First Time Home Owner - Our Saving Tips

As you all know our project is a self build so our requirements for our deposit were a little different to what is needed for that of a first time buyer. As we were building the house we didn't necessarily need a specific amount of money saved like a first time buyer would. 
We were extremely blessed to have our site in our names and this meant that we could use the land as a strength for us for our mortgage application. The land aside we still needed A LOT of money behind us to start the build. We had to been seen to be consistently saving each month in order to prove that we could afford to make mortgage repayments in the future. We had to have enough money to make required contributions to the build along with the mortgage provided by the bank. 

Our biggest concern when the time came to begin saving for our deposit over two years ago was that we didn't want our lifestyle to change greatly. We love to go out for meals together, we loved our weekends away and nights out with our friends, I love my high-end make up collection and Gerard has an addiction to Zara coats. We knew that we had to be careful about how much we spent each month, but we didn't want our lifestyle to suffer while saving. 

Here's a few little things we did to help our savings grow. 

Setting A Budget 

We wanted to keep our life as comfortable as we enjoyed it before we began saving so we looked at our budget. We made a list of all the things we enjoyed doing each month - nights out, meals out, shopping, personal care and beauty etc. and we decided together how much we could be happy to keep aside for each. We took away our bills and utilities and then we decided on a savings amount that we both felt comfortable in saving each month. We wanted to make sure that it was enough to create a decent amount of savings but also not too much that it makes a negative effect on our lives.  

Saving with the Credit Union

We both had a credit union savings accounts linked with our payroll in work. This meant that every pay day our savings were automatically taken out of our payslip and placed into the Credit Union. We never felt like the money was gone, it was almost like it was another tax taken off our wage safely tucked away in our savings accounts. This was the best way for us to save. As we needed consistent savings we had the same about lodged into each of our savings accounts each month and we never touched the savings as the bank needed to see at least six months of savings untouched in our statements. Easier said than done I know but this was a very effective way for us to save. 

Make Smart Choices 

Yes we wanted to keep our lifestyle the same but we still had to be smart with our money and spending. We could keep our lives as comfortable as we wanted while we saved but we still needed to make smart choices and a few sacrifices along the way. For example we didn't go on a summer holiday this year because we wanted to put that money towards the house. The summer before we went to Italy for 5 days to cut back a little and again put the savings we made towards the house. We know that small smart choices like this would help us get to our home faster and it would all the worth it in the end. 

Silly I Know But.....Get A Piggy Bank

I bought one and it was actually sad how much I enjoyed filling it. I would empty my purse every few days and see the savings box fill up. I kept this for a few months and I ended up with enough money to buy my dining room chairs from TK Max. See not so silly after all!! 

Don't Put Yourself Under Pressure 

Life is for living, yes we all need a home of our own and roof over our heads but don't put extra financial strain on yourself that you cannot afford. If you decided to save half of your wages each month, but after bills and other experiences you are left with so little to live on you will just feel stressed and under pressure. There is no need for that. Only save what you feel comfortable with financially saving. It may take you longer to save if you save less each month but you can only save what you can afford to live without. We only saved what we felt comfortable saving, yes we could have saved more or cut back on certain things but we wanted to maintain our lifestyle while saving. We did not see the point in saving extra and being miserable or having to take money from our savings to cover extra costs. 

I really hope these little tips help. This is what worked for us, of course it may not work for everyone but I hope it helps someone out there. 

Amy x 

TK Maxx - Style For Less

As I have stated many many times on all my social media I am absolutely obsessed with TK Maxx. I take shopping there very seriously, I have a method and technique to my shopping trips there. See....obsessed!
All for good reason, TK Maxx is the perfect place to find designer items for less and I have found some fabulous pieces in the last few weeks. Here's three of my favourite.



My best find ever in TK Maxx was my dinning room chairs. These chairs are out of this world, plush grey velvet with button detail. They are so luxurious and look so much more expensive than what I paid for them.They were a steal for €99.99 each and some how I managed to snap up six of them! Finding six of the one item is a rarity in TK Maxx so I had to snap them up right away and stuff as many as I could into my Fiat Punto. I think that they will look amazing in our dining room when it is finally ready.

I could not leave the store without this table, I have had my eye on tables like this for so long and seen so many expensive designer versions of it - I was so happy when I seen it was only €44.99. It is a lovely brushed chrome with a mirrored table top.  

My final find was my tripod lamp. It is something which I have always had on my wishlist but I was on the hunt for the right one at the right price and of course I found it in my favourite spot. This lamp is originally priced £120 from BHS but TK Maxx resold it for €80 - another item which had to be stuffed into the Punto.  

I find the best way to get designer items for less is to visit the likes of TK Maxx regularly, have a wishlist of items you would love to have in your home and if you are lucky enough to find it in store grab it & run because if you don't someone else will - and it will probably be me haha!!

