Frugal ideas

Mamacathie, Have you searched the discussions yet? There are a number of posts soliciting frugal tips and hints. I feel like a broken record :), but one of my best strategies has been to use a price book. I've posted elsewhere how to make one - just search "price book" in discussions. Ditto what the above poster said, and this extend also to things like recycling plastic shpping bags, washing out sturdy Ziploc bags, etc. Another big one for me is baking my own bread. I can make a bakery-style loaf of bread for about 1/3 of the cheapest sale-priced whole wheat processed bread we can typically find here (I'm in Toronto, ON). Wish you well in your search for frugal hints! ~Sara P.S. If you have access to a library, get your hands on "The Complete Tightwad Gazette" if you haven't. It's a treasure trove!

Add "be frugal" to things I want to do with my life interest. There are lots of ideas in that interest. I would love to post a whole lot here, but I think this would be better for you. I also know two sites that send you free things to try and then you write a report or take a survey on the item. I will pm them to you if you want. I also get a free just daily frebies in my inbox. I can check into how to send them to you if you want, let me know.

When I put the dishwasher detergent in my dishwasher, I only use 1/2 as much. The other half of the container I put baking soda in. Works great! You can use baking soda instead of comet to clean your sinks or stovetop. Cleans without scratching and does a great job. You can also use baking soda to scrub in your shower. As someone else mentioned, the vinegar and baking soda in the drains is good. You can also use baking soda and vinegar to clean the toilet. Scrub the same as you would if using toilet cleaner then flush. To make your own "Tilex" (mold and mildew remover), mix 1 part bleach to 8 parts water. Works great!

You almost have to be frugal, with the outrageous prices for so many things lately. There's no sense in spending good money on something, only to turn around in a few days and throw it away. Money's not THAT easy to come by. Did you know you can use the same principle for many things? Why use a whole dryer sheet when half of one will do the job just as well? Why spend $3.00 for a bottle of shampoo and use it as directed? You could pour half of the bottle into an empty bottle and then fill with water. The shampoo won't be as thick, therefore you won't use as much. However, you will have all of the same benefits. To me, being frugal and being cheap are two different things. Being cheap is going to McDonalds and picking up a handful of ketchup packs and then going home to fill your ketchup bottle. THAT's being cheap. Stretching the use of something like dish soap, shampoo or dryer sheets is just getting the most for the money you've already spent.

You can take the laundry detergent a step further and make your own for even less. It's very easy, works well & costs less than 50 cents per gallon. The recipe I use is a bar of Fels Naptha soap (grated), a cup of Borax, a cup of Washing soda and 5 gallons of hot water. You melt the grated soap in a sauce pan with a little water. Then add it to 5 gallons of hot water in a bucket or rubbermaid container, and add the other items and stir it well. Five gallons will cost about $2 to make or 40 cents each. Hanging laundry in good weather saves even more. There are hundreds of not thousands of things one can do to save money. Most depend on your goals & what your comfy with.

As high as everything is getting, being frugal is a have to for me. I've been using vinegar and water for cleaning windows, it can also be used for cleaning lots of other things. Also, on the windows, newspaper works even better then paper towels.