post made me laugh. Like Cathy, I love finding money in unexpected places! The back-of-the-sofa god will provide.

FMF presents Make and Save Money by Getting Rid of Your Junk posted at Free Money Finance. Let’s face it, you don’t need all that junk.

BWL presents Computer Repair Tips: How To Save Money posted at Christian Personal Finance. You are on your computer right now, aren’t you? Then this post applies to you!

MatthewPaulson presents How To Save Cash On Flowers posted at Fine Tuned Finances. Some good ideas here.

Dana presents 50 Chicken Crockpot Recipes – Get A Great Dinner On The Table With Little Effort posted at Not Made Of Money. What a terrific post: if you are as attached to your slow cooker as I am, you will find a delicious-sounding recipe or two here.

FIRE Finance presents Smart Refrigeration Lowers Electricity Bill posted at FIRE Finance. Some simple, effective ideas from a FIRE Finance’s friendly fridge engineer.

The Horsemeat

Some people purchased goods “under the counter” or on the black market. Apparently black market horsemeat – not eaten in the UK in peacetime – became a sneaky substitute for beef.

The following posts are the Horsemeat, not because they have anything in common with pet food (perish the thought!) but because of their dedication to the frugal cause. Obstacles, be gone! Where there’s a frugal will, there’s a frugal way.

Free Spirit presents 5 Steps To Simplify Information Overload posted at Simple.. Frugal.. Content.

Craig Ford presents How to Afford to be a Stay at Home Wife or Mom posted at Money Help For Christians.

Sarah presents Save Dough by Baking Your Own Bread posted at The Penny-Wise Life.

Paul Williams presents Fresh-baked Yeast Bread with Only 10 Minutes of Work posted at Provident Planning.

Jason presents Fighting Evil by Phone posted at Live Real, Now.

Tom @ Canadian Finance Blog presents How To Become A Coupon King (Or Queen) posted at Canadian Finance Blog.

Rainy-Day Saver presents Fix-It Friday: To-Do List Edition posted at Rainy-Day Saver.

Peak Personal Finance presents Before You Buy: Practice Home Mortgage Payment | Peak Personal Finance posted at Peak Personal Finance.

Bucksome presents 4 Steps to Success with Priceline posted at Buck$omeboomer’s Financial Path to Retirement.

Grace presents Convention Freebies posted at GRACEful Retirement.

The Tea Leaves

In July rationing really began, to use an appropriate word, to bite, when it was extended to tea, for the two ounces a week allowed were not enough for most families. Women now began to tear open their empty tea packets in search of a few hidden grains, or followed the Minister of Food’s advice to use ‘one spoonful for each person and none for the pot’.

Rationing tea in the UK? Just imagine! These posts all have a financial theme. I’ve called them the Tea Leaves because in these parts tea, like money, makes the world go round…

Patty Pedersen presents Seven Ways to Invest in Auto and Auto Part Stocks posted at AlphaProfit MoneyMatters – Investing Blog.

BankShout presents Zecco Review posted at BankShout.

ABC presents Technical Analysis Trading posted at ABCs of Investing.

The Financial Blogger presents What Can I Deduct to Pay Less Tax? File Your Income Tax with QuickTax Review posted at The Financial Blogger.

The Smarter Wallet presents SmartyPig Review: Best Savings Account For Your Goals posted at The Smarter Wallet.

DR presents » Insurance.com Review | How to Compare Auto Quotes Online posted at The Dough Roller.

David presents Low Interest Credit Cards posted at Credit Card Offers IQ.

Aaron presents 7 Ways Prepaid Cards can Help You Budget posted at Prepaidcards123.

Wise_Bread presents The First Time Home Buyer Credit and How Big of a Deal is It? posted at Wisebread

CreditCardAssist presents Many Consumers Making Switch to Credit Unions posted at CreditCardAssist.com.

Ricky presents Roth Investment Advice posted at Qwoter.

The Soap Flakes

All types of soap were rationed. Every adult was allotted four coupons per month; one coupon would get you a bar of soap, 3 oz soap flakes or 6 oz soap powder.

These posts are the Soap Flakes, not just because they are clean and shiny, but because they cover some of the essentials of a frugal lifestyle.

Zen Friend presents Keep It Simple, Be Frugal, Feel Content. posted at Simple.. Frugal.. Content.

Kristia presents When Buying Meat and Poultry, Don’t Let The Yellow Stickers Scare You. posted at Family Balance Sheet.

Lisa Duncan presents 14 Fun Ways to Pass the Day Trapped Inside posted at Living Frugal Tips.

Four Pillars presents Use Your Cell Phone Apps To Manage Your Money posted at Quest For Four Pillars.

Jeff Rose presents How Identity Theft Destroys Your Credit Score posted at Good Financial Cents.

PT presents Use Free Online Tutorials to Do It Yourself posted at PT Money.

MD @ Studenomics presents What Are Some of The Stupid Ways You Spend Money? posted at studenomics.com.

