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Miserly
Moms will be featuring a money or time saving tip submitted by our net
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Inexpensive Dog Food
We have a Super
Walmart store with a big meat department. We have made
friends with the butcher who will call us a couple times a week to let
us know that he is marking down meat. We feed our dogs a raw
diet so
we stock up on stuff for them as well as us. We got tons of
packages
of turkey legs and wings for less than fifty cents a pack after the
holidays. We get beef tongue, tripe, and organ meats for the
dogs for
pennies.
Miserly Tip # 319
Cheap Pet Flea Treatment
This
tip is for miserly moms out there with pets! I have a friend
who
volunteers at the local animal shelter, and shared with me this great
money saving tip over those expensive flea/tick treatments and shampoos
out there! At the local animal shelter, they use *plain* Dawn
diswashing soap. Wash the animal once, killing the live fleas
and some
of the eggs. Wait one or two weeks, and repeat the
wash. This works
for dogs or cats, and it saves tons over the more expensive flea/tick
shampoos that you buy in the store!
Miserly Tip # 318
Free Baby Eye Exam
There are free infant eye and vision assessments for baby's up to one
year.
Many participating providers nationwide. www.infantsee.org
Kristl
Miserly Tip # 317
Check Receipts for Coupons
I have a money saving tip. Always
check the bottoms of your receipts.
Especially from department stores. JC Penney has an offer to fill out a
quick
survey online and then you can print out a 15% off coupon for your next
purchase.
The bottom of supermarket recipes
have deals sometimes too. The
Albertson's receipt I got the other day had an offer for a free loaf of
their
fresh baked french bread.
It's a simple tip. But every penny
counts.
Miserly Tip # 316
Thinning Hair
My hair is thin
and flat, so I need to wash it every day to give it body. I used to get
an
expensive conditioner and shampoo. Then I realized most of the shampoos
were
the same, so I started to just get a nice conditioner, and use a
cheaper
shampoo. I also set a limit on how much I will spend on an item. Over
time, I started
to realize I didn’t need a fancy conditioner every day, so I
“pad”
out my week with a cheaper one (again, Suave or White Rain or equiv).
When
dying my hair to cover the gray started to dry my hair out, I stopped
using
shampoo every day; I actually just really massage conditioner in like
it was
shampoo instead. Just a little thing, but it all adds up!
Kathy
Miserly Tip # 315
I
am a stay a home wife on disability and my husband is on social
security, so saving every penny litterly is important. We
use MAGICJACK.COM
telephone service, it is $19.00 a year, no taxes, no other charges, we
have 911 service voice mail and it has been very reliable
and I have saved a ton of money that has been necessary for
medical bills. I was skeptical at first and tried it out
before I cut my $39.95 monthly provider off. I
haven't missed them at all and I have had great service from
the people at MagicJack. I do not make anything from
recommending them. I just think if you need to save money then it is
worth your time to investigate this service. I have saved $420 for the
year versus only $19 for the same service. and not paid the
taxes.
Mary, Texas
Miserly Tip # 314
Leftover Lettuce
I
am a working mom with both kids now pretty much raised. I
am
the 6th of 7 children & am very emphatic about not wasting
food:
just ask my kids. I have discovered that if you have leftover
lettuce
salad that it can keep for a day or two if you keep it dry.
To do
this, first try not to make your salad too wet in the first
place. I
will put paper or a cloth towel into the bowl before I start
making the
salad & then on top before I chop the tomato into it.
Remove the
towels before tossing. To put away the
leftovers, I put 2 or 3 paper
towels, or a clean dish towel on top of the salad, cover the bowl
(something that seals works best) & turn it upside down in the
fridge. This can also be done with clear plastic wrap, but
get it
tight. If I get some salad out later & the
towels are pretty wet,
I put in dry ones. You will have to educate your family so
that you
don't end up with salad all over the floor and so that they can
also replace the towel as needed!
Shelly
Miserly Tip # 313
Baby Food
I know I'm not the only mom who has made her own baby food, but I can't urge other
moms enough to try it! I'm a first time mom who decided to stay at home, which
reduced our household income by 50 percent. I breastfed my son until he started with
solids at 4 months. Once or twice a month, usually the same times I do my grocery
shopping, I whip up baby purees. I cook all the usuals you will see on the store
shelves of bottled baby food--sweet potato, peas, apples, green beans, bananas,
plums, blueberries, roast chicken, etc.
For example, frozen bags of veggies, even the large ones, are only about $1.50 on
sale. Boiled up, pureed with a bit of the water they were boiled in (just enough to
make pouring the puree easier), and poured into ice cube trays (4 trays for $1 at my
grocery store), I have enough cubes for nearly a month of servings. Once the cubes
are frozen, I put them in freezer bags with the name written on the front. Each cube
from the trays I use are just shy of one ounce, so portioning out the correct
serving size is simple. I plop a few cubes into one of those 4 oz or 8 oz reuseable
containers and either microwave for 30 seconds to defrost, or simply place the
container in my to-go bag and the cubes are thawed by the time I get to wherever I'm
going. Because I make up lots of different batches of foods at once, I'm able to
keep my baby's diet varied yet balanced. And I wash the bags with hot soapy water,
rinse well and reuse for the same item written on the outside. (I bought the heavy
duty, quart size freezer bags, so even though they were a bit more expensive at
first, I've use one 40-count box in 10 months.) My trays each have 16 cubes, and
usually a large bag of veggies or fruit will yield about 4 trays of puree. For each
2 oz serving, that comes to about 5 cents---even on sale the packaged purees come in
at around 10 cents per 2 oz serving.
I use a regular blender, that's the easiest. Also, I have one of those hand blenders
with a mini-processor adaptor cup that comes in handy, too. For peeling and coring
apples, pears and sweet potatoes I use one of those old-fashioned hand crank, spiral
tools that suctions to the countertop (found one at a local discounter for $10 on
sale). Peeling, coring and slicing a bag of apples takes literally 5 minutes--great
for making quick pie filling, too.
I buy most of my veggies/fruits from the $1 bins at my local grocery store and
produce stands in my area. The minor bruising or flaws that lands these items in the
discount bin can be cut away with no loss of nutrition or taste. Applesauce is one
of the best "cubes" not only for the baby but as a replacement for oil in
cake/brownie/muffin/bread recipes (replace same amount of oil with applesauce).
