Thrifty Thursday - Faith and Family Reviews

Tag Archive for Thrifty Thursday

Cut Back on Food Waste

Posted by html404 on May 26, 2011
in Food and Treats, Organization, Saving Money, Thrifty Thursday

I got an email this week giving some great ideas on how to cut back on food waste from FreshtheMovie.com. It is sad some weeks what can get thrown out just due to lack of planning and preparing. One of the comments on the post gave some great organizing tips on how she (her name was Virginia) went from spending $400 month on food to $80-$130!

A couple of suggestions were make the most of your leftovers, when you can’t eat it, freeze it and other practical reminders on how to cut back on throwing out all that wasted food on garbage day. 🙁

You can read the article in full here.

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Paper Products Sabbatical: Thirfty Thursday

Posted by html404 on April 14, 2011
in Thrifty Thursday

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Recently I went to the library to find a tip I had published in a magazine (shhhh….no I do not subscribe to it) and told the circulation desk about my search as I was checking out. She went on to share one of her tips and that was to cut out buying paper products! Yep, a paper products sabbatical. She said she’s been meaning to cut back just to see how much money she saves because every time she goes to Walmart she plunks down $80 on paper products.

I know we use a lot of paper plates. A friend years ago suggested it just to make life easier with so many little ones. Now we use them to have fewer dishes to wash, although we notice our silverware going missing at a much faster rate by using paper plates, so there is that down fall to consider especially with young children.

Any one want to take the paper products challenge just to see how much we save?

Something New

Submit your own Thrifty Tips for publication here at Faith and Family Reviews. You will be credited with a byline and a link back to your site, if you have one. If not your name will still appear on the post.

Happy Thrifty Thursday!

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Liquid Soap Saver: Thrifty Thursday

Posted by html404 on April 7, 2011
in Saving Money, Thrifty Thursday

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Maybe some of you do this already, maybe some of you don’t, but I am going to share it anyways. If you use or buy liquid soap, one way to make it last longer is to add water to it once it is about an inch down. Keep doing this until it is gone and you make one container of liquid soap last at least 5x as long, if not longer depending upon the strength of the soap. This one has already had water added at least 3x and the soap is still as foamy as it was when it was new.

The second soap is a newer pump and has had water added only once. It is due for another dose.

All I do is add the water and shake up the soap dispenser and I usually do not have to shake it up again until I add more water. The idea behind the shaking is to get the soap along the inside walls of the dispenser.

Something New

Happy Thrifty Thursday!

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How to Organize Your Coupons

Posted by html404 on March 17, 2011
in Guest Post, Organization, Saving Money

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post. While we appreciate our guest writer’s submissions, this does not constitute endorsement or agreement to the opinions expressed in the articles featured.

by Diane Johnson

Taking the time to find and cut out coupons may be a time-consuming process, but it can save you hundreds of dollars each year. However, even when you take the time to cut out the coupons, if you don’t have an effective way to organize and store your coupons, you’ll be more likely to miss out on the savings, simply because you can’t find the coupon you need or the coupon’s expiration date has slipped by you unnoticed. Learn to organize your coupons effectively, so you can take advantage of the savings awaiting you!

1) The first step to evaluate your coupon-clipping habits is to make sure you’re only cutting the coupons that you will actually use. Coupon clutter is a common culprit of coupon disorder. Avoid the clutter by collecting coupons for products you actually buy and for the stores at which you actually shop.

2) After you’ve determined to quit the coupon clutter, the next step to organizing your coupons is to determine how to sort your coupons. There are several ways to sort and categorize coupons, so experiment and find the most effective way for you. One of best ways to sort coupons that many consider to be the most intuitive is to organize by corresponding aisles in the store. Another common way is to divide your coupons up into categories such as “Beauty”, “Produce”, “Cleaning Products”, etc. And, of course, another simple and effective way to sort coupons is to sort by expiration date. The system isn’t important as long as it works for you.

3) The next step in organizing your coupons is to determine how to store your coupons. There are several viable options, so choose the one that works best for you. One viable and easy option is to use a series of sandwich bags or envelopes—one bag or envelope per category. Another simple way to store your coupons is to use an accordion file. These come in many sizes, some as small as a wallet, so you can easily toss it in your bag when it’s time to go to the store. Still another option is to store coupons inside a binder with sleeves or page protectors where you can store all the coupons according to your sorting system. This method of storage allows you to easily see how many of each type of coupon you have.

