To save money one your grocery bill, minimise the amount of trips you do to the supermarket. Over 75% of people will buy at least 2 or 3 items they did not plan to buy with each trip to the supermarket.
Making the switch to shopping once a week or fortnight or better still once a month can save you $50 per month immediately. That’s a massive $600 a year just for setting a shopping day and sticking to it!
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We want our homes to look the best they can over the holidays. Before the end of November we are pulling out the yuletide decorations. While we spruce up the inside and outside of our homes with bells and whistles, don’t forget about the Christmas tree.
I believe that decorating a Christmas tree is a family affair (and if it's not, it should be). Now, the husband and the kids may not want to go around the house hanging Christmas banners and Christmas cards with you. You may not enjoy climbing on the roof of the house to hang lights either. But every family member gets in the Christmas spirit with the Christmas tree decoration. Your tree says a lot about you as a family - your choice of ornaments, tree topping, and tree skirt - yes, tree skirt, and I'll talk more about these useful items later on. First choose your tree. Many go for artificial trees because there are no dried pine needles to pierce the bottoms of tender feet or vacuum up, I do too. We've had our big Christmas tree for 20 years and it's still going strong. I consider it an investment in our marriage, but that's a story for another day. What? You can't wait for "another day"? OK, here goes. The first year Wayne and I were married, we spent Christmas here in Melbourne with my family, and didn't have a Christmas tree, although we did hang a wreath on the front door and display the cards. The second year we were married was AJ's first Christmas and even though he was only 4 weeks old, we again came home to Melbourne for a family Christmas. I was so exhausted (it's a good thing no one tells you just how exhausting new babies are) that I didn't bother with a tree again. But the third year we were married AJ was one year old and come hell or high water I was having a Christmas tree, and it was going to be a real tree. We were dirt poor, having just moved into our house and it was a very tight Christmas. I had been to town and viewed the Christmas trees on offer and decided ours would come from Legacy. It would be beautifully decorated and look exactly like the Christmas trees in the picture books (we all have to have dreams). December rolled on and every night Wayne would come home treeless. I'd ask about the tree and he'd tell me he didn't have time to stop or came from the other direction - he always had an excuse for not bringing me home that Christmas tree. Finally Christmas Eve arrived and I consoled myself with the thought that at least AJ was too young to understand the meaning of the Christmas tree, or really of Christmas for that matter. Around 5pm Wayne pulled into the driveway and straight away I could see some greenery (if only I'd it THE ONLY GREEN on the tree) poking from the back of the van. He'd bought our very first Christmas tree! Oh how very wrong I was. Picture the scene if you will. There's me at the front door, babe on hip, almost jumping with excitement. My darling husband is slowly, slowly pulling on a tree trunk, dragging it out of the back of his work van. As he pulls, I get more and more excited. Then the excitement turns to confusion, then amazement and then complete and utter disappointment. My very loving, very hard working, very frugal husband had waited at the Legacy tree stand until they were closing. He bought the last three - yes - three trees they had left, for the grand price of $5. They should have paid him the $5 to take them off their hands! He'd bought three rather large sticks. With a couple of twigs hanging off each one. They were the most miserable looking examples of Christmas trees I had, no have, ever seen. To this day I haven't seen anything quite like them. I was so upset I started to cry. He was so thrilled with his bargain it took him a few minutes to realize I wasn't crying with joy. Those three sticks were stuck in a bucket of sand and my handmade tree skirt hung over it. Unfortunately there weren't enough twigs, let alone branches, for too many decorations, but they were a Christmas tree and I still remember the absolute wonder on one baby boy's face as he looked at all the sparkly baubles and the glittery tinsel. I can tell you, if we hadn't had that baby to coo over that tree….. We still talk, and nowadays laugh together, over the three for $5 Christmas tree. And the next year I saved up, a little every week from the grocery money, and bought a lovely artificial tree in November! And that's how we came to have an artificial tree. But now, back to the main topic of conversation, decorating the Christmas tree. Some artificial trees come pre-lit so that eliminates the need to buy strands and strands of lights. Artificial trees are available in many different colors, white, blue, black, pink, as well as green and are of varying heights and types. Coloured Christmas trees just don't seem like Christmas too me, I'm much more a traditionalist when it comes to Christmas, but whatever floats your boat, or rather decorates your tree. For a real tree, some families get theirs a couple of weeks before Christmas. Tree farms and tree lots usually have a nice selection of Christmas trees with hearty branches. Be sure that you can’t see through the tree. If you can, then it will be too thin to hold heavy ornaments. Also make sure to water real trees frequently once you’ve brought them home and placed them in their stand. This will prevent drying out of needles and possible fire hazards or a brown tree on Christmas morning. And this is why you need a tree skirt. A tree skirt is just a circle of fabric that slips around the base of your tree. It's there to cover the stand but more importantly it's there to catch the pine needles that drop, and drop they will. No matter how much you water your tree it will drop needles. If they drop into the tree skirt then all you do is gather it up and take it outside to shake every couple of days. No more messy pine needles on the floor, getting into everything and clogging up the vacuum. Here are some decorating suggestions no matter which type of tree you choose for your family this year. 1. Start with the lights. It’s going to be hard to put strings of lights on the tree after you’ve put all of the other goodies on the tree. For kids, it’s fun to put a strand or two of running lights so that they blink instead of staying on all the time. Depending on the size of your tree you may only need a couple strands of lights. 