Blog digest: Frugal Ireland

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By Marie Boran

Thursday November 06 2008

We can more or less guarantee that Christmas this year will not be as extravagant as last year’s festive season.

Look at the recent survey by Peninsula Ireland showing that 79pc of firms questioned said they would be cancelling this year’s Christmas party.

If you have been scanning your grocery bills and wondering where to trim the fat, then I suggest paying a visit to the Frugal Ireland Blog, where there are fairly frequent posts on supermarket offers, as well as some good tips on coupons and bargain-spotting.

http://frugalireland.com/

Value Ireland

Carrying on this theme of watching your wallet, I paid a visit to Value Ireland, where Diarmuid MacShane looks at every aspect of consumer rights and consumer value.

A recent post struck a chord with me: looking at the risks and costs of insurance.

If you’ve just dropped some serious cash on a new surround sound system for the living room, maybe you’ll think nothing of paying a little extra for an extended product warranty, but as MacShane warns, this is most likely duplicating what a standard warranty should already provide.

http://valueireland.blogspot.com/

Lidl Treats

Are we so far-removed from our parents’ generation that the notion of frugality has the negative associations of poverty and penny-pinching?

We were not born with cappuccinos in our hands, and a snobby attitude to getting value for money betrays this even more when it is considered ‘cultured’ to flush money down the drain on branded or luxury foods, while a good cook stands by bemused.

Lidl Treats is a fantastic blog with great recipes for people who like to eat well, but also like to keep their wallets intact.

If high-grade olive oil will make or break the recipe, then splash out, but when it comes to staple ingredients, the price difference is often down to brand and not quality.

http://www.lidltreats.com/

How to change the world

Maybe frugality of mind is your biggest concern, and you feel that an economic downturn is the jolt we need to get back to the drawing board and start innovating, no matter what sector we work in.

Guy Kawasaki is something of a thought leader in the entrepreneurial space. This blog deals with how to successfully create, manage and grow a product.

Kawasaki poses questions even veterans should ask to invigorate their company and management techniques: have you figured out a way to take your product to market with no budget?

http://blog.guykawasaki.com/

Email: editorial@siliconrepublic.com

- Marie Boran