Love frugal living

I was raised pretty poor, so frugality was a necessity more than anything else, but now that I am grown, I see that it's still a necessity simply because it makes sense. 

There are many, many ways I live a frugal life and it's become a pleasure to me now and I have fun with it.  It pleases me immensely to get something second hand really cheap that would have cost a bundle if bought new.  It really makes me happy to get stuff for free that I can make into something else~like pallets, wood scraps, fencing, tin roofing, baling twine, etc. 

Over here in the US we have stores called Good Will stores where one can drop off donated items they no longer want of clothing, bedding, throw pillows, furniture, books, toys, dishes, baskets, gadgets of this or that, bicycles, etc.  We donate to them all the time...and we also shop there.  The prices are deliciously cheap and if you know what you are looking for and recognize quality, you can pick up some wonderful finds there for a couple of bucks.

I LOVE that place.  Since I don't accumulate "stuff", the simple concept of dropping off things you no longer want or need that others can still use is wonderful.  Because I love a bargain and like to find things I need cheaper than retail, this place is a goldmine! 

My mother shops there exclusively for all her clothing and shoes.  She gets some very high quality items that are new or lightly used that she would be paying scads for if bought in a typical store.  She gets compliments on her attire all the time~ she smiles and says, "Good Will" because she knows that some folks turn their noses up at buying clothing second hand.  She has no problem with it.

 If she can get a quality pair of shoes that look new for $2.99, that would normally cost her $65 retail, who is the smarter shopper?     Looking classy on the cheap is just our style.

When she gets tired of her current wardrobe, she can just donate them to Good Will and shop for another.  I tell her she is just renting clothing from there but she just laughs and has her fun.  At 80 a woman has to find her fun where she can!   

We like to live simply at home and we take many steps to keep utilities and food costs low, as well as other expenses, which allows us to spend the money on more worthwhile things like helping others, travel to see family who are isolated and remote, and emergency needs of our own.

We burn wood to heat our home, raise chickens for meat and eggs, raise a garden and preserve it, harvest wild game and preserve it, we don't spend much on clothing and such, we stay at home a lot to preserve the expense of gas and because we just love staying home, we don't have TV for various reasons, we don't have cell phones because we find them rather silly for the most part, we read a lot of books that we borrow from the library or even buy from Good Will (hardbacks a dollar, paper backs fifty cents), I make my own detergent that works out to a couple of pennies per load, we have our own well so we don't pay city utilities....we live 15 mi. from the nearest small town and 20 mi. from a larger one. 

We don't use air conditioning in the summer, just fans.  We eat healthy and live healthy so we don't have medical expenses at all....Mom's 80 and she takes no prescription meds and has no chronic conditions, not even joint pain.  She stays active...very active...for the sole purpose of not having to fool around with medical issues.  She line dances and square dances several times a week, walks briskly on a daily basis, does all her own lawn maintenance~that's 3 acres of lawn and 20 acres total and she keeps it looking like a park by mowing and using a trimmer.  She does all her own home maintenance also.  She believes keeping busy keeps one fit and healthy and I would have to agree with her.  She also volunteers to maintain the huge lawns of some of her children's homes each summer.  She's a real hoot and I can't really keep up with her.

So many things we do to keep a frugal lifestyle that I can't really list them here but we are always looking for ways to reuse things, recycle things and keep our living small in this world.  We aren't really miserly or anything because we will use money on things we like to do or for the needs of others, so our lives are abundant and full as can be, even when lived frugally. 

Anybody else out there who has turned living frugally into a fun kind of life?   

   

Headin' to town to have a meal with family, but when I get back I'll gladly share that.  I LOVE my "homemade" detergent and have used it for 8 yrs now and still love it.  It's healthy for septic systems, it doesn't build up in clothing so less static cling and no need for fabric softeners, and it leaves no smell in the clothing...they just smell like clean cloth. 

I also make my own NuStock, an ointment used on animals for a multitude of purposes, but most notably on dogs and horses for hot spots, mange, wounds, etc.  I use to use it on scale mites for chickens until I found that castor oil works better and quicker for that purpose. 

Interested to read your story Beekissed --- very similar to the way I was brought up to be honest, at a time when frugality was the name of the game after the end of the war. These habits stay with you for life I reckon, although we are not fortunate enough to have as much space as you do.

If you have recipes to share, I for one would love to read them, especially your one for detergent 

There are many recipes for this same thing, some tweak it one way or another to suit their style and some make a dry formula instead of the wet.  I always make the liquid as it goes much, much further.  I recycle old detergent jugs and use the caps to measure out the detergent.

The original recipe should make 2 gal. of detergent. 

1/2 bar of Fels Naptha laundry soap, grated
1/2 c. Borax powder
1/2. c. Arm&Hammer washing soda
6 c. of water

Heat water and grated soap until the soap has melted, then add the Borax and washing soda, stir well.  Divide hot mixture between your 2 jugs, then fill the jugs the rest of the way with cool water.  Shake well.  Let sit 24 hrs before use.  Shake well before using each time.  Mixture should be a pale yellow, of egg white consistency and may have soap flakes still in the mix but they will dissolve in the laundry without problem.  1 c. detergent per large load. 

This detergent will not suds at all, but it is working...it has never let me down for stains, odors, etc.  Because of its low sudsing properties, it works great in the new HE machines and also is more healthy for septic systems. 

Some complain of whites being a little dingy with this detergent over time, but a bit of white vinegar in the rinse takes care of that.  I solved that by gravitating towards clothing and underclothing that are not white.  Some of my linens are still white but the vinegar takes care of them. 

Around here a bar of Fels Naptha runs around a $1 and not sure if it's even available where you are at, but any hard laundry soap will do.  Regular bathing soap will not perform the same for cleaning the clothing as it has too much fat in it. 

Borax is just sodium borate, so if you have an equivalent there you may be just fine.  Arm&Hammer washing soda is just sodium carbonate...you can find that anywhere they sell water softeners if you cannot find it at the store.  Baking soda is not the same and won't perform the same, from what I've heard. 

If you have a Walmart there, they should have them all in stock.  Over here they sell them now in the Walmart and all are grouped together on the same shelf due to the rising trend in people making their own detergents.  Just a handful of years back you could not find any of this on the shelves but so many people asked for them, they started stocking them. 

Thanks Beekissed and Joyful - really interesting to see another way to save money 

I like the scent from zoflora, I used to use it with white wine vinegar as a final rinse, in the days I did the laundry all by hand ---forgotten all about that 

Soda crystals

https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/thur-19-feb/product-detail/ps/p/soda-crystals-2/

Yes I thought that too, I spotted it on Nige 2 plots post about seed potatoes.
Beekissed what does the c measurement stand for please. Also is this washing liquid suitable for sensitive/delicate skins do you think?

An American cup is 240mls, Australian and South African cups are 250mls the slight difference between the two shouldn't make much difference. You can buy sets of cups in any supermarket.

I only know because I have friends from both countries who send me recipes