Friday, June 6, 2008

Gluten Free Friday, Day 8

Thank you everyone for your input on where to buy flours and which brands you prefer. Tenille, that's a really good point about supporting your local store even if it's a bit more spendy. I've never thought of it that way before.

Last week on Gluten Free Friday, I switched gears from gluten free basics, to gluten free frugality. Today I'm going to talk about Reducing Other Consumable Costs.

The biggest way that I've been able to save money on other consumables (soap, napkins, anything you "consume" that's not food), has been by reading Crystal at MoneySavingMom.com. She has great deals at CVS, Walgreen, and other stores. I definitely recommend her site as a springboard for shopping frugally.

You can read here about some of the deals I've gotten at CVS. I haven't spent "real" money on hand soap, body soap, Tim's deodorant, or toothbrushes for months!

Another way I've cut down costs is that I rarely use paper towels. I got a few packs of wash clothes on sale and almost exclusively use them in the kitchen. (I should switch to cloth napkins, but I haven't taken that plunge yet.) I aslo don't use dryer sheets or fabric softener at all. I do have an extreme aversion to static, but I've not had any problems with it.

I've started a coupon binder. I don't find very many food coupons that I can use, but I do use quite a few toiletry and cleaning supply coupons.

How do you save money on non-food items in your household?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Most people think I'm crazy when I say this, but you can clean almost anything in your house with nothing more than vinegar and baking soda or bleach. Both are really, really cheap (and gluten free!). :) I do still use soap when appropriate, so don't get me wrong, but toliets, garbage disposals, etc., baking soda and vinegar and/or bleach... all the way, man!! :)

Anonymous said...

As for taking the plunge to cloth napkins... once you switch, you'll never go back! They're so easy to toss in the wash with *regular* laundry and they're a big enviro-friendly sigh of relief. (An even bigger sigh of relief was when I read the original use of napkin rings: to keep your napkin marked as yours, 'cause you don't soil a cloth napkin at one meal, and its a waste to use a new one all the time!)

Try your local thrift and second hand stores to pick up napkins cheaply. You won't regret it!