Finding Work on the Side

As I've been pretty unemployed these last few months (to say the least), I thought I would have a look at what I could do as some side work to help earn a little cash during this time, and maybe even carry it on once I'd found a job.  A little bit of research showed that there are a number of things advertised as work you can carry out from home, but I was put off a number of them as I was pretty sure that my dyslexia would make them difficult to do.  After a bit more research these are the ones I took more of a look at.

UserTesting

This seemed like the perfect side job to me.  It comes in both the website form and as an app.  You register your account, carry out a few tests to see if you're suitable, and then you get sent websites to review and surveys to fill out which led to a cash reward.  Unfortunately, this hasn't really worked out that way for me as I never seem to fit the demographic they're looking for.  So, despite having it open on my laptop almost all the time I have it on, I haven't actually gotten any money from this.  However, that's probably not going to be the case for everyone.

ClickWorker

As with UserTesting, to set this up you register and then take a few tests to see if you'd be eligible for the work.  It also comes in the form of a website and an app.  I did have some issues at the start as my location (New Zealand) didn't match my nationality and they were worried about fraud, but a few emails later and that got sorted.  There have been a lot more things for me to do on this, which have mostly been surveys, but you don't get a lot of money for each survey so I can't ever see it being a big earner, even if you do it for hours at a time. 

Rover

This is a dog walking and sitting app/ website that allows you to look after other people's dogs.  I've looked after a few people's dogs, either in kennels, whilst house-sitting, for friends and family, and, of course, my own furry mooch, so I decided to give this a go.  It was pretty easy to set up and Rover does give you some cover in case there is an accident with the dog, though I still decided to take out extra insurance for peace of mind.  If I'm honest, I haven't had a big up-take and this probably isn't the best time to be starting this, but I have still enjoyed the walks and it has been a little money coming in at least.

Task Rabbit

This app looked really interesting and a good way of doing odd jobs here and there that get you some money in.  There are a few things that I could possibly do on it, though I don't necessarily have any qualifications and certificates the back up my abilities, just experience.  I'm also not too sure how much someone will want another person going to their home at the moment and I can't actually do that right now anyway, joys of Covid.  Due to that, I haven't actually finished registering with this app yet, but I will do so in a couple of months and I'll see how it actually ends up working out.

Shop and Scan

This is actually a little earner that I've been using for a few years now.  It's pretty easy to set up and once you have you just scan your food shopping every week and upload these barcodes to the website.  You get awarded points each time you do and, once you've collected a number of them, you can get gift cards either for online stores or activities.  I usually save these up until Christmas or birthdays so I can get better gifts.  This has definitely been worth it and, if you try nothing else, give this a go.

If I'm honest, these haven't really brought in a lot of money and I would actually question if some of these are even worth the time you have to put into them.  The Shop and Scan have definitely helped and the Rover could bring in some consistent income, especially if you could house-sit as well (which I can't at the moment).  However, the income from the other side hustles is pretty small right now.  I will look at other options and if I find anything worth the effort I'll let you know.

Crafting Update - November 2020

Oh look, we're in another lockdown.  If I'm being honest I would have say that, in my world of job-searching unemployment and living at my parents, it hasn't really made a huge difference to my days.  I also recently got a flight refund from one of the three airlines I've been having long phone conversations with over the last few months, so that has definitely helped take away the financial pressure for now.  Of course, all this extra time has allowed for more crafting and this is what I've gotten up to so far.  (You can see what I originally had planned on my blog about Crafting to Come).

1860's Sontag

This is now complete, and I really like it.  It's like wearing a body warmer, but closer to your body, and probably allows for the same amount of freedom.  However, I actually prefer the silhouette of this.  I will need to make this again at some point, with some alterations for a better fit and wool yarn for extra warmth as I've never found acrylic particularly warm.  But this will do for now.  

