Are you green and frugal or just green?

[mama_kass]

Just curious. I am green and frugal. For example I use vinegar to clean with instead of an expensive green cleaner like Seventh Generation. I buy clothes second hand instead of organic cotton tees.

I'm not saying one is better than the other. Just want to know how you do it.

[Cabrnay]

I believe I would fall under green and frugal.

[smeisnotapirate]

Green and frugal, definitely. Love the bargains.

[DaMajha]

I'm still new to becoming green, but I am the only income for the family (dh is a college student), so I am having to be extremely frugal as I become green. For instance, I ordered some mama cloths, but have decided to just make my own instead of ordering anymore. They are easy to make using old flannel sheets. Sure they are ugly, but they work LOL

[crunchymomofmany]

Way frugal and way green! I am the queen of cheap...and have found that most ways of being frugal are also very green and vice versa. For example, breastfeeding - very green, very frugal. Eating vegetarian - both as well. Lots of ways to clean, eat and live that are both. One of our best ways is to heat our house completely with wood. However...I still drive a very fuel inefficient car.
What ways are you frugal and green - and not?

[Pariah]

We're definitely both! Thrift shopping, homemade stuff-making...as much as we can. Green, cheap, and I enjoy it...I like the satisfaction of making things at home for myself anyway, just depending on my own abilities for things we need.

[lovemyfamily6]

Both here. Breastfeeding, we're vegan, cloth diapers, I make our household cleaners out of vinegar and baking soda and Dr. Bronner's, I started cooking my own beans partly to save money, partly to eliminate the processing and can that went to recycling.

Things I'm working on...making the switch to family cloth. I think it's great, but I'm having a hard time starting it.

When it's time to buy new clothes for the boys this spring, I'll likely try a thrift store this time. It's hard because my twins choose their clothes when we shop and they almost always want the same things and many times choose to wear them on the same days.

[rach03]

Right now I'm just green...I'm trying to be more frugal, but there aren't a lot of choices for some things in my area so I take what I can get.

I hope to get better at being frugal after we sell our house and move...right now we're so busy trying to show the house and get moved that I really need the convenience factor of bottled "green" cleaners and such.

[barose]

I would consider myself just green. I can’t say I'm very frugal. :

I use vinegar and water but can’t stand the smell of vinegar so I only use it on our hardwood floors, windows, mirrors and stainless steel appliances. I use green cleaners for everything else.

I love to go to thrift stores, but I also buy more pricy organic clothes every now and then. 100% thirft is too limiting to me.

I buy green personal and beauty care products that can be more expensive but I have to use what works for me. Dr. B dries the crap out of my skin and hair and I cant use Diva cups because they are painful for instance.

I shop local which is both green and frugal (especially with the cost of food and gas being so high).

For health reasons, I cant be veg, but I do buy grass-fed/pastured meats, eggs, etc which is green and healthy, but not frugal.

I do cook from scratch.

Us cloth napkins

Bring my own bags

Oh well! I know I'm not the shining example of
frugality, but I don’t mindlessly throw away money either. (Budget and lots of savings)

[rach03]

I buy green personal and beauty care products that can be more expensive but I have to use what works for me.

Oh yeah, I do spend a lot there. I tried some cheaper green hair care products and my hair was just terrible. Our water here is so hard, I needed something more moisturizing. I found some John Masters products (SO not cheap) and my hair is so silky now. Definitely worth the money

[barose]

Originally Posted by rach03

Oh yeah, I do spend a lot there. I tried some cheaper green hair care products and my hair was just terrible. Our water here is so hard, I needed something more moisturizing. I found some John Masters products (SO not cheap) and my hair is so silky now. Definitely worth the money

I LOVE John Masters!

I use that and switch off with Aubrey's Organics.

[Danielle13]

We're green and somewhat frugal. I do make all my own cleaners and household products. Cook from scratch. We eat meat and that is NOT frugal especially when its free range, hormone/antibiotic free grass fed we use cloth everything except toilet paper and I've prob bought 10 items for dd myself (allused ). I'd LOVE to hear anyones ideas on being more frugal!

