Make Do, Mend & Minimise in 2025 (and 2024)

Green_hopeful

Minimise We did some furniture jenga last week. Number six child decided she didn’t want our old furniture and bought some Ikea furniture instead. So we went back to collect our furniture and make space in our stuffed garage until the next child wants to borrow it. It meant we 28 dining chairs. Our table can only seat 18 at a comedy maximum so we gifted 8 dining chairs to our local homeless charity which furnish house for homeless people.  They have already allocated 4 of the chairs. 

Cherryfudge

@Green_hopeful, I love the fact your table can 'only' accommodate 18! Ours is what I thought to be a decent size but will only take eight! Good on you for giving the surplus to the homeless charity. It could help someone get back on their feet, or rather, have somewhere to sit.

Green_hopeful

@Cherryfudge it really seats 12 but with a secret piece of wood as an extra leaf we squeeze more round. We are a blended family with 8 kids so just a few of them with partners and we fill the table. My husband has a lovely big family with 50 plus first cousins. They are really sociable so it’s not unusual to have 18 for lunch. 

Cherryfudge

That sounds wonderful, @Green_hopeful! 

Green_hopeful

Minimise. When ever I make a stew I always end up with loads of liquid. I freeze it and use it as stock or gravy. Tonight I made french onion soup and used up two tubs of beef stew liquid. A splash of brandy and a glug of white wine and it was delicious. 

Minimise: We had a M&S storage footstool on the landing for 7 years. I finally decided to give it a vax and pop it on Facebook marketplace. After 4 people not buying it I finally sold it today. Only £30 but I don’t mind about the money. The lady seemed really pleased. 

Cherryfudge

Make do: searched the cardboard boxes I already have for something to use for a children's activity. That led to the discovery of some vouchers but I think they are out of date as the website isn't accepting the details. Shame, but I can check in the shop later in the week.

Mend: fixed the hem on DH's suit trousers. Also polished his best shoes, but we don't have a 'maintain' category.  

Minimise: DS pointed out our Christmas vouchers from the grandchildren will run out soon so we've booked to use them. How did it get to be three months since Christmas?! Also used some card from stash for the children's activity and there is chicken and chorizo from the freezer now defrosting for tomorrow, and leftovers from a chickpea tikka for today.

2Scratters

Morning All,

I am just trying to figure out my successes for this week. 

 Minimised a paper carrier bag of contents to the charity box collection station where  my parents live. There was more here as I had unintentionally found myself in my side of the wardrobe and removed items around to be used up. Moved out a little set of Ikea drawers that were my DS's he is now 37 
There were items gone from the small chest freezer too much bread. Our bird community were thankful of full bellies. Not sure why I had milk in there for 12 months 

Make do we had food from the freezer when we would have had a Cheapy Tuesday chippy tea date night. This is one of my days I am with my elderly parents so am not home till early evening. (Dad was 94 yesterday)
Me definitely eating up old food stock not to be replaced. 

Hmm mend - I'm struggling to think about this one. 

Have a good week 

2 Scratters xx

Green_hopeful

Minimise: I lost my job a couple of years ago. I kept one box of reference material that I thought I might useful if i got another job. With time I realised I didn’t want another job so I went through my box today and decided I didn’t need to keep 90 percent.  I took it back to my old office and the lovely reception lady let me pop it in the confidential recycling.  So one box of paper gone along with a realisation that I was not going to go back to my old line of work. 

Mrs_Salad_Dodger

Make Do: food from freezer & cupboards
Mend: 2 of DSis’s tops
Minimise: yarn supply as I am knitting again 😉

Cherryfudge

What are you knitting, @Mrs_Salad_Dodger?

As for me, a few busy days and a certain amount of housework among other things, followed by prep for most of the family coming tomorrow, so several food-related MMMs.

Make do: A long story but I had cheap cream and decided to try making ice cream which is now in the freezer but meant I had egg white, one broken-yolked egg and 250ml of cream left over. The cream needed to be used today. I've made butter in the past but couldn't get this past whipped stage so for the first time, I gave up. (Did I put the salt in too early?) I had in mind to make meringues and cake but was running out of get up and go when I thought of pancakes. I now have a stack of them in the fridge, some rather thick as whipped cream does that to a pancake!

Mend: One piece of side boning recaptured and sewn back into a bra. Once tiny snapped thread located and mended on a jumper.

Minimise: a few toiletries finished over the last week (this never happens), a big box thrown out, about ten very out of date packet mixes binned as they will never get younger. The earliest BBE date was 2016 and that number refused to change no matter how many times I looked at it. The box they were in has gone too as the plastic was cracked.