Saturday 7 January 2017

This Week's Frugal Tasks Saturday 7th January 2017

Here is my frugal list for the week -

*  Glued the soles back on my moccasin slippers.  One sole was half off and the other was just starting to come off.  I'll be getting new moccasins before next Winter so I just want them to last until then.

*  Fed the compost bins with kitchen scraps.  Darren used his special pronged tool to turn the compost.

*  Fed the chickens some old lettuce,  cantelope seeds,  weeds,  snails and grass.

*  Used an old suitcase to store my Christmas nutcracker collection in.  Their usual cardboard storage boxes were getting a little shabby ( also taking up too much space ).  Darren was going to buy two plastic storage tubs until we realised we had old,  small suitcases in my shed that we'd outgrown years ago.   We saved ourselves about $14.

*  Lined my bathroom bin with lots of recycled bread bags.

*  Cleaned the dishwasher using bi carb and vinegar. Wiped down the seals and door with Miracle Spray.

*  Picked lettuce from our garden for a salad to feed eight people.

*  Picked our first ever apricots.  We also picked strawberries,  raspberries,  boysenberries and two peaches.  I made up a fruit salad to feed eight people.  About 1/3 of the fruit came from our garden.

*  Made up a bottle of diluted Dynamo laundry liquid.  I have to keep all available bottles diluted due to a certain daughter liking the full strength liquid.

*  Cleaned the inside of the kettle using citric acid.

*  Gratefully received lots of little pavers from my Dad.  We plan on using them around the strawberry patch and outside our garden shed.

'
From the garden

Ivory

Rose bush in the chicken coop.

Our girls

Lavender in bloom

Recycled pavers

How did you save time or money this week ?
 

21 comments:

  1. Hi Wendy, the fruit you have grown looks lovely. I hope you are having a nice break. The little pavers are fantastic, they can cost quite a bit to buy. My work week has started again but still managed to get a few frugal things done:
    -picked kale and zucchini for meals during the week
    - Made all meals from scratch
    - All lunches for work were taken from home.
    - Didn't use the air con as much this week as we have had cooler weather
    - Bought a pack of sausages and 600g lean pork steaks for $2.5 each
    - Had a light bulb moment yesterday as I watched a tutorial from a lady in Melbourne who makes her own baby wipes, I have all the ingredients in my house and will try it out this weekend. If it works, it's more natural and will save me a lot of money! I've calculated a "pack" of home baby wipes will cost me about 80c as opposed to the $2 bought from the supermarket (premium wipes can cost up to $8 a pack!).
    - dried clothes on the clothes line or airer
    - Gratefully received pumpkin, potatoes and onions
    - Gratefully received a whole charcoal chicken, I shredded it and froze it for future meals.
    - made banana weetbix muffins from over ripe bananas
    Have a great week!

    Amy

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    Replies
    1. Amy, have you tried using wet face washers as wipes ? That's what I did for my girls when they were babies. I then saved the wipe for going out or when I was having a hard day. Ive seen a few tutorials on making baby wipes and they look easy to do.

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  2. I have one of those compost turners, one of the best $20 investments I ever made. Makes turning the compost so much easier, and I'm much more inclined to do it.

    What an amazing fruit salad that would have been! Full of flavour! I would have been so proud to serve that up, having grown so much of it.

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  3. Hi Wendy, A good week of savings. Your fruit looks beautiful. It is amazing how picking a little fruit or veg each day reduces the grocery bill AND it is so fresh. I pick oranges and lemons each day all year and have plums and apricots ripening at the moment I love lavender and yours looks wonderful. I have 3 bushes grown from cuttings that are doing really well. Have a great week. Cheers Jo

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    Replies
    1. How lovely to pick oranges and lemons all year round Jo

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  4. The fruit from your garden looks lovely, Wendy. I had to do a lot of baking with once-were-frozen berries the other day because our combined fridge/freezer defrosted overnight after the freezer door was left ajar. Lots of packets of defrosted berries to use up! Hence berry muffins, berry icecream, berry slice ... Other frugal things have been making own ice pops, eating salads with ingredients we've grown in garden, drying washing on lines under house as we've had rain and showers some days, started sewing of a new dress too. My young boy has had school friends here for plays/sleepover rather than choosing expensive outings:) Meg

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    1. It sounds like you've been BERRY busy Meg. A very frugal week too.

