FRUGAL LIVING CHALLENGE 2010, part 1. (Living on £4,000 a year)

NualaBuala

Will be interested in your shampoo experiment Ceridwen, I saw value soap in Mr T for 29c for 3 and they would last ages. Resisted buying as I just don't need them.

Gilligansyle, I do seem to have a bit of toilet paper stockpile, don’t I! :rotfl:

Soapnuts are the husks of a berry and they contain saponins (soapy chemicals) that are biodegradable. You pop a few in a sock or cotton bag that usually comes with them and stick it in the drum. I sometimes sprinkle a little essential oil on to give a nice smell. Some people say they’re not great for heavy-duty stains but my stuff tends not to be all that dirty so they do just fine. I add a scoop of cheapo Oxy Bleach or Washing Soda if I think they need a boost. They leave clothes so nice and soft and are great for sensitive skin. I bought mine from Oxfam but you can probably get them cheaper online.



To make liquid soap/shampoo/washing up liquid you just boil a few up in water for about 10-15 mins. You can even use ones that have already been used in the washing machine. The higher temp of boiling seems to release even more saponins. I’ve heard some people pop the “nuts” into the cutlery basket of the dishwasher and they do the job fine. I am quite a soapnut fan, can you tell?

I find the same about reading and I have to be careful with the library as I’ve been caught out with fines before. I now have reminders EVERYWHERE so I won’t forget! Good luck with your bookless quest!

On the shampoo front, I get great results using approx 1 tablespoon of bicarb in a small bowl of hot water (about 300mls, maybe more). The more dilute, the gentler it is on your hair and as time goes on I'm using less bicarb. I smooth a little (a nail scraping) coconut oil over my hair either just before I wash or overnight sometimes. Then wet my hair with hot water and pour the mixture over my head – you get a sort of soapy slippery feel. My theory is that the bicarb is saponifying the coconut oil or my hair sebum. But don’t take this as fact. All I know is it gets my hair just as clean as shampoo, costs hardly anything and my hair and scalp are happy. And I don’t feel bad about what’s going down the drain. I give a good rinse with water and then I rinse either with cold tea, cool water or about a tablespoon of white vinegar diluted with tepid water. All of these but especially the vinegar seem to smooth my hair. The scalp likes an acidic pH so after the alkaline bicarb, this seems to restore things to how they should be. I leave the rinse on while I wash/shave my legs etc and then rinse with plain water. The chip shop smell is gone by the time my hair is dry but you could always spritz with some diluted essential oil. I used to have really greasy hair and scalp that needed washing every day or two and now it only needs it twice a week – the gaps are getting longer all the time.

Jen, this doesn’t foam at all but I read of someone who makes shampoo from soapnuts (above – costs pennies to make) and puts a small bit in a squeezy bottle, shakes it till it foams then squirts it over her head. This website has lots of info on homemade hair stuff and their sister site, The Beauty Bottle has info on homemade skin stuff I think. For my face I use the oil cleansing method (OCM; there’s a thread in the Health and Beauty forum here on MSE) – mixed a little olive oil, castor oil (50/50) and a drop each of tea tree and lavender. Massage gently into my face till blackheads pop out – sorry, I know that’s gross! Then get a clean flannel soaked in hot water and wrung out and I steam my face a little and wipe off the extra oil. I rinse the flannel and wipe till it’s gone but that leaves my skin “moisturised” so I don’t need to use anything else. I think some folks use jojoba oil as moisturiser, just a drop or two. Warning, the castor oil is drying so people use less or none if they have dry skin. But there’s lots of info on it – just google OCM.

IOIWE, hope the info above helps – I stockpiled a LOT of shampoo. No fear of it being discontinued though. It was just that I never checked how much I had left in the cupboard. Lesson learned!`

Lily – thank you for the hugs. I love hugs and they always help so in my eyes you are indeed a legend.:A




This evening will be cheap - I am feeling yuk and fluey (perhaps after my jab yesterday?) so I don't feel like eating. Have dozed most of the afternoon so hope I can stay awake and sip water, feel feverish and dehydrated.


Hope you all have a fabby, fun and frugal evening.


:eek: Sorry for the long post!

Fishcake_Random

Erme- I haven't made clothes from duvet covers but I cut most of our older ones up and hemmed them for cot sheets for our impending arrival.

edaniels1983

http://www.salveo.co.uk/health/eco/soapnuts.asp?OVRAW=soapnuts&OVKEY=soapnuts&OVMTC=standard&OVADID=5385139031&OVKWID=21384387531&OVCAMPGID=162811031&OVADGRPID=1816225919

soapnuts are on offer here. is this cheap??

pagangirl

forgot to thank whoever mentioned Mr T's value tissues 29p box - I got some to try as I usually get 'em from Home Brrrrgains at 50p mansize but Mr T's well better (luvvly n soft) so thanks for that - will be saving more pennies !

Have finally got my back side into gear, gone to main MSE site and will be sorting savings account out on Thursday (have made appointment). Building Society got taken over, just never got round to updating books while working - its amazing what I've got done since finishing work

Hope everyone has had good frugalling day?

NualaBuala

edaniels1983 wrote: »

http://www.salveo.co.uk/health/eco/soapnuts.asp?OVRAW=soapnuts&OVKEY=soapnuts&OVMTC=standard&OVADID=5385139031&OVKWID=21384387531&OVCAMPGID=162811031&OVADGRPID=1816225919

soapnuts are on offer here. is this cheap??

Looks good to me but someone else might have done some shopping around. There is a soapnuts thead somewhere on MSE, will try to find it for you.
My Oxfam Fair Trade ones were €9/£6 for 500g.

I wanted to add a note to recommend Lidl's 100% recycled toilet roll - green and cheap. It's thicker than Aldi's so lasts longer and is the cheapest toilet paper in any of my local supermarkets at €2.59 for 10.

Evangelising on green cheap things over!

Edit: some MSE soapnuts threads, I think there might be more.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=174684
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=548092

rictus123

Is everyone watching soaps that they are not on here?

xnatalie81x

Found 3.50 change in car (OH's so free cash) and bought

2x value whol bread 1.00
2x princes salmon paste 1.00 (75p buy 2 for £1)
value jam 34p
flora buttery 75p (special)

= 3.09

dinner was 2 salmon paste sarnies and 1/2 value rice (approved food) with 2 tbsp bbq sauce (approved foods 33p jar so 11p worth) - total cost 50p it was lovely too - kids and OH already fed themselves

No food shop here till Fri due to cash flow probs (600 due thu but until then NOTHING! in fact minus lol)

grandma247

Not me rictus Oh watching ice road truckers. You seem to be doing well with your budget.

We went to mr t again tonight and got a load more woopsies. Sandwich meats, pasta sauce and yoghurts among other things. Lots gone in the outside freezer. I really need to use some of the inside freezer stuff up so I can defrost and clean it.

candygirl

Hi fellow frugallers:j
Had a cheapo day today and only spent about £5 on toddler group with DGD, pies and bread:D:Dl
Am getting a free freezer off my Mum, so can do more batch cooking, and freeze it, and I got rid of my breadmaker on freecycle today as I am not really eating it anymore:o

babyboysmommy

Kept spending to a minimum today. I posted a book I sold on Amazon at a cost of £1.04 & paid £1 entry to the soft play centre, we took our own drinks & snacks