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The Ethics of Samples

Free samples can be wonderful. Trying out a product can save you from costly mistakes in buying it, if you find that you don’t like it. You can be adventurous and try out something new that you might not otherwise have experienced. For some, the super sample people, it is an opportunity to reduce your budget by taking advantage of getting things for free. I know one lady who never buys perfume, because she is stocked with samples from the fragrance counter. And the samples may even come in handy when you your supplies are running low. For example, let’s … Continue reading →

New Uses for Shaving Cream

A while back, I got a great deal on shaving cream. I was able to buy 20 cans of it for 10 cents a piece, using sales and coupons. The only problem, of course, is that my husband uses an electric shaver most of the time. I reserved one can for my husband for his occasional blade shave, and then I gave five of the cans to my father, who does use shaving cream. I donated ten cans of the shaving cream to a shelter through our church, but that still left me with four cans of shaving cream. I … Continue reading →

Stock Up on Freebies for the Outdoorsy Guy/Gal

Okay, now that the holidays are almost behind me, I am thinking of birthday and “just because” gifts. For immediate friends and family, I like to sign up for freebies I know they will like. Clif Bar is sponsoring a marathon training kit. In the kit, you can receive booklets with training tips and multiple samples of their product. In case you are wondering what a Clif Bar actually is, it is an energy bar–one of the very first that was widely available to outdoorsy people. It was usually sold in places such as Eastern Mountain Sports. Clif Bar is … Continue reading →

Free Sample Stockpile: Creative Uses

I love getting free samples wherever I can. In an earlier blog, Top Places for Free Samples, I listed the best sources for everything from shampoo to coloring books. But now that you have all of those great freebie samples, what do you do with them? Well, here are some of the ways I use up my free sample stockpile. My favorite way to use free samples is by creating my own custom travel kits. I have a kit for my husband and myself, one for my older two children and one for the baby. The sample sizes are perfect … Continue reading →

How Long Will Your Food Last

Storing food and stockpiling is a great idea for being prepared. One issue that can arise is how long is it before food expires? How long do canned goods last, and how long can you store your staples? I came across this dilemma just two days ago when I went through my pantry to rotate some food, having a plan to use up some older items in meals in order to add some new ones and keep everything fresh. I came across ajar of salsa. It contained no expiration date to guide me, and I hadn’t marked one on the … Continue reading →

Need a Frugal Vacuum Solution

Can you come up with a creative solution to help me save my vacuum? Most of our family life, we have been living with hard floors in our homes. We usually prefer hardwood, but will take tile for bathrooms and for the kitchen. When we moved into our current home, there was a dingy carpet covering the front hallway and the living room, and another covering the bathroom floor. We quickly pulled up the living room carpet and finally got rid of the one in the bathroom as well. However, since the time that we have moved in, my husband … Continue reading →

Inexpensive Bathroom Cleaners and Tools

How can you get your bathroom clean without spending a fortune on harsh chemicals that don’t do much anyway? Here are my best picks for bathroom cleaners, based on value and effectiveness. Comet Comet cleanser has been around since, well, I don’t know when. But I do remember my mother using it all of the time. A can of this cleanser is less than a dollar. It contains a little but of bleach and is great for cleaning up stains on tile, including water stains and mildew. Toothbrush An old toothbrush is my favorite tool for bathroom cleaning. You can … Continue reading →

Shop at Home to Save: The Sources 2

If you were wondering where I get many of my products frugally, read on. This is a continuation of Shop at Home to Save: The Sources. Shower gel, body wash and soap Things to get people clean seem to be a main staple of holiday gifts. My main source of these products is from gifts (hmm, are people trying to tell me something)? Also, holiday gift baskets and packages abound at up to 90 percent off after Christmas. Free samples are also another source of these products. With the body wash, I was able to stock up on Dove and … Continue reading →

Ideas for Volunteering with a Toddler or Preschooler

Making the time to do good works is important for all families. Getting children started early with the concept of volunteerism is a wonderful way to make the acts so much a part of their lives that it comes natural for them. One of the added benefits of volunteering with your toddler or preschooler is that it may give you the means and motivation to volunteer yourself. Isn’t it difficult to carve out the time to volunteer when you are busy taking care of little ones. Making volunteering a family affair solves that problem! So how can you get started? … Continue reading →

Selling Versus Donating

What do you do with all of your extra stuff? We seem to accumulate a lot of items, even when we are frugal and try to spend less. One example is baby and children’s clothing. We will gladly take any clothing in the sizes we need or may need in the future. We often get clothing as hand me downs, at clearance sales and at thrift stores and garage sales. Sometimes it is a better bargain to offer someone a flat price for that box of clothing (or books, or electronics) that they have been trying to sell all day, … Continue reading →