Culottes

These are completed and I love them (you can see my hap hazard method here).  They really aren't the most flattering items I've ever made or in fact worn, but I love the brightness and the feel of them.  The cotton fabric is still a little stiff as well so that doesn't really help, but once it's been worn and washed a little more it should flow a little better and sit more like a skirt.  I am thinking about possibly making a top from the same material, but we'll see if I get round to it - probably not this year.

1930's Cardigan

I started this project in October, but then had to put it to one side to do some other, mostly Christmas, projects as I was worried about not getting them all finished on time.  These are now complete and I can now get back to working on this lovely cardigan.  The wool is a beautiful colour, but I do slightly regret picking the multi-coloured style as getting the two front panels to match has turned out to be a bit of a headache.  However, it finally looks like the second panel is now matching and coming along nicely.  There is another problem that I've noticed though.  I've been looking at the first panel again, and tried an initial fitting, and it looks like it might be slightly too short at the shoulders.  So, it looks like I'll need to frog to the garter section of the shoulder to then increase the length.  The main problem here is that this yarn is actually quite difficult to undo as the fibres tend to stick together once knitted.  Thankfully I did keep the rest of the yarn from that ball so I can just connect it up and keep the same patter going.   I guess we'll  have to see how it turns out.

Christmas Cards

These are now completed and most have been sent away to their respective recipients.  They were a lot of work and I definitely wouldn't have done them like this had I not had all this extra free time on my hands.  But it was nice to do and I like that they sort of look like Christmas decorations.  I now need to work out what I'm going to do next year as I usually have to start the whole process right at the beginning of the year.  Oh joy.

Face Masks

These were one of the additional three crafts I've added relatively recently.  We only had two fabric masks each that we had brought off Etsy a while ago, and one each that my Mum had made for us, so I decided we definitely needed more than that.  I found a pattern on line and decided to make up a few up (including one each for my parents).  I got permission from my Mum to raid her fabric stash and ended up making ten in total.  The pattern only called for two layers of fabric, including a opening to put in a filter, but I wanted to put in three with at least two being cotton.  These did take quite a while to make, about 2.5 days in total, and were quite fiddly.  Even though they are made from the same pattern, some do sit a little off and had to be re-fitted.  There is one that's still sitting in my to-do pile that I basically need to redo for it to work properly.  However, most function just as you would need them to.  I think if I was to do the pattern again I wouldn't sew the first two layers together right from the start, but connect central lines separately and then join them at the end.  It didn't help that my sewing machine didn't want to work at all this time and I think it needs to really good clean out and oil.  I'll add that to my list of things to do in the near future, and definitely before I take on another sewing project.

Nightmare Before Christmas Cross-Stitch

This was my second add on project.  I got the pattern from Home Decor Cross-Stitch on Etsy as the movie is one of my partner's favourite.  I was going to do it as their Christmas card, but then I realised how big it is so now it's a Christmas picture instead.  It did take a while to make, but I really love how it looks and the pattern was pretty easy to follow (though I did go a little funny doing all the black for the skirt).  I'm more of a Halloween fan than a Christmas fan, so this was right up my alley and it'll probably stay up all year round.

Aran Jumper

Project number three and another Christmas present.  The pattern for this one was Hayfield Bonus Aran 9465 and the yarn is Cascade 220 in the colour Shire (couldn't resist the Hobbit connection there).  It's a cable knit jumper and definitely one of the hardest things I've ever made before, but I started to get the hang of it near the end and I think it actually turned out pretty good.  The soon to be owner saw me making the jumper but didn't get to see the final piece, so I'm looking forward to them opening it on Christmas day.  I'm not sure I'll ever make a cable knit jumper ever again, but it was good to give it a try at least once.

The Shawl

I haven't actually started this yet but I've finally decided on the pattern and what wool I'm going to use.  The pattern is Biophilia by Mary-Ann Mace and I really like the connection to the sea.  I'm using yarn recommended by lovecrafts.com, which is where I brought the pattern form, and ended up getting the yarn Fyberspates Vivacious 4ply in Peacock (and yes I know it looks exactly like the wool I got for the cardigan.  That wasn't the plan I just apparently have a thing for that colour palette 😂).  Looks like it's going to be quite a complicated pattern, but it'll be good to test myself with it.