2. Add a touch of garland. There are many different kinds. Most people shy away from traditional icicles because they are a fire hazard especially on a live tree. The garland that has icicle like strands are just the same. Some opt for homemade popcorn garlands (fun for kids!), colored beaded garland, or snowflake garland made of plastic. Wrap the garland loosely so that it doesn’t strangle the tree. Let some of the length hang between the branches so it can be seen. 3. Now for the fun – the ornaments. Some families use a colour scheme of two or three colours for their ornaments. Others may purchase pre-packaged ornament sets with a certain theme. Kids can hang ornaments they created in school. You could end up with quite an eclectic looking creation. Space ornaments so they surround the tree and leave no bald spots. 4. The tree topper goes on last. There are angels, stars, and even bows. Some have a plug that fits into your string of lights. Just remove one light on the strand and plug in the tree topper. Others have their own plug that can be connected directly into the top strand of lights or the wall outlet. Some still don’t have a light at all. Our tree topper is an angel that Hannah made at after school kids' club when she was 5. It is a little worn and battered but it looks lovely on our tree. So that's basically how you decorate a Christmas tree, family style. Everyone pitches in and hangs decorations, checks the lights to find the blown bulb and untangles the tinsel. Stories are told of Christmases past, present and to come, of who gave which decorations to whoever and why, and memories are made. Baking is a frugal way to experience new flavours within a limited budget. In general, baking ingredients are similar for many cuisines and a good stash of baking essentials will last a long time. Most baking ingredients can be found to be fairly inexpensive as a whole, so you can afford to stock up on a variety of grains and flours to bake up gourmet treats any time without spending a fortune. With a couple turns of the rolling pin or twist of the wrist, a warm wonderful aroma will be wafting from your oven, and you can enjoy gourmet pastries and breads for only a few dollars each. Take time to master the art of garlic naan, or rich cream-filled pastries from Italy. With just a little practice and the right ingredients, you can produce gourmet baked goods at budget prices. Platinum members can login for full access to the Recipe File
Not a Platinum Cheapskates Club Member? Please upgrade to a Platinum Cheapskates Club membership to be able to access our Member's Centre. Click here to upgrade your Cheapskates Club membership today Around this time of year the Post Office becomes very busy - it's card sending season. Of course we send cards all year round, but from the beginning of November through to the end of December Christmas cards are in the mail. I love sending cards each year, but I like to send unique cards. I want the cards I send to be different to the run of the mill Christmas cards available in the shops. There are lots of things you can do to personalize and create unique Christmas cards and they don't have to break the budget. One easy way to do this is to make them. Now card making can be time consuming so to create beautiful, one-of-a kind cards I buy kits. These lovely cards were made using kits that cost just $2 per pack of 10 cards (and all the embellishments I could ever want) from a $2 shop. That's just 20 cents a card, as opposed to the $5 - $8 a card from the newsagent. If you don't feel that crafty, buy a packet of Christmas cards and embellish them. Use gold and silver gel pens to outline the main feature on the card. Have a card with a Santa on it? Add a little gold or silver pom pom to the end of his cap and glue a little cotton ball onto his beard. Add a tiny, red metallic pom pom to Rudolph's nose. Brush some clear glue over the stars and sprinkle them with glitter (do this over a sheet of paper so you can collect the glitter that doesn't stick and re-use it). Tackle a few cards each night and it won't be long before you have your Christmas card list finished and ready to post on the 30th November. Platinum members can login for full access to the Tip Store
Not a Platinum Cheapskates Club Member? Please upgrade to a Platinum Cheapskates Club membership to be able to access our Member's Centre. Click here to upgrade your Cheapskates Club membership today You think a litre of petrol is expensive? At $24 per 30ml, my moisturiser is over $800 a litre! Thankfully it does a good job. Once the pump has stopped working, I tip the bottle upside down and give it a couple of good shakes before I use it. This gives a few extra portions. When that stops working I carefully prise the cover off and use a cotton bud to get the last of the moisturiser out of the tube. Platinum members can login for full access to the Tip Store
Not a Platinum Cheapskates Club Member? Please upgrade to a Platinum Cheapskates Club membership to be able to access our Member's Centre. Click here to upgrade your Cheapskates Club membership today Over the weekend I thought I'd give everyone a treat and buy us all and ice cream. My ice cream of choice was a Drumstick, after all it's an Aussie icon, and this was a treat. Until I saw the price! $3.40 each - so $17.00 for the five of us to enjoy an ice cream. That put paid to that treat, $17 on ice creams is just too much for our entertainment budget. I was explaining this to Hannah as we drove home via Hungry Jacks for a 50c ice cream - a much more budget friendly treat.
