11 Tips for Frugal Living

As always, I am excited to have Tawra Kellam, from Living on a Dime, as a guest blogger!

11 Tips for Frugal Living
by Tawra Kellam
http://www.livingonadime.com

Frugal living is all about making the most with what you already have. Here are 11 tips from LivingOnADime.com to help you get started:

1. Barter for services when possible. For example, we exchanged lawn mower repair from our neighbor for a table (garage sale find) that he was looking for.
2. Learn to fix things for yourself. These days, with the Internet making information so easily available, you can fix most things yourself. We do 95% of the repairs around our house and we aren't that handy. We just keep looking for the information about how to do it and keep working until we get it fixed!
3. Stop eating out. I know you hear it all the time but STOP!!! The "average" family spends $300-$500 a month just eating out! Eating out truly is one of the biggest causes of debt! I am always amazed how someone can be "totally broke" and can't pay their bills but are still able to go to the drive-thru of their favorite restaurant.
4. Study nutrition information and find out what you need to eat to have a healthy and balanced diet. Then stop eating the junk and eat healthy inexpensive meals at home. We have a lot of menu ideas here at LivingOnADime.com that can help you get started.
5. If something breaks and you don't have the money to fix or if you are out of something and you don't have the money to buy more, figure out a way to live without it. If the lawn mower breaks, can you borrow a friend's lawn mower? If your washer breaks, go to the laundromat. If you break your tea kettle, use a saucepan to heat water. In most instances, you can find a way to make do or do without something until you have the cash saved up.
6. Do things for free. Go to the library, have a picnic or read a book. Kids are just as happy playing with mom and dad in the backyard as they are going to the zoo. If you can't pay cash for the "fun stuff" you can always have fun at home.
7. Buy items used. We buy 90% of the items for ourselves used. Going to yard sales and thrift stores does not take any longer than going to a retail store but you can save 90% off the retail price!
8. Just say no...to your kids. Let kids buy their own toys and extras! Our kids pay for all their own soda, candy, treats like nail polish, their own computers and extras. You are not the Bank of Mom so just say no!
9. Find a cheaper way to do things. Go to a beauty school to get your hair colored (or don't have your hair colored at all it isn't something you need to survive). Go to a mechanic school to get your car fixed. Hire a kid instead of a lawn service to mow your yard (only if you can't do it yourself for medical reasons. :-) Paint your own house instead of hiring someone, cut the cable and the cell phone (gasp!), and have birthday parties at your house. There is almost always a cheaper way to do things so try to find the cheapest way and save some money!
10. Cut kids' activities. Most kids are in way too many activities and they're often expensive. I know families who pay $175 a month for gymnastics lessons but can't pay the mortgage. There is a problem with this kind of thinking! Kids won't die if you don't give them all the lessons and activities you can't afford.
11. Get it for free. When the landscapers were laying sod in our new neighborhood, I asked for the scraps and we were almost able to put in our entire backyard for free. When they were building houses, I asked for the 2x4's that were going into the dumpster and got enough wood for our shed. When they were pouring concrete patios, I asked for the leftover concrete and they just poured our entire cement pad for our shed for free!! If friends have kids older than your kids, ask if you can have their hand me downs when they are done.

Get as much as you can for free and you can save thousands of dollars!
-Tawra

Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the authors of the Dining On A Dime Cookbook. Dining On A Dime will help you save money on groceries and get out of debt by cooking quick and simple homemade meals. For free tips & recipes visit http://www.livingonadime.com/ , sign up for our free Living On A Dime Newsletter and learn to save more!

Sunday's Special Guest Blogger

Here are some examples of how to do it:

T shirts

1. I cut off the sleeves. If it is a long sleeve, I'll cut each sleeve in half. For dusting, I'd leave them as-is. If you are going to use them for small jobs, you might want to cut them in half again.
   • When using a sleeve, be sure to use each side and turn inside out. Use each side like you do when cleaning with a sock rag.
2. Next I cut the sides and shoulder seams open and then cut the neck band off.
3. Last, I cut them into the size of squares or rectangles I want. This isn't rocket science. I just eyeball it. It's only a rag. If you ruin it you can toss it, so relax.

Towels

Don't cut towels. Terry cloth frays very badly so it is best to just leave these and use wash rags for small jobs and the towels for big ones.
Note from Tawra: I keep a stack of old towels in my car and in my emergency shelter. Then if we are in an accident or tornado, someone gets hurt and there is a lot of blood we can clean it up easier. 

Cloth diapers and tea towels
Even though you can cut these, I usually don't. For example when I am washing windows, I use a corner to dry or shine and then move to another dry corner or the middle. By moving from one dry spot on the rag to the next, I can get a whole job done with one rag.


Pajamas

1. Like the T shirts, I cut the sleeves first, long sleeves in half.
2. Then cut side and shoulder seams.
3. Cut off buttons to save.
4. Cut the front band and collar off. Often the collar is big enough to save and use for a small wipe up job.
5. Cut into squares or rectangles.

If I am going to use these for something like my Swiffer, I will measure and cut one for a pattern and use it as a guideline to cut more. Even these don't have to be perfect. It is just to give you a general idea.
Relax, you're just working with rags. If I have a drawer full of rags that are too big for the job at hand, I grab a pair of scissors and cut one down to the size I need. It is not big deal and it doesn't have to be perfect.
Don't feel guilty about throwing away rags.  I do it all the time and I do it guilt free. :) No wonder so many people are so stressed and uptight all the time. We can't even throw out a paper cup or use a piece of aluminum without being badgered or made to feel guilty. Rags are one thing you can throw out guilt free because, if you are like me, you have used it well in the form of clothing or linens and re-used it as a rag until it's pretty much worn out. Not only that, since I bought most of the things I wear used, my things have really been used by the time they hit the trash.

Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the authors of the Dining On A Dime Cookbook. Dining On A Dime will help you save money on groceries and get out of debt by cooking quick and simple homemade meals. For free tips & recipes visit http://www.LivingOnADime.com

Save Money On Paper Towels - How To Cut Up Rags
by Jill Cooper
http://www.LivingOnADime.com

One great way to save money on paper towels is to use rags more frequently. In this article, I'll briefly describe how to cut rags to get the most efficient use out of them.

When cutting a rag, you want to consider what you are going to use it for. For example, if I am going to use a rag as a dust rag I will cut it big enough so I can fold it in fourths and still have a 5-6 inch square (about). This way I can keep refolding as I dust which give me 8 sides to clean with instead of just 2. This is a good professional cleaner's tip on using any of your cleaning rags. Fold in fourths and keep refolding as you clean.

Cutting rags is great "watching TV" work and you can get the kids to do it too.