What frugal habits have you inherited ?

Skint_yet_Again

As a child I remember my mum darning and mending and making our clothes, knitting, sewing, crochet and macrame but I have to admit I did not inherit any of her skills... I can just about manage to sew on a button or tack up a hem

I did however inherit her frugal habit of "waste not, want not" and use up even the smallest of leftovers, re-use tea bags, keep even dregs of gravy to make curry sauce etc

Maybe you inherited some useful habit or piece of advice from your parents, grandparents, or someone else who made an OS impact on your life which is still relevant and can be of help to us all in our OS lives today ?

thriftyniftyme

I have a terrible frugal habit that I suspect many on here have: the habit of cutting right back in the bad times and of spending again as soon as I can afford to again! It's not a good thing; I learned a lot of valuable advice but am only now learning that these are a sensible choice and a desirable lifestyle rather than a second best because "needs must". I am only now really learning the true legacy of my frugal inheritance!

[Deleted User]

being brought up during the 1940s-50s and rationing and a very frugal scots Mum contributed to me being the person I am today.Nothing was wasted in our house when I was a little girl I think we were recycling many years before it suddenly 'came into fashion'
I just can't abide waste in any form at all.That doesn't mean to say that I am either mean or 'careful' just sensible.I don't have take away food or junk food ,mainly because its overpriced and I prefer to know what I'm eating .I am always amazsed at how some folk think that by buying 'instant food' they will instantly be filled up.How long does it take to make a sandwich for goodness sake.I would no more buy one they fly in the air.If I am going out for the day I'll nearly always take a flask or a drink with me Why spend 2 or three pounds buying what you have indoors and making a small flask takes probably about 2 minutes.I enjoy spending what cash I have on other things rather than filling the pockets of large conglomerates with my hard earned pension.
I can't see the point in having all the lights in the house on when your in only one room of it and as for heating well whats wrong with putting a jumper on rather than the heating if there is a slight nip in the air.I will happily spend my cash on things I like and enjoy and can afford to do so by being careful not to waste money .Is it so hard to streeetch meat to an extra meal to go into the freezer for another day.Last night I had a lovely beef casserole that was part of some left overs from a couple of weeks ago that had been portioned and frozen.It was delicious and made me anouther dinner .That's not being mean, its using food to its full potential.I wouldn't buy two chicken breasts for a meal if I could buy for only a little more a chicken, and make half a dozen meals at least out of it I always cook my chicken in the slow cooker that way I get all of the meat off of it plus I get some great stock to make soup with as well for nothing.
Veggies get eaten or made into soup.and by using what I have in store I can make what I buy work twice as hard for half the money, simples as they say on the t.v.
Talking of t.v. thats another thing that goes on when I want to watch something and is not on as background noise.My eldest DD has a habit of turning on the t.v. but rarely watches it and its just noise .What a waste of elecrtric

mishmogs

Learning to separate a need from a want!

Spend less than you earn or have in your purse.

Never throw out food, it can be turned into something else.

Most things end up in a charity shop at some point, be patient keep your eyes open and voila, there it is. (My DH wanted a smart overcoat for work and I would not pay out £100 for one but got an M&S one for £8.99 last week).

Most items can be reused for something else, use your imagination and thinking cap.

Most clothing, bedding, towels etc can be recycled into something else and then used as garage rags when their lifetime has come to an end in the house.

When planning on what to plant in the garden, I ask myself Will this plant give a return? eg although my garden is mainly planted for wildlife, I have apple trees instead of ornamental trees which give a return, geranium can be propogated for next year etc.

Alison_Funnell

Gathering. As a child it was firewood, blackberries and fruit, hazelnuts, mushrooms etc. As an adult also similar but no firewood as no fire.

Not buying new. New to me rarely means new unless it is underwear or shoes (though I will buy shoes in a charity shop occasionally). This includes our furniture (apart from 3 Ikea chairs) household appliances, vehicles and even pets (OK they were all rescues LOL).

Mend, alter and repurpose clothes.

Make do with what you have, that includes where you live, not travelling unnecessarily just for a 'break'.

Shopping is not a hobby or past time.

Put on appropriate clothes for the weather.

thriftwizard

Any other children of the Vicarage/Manse on here? I can tell by the way we spread butter/marg/spread...

I grew up in one in the days when ministers were expected to have "private means" - i.e. an outside source of funding - they usually got an enormous house & garden, because it was partly for public use, but an absolute pittance of a salary. And on that, which my Mum was pretty good at stretching to its utmost, you were expected to host weekly meetings, twice yearly fetes, etc. as well as bringing up your family. So we were brought up knowing that the best way to stretch your spread was to lightly scrape curls of butter onto the knife (not cut it) and spread it gently from the crust in towards the middle (less likely to tear the bread) then cut the slice off the loaf - I don't think sliced bread had got as far as the further reaches of rural Devon back in the early 60s! And as for how to slice a cucumber thinly... well, it should be translucent, you'll get many more sarnies out of one cue that way!

I can think of lots of other examples; the habit of seeing a garden mainly as a potential source of food, for example, and of never sitting down to chat or watch TV without something creative to do in your hands. Also board games & music-making; I grew up with these as a form of entertainment (although we did have a TV) & have brought my kids up with them too, but OH was utterly baffled to start with & still clearly feels they're odd ways to pass your time! And eating together; given clearly-defined mealtimes, I could see what they were eating and limit the amount of snacking (very expensive habit!) as well as use the time to find out what was going on in their lives.