Cris, Pensacola, Florida
Miserly Tip # 312
Baby Wipes
Ever since my oldest daughter was a baby, I've been cutting baby wipes in
half before I use them. I find that for a small job, a half wipe is fine
and for really dirty diapers, the bigger wipes would get dirty just as
quickly and I'd have to use another wipe anyway. Cutting them in half
allows me to get twice the number of wipes for my money. It only takes a
few minutes when I buy the package of wipes to sit down and cut them all in
half before putting them into my wipes boxes.
Emily
Miserly Tip # 311
Bread & Milk
I'm an almost stay at home mom!(I work 2 days a week) and know that every dollar
saved counts. A huge money saver for me has been frequenting our bread second hand
store. The bread we normally buy is $3.29 per loaf in the grocery store and sells
for $1.59 at the bread store. Also, they sell milk for about $1.00 to $1.50 less a
gallon then the regular grocery store does. Since my family are prolific milk
drinkers and I have not been able to convince them of the mixed milk idea, it has
saved me about $20 per month to get my milk and bread there. Thanks for all the
other tips!
~Heidi
Miserly Tip # 310
Stretching Lotion
When my tubes of hand lotion, moisturizers, facial cleansers, etc. are almost
finished and no longer respond to squeezing, instead of tossing them away, I cut off
the bottoms of them and scrap out the lotion that is remaining. This allows me to
get a few more applications from these types of products - a big savings,
particularly if you prefer to purchase higher-priced cosmetics, etc.
Pamela, St. Catharines, Ontario Canada
Miserly Tip # 309
Stretching Turkey
A 15 pound Jennie-O turkey recently cost under $10. It came with a gravy
sauce mix, too, which was very easy and I didn't have to buy jar or canned
gravy. I stuffed and roasted the turkey on a Monday and served it like a
Thanksgiving meal. The store-brand stuffing mix was delicious. The next day
I cooked the carcass in my slow-cooker all day to make enough broth for two
batches of homemade soup (one later that week, another for the freezer for
another week). One lunch was hot turkey sandwiches (turkey on bread with
mashed potatoes and stuffing on the side, covered with gravy). Another lunch
was turkey salad sandwiches, made just like chicken salad. I used several
chicken casserole recipes which I adapted for turkey. Toward the end of the
week, I froze the remaining turkey meat, so I have cooked meat in the
freezer for future poultry dishes. All in all, I was able to stretch that
$10 turkey through at least 10 meals!
Sandra, Ocala, Florida
Miserly Tip # 308
Cheap Planters
I'm a SAHM with 10 children and a large yard. We vegetable garden and I'd
like a lot of flowers around, but am only able to afford a few perennials a
season.so I must start from seed, right? Well I don't seem to have "a well
lit windowsill," nor room or money for a light set up. They never grow well
for me or damp off during transplanting. So I looked up on the web seed
starting, and found "winter sowing." This is amazing, easy, extremely
cheap, and fun. In recycled plastic containers (like milk jugs) I seed
annuals, perennials, and veggies by the hundreds. Seed is cheap at the
dollar store and some online seed companies. The idea is to sow the seeds
outdoors in these (google winter sowing) recycled containers during the late
winter, and they come up and are ready to plant in early spring. The
containers are like mini greenhouses and after the snow melts, you look in
your containers, and there is GREEN. It's fun! And because they have been
grown outdoors in the cold, they are tough. Check it out if you've had
trouble growing from seed before.
Cena
Patterson, CA
Miserly Tip # 307
FREE 411
All phone companies are
charging us $1.00 to
$1.75 or more for 411
information calls when they
don't have to. Most of us do
not carry a
telephone directory in our
vehicle, which makes this
situation even more of a
problem. When you need to
use the 411 information
option, simply dial
800-FREE-411, or 800-373-3411
without incurring any charge
at all.
In exchange for the free
service, you will hear an advertisement before you hear your number.
Miserly Tip # 306
Losing Kids Gloves and Hats
I have two kids, a 9 year old gira and 10 year old boy. Keeping matched
sets of
gloves together was always a hassle.
Now I buy just black gloves. They're "unisex", both can wear them, and
they always
match. Also a great time saver--no more hunting the missing glove. I
also do the
same thing with knitted hats--just buy black hats.
I found the bust buy for kids gloves is at WalMart--3 pair for $1.49Buy
them when
you see them--they sell out fast!
~Susan
Miserly Tip # 305
Reuse Containers
I have a family of four which includes two teenagers. I am always
looking for money saving ideas and ways to keep stuff out of our
landfills. I use the original plastic containers that products come in to
fill with bulk items I have purchased and need to put into something of a
more manageable size. Mustard and chocolate syrup containers are
especially heavy duty and last along time. I refill empty mustard
containers with other condiments like ketchup that I buy in bulk at
Costco. I put maple syrup, also purchased in bulk at Costco, in the
chocolate syrup containers which brings looks of surprise from guests that
we have for breakfast. Baby wipe containers with the snap down lids are
very sturdy and my husband and I are still using them after 13 year for
storing various nuts, bolts and organizing craft supplies. Just use a
permanent marker to write on the outside what is on the inside. Another
way of recycling is doing crafts with the kids. My daughter has made me
pencil holders out of tin cans decorated with layers of tissue paper that
are glued on. She has taken sparkly glue and decorated recycled pickle
jars. The price of the container, free, they are recycled! The cost of
art supplies, minimal. The end product, priceless! I still use these
items every day. We reuse the plastic buckets from bulk laundry and dish
detergents for outside work and cleaning. All of this helps our
environment and saves money. If you cannot use the containers that food
comes in please recycle, thanks!
S Perkins, Oregon
Miserly Tip # 304
Carpet
Cleaning Tip
Do you have carpets that you have professionally cleaned several times each
year? Well, I do and I have found this solution to the costly procedure. My
husband and I purchased a Hoover carpet cleaning machine several years ago.
I use mine once or twice each year for a thorough cleaning in high traffic
areas, and for touch ups on spills or pet stains that just seem to happen.
We have our carpets cleaned professionally once a year, usually at the end
of summer or in early fall. When cleaning in between times I heat water on
the stove to just the hot stage, not to boiling. I then poor it into the
clean water reservoir, and "shampoo" my carpets using just hot water. I was
told by a professional carpet cleaner that you should not use anything other
than hot water when home shampooing your carpets because hot water leaves no
residue. When you use soap it leaves a residue, and the residue attracts
dirt. By using my "in between" professional cleaning procedure, our carpets
stay nice looking, and we have no really bad stains. Also when we do have
the professionals come in I only have them do the high traffic areas each
time. The little used areas, like our formal living and dining rooms only
get done about once every two years as we seldom use them. As an extra bit
of info, Hoover now makes a machine that heats the water for you, but I do
not know how well it works. By cutting back to one professional cleaning
each year we save $500.00 annually, we paid $350.00 for our machine, so it
paid for itself quickly.