Last night Hannah announced that she was making dessert for us all. Now we very rarely have dessert and when we do it's usually fruit based - an apple sponge or strudel or fruit salad or a pie of some kind so everyone was very excited, waiting to see what she would make. She made us drumsticks! And much bigger and nicer drumsticks than the Streets ones I didn't buy (sorry Streets, you just don't make the grade anymore). They were delicious, better than a bought ice cream and a fraction of the price. If you like an ice cream treat every now and then, try these MOO drumsticks, they really are good. MOO Drumsticks Ingredients: 4 waffle cones 4 large scoops vanilla ice cream 1/2 cup milk chocolate buttons 1/4 cup crushed nuts Method: Melt the chocolate. Take a teaspoon of the melted chocolate and pour into the tip of each waffle cone. Swirl around to coat the inside of the cone. Put a scoop (or two) of ice cream into each cone. Drizzle the ice cream with melted chocolate, sprinkle with chopped nuts. Put them into the freezer for a few minutes to set. Makes 4 ice creams. Enjoy! The costings are: 1 packet waffle cones - $4.06 [packet of 12, $0.34 each 2 litres vanilla ice cream - $2.19, $0.20 per ice cream Chocolate buttons - $2.88 a 375g packet, $0.10 per ice cream Crushed nuts - $1.22 a 200g packet - $0.05 per ice cream The waffle cones, choc buttons and nuts came from Coles, the ice cream is from Aldi. These homemade drumsticks are more than twice the size of the official version for less than a quarter of the price. I think they're nicer too, the cones were delightfully crispy, not soft and soggy. Why wouldn't you MOO them? I've been inundated with lemons this week, thank you, thank you, thank you, and not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth the kitchen has been full of jars of lemon butter, bottles of lemon syrup (just divine on a summer evening over ice and topped with slushy soda water) and lots of lemon halves in zippy bags to go into the freezer (for zesting and then resting my dainty and delicate lady-like elbows in).
Lemons are so versatile. They are a delicious food. I use them in cordials, marmalades, sauces, icing, cakes, slices and biscuits and of course Heavenly Lemon Meringue Pie, named by my darling husband because he thinks it is heavenly to have homemade pie. If there are any left after all that cooking they get used for cleaning! Anyway, here's my recipe for Wayne's favourite dessert: Heavenly Lemon Meringue Pie Ingredients: 1 prepared 20cm pie shell* 1 1/2 cups lemon butter* 2 egg whites 2 tbsp castor sugar Method: Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius. Pour the lemon curd into the pie shell. Beat the egg whites until stiff. Add one tablespoon of sugar and continue beating until sugar is dissolved. Add second spoonful of sugar and beat until sugar is dissolved. Carefully spread meringue mixture over the lemon curd, being sure to take it right to the edges to seal the pie. This stops the meringue from "bleeding". Place into oven and bake 10 - 15 minutes until meringue is golden and set. Serve hot with ice cream or cold with thick cream. Notes: *The pie shell - you can use a bought shortcrust pie shell or make your own. Elaine's Easy Pastry gives a nice crisp pie crust. If you are making your own, pre-bake it before you add the filling and meringue. *Either homemade or bought lemon curd is fine. Homemade is generally nicer of course but if all else fails a jar of lemon butter will do in a pinch. I MOO lemon butter and you won't believe how easy it is. It takes all of 10 minutes and that is prep, cooking and clean-up time, truly. The secret is the microwave oven. Just like microwave marmalade, lemon curd in the microwave is simple, quick and absolutely delicious. Here's my recipe, it makes 2 cups. Six Minute Lemon Butter Ingredients: 3/4 cup castor sugar* 125g butter (real butter please, not margarine) 3 whole eggs 1/2 cup lemon juice Method: In a deep microwave safe jug beat the eggs and sugar until the sugar has dissolved. An electric beater or stick blender makes this easy, but you can use a whisk, it just takes a little longer. Melt the butter and stir into the egg mixture. Blend in the lemon juice. Place the jug into the microwave and cook for two minutes on high. Stir well. Cook a further two minutes and stir again. Cook two more minutes, remove from microwave and stir well. The mixture should be thick but still pourable. Pour into sterilised jars, seal and place in the fridge to cool. Once the mixture cools completely it will set into a nice spread. Keep in the fridge for up to two weeks (if it lasts that long). This lemon butter is delicious on toast or spread on scones or pancakes. It also makes a lovely filling for a sponge or a lemon tart or meringue. *Note: You can use up to 1 cup of caster sugar, depending on the acidity of the lemons. I like lemony lemon butter so 3/4 cup is more than enough sweetener for my taste but if you like a sweet spread add a little more sugar. Because it only takes a few minutes to make it's very easy to whip a batch any time you have a couple of spare lemons. Save your pretty jars and make a batch or two to give as edible gifts, I guarantee they'll be well received and as each batch costs under $2 to make (less if you have free lemons and eggs) it's a gift that won't break the budget. Just another example of a grocery staple that we 21st century homemakers seem to think we have to buy because it's too hard and time consuming to MOO. If you love lemon butter give it a try. It's much nicer than the bought stuff (for starters it tastes like lemon) and so much cheaper. And like I always tell you, if you don't like it you can always go back to your regular brand. This post was originally published at Debt Free, Cashed Up and Laughing Most households have at least one straw, rattan or vine basket of some kind, even if it's just a bread basket. They look lovely for a while, until the dust collects in the gaps in the weave, then they just look old and dingy. You'll see lots of them at op shops and garage sales, discarded because they no longer look nice.
