Ten Years Of The Frugal Cottage

Ten years of blogging, huh!? That’s correct – The Frugal Cottage turns 10 today. It’s such a weird thing; this is the longest I have stuck with anything – apart from learning to play the piano – ever. Something that started off as a small side line has turned into a huge passion of mine; purely because I want to help people be more confident with their money.

I am so humbled by the fact that people want to hear what I have to say, listen to my story, share their own incrediable lives with me via comments, DMs, social media stories and much more. Although the past two years have been incredible tough, I know that I can rely on having this community around me to support me through the times. There have been so many people over the past ten years that have stumbled across my corner of the internet.

I am so grateful for all of you that take the time to comment on posts, to offer more advice and insight, and to cheer me along as well. Thank you also for those of you who tell me I’m being too critical or harsh on myself, as it is difficult to see how much you’ve achieved sometimes when you still have so far to go. I hope that I am continuing to show that anyone can do what I am. Anyone can save more, live the life you want on a budget, and enjoy living a more simple life.

One of the things that I am most proud of achieving in the second year of running this blog is the fact that I am now definitely a dividend investor. I opened a stocks and shares ISA with Hargreaves Lansdown and am now receiving regular dividend income which is creating another income stream which will continue to build. I love writing my monthly dividend income updates to show how slow and steady can truly win the race, in the end. Although some months we don’t receive a lot, overall it continues to grow. Our passive income stream is growing – the aim in the end is to have £1,000 a month from dividend income. I hit the four figure total for dividend income in 2019. Although it has taken a back seat as of late, I do hope to bring that back one day.

I have also started The Frugal Cottage shop, which includes my own budget planner, cash envelopes, meal planner and workshops. I get such a thrill when I get a notification to say someone has purchased something through my shop. All of the things are in there because I think they are genuinely helpful. I use the budget planner every single day to track my own budget and spending. I use the meal planner every week to help plan our meals for the week ahead.

Before I get to the figures, the final thing to say is my YouTube channel is growing from strength to strength and I have promised my boys that one day I will get the silver play button. What they don’t get is that means I have to hit 100,000 subscribers! So, make sure to check it out and subscribe if you aren’t already; it would be very much appreciated.

Some numbers over the past ten years, just for fun:

over one and a half million page views
854 posts published
4,631 comments left
over 20,000 combined social media followers
too-many-to-count hours of work
one very happy owner – me! 🙂

I want to thank everyone who has visited, left a comment, followed me on any social media platform, sent emails or general encouragement. I absolutely love blogging, and I am looking forward to seeing what the next year brings me and my boys. I hope that I can share more knowledge so you can live the life you want to live, on a budget.

Here’s to Year 11…!