What is living frugal?

What is the difference between living frugal and being cheap?

What are some things I can do today to easily start?

These are just some of the questions we will discuss along the way. Stay tuned for some amazing, easy, recipes along the way; after all, this is a food blog!

So, before I started trying the Frugal lifestyle, I was so misconceived about what Frugal really was. Like most people I believed frugal to be another word for being cheap…..and who likes to be called cheap?

Actually, this could be farther from the truth.

Living Frugal means finding ways to stretch a product or way of life to get the MOST out of it. It also means finding new ways to use products that you are conventionally not used to. You have heard of ways to use things like coffee grounds for your garden or as a face scrub. This is a way to use coffee grounds frugally.

You aren’t giving up anything, you aren’t switching to a cheaper coffee, you are just using them in a non-conventional way. I love my Hazelnut coffee from Melaleuca and will never change. They have the best coffee by far as well as eco-friendly cleaning products. There is so much that they offer and the $19/year is well worth it.

Another way to live frugal is balancing your time and money wisely. You don’t want to always go for the cheaper version of something if it is going to cost you a lot of your time, right? So, finding the balance between time and money is one of the Most frugal tips in my opinion and this can take a lot of trial and error.

Especially for people like me who for years tend to be drawn to the things that look like a “deal” or the many DIY projects I’ve tried to do only to hire someone in the end because it was taking me waaaaayyyy too long and I spent just about as much money than I would have to hire a professional. (we’ve all been there don’t lie lol)

Being cheap is the opposite of being frugal because being cheap means just buying and looking for the cheapest way or product. This isn’t necessarily the best way, especially if you will have to buy the product multiple times because it breaks or wears down so fast. One thing I don’t like to go cheap on (and I’ve learned this the hard way) is laptops. For years I have bought cheaper laptops because I couldn’t bring myself to buy that more expensive one but have had to buy a laptop every single year because they always tend to break! So, I have learned to spend that extra $200-$400 on a better laptop. In the end, it saves money, time, and frustration.

Ok, so now that we have the differences between being frugal and being cheap out of the way let’s talk about ways you can start being frugal today.

With all of the crazy stuff going on in the world today, NOW is the perfect time to start trying to live frugal. Why? Well, simply because we aren’t going to as many places as before because of covid. I don’t know where you are living but here there are still strict guidelines on just about everything.

They just opened up in dining eating yesterday but still are limiting the number of people in the restaurant as well as still wearing a mask and using hand sanitizer. Some places are still taking temperatures at the door and using extreme cleaning measures. (which I am greatly thankful for)

My family and I don’t really go anywhere these days unless absolutely necessary. I really don’t like going into grocery stores so I have been using either a grocery delivery service or pick up. Some things I have to go into the stores for but we are very careful as to what we touch and always use hand sanitizer afterward. This helps all of the unnecessary aisle wandering and putting things into your shopping cart that you don’t necessarily need, therefore saving us money. I don’t know about your significant other but my husband is the worlds’ worst about putting junk food into the cart and going off of the list when shopping.

Another reason that this is the best time to go frugal is that a lot of people are without work and/or haven’t been able to work as much therefore not bringing in as much income as they are used to. So, going frugal will definitely help now and in the long run with expenses and finances. Who doesn’t like saving money and saving the planet in the meantime….win/win!

Ok, so some things you can do today to become frugal are:

1. Meal plan- this will always be my number one tip for becoming more frugal. Meal planning not only helps you save money but also saves you time in the long run and sanity when it comes to that annoying question…’ “What’s for dinner?”
If you are new to meal planning my tip is to start with a little at a time. This means don’t try and do a whole month’s worth of meal planning in one day, you will get overwhelmed. Start out slow and don’t panic!

If you have a huge family, maybe take 3 days and plan out those days. If you are a family of two, take a week and plan out that week. When meal planning ALWAYS try and use the stuff you have before looking into exotic recipes that you want to try. This will cut down on waste and save you money in the process. If you want to read my full post about Meal planning/ Freezer meal planning you can read it in my Meal planning tips and tricks post.

Better yet, if you don’t want to even deal with the hassle of meal planning I can take care of that for you! With my meal plans, every one of them comes with a full weeks’ worth of meals, a detailed shopping list, and recipes. All are super affordable and will save you time and money in the long run. Don’t see anything that tickles your fancy? Email me and I will comprise a meal plan that specifically fits you and your lifestyle.

2. Find more than one way to use things. Do you drink coffee or even tea? Most people do drink coffee or tea and you can use these two things in more than one way. First, when making coffee you can reuse the old coffee grounds in your next pot until your coffee filter is full, just add some fresh grounds on top and viola. Also, you can use coffee and tea grounds (or tea bags) in your compost for your garden. Tea and coffee both provide key nutrients for your plants and help them grow beautifully.

Another way to use coffee grounds is to use them in a scrub for your body or face. I really love this because the face and body scrubs can get expensive especially when you are allergic to the fragrances like me. Another way to use tea bags is a beauty hack! Use them on your eyes to help with dark circles. There are many more uses for tea and coffee if you search the internet or better yet Pinterest! But, these are the easiest ones that I have used so far.

Think of some things that can be used in other ways. Examples are eggshells- these can be used in gardens and are amazing for plants. Toothpaste- there are so many uses for toothpaste (make sure to cut open the tube before throwing away you get much much more out of it.)

