I can’t say that I am being that frugal recently. Since we got home from our travels, we have embarked on some big DIY projects and they are costing a small fortune.
Obviously, we are being careful with our cash and doing as much as we can on the cheap but it still breaks my frugal heart to spend all that money.
What I have learnt this week is that sometimes frugality can be well hidden. It doesn’t always have to be an obvious choice. Here are my 5 fabulously frugal actions from this week:
Hiring a van
I spent a lot of money on hiring a van this week. A lot of our furniture ad stuff was still being stored at my parents house. And they live 150 miles away from us.
There were some big items that we need to collect and a lot of other stuff too. In reality, it would have taken us several trips to collect all our stuff, which would have cost A LOT of fuel.
Therefore, even though we spent a fair bit on the van, overall it probably cost about a third of what it would have done if we had tried to get everything with our car. Ultimately, it was the frugal choice.
Borrow not buy
Sometimes I can feel a bit uncomfortable about asking to borrow things from people. But in my head, I know that it is a smart decision both financially and for the environment.
We’ve borrowed a few items this week, rather than purchase our own. I’ve borrowed a jet washer and a foot measurer from my mate that lives down the road. And some plastering tools from my parents.
Their generosity helps me make improvements to my home without completely busting the budget. And I can order my kids some shoes that will fit.
Free music
Dan and I have had an offer on our phone contracts for a while for a free Apple music account. We are not big listeners to music on our own, preferring audiobooks and podcasts, but we do like to have music in the background at home.
Now, we are back we decided to take advantage of this. It has been great. Access to lots of free music and we’ve enjoyed dancing together as a family.
Free music is a great virtual date night too!
Upcycling furniture
A couple of years ago, Dan made some furniture for us out of old pallets. We couldn’t afford garden furniture at the time so they were really appreciated.
Now though, they were starting to look a bit jaded and weather-worn, but I couldn’t part with them. Mostly because they fit perfectly in one corner of the garden.
Instead, I use some leftover fence paint that I had used for the kids’ playhouse and painted them white. I added some Victorian style tiles to the table and now it looks fab.
Grow your own
With gone big on sustainable living since we got back to our house. Never has there felt like a better time to start growing your own food.
The first project that we started when we were back in my Grandad’s house was strawberries and this week got to taste our first one. Emily said it was delicious, but the rest of us will have to wait to see if she was telling the truth.
If you have to buy things use apps to save you more money!