Body Soap
Do you buy expensive body soaps? Well, you don’t need too. When I was in the
military I learned that washing my hair and body with a shampoo conditioner
combo worked fine. We had few showers and lots of people that needed to use
them. It was more convenient to just carry one bottle to the shower rather
fiddling with several. I used a combination shampoo and conditioner to
handle all of my cleaning needs. Since I used a shampoo and conditioner
combo, I was able to eliminate shaving crème as well. My skin was always
nice and soft, I smelled good, and I saved time and money. I also had a less
cluttered wall locker.
Impulse Shopping
Have you ever been shopping and you see something you just "have to have"
even though it is not on your list? Well, I have found a way to curb
unintentional spending. You have to have restraint, but this tactic really
works. When I find an item that is just too cute or too good of a deal to
pass up, I carry it around the store for awhile. Usually after about 10 or
15 minutes the urge to splurge has faded and I can place the item back on
the rack and walk away. This works especially well in the one stop shopping
stores that have groceries, house wares, toys and clothes all under one
convenient roof.
Becky in Washington State
Miserly Tip # 303
CAR COSTS
One of the largest wastes of money in the average family is automobile use. Here are
a few tips:
1. Buy used cars and pay cash for them. Most cars lose 30%-50% of their price in the
first 3 years, and have only lost 10%-25% of their useful life. Whereas some new
cars can be bought for 0% financing, the intrest savings are lost to the huge
depreciation. Used cars have a much higher interest rate, sometimes 5%-15%. Instead
of paying those rates, pay yourself and earn 5%-10% on the money while you make "car
payments" to yourself! Consider a new minivan. Looking online I see the 2006 Toyota
Sienna with 4 miles on it, for $45,000. It will last aprox 200,000 miles (300,000 if
well cared for, but lets assume the low end). If you get 0% loan, $750/month for 5
years and you paid no interest. You can buy one 3 model yrs old (a 2004 in Dec 2006)
with 52,000 miles for $15,000. If you paid yourself $750 a month, earning 5%, it
would take you 1 year and 8 months to save the $15,000 and you still get 150,000 (or
more) miles out of the car! You have just paid 1/3 the price (a 66% discount, and
EARNED interest while doing it), and only gave up 25% (or less) of the value.
Consider this: if 2 gallons of milk cost $4.00, but you could get 3 half gallons for
a total of $1.35, would you do it? It is the same thing.
I have paid cash for all my cars, and yes, it can be hard when starting out because
you may have to buy a cheap car - make sure your car is safe for your kids, you may
not be able to do this right away. Once you have the first car you have paid cash
for and you start making those car payments to yourself, it is very easy. I have
saved tens of thousands of dollars. Make sure to have your independant mechanic do a
complete evaluation of any used car BEFORE you buy it to make sure there are not
excessive problems. My mechanic has saved me from buying cars that would have been
money pits.
2. Maintain the car. Check Tire inflation every 3 months. Inflate to the pressure
listed in the manual or on the sticker on the car, NOT the pressure on the tire (the
tire lists the MAXIMUM pressure for the TIRE, not taking into account the car the
tire is on). Change air/fuel/oil filters on schedule in the owner's manual. When
following the maintance in the owner's manual, use the "severe service" schedule
unless most of your driving is long (2+ hrs) sustained highway driving. Keep in mind
that around town and short trips are the hardest on your car.
Considering the HUGE impact on the family budget, this can literally make the
difference between mom staying home raising the kids or having
to work outside the home.
Chris, South Hadley, MA
Miserly Tip # 302
MAKING TORTILLAS
I use tortillas all the time (makes anything you have in fridge a meal!)
and I notice your contributors do too. Making them instead of buying
them really changes a meal. I don't have my own recipe, but
allrecipes.com has great ones, as do most bread cookbooks. It costs
pennies to make a dozen, rather than $1.50 or more in the stores. And
the taste difference is amazing. I can't even eat the packaged ones now.
thanks for the great site!
Jennifer
Miserly Tip # 301
FREE VIDEOS
I'm
a SAHM of 4(1,3,5,10) & live in a rural area. We love
our
library for free DVD rentals(our library has a revolving newer release
section that circulates between other libraries every 3mos.)
We
check out our favorite magazines there or take home their free outdated
magazines. We check out lots of kids videos as we have an
anntenna instead of cable. Even my 3yr.old loves the library.
We
also are heating our home w/a woodstove this year & not only is
our
heating bill down but I use a drying rack for my clothes which dry very
nicely in the room w/the woodstove.
We
purchased a bike stroller(2nd hand stores are great!) which we make
quick store runs, or errands by bike when we can. I've not
only
saved on the gas bill but gained a healthy lifestyle. Hint: if you
don't have the kids the stroller works nice for up to 4grocery bags or
more if your ambitious!
Candy
Ontonagon, MI
Miserly Tip # 300
FREE
CONTAINERS
I have a family of four which includes two
teenagers. I am always
looking for money saving ideas and ways to keep stuff out of our
landfills. I use the original plastic containers that
products come in to
fill with bulk items I have purchased and need to put into something of
a
more manageable size. Mustard and chocolate syrup containers
are
especially heavy duty and last along time. I refill empty
mustard
containers with other condiments like ketchup that I buy in bulk at
Costco. I put maple syrup, also purchased in bulk at Costco,
in the
chocolate syrup containers which brings looks of surprise from guests
that
we have for breakfast. Baby wipe containers with the snap
down lids are
very sturdy and my husband and I are still using them after 13 year for
storing various nuts, bolts and organizing craft supplies.
Just use a
permanent marker to write on the outside what is on the inside. Another
way of recycling is doing crafts with the kids. My daughter
has made me
pencil holders out of tin cans decorated with layers of tissue paper
that
are glued on. She has taken sparkly glue and decorated
recycled pickle
jars. The price of the container, free, they are
recycled! The cost of
art supplies, minimal. The end product, priceless!
I still use these
items every day. We reuse the plastic buckets from bulk
laundry and dish
detergents for outside work and cleaning. All of this helps
our
environment and saves money. If you cannot use the containers
that food
comes in please recycle, thanks!
S Perkins, Oregon City, Oregon
Miserly Tip # 299
Stretching Ground Beef
When cooking ground beef or ground sausage I save back about a half a
cup and freeze it. My husband didn't notice there wasn't a full pound
of meat in the recipe and we will have spaghetti with the sausage amd
hamburger another night.
