Extreme Frugality

[Cindy in NY]

Do you do anything frugal that folks outside of this forum would consider extreme? I do a few things that cause the relatives to shake their heads!

To use as little fuel oil as possible, I keep the thermostat at about 59 degrees during the day. To stay warm, I always wear a fleece jacket (Salvation Army for $5!) and those thin stretchy gloves. I'm typing with them on now.

I don't use a lot of paper towels but I do use them when I cook baking potatoes in the microwave. They are damp after use so I hang them over the back of a kitchen chair to dry out. Then I can reuse them.

I have a tiny bathroom to myself so I practice "if it's yellow, let it mellow". We save a bunch of water by doing this.

DH likes Steakum type sandwiches. I put a couple pieces of the meat on the griddle and as it cooks you can separate what starts out looking like one piece of meat into two sheets. I get double the amount of meat from one package and DH has never noticed!

What do you do that others may consider "extreme"??

[gran26]

My children chuckle about this one --- I save the waxed paper liners from dry cereal boxes; open it up at the seams and you have a large piece of waxed paper. I havent purchased a box of waxed paper in years.

I also save some bread bags. They always come in handy also.

[diane]

One person's extreme can be another person's way of life. For most people heating house, water and cooking on a wood cookstove is extreme. Never using a dishwasher or dryer would be extreme. For me it is the way I live.

[pookshollow]

59 degrees! Wow. We'd be sweating if it got that warm. The fire is being difficult this morning, so it's about 49 right now.

If I use plastic sandwich bags, I wash and reuse them - been doing that for years.

We do the "mellow yellow" thing too - our well is not the greatest.

[canterin']

I don't think I do anything that would be considered extreme, but if something can be reused, I'll do it if practical. For instance, I'll use the same paper lunch bag over and over. I'll also use the same paper cup for drinking water numerous times before chucking it. If I buy something in a durable plastic container, I'll use the container for something else when I finish.

[watcher]

About the most extreme I have heard about was the woman who did something every day (or every other day), I forget what, but it only required the use of one end of a q-tip. Yep, she wouldn't throw a q-tip away until she had use both ends.

I'm frugal (the wife says I'm cheap) but not that bad.

[cindy-e]

Hey, up until recently, buying in bulk, or shopping with coupons was considered extreme by mainstream America! If you practiced preparedness, people would think you had lost your ever loving mind, and lump you in with either mentally ill hoarder types or militia people. Now, even that is becomming more mainstream. I guess we are all trend setters.

Cindyc.

[Cindy in NY]

pookshollow - 49 would be a bit too cool for me!! I about die when I have to go to someone's house and they have the temp at 68 or above!

[Cindy in NY]

Originally Posted by cindy-e

Hey, up until recently, buying in bulk, or shopping with coupons was considered extreme by mainstream America! If you practiced preparedness, people would think you had lost your ever loving mind, and lump you in with either mentally ill hoarder types or militia people. Now, even that is becomming more mainstream. I guess we are all trend setters.

Cindyc.

My parents find great amusement in my very large pantry or "grocery store" as they call it. I find great comfort in it!

[pookshollow]

Originally Posted by Cindy in NY

pookshollow - 49 would be a bit too cool for me!! I about die when I have to go to someone's house and they have the temp at 68 or above!

I'm in and out of one barn or another all day - mine and at work - so I'm wearing fleece longjohns under my jeans and sweaters. At night, we put the electric blanket on for a few minutes until we're warmed up, then I'm good for the night.

[unregistered29228]

My friends and family think I'm a little odd too for having my full pantry of food. My mother asked why in the world I'd buy 100 cans of tuna. It was on sale, and we eat 3-4 cans in one meal, and it lasts forever in the can so why not?

I also wash out ziplock bags and use them again and again. I mix my own cleaning spray from a Costco sized bottle of Mr. Clean and water in a plant mister bottle. I have a bunch of white cleaning cloths that I bleach and wash and use in the kitchen for draining fruit and washed eggs, cleaning up spilled milk on the floor, whatever. My inlaws go through a roll of paper towels and a pack of napkins in a week, and they last me 4 months or more.

I cut all the hair in our family here at home, which gets a few odd looks and comments too. I keep the thermostat down to 55 during the day but have to turn it up to 65 when the kids or home or they whine and complain.

Oh well, I'm happy the way we live and we save a lot of money. I don't consider it extreme frugality, just sensible.

[Kmac15]

we keep the temp at 58 during the day, in the winter of course.
I make our own laundry soap for about 1/5 the cost of store bought
and have a good pantry

my family thinks we are nuts and my neighbor wears a sweater when she comes over.

