Saturday 9 April 2016

This Week's Frugal Tasks Saturday 9th April 2016

During the week I got the de-cluttering bug again.  With all the extra time on my hands I've been digging into cupboards and donating items I don't like or use.  Megan went through her room again and donated clothes she doesn't need. Here's what else I got up to this week -

*  Made a double batch of fruit crumble topping mix.

*  Made a double batch of peanut butter choc chip biscuit dough.  Some of the dough was made into biscuits to sell and some for us to eat.  The rest of the dough was rolled into logs and frozen.

*  Made four loaves of wholemeal bread with extra goodness.

*  Saved the washing machine water for each next load.

*  Darren and I went to the movies to see My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2.  We used a movie gift card given to us last Christmas and I bought water and chocs from home.

*  Dried all the washing on the clothesline.

*  Gratefully received a bag of limes from a next door neighbour.

*  Made a batch of yoghurt using a packet from the pantry.

*  Mended my work sneakers.  The sole was starting to come away so I used some shoe glue to put it back together.  Hopefully they will last a lot longer.

*  Continued decluttering and donated items to Savers for a discount stamp.

*  Received some wrapping paper from my friend and blog reader Anne.  The wrapping paper has little Christmas trees on it that will be great for making Christmas cards.

*  Darren emptied the compost bins in to the veggie garden. He also started the next lot of compost by emptying bags of coffee grinds into the bins.  I've now planted the seedlings I bought last week.

*  At the moment there's nothing much on tv on Thursday nights.  Darren has decided to make this movie night.  We have so many dvds in our collection and like to make the most of them.  This week we watched Blast From The Past.  No money was spent and I enjoyed watching the characters  "shop " from their 35 years worth of groceries.

*  Defrosted our 120 litre freezer.  I was able to stack things better when I put them back in.  I saved the hot water used to defrost the freezer and watered a few plants once the water cooled down.

*  I diluted some Dynamo laundry liquid into another bottle.  We bought about 12 bottles of Dynamo about 6 or 7 years ago at a bargain price of $2 per bottle.  We only use it on the odd occasion for smelly washing or work uniforms.  Some people in our house ( who will remain unnamed ) are a bit heavy handed with the liquid.  To get around this I half filled an old squirty laundry liquid bottle with water,  poured some of the Dynamo in and gave it a good shake. Then I topped it up with more water.  This will be great for hand washing and when others feel the need to put a load on.


Gifted limes
Our lemons are ripening
In the garden
Biscuit ( cookie ) dough
Ready to eat.
Diluted laundry liquid on the right.
Defrosting the freezer
Feijoas are growing.  

How did you save money this week ?

24 comments:

  1. Hi Wendy,

    Great list as usually.
    I love the movie 'A Blast from the Past'. We also saw 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' and enjoyed it and took our own snacks and water.

    Last weekend, we attended a theatre show which we were given free tickets for. Attended a BBQ and was given food to take home. I mooed bread, Lemon cake and stretched the milk by adding milk powder to it also this week. Made a Roast Lamb which I turned into 3 meals.

    Saved water from washing machine and showers, pulled out Tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries and prepared garden beds ready for planting. Picked silverbeet, capsicums and lettuces and cutback Roses.

    I did my Menu plan for the month and drew up a card where I write my "Play " money on so as to allocate what I spend this on, it keeps me better on track than just having the money in my purse. I received $10.00 off my shop at Woolies this week which I used to stockpile goods. DS2 stated working this weekend doing Football Umpiring so I no longer will be giving pocket money, Yeahhh!!!

    Paid out for DS2's school camp and as I applied for a grant, (called Camps, sports & Excursions fund) it was given to me late last year, I used it this year for his camp which paid for half of the cost. DH's birthday today and the present I bought him was a music CD he wanted which I used a JB HIFI card I had money left on and he wants a DVD night tonight and homemade Pizza.

    Yesterday we went OP shopping in Altona, great fun. We discovered a factory clearance centre where all the clothing was $1.00 and most of the items were from Kmart or Target. I bought 4 pieces of clothing for a friend who's baby is due this month for a total of $4.00 and a 21st present for a friends daughter which is a big glass print of 'Time Square in New York' which was originally $40.00 but they had discounted to $5.50. This place was amazing and so cheap , we spent 2 hours in there.

    Have a great week, xxx
    Maureen

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    1. Maureen,That factory clearance place sounds good. Did you know there's a Tiffany clearance on kororoit ck red? I haven't been for a while, but last time we got a new toaster for $5

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    2. Oh No Joy, I didn't know that. I will have a look the next time I'm over that way, Thanks, xxx

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    3. $1 a piece of clothing is such a bargain Maureen. I applied for the school camp fund too. Every bit helps.

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  2. I just did a blog post on my savings for the week. If it is ok, I'll just leave the link here for you. I'm dead tired and so sore at the moment...it has been a busy day!

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  3. I forgot the link to my savings for the week...the brain fog has set in. ;) LOL!
    http://debbie-thenextchapterinmylife.blogspot.com/2016/04/frugal-friday-wrap-up-4816.html

    You did really well!

