Book It!

When you think of the best place to get a bargain in town you may think of your favorite discount retailer, consignment shop or thrift store but actually the best deals in town are at your local library. You can get any book you want generally, either from their shelves or they can order it for you from another library. They also have magazines, newspapers, music CDs and DVDs to check out for free and programs for all members of the family that are also free. Don't forget about your friendly local librarian who can act as free book recommender and fact bloodhound if you have a question. Going on vacation with the kids and dreading the endless arguments that erupt in the back seat? Go to the library to pick up some books on CD to keep the kids occupied. The library is an ideal place to get books you think you will only read once or twice and it can allow you to give other books or magazines test drives before you decide to buy them (i.e. cookbooks). So bike on over to your local library and explore all the good deals that they happily offer.

Bike It

Okay you already know biking is good for your health and good for the environment. How good for your health? Half an hour of not too strenous biking and your last Krispy Creme doughnut is cancelled out or about 8 calories for every minute you bike! How good for the environment? Imagine breathing in the air from your tailpipe compared to the air that follows your bike. It is also much more frugal. The current government rate for operating a motor vehicle is $.50 a mile. That means by leaving your car parked in your driveway and taking your bike instead to go 2 miles to and from the grocery store, video store, library you are saving $2 and wear and tear on your car with each trip and getting environmental AND health benefits. I commute to work on my bike, do errands on my bike and go to the gym on my bike thus saving myself from having to use the super boring stationary bikes. If you haven't used yours recently, get it out, dust it off, pump up the tires and start pedaling. You'll be glad you did. Now if I could just find a "powered by chocolate" t-shirt to wear while riding.

Spicy Post

Usually health food stores are expensive but there is one section that will save you lots of money if you cook or bake - buying your spices from the bulk food section. You can buy as little or as much as you want. Aim for an amount that will last you the 6 months that is recommended for maximum spice freshness. So whenever I run out of fennel I buy a little and if I run out of cumin or oregano I buy a LOT because I seldom use fennel but I use cumin by the truckload when cooking. If you compare their prices per oz to what they charge for jarred spices in the grocery store you will be floored by the savings. I also use quite a bit of yeast between homemade bread, cinnamon rolls and pizza dough. I can buy enough for a jar full for my fridge there for only a couple dollars from the bulk section of the health food store compared to the $8-$9 for the jar at the store or even worse value the $2-$3 for the little 3 pack. The spices seem much fresher at the health food store than from the jars at the grocery. So keep your old jars, rinse them out and refill with fresher and much cheaper spices from the health food store bulk item section. This not only saves you money but you are reusing your jars instead of buying new ones and it is cheaper to transport the spices alone than to transport the spices in all those jars thus you are also helping the environment.

recycling that cashmere sweater that you can't throw away

I try not to spend a lot of money on clothes and generally either buy on deep discount at places like T.J. Maxx or Marshalls or from consignment or Goodwill. I can rarely find affordable cashmere sweaters and who doesn't love the soft, silky feel of cashmere. Well one lucky day I did find a sweater that was affordable because it was so thin it appeared to have been made out of the floor scrappings from the cashmere factory but who am I to complain, it was cheap and deliciously soft. I loved the sweater and wore it until it got a hole in a rather conspicuous place (think easy access for breast feeding). I am not a pack rat but I could not bring myself to throw this beloved and otherwise still good sweater out. It would be like shooting your loyal workhorse after it reached retirement age instead of putting it out to pasture. So I made a scarf. I cut out two equally wide strips from the sweater and sewed a zigzag stitch around all sides of these two strips to prevent unraveling. I then sewed two of the short ends together as the middle of my new scarf. This gave me a wonderfully soft, cozy and long scarf that I can wrap around and around and around my neck. Very easy and you give yourself a cashmere hug every time you leave the house on cold winter days. This is not limited to cashmere. I have actually unraveled other beloved sweaters of a thicker weave and used that yarn to knit a scarf. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Re-purpose!

New Candles from Old Candles or Let there be (cheap) Light

We use a lot of candles around here. No, we aren't Amish or living off the grid. We just enjoy candles. We use them when eating dinner and have them throughout the house for when we want a nice warm light. Candles are however expensive to purchase new. This is how I get around that. I buy all my candles at either Salvation Army or our annual Humane Society Garage sale (unscented only, I do not want chemical perfumes in my home). Through these two cheap methods I have a stockpile of both taper and large candles that would make a survivalist proud. But my savings doesn't end there. That only gets a silver medal in the green/frugal Olympics and I'm going for the GOLD. Often you cannot burn the last part of a candle but still have wax left and in the case of a large candle it can equal a good chunk of perfectly fine wax. I toss these ends into an old pan that I use exclusively for candles. When I have a good amount I round up some candle jars in need of candles and cut wicks for them from wick I buy at the craft store (the most expensive part of the process - I've also used embroidery floss but that tends to flop over and be hard to light). I put the bottom of this wick through an old wick holder from an already burned candle. I then wrap the top of the wick around an old disposable chop stick and hang it over the jar so it is centered and hanging down the middle to the bottom of the container. I now heat up my old wax either on the stove or in the microwave and once it is liquid I pour it into the waiting jars (be careful it is hot and I'm going out on a limb to guess it is also flammable). Once your newly made candle dries there is a rather deep indentation in the middle which, if it bothers you, you can fill by reheating the wax left in the pan. My last batch was birthed from the remnants of a big red candle and several white candles giving me several lovely new rose colored candles (as seen in photo above). These also make good gifts and you could layer different colors if you have lots of time on your hands and a craft streak in you that is roaring to get out.

City Chickens

We live in a town of about 40,000 that allows its residents to keep backyard chickens. We took the plunge about 5 years ago and have NEVER regreted it. Delicious eggs, non-stop comedy routines and even an occasional cuddle. We converted a corner of our shed/garage into the coop to keep them out of the wet and wind. 2 lights in the winter is the only heat source with homemade blankets around the outside of the cage to further prevent draft. A heated dog watering dish prevents their water from freezing. Add a little hay and some chickens and you are in business. For our household of 2 we have 3 hens but only 2 are currently laying which gives us about 10 free range eggs a week. They come running from all corners of the yard whenever they hear the back door because they know either we have treats in hand or they can talk us into some (they are a little spoiled). They love grapes, peanuts, stale popcorn, crackers, bread, leftover rice, oatmeal or tortilla chips along with their crumbles. They take about 5 minutes a day work but we spend more time than that with them usually. You will get beautiful eggs with super yellow and firm yolks and thick shells. If I lay in the hammock they always sit on the ground around me and nap to keep me company or one will fly up to sleep on my chest for a bit while I read my book. My neighbors may think I'm nuts but I find it endearing. Another bonus, if you are collecting those pesky japanese beetles they will gobble them out of your hand along with any grubs you dig up in the yard. If your community allows them we highly recommend getting a few birds. You can learn much, much more at backyardchickens.com including coop designs and information about different breeds. The cost of day old chicks is minimal (just a couple dollars a piece) and the cost of food and oyster shell is also cheap but building a coop does require some investment of time and money. For us, knowing that our eggs are coming from happy chickens who enjoy the outdoors and are able to live a normal chicken life instead of being confined in cages in a horrible warehouse makes the investment more than worth it.

homemade sugar sprinkles

Sugar sprinkles are easy to make. Simply mix a drop or two of food coloring with plain sugar and sprinkle over cupcakes or cookies. Make whatever color you like, have fewer containers in your cupboard and save a bundle on decorating your baked goods. WAY cheaper than the $2.50 for you pay for the exact same product at the store.