Tom @ Canadian Finance Blog presents How To Become A Coupon King (Or Queen) posted at Canadian Finance Blog.

MoneyNing presents How Do I Teach My Child About Money? posted at Money Ning.

Sun presents Creating a Home Directory posted at Earn More Invest Wisely at The Sun’s Financial Diary.

Ryan presents Keep These Senior Year Expenses in Mind posted at The Financial Student.

Tom Tessin presents Saving Money at a Resale Shops posted at FSC Blog.

The Eggs

A more serious shortage than fresh fruit was that of eggs, which became scarce during 1940 following cuts in imports and the slaughter of millions of hens to save feeding stuffs. Before the war everyone in Great Britain had eaten on average three eggs a week; during the war the total dropped to roughly one a fortnight, though there were long periods with none at all. Most people now realised for the first time the important role eggs had played in their diet. Anyone whose work took him into the country would now enquire, as a matter of course, at any likely-looking farm or cottage if there were eggs for sale…A wasted egg was a major disaster. A London woman remembers frying her husband their only egg that week for his breakfast, until ‘it got more and more like lino as I kept it hot. In a fury I cast it into the kitchen boiler and gave him breakfast in bed after that.’

The following posts are Eggs: their subjects are special treats, or special occasions.

Weddings Affordable presents Wedding Help From Friends and Family posted at Cheap Wedding Ideas.

Scotch Addict presents Start with frugal spirits, then graduate to premium ones posted at Scotch Addict.

Belle presents Happy Tree Tapping and Sap Collecting! posted at Homesteaderbelle’s Blog.

Miss Bankrupt presents I Still Buy Bottled Water? Sorry posted at Miss Bankrupt.

Clothing Coupons

Rationing wasn’t restricted to food. Coupons were also issued for clothing: if you saved your coupons, you could get one new outfit every year. People were especially resourceful when it came to clothing: from unpicking old jumpers and knitting them into new garments to, famously, substituting gravy browning for hosiery. Frugal Grandma (above) still looked hot. Would you expect anything less?

vh presents Sartorial Elegance: Thrift Store Edition posted at Funny about Money.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Guide To Sewing Buttons: How To Sew On A Button Correctly posted at The Digerati Life. I would like my husband to read this post…

The Blitz Spirits

The following posts were selected for their admirable attitude!  Frugality is a lifestyle, so let’s keep calm and carry on – whatever is thrown at us.

Money Beagle presents Unexpected Savings Karma posted at Money Beagle.

J. Money presents How do you measure the power of money? posted at Budgets are Sexy.

Darwin presents What Does Financial Freedom Mean To You? posted at Darwin’s Finance.

Joe Plemon presents When Does Saving Turn To Hoarding? posted at Personal Finance By The Book.

Mrs. Money presents You Can’t Afford Kids posted at The Ultimate Money Blog.

Billeater presents In A Serious Personal Finance Crisis? Assistance Pointers posted at Billeater.

Image credits: Walraven, Le Petit Poulailler, fdecomite.

Here is the random number generator that I use. I asked it to pick a number between 1 and 367.

And it picked comment number…

…295!

Congratulations Caroline. As soon as I have your address details, the handbag will be on its way.

Miss T

x

South of the Watford Gap?

If you are in or around London at 6:30 pm on Thursday 24 February, stylist Hannah J is running a Make Do and Mend workshop on Brick Lane. The tickets are £25 each, which I thought sounded a bit dear as you can get a whole new outfit from TK Maxx for that price, but as it turns out you get quite a lot of bang for your buck (in addition to plenty of tea and cake). You get lots of tips and advice; also, you take three “tired” garments with you and are helped to transform them during the course of the workshop. Further information is available here.

Venue: 26 Osborn Street, London, E1 6TD

Bookings: www.hannahj.bigcartel.com

Event Contact: hannah@hannah-j.com, 07842 918901

North of the Watford Gap?

Visit York got in touch to ask if I’d spread the news about their latest mini-break offer. It is called See You In York and gives you an extra night at participating hotels and B&Bs for free.  So if you book two nights you get three nights, if you book three nights you get four and so on. You also get a free bottle of Yorkshire wine. See their website for details. I only live down the road so shan’t be taking up this offer, but can vouch that York (above) is a Very Nice City. I can’t vouch for “Yorkshire wine” though…

So what are you still doing sitting at this computer then? Go on – shoo!

Image credit: whereareyousimon.

This competition prize has been donated by ThisHandbag: a new site that stocks one handbag at a time, and sells at heavily discounted prices. The bag on show measures 29 cm by 26 cm, and is available from the website for £9.99 plus £1.50 postage.

To enter, simply leave a comment below, listing one item that you keep in your handbag and couldn’t do without. Apart from your purse or wallet, of course. (For me it’s a notepad: I’m always scribbling things down.)

