10 Things I Do to Save Money

First of all I would like to start this post by saying this is not a frugal living blog.  There are hundreds of good frugal living blogs out there.  I will name a few of my favorites throughout this post.  So here we go -  10 things I do in order to save money:

1.  I cut my dryer sheets in half - Half a dryer sheet works just as good as a whole one so a box of 40 will become a box of 80.

2. I don't buy shampoo - Ok before you say yuck she doesn't wash her hair my hair IS very clean.  I typically use apple cider vinegar, baking soda, or conditioner (called co-washing) to wash my hair.  Here is a link that talks about using vinegar for your hair.  Trust me you will notice your hair has less tangles and will actually have more shine.
How to Clean Your Hair Without Shampoo - from Simple Mom

I have only blown dried and straightened my daughter's hair probably less than 5 times her whole life but here you can see her hair is long and healthy.  I use no chemicals, wash mostly with apple cider vinegar, and moisturize with olive oil, coconut oil, castor oil, and vegetable glycerin.

3. I don't buy expensive cleaners.  Typically you can clean just as good with a mixture of white vinegar, baking soda, and ammonia.  True you may not have all the good fragrances  but you will get things clean.  There are lots of sites that teach you how to make your own cleaners.
Non-Toxic Home Cleaning by eartheasy

4. I use coupons and buy store brands.  Very rarely will I pay full price unless I absolutely have to.  There are countless blogs that talk about couponing.  Also, there are different methods used to organize your coupons.  Typically I use the method described by Couponmom.com.  She has a great tutorial video on her website.  However, I absolutely love Moneysavingmom.com.  Her website is wonderful for learning how to just live wisely.  She has everything up there from tips on blogging, coupon deals, to how to live debt free.  Also, I enjoy Southernsavers.com.

5. I get hand me downs, shop at Goodwill, and love yard sales.  Hey it may not be new but it's new to me :-)
I typically won't buy any home decor full price.  Most decorations I get come from yard sales or goodwill.  Also, this is a great way to buy things for kids.  Let's face it kids grow out of things quick.  You can save a lot of money by buying used items.

Rug I purchased for my Den for $15.00 at a Yard Sale.  It was in good condition

6. I go to consignment shops or frequent consignment sales.  You can get a lot of name brands such as Ann Taylor, Talbots, etc... at consignments sales.  Also, there are many children's consignment shops that you can purchase equipment, toys, and all types of baby gear.  I got one of my son's pack and plays for just $15.00 at a consignment sale!  When you are done you can also sell it back to them :-)

7. I buy whole chicken fryers.  A whole chicken is wonderful.  Why pay extra just to have someone cut up a chicken for you?  If you don't know how to do it go on YouTube and learn how.  You can make more than one meal from a whole chicken.  You can boil it with vegetables to make a delicious broth that you can in turn use in other recipes.  Typically you will find (at least in my area) these less than $1.00/lb.

8. I buy on Ebay, Amazon, and other retailers.  If you are buying electronics, or cell phone accessories, refrigerator filters, and many household items at the store well stop!  You can often find these things significantly cheaper online.

9. Quit cable and ditch your land line phone.  Really can you actually watch 500 channels?  Do you get adequate cell phone service in your home?  We no longer pay for cable which is a huge cost saver. Ok I must confess we do have Netflix but this is still a lot cheaper than cable.  Also, we have not had your typical phone service for probably over 10 years.  We started out using Vonage.  Then we switched over to Magic Jack, and now we just basically use our cell phones.  I figure why pay for two phone services when you only need one.

10. I make most of my food homemade and we limit eating out.  This is also healthier.  I will admit initially this can be overwhelming but after you master a recipe you can basically do it with your eyes closed.  Some of my pet peeves are people that buy pancake mix (you are paying for overpriced flour), buying granola (do you realize how easy it is to make your own and how cheap a huge container of oats are?), and buying a boat load of frozen dinners (you can make your own - I will have a later post about freezer cooking).  These are just a few but you can save a lot of money by just doing stuff on your own in the kitchen.

I hope you have enjoyed this post.  I will probably do a part 2 to this at a later date.  Please feel free to add to the list and tell me what you do to save money.  There are countless ideas out there.