Lord of the Rings Cross Stitch

Buying the patterns are about as far as I've gotten on these as I'm taking a little break from cross stitching for now.  But I know I'll enjoy them once I get started.

Looking at it I actually managed to get quite a lot done during this month and a half.  I've also realised that I quite enjoyed having a sewing, a cross stitch, and a knitting project going together so I could mix and match depending on what I'm feeling like that day.  It's something I would like to carry on doing in the future.  However, right now I'm taking a little break from multi-crafting, especially as there will come a time when I actually need to have a few project on the go at once, and am just going to concentrate on getting my cardigan finished.  Especially as I think it's going to turn out to be quite complicated enough in it's own right.  Then I'll get back to it, probably just before Christmas.

Paperless Productivity - Cute Note

 

I decided to end the year with another fun paperless productivity app.  I found this one on the Google Store and it's Cute Note - DDay Todo.  It's really cute and kitsch, and could actually - ironically - be the one I'm looking for.  I should probably start by saying that this one does come with adverts that pop up now and then, but you can pay a subscription to have these adverts stopped.  However, the free version works completely well as it is.

It's made up of four pages.  The first page is Memo and I basically used it for notes and  making shopping lists, which you put on digital sticky notes.  You can arrange this page in two different ways by clicking on the squares on the top right and order them based on date, etc.  One of the good things about this page is that you can add folders (by clicking on the folder icon on the top right) to separate your notes into different subjects or projects if you wanted.  I don't have enough projects on to make that worth my while, so I just kept them on one page.

To make a note you just click on the Create button and then type anything you want.  You can use the ribbon at the bottom to change the font size, colour, etc, and, most importantly, change the character of the note by clicking on the face.  I, of course, picked all the cute animals, apart from the one connected to a jumper I'm knitting which is batman.

The second page is To-Do.  You can name your notes whatever you want based what the to-dos are for, such as projects, but I decided to do a sticky note for each day of the week so it was like a diary.  

To get started I just clicked on one of the notes that was already there and then make changes  by editing those.  I deleted the old to-dos and then added new ones by typing in box at the bottom and clicking on the cross.  The picture doesn't show it, but there is a ribbon at the bottom which allows you to change the character of the note.  It is a lot more characters on this page, but I went for the same cute ones as the memos, because I just couldn't help myself.

To name each sticky note and add new ones (in my case, for the days of the week) I clicked on the folder tab at the top right.  Once each task is completed you just click on the note and then tick the to-do circle.  Then you can delete all your completed tasks giving you a better idea about what you have left to do.  

Of course, they don't automatically move to the next day's note, but I found being able to just view all the to-dos I hadn't completed on one page meant I still got them done even, if it wasn't on the day originally planned.

The third page is a D-Day / Countdown page.  

As with the Memos page you can create folders for different projects (though I would think you would probably want to see all the countdowns on one page) and sort them by date.  To create one you just click on the Create button, then fill in the details of the day you want a countdown to.  You can also change the design on this as before.  

I, of course, picked Christmas Day as that's my main date at the moment, but I'm sure others will appear.

The last page is more of a settings page.  You can log on, using your Google account, which allows you back-up your notes to your Google Drive.  Then clicking on the settings wheel also allows you to add passcodes and set everything up as auto.  This is also where you pay to remove the ads.

As I said, this is my last paperless productivity of the year and I really loved it.  It's nice and simple, and has everything I need at the moment to keep an eye on all the things I need to get done.  This might change in the future, but, for now, the simplicity is good.  The only thing I thought would be better is if I could get habits put in as well.  However, I could just add them to the To-dos sticky notes and I have gotten a little bored of keeping tabs on those at the moment, so maybe it doesn't matter too much.  That being said, this is app has definitely made it to the top of my list.  Not going to lie, it's probably mainly to do with the cuteness of it, but whatever you need to do to get yourself organised.

