Who hasn’t worried about rising living costs?

Unless you’re the landed gentry, or a top shareholder at an energy company, the incoming rising bills are going to hurt. So here’s a short article with some ideas to reduce the impacts of the hikes.

Yay for Summer! The season brings welcome news of lower outgoings, smaller energy bills, less heating needed. Time to turn off the central heating, crank open the doors and let the sun in to heat us all.

Days are longer, lights are not required at 4pm. And even cooking – we can all turn off the oven and enjoy fresh salads and greens.

But don’t turn off your money-saving-mojo!

The most savvy savers aren’t going to allow a little sunshine to put them off the trail of keeping costs right down.And the most savvy savers of all are still using gift-cards to pay for essential (and splurging) purchases.

Summer may be cheaper for living costs, but it’s the chance to build up reserves to see us through winter. For every few quid you save, that’s another headache you aren’t going to have as energy prices soar.

If there was a way to reduce your costs and outgoings – you’d jump at it!

Consider the costs of living as a year-round affair. Summer may be less expensive, and winter is regularly more costly (heating, Christmas, etc). So aim to flatten things out by cutting back all round and saving up for when you need it.

Because saving money has never been so essential as it is this summer.

So here area few ideas to help you save cash.

Make yourself more hike-proof with a cash reserve. Save whenever you can. Don’t splash the cash – if you think there’s a chance to save a little, then save it.Pop it into an account and save it for a cold rainy day.

For energy suppliers and others - swap up or around – if it makes sense. See Martin’s Moneysaving Expert tips for information.

Look at energy-saving ideas. Think: “Insulate, Educate, Eliminate”

• Insulate – wherever you can, roof, draft-proofing, even adding carpets can make a place warmer
• Educate – find out what’s the easiest or best move to make.Research for the best way to use energy, ask - are smart-meters good or not?Find out what offers are available.
• Eliminate – get rid of costly appliances, don’t put lights on if you aren’t using them, turn off the “sleep” function and just turn things off at the socket.

Cash in where you can – sell your gift cards, turn junk to cash on ebay or Facebook Market.Ask people not to give you birthday or seasonal gifts, ask for cash instead.Certainly ask for cash instead of a gift-card!

Sell Sell Sell – use your existing assets.Perhaps you can let out your spare room, or see if you can turn a hobby into a cash-cow (Etsy are brilliant for this)

Boost your bargain-seeking, by buying using our discounted gift-cards. Right now we’ve got Amazon giftcards with 3% off and Halfords with a chunky 10% off! (And thinking of Halfords – can you cycle instead of drive or bussing everywhere?)

Summer sizzles more when you save!

However you enjoy your summer, you'll enjoy it more by spending less! So remember to check out Cardyard before you buy anything - from cinema tickets to travel, cycles to swim costumes, because Cardyard can simply help you save more this summer.