Once you have determined how to best sort and store your coupons to fit your needs, having an organized system of coupon clipping will lead to tons of savings as you can easy sort, find, and use your coupons. Happy saving!

About the author: Diane Johnson primarily writes about online education and anything else that interests her. She enjoys traveling, shopping, and sports.

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Cheap Fun With Kids Over Spring Break – Thrifty Thursday

Posted by html404 on March 3, 2011
in Fun Stuff, Guest Post, Thrifty Thursday

Spring Break is a wonderful opportunity to spend time with your kids while having fun in a variety of ways. These outings can be expensive, but with some advanced planning, these extra family activities can cost next to nothing.

New and Different Food

Stop by new places, broadening your children’s experiences and respect for food from a variety of cultures. Try sukumi wiki or chapati at an African restaurant, then try out authentic wood-fired gourmet pizza at a place similar to this restaurant in West Linn, Oregon.

Eating in restaurants is a luxury for families with strict budgets. However, there are ways to expose your children to foods from cultures around the world without running out of funds. Use a coupon for the restaurant you’d like to try, or go on a night where kids can eat free with paying adults. Instead of eating at the restaurant itself, get a take-out order of something special and eat it at home with a variety of vegetables, fruit and bread.

Nature-Loving Field Trips

The outdoors offers many opportunities for exploration. Take your children on a simple hike at a local park, using a field guide to identify local flora and fauna. Once this has proven successful, take them on a more strenuous hike, packing a lunch and stopping for a picnic.

If the weather in your part of the world is warm enough, consider taking your children camping for a few days. Hiking can then become a traditional part of your camp-out experience, along with s’mores around the nightly campfire.

Your Inner Artist

Use spare cardboard, paper and other craft items to unleash your inner artist with your kids. Take advantage of the time of year and give these crafts a spring or Easter theme, decorating your home in honor of the season. Experiment with different mediums and techniques, such as oil pastels, watercolors, clay and wire to make truly original works of art.

Neighborhood Play Date

Spring Break is a great opportunity to connect with family, friends and neighbors. Schedule a play date or potluck dinner and invite those who are part of your larger community to share the time with you. Enjoy food and adult conversation while kids play indoors and outdoors. For your kids’ best friends, a play date can turn into a sleepover for some free Spring Break fun!

Rollin’ Along

If you’d like to have more fast-paced family fun, consider a local skating rink. Generally, if there’s a local community center in your area, they charge less to rollerskate or rollerblade, especially during Spring Break. This fun activity can provide your entire family with valuable exercise and wear your kids out at the same time!

Kelly Wilson is a busy mom and freelance writer. For delicious, authentic gourmet Sicilian-style pizza, visit BJ Willy’s, a restaurant in West Linn, Oregon.

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Promo Codes, Promo Codes, Promo Codes

Posted by Brande on March 3, 2011
in Coupons, Deals, Money & Finances, Saving Money, Shopping, Thrifty Thursday

Being a single income family we do whatever we can to save money. I do most of my shopping online and will never pay full price or pay shipping. After all my items are in my online cart I go to checkout, then open another tab on my computer and search for promo codes that pertain to the store. There are lots of websites that offer promo codes, some are good and some eh, are no so good. Most stores will offer promo codes, Kohl’s you can use two (2) promo codes at a time! By having two (2) browser windows open at the same time you can check which promo codes will best serve you. Yea, it takes a few more minutes to finish your order, but it’s worth it to save a few bucks. Better in your pocket than theirs, right?!

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Thrifty Thursday: Free Clinique Mascara!

Posted by Bobbie Gould on February 24, 2011
in Thrifty Thursday

Clinique is giving 100,000 FREE samples of High Impact Mascara to their Facebook fans! All you have to do is fan them on Facebook and Clinique will enter you to win a bottle of mascara! You can enter to win through 2/25!

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Nature – Ultimate Playground for Kids

Posted by html404 on February 24, 2011
in Education, Guest Post, Thrifty Thursday

This week’s Thrifty Thursday includes a free playground: Nature – The Ultimate Playground for Kids.

