the masthead
Three people, one spreadsheet habit.
Penny Puffin started in early 2026 as a shared document where three friends compared notes on surviving a first salary. The document grew headings, then charts, then strong opinions about sinking funds — and eventually it became this site.
We write for people in roughly our position: a few years into a career, renting, paid monthly, and tired of money advice written for people with two properties and a pension adviser. Everything here is tested on our own budgets before it is published.
The team
Maya Ellison · Editor
Maya spent four years as an account coordinator in Bristol, where she dug herself out of a stubborn overdraft using a modified 50/30/20 split. She writes the budgeting-method guides and edits everything that leaves the desk.
Tomás Rivera · Staff Writer
Tomás is a data analyst in Manchester who treats household money like a dataset. He covers savings accounts, interest maths and salary breakdowns — he builds the spreadsheet so you don’t have to.
Priya Nair · Contributing Writer
Priya is a junior product designer in Glasgow with a weakness for stationery and a talent for habit design. She covers challenges, routines and the psychology side of spending.
How we work
- We test before we write. Every method on this site ran on at least one of our own budgets for a full month first.
- No ads, no sponsors, no affiliate links. If we ever review a product, it is because we used it — early access or otherwise — and we say so.
- Numbers over vibes. Every claim comes with the arithmetic. If a guide includes a chart, the figures behind it came from a real budget.
- Not financial advice. We are writers, not advisers. We explain methods and our results; your situation is your own.
Questions, corrections and topic requests are welcome via the contact page.