Frugal Living Tips

Green Living on a Yacht 
We have been cruising/sailing for 10 years, living on our yacht whilst circumnavigating.

We make our own fresh water from the sea with a desalinator,...

Home Made Furniture Polish 
I know a lot of people already do this but this is still one of my favorite green cleaner! It saves the environment by not buying aerosol cans and most ...

Energy saving tips 
Try and eliminate your 'ghost power' - this is the power used by appliances that are left on at the wall but turned off at the appliance (think of stereo'...

Husband Does Grocery Shopping 
I challenged my man to take the last of our money and buy food for the week. This was a tough call. I would have been hard pressed to fulfil the task ...

GUINEA PIGS AND RABBITS 
Guinea pigs and rabbits make fantastic droppings that can be added to the compost heap. They are great, inexpensive pets for children and can be bred for ...

Bring Outdoor Lighting Inside! 
We have four children that are avid readers. They will often stay up for hours reading a good book. I decided that the outdoor solar lights were perfect ...

Homemade Chicken Stock 
After roast chicken, instead of throwing away the carcass, make your own chicken stock. You can add home grown veg and herbs for a complete organic stock....

Vinegar 
Use Vinegar for your rinse in your washer. Simply fill your softener cup with vinegar instead. Clothes will smell mildly vinegary when they are still ...

Frugal "green" fire lighters. 
We dry our twice used tea bags on the window sill. Stored in a jar with just a little parafin, these work as eco fire lighters, rather than blitz and they ...

Sharing and Saving Seeds! 
Instead of buying vegetable or flower seeds save them from your own plants and trade them with your neighbors or friends or even online!

Trade starts ...

Frugal Green "Shampoo" and "Conditioner" 
In December 2009, we stopped using store-bought shampoo and conditioner and switched to a healthier, cheaper and enviro-friendly alternative:

Shampoo ...

Composting 
Instead of throwing away your kitchen scraps e.g. Vegetable peels, egg shells, tea bags, coffee grounds etc, compost them and use the compost in your garden....

Silver / brass cleaner 
The ashes from a wood burning stove / fire are brilliant at removing tarnish - just apply a little bit of cold wood ash from your fireplace with a damp ...

Really Cheap Bathtime Fun! 
My children would always argue at bathtime. Lots of stores sell very pricy fizz balls etc that colour your childrens bathwater. My kids love them, and ...

Milk Bottles 
Milk is great for plants, my mom taught me to rinse empty milk bottles with water and pour it onto my plants before washing them.

Empty milk bottles ...

Saving water 
These are just a few tips that make a little difference.

1. Use your bathwater to water the garden - think carefully about what soap you use. Can you ...

Orange help  Not rated yet
Save money by not buying sponges to clean pots - also reduce waste by reusing your orange bags.

Tie old orange bags in a ball as a scrubber for scouring ...

Why buy new when secondhand will do?  Not rated yet
I have discovered the joy of buying quality items at half the price....secondhand! And I feel good about my "green" footprint as I am recycling by doing ...

Pine Cones as Firelighters  Not rated yet
Pine cones make brilliant firelighters - once they are dry they catch easily and burn hot and steady for long enough to get the fire going. Even better ...

Save Power - boil the kettle less.  Not rated yet
In our house we used to boil the kettle almost constantly, we are a large family, so there was a constant tea and coffee on the go. I bought a really ...

Save Money And Help The Environment With Vegetarian Cooking  Not rated yet
Ask anybody in the know and they'll tell you that eating meat has two real downsides. The first of these is that meat is expensive to buy when compared ...

Left Over Mashed Potato  Not rated yet
I freeze the left over mashed potato from a meal, then when I am making stew or soup I just add the frozen mashed potato, this helps to thicken the dish....

Worm Farming  Not rated yet
Worm Farming is fun, frugal, educational and very GREEN. Before starting, know that you can source earth worms. The ones I have are known as red wrigglers....

Share what you can  Not rated yet
Sharing plant cuttings and seeds, and plant indigenous where possible can keep costs down particularly if you are an avid gardener.

Versatile washing soda: the best de-greaser  Not rated yet
Plain, old-fashioned Washing Soda crystals dissolved in hot water are the perfect replacement for detergent when washing dishes. Just wash and rinse, and ...

Tea-bag firelighters  Not rated yet
Don't just toss away your used teabags. Leave them to dry thoroughly, then pop into a sealable jar and drizzle with paraffin (lamp-oil).

They make ...

Homemade Christmas Cards  Not rated yet
I really like making my own cards and gift tags at Christmas time. They're much more personal than ones you buy in the store, and as a bonus they're also ...

Organic Pest Control  Not rated yet
Place a slice of cucumber in an aluminium baking tray in the garden where you have a bug infestation. The cucumber reacts with the aluminium to create ...

Give the kettle a break  Not rated yet
Are you in an office/ home where the kettle is constantly being boiled for individual cups of tea & coffee?

Save energy and time by keeping a flask ...

Frame weaving  Not rated yet
Construct a frame loom out of an old picture from or 4 pieces of wood screwed together. Children can weave their own place-mats or artistic wall hangings ...

Save Electicity  Not rated yet
Here is another quick frugal tip to save money on electricity - don't turn on the oven for just one thing. If you plan to heat it up for dinner, make a ...

Frugal Milk Replacement  Not rated yet
With winter being upon us we are making more cheese sauces and custards for puddings. Using milk powder (reconstituted) in these recipes and all baking ...

Keep it simple  Not rated yet
No matter what I do and where I am - I always keep the KISS principle in mind (keep it simple stupid;-)) Too much of anything is...too much! Not only ...