I also freeze portions of lasagna or caserole. Since it is just 2
of us, we would get tired of it. This way I don't throw away food
anymore!
Summer in FL
Miserly Tip # 298
Video Games
You can trade your kids' old video games with new ones at gameswap.com
for $1.99. On a tight budget it sure beats buying brand new games!
~Erin... San Diego, CA
Miserly Tip # 297
LONG DISTANCE PHONE BILL
My husband researched the different phone companies to find the best deal. He
found SunRocket, which nobody seems to have heard about. It is phone over cable for
$199 per year, which is about 16.60 per month. This includes unlimited long
distance, all local calls and tax. It has made a significant reduction in our phone
bills.
Lea from Tulsa Oklahoma
Miserly Tip # 296
HAIRSPRAY BUILD UP
I use a lot of hairspray daily and I need to buy a good shampoo to get the
buildup out. I decided to try something different to save money rather than buying
the more expensive shampoos. I bought a bottle of Suave shampoo and added a few
teaspoons of baking soda (of course you have to shake very well to mix ) to the
shampoo and to my surprise it totally stripped my hair of all oils and hairspray.
Not only have I saved money, I get to enjoy all kinds of different scents that Suave
has to offer.
Lynn- Nederland, Texas
Miserly Tip # 295
Fabric for Sewing
I purchase bed sheets from yard sales and thrift stores and I use the
fabric to sew our pajamas.
I can usually get full or queen sized sheets for around a dollar a piece
and it's enough fabric to make a gown for myself and a pair of pj's for
each of my kids.
The kids think its fun that we have matching night clothes and I don't
have to pay the average of 10 dollars per outfit for each of us.
Once you make or buy a simple pattern in a basic style, the cost for the
pajamas is pennies.
Miserly Tip # 294
Fuel prices continue
to be very high. My wife is a
stay-home-mom, so with many other families, the gas station hits our
budget
hard. What to do? After researching the subject as
an automotive mechanical
engineer, I didn’t like most of what I found online: advice
was often
oversimplified, incomplete, incorrect, expensive (buy a $30 book or a
membership), or fraudulent (selling a device or product with false
claims which
is actually useless or detrimental to fuel economy). And the
big hype
over hybrids often doesn’t mention that most of these
vehicles
aren’t as frugal or financially wise as the car companies
lead us to
believe. So, I decided to write the Ultimate Fuel Economy
Guide and make
it available for FREE: way over 30 ideas to increase your MPG and save
money on
gas (or diesel).
The
Ultimate Fuel Economy guide also includes valuable
maintenance tips, and considerations for purchasing a newer vehicle, to
stretch
the value of all your vehicle dollars. And it continues to
grow and
improve.
It’s
located here: http://www.ultimatesyntheticoil.com/Improve_Fuel_Economy/Increase_Fuel_Economy.htm
Tracking all our mileage on both vehicles, I estimate that of
the tips we’re
using so far, we’re saving about 15% in fuel. But
some of our
friends are reporting 20% - 30% savings. As an added bonus,
we’re
saving well over $100 per year in maintenance costs on each
vehicle. I
think it will help nearly anyone save money on their
vehicles.
Miserly Tip # 293
When we moved to Alabama (from Tennessee) I found
that my long distance phone charges were about $75.00 to $100.00 each
month (not including charge for local service). I was always
afraid to open my phone bill because I never knew what was going to be
in there) It was then that I started using a calling card
(it's about 4.16 cents per minute). These can be bought from
Sam's in denominations of 100 minutes to 1250 minutes or
higher. You can also add minutes to the cards by
phone. This helped me so much that I have continued to use a
calling card after we moved back closer to my family. We are
now only 50 miles away, but it's still long distance. You
always know what your phone bill is going to be because it's the same
every month. The only small hassle in using the calling card
is having to dial those two long numbers every time you make a long
distance call. Still, I solved this problem by programing
those two numbers into my phone and then you only have to dial two
short numbers. This little time makes a huge difference if
you call long distance alot.
Donna
Morristown, Tennessee
Miserly Tip # 292
I
used to work in the meat department at the local grocery
store. It's not widely known but if you ask the meat
department will wrap
your meat in any size package that you'd like.
Such as 1, 1 1/2,
or 2 pound packages. We also wrapped in frezer
paper. Hope this helps
someone save some time.
Andrea, Oregon
Miserly Tip # 291
Years
ago I bought (at a going out of business sale) pant
hangers. I've used these hangers to put together outfits in my
childrens closets. On one hanger I may have a
pair of pants, shirt,
socks, and underware. This is a great time saver expecially
when there
was 5 children under age 10. The children could "pick" out a
pre-approved outfit.
Andrea, Oregon
Miserly Tip # 290
My husband and
I have tried to have me stay at home and provide
childcare for some extra income, but due to outrageous health insurance
rates (my
husband has minimal benefits as a contractor), we were forced to
reconsider
this plan. Now I work the 3-11 shift, 3 nights per week and
every other
weekend totaling 32 hours per week. We pay very little for
childcare
(just a few hours per week), and my son is home with either my husband
or me most
of the time. The time that he is away provides good
socialization for
him. This is working well for us. We really value
the times that we
are all together, and this situation is helping my husband to be a very
involved father. I am able to earn a good wage in the field
that I was
educated in, and I have great benefits. Working opposite shifts
helps us
both earn a living and avoid high childcare costs. Even
working part time
during evenings and weekends when children can be home with their
fathers is an
option for moms who have decided not to work full time.
Danielle
Albany, New York
Miserly Tip # 289
The inside of our home is in need of paint after 7 years. Today I was at
Home Depot getting a gallon of paint mixed for a specific area. While the
paint clerk was mixing my gallon, I checked the rack that is commonly called
the "ooops rack". On this rack you will find cans of paint that were mixed
but the color did not come out quite like the person had wanted. These cans
of paint range from $1.00 for a quart to $5.00 for a gallon. Today I found a
five gallon container of interior paint in just the color I needed which was
Off White. Cost $15.00. I had the paint clerk open it so I could verify the
color, and it was fine. Previously for another house I have paid over $60.00
for the same size and color. Several weeks ago I found a nice can of bluish
lavendar, for my son's study area for $5.00 also. It pays to check.