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  4. I had a good week saving money especially on petrol before the price went up by 27c a litre. Also purchased some items from the clearance section at a local supermarket and ate from the freezer most nights. Planted some spring onions using the bottom part(with the roots attached) that would normally go in the bin. Never thought they would grow but after a week they are already an inch high!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's always a gamble knowing when to fill the car up .

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  5. Dynamo is so strong it can be severely diluted to 4 caps per 2 litres of water. The result is of course very watery but it works and smells just as good.

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    Replies
    1. Phil, I'm waiting for Dynamo to come on a half price sale again and I'll buy a bottle.

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  6. Wendy, you have definitely been busy. I have just made a batch of soap so am keen to see what this lot looks like. I was wondering what the movie was like and haven't been to see it as yet. The first one was a scream.

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    Replies
    1. I loved the movie. It was very funny. There's talk of a third one in the next few years.

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  7. You have an excellent list! Mine...not so much. LH was gone fishing so I slobbed around this past week and throughly enjoyed myself.

    5 No Spend Days.

    Cooked out of my stores.

    Planted sage seed and looked after my other starts. Once when I was in Israel, my friend went out her side door, picked a handful of sage and mint and then made tea. It was really very good. I also use it in cooking, of course.

    I have not driven anywhere this week, so fuel was saved.



    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No spend and no fuel days are big money savers Mila.

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  8. this week I have made 2 loaves of rye bread, and all meals except one from scratch.
    diluted vinegar, I now have 6 litres from the one 2 litre bottle
    picked up some lovely fabric from the op shop to make shopping bags, mine are falling aparet and I might make some for Christmas presents.
    gratefully received some buttons for the doll's cardigan I'm knitting for DGD's birthday
    picked some limes from a community tree
    kept the thermostat lower when the heater was on, and used throw rugs instead of turning it on at times.
    soaked and scrubbed by hand, then a long machine wash, all the tea towels, hand towels,dish cloths and cleaning cloths, then ironed the tea towels. Now I have as new cloths for just a little effort.
    made yoghurt, a bit runny but still tastes good

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    Replies
    1. What Christmas presents do you think you'll make with the material Meg ?

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  9. Ooo, lucky you, all those limes!
    I'm not sure I saved money this week, just did my usual frugal lifestyle stuff like making bread and yoghurt from scratch as well as baked goods for the kids.
    As the children get older there seems to be more and more money going out and not much I can do about it. But, at least the frugal practices have been in place for so many years that it's just second nature to us.

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    Replies
    1. Kelly, do you have any ideas on how I can use the limes ?

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  10. Dear Wendy, what a great week you have had my week included:
    Making cards for cheapskates club swap
    Finding out my big shot machine works after all, saving me $$$ on buying a new one or paying for repairs if needed.
    Making 12 banana caramel, white chocolate muffins using bananas that needed using, a few white choc Chios, caramel topping from my fridge that had been there awhile and yoghurt and SR flour . Easy and yum and cheap!.
    Made a batch of cheesy, shallot and sweet chilli muffins using yoghurt and SR flour also.
    Watered my plants with warm up water.
    Made meals from scratch
    Only bought milk, bread,Netanyahu bags and cheese this week.
    Recycled my magazines, saving some for the doctors surgery I go to.
    Writing my shopping list based on my pantry , fridge and freezer inventories
    Been accepted for extra services including a transport service which is much cheaper than taxis ( I have been rejected for taxi subsidy card twice) , also accepted for social support one hour a fortnight to do shopping and errands for me , this is subsidised too.
    Shared a meal with my mum while out , saving her money.
    Made another toy for my budgies using gifted materials from a forum friend.
    Received a personalised gift from a forum program new friend , a washer in my favourite colours with my name on it and two bars of soap and also a fragranced sachet for my wardrobe. As well as a lovely letter.
    Received shallots from my parents garden.
    Cleaned up my craft supplies and discovered a lot of items I didn't realise I had .
    I think that is it for this week Wendy.some ideas for the lines are line marmalade, line syrup cake ( not sure if there is a recipe for that) , lime chicken ( could make it simikapr to lemon chicken) . Freeze line juice , use line juice for icing for cakes. I cannot think of any more sorry Wendy.
    Take care and have a great week .love Barb Woodford

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    1. That was supposed to be tea bags Wendy plus there are a few more typing errors sorry,bay to correct changed it .bof course I meant limes also. Barb W.

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  11. Great list there as always Wendy. Thanks for the tip on the Dynamo. I have a few bottles of Cold Power liquid that was given to me a few years ago and I only use it on my teens work uniforms- both of them work in fast food and come home reeking of oil and it is the only thing that gets the smell out. I will try diluting it.

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  12. You could use the limes to make lime butter..

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  13. Hi Wendy, fantastic frugal ideas as always, this week I made a 2 loaves of bread, made a Curried Sweet Potato Soup from marked down sweet potatoes, cleaned the showers with home made cleaner, used the warm up water from the shower to water the figs out the front and line dried all the washing. Nothing new just the same frugal tasks to keep costs down. Love your blog it gives me inspiration. Have a great day

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  14. I have been away and just catching up. It was great you got the defrosting done that is a big job.
    We saved money on our trip by taking some meals with us, eating simply and taking a picnic to and from our destination.
    Also we op shopped and had some good finds! Have a lovely weekend Wendy. xxx

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