The closing date is 5 pm GMT on Tuesday 23 February. I’ll pick the winner using an online random number generator.

UPDATE: The competition has closed and the winner has been picked! See here for details.

Discount: 10 per cent.

Code: valblog

Valid from: NOW!

Valid to: Midnight, Saturday 13 February 2010.

T&C: Minimum product value is £25.00.  Discount offer excludes overseas delivery and delivery- included products.

Interflora Website.

P.S.  If you would like to send me some flowers too, please feel free to do so. No really, don’t let me stop you…  I do get offered stuff by PRs these days, but the items are often weird things like a heated coaster or incontinence pads.  So things are looking up, people.

This is a Twitter comp. I’m seeing more and more of these; of course, if you’re on Twitter already and you aren’t following me, I demand that you do so immediately! Those who have yet to succumb, however, can enter via Best Western’s Facebook page.

How it works: follow Best Western on Twitter (@bestwesterngb) or on Facebook. Every 30 minutes a question about Best Western will be announced. Find the answer and @reply on Twitter, or submit the answer to the Best Western wall on Facebook. The winner will be selected at random, from all the correct answers submitted within 15 minutes of the question’s announcement.

In case you were wondering, that is indeed a Best Western hotel room pictured above. Earls Court, apparently.

NB. I am not sure if you get to choose your hotel. Let’s hope so, eh?

Some people aren’t keen on sales, because they feel that (a) you can go overboard, splurging on rails of worthless tat; (b) why bother with the dregs that nobody was prepared to buy at full price?  Personally, I am not convinced by these arguments. If it’s rubbish, why buy it at any price? As for the “dregs” defence: this presumes that all the people buying stuff at full price have good taste. Ha! I think not, if the frock horrors falling out of Mayfair nightclubs and WAG boutiques are anything to go by.

Now is the best time to go sales shopping, in my book. Two of my recommendations:

1.  Hennes (or H&M, as they insist on being called these days): the sale rails are still there. Most of the items appear to have been marked down to a fiver – including the Sonia Rykiel stuff. To be honest I was surprised to find any Sonia Rykiel , because it was supposed to be flying off the shelves. Not that I’m complaining: I snagged the designer’s striped footwear (above) for a bargain bucket price.

2. Kaliko:  a terrific sale on at Kaliko at the moment. I am not sure if this has anything to do with its parent company’s woes: Bay Trading , another clothes brand under the same corporate umbrella,went into administration last year. Kaliko concessions are found in stores such as House of Fraser and Debenhams; you can also buy from Kaliko’s online store. The brand has something of a mumsy reputation, which is undeserved in my opinion.

Anyway, at the time of writing a lot of the items are marked down by 70 per cent – including the cashmere. I picked up a little lavender cardigan, marked down from £90 to £27.

Now all I need is for Marks & Spencer to mark down their cashmere. Come on M&S, you know you want to…

Miss Thrifty’s pick: Staying Off the Car Payment Treadmill, by Tough Money Love. “I don’t understand the logic in borrowing money to purchase a depreciating asset”, notes Mr TML. Me neither.

When “cheap” and “Manolo Blahnik shoes” go together was featured in the 212th Festival of Frugality, hosted by Yes I Am Cheap.

Miss Thrifty’s pick: Composting on the Balcony: The Easy Way to Environmental Virtue, by Life On The Balcony. It can be done! This blog is dedicated to gardening tips for flat-dwellers.

Talking of gardening: Growing Brussels sprouts for Christmas was featured in the Make It From Scratch! Carnival, hosted by Out of Debt Again.

Miss Thrifty’s pick: All Day Beef Stock, by Making My Own Luck. I can tell you that if I ate meat, I’d be sloshing this over everything…

Image credit: Infrogmation.

Accessories: nothing to write home about here, unless you’re in the market for thick woolly scarves.

Bags: bonanza! The cowboy tote bag (left), made from oilcloth with leather trim, is reduced from £55.00 to £30.00.

I love the cowboy print – I even have it on my bedroom wallpaper – and there are a few cowboy bags in the sale section this time. The cowboy messenger bag is reduced from £38.00 to £25.00. The cowboy bucket bag is reduced from £40.00 to £25.00. I hope this doesn’t mean that the cowboy print is for the chop…

Bathroom: washbags down from £18.00 to £12.00.

Bedroom: the super-cute mini cowboy cot bumper is reduced from £35.00 to £15.00. The matching reversible quilt (right) is down from £50.00 to £25.00. See what I mean about all cowboy stuff on special? However other little reversible quilts are down to £25.00 too.

Clothing: wow, these are the dregs! In general, I find the Cath Kidston clothing to be hit and miss: it’s a fine line between Nancy Mitford and Bag Lady.

Homeware: nothing that stands out.

Kids: this bobble hat (above) is reduced from £16.00 to £5.00. Such a shame that it is child-sized! Little woolly cardigans are reduced from £25.00 to £12.00.

Phew! I think we’re there…