Sneaky ways to save the pennies

Confuzzled

allydowd wrote: »

Whenever you use cheese in cooking add a little mustard. The cheese will taste stronger so you can get away with using less of it.

this is particularly important when putting cheese in something like mash that seems to devour tons of it and you still can't taste it... it's amazing what just a pinch will do though!

if you don't have mustard powder a teaspoon or two of wholegrain mustard helps or even a teaspoon of english mustard (don't worry you won't feel the heat with that little it will get lost in the mash too)

ajames08

Great tips everyone. :T

I always get sick of our daughter taking too much toilet roll, so squeezing the roll sounds like an excellent idea.

Also, love the idea of using handwash bottles for shampoo, etc.

I always water down our handwash, nobody notices as long as don't put too much water in, but it definately makes it go further. Have tried it with shower gel, but as you can't take the lid off it takes ages and the results aren't great. Might see if I can squeeze it out of the bottle and put it in an old handwash bottle.

Unfortunately daughter caught me doing it once and thought it was a great idea, she tries to do it on her toothpaste. Not quite what I was after, but it's the thought that counts.

Confuzzled

if anyone has an aldi's nearby i highly reccomend their coconut gel soap

i've put this in my pump and watered it down some, even then you only need a wee bit on the tip of your fingers as it lathers up quite nicely and it smells heavenly

oh and for mums, you def know if your kids have washed their hands or not with this stuff

redballoon_2

been reading for awhile and this is what I do:

Dont iron clothes - saving electricty
Close the curtains before it goes dark to keep the warmth in
wear extra layers instead of putting the heating or fire on
when i use the car, i combine my trip to get the most of the petrol ie go to the bank, shops visit friend in most economical route.
buy value products and cook with them and freeze meals in batches so no one can tell if ive used value products or not!
put the washing machine on during the night, only using half the powder.
turn any electrical appliances off as i move from room to room
using fleece squares instead of baby wipes when changing nappies
decant cheaper shower gel into handwash
add water to full fat milk to make it stretch further

Olliebeak

I actually buy the semi-skimmed milk and water THAT down as we drink skimmed here. The only time that I don't do it, is where children are concerned - especially as 2 of my dgk's are milk/lactose intolerant so they get soya milk anyway.

verysagey

not sure if this has been posted - too many pages to read the whole lot. If you have one of those air-freshners that plug into the sockets - put it into a timer switch - you dont need it on at night when your asleep and if you work in the day you dont need it then either - time it to come on for just before you come home and before your average bed time. saves on electric (although its probably not loads) and on the air freshner too!

daska

foaming pump bottles for handwash:

Earlier on in this thread there was talk of diluting left over handwash, shampoo etc and using it as handwash. I really struggled to find a vaguely attractive bottle that could stand up to continued use. I've tried several now and the best seems to be 'method' - it has a broad base which makes it stable, it's not too childish like the kandoo and being uncoloured fits in with virtually all decor. It's also the only one other than the kandoo that's lasted more than a month with my kids :-)

Winged_one

The odd time for work, I have to attend meetings in hotels etc, where you usually get the obligatory paper and pen laid out for you. I know a certain CEO of an Irish budget airline has previously suggested that his staff bring those back to the office, but I bring those back with me to use at home. (I don't think that falls into the stealing category as it is provided for my use?).

I would also usually bring home pens, plain envelopes, tea/coffee and any unopened shampoo etc from hotels if we go away to one. The things that are left in the room for our use. I don't bother with things like the UHT milk (unless I am actually MAKING a cup of something to drink - which I do a lot too), just things that I will use.

The shampoo will often end up getting watered down for handwashing from a pump dispenser, especially downstairs where DD (3.5) messes occasionally and would often have very dirty hands to wash.

Winged_one

Oh, sorry I had another small one.
DH and I have started to like the odd G&T, and there is the odd visitor as well who likes drinks that "ought" to be served with a slice of citrus fruit in it. (And it often makes plain water much nicer).

I found I was coming across unusable half and quarters of limes and lemons, and never bothering with oranges, leftover in the fridge. So I started to slice a whole fruit at a go and use what I needed. The remaining slices get placed on a baking tray and flash frozen, and then popped into a plastic tub (so they are easily seperated without thawing). Then, when I need "ice and a slice" for anyone, I need less ice and have readymade slices at my disposal, with far less waste.

It's also very handy when entertaining as they can be made up days in advance when you have time. Or you can use up slightly older fruit that is STILL fine now, but mightn't be the best when the visitors are due next week.

Gina_of_course!

Not one you do regularly and I might have scraped the bottom of the being tight barrel but I have this afternoon defrosted the freezer and used the ice water ( after leaving it outside to lose its complete coldness - its a warm day here) to water a few plants outside.