Being "Frugal"

[Debi]

I NEVER QUITE UNDERSTOOD WHY MY MOM WAS SO FRUGAL....UNTIL NOW. IF SHE COULD REUSE SOMETHING, FIND A CHEAPER WAY TO DO SOMETHING, SAVE A PENNY, SHE WOULD DO IT.
WITH INFLATION BEING SO BAD RIGHT NOW, I'M REMEMBERING SOME LESSONS OF HOW TO SAVE ON THINGS.
GOT ANY MONEY SAVING SUGGESTIONS FOR GOING BACK TO FRUGAL WAYS WE HAVE LONG FORGOTTEN?

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[garnetsilver]

Shop only once a week to save on gasoline. Garden when possible, growing your own veggies and herbs. Bake your own bread. I'll think of more later.

 

[Duke]

We've really never stopped doing this, especially Mrs Duke who grew up on a farm. The list of things I'm not allowed to throw away is long. She saves screw top jars for a friend who makes salsa, wine bottles for her sister who makes wine, Cool Whip (and similar containers) for leftovers, Christmas cookie tins for sewing supplies, etc.

We have a small canister (of a set) full of nothing but sugar/artificial sweetener packets she's liberated from restaurants, as well as packets of catsup/mustard/honey, etc. in the refrigerator. And God forbid I should throw away the odd screw or nail. "Someone can use that," is one of her favorite expressions.

The funny part is she'll take such treasures to my daughter, who in turn graciously accepts them, then throws them away after she leaves.

I save a few things, the oddest being dryer lint. I keep plastic jars of it in our winter survival kits in our cars. It makes a great fire starter, especially with a few drops of hand sanitizer gel.

 

[Debi]

Dang! I have new ideas now after reading you two! Keep them coming!

 

[GoneWestUtah]

Dryer lint is primarily cotton fiber; tilled into garden soil it helps retain water and decomposes completely, enriching the soil. I've been an avid vegetable gardener since I was 12 years old and we compost some kitchen waste. I garden for the Zen as much as the fresh produce and economy, though.
My wife's craft room has every resealable, reuseable container that has been in this house for the last ten years, and been emptied of its original contents. She can still wiggle through there, I am too large to fit the labyrinth. That room will keep the entire house afloat in the event of another Noachian flood.
I tend to repair whenever possible, it's sort of a personal challenge. Buying a replacement is throwing in the towel.

 

[Duke]

We've really never stopped doing this, especially Mrs Duke who grew up on a farm. The list of things I'm not allowed to throw away is long. She saves screw top jars for a friend who makes salsa, wine bottles for her sister who makes wine, Cool Whip (and similar containers) for leftovers, Christmas cookie tins for sewing supplies, etc.

We have a small canister (of a set) full of nothing but sugar/artificial sweetener packets she's liberated from restaurants, as well as packets of catsup/mustard/honey, etc. in the refrigerator. And God forbid I should throw away the odd screw or nail. "Someone can use that," is one of her favorite expressions.

The funny part is she'll take such treasures to my daughter, who in turn graciously accepts them, then throws them away after she leaves.

I save a few things, the oddest being dryer lint. I keep plastic jars of it in our winter survival kits in our cars. It makes a great fire starter, especially with a few drops of hand sanitizer gel.

Btw, the recent stories of people snow bound in their cars for 12+ hours in VA have rekindled the interest of both my wife and daughter in the winter survival kits I put together for all our cars.

 

[crux]

I recently got a couple of outdoor solar rechargeable lights with motion detection and put one each in the rooms I mostly enter at night (bath and kitchen). They cost about $10. I walk in those rooms and the light comes on automatically and turns off when I leave. In the morning I put the lights in a sunny spot to recharge.

 

[Duke]

I recently got a couple of outdoor solar rechargeable lights with motion detection and put one each in the rooms I mostly enter at night (bath and kitchen). They cost about $10. I walk in those rooms and the light comes on automatically and turns off when I leave. In the morning I put the lights in a sunny spot to recharge.

I bought a few motion sensitive night lights (plug ins) and put them at our front door entry way, at the bottom of our basement stairs, and at the entrance to our family room. If we are just passing through those areas, there's no need to turn on the regular lights.

 

[Lynne]

Being frugal I think is a generational thing. The older generation witnessed if not experienced harder times. Todays kids have had it pretty easy. They get rid of everything. I save whatever I think I can re use.

 

[Paulm]

I save a few things, the oddest being dryer lint. I keep plastic jars of it in our winter survival kits in our cars. It makes a great fire starter, especially with a few drops of hand sanitizer gel.

hahaha, I do that too........ steel wool and a flashlight starts a good fire also