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People Share 31 Frugal Life Hacks That Made The Biggest Difference For Them
Article created by: Vėja Elkimavičiūtė
You don’t need us or anyone else to tell you that things are tough and that there’s a lot of financial pressure on many families' shoulders these days, Pandas. Especially with winter quickly approaching. Many of you have probably already felt your wallets and savings accounts getting thinner. And were left flabbergasted by the prices in the grocery stores and petrol stations.
Things are getting quite bad for a lot of people. So much so that they’re figuring out ways to cut back on various costs. From food and transportation to rent and entertainment. Others turn to the vast digital waters of the internet for help. For instance, the helpful folks over at r/Frugal shared their very best money-saving tips, including what products they substitute with others and what they actually make at home, themselves.
Check out their best advice below and upvote the posts that you found to be the most useful, Pandas. Oh, and we’d absolutely love for you to share your insights with us. So go on and give all the other readers some friendly cost-cutting tips and tricks in the comment section at the bottom.
Bored Panda wanted to get to grips with how we can save more money in these times, so we reached out to Sam Dogen, the author of 'Buy This, Not That: How to Spend Your Way to Wealth and Freedom' and the founder of the insightful Financial Samurai blog. The financial expert told us where we can cut back, how much we should ideally be saving, how quickly we adapt to different standards of living, and how you actually need much less money to be happy than you might think. Read on for his expert comments.
Meanwhile, for some more advice on saving money in these troubling times, take a peek at Bored Panda’s recent articles right here and over here.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
I’m not sure if this counts, but learning to sew a tiny bit in order to make reusable cotton pads/makeup removers. I used an unworn pair of sweats, cut it into squares, sewed along the edges, and it’s worked great so far for skincare and makeup removal :)
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#2
Blackberry jam :) We live surrounded by wild berries, every August we harvest enough berries for a full year of jam. It’s all my boys ever want - I’ve made other berry jams and they still just want black!
#3
I no longer buy popsicles and just instead use the popsicle molds. You just then fill it with juice, iced tea, or some other drink and then you’ll have popsicles with flavors different than what you can buy at the store.
#5
Hummus! The ingredients are cheap & I make a big batch on Sunday for the week. I love that I can make it as garlicy as I want, and I’ve been learning how to make the beans smoother (I add a pinch of baking soda before cooking, and let my insta pot natural release for a while before opening…) Store bought doesn’t compare!
#7
Muffins to take to work for my coffee breaks. Takes me about 15 minutes to mix, 20 minutes to bake, and I have several weeks worth. I keep a well stocked pantry, so have flour/sugar/oil etc. I can control sugar amounts, and portion size (a homemade muffin is often smaller than a bakery one).
#8
I haven't purchased paper kitchen products for over a decade, I just use rags and linen napkins. I also use reusable vacuum cleaner bags
#9
I made my own swiffer pads from a $1 flannel sheet from a thrift store. I just cut them a little bigger than needed to fit to allow for fraying (too lazy to sew the edges).
#10
I live alone, so food waste can be a problem. I use powdered milk, so I’m not pouring spoiled milk down the drain all the time, and I freeze eggs as well. Just crack them open, beat lightly, pour into the individual wells of a muffin tin, and cover with cling wrap or tin foil. When frozen, you can store them in freezer bags or whatever you prefer. It’s easy to grab what I need and thaw for use, but this can also be done in a more bulk fashion if you prefer.
#11
Granola is so easy to make, and healthy (low-sugar) prepared granola is so expensive! Toast oats in a large pot, stir frequently, add dried fruit, nuts, spices/sweetener and fat, spread on parchment paper-lined pan, and bake.
#12
I bought microfiber cloths and polishing cloths so I now clean all my glass and mirrors with just water. Make many of my own cleaning products such as an all purpose spray cleaner and daily shower cleaner. Make my own laundry detergent and fabric softener. Rarely use a stain remover and mostly rely on Fels Naptha for that. Make my own salad dressings.
#13
Cold brew coffee and oat milk are very easy to make at home and cost about 25% of what it takes to buy it in the store. There’s very simple recipes for both online if you’re interested
#15
I make my own bar soaps: regular (for cleaning stuff) and castile.
Lye is cheap and we get the oils in bulk from Costco. The equipment costs a little bit at first. Over time it's the most affordable way to have quality soap.
#16
Baking soda + dawn dish soap for stubborn stains. I like to dye my hair fun colors and the only thing that really gets out the dye from the tub is this combo. Also works for gettin g dye off your ears and hands.
#18
My fiance used to buy the jugs of Pureleaf tea before I moved in with him and he would probably go through 2-3 a week. I'm a tea girl, so I get gifted a lot of loose leaf tea and started making it by the pitcher at home for us. It may be a small amount but definitely saves us money every month!
#20
@gocleanco taught me that I could mop my tile floors by adding 1 teaspoon of Tide Laundry detergent to a bucket of hot water. I no longer buy concentrated floor mopping solution, and I’m very happy with the fresh laundry scent after mopping! You can also add a small splash of bleach to this water!
#21
A lot of the time I’ll just substitute name brand stuff with the store brand. Advil liquid gels is like 24 dollars. But If you get the store brand boom 8 dollars
#22
I make my own curry powder, but this is mostly because I don't do well on black pepper and want to make a recipe that's better for my health.
I make my own fruit & veg wash from unscented liquid castile soap diluted in a lot of water and put in a squeeze bottle. The premade ones, aside from being stupidly expensive, always seem to have some citrus added to them - and that is horrible for my skin.
#23
Not made but i’ve been using bar soap instead of shower gel it lasts forever ! I use towels instead of paper towels for most spills
#24
Dry shampoo. Plain arrowroot powder will do the trick, add some cocoa if you have dark hair, or clay (fuller's earth) for body if that's your thing.
Instead of febreze, vinegar and ethyl alcohol 50/50 with essential oils or citrus peels for fragrance.
#25
I bought cloth handkerchiefs/cloth napkins at yard sales to use at home in place of tissues, paper napkins, and paper towels. I add white vinegar to the washing machine to remove odors and stains.
I learned to drink my coffee black, so I'm not paying extra for milks or sweeteners.
#26
We’re just recently trying some things.
Vanilla Extract - a bottle of vodka and about a dozen vanilla beans (we bought from Amazon) sliced down one side of the middle to open up. Let sit for about 6 months to a year, shaking weekly. We’re on about month 3. It already smells amazing.
Onion Powder & Garlic Powder - you need a dehydrator and bullet or blender for these. Slice up a bunch of onion or garlic. Dehydrate for however many hours your dehydrator recommends. Blend into powder. We did onions already and I’ll be doing garlic tomorrow.
#27
I use sodium percarbonate as a substitute for OxiClean for laundry and for washing machine cleaner (it's the main active ingredient and less expensive on its own). I use citric acid crystal as a substitute for dishwasher cleaner (again, main ingredient).
#29
I cook at home to reduce going out to eat
I use white vinegar and Castile soap to replace buying other expensive cleaners
#30
I use hydrogen peroxide, vinegar, and Dawn for most of my cleaning. Hydrogen peroxide is great for bathroom use, especially pee stains/smells. The enzymatic cleaners often have it as their active ingredient, and I’ve seen lab tests (with chicken juice) show it works just as well if not better than bleach.
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