Becky
Washington
Miserly Tip # 288
I
still use the cheap soap, and I have three boys! Enough said! To
get the ugly stains out with out buying the spray n wash or
shout which
in our area is almost 4.00 a bottle, I use a mix of dish soap and
water. Most of the stains in our clothes are grease based so dish soap
and water work great with our cheap detergent. With our detergent I use
only half the recommended amount and everything comes out clean. Also,
I use dryer sheets and with those i cut them in half, and they still do
their job. My soap, spray, and my dryer sheets last me well over a
month and this is what I spend- 2.83 for soap, 1.88 for dish soap, and
a 1.44 For 80 sheets! Pretty good for 3 kids!
Beth
H.
San
Bernardino, CA
Miserly Tip # 287
The
absolute best window
cleaner in the world is good old rubbing alcohol!
You can use it full strength or water it down - I put it in a
spray
bottle. It doesn't streak, it will work on that
nasty hairspray
residue that gets on everything in the bathroom, it shines chrome.
I
even add it to my windshield wiper fluid (it doesn't hurt the paint) -
This is especially helpful in the wintertime as it melts the snow and
frost! It works on just about everything. It's much
cheaper than even
the store brand window cleaners and works so much better! It
disenfects too!
Pat
Athens, Alabama
Miserly Tip # 286
I am a stay at home mom of a 6
month old. My tip is to make your own baby food.
All you need is a decent food processor or blender. The cost
per serving is minimal. When my son first started on solids
one carrot lasted seven meals. It does take a little more
time but you can also control what is in the food as it is all
vegetable or fruit and maybe a little of the water it is cooked
in. I also add the pureed fruit to his cereal instead of
buying the combined cereals. The box of cereal lasts twice as
long this way.
Kathryn
Oshawa,
Canada
Miserly Tip # 285
EDITOR"S NOTE: A "nappie" is a cloth diaper
I am a SAHM of a four
month old. In my attempt to be frugal after giving
up full time work, I chose to use cloth nappies. To make the
nappies last longer I also use nappy liners, however these are
expensive and I just couldn't justify throwing them all away.
Now when my son has a wet nappy, the nappy goes in the nappy bucket and
the liner goes in a seperate small bucket for soaking. When
it becomes time to wash, I place all the liners in one of those bags
you get for washing delicates and throw it in the washer with the
nappies.
The liners
last weeks this way, and a box of 100 lasts me about 3 months instead
of about a week and a half.
Cassandra,
Taree, New South Wales, Australia
Miserly Tip # 284
Many
tipsters mention shopping at consignment shops, but have you tried
clothesswapping?
You can have fun with your girlfriends, clean your closet, get
clothes for free, donate to charity, and take a tax write off! Here's
how it
works: send out invitations (Evite works great or simply email) to your
friends, asking them to bring at least one other friend. You need
"critical
mass" for a good Clothes Swap and it's good if you don't know some of
the
people (or their clothes). A dozen people works well, though more and a
bit
fewer are fine too. Each person should bring a food treat to share; host
supplies basic drinks. Most importantly: each person brings clothes
they no
longer want, for whatever reason (leave the really stained or torn
clothes at
home). Usually there are mostly women's clothes but now that my friends
and I
are married with kids, we've been swapping men's and kids clothes too.
There
needs to be at least 2 full-length mirrors per 10-12 people; if you
have one,
ask a friend to bring another. Pick the largest part of your house and
pull the
shades (and be sure to send your older male family members away for a
couple of
hours).
Once the guests have arrived, sort all the clothes into basic
categories:
shirts, pants, shoes, accessories, dresses, etc. Make sure guests leave
their
own purses (and eventually clothing) in another part of the house so
they don't
go missing. Then, swap! Basically, dig through the piles, try things on
(it
helps to not be too shy; you're all girls after all--wear decent
underwear, or
a jog bra and those stretchy jog shorts). This gets to be a lot of fun
with
everyone encouraging everyone else (Oh, that looks good on you, No you
don't
look fat, etc.). When people feel done, bag up all the leftovers. There
will be
a lot. Usually the host ends the day by taking the leftovers to an
agreed-upon
charity, and of course claiming the donation on her taxes. I try to
swap twice
a year and it really feels like shopping. Sometimes I get a couple of
things,
sometimes a whole bag, and my closets are cleaner. Happy swapping!
Miserly Tip # 283
The best tip that I have
learned is to use an "envelope" system. We found that our
family was swiping our debit
card without hesitation, so we purchased a dollar
store coupon filer with blank tabs. After paying
all the bills we pull out what we've budgeted
for shopping, gas, entertainment, etc. and seperate
it into the filer. It helps us see where we are
spending our money and it definitely makes us think
twice about impulse buys.
Aislynne Edwards
Hope Mills, NC
Miserly Tip # 282
I make all my cakes from scratch
(cheaper in itself than mixes) and as soon as the cakes are baked and
cooled, I slice, wrap and freeze them - not only are the cakes are
ready for lunch boxes, but they are not sitting around saying "Eat me!"
Love
the website, even at this distance.
Victoria, from Freshwater, Isle
of Wight, England
Miserly Tip # 281
My name is Frances and I am a SAHM for 2 years now.
Here are a 2 ways we save money around here.
First, I make out a menu for the week
and make my shopping list accordingly. That way I
only have to go to the store once a week and I know what to
cook every day. That saves us lot of time and
money. It really helped us eliminating going out to
eat a few times a week because we didn't know what to make
for dinner. I think I cut about $100 - 150 of our monthly
food budget by sticking to my menu.
Second, when we do go out to eat, we
order 2 meals and ask for an extra plate. When the
food comes, we just give some of our food to our 2 year old
daughter. We have learned over the last year that
she never finishes her meal and always wants what mom and dad
are eating. That really saved a lot of money for
us. Usually, kids meals cost between $3-5 and with
going out once a week it save a bundle over time.
Frances, Starkville, MS
Miserly Tip # 280
I enjoy using the daily
face cleansing cloths that you use once and throw
away. However, they can be very costly. I found
that a national grocery store chain has a very nice daily face cloth
that is very reasonable in price and even has a "rough" side for
exfoliating. I cut them in half, so I can use 1 whole cloth
in 2 days. This stretches a month supply into two!
Whenever I make macaroni and cheese from the box, I only use 2
tablespoons of margerine
instead of the 4 tablespoons as directed. Not only do I save
margerine, but the dish is lower in fat.
Ping-pong balls make wonderful cat
toys and are much cheaper than fancy ones from the pet
stores. I buy orange ones so they are easily seen on the
floor.
Whenever I print something from the internet on my printer, there are
always these extra pages with very little printing. I save
these as scratch paper
or I use the clean side for printing things that don't need to be
"perfect", like a school report.
