Cutting Water Costs Without Cutting Hygiene

Right now I have three teenager daughters living at home. Anyone who has at least one teen girl knows what this means. For moms and dads still changing diapers or holding their daughter upright while she learns to rider a two-wheeler, enjoy these simpler times. What having a teenager girl — or two, or three — around the house means is that parents never get more than ten seconds of peace and quiet, clothes are strewn about like the local Forever 21 just exploded, you worry about boyfriends and underage drinking, and the water bill costs as much as the … Continue reading

The Best Laundry Detergents for Baby Clothes

Washing your baby’s clothing separately from the laundry belonging to the rest of the family is a very good idea. Everyday soil, perfumes, body lotions, wool fibers and other additives and even clothing dyes from other clothing can get on your baby’s clothing during the washing process and can irritate young skin. Regular laundry detergents can also be an irritant. In my experience, certain brands of laundry detergent work better than others at cleaning baby clothes but remaining gentle on baby skin. Here are my picks. All Free and Clear This is the main laundry detergent I used for my … Continue reading

The Eight Biggest Laundry Mistakes 2

Yesterday, after I posted the first part of this subject, we got a lot of interesting comments! Go check out the post if you haven’t seen it: The Eight Biggest Laundry Mistakes. Now, let us continue. The red sock mistake. How many of use have accidentally let a red sock or other item in with the lights or whites, which means again that you’ll have that pink underwear. Not checking for stains before washing. My husband frequently comes home with pen marks on his shirts. With a little careful pretreatment, I can usually get them out, but not if they … Continue reading

How Long Should Your Appliances Last?

When you have to repair or replace a fancy refrigerator only two years after you purchased the unit, it can be frustrating. Yet, the 1960s dryer that you inherited from your parents is still going strong. Are modern appliances not built as well? Do refrigerators die out faster than do dryers? There are a few different factors that may determine the life of your appliance. Electronic components such as sensors and computerized displays tend to be difficult to repair or replace and can also be the most likely parts of an appliance to fail. The simpler the better here. More … Continue reading

Frugal Living Month in Review: June 2008

What a happy month is June, filled with the renewal of spring and the promise of summer. In the last month, we have shared so many ideas for frugal living and saving money. This past month has seen some pretty big increases in food, gas and other items (look for an upcoming post about strawberries increasing more than 100 percent). Now more than ever, it is important to save money where we can. This is why I decided to do a month in review. June 2nd Frugal Living Review: May 26th Through June 1st Garage sale shopping has got to … Continue reading

Frugal Living Review: June 23rd Through June 29th

From birthday parties and summer activities to doing the laundry, there are plenty of ways to save money in your life. The best way to be frugal? Read the Frugal Living Blog of course and put some or all of the advice into practice! June 23rd Frugal Goodie Bags Birthday parties for kids can be fun, although the cost of these parties can quickly add up. One of the costs that can quickly get out of hand are the goodie bags. Although some parents do get very elaborate with goodie bags (one family gave out $50 toy store gift cards … Continue reading

Minimizing Your Wash Will Maximize Your Savings 3

Do you find yourself constantly doing laundry? Each load may be costing you between $2 and $3. I have been talking about ways to minimize doing laundry and therefore maximize savings. If you missed the first two posts in this series, catch up here: Minimizing Your Wash Will Maximize Your Savings and Minimizing Your Wash Will Maximize Your Savings 2. Let’s continue with our daily scenario… Now try this. Wake up in a t-shirt and shorts. Putter around the house, then change to a more presentable outfit to take the kids to the park. Return from the park and change … Continue reading

Guide to Six Laundry Bleaching Agents

When you are in the laundry aisle of the grocery store, do you automatically grab the same kind of bleach each time because bleach is bleach? In fact, there are several types of bleaching agents that can be used on clothing. Each one has its own strengths and weaknesses and are more appropriate for some types of clothing than are others. Here is a guide to common and uncommon bleaching agents that are available right now. Chlorine Bleach Chlorine bleach is the old standby that we usually associate with whitening our whites. It is the strongest and fastest-acting bleaching agent … Continue reading

Minimizing Your Wash Will Maximize Your Savings 2

Cutting down on your laundry will not only make life a little easier for you, but it can also save money. If you missed the first article in this series, click here: Minimizing Your Wash Will Maximize Your Savings. Now let’s talk about combining your wash loads. Washing clothes on cold means that there is very little if any dye transfer, so go ahead and wash reds in with your other darks. (For the very first time with new red garments, I suggest hand soaking them first to get out the loose dye, although I’ve never needed to do this … Continue reading

Minimizing Your Wash Will Maximize Your Savings

Let’s face it, no one really wants to do endless piles of wash every week, right? Minimizing your wash, besides making laundry easier, has the added benefit of increasing the amount of money that stays in your pocket. Less laundry can mean less time that you can spend earning or saving money through frugal practices. It can also mean less laundry detergent, less electricity or gas cost and less wear and tear on your clothes. So other than living in dirty clothes all of the time, how can you minimize your wash? Check out the following suggestions. Use an extra … Continue reading