Danielle*

[rach03]

Barose, I'm glad to know you like Aubrey Organics! I've been using the JM shampoo for dry hair and the restoring conditioner because my hair is just SO dry. But we're moving to Houston where the water will be a bit softer, so I was looking for something to switch off with instead of using the JM every day.

I do want to try to be more frugal once our move is over...I'd like to find a local farmer to get meat/dairy from but in Houston TX (land of non-green people ) I don't know if that even exists.

[Caneel]

A little of both. In our house, the green things we are doing will have a long-term frugal impact but short term, are generally not frugal.

I am working towards green, switched from regular cleaners (chemical) to 90%homemade. I completely bypassed the 7th Generation type stuff.

When replacing old carpet, we installed locally grown (from a managed forest) and milled hardwood floors. The wood probably didn't travel 50 miles from forest to our house. Green, I think so. Frugal, long term yes short term no.

I look for second-hand for ds's clothing (frugal) but also have no problem buying multiples of more expensive stuff because I know it will last longer (IMOE) than the cheaper big box stuff. (not frugal)

In trying to reduce in our homelife, I am not frugal. I will spend more on one great pair of shoes that I can wear all the time over several less expensive pairs that are of poor utility.

Same with house stuff. We are on our 5th or 6th set of pots and pans in 13 years. I had bought inexpensive non-stick stuff in the past. The next set will be American made, stainless, heavy-duty stuff that will likely be the last set I ever buy.

[barose]

Originally Posted by Caneel

Same with house stuff. We are on our 5th or 6th set of pots and pans in 13 years. I had bought inexpensive non-stick stuff in the past. The next set will be American made, stainless, heavy-duty stuff that will likely be the last set I ever buy.

Good quality kitchen stuff goes a long way. I have Le Creuset, safe and extremely durable (but $$$) and old cast iron purchased cheap at yard sales.

I have some stainless steel brought cheaply that just didnt last.

[MelanieMC]

Originally Posted by barose

I would consider myself just green. I can’t say I'm very frugal. :

I use vinegar and water but can’t stand the smell of vinegar so I only use it on our hardwood floors, windows, mirrors and stainless steel appliances. I use green cleaners for everything else.

I love to go to thrift stores, but I also buy more pricy organic clothes every now and then. 100% thirft is too limiting to me.

I buy green personal and beauty care products that can be more expensive but I have to use what works for me. Dr. B dries the crap out of my skin and hair and I cant use Diva cups because they are painful for instance.

I shop local which is both green and frugal (especially with the cost of food and gas being so high).

For health reasons, I cant be veg, but I do buy grass-fed/pastured meats, eggs, etc which is green and healthy, but not frugal.

I do cook from scratch.

Us cloth napkins

Bring my own bags

Oh well! I know I'm not the shining example of
frugality, but I don’t mindlessly throw away money either. (Budget and lots of savings)

: I would consider myself very green, and somewhat frugal. As the above poster said, I do thrift shop but I do buy new sometimes, but I only buy organic

[Belleweather]

How about just Green and poor?

We thrift, buy in bulk or directly from the producer, use resuables and make our own mainly because it lets us live better within our small budget. But those choices also happen to be very green as well.

[askew]

Very green and not at all frugal. I do make my own cleaners and my son wears cloth. I cook from scratch etc. However, the price of something never deters me from buying it. I wanted a diesel car so I could run biodiesel, but I bought a 2007 Mercedes.

[robertandenith]

I am super green and somewhat frugal. I like to go to the dollar store a lot. For example, today I went to the dollar store and got kiddie plastic hangers, peroxide (I clean with it), cotton swabs and balls and a cute pair of sneakers for my dd for only $4, how can u beat that!? lol I get craft supplies there too when I need stuff for my daughter, specially coloring books

[Periwinkle]

Very green and highly variable on the frugal part. The thing is, I hate poorly made stuff. So I would rather NOT buy a new pan and then finally buy a nice All Clad one or something than buy a cheap one.