If your family loves watching DVDs
for entertainment, check out the numerous online stores that allow you
to rent them for a monthly fee. Most of them don't have a
specific deadline, thus ending late night runs to the video store, and
most of them allow you to rent an unlimited number each
month. This has been far cheaper for us than going to the
local store. Also, the online stores have lots of the
classical movies that are more "family-friendly".
Cindy
Miserly Tip # 279
We had a fire in home and faced
the daunting task of replacing everything. We found to great
ways of saving on major purchases was to call our local rental centers
(Rent-A-Center, Colourtyme, Ect) and ask if they were trying to get rid
of any of their stock. Also, definitely check scratch and dent
places. The deals are great. Know your
laws! We found a scratch a dent place just across state
lines. Because the product was being delivered across state
lines, we did not pay sales tax.
Georgette, East Stroudsburg, PA
Miserly Tip # 278
Here are three tips that save
money!
1) We spend
a lot of time in the car
driving back and forth from Houston to Austin. I keep my 6 1/2 year old
step son entertained by saving the comic section of the paper every day
and put it into a large three ring binder. When it comes time for a
trip, we pull out the comics and let my step-son color them. In
addition to keeping him entertained, he likes to read them out loud to
us and it helps him practice his reading skills!
2) My friends and I have a box
of baby
clothes, blankets & burp rags that circulate to everyone every
time
they have a baby. When you are done, we simply wash them and pack them
back up for the next person expecting! To be considerate, we all try
and make sure to wash out or bleach out (the bleach pen works wonders!)
any stains that we can see. This saves a ton of money and it's all ways
fun to see that outfit again that made your little one look so darling!
It's also fun to discover the "new" outfits that have been added!
3) To save on paints, we make
our own from recipes on this website http://www.scribbleskidsart.com/generic207.html.
For paint brushes, we use old toothbrushes (after they have been put
through the dishwasher first!) and for paper, I take old paper grocery
bags and cut them so they lay flat. I flip them so the blank inside is
facing out and then using masking tape, I tape his "canvas" in place.
It prevents paint dribble on the table and when he is done, we
carefully peel the masking tape from the table and use the tape to tape
it on the wall!
Liz from Texas
Miserly Tip # 277
Christmas Presents
We each get presents on our own birthdays. To honor Jesus' birthday, we only buy gifts for others (outside our family).
This saves a lot of money, but also results in an attitude of selflessness rather than the selfishness which would normally characterize us all at Christmastime.
One year our two children chose to buy a new pair of glasses for a little girl in a large family. With the help of the Walmart vision center closest to the child, we were able to do this without her knowing who paid for them. The children enjoy seeing this little girl in her new glasses.
Miserly
Tip # 276
Free
Dirt
A
good place to look for free dirt is your local pool building co. In our
town they are happy to deliver as it saves them time and
money. Just call and see if they will put you on a list for
when they are digging in your area. This allowed us to put in hills and
even out our lumpy lawn.
Dianne,
Modesto Ca
Miserly
Tip # 275
Moving to
Australis - A new way to shop
Shopping in Australia
is very different in the sense that you really have to calculate the
cost/savings in everything. There are no breakdown
to unit prices in front of the item, which I really miss as it made
life so much easier. I now have to shop with a calculator and
people give some odd looks. LOL. Oh well, that's easy to put
up with. Store catalogs come out every week and I rely on
them for my weekly menu. I have some that I would be happy to
send you if you'd like to take a look at them.
There is no such
thing as a coupon, which I used to find beneficial on certain
products. I used to work part time for an airline and
passengers would give me either samples of their products or coupons
for them. Usually these coupons were for the total price of
the item, so I wouldn't pay a cent. Now those I miss!
Warehouse clubs
are none existent unless you are affiliated with a business, they are
not for the average person to join. I have found a way to
join so that part is taken care of but now I need to go in there and
compare the prices to see if it's worth it. I know they don't
sell fruit and vegetables, not sure about the meat though. It
is on a much smaller scale than Costco.
There is no
Farmer's Market where we live, maybe they are in the bigger
cities, but our nearest capital city is 7 hours drive away. I
used to shop at the Farmer's Market late in the day, close to packing
up time when things were being greatly reduced because the seller's
didn't want to take it home with them.
The biggest thing
that I have found to be helpful in your book is getting back to the
basics and losing the processed foods. I used to apply
various aspects of your book when we were in Califronia and found it
all to be very simple when you got right down to it. At the
end of the day you just have to choose which mind set you want
to live by.
When we moved
here we had 3 1/2 months without our furniture and had to replace all
of our electrical appliances and of course food supplies. As
you can imagine this is a very costly exercise and we still have not
replaced everything. With renovating the house and a husband
that is gone 5-6 days a week, I just wanted to keep the meals that I
cooked quick and easy, unfortunately I was opting for more ready made
foods. Not a good decision but a learning experience.
Then one of my
wake up calls came when our 10 year old broke out in a full
body rash. The rash, we determined was from a flavor
enhancer 635, which is a mixture of 631 disodium guanylate and
627 disodium inosinate.
Having started eating more processed foods than we
used to, his body finally couldn't take anymore and broke out in this
horrible rash which lasted almost 2 weeks even with taking prednisone
(Sp). Looking at the foods we had in our pantry I was shocked
to find that these chemicals were even in basic things like soups and
even chicken stock. Once our furniture arrived I
checked all of the food that the movers had packed (yes they packed
everything that wasn't nailed down) and sure enough these chemicals
were in the foods we'd been eating for years. Ryan was quite
lucky as some people have died from severe reactions to these so called
"enhancers". If you'd like to read more about these enhancers
here is the website: http://www.fedupwithfoodadditives.info/factsheets/635/RIBO1.htm
One other thing
that sealed the deal to go back to the basics was when the boys asked
if they could buy lunch at school one morning. "Sure" I said,
so the lunch menu came out and their lunch totals came to $7.30c
each. I hear you ask what on earth did they buy?
All they had was a ham/pineapple/cheese melt on bread, milk
and a slice of cake, I supplied them with fruit. I almost
choked, but knew I couldn't tell them no as I had already said they
could. We made a deal that they would only be buy it
once a term. Ryan realized the large jump in price
from what was paid in California ($1.25) and was also
shocked. Something is rubbing off on him, thank goodness.
So needless to
say I'm very careful about what goes in to my shopping cart now and not
just on a price level. We're also on the search for a bank
with lower fees (unfortunately it's not practical to continue using
USAA). I'm saving frantically to replace appliances such as a
freezer (asking price is $1200). I'm doing the research at
the moment for a bread maker ($215) to see if it's cheaper to make or
buy our own bread. A loaf of wholewheat or white bread
(preservative free) is $2.90. Electrical goods are much more
expensive here, I had sticker shock when we started buying items, so
you have to ask yourself if you really need it. I
brought my Kitchenmaid mixer with us, to replace it it's over $600 here
but for me to use it I have to buy a transformer for $300. If
I'd known that I would have sold it and bought one here. Oh
well, live and learn.