You don't have to pass your older baskets on, they are easy to clean. Choose a nice, hot, sunny day. Then simply fill either the laundry sink or bathtub, depending on the size of the basket, with warm, soapy water (old shampoo is great for this). Immerse the basket in the water and lightly scrub it with an old nail brush or for smaller baskets an old toothbrush. Rinse, shake the excess water off, wipe over with a towel and leave to dry outside, in the shade. The water will clean them better than ordinary dusting can and the moisture will keep them from drying out completely, keeping the wood from becoming brittle and splitting. A lovely flavoured vinegar to give, that is easy to make and inexpensive, is strawberry vinegar. This delicately flavoured vinegar couldn't be any simpler to make, costs just a few cents and is truly a gourmet delight. You can use this vinegar in any recipe that calls for white vinegar, lemon or lime juice.
Strawberry Vinegar Ingredients: 600ml white vinegar 6 large, fresh, unblemished ripe strawberries Method: Wash the strawberries. Pour the white vinegar into a clean, sterilized jar. Add the strawberries. Seal and store in a dark, cool cupboard to infuse for six weeks. If your vinegar develops a film over the top, don't worry. This is the vinegar mother, just skim it off. It is a natural part of the fermenting process. After six weeks, strain the vinegar into a small saucepan. Heat to boiling point and boil for five minutes. Strain through a clean cheesecloth into decorative, sterilized jars, seal and store in the fridge. What are you planning to give to others this Christmas? If it is a food gift, use the tips above for gift ideas and also ways to keep it safe to enjoy. I watched a fascinating documentary today about Warren Buffet, who takes turns at being the world's richest man with Bill Gates. It's called The World's Greatest Money Maker: Warren Buffet
Mr Buffet has a personal wealth that is estimated to be more than $37 billion. His company, Berkshire Hathaway is worth $150 billion, he owns a quarter outright. So what makes this billionaire different to all the other wealthy people in the world? His attitude to money. This man lives life frugally, he embraces the Cheapskates way of life and is proud to say so. He lives with his wife in the house they have lived in for over 50 years. He and his wife raised their three children in this home, and they were by no means spoiled. Indeed his son Peter tells the story of asking his dad for $5 so he go out with his friends and buy McDonalds for their dinner. His father gave him the $5, but he told him to bring the change back (which we have always done with our kids). He said it with a smile, but he meant it. He wanted the change. His wife clips coupons and shops on a budget. She runs the household on a strict budget and lights are turned off when no one is in the room, food isn't wasted and nothing is thrown away unless there is absolutely no other use for it. Bill Gates says of Warren Buffett "he has never ramped up his ability to consume". What a testimonial! he lives as he did when he had no money and was a struggling young husband and father! A lesson to learn for all of us. In this day and age of out of control consumerism, knowing the richest man in the world shuns it is an incredible example for anyone wanting to live the Cheapskates way and enjoy debt free, cashed up life. But for me the thing that sets Warren Buffet apart from other wealthy people is that he doesn't judge what he does by the standards of other people. Instead, he lives the way he does and works the way he does so he can enjoy the things in life that are important to him. Just like we do. I've always said we choose to not spend our money on things that aren't important to us so we have the money to spend on the things that are. It's why we are Cheapskates and live the Cheapskates way, to live life debt free, cashed up and laughing. This post was first published at Debt Free, Cashed Up and Laughing |
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