Every year parents spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars on toys and activities for their kids. While many of things are great for keeping young minds and bodies active, many of them are unnecessary. Sure kids need structured play, but they also need “free” plan and this is easy to do when the world’s largest playground is right outside your back door. Why not let them play outside? After all, what else are we suppose to do with all the snow we have in the Midwest? 😮

Every toy, book, and TV show that comes out has been designed and redesigned several times in order to make it educational and entertaining for children. The great thing about nature is that, while being entertaining and stimulating to the imagination, it is also educational. Nature can teach children the basics of science, economics, and creativity.

It is cheap. Depending on where you live, exploring nature is usually pretty inexpensive, if not free. It may mean going out in your backyard, local park, or perhaps going to the local nature center or state park (which usually have low cost fees or memberships). This way, you do not have to pay for expensive toys, jungle gyms, or memberships to expensive entertainment centers, but you still get the benefit of stimulating and educational play.

Nature makes children think. Lately there is been a trend in education towards inquiry based learning. Researchers have found that if students explore and experiment to figure out answers on their own, they are going to learn better, and retain more information. It also helps them develop skills to be able to learn things on their own later. What better environment to learn things than out in nature. There are lessons for kids of all ages to discover about the world around them.

Everyone these days is trying to be more green and more environmentally conscious. What better way to help do your part than to get your children interested in their own planet than right now when they are young and impressionable? What might be a fun time for them now, might be a future hobby, career, or world saving invention.

Nature is fun. While it is easy to forget, childhood is not just for learning about how to be an adult, it’s also about having fun. Nature gives kids a chance to use their imagination and be free to just be kids.

While unstructured play outside is great for kids, you can also find a lot of places offering structured classes and learning sessions for kids that focus on the natural world. Check your local park, zoo, or museum. There is a good chance they have classes you can sign up for, and since many of these places are not for profit, they’re usually affordable as well as informative.

Across the world, there are millions of dollars being spent to help promote sending your kids outside to learn from nature. That’s because spending time outside is so important for developing minds. It can also be a great escape for you as well.

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Thrifty Thursday-$4 in Seventh Generation Coupons for Winter Cleaning!

Posted by html404 on February 10, 2011
in Coupons, Thrifty Thursday

The Coupons section on Seventh Generation’s website lets you save on their products, including disinfectants, baby care, cleaning, and laundry. Go here to get $4 in Seventh Generation coupons for Winter cleaning!

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Natural Homemade Beauty Recipes

Posted by html404 on January 27, 2011
in Guest Post, Thrifty Thursday

Natural Homemade Beauty Recipes

Nature is the newest trend in skin and hair care. For years, we’ve been putting toxic chemicals into our bodies that build up and make us feel tired and sick, regardless of whether we eat them or if they seep though our pores. And people are finally catching on that natural is better.

Most stores now have a line of “natural” beauty products. Unfortunately, they often come with a big price tag attached too. Often times many of these products are not actually “natural” so it does pay to do your homework to ensure you are getting what you pay for.

Fortunately, actually making beauty products yourself isn’t too difficult. So if you want beauty products that you know are natural and are also inexpensive, just make them yourself. Here are 5 quick and easy recipes you can make at yourself.

Face Mask

Eating good food helps give you the right nutrients you need to look good. You can get more of these vitamins and minerals by putting the good stuff right on the skin.

Combining a mashed carrot, mashed avocado, and a beaten egg with a half cup a few tablespoons of honey creates a great face mask that provides vitamins, and improves the tone and texture of your skin. Just stir well, apply, let sit for about 15 minutes, and then wash off with cool water.

After you’re washed and nourished your skin, you can use grated cucumber or diluted lemon juice as a toner to help tighten your skin and close up your pores to close your pores and keep your skin looking great.

Hair Conditioner

Many people pay a lot of money for a conditioner that makes your hair look and feel good. Here’s a great natural recipe to save you money and help your hair:

Just mix an egg yolk with a tablespoon of castor oil and apply to hair. Let sit for about ten minutes and rinse out. You can use this every so often as a conditioning treatment for healthy shiny hair. If you like being experimental, you can try mixing other kitchen items, herbs, and natural items with eggs for healthy, shiny hair.

Hand and Foot Cream

A quick face mask will help make you look great in not a lot of time, but hands and feet require extra care.

Use ½ cup of olive oil mixed with natural sea salt and massage into your hands and feet. Leave a few minutes to soak and then rinse off with warm water.

When it comes to natural beauty products, these recipes are just the start. You can find hundreds of different combinations in natural beauty books, magazines, and on the internet. Or you can go to your kitchen cabinet and make your own special creations.

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