Miserly
Tip # 274
Window Cleaner
Purchase window washer
fluid in the Automotive section under $2.00 for a gallon and use this
for your household windows, mirrors and such.
Miserly
Tip # 273
Gift Box
My mother started year
ago having a gift box. In this box she'd put items found on
sale that would make a nice gift for someone at a later date.
I am the oldest of 6 children. many have written about some
form of a gift box. I wanted to add to that idea.; There were
times when I'd be able to shop from this box as payment for babysitting
or doing something extra. Example I needed gift for party.
Mom would assign an extra "chore" and I'd get to pick a gift.
No $ spent. I've also used this idea. For
example, my sisters would watch my children for me knowing in
advance they would be allowed to choose form the gift box in leui of a
cash payment. Really works great. My 3 sisters also do the
gift box now.
Andrea,
Oregon
Miserly
Tip # 272
Foaming Hand
Soap
I recently purchased foaming pump hand soap for my
kids because it is a lot less messy than regular liquid soap - it is
however, more expensive and you can't buy refills. Although
it says you can't refill them with regular liquid soap if you add a bit
of liquid dish detergent and water it down quite a bit it works
great!! And it only costs pennies a bottle!!
Miserly
Tip # 271
Landscape
We
bought our house about ten years ago. When we moved in the yard in
front was a mess and we did not want to spend a lot on landscaping. Also
since we live in Southern California we wanted to have plants that
required very little water. Over the years we have collected cuttings
from cactus, ferns and succulents from friends, neighbors, and
relatives. While the plants took awhile to fill in they eventually
looked great.
We did buy some herbs like thyme, sage, oregano, and rosemary from a
local garden center. The plants were small at first but usually only
cost about a dollar and have since grown into elegant hedges and
borders. Since they are also edible we now have a year round supply of
fresh herbs for cooking. Nothing like a chicken roasted with fresh
rosemary.
For borders, walkways, and flower beds we have collected rock and brick.
The brick we were able to get from a friend whose chimney collapsed
during the Northridge earthquake. My husband got the rocks from the
local mountains. The rocks from hillsides wash into the road after it
rains. He would go after a good rain and collect the rocks that had
washed into the road. So now after a few years we now have a yard that
is very nicely landscaped. It has been fun watching the yard develop.
The cactus have awesome blooms at different times of the year. The yard
requires very little water. We regularly receive compliments from
neighbors taking an evening or morning stroll. And we gladly give
cuttings to anyone who asks. The best part is that we have probably
spent under $200 for all we have done.
Miserly
Tip # 270
Credit
Cards
CAUTION....you
must be a disciplined person to have this work for you.
I have two tips that will work famously if applied correctly.
Before I submit the first tip I want to say that my husband and I DO
NOT have any running, unsecured credit card debt and would not do this
if that were an issue.
1. CREDIT--We apply for ONE credit card that has good benefits that we
know we will use (ie: cash back, airline miles, point for vehicle
purchase, free items, etc.) We put EVERYTHING we buy on this card,
absolutely everything. BUT...we keep up very closely with each charge
and subtract it from our checking account just as if we had written a
check. (I usually do this once a day or every other day) We also keep
up with the charges and subtractions in a separate "credit" book so we
can check it against our statement. Then at the end of the month when
we receive the bill, we have the cash to pay the full balance and we
are reaping the benefits of the card. It also helps you to build a good
credit history. We have an agreement that if we EVER cant pay the
entire balance that we will discontinue this method
IMMEDIATELY.
When we have used the card to its full benefit, we CANCEL it and charge
nothing more on it, then move on to the next card that will benefit us.
We look for TWO things in each card....NO YEARLY FEE and BENEFITS WE
WILL USE. In other words, we use the credit card company to OUR
advantage instead of allowing them to use us. Using this method, and
because I waited for the most opportune time, I received $3000 off
(credit card benefit) of a new truck for my husband along with $7000
more in rebates and discounts totaling $10,000 off of the vehicle plus
we are military and live in Kentucky, we didn't have to pay any sales
tax. (another $2000 savings) That is a HUGE savings!!!!
It takes a while to build up the points but that is actually good
because you don't want to cancel cards too often. It took us about 1-2
years to get the points built up to buy the vehicle and now we are on
another card with good benefits for outdoor supplies. This method has
helped us to be more frugal minded and budget in a better manner as
well as made us more aware of our expenditures.
2. CASH--My husband is paid two times a month and I will go to the ATM
on each payday and withdraw the allotted amount of spending cash for
that pay period. I keep the cash at home in an envelope and we write
down on the envelop when we get money out, how much and what it is for.
When its gone, its gone and we do not go back to the ATM. This helps us
budget our cash more wisely and we know where it went and WHO spent it.
Its really much better than running to the ATM every other day. (we had
a lot of "forgotten" ATM withdrawals that didn't help our budgeting)
These tips are for a disciplined mind, but I believe anyone can do it.
Just do it cautiously, especially the credit tip. I believe that no one
should ever have any running unsecured debt and if you have an issue
with this then please think twice before using that particular tip.
Jennifer
Ft Campbell, KY
Miserly
Tip # 269
Christmas
Ornaments
About 8 years ago my mom had a flooded basement and
all her precious ornaments were destroyed. However, going through her
Christmas card list were a lot of old cards. We cut the
fronts into ovals and circles, punched a hole in the top and put a
ribbon through it. We had nice conversation about who sent
the cards. Now mom went to be with the Lord two years ago. Guess what
is most precious to me? Those ornaments we made that year are
my favorites. To all the moms stretching it this Christmas doing
homemade --believe it, these will be the most treasured of your
kids. Kay from Michigan
Miserly
Tip # 268
Uniforms
I am employed as a certified medical assistant for
a group of 7 family physicians. I am required to wear
uniforms, which can be rather costly. I have found that i am
able to make tops and bottoms as well. I found a uniform
pattern at the local Wal-Mart for around $2.00, it included pants, top
and skirt. I shop for the material that is $2.00 a yard and
am able to make a scrub top for $4.00. I have found material
on the bargain table for $1.00 a yard!! At this price, i have
made top and pants for around $6.00, including thread and
elastic. With the holidays coming, i have picked out 4
different prints for the x-mas season and will have less than $20.00 in
all of them. Hard to beat the price! In case you
wonder, for me to be able to do this it has to be super
easy!!!!
