Living the Frugal Life (Semi-lighthearted) ?

Thanks AussieGran59.
The thing about online is that like text messages, no one can quite "hear" the intended tone!

I shower never bathe. I don't need to shower as often as I would if I did not have a bidet which of course takes only a washbasin amount of water.

ShazzaKanazza

This is a great thread I always thought there should be a tips and life hack thread on the forum.
I love the soap one I remember piling bits of soap onto a new soap it brought back memories.

Pears soap was actually made with an indentation so that you could stick the old bar on the side. I don't use it any more so not sure if this still the case.

cc

ShazzaKanazza

This is a great thread I always thought there should be a tips and life hack thread on the forum.
I love the soap one I remember piling bits of soap onto a new soap it brought back memories.

Pears soap was actually made with an indentation so that you could stick the old bar on the side. I don't use it any more so not sure if this still the case.

Yes, I bought some recently and the old bit stuck well on to the new bar.
I did notice that it was Made in India now though! That most British of soaps ?

The simplest thing to do with rice is cool it and freeze it. Even if you want to eat it the following day. That or fold some salad dressing through it, when it should be safe for 24 houra. But freezing is the easiest. I rarely have leftovers in my fridge. All go straight to freezer.

When I have boiling water from boiling eggs or veg I go outside with it and pour it on any weeds growing in the cracks of the patio.

These hot dry days are perfect for collecting seed from flowers, poppies, snapdragon, marigolds etc., which I shall store in labelled envelopes ready for next spring.

Have also done that for many years!!!

I am the last to have a shower which is a mixer shower. I put the plug in the bath and then use the water to clean the bathroom and water the plants.

I use my library membership to read virtually ANY newspaper worldwide, in all languages, plus magazines (again in different languages). It’s fantastic for the UK monthly magazines, e.g, The Lady, Country Life, Good Housekeeping, you name it, you can read it on-line.

Absolutely correct, my husband was a chef and always said rice should be cooled down quickly if not used right away, and put in the fridge. He said if you looked under a microscope a grain of rice is “crawling” in bacteria….

I use a roll on deodorant and turn it upside down towards the end and get at least another week out of it. I am also saving my sink water at the moment and get at least a bucket a day.

Before disposing of a tube of cream eg antiseptic cream, cut it in two. It's surprising the amount of cream that doesn't get squeezed out.

LaGoulue

I use my library membership to read virtually ANY newspaper worldwide, in all languages, plus magazines (again in different languages). It’s fantastic for the UK monthly magazines, e.g, The Lady, Country Life, Good Housekeeping, you name it, you can read it on-line.

Where are you lagoulue? My library denies access to all but U.K. newspapers.
SO lucky!

I live alone so I do the following:
When washing pots, i run the cold water into a bucket until the hot water comes through. The cold is then used for flushing the loo or watering plants.
If I need to cook in the oven, I wait until I have about three or four items to cook so the oven only goes on once a week.
Obviously, as it's still summer and there's no heating needed, so the heating stays off but I have several fleeces for when the colder weather comes.

I fish husbands 'empty' roll-on deodorant out of the bin and use it for another two to three weeks!

'I also put the washing machine on to do an extra spin (12 minutes) so that clothes are quicker to dry, outdoors if it’s fine and in the conservatory if it’s wet.'

Surely this is wasting money? Line drying is free, extra spins cost. Also, that extra spin puts more creases in the clothes.

Shinamae

Kate1949

I use a Maybelline foundation in a glass bottle with a pump action dispenser. When it is no longer pumping any out, I prise the top off with a knife and get many more applications!

I do this with my double wear foundation, I use the pump tube to go around the inside and I have had at least 10 more applications..

My base make-up is in a tube. When near the end, I cut off the end (about 20cms) to get inside and obtain another two weeks use, Use the bit you cut off as a push-on cap; it will keep perfectly and you will be surprised by how much is in there.

Hear the Romans used a sponge on a stick instead of toilet paper? When in Rome ...

Nicolenet

Hear the Romans used a sponge on a stick instead of toilet paper? When in Rome ...

Sponges cost money - will rhubarb leaves do instead? The 'stick' is already attached too.

Now for something I wouldn’t recommend……

Many years ago when I used to buy womens’ magazines, I read a ‘useful tip’ to melt down ‘stubs’ of lipstick to create a pot to use as lipstick or blusher. At the time this seemed a good idea, so I set to with microwave and bowl. When it looked as if the lipsticks had reached a suitable consistency, I took the bowl out of the microwave, knocked against the door, and the whole lot tipped over my arm…. It started to bubble on my arm, so I slathered cold cream all over it, wrapped it in a towel and set off for A & E.

Forward now to cubicle with nurse and Dr in attendance, and Dr with amazed expression saying “You were doing WHAT?”, he was also amazed when the nurse confirmed that she knew several people who had done this, hopefully a little more successfully. The Dr did a lot of tutting and affirmed that he would never understand women. It had blistered in severalplaces, but the concoction of lipstick and cold cream was spread over my arm, and attempts to clean it off uncomfortable to say the least!

For the next few days the colour seeped through the bandage, and I got horrified looks all round.

Don’t do it, unless you have very steady hands!

I use a dripper cone and filter paper to make my coffee, so now I rinse the coffee grounds out into waste water (adds organic matter to the plants I'm watering) and reuse the filter paper three or four times,after which it's too clogged to be any use.

Reuse tea bags. Or make a pot of tea rather than dunking for one cup.

We had a new 18 kW condensing gas boiler installed last week for £2,300. It will save us about £280 a year on gas. A well-recommended installer wanted £23,000 to install an air sourced 16kW heat pump (including an extra tank, internal unit, etc.,) and talked about upsizing our radiators at extra cost. It was obvious our electricity bill would go up to run the pump 24/7. I'm all for being green but not for financial suicide.

Sago

When we open champagne I have a glass ready to catch the first drops of fizz that explode out of the bottle.
We will lower the temperature on the pool now we are set for a heatwave.
Oysters not in season until next month so that’s a big saving.
From next Friday we can shoot our grouse on the moor so the “Glorious Twelth” will bring some savings too.
It’s all a blessing really Cowes,Henley and Glyndebourne cost us a fortune this year and the Bentley is not a hybrid.

Sago, I have the same trouble with the Rolls - times are hard?