For a fun post I thought I would give my readers 10 crazy ways to save money. Some of these may work for you, and others you may think that they are ridiculous. Hopefully you will pick one or two and try them out!
1. Save your change.
Believe it or not every little nickel, dime, penny and quarter that you find laying around, or in the dryer adds up. Grab it, and put it in a jar. When the jar is full cash it in!
2. Use rewards programs at the stores and gas stations.
I use Speedy rewards and Kroger points toward money off at the gas station. Usually if you save the points to accumulate you can get up to 30 cents off at the pump. Just ask for a card the next time you are out.
3. Cut your fabric softener sheets in halves or thirds.
There is no need in using one whole dryer sheet in a load of laundry. In fact, don’t just use them once, use them 2x’s. I make one dryer sheet last for two loads then I put it in the recycling box. Eventually when the recycling box fills up it is used in our garden and flower beds to help with our gardens!
4. Buy eggs.
Eggs are healthy and cheap. Look up 10 different egg menu’s. Incorporate two egg recipes into your weekly meal plan for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Look at the difference it will make in your grocery bill. For example: a quiche is healthy and inexpensive to make.
5. Use cloth diapers and wipes.
Cloth diapers are great. With our last child I was able to go to a consignment shop and buy some gently used diapers for less than $5.00. This was a great savings on our budget, and it was helpful that I did not have to run to the store for diapers.
Then I went and bought several packages of washcloths for babies. Using baby oil (my kids’ were not allergic to any of the ingredients) mixed with coconut oil, added water and made my own wipes. Using an old tupperware bowl I added the mixture and cut a slot in the top.
6. Ask family members, friends or aquaintances for used clothing.
We go to the goodwill on 50% off day and have a blast.
7. Make your own laundry detergent.
I have not bought detergent in years. The recipe that I use lasts for at least 6 months. All of the ingredients are purchased for under $10.00 and will last a year allowing me to make 2-3 batches of laundry soap.
8. Save on grocery meat.
The best way we have found to save on grocery meat is to go to a private sale butcher shop. This year we were able to buy chickens, pork, ground beef, steaks and more. When we researched buying a cow the savings still was not that great because of the third party used to process the meat. So, we found a butcher shop that has all of the meat we needed!
9. Get rid of cable and go with Netflix.
We hardly ever watch cable. I think we have it just for the savings on internet. We recently purchased Netflix and spend about $8.00 per month. Yes we watch TV. I like TV and believe alot of the kid shows to be educational in the morning. As with anything my motto is “moderation”. I really can’t lie either…..I have shows in the evening that I like to watch. We do still have cable, but the package was cut down to phone, internet, and basic cable. Netflix covers our movies. So if you want to know how we save on this one it would be with movie rental and movie costs.
10. Buy a timer and cut down shower times.
To me, this one was the hardest of all! I love my hot showers, but when I realized how expensive they were they had to be cut back. With 6 of us in the family we are taking alot of showers especially with one of us being a teenage boy. Adults get 10 min. in the shower and kids get 8 min.
It took some getting used to, but when the timer goes off the water goes off ( I wasn’t happy the first few times to immediately have my hot water stopped)!
How does your family save money in crazy ways? What do you do with the money that you save?
This post is linked up to www.alifeinbalance.net.
Great list! My hubby is a great saver and already does a few of them..but a couple are new to me 🙂
found you on the frugal link up, Rachael @ Diamonds in the Rough (http://www.parentingandhomeschoolinginfaith.com)
Visiting from Thriving Thursday – I love your tips…. I used to cut my dryer sheets in half – On pinterest I had seen how to make dryer balls. I thought it wouldn’t hurt to try this…. I have been using 3 for about a month… I have noticed a difference in the softness of my clothes….still have a tad of static but that could just be the HEAT….(over winter can you tell?) I read the more you use the better….so I am planning to get another skein of yarn and making 3 more. I use lavender oil for the scent as well.
When family pack ground beef is a deal I get a couple packs & cook it then I split it up and put in freezer bags. So when I fix spaghetti sauce, soups, casseroles, sloppy joes, the meat is already cooked so makes meal prep easy!!
Thanks for sharing!!
I found your post on SITS and love it! We are switching from Cable to Netflix and are egg fiends! i never thought about the fabric softener, butthere are definitely loads where i don’t need a whole one. I need to look into butchers too – I’m not wure where there is one around here, but I bet there is one.
We also use the Kroger card to save both in store and at the pump. I also watch prices at the register like a hawk since Kroger likes to list one price on the shelf and ring a different price up at checkout. I have visited customer service so many times after checkout because an item didn’t ring up correctly that they’re considering building me my own lane, lol. The first time I went to customer service, they gave me the full purchase price of the item back in cash (plus tax). I was gobsmacked. But their policy is to give it to you for free it it rings up incorrectly and the item costs less than $5. I used to feel a little guilty about taking advantage of their policy, but the truth is, most people never pay attention to prices, so it’s in Kroger’s best interests to continue to have things ring up incorrectly. Most people will not quibble over a few pennies. I got over that! All I ask is that I be charged what the advertized price is. If they can’t manage that, then I’m going to play by their rules and get the item for free. That’s how I save money at the grocery store. 🙂 Happy SITS Saturday Sharefest!
I’ve always cut dryer sheets into pieces and reused the pieces–we bought a box of 500 dryer sheets back when we first got married over 3 years ago and we still aren’t close to finishing it! 😛 It probably doesn’t save a ton of money, but I figure it’s less chemicals on the clothing, too, the less dryer sheet you use, so I feel good about that!
I’m saving my change. I save it to pay for my quilting and sewing things.
I actually just cancelled netflix after almost 2 years. We do use it, but there is enough to watch on our cable….which hubby insists on having the bundle pack. I may as well save my $7.99 a month.
Although, I actually am going to do amazon prime. Not as much choice free as netflix, but I’m more interested in the free 2 day shipping.
Gosh, we’ve not had any type of fabric softener for months. Paying for that with static. I was using mostly vinegar but used all of what I had left to make citrus cleaner.
I used to make my own laundry soap and loved it. Hubby hated it. I don’t have to worry too much now as I get soap in for reviews and such and lately there have been sales with matching coupons to get bottles of detergent for .49 and .99 each.