Hair ties- again so many uses. One use is taking old hair ties and using them for scarves on a hanger to free up space in your closet.

Scraps like the ends of onions, celery, peppers, garlic husks, all of the ends or scraps of food you don’t eat throw it in a bag, place it in the freezer and use them to make a stock! I do this all the time and I have saved so much on stocks, not to mention I used scraps that I would have just thrown out! This is one of the Best frugal tips out there in my opinion.

3. Try limiting or better yet eliminating paper waste products. By buying paper plates and paper towels you are not only wasting money but aren’t helping our amazing planet. I suggest only buying these products when you are hosting a very large gathering. When you do have to use them, recycle them. Some places will take paper plates and paper towels with their cardboard pickups. If you want a better more eco-friendly version for paper towels look into bamboo towels. These things are amazing, machine washable, and a roll lasts a very long time. One roll lasts us a whole month! Take that Bounty! Every Frugal person either limits their paper waste or gets rid of it together.

4. Budget! I know, I know this word scares a lot of people and it scared me when I first started to budget. Don’t try and be superman/superwoman and get all fancy all in one day! Take an hour, just an hour, sit down and come up with a list of EVERY single thing you spent money on in the past two months. I’m talking about food, clothing, hobbies, bills, mortgage, loans, that kitchen thing a ma-bob that’s been sitting in your drawer that you never use… LOL. After an hour is up, take a break until another day as to not get overwhelmed or a headache.

After you’ve gotten everything together, start categorizing. When categorizing bills put into two categories- Ones that don’t change prices (subscriptions, phone bill, etc.) and ones that do (water, electric, etc). To know exactly where your money is going is a huge wake-up call for most people.

Take a good long look at everything and figure out where you can cut some expenses. Do you really need Cable? Do you need that subscription? How much are you spending on hobbies and things that don’t bring you income? Do you really need a new pair of jeans every month? These are just a few examples of things to consider, there are much much more. They save every Frugal person thousands each month.

5. Invest in a freezer and make Freezer meals. Freezer meals are my absolute favorite to make and I take one day and can make 30-50 meals in one day. You don’t have to buy a huge expensive freezer, just big enough for your family. Tips on buying freezers: Wait until they are on sale of 40% or more and do your research (being frugal involves a lot of research) before buying any type of big appliance. Get one you really want because it is an investment and should last you for years and years. Measure the space you want to put it before going shopping and bring a tape measure with you.

6. Try and coupon but don’t extreme coupon. So, I have a love-hate relationship with couponing. I tried the whole extreme couponing and found that it was taking up way too much of my time. Remember in the beginning when I said the balance between time and money is crucial? This is the area where I think your time is better spent elsewhere.

Now, that’s not to say I don’t use coupons! I use coupons all the time but I only use them when I know I use that product and it’s at least 50 cents or more. I don’t spend hours or days finding and printing coupons that I will never use. By the way that wasted a lot of my ink, so, therefore, wasted money…ugh..

So, my advice is don’t ever use a coupon just because it’s a good deal for something you don’t use already. Only use coupons on things you already use don’t make a special trip just because you saw $1 off Ragu pasta sauce when you don’t even like Ragu pasta sauce! Another piece of advice is only to print off coupons you are immediately going to use. Don’t spend an hour printing (and wasting ink) on coupons you aren’t going to use for two weeks.

7. Use apps that save money like Ibotta (if you want more money plug in my referral code My referral links:
https://ibotta.com – referral code is ftayplr, check-out 51, GET Upside (Used for gas rewards), Fetch rewards (Fetch Rewards- referral code is J7EGN) Coin-out, Receipt-hog, and Receipt Pal. I use every single one of these apps and you can submit the same receipt to every one of these. I have saved thousands by using these apps and this is another time where my time is best spent on capturing receipts and saving money than not. I have saved so much with these apps, they have paid for two vacations and helped us move twice.

8. Like before with the paper products, try cutting out All disposable products. These can be things like zip loc bags, lady products, plastic bottles, one-time use foil containers. Instead use reusable silicone zip loc bags, reusable pads or diva cups, glass bottles, and regular dishes. This can be somewhat difficult at first (especially the lady products) so try eliminating one at a time. We have saved so much with switching to these reusable pads. At first, I was so against this but after just one time I was hooked. Not only is it super easy to clean (just throw in the washing machine) but they hold much more than any disposable pad I’ve ever used and much more comfortable.

9. Set your thermostat at one temperature and leave it there! Don’t fluctuate the temperature so much on your thermostat and try to keep it low in the winter and high in the summer. That’s not to say keep it 80 degrees in the summer and 50 in the winter but don’t put your thermostat at 60 in the summer and 80 in the winter. I have found that 78 in the summer and 62 in the winter are perfect for our family. You want to do what is best for you and your family.

10. Learn to love leftovers or stop making so much at a time. We eat leftovers for our lunch almost every day. This not only cuts back on our grocery bill but also doesn’t waste food. Over 40% of food is wasted by each household each year! If you don’t want to eat it the next day then freeze it with the date and have it for another meal another day. These will last up to 6 months in your freezer. Use your leftovers in a creative way for lunch if you don’t want the exact same meal the next day. You can easily google what to do with leftover ______ and you will find tons of ideas.

So, go forth and BE FRUGAL MY FRIENDS!

Thanks, guys and be sure to pin this for your future frugal reference! Don’t forget to get your FREE Meal Plan here to help start you on your frugal journey!