Happy Shopping,

Amy x 

Building The Dream - Week One: Site Clearance

Building the dream for us had to start with site clearance and as we didn't have a clean green site this job was a big one, a lot of work for our builders, a lot of waiting for us and a lot of money to spend. But it has to be done so we could fit our dream house in the space where my in laws garage once stood. 

Week One began on the 22nd of August 2016, a day we truly could not wait to see. Already a week behind schedule but we didn't care our house was finally on the way.

Stripping back the garage which held so many memories for my partner's family the site clearance began and in one week it was all gone and ready for the next stage which followed in week two. 

It is so hard to believe that this was the same place, in only a few days what once stood was gone and we are excited to see what was next. 

More exciting times and photographs to come - keep watched.

Amy x

The Beginning of Building The Dream

Finally our long awaited dream is underway! 

As you may or may not know for the past four years myself and my other half have been trying to fulfill our dream of building our first home together. Yes, we're crazy I know! If we had decided to go down the road of buying a house we would be living in a house of our own years ago, but why play it safe we thought - we had a amazing opportunity in front of us with the option to build and we just had to go with it. Together we could create our perfect home together, not many 20 something year olds living in Dublin get that chance in life! 

Our dream began four years when Gerard's family put forward the idea to us that we could us the space where there large garage stood as a site to build a house (in picture above).  We could not believe our luck and the family's amazing generosity. Financially we would have never been able to afford to buy in Dublin and stay in the town where both our families lived and we grew up. This opportunity was like winning the lottery. We felt truly blessed. 

The road to getting to this point was far from easy - I will do a more detailed blog post about that later - and at times I did feel like we did the wrong thing and we should have just bought a house but now that the build has started I couldn't be happier with our decision and our opportunity. 

I plan to document the entire build along with showing my design ideas, our journey to this point and what I have learned along the way. I couldn't be more excited for what's to come and I hope you all - however few there may be reading this - enjoy seeing our journey documented along the way. 

Amy x

January 2016 Favourites

I am sure that I am not alone in this - I absolutely hate January! I have no money left after Christmas, I have chocolate withdrawals after selection box breakfast over the Christmas and I have had my eyes glued to the calendar waiting for days to go by an February to arrive.  
Despite all that there have been a few things that I have loved this month and I thought I would share my first monthly favourite - January 2016! 

Voluspa Candle - Chestnut & Vetiver 

My boyfriend very kindle bought my a six scent selection of these candles for Christmas which I am trying my very best to save up for when we FINALLY move into our house this year (fingers crossed), but I picked myself up the large version of the Chestnut & Vetiver half price in House of Fraser Dundrum and I am obsessed with it! Not only in the gold glass jar gorgeous, the scent it out of this world, it smells like melted toffee. I am trying so hard not to burn out the entire thing as I'll be heartbroken when it's gone. If you can get your hands on this candle I highly suggest you pick it up! 

Healthy Lifestyle App - Lifesum

I am really trying to continue the healthy routine I started in 2015 and my sister recommend the Lifesum app and I am addicted to it. This app helps you customise a diet plan with your personal goal in mind. What I like about this food diary is that it doesn't just focus on calories, but it focus on the nutritional balance of each meal. Each item of food item and meal is graded on a health scale (A,B,C,D or nil) and you will them receive an overall health grade - so if you under eat you are penalized for not using your daily allowance of calories. I really think that this is a great app for promoting healthy eating and I am now on a mission to reach healthy A's each day. 

The Lo-cal Kitchen, The Phoenix Park Racecourse, Dublin 15.

On my healthy lifestyle kick I have also loved my trips to the Lo-cal Kitchen in The Phoenix Park Racecourse which have the most amazing low calorie, nutritious and delicious menu - especially breakfast. My favourite is the super salmon which is smoked salmon on brown bread with low fat cream cheese, avocado and poached eggs. Delicious!! 

Snapchat! 

I've always liked Snapchat and watching my friends funny clips but I recently started watching some bloggers on Snapchat and it is so addictive I could watch them all night! Also as I mention in my last post I am also trying to start snapping a little bit here and there but I am still very new and very nervous with it, but like everything I will get used to it and I'm sure I'll be addicted to snapping in now time! 

My favourite top 5 Snapchatters to watch:

* cartermarissa - Marissa's voice is so relaxing!! 

*daintydressdiaries - Catherine's house is amazing, it's like a doll's house.

* justjordanblog - I'm very late to the party here I just started watching her & I love her snaps.

*jamespatrice - his poor mother LOL!

*self_improver  - I love Maria's blog and healthy lifestyle tips :) 

I love so many more snapchatters but they are always my first five to load and watch! 

Making A Murderer 

Well I am not alone here, I think anyone with Netflix had an addiction to 'Making A Murderer' this January. It is such a gripping story that had me up all night watching "just one more episode". If there is by any chance anyone who hasn't watch it yet, make it your mission to do so as it is a must watch. 

Only a few little bits, but as I was broke for the month there was no shopping LOL! 