T. Smith
Miserly
Tip # 267
Cockroaches
Central
Florida has more than its fair share of Palmetto bugs-the Grandaddy of
all roaches. YEARS ago, my Mother discovered a hint for trapping them!
Take an old clean glass jar (I like one quart Mason or mayonnaise
jars). Grease the upper half of the inside with solid shortening
(Crisco). Place a small slice of ripe banana in the bottom of the jar.
The roaches climb in, thinking they are showing up for a tropical luau,
but are unable to climb back out! (They just S-L-I-D-E back down to the
bottom of the jar.) I use these in areas where bug spray would not be
safe ( a pet feeding area on the patio) etc. To be honest with you, I
prefer not to use insecticides at all! About once a week, I gather the
jars and hose them out in the far corner of the back yard. I don't
usually even need to wash the jars before re-loading with a fresh slice
of banana! My sweet little neighborhood birds often clean up the
"remains
Miserly
Tip # 266
Hamburger on
Sale
Next time ground beef
goes on sale, indeed buy in bulk. But, instead of just packaging
smaller quantities for your freezer, go one step further and save LOTS
of time later. Make up the entire 5 or
10 lbs. into your favorite meatloaf mixture. Shape into meat
loaves, Salisbury steak patties, and meatballs. I freeze the
meat loaves uncooked to thaw and cook later. But the steak patties and
meatballs I broil first, then freeze in single layers on cookie sheets.
Once the individual portions are frozen I seal them in a zip
bag.
Toss frozen meatballs
into simmering spaghetti sauce. As they thaw they pick up the
Italian flavorings of the sauce. It's so handy. This works with sweet
and sour sauce and barbecue sauce as well.
For Salisbury Steak,
just simmer frozen meat patties in Beefy Mushroom soup or brown gravy.
This is great for last minute dinner guests.
Broiling the meat lowers
the fat content and it is so quick! And doing more than one
"batch" at a time makes the heat expense worthwhile. (not to mention
the time invested in cleaning the broiler pan.)
I can't imagine ever
again mixing up just a pound or two of ground beef!
-Janet, Oklahoma
Miserly
Tip # 265
Tape Residue
First
of all, I would like to tell you how much I am enjoying your
tips! I have used some as needed, and have forwarded them to
friends who need a particular tip you have given. I would
like to add to your Hairspray/Citra-Solv idea. Last May I
hade neck surgery, followed by a staph infection. It seemed
as if I were covered with sticky tape residue all of the
time. It was really awful. I tried everything I
could imagine to get it off. Well, I was "complaining" to one
of the nurses that came daily about my "sticky situation."
She asked if I had any "Goo-Gone." (most likely Citra-Solv with a
different name) Well, I had two bottles, and I got a small
gauze square, dabbed it on the tape (NOT on the wound) then just wiped
it away! I know that the purpose of these products is to
clean "things," but we are unable to keep it that way!
Anytime a sticker gets attached to wooden furniture, I just put some on
it, let it set, and it comes off. I've used it to clean
"stuck on" dust, too. It's amazing how God made the natural
stuff so powerful so we wouldn't have to deal with all of these
chemicals! So, what to I do? I buy the
other stuff! Well, I'm getting better about it, and that's a
start.
In
Him,
Lanette
Miserly
Tip # 264
Yeast
I buy Yeast at a bulk food store.
It comes in 17.64 oz packages. The cost is $2.62.
When you buy yeast in those little three packs at the grocery the cost
is over $37.00 a pound. I keep my yeast in the freezer, no
need to thaw, or even let warm to room temp. I bake twice a
week so this is a big savings for our family. I think saving
almost $35.00 a pound is great.
Debbie
Miserly
Tip # 263
Haircuts
I like to keep my
wavy, thick hair short. I have gone to several different hairstylists.
They often do a very good job. The problem is that the $35 to $45 bill
is really more than I can afford every six weeks at present. I struck
upon a solution recently as I was going to the grocery store in our
neighborhood. I passed by a barber shop and remembered that one of the
girls from my daughter's preschool class went for haircuts there. I
popped my head in and asked if they could trim up my daughter's hair.
They said sure. The cost was $12. While I was waiting I asked if I too
could have a trim. Again the answer was affirmative, and again the cost
was $12. I have to say that they did a very good job. It may not be
suitable for all, but it has just cut my haircut expenditure from
almost $50 every six weeks to $12 plus tip. I have a friend that
routinely goes for haircuts at inexpensive shops, and once or twice a
year goes for a maintenance cut at her favorite salon.
I guess we all have
our methods.
~Charlotte
Miserly
Tip # 262
Laundry
Detergent Recipe
Dear Jonni,
Thank you so much
for your books and web site. You're been a true
blessing in my life.
The attached
recipe is not a food recipe, but I still wanted to share it
with you because it has saved our family a lot of money on
laundry. We used to pay about $3.50 per gallon for liquid
laundry detergent. I have seen some name brands
selling for up to $5.00 per gallon! My husband is allergic to
perfumes so I always had to search for the fragrance free brands.
When I found this
recipe for liquid laundry detergent on the frugal shopper web site (www.thefrugalshopper),
I thought it would be worth trying. I made a batch and it worked
great! The smell is very light and doesn't bother my
husband's allergies. I have even used it
successfully in my dishwasher. The recipe makes two
gallons at a cost of 78 cents (or 39 cents per
gallon). That is about 1/10 of what we used to pay for
laundry soap. What a savings!
Liquid
Laundry Detergent
3
Pints water
1/3
Bar Fels Naptha Soap
(grated)***
($0.43)
1/2
Cup Washing Soda (not baking soda) ($0.21)
1/2
Cup
Borax
($0.14)
2
Gallon Bucket
1
Quart hot water
Hot
water
Mix Fels Naptha
soap in a saucepan with 3 pints of water, and heat on low until
dissolved. This may take about 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in Washing Soda
and Borax. Stir until thickened, and remove from
heat. Add 1 quart of very hot water to a 2 gallon
bucket. Add soap mixture and mix well. Fill bucket
with hot water and mix well. Set aside for 24 hours or until
mixture thickens. Stir well after it thickens. Use
1/2 cup of mixture per full load of laundry. Note: The
detergent does not form a lot of suds but don't let that bother you. It
works great.
***
Fels Naptha is made by the Dial soap company. Look for it in the
laundry detergent section of your grocery store. I have been
able to find it at Albertsons.
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