I love saving money. It’s like my forte, but living a more healthy lifestyle than the one I was taught growing up, is also something very important to me. Pair that with a new love for creating things with my kids, they just LOVE to do DIY and it’s a great way we can bond, and voila, this post is born with lots of frugal living tips. Things that you can easily make: cheaper, healthier, and funner than buying in the stores.
In society as a whole, we have gotten so used to buying products in stores that we may not even realize that many of the products we buy can be made for a lot less than we are paying for them. This often happens because we think that products we can make ourselves will take too much time, skill, or they will not be as effective. The truth is, DIY stuff is just as effective, if not more than store-bought products, and the time spent is really not that long. As for skill, the first time you make something, it’s awesome, and the more you make it, you just keep getting better and better.
8 things you buy that you can easily make for less…
Beauty Stuff
You are often paying for a promise or particular brand when you buy beauty supplies, but the truth is, simple things like coconut oil can moisturize and an essential oil can grow out your hair and bring a summery shine to it. There are some things worth paying for, like Younique. Man, I just LOVE that company! But for everything else, there is easy DIY homemade beauty products! There are so many copy cat recipes out there for things like Burt’s Bees lip balm, lotion bars, deodorant, perfumes, bubble bath, and so much more. In fact, there is a HUGE trend just starting right now that a lot more people are being more health conscience of what’s in their products and so they are making them themselves.
Cleaning Supplies
This one is something that takes hardly any time to make and often, you will find that the homemade natural cleaning products you can make are not only more effective, but drastically cheaper and take less than 10 minutes to put together. The supplies are natural in most cases and safe to use around pets and children. For example, I use Dr. Bronner’s castile soap to make my own foaming hand soap. I use Lemon essential oils to make a cleaning spray. You can make your own candles, dishwasher tabs, anything you want!
Bread and Other Baked Goods
Most baking supplies are low cost, especially if bought in bulk. You can make a cheap homemade bread recipe for mere pennies and although it can be time consuming; just investing in a bread machine can cut some of the time you invest in it. If you worry about your skill level when it comes to making bread, a bread machine will help take some of the worry out as well.
Convenience Mixes
Rice mix (like the Rice-a-roni variety), cake mixes, brownie mixes, recipe starters are really overpriced. In the instance of the rice mixes, you are getting less than a dime’s worth of rice and seasoning and paying 10 times that. You can make seasoned rice by just mixing some seasonings (bought in bulk, of course!), and water with some sautéed rice and you may even find that they taste even better without all the preservatives.
Children’s DIY Art Supplies
You can make things like watercolors, play dough, bubbles and even puffy paint for way less than you will pay for them at the store. Often, the supplies use things you have at home already like food coloring, cornstarch, or flour. They also take just minutes to put together and generally wash off easier from surfaces as well. Additionally, the supplies are non-toxic so they are perfect for younger kids and living a less toxic life.
Specialty Coffee Drinks
This is probably a no-brainer for many people, but the drinks you get at the drive through are way overpriced. You could be paying as much as 5 times more for them at the coffee shop than if you were to take 5 extra minutes in the morning and make them yourself. If the coffee shop’s brand of coffee is what you really love, try buying the coffee beans directly from the shop. Many times, coffee shops sell their brand in 1-lb bags to customers.
Fruits and Veggies
I generally only buy organic fruits and veggies and they can get expensive. I remember one time putting back a couple organic onions because they cost $14 for only two yellow onions! You can grow your own produce so easily. I grow mine indoors because we have a lot of hungry squirrels outside, but if you have a garden spot, even better!
Make DIY Gifts at Home
Things like soaps, perfumes, pillows, baskets, the possibilities are endless! Decorate a jar with a pretty label and some ribbon left over from the gifts you received through-out the year and your not only recycling, but saving money, and I’m sorry, but I’d rather receive a homemade gift than a store bought one any day. Maybe I’m different, but the thought is there so much more than something bought in the store, and don’t even get me started on gift cards. 🙂 They are just so impersonal. It’s like a criminal offense in our home. Come on…get to know the person your giving a gift to enough to know what they like and don’t like or don’t bother giving a gift and if it’s coming from a family member, WOW, that just goes to show you the relationship right there. Okay, I’m done on my soapbox. 🙂