Ditto many of the things that JackieO & Mishmog have mentioned, but one other thing too: the habit of sharing what you do have with others less fortunate. In our household that means feeding & providing suitable habitats for the wildlife that shares our garden, and being prepared to temporarily house & feed various friends in times of crisis, or donate items from my stash of essential household equipment & clothing, as well as giving to charity when we can. Apart from any other considerations, you never know when it may be you that needs help!

valk_scot

My mum had some very frugal habits, like buying the same amount of meat whether she was feeding just us four or us plus guests, it was a bit irritating to get just a smear of gravy with veg while the guest was tucking into "my" portion!

Also she had a habit of not opening the new item till the last one was well past the bin stage and then she'd still keep the old item as "a reserve", which was why we had to throw six decrepit toasters out when we cleared her house.

She also kept things "for best" which is why some table linen and sheets she'd recieved as wedding gifts in the 50's were still unopened.

And she never bought sugar, salt, ketchup or milk in her later years, she'd nick them out of cafes when she went in for a cuppa....


I don't do any of these things, lol. I can however knit, sew, cook, grow veg, bake bread, make jam, spin, weave and do a vast number of DIY jobs. None of which she had a clue about. So I'm not worried about not taking after her!


Most useful OS bit of advice came from my Dad actually. "Look in the cupboard first" he would say, meaning don't rush out and buy more food, clothes or anything else without seeing if you've got things you can use up first.

dxm

Washing out plastic bags - my mum always did it, and I carried on with the habit. I'm sure friends are completely baffled if they come round and see them hanging on the washing line.

Hezzawithkids

Being the youngest child of parents who were born in the 1920's and lived through the war and rationing, the key habit I picked up was to always use things UP before opening a new packet. That means things like squeezing the last dregs out of a tube of toothpaste, scraping the last smears from a tub of maragarine, jar of jam, etc. I do that today and berate my kids if they chuck something out without completely emptying it.

My mum was fantastic at baking (not a skill I've inherited, sadly ) and I remember her saving used butter wrappers in the cupboard to use when greasing baking tins.

Also, whenever I had school dinners I didn't also get a cooked tea at home, I had to make do with a sandwich while everyone else tucked into their meat and 2 veg!

PipneyJane

Oh, Lord. Where do I start?

Skill wise, my mum taught me to crochet, dressmake, sew, embroider and tat but didn't teach me how to knit (I learned that at school at the age of 7, came home with some needles and yarn and she proceeded to re-teach me and re-teach me until it was totally ingrained).

Mum also taught me the basics of cooking but wasn't really "into" cooking herself. She'd much rather have spent the time sewing/crochetting. From a pretty young age, we were expected to cook family meals on the weekend/during school holidays and to fend for ourselves for breakfast and lunch. I think I learned to read a recipe/cook a meal in self-defense (i.e. if I wanted to eat something special, the only way to ensure I got it was to make it myself).

Funny story: a few years ago, I was peeling an onion when my older sister commented that I was doing it wrong because I was using my fingers. Baffled, I replied that I learned to peel onions from exactly the same person she did! If she didn't learn from mum (possible), then she learned from one of the Home Economics teachers at school. We'd had exactly the same teachers. (I never did discover how my sister peels onions. Forgot to watch when she was over in the summer from Oz.)

My dad taught me woodwork, car maintenance and basic DIY skills. He was far more old-style in spirit than my mum. He built a lot of our furniture and restored/refinished other pieces we were given. Neither parent was much into gardening (I learned a lot from the year we were forced to do "Horticulture" at school for one hour a week).

Another thing my mum taught me, but only by bad example, was "don't settle"; i.e. if you really, really want something, don't settle for an "it'll do" substitute. Save up for the real thing. You'll end up spending the money two or three times over because the substitute never does "do". It doesn't measure up to what you really wanted, so you go out and buy a replacement that doesn't measure up either. At which point, you've probably spent more than the original item cost in the first place. My mum loved to embroider and really wanted a top of the range Pfaff sewing machine that would do machine embroidery. But the Pfaff was too expensive so she settled for a machine that didn't really do the job she wanted. Twice. In the meantime, she could usually be found sewing on the little Toyota machine she bought while expecting my oldest sister.

The moral of the story is that she should have just saved the money and bought the sewing machine she really, really wanted. She could have had it in two or three years but, instead, she wasted her money (twice in 5 years) on machines that never added up. So if there's something you really want, don't settle for anything less. Save your money until you can buy the goal item.

Tawny75

So much, and luckily I still learn now!

I am in my lateish 30's so Mum and dad are both children of the 40's and 50's. I can knit, sew, bake, cook meals from scratch and amuse myself and my daughter with just a pack of cards.

I have also learned respect for elders, respect for the law and authority and I hope I have instilled this in DD also.

One thing I have not inherited is her complete faith in those she deems 'better'. Until recently when I have done it for her, she would never question a doctor, the tax man or even the electric company. At least she will swap to get a good deal or check things now instead of just blindly accepting that 'they' are right.