As I have become more aware of dangerous chemicals in our everyday household items, healthier ingredients, and of course frugal living, I have started to make a lot of our own products. This week I ventured into facial cleansers and stumbled on this website (Make Your Own). I have added a few of my own tweeks (adding ingredients, modifying quantities, etc…) and have made our own prodcuts for pennies compared to the dollars I would have spent. And the initial investment on ingredients will be minimal, since you probably already have most of these ingredients on hand.
Archive for April, 2009
Herbal Teas
Lately I have seen the benefits of herbal teas. There are two ways to buy them, already bagged or loose. Of course anytime you get convenience you pay for it, but it is a great way to learn about combining herbs for flavor. So I have been using a pregnancy tea, which I love the taste of, and decided it was time to make my own. I read all the herbs contained on the back of the box and bought them in bulk (from my co-op of course). (These herbs will be useful in more than just this one tea so I will get much more use out of them.) Drinking three cups a day will use an entire box every five days ($5.34) adds up to $32.04 a month ($384.48 a year without tax). The total cost of the bulk herbs was $87 (including tax), which will last me at least six months totalling $174 a year. An estimated savings of $210.48.
Working Towards a More Frugal Life
I know I have not posted in a very long time, but I have been extremely busy on my frugalness, being a mom and wife, and having a house on the market. I know, no excuse.
Well, here is an update on my frugal New Years resolution:
Bath Time: My goal is not only to become more frugal, but for my family to become healthier. So that means cutting as many harmful chemicals out of our life. I started using a natural castille soap from head to toe. This may appear more expensive at first glance ($9-$13 a bottle), but this investment will save tons through the year. A one time purchase of one bottle (it only takes a few drops) for each member of your family will last the entire year. So how much will it save? If you use the cheapest products they have you will save $23 -$27 per person each year. (shampoo $12 a year per person, conditioner $12 a year per person, and soap $12 a year per person). So this would save a family of four about $100 per year.
Join Co-op’s: This is not new to our family, but is an ever changing money saver for us. On average we save between $80 and $100 per month on general grocerys, vitamins and supplements, baking needs, herbs and spices and have even found kitchen utensils.
Buy Local: I take this one step further than buying in the general area that I live, I go to the farmer. We buy our beef (all cuts) for less than $3 per pound, organic free range chicken eggs for a third of the cost at the store (plus they are much fresher), honey by the gallon (local is best for allergies anyway), and always keeping my eyes open for more items. I haven’t even began to calculate this savings. You have to compare apples to apples here too. If you are buying organic, grain fed, free range, antibiotic and hormone free eggs, you must compare it to that at the store and not the cost of regular eggs. So with that in mind, we save an estimated $364 a year on eggs alone.
Dryer Sheets: I was already making my own solution and soaking sponges in it to save in this area. Then a dear friend (thanks Dar), showed me a trick I would have never figured out in a million years. Take a piece of aluminum foil, ball it up and toss it in. This gives the static something to discharge on and you have static free clothes every time. Nothing to remix or consume. Just leave it in the dryer.
An estimated grand total from this post alone: $1424
