I have nothing against coupons, and use many myself, but let’s not forget all the ways we can save without them! Be sure to check out #1-5 and #6-10.
11. Pay with cash. Ensuring that you remain aware of what you’re spending, only take the amount of cash you’ve budgeted for. No stuffing the basket with unplanned purchases and regretting it later. Take a calculator, too. No one wants to be embarrassed at the checkout for not having enough cash.
12. Shop less often. If you go every day, try 2-3 times a week. If you go 3 times a week, try once a week or every other week. I know some people are very successful even with once a month shopping trips. It’s too tempting to throw “just one more” item in the cart, especially if you’re grabbing only a couple meals worth of ingredients. That doesn’t sound too bad, but if you toss an extra item in every time you shop, and you shop a lot, that adds up!
13. Know what you have. How many times have you purchased a last minute ingredient at full-price, only to find the exact item needed in the back of your pantry after making supper? (I did that last week.) Maddening! Having a stockpiled pantry and freezer is a fantastic budget-reducing strategy, if you know what you have.
14. Eat seasonally. Fresh fruits and vegetables are a must in any healthy diet. However, they can get quite pricey out of season. My target price for fresh fruits and veggies is $1.00/pound. If they cost more than that, we pass them by for something in season, which is almost always less expensive and tastes better, too! Bonus tip: If you find seasonal fruit or veggies for a steal, buy a bunch and freeze them (or can them) for later.
15. Repurpose. Have extra bread heels and crusts that no one wants to eat? Zap ‘em in the food processor, add some Italian seasoning, and bag it for the freezer. Italian bread crumbs for pennies! Crumbly chips at the bottom of the bag? Save them for topping a favorite Mexican casserole or Taco Soup.
How do you repurpose odds and ends in your kitchen?
This post is linked to Frugal Friday.
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
I love finding ways to repurpose extra food. We love making croutons from our bread heels. So very good, and I can season them as I wish.
Ooh, and the cash thing–we were able to save roughly 40% by using cash alone.
I just love this series you are doing. Great tips.
I have found that the two ways that we have saved the most are using cash only (it helps you see exactly how much you have until the next pay day as well as preventing over-spending) and going to the store less often. I always seem to pick up “a couple” of items that are on sale that weren’t on my list. The “couple” of items sure do add up! Since I have limited the number of trips I make, I have reduce the amount of money that I spend dramatically!
I love using the heels of bread to make garlic bread to go with spaghetti.
These are GREAT tips. I take inventory every week before I make my shopping list:-)
I pretty much follow along the same lines. I just recently re-organized the cabinets and freezer to know what I have ‘on hand’. I am making a grocery list from my menu plan AFTER checking what I have. I am only shopping once a week (Staying out of the box stores as much as possible SAVES money! LOL)
I try to menu plan to give myself a ‘leftover’ night so I don’t have to cook! And I am trying to plan to use leftovers in upcoming meals. Cooking a little more one night saves time another night.
GREAT TIPS! Loving your series.
Great tips!
These are great tips, Amy – I’m loving this series!
I’ll confess, I totally committed the throwing one more item in my cart you talked about in #12. I bought pink Himalayan Salt the other day. not really sure what to do with it, but it was on sale and looked like so much fun to play with.
#13 totally hit me too. I’m boycotting the grocery store right now for 6 more days. I realized with my busy schedule I was buying more ingredients than using.
Thanks for the tips!
These are some great ideas to incorporate for savings! I actually need to go make our famous bread pudding with all of our extra heels!
I wanted to let you know that I’m doing my first giveaway on my blog which will be a frugal holiday decoration!
Check it out!
http://serenitysgivaways.blogspot.com/2009/10/my-first-giveaway-four-halloween.html
Jes
I’m a huge repurposer. I have a bag in my freezer for leftover steamed veggies – toss them in as you go (who eats 2 pieces of leftover broccoli otherwise?) and when the bag is full enough, voila! Soup.
Last nights supper was Veggie Beef Stew straight from the crocker – made totally with odds and end’s from the fridge and freezer except for the stewed/diced tomatoes – it was a big hit! I’m looking forward to lunch this afternoon.
I totally need to make a list of contents of my freezer and pantry. I have a good general idea, but I think I would be surprised to know exactly what’s in there.
My husband makes delicious homemade tomato sauce. A lot of times, we have leftover sauce, but not enough for a full pasta dinner. I throw together some dough and use it to make homemade pizza.