Financial Fitness: Sorting Out my Pension

 

Pension are one of those important things that people regularly tell you that you're supposed to have and start as soon as possible.  Of course I didn't do that start as soon as possible thing, mainly because I worked a lot of part-time jobs and didn't feel that I was earning enough to be able to afford to do so and, of course, there was that idea that I had plenty of time.  However, it's never too late to start and thankfully I'm not quite at the half way point of my earning life so I decided, whilst I have some extra time on my hands, I would get it sorted now and go from there.

The first thing I needed to do was work out exactly how much I would need to aim for by the time I retire.  There's a variety of advise about this, with some people saying you should aim for around 70% of your annual income, which you then times by the number of years you expect to be alive, whilst other recommend just times your current earning by ten.  So that gives me a range of £170,000 to £230,000 by the time I'm 68.  Should be interesting.

I also checked the Government website and found that at the moment, based on what I've contributed through my National Insurance, I'll get £100 per week and, based on an estimation on what I'll contribute up to when I retire, I'll get £175.  All good to know.

I am lucky to have this state pension, unless that changes in the next thirty years, and a few of the companies I worked for did start a work place pension for me, one of which I carried on contributing to when I could until Covid happened (Nest if you're wondering, and no I'm not sponsored).  I decided to not go with a completely private pension scheme, it was all so complicated when I looked at it, but decided to keep with Nest as it's government based and, therefore and hopefully, government protected.  I wasn't sure if these previous pension schemes still existed and, if so, how much was actually in them.  Now that I had given myself an idea of how much I needed to put aside (all be it a rather large range) I needed to find out about these other private pensions and the plan was to combine them into one.  When I had previously looked at this, and then run away in fear, I am pretty certain that the Government was able to help you with this by using your National Insurance Number, but this time they just seem to give out contact details for the different pensions schemes.  So I went through my employment history and contacted those I knew had at least started a pension for me.  I knew that in most cases these would have been closed when I left the organisation, as I wouldn't have been there long enough, and the money returned to me.  However, I wanted to double-check that this was the case.  There is still on company I'm waiting to hear back from, but all the other pensions have been accounted for (I hope) and consolidated into one place.

Now that I have everything in one place I can see where I am and it's not a great place, my pension pot is not large, but it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be.  Using the Money Advise Service, and based on the idea I'd be able to pay £250 a month into my pension pot from now until I retire, I should be easily reach the £12,600 per annum which is 70% of my annual income.  I also did a little checking on Nest as well and, also based on the idea that I'm able to put aside £250 a month towards it, it came up with a pension pot of £156,000.  This amount is a little bit less that was I was wanting to aim for.  Funny how they have both come out differently, but it's good to look at non-the-less.  If I'm honest I could probably live easily off those amounts, but it would be good to have extra so that I can have a much more enjoyable, relaxed retirement and I can't really rely on the Government actually giving me the pension stated.

One thing that keeps popping into my head when I think about my pension, and which has nothing to do with the panicked thought about how little I'm putting in, is where the money is going when sitting in that pot.  After all, pensions are little lumps of money we give these organisations to, hopefully, grow by investing into companies and organisations.  I want to make sure that mine aligns with my ethical beliefs and doesn't support companies I don't agree with, such as arms dealers and tobacco companies, whilst supporting things like renewable energies.  Luckily, my pension was quite easy to switch to the 'Ethical Fund', but I know that other pensions aren't as open or easy to select and that might be something you want to think about.

There is one other thing I do need to think about here, and that's the fact that I'm still not earning at the moment and am, therefore, not able to contribute to the pension as I would hope.  This means that when I do finally start earning, and to get to the amount that I'm hoping for, I should actually be putting in around £300 per month as soon as possible.  Something to really think about when I come round to trying to work out my budget for 2021.  I'm wondering if I should start posting about my monthly budgets on here. What do you think?