Best Frugal Tips Contest Sponsored by Bummis - Page 2

[Earthmoma]

my tip would be to plant a garden! you can start things from seed or buy grown baby plants. We live in ohio and have the following things in our freezer or pantry from our garden: a yrs of spagetti sauce, strawberry jelly, frozen fruits for baking, sweet corn,peas,carrots,peppers,squash,hot sauceotonions,green beans,beans,oinons,potatos spices, herbs and asparagus. We just got our last batch of spinach & salad greens a couple days ago, the cold weather has killed them off. You also get all the fresh produce you get in season(love garden salsa!). Everything you grow is also organic and ate at its peak. This is a great family project. kids would love to pick their own pumpkin! We could never afford to eat the way we do with our garden.

[froese family]

Make your own jam! It is so easy!!!!

For the cost of only a few jars of jam purchased at the store (mostly to cover the cost of buying jars, if you are starting out) I can make lots of jars of fresh jam!  I can control how much sugar is in the jam, awesome!  

If you make jam when the fruit is in season it can be super cheap!!! But even if you buy frozen fruit when it is on sale it is still an awesome deal!

Now that my family has tasted homemade jam we will never go back to store bought!!

[SayingGrace]

My favorite tip that I've started using in the past year is to save butter wrappers. Pop the empty wrapper into a bag or container and store in the fridge. When you need to grease a pan for cooking or baking pull one of the wrappers out and grease away. Saves you time and money and you can reuse something you would normally throw away. Enjoy!

[jillynn]

I have a tip for all of us frugal women that love to save on everything that we forget to treat ourselves a little.  

Ever want spa treated skin?  Well, if you've got any essential oils hanging around that are suitable for skin use such as oils you may be already adding to your homemade wipe solutions, this one's easy.

Add a few drops to a small container of sea salt.  Add a carrier oil such as olive oil or grapeseed oil and mix.  

Viola!  You've just made a jar of scented (and healing) scrubbing salts that typically cost $20-30 from any retailer.

[SayingGrace]

Like both and shared!

[froese family]

another great frugal tip is LINE DRY your clothes!

We use cloth diapers (another wonderful $ saver) and I hang them out to dry whenever I can along with all our other clothes.

I hang them out and let the sun do the rest!  So easy and simple!

We moved into a new house and the first thing I did outside was to put up a clothes line! 

[littlestferrari]

Hi!

Well I'm a first time mom and expecting in 2 months, so I don't have any true wisdom to pass on (which is why I liked both the Mothering FB page as well as Bummis' FB page...which are made in Montreal where I live!! I also tweeted the contest several times!), but I do know that in the long-run, cloth diapering is SUCH a money-saver! That + breastfeeding + making our very own cloth carriers and swaddling blankets have been some of our tactics so far....and lots of hand me downs from cousins!

My husband and I live a very small footprint lifestyle (even my own business, which is www.starkskincare.com is eco-friendly!) that there's no other way than CD for us...I've been having such a fun time slowly building up my collection, and this kit would be a lifesaver!

I'm happy to be part of this awesome community and look forward to getting to know the forums a little better!

Jess 

xo

[littlestferrari]

...but if you want my general frugality tip, it would be...

MAKE YOUR OWN GREEN JUICE!

So simple by stocking up and freezing all you need in freezer bags. Cut up banana, berries, blend and freeze kale  and/or spinach in ice cubes (add a little water to them while blending) and keep on hand. Then, just add them to your blender with some water (or any kind of milk for a very rich smoothie) or juice, and customize with your favourite protein, or some coconut oil (fats are very important while breastfeeding, I hear) and voila!

You've got your fancy $10 smoothie for pennies!

[lace]

Some of my best frugal tips:

• Buy dry beans instead of canned.  Prep the whole bag by soaking and then cooking till slightly tender.  Freeze what you don't want to use right away and you have beans ready for when you need them just like canned but so much better.  They save you lots of money.

[lace]

Plant a garden in the summer.  You'll have fresh vegetables you can freeze/can/store for the winter.

[lace]

Use white vinegar instead of fabric softener for your laundry.  It's cheaper and also keeps your machine clean.  No gumming up your machine from fabric softener residue.  Which will save you from costly machine repairs.  It will also save your clothes from wearing out faster as well. 

[Iris Malvitch]

Shared on my page and liked both.

I shared on my wall, and I am just getting into making my own baby food, I am also raising chickens to provide healthy organic food for my family for cheap along with gardening. I am super into fugal mothering and always looking for money savers and a Bummies diaper kit would help me out very much. In the community that I live in if I win there will be lots of other babies that will also wear them after we are done  And maybe my second child down the road in my life! What goes around comes back around when it comes to baby clothes in Oregon!

[thezoolife]

I made my own cloth wipes. Cloth wipes were selling for $12 for a dozen. I got a couple of yards for $2 each from the fabric store and made 96 wipes! All for less then what a dozen would have cost. I now think I have too many wipes (not possible actually). For the solution I use heavily diluted aloe vera juice. I posted a picture on Facebook I was so proud.

[mikeneve]

Buy most frequently used food and consumables in bulk.

[kalohabreeze]

We make our own takeout! Japanese food out for a family of five and growing is over 50-$89 for us. All this was less than $20 and we had leftovers for another dinner!

[kalohabreeze]

Liked and shared Elizabeth McDowell via Facebook

[kalohabreeze]

pic.twitter.com/HpbZoQI http://pic.twitter.com/HpbZoQI
We bed share <3 I don't know if you have priced cribs/cots/bassinets recently but that stuff
gets expensive! We all sleep cozy in our "nest" all our little birdies end up in the nest each night . Not only does it save money but nothing is more precious than the closeness and memories you get by snuggling all your babies .
Edited by kalohabreeze - 1/23/13 at 9:26pm

[ladylittlebird]

I used to love using 'special occasions' and 'holidays' as excuses to spend money I didn't have. Now I live by the "let others shine" motto.  If I am not the best dressed at the party, I enjoy the people around me who went all out for the delight of my own eyes. If I don't wrap up presents that are state of the art at Christmas, I have fun dolling out the gracious compliments to those who did. My ego (and my bank account) will thank me later when I don't try to recreate a magazine cover when I am cooking for a pot luck-hang out. I will be the one with the veggie platter, wearing my sister's fabulous hand me downs, and beaming from ear to ear because I love the people in my life without having to buy their affection.
 

Edited by ladylittlebird - 1/24/13 at 2:15pm

[Annie Thibodeau]

liked and shared. 

one frugal thing we do is to make our own cleaning solution. 

put orange or lemon peels in a jar (save in freezer until you have enough to fill your jar) and cover with white vinegar. 

let set for 3 or 4 weeks, shaking up occasionally.

strain liquid and put into sprayer container, add water to double liquid. voila.

[Annie Thibodeau]

one of the frugal things we do around the house is to grow scallions and chives in the window though the winter. i am planning on starting an indoor herb garden too.