[firegirl969]

My family thinks I am nuts for the "grocery store" that I have. They really thought I had gone off my rocker when DH deoderant which is normally $3.29 went on sale for 99 cents and I bought 18! The family joke is that he should never stink!!. Last week it went back on sale for 99 cents at the Rite Aid and I bought the 3 they had on the shelf, I just didn't tell anyone, I slipped it into the tote for health items. They thought I was nuts when I came home from work one day with two cases of toilet paper in the back of the truck. I wash out ziplock baggies and reuse them. I am making our clothes detergent which they think is weird. They shook their heads when I saved and arranged for a pig and a steer. I hang all of our laundry on the line. The 8 fruit trees I came home with drew strange looks. (FYI- these looks come from our teenagers and extended family, DH is fully on board with our prepping)


Side note to Mom of Four-great idea on the white cleaning towels, bleaching them, and using them in place of paper towels. I buy four rolls of paper towels a month for the kids and that is it, if they use them up quickly, they are out until next month. I use kitchen towels to clean up messes, but I like the white towel idea. Thanks, firegirl

[sewsilly]

Get a good old (preferably) white muslin sheet. Cut the entirety of the sheet into paper towel sized 'towels'. Hem them (yeah... either a 'sew a few minutes here and there job" or a 'learn to sew a straight hem' job for the kids) and use them for 'not paper towels. Off the line, they're folded into a tin box that used to hold cookies. You'll have enough for a family to use/ plenty to wash at once (with other towels or with sheets) and you'll save from the 'paper' supplies column. I still keep a roll, for draining when I fry (not often) or super messy/contaminated jobs... but not the 2 rolls a week we used to buy.

Our pantry also amuses/frightens those who live in town and can shop every day.

Our creative use of freebies (free 5 gallon plastic buckets from the grocery deli comprised my daughter's 'garden' last year - 5 full sized tomatoes with cages, 7 types of peppers, herbs- on her city apartment patio were the jealous desire of all of her neighbors).

dawn

[ginnie5]

when dh was laid off we had to tighten down even more. I no longer buy ziploc bags. I save bread bags or use tinfoil. Its cheaper than ziplocs. we heat with wood we've gotten off freecycle or craigslist. I made rice bags for everyone's bed so they don't get as cold.

[Loriann1971]

My Aunt inherited millions, yet she was frugal to the point of extreme. She seperated the layers of toilet paper on a roll to get twice as much use from them.

She did teach me a pretty cool trick...I don't do this on a regular basis, but have done it in a pinch. Whenever one leg on her pantyhose got a run in them, she would save it until she had another pair with a run. Then she would cut off the legs that had the runs and put on both pair of pantyhose, getting a whole new pair and a little extra tummy support to boot. LOL

[Rick]

Originally Posted by diane

One person's extreme can be another person's way of life. For most people heating house, water and cooking on a wood cookstove is extreme. Never using a dishwasher or dryer would be extreme. For me it is the way I live.

Thanks for starting this thread Cindy in NY !! It gives me a chance to say:

HI DIANE

You are living our life except you have electricity !! I'll bet you average bill is under $45, though. Probably $30.

We have cooked many things on our box stove, and many more such as corn bread, pizza, meat loaf, eggs, brats- inside. We cook inside when the coals are perfect enough to heat with a small frying pan as a lid to hold top coals. When the food is done, we renew the fire.

Stay well.

[Jan Doling]

Well, if you must know, I wear underwear that most would toss. Just hope I never am taken to a hospital unconscious, because the staff would see my Mother Theresa undies (Holey, Holey, Holey). I figure I'm the only one to see them anyhow and I don't care (unless the hole is near the crotch, then they transform from Mother Theresa undies to Fredericks of Hollywood)

[newfieannie]

I do pretty much what all of you do. i guess the one extreme might be that i wear wool socks around the house and i darn them until i can't do it anymore. then i cut off the feet and knit more on because the legs are still perfectly good.i've got a pair of sheeps wool socks on now that are 30 years old. as least the legs are.~Georgia.

[unregistered29228]

Originally Posted by firegirl969

Side note to Mom of Four-great idea on the white cleaning towels, bleaching them, and using them in place of paper towels. I buy four rolls of paper towels a month for the kids and that is it, if they use them up quickly, they are out until next month. I use kitchen towels to clean up messes, but I like the white towel idea.

I got a huge pack of them at Costco years ago for about $15, but there must have been 75 in the pack and they wash and dry (and bleach) like a dream. Half the pack is still new in the bag, waiting. I put one down by the door when it's rainy outside so we can set the umbrella point on it to drain, or for kids to wipe their feet. I use them to wrap around an ice pack so it's not too cold on the skin, and have one that's only for Pledge-ing the wood furniture. They do a great (fuzz free) job on windows too.

Probably sewsilly's idea with the cut up sheet would be cheaper as napkins and papertowels, but I do like the terrycloth of my towels.