Hopefully my February Favourites will be a little fuller :)

Amy xx 

Snapchat Happy

One of my New Year’s resolutions for my blog for this year was to bite the bullet and join in on the Snapchat craze - and I know I am very late to the game! 

I was apprehensive to begin with as I really didn’t think anyone would be interested in seeing daily snaps of my boring life! But I get out and about a little so I thought I would just go for it! 

Now as you might guess from my blogs, my snaps are also not that exciting but I do go out for meals (a lot), I go shopping (a lot) and sometimes I get to doll myself up and go on a night out - I thought it might be a bit of fun to snap a little of my life. 

Meals Out: 

Home Decor & Shopping:

Sometimes...just sometimes its not just homeware :) 

I am really enjoying Snapchat and I would love a few new followers, and of course to follow a few more people so please feel free to add me! 

Happy Snapping!!
Amy :) 

Tk Maxx Obsession - Homeware Haul

To say that I am obsessed with Tk Maxx would be an understatement – I have a problem!

I actually have to limit my visits to once a month (pay day of course) and I need a chaperone with me as left alone in the store I am dangerous.

Recently I have had a few too many visits and my bank account is a little worse for wear but my bottom drawer (I’ll explain in another post) is looking good!

Check out what I have found in my favourite shop of hidden designer treasures! 

Kate Spade Books:

I was so excited to find these books in a Tk Maxx store last week - my Christmas present to myself. I have wanted to start a collection of coffee table books and I thought that these books were perfect - I love the cover, the content and the colours. 

All In Good Taste was €16 which is all about how to be the perfect hostess at a dinner party and Places To Go, People to See was €24 and is full of beautiful travel pictures and tips. 

Jamie Oliver Cutlery: 

I love Jamie Oliver's kitchen range and I have had my eye on his cutlery sets for a while. I decided to go with the 24 piece Modern Classic design which €39.99 (I bought two boxes). 

Rope Detailed Mirror:

I couldn't leave the store without this mirror! I have seen several designer versions of this mirror and for €26.99 it had to be mine! 

Cookbook Stand and Leon Cook Book:

I have started a collection of Leon Cook Books from Tk Maxx as the were such good value, I love the recipes inside and I also adore the colourful covers. I have several of these books are they are around €17 each. The grey cookbook stand was around €10. 

Copper Birdcage Lampshade:

Another item I could leave the store without - my birdcage lampshade! I love it, my other half hates it - but it will be in our house ha! Again, I have seen very similar lampshades with very different price tags, as this lampshade was missing a bird I walked away with it for €20.

Alice In Wonderland Book: 

Another coffee table book for my collection. I think its pretty pink cover will look lovely on a coffee table or on a bookshelf. This book was €9.99.

Hammered Silver Lamp:

I have been in a search for a big silver lamp for so long! My mam's friend has one which I have admired for so long and I was on a mission to find one of my own. I found a few but they were a little out of my price range, but this silver shining beauty was only €36.99 and I love it! 

Rusty Heart Mirror:

I had originally seen this mirror for €50 in Tk Maxx when I didn't have my wallet with me and when I came back it was gone - insert sad face. A few weeks later I found one hidden and marked at €34.99, it was faith. This mirror will take pride and place in my bedroom - when it's finally built that is! 

So that's a FEW of my Tk Maxx favourite buys, believe me there's more and there will be more so keep an eye out for more hauls! 

Enjoy, 

Amy x

Hello 2016

2016, you are very most welcome into my life!

2015 was an emotional roller coaster of a year – not the worst I’ve had but it certainly had its tough moments.

Down moments being we were refused our mortgage, we had to change our architect three times and paid hundreds in fees which seem to show us nothing and we had a few health scares in the family just to name a few stressful moments.

On the upside I was made permanent in my dream job after 6 years of hard work and study, my best friend had a beautiful baby girl and we found an engineer who completely transformed our house plans for the better and managed to save us nearly €50k!!! Myself and himself visited some beautiful places this year, London, Sorrento and Capri and I’m excited to travel more in 2016.

I have never been so excited for an arrival of a New Year and a new chapter of my life as I have hopes that myself and my other half will finally get a chance to begin our dreams which we have been working so hard for the last 3 years – building our first home together!

Our journey of building our first home together has been nothing short of heart breaking! We have saved for a long time, put a lot of hard work into all the plans and finding the right people to work with on the build, we put thousands into getting planning permission and we nearly lost the entire build, but we never lost hope that we would build our dream home and future together!

I had hoped that by now we would be living in our home, but unfortunately the banks had other ideas! So I am now a woman on a mission – no matter what now I am determined that we will be living in our perfect house for Christmas 2016. Watch the space!!

And with that Chic & Cheerful will finally take shape and will no longer be a social media outlet for me to just share ideas I love. The page and my blog will fulfill its purpose and will document our journey – bringing you all along the way!

I hope you all enjoy my emotional roller coaster of 2016!

Happy New Year, Good Health, Wishes and Dreams to you all!

Amy xx