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Most commercial air fresheners do not freshen the air at all. Instead, they mask one odor with another, coat your nasal passages with an undetectable oil film, or diminish your sense of smell with a nerve-deadening agent. For a safer alternative, you may wish to try one of the following; not only will your home smell as fresh and clean as it is, you will also find yourself feeling healthier.

*Distribute partially filled saucers of vinegar around the room or boil 1 tablespoon of white vinegar in 1 cup of water to eliminate unpleasant cooking odors. Read the rest of this entry »

Pre-packaged store-bought box mixes are expensive. Have you considered homemade alternatives? Made-from-scratch mixes are healthy, cost beneficial, store well, and taste great. Often times, you’re paying for the packaging of commercial “convenience” foods and you don’t have any control over the additives and preservatives they contain. When making your own mixes, you tailor the ingredients, so have control over the quality and quantity.

Making your own bulk mixes is a great way to stock your pantry. Creative containers make homemade mixes a terrific frugal gift idea too. There’s something deeply satisfying when cooking from scratch. It takes some minimal preparation, but many of the ingredients are already a staple in your pantry. It’s not as time consuming as you may think. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the best places to save money is on cleaning products.  Here are a few recipes that are extremely economical, yet work fantastically!
 
Note: Make sure to label all your homemade cleaning products, and keep them away from pets and children.
 
WINDOW CLEANER
1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon liquid detergent
3 tablespoons vinegar
2 cups water
spray bottle Read the rest of this entry »

Frugality and happiness aren’t something society usually puts together. Frugality often brings up images of great sacrifice. We think of the miser who lived in poverty only for others to find millions saved after the miser passes away. What was the use?

Frugal living isn’t necessarily what you may possibly consider it to be. Frugal people live very happy lives. They find happiness in meeting goals, reducing their financial burdens and living stress free.

How happy can you be when you are drowning in debt and struggling to make ends meet? You aren’t living frugally, but you aren’t happy either. Read the rest of this entry »

A frugal gift is measured first by it’s usefulness. With that in mind, the frugal mind that is, the gift actually serves two practical purposes; it is useful and saves money. Most frugal women will Below I will explore a couple of ideas for thoughtful, practical-and yes, frugal-gifts.

Fill a sturdy laundry basket with one or two boxes each: Arm and Hammer Washing Soda, 20 Mule Team Borax and a few bars of Fels-Naptha Laundry Bar Soap. Mix up one batch of the following recipe and put in a tightly sealed container. You can make a decorative container yourself from a quart mason jar and some decorative fabric banded over the top or any kind of sealed glass container. Tie with pretty ribbon. And include the following recipe. Place with the laundry detergent ingredients.

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There are lots of ways to save money, no matter how much of it you have - or don’t have. All you need to know is where to look to find the savings.

The first thing you need to do is eliminate ALL of your unnecessary expenses such as eating out on the weekends, buying lunch at work every day subscribing to magazines and newspapers and cable television.

It’s OK to reward yourself once in a while, but if you are really looking to live frugally, you owe it to yourself to save every single penny you can!  To find other ways to reduce your expenses, take a close look at your checkbook and credit card statements. You should also call your credit card companies to see if they will lower your interest rates.

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A frugal shopper has skills that help him or her gain benefit of the money-saving opportunities in life. Below I have listed several traits found in frugal shoppers.  By incorporating these into your life, you too can become a frugal shopper.

1. A frugal shopper studies other people. There are probably people near you living a good life on half of what you make. Learn how others do things, so you’ll know your options.

2. Frugality requires knowledge of values. It’s hard to get a huge deal on a car if you don’t recognize what a big deal is. Start enlightening yourself on prices, especially before you’re ready to buy anything that costs a lot.

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Holidays and birthdays come around whether you are living a frugally or not.  You don’t have to break your budget in order to give a gift that will not only be loved by its recipient, but also used often. 

Gift boxes or baskets make wonderful, thoughtful gifts for everyone and are only limited by your imagination.  Once you start making these up, you’ll wonder why you didn’t think of it sooner.  They are fun to make and give, can be worked into nearly every budget and can be tailored for the pickiest on your list.  Below are a few ideas to get you started.

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Frugal living is something that you undertake for the long haul.  It isn’t something you can pick and choose to do one day and not the next-that is, not if you expect to see progress toward your goal. You do have a goal, don’t you? If not, read the final tip here first.  Below are several things you need to keep in mind if you are considering a frugal lifestyle.

1. Not every frugal idea is workable for everyone.

There is a balance between frugality and time that is unique for each person. Some people have time to grind their own wheat into flour and make their own pasta from scratch. Some people only have the time to do simple things.  You don’t have to use every idea you hear about.

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You don’t need fancy cleaners to keep your floor sparkling clean.  Try a few of the ideas below and see how proud you can be of your floors.

Vinegar. A few drops in the cleaning water will help remove grease. Dull, greasy film on no-wax linoleum can be washed away with 1/2 cup white vinegar mixed into 1/2 gallon water.

For Wood Floors: Vegetable Oil and Vinegar. Mix a 1 to 1 ratio of oil and vinegar into a solution and apply a thin coat. Rub in well.

For Painted Wooden Floors: Washing Soda*. Mix 1 teaspoon washing soda into 1 gallon hot water and wash the floor with a mop, sponge, or soft bristled brush. This solution can also be used to remove mildew. 

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