Motherhood Articles > Daily Frugalness - Saving Money Every Day

Daily Frugalness - Saving Money Every Day

1. Shop at home first. What's lurking in those cupboards. I bet you can make dinner out of what's already in your pantry.
2. Meal plan your dinners.
3. Turning off the lights. Keep all the lights out during the day, and at night, only the rooms currently being used are lit.
4. Washing only full loads (dishes/laundry) and air drying.
5. Keeping the thermostat at 78 degrees (higher if we're out). If it gets too hot, we turn it down until we feel comfortable, then turn it back up to 78.
6. VHS movies. You can find them dirt cheap just about anywhere. Watching movies is one of our favorite pastimes, and having lots of movies we picked up for $.25 to $1 makes it a cheap one.
7. Own only one car.
8. Learn how to fix things. Like the car, the computers, clothing, toys, etc.
9. Thrift store shopping. Except for consumables, buy everything used. If you can't find it at a thrift store, search online - Craigslist, half.com, ebay....
10. Speaking of Craigslist, keeping an eye on the free section, especially on Saturdays and Sundays around the time people start packing up their yard sales, has really paid off. Lots of people give away what they can't sell.
11. Oh, and Freecycle, too.
12. Having pets vaccinations/spaying/etc. done at low-cost clinics, rather than at a vet's office.
13. Eat smaller portions. Really. Cutting back is better for you and your wallet.
14. Keep abreast of grocery sales. Even expensive stores often have loss leader items that are a steal!
15. Know how much you pay for our usual grocery items. This way, you'll know a good deal when you come across it.
16. Home hair cuts.
17. No cable/satellite/Netflix. Just plain ol' network TV. Get a digital converter box (with the government's $40 coupon)
18. Use a reel mower, rather than a gas-guzzling mower.
19. Don't shopping hungry.
20. Find things to do around the house - lots of board and card games, vhs movies, reading (library books), chatting on the phone (local), drawing, listening to records, writing, just hanging out, etc.
21. Really considering before throwing something away.
22. Really considering before making a purchase of any kind.
23. Keep the house nice and livable so we are happy staying home. Having a nice, clean house means we aren't wanting to escape all the time.
24. Put out the word when we're looking for something. Friends and family may want to give up what you are looking for or know someone who does.
25. Do things for yourself that make you feel the abundance in life. Sitting down, drinking a cup of herbal tea, listening to music, and reading a good book. It's hard to feel lacking in life while doing something like that. If you don't feel lacking, you don't have such a desire to buy "stuff." You don't feel like I need more .
26. Make do as long as you can. Procrastinating before buying.
27. Take short showers.
28. Actually eat the leftovers.
29. Be really creative with gift-giving. Making things, putting together a basket of pretty things we have around the house, etc.
30. Water the lawn as little as we can get away with.
31. Park in the shade (this minimizes gas loss due to evaporation)
32. Walk.
33. Doing instead of buying - finding alternatives to buying any way we can: waiting, making do, fixing, repurposing, making something ourselves, etc.
34. Bake your own bread.
35. Save the change. Instead of spending it, we put our change in a pretty jar at the end of every day. It adds up quickly, and it really makes you think about those smaller purchases.
36. Snap digital photos and getting prints only of our favorites.
37. Use the crock pot, rather than the stove and the toaster oven, rather than the full-sized oven.
38. Grow some of your own food (tomatoes, herbs, etc.)
39. Not being afraid to pick up the things people have left on the curb.
40. Buy clothes on clearance at the ends of seasons.
41. Have only as many clothes as you need.
42. Go to grocery store only once every other week instead of the usual weekly trip.
43. Use coupons and combine with sales.
44. Cancel your home phone line and only use cell phone.
45. Buy gallon of whole milk and cut it with water to make 2 gallons.
46. If you're driving less, check with your insurance company about a lower rate. I get about 50 bucks off every 6 months because I drive less than 7500 miles per year.
47. Use cloth diapers.
48. Use cloth wipes with plain water.  
49. Price shop on phone plans.
50. Eat cheaper sources of protein: eggs, beans, quinoa, nuts
51. Use cloth napkins.
52. Use rags instead of paper towels.
53. Use simple soaps instead of fancy bath washes.
54. Consolidate trips, travel much less.
55. Use the library, but keep good eye on due dates so fines don't add up.
56. Curb urge to get out of the house and drive somewhere for entertainment by riding bikes in neighborhood or walking.
57. Use up odd cuts of meat in the freezer.
58. Take up any offers of stuff from people's gardens, look for a recipe online if I don't know what to do with it.
59. Use Internet to help us learn how to fix things.
60. Don't set foot in a mall, throw away sale ads from newspaper so you're not tempted to buy anything you don't need.
61. Use cold water for clothes washing.
62. Wash clothes only when dirty rather than after every wearing out of habit.
63. Sell stuff on eBay that you've been holding onto for who knows why.
64. Cut up other items to sew new things (a single wool sweater became legwarmers, mittens, breast pads and cloth diaper cover).
65. When you break a $20 bill, put all of the $1 bill into a jar and apply that savings towards paying off debt.
66. Stay home - if you go out you always spend a bit here and there.
67. If you do get take out, get Chinese and only order one entrée and rice. You can have a nice family meal for $9.
68. Bring snacks and drinks on errands so you aren't tempted to stop at the drive thru.
69. Buy an Entertainment book for your vacation destination.
70. Go on hikes instead of trips to the mall.
71. Rip dryer sheets in half.
72. Build up a pantry.
73. Start a family change jar.
74. Use vinegar as a cleaner.
75. Buy memberships or year long passes to parks/zoos/aquariums in your area.