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  5. Dear Wendy, The apricots look perfect! Also the pavers will be very good.
    We had a big savings week which was a good way to start the year off. Now it is really hot. I hope you don't get it. Last night was terrible! Tonight we are meant to have a cool change. I hope so!
    Have a lovely weekend! With love Annabel.xxx

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    Replies
    1. Yes you've had a great week Annabel. I hope you get that cool change xoxo

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  6. What a wonderful bounty from your garden Wendy. Would you be able to post a picture of your fruit growing, in an long away shot, to show how much room the plants take up please. It would be wonderful to grow my own blackberries and raspberries.
    I made two birthday cards yesterday for my sister and friend and made 10 "special" ones for family and good friends for Christmas. The other day I took 2 bags of clothing to donate to the Op Shop and bought a big pink boogie board for myself $3 and a shower chair for my Mum, $7! My hubby cleaned the chair up and it's as good as new. Savings little by little. I can't wait to see what you have in store for your blog this year Wendy. All the best Lorraine

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'll post a few photos of our backyard shortly. Our block is 617 metres squared which was average for blocks back in the 1990s. We do have a small home and some of our fruit trees are dwarf.
      Great find at the op shop too. It always pays to have a look.

      Can you please post some photos of your cards on Facebook and tag me please ? I'd love to see them.

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  7. Hi
    from the UK .I hope you had a good Christmas and wish all of you a Happy New Year
    This week I shopped in Aldi for the first time in nearly 3 weeks we have been using things from the freezer so I can use the space to stock up for when will hubby is in hospital.
    I dried all my washing on the airer in the spare room.
    I am trying to lay recycled paving in the greenhouse ready for the growing season I think I may still need some more though.
    I have done out the toys that the grandkids have grown out of and will take these to the charity shop along with some books
    I have cooked all meals from scratch.
    I mad bread, mince pies, yoghurt and vanilla ice cream [from yellow sticker cream]
    I have made some cross stitch cards from supplied in the craft cupboard the only thing I had to buy was double sided tap.
    I read some books from the library.
    I am jealous of all of you picking fruit and veg the only fresh produce we now have are brussels and leeks.
    Have a good week
    Chris

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    Replies
    1. We had a great Christmas thank you Chris.

      Like you, we haven't done much food shopping lately. It's good to let stocks go done in the freezer to make room for other things.

      I hope your husband gets well soon xoxo

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  8. Wendy, It's snowy here, so it does my heart good to see the lovely photos of your "girls" and your garden. How marvelous to get the pavers! They can be so costly to purchase.
    Blessings, Leigh

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    Replies
    1. Leigh, our time will come for the cold weather. We don't get snow in Melbourne though

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  9. Oh, those pavers are excellent. If you did not want them just plain old grey you could whip up a small batch of exterior flour paint.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Phil. I think Darren wants them plain but I'll look into the paint option

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  10. I'd love to post some of my cards on FB Wendy. Will try to do that soon.
    We saved over $350 yesterday by buying 2nd hand wood for part of our back verandah which needs replacing. Hubby saw it for sale on FB. Only cost us $40 for 50 metres of 4 x 2" hardwood. Incredible. So happy about that!

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  11. Wow! You did awesome. How wonderful.

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  12. It looks like you had a great week! It's so fun to see the garden produce and fruit you get on the other side of the world from me. My turn is coming, but with ice and snow, I can only enjoy seeing what others do:)
    Becky

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