Saving Money on Laundry

I have been washing the laundry in cold water for years. I even make my own laundry soap and fabric softener. (Check my side bar for those recipes.) With EVERYTHING going up in cost, my latest question has been, “What else can I do save money on laundry?”

Since I have an office job, my clothes don’t get dirty. I have started wearing my pants twice before washing. Same with my shirts. But then comes another dilemma — How do I remember when they have been worn twice? The solution is simple! I turn the hangers so they face the opposite direction in my closet. So when I see one of those hangers, I know after wearing that item again, it is time to wash it.

I plan my wardrobe for the week because it makes getting ready for work much simpler, and less stressful. I even get out all of the jewelry and other accessories I may need to complete my outfit. This way, I’m not stressing out, or wasting precious time, early in the morning when I am trying to get out the door.

Here’s an idea of how I am working my new wardrobe plan:

Monday and Wednesday: Wear my blue pants

Tuesday and Thursday: Wear my wine pants

Friday and Saturday (day off): Wear my black pants with a t-shirt that has the company logo on it.

Sunday: Wear black pants (then change to my warm, cozy pjs when I get home from church)

Monday: Wear same outfit I wore to church on Sunday.

Tuesday and Thursday: Wear brown pants.

Wednesday and Friday: Wear black pants

Since I am wearing the pants twice in the same week, I hang them on the bathroom door until after that 2nd wearing. Only my shirt goes back into the closet until I wear it again.

Saving on Heating Bills

We got a new furnace and air conditioner put in last year. Even though it should save us on heating and a/c bills, with the price of everything increasing this year, I am trying to come up with ways to save even more money.

During this time of year where we think, “Do I turn on the heat or not?” I am opting more for NOT! One way I am helping us to avoid turning on the heat is to do more baking. I tend to use the crock pot several times a week, but since I am off on weekends now, I changed my menu plan slightly. I decided to make something for lunch that required using the oven for about 20 minutes. I left the oven door open once it was done, so the heat could warm up the house. Later, for supper, I made cheese potatoes and spam, so the oven was going for another hour. It warmed up to 68 degrees by the time I took the food out of the oven.

Now that it is evening time, we will both put on warmer pjs and get under blankets until bedtime. Hopefully, the house will still be around 65 in the morning, alleviating the need to turn on the furnace.

One morning when it was under 65 in the house, I turned on the heater and ran two cycles to get the temps up to 65, then turned it off. I knew the sun would be up soon, and it could do the rest of the “heating” for us.

We normally keep the thermostat on 69 or 70 during the winter months, but this year, I am going to try my best to keep it at 65. By doing so, I am hoping it will motivate both of us to get up and move to get warm. We are both in our upper 50s, so we get stiff if we sit too long anyway. Movement will do us good.

We are also planning to buy a Bellicon to help us get in better shape. Though they are quite pricy, if it helps keep us warm, gets us moving, gets us in better shape and helps us lose weight, then it is money well spent!

Help With Leftovers

I use a monthly menu plan, but I am not super strict about sticking to it. I am super strict about trying not to waste money by wasting food!

I have all of my meals written on a monthly calendar. If I don’t use a meal, I circle it so that for the next month, I know I have that complete meal already bought and paid for. However, if I decide to make Monday’s meal on Thursday, I circle Thursday’s meal, then write down what I actually made. Next, I put a check mark beside the name of what meal we had.

For every night that I actually make the meal that is written on the calendar, I put a check mark beside that meal.

Why? This way, I know exactly when it was made. This way, when going through leftovers, I know what foods need to be eaten first. My goal is so that come trash day, I am not throwing money in the trash by wasting food.

Saving money by not wasting food? That works for me!!

Homemade Laundry Soap and Fabric Softener

I have been making homemade laundry soap and fabric softener for years.  It saves SO MUCH MONEY!!!  However, it takes up a lot of space in my laundry room, as you can see below.

 

It required bottles on the floor, smaller bottles in the cabinet for when we are doing laundry, plus the leftover bars of soap.

I found a new recipe for laundry soap that doesn’t require adding all of the water up front, so instead of storing 2 gallons of it, I only need ONE jar!  And to make it even better, this new recipe doesn’t require grating a bar of soap!  So I went from the above clutter to this:

The above is the new laundry soap (left) and fabric softener (right).

LAUNDRY SOAP:

1-1/2 c. baking soda

1-1/2 c. washing soda

1/2 c. Epsom salt

1/4 c. sea salt

20-25 drops essential oil

To use:  Add 1 heaping T. to washer.

For my new version of fabric softener, I bought these:

They are the texture of sponges, but they are much thinner than an actual sponge.  I had to cut them down in size to make them fit into the jar:

Here is the recipe:

FABRIC SOFTENER:

Old t-shirts, cut into pieces OR other lint-free rags

Place in jar.  Disclaimer:  BE SURE TO USE A GLASS JAR WITH A GLASS LID!  My first jar was a glass jar with a metal-like lid.  The vinegar caused the lid to rust through.

Add white vinegar to saturate them.  (Approximately 3/4 c.)

Add 7-10 drops essential oil.

To use:  Squeeze excess liquid back into the jar.  Toss rag into dryer.  Once dryer is done, put rag back into the jar and tilt jar to wet the rag again.

I used both of these newer versions today on a load of clothing as well as a load of towels.  Everything was very clean and smelled wonderful!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Saving $ While Going Lactose Free

     I recently discovered that I am lactose intolerant.  I also have some issues with wheat.  In researching different options, I was disheartened when I saw how expensive it is to buy the items I need for changing my diet.  

     However, I did find one thing that is actually going to make it CHEAPER for me!  I like that idea!

     I am hypoglycemic, so I would normally drink the Carbmaster protein smoothies, which have 12g of protein.  To save money, I would pour 2 of the drinks in a larger bottle.  Next, I would add water in both Carbmaster bottles, filling them halfway.  I would shake them well to loosen what remained in the bottle, then pour all of that in my larger bottle. 

     I bought a jug of Silk chocolate, almond and cashew milk, which has 10g of protein.  The jug was only $2.99, which isn’t too pricy.  I poured some of it in a bottle with a lid, adding some water, to stretch it even further.

     When I compared the prices of the Carbmaster smoothies and the jug of Silk chocolate, it is actually more cost effective to drink the Silk for my mid-morning snacks. 

Carbmaster per oz = .119

Silk chocolate per oz = .046

      What a blessing to find something that is actually cheaper than what I had been using!

Starbuck’s Strawberry Acai

My daughter really likes the Strawberry Acai drink from Starbucks.  However, she is a lot like me — FRUGAL!  And that is a good thing!

After my morning coffee, I usually drink water the rest of the day.  I gave up soft drinks several years ago.  Sometimes, I want something with a bit more flavor than water offers, so I bought some drink enhancer from Kroger:

This stuff is delicious!  One day when my daughter tried it, she was so excited because it tastes a lot like the $5 Strawberry Acai from Starbuck’s!  However, it only costs $2 for the whole bottle, which makes 24 drinks!  That’s a HUGE savings!!!  Plus, you don’t have to be in line for a long time, waiting on your drink!  It saves time and money!

When the flu and colds hit you

Whenever we are sick with a cold or the flu, one thing we do to save money is use a roll of toilet paper instead of Kleenexes.  Think about it — when you blow your nose, you may only use 1/2 of the sheet, but you don’t want to save it for later — that’s GROSS!!  So by grabbing a roll of toilet paper, we tear off only what we will need.  If we need more, we tear off more.  This adds up to $$ in my pocket, and that always works for me!!