Domestic Savvy

It's been a long time since I last wrote, luckily I have very few readers to apologize to ;) So what's new... well the garden is looking great, I just discovered that butternut squash produce very beautiful large yellow flowers. The ducks are just about full size now and that is just in time for the start of my new hobby of furniture restoration. A friend introduced me the the most inspiring site for this; http://betterafter.blogspot.com/. This site showcases furniture, decorations, and rooms that have all been redone and brought back to life. Why do I love this so much? Because it's green, it's cost effective and it's domestically savy! *Photos to come of my "better after" items. My two cents about furniture restoration; Sprucing up something you already own, free furniture, cheap furniture from a yard sale is a great way to recycle and also keep you from buying an unsturdy piece of furniture from a large corporation store which will inevitably break. Thi

So far, so good with the new garden. With this weather I have had to water them daily. The only issue I have seen so far is that something is eating my lettuce. Once my ducks are bigger they will act as my natural pesticide, but for now I need an alernative. So I found this recipe on www.paystolivegreen.com : Oil Mixture 1 cup cooking oil ( i.e. canola or vegetable ) 1 tablespoon liquid dishwashing soap Use 2 ½ teaspoons of this mixture in 1 cup of water I planted several items that I researched ahead of time, but ended up not worrying so much about the specifics. I read something online that was great advice, it said to plant a few items and see how it goes. Replant the items that grew well next time and switch out the things that didn't go so well with something else. Expect that something won't grow as well as the others and it really alleviates a lot of the stress out of gardening.

Meet the newest additions to my home, Tina and Lucy Loo. Tina, the black one is an Indian Runner and the yellow one is a Pekin duck. The arrived this morning at the post office from a trip from Metzer Farms in California. Because of the fantastic weather we were able to let them roam around outside, and they showed their true foraging skills by eating worms, mosquitoes, ants and pretty much anything else they could find. I am very excited for the time when they are big enough to wander the yard by themselves to free my garden from pests, and limit the amount of mosquitoes that terrorize me on a daily basis. In a few months they will begin to produce eggs, but in the meantime they are providing me with great entertainment! Setup for ducklings is very inexpensive and easy. We used a plastic kiddy pool, but really any container will work as long as the sides are tall enough, even a box would work, a shallow water dish, a shallow food dish, water fowl food or chick food, and a 60-75 watt w

The other day, when I was cleaning out my shed, I was throwing tons of heavy metal bars on the yard thinking, “what is this” and most importantly “how am I going to get rid of this”?! These pieces were as tall as I was! A friend suggested putting it on craigslist for free as some people sell scrap metal. So then I thought, if others are making money off junk like this, can I do it too? It looks to me like it couldn't be easier to get rid of this stuff! Check out http://www.survivalinsight.com/scrap-metal-for-cash.html for information on what qualifies, how much it’s worth, and ways to find it. Then check out your local yellow pages for scrap metal buyers, if you live in Maine, I’ve already done it for you! http://www.superpages.com/yellowpages/C-Scrap+Metal+Buyers/S-ME/ So take that trash and turn into something useful, like cash!!!

Just because you are trying to save money doesn't mean you can't go out anymore. Check out your local newspaper for coupons to local restaurants, sometimes there are two for one deals or deals if you go mid week. Check your reward cards to see if there are bonus points for dining at specific places. The Best Buy reward credit card now has a dining function where you get up to double the points at certain restaurants. Sign up at http://www.restaurant.com/ because at least once a week they have a deal for anywhere from 30%-80% off their gift certificates. Be sure to read the rules on them though, many have stipulations, like you must spend a certain amount before using it or some you can't use on certain days. The last one I used I ended up getting 80% off and spending only $2 on a $25 gift card. We used it at a fancier restaurant we normally wouldn't have gone because the prices are high and ended up spending as much as we

They say, “The best things in life are free”, I don’t know about that, but scoring some free stuff I would normally pay for really floats my boat! So check out http://shopathome.com/ and click on Free Samples . Over the course of a couple hours I scored an abundance of free hair products, such as; shampoo, conditioner, hair repair, and even coupons to pick up some free product from a local salon, also baby products like formula, diapers and baby shampoo and lotion (this I will be passing along), lubricants, lotions, lip gloss, handmade soaps and candles, dog food, dog treats, snacks and energy/nutrition bars. My tip : Any that don’t get straight to the point of asking for your email and mailing address, just avoid or you may end up signing up for a bunch of junk you don’t want. Enjoy your freebies, I know I will!

Do you have a printer? Then don’t let these deals pass you by! Check out the following websites for the best coupons. Remember though the three rules of using a coupon: 1. Work around other deals – Check your local circulars, see where you will get the best bang for your buck with this coupon 2. Usage – Will you use this product and is it really cost efficient to use this product with the coupon over a cheaper version? Be sure to price shop, along with examining how much you get for the cost. For example. There are 2 boxes of cereal, one at 30 ounces for $1.50 and one for 50 ounces for $2. Buying the one for $2 is the best bang for your buck because you get just under double for only 50 cents more. 3. Check the fine print - Expiration dates and quantity, can it be used with other promotions, etc. Keeping these tips in mind, enjoy the savings to come from these sites: http://www.smartsource.com/ http://www.coupons.com/ http://www.save.com/ Also, if you ever do any online shopping alw

What's super cheap, tastes great and is good for you too? Well the answer to that is beans. Start making beans a common staple in your household and watch the savings pile up because one bag of beans for just under $1 is the equivalent of approx. 4-5 cans and switching out just one pound of hamburger for beans every week is a savings of approx. $4. Make the switch 3 times a week and you're shaving approx. $12 off your weekly grocery bill and almost $50 a month! Well you get the idea. So how do you go about making beans from the bag anyways? Well I just so happened to have done this for the first time the other day, so let me walk you through it! Step 1: Pour the amount of beans you wish to use in a strainer and rinse (I did the whole bag, figuring I would just freeze the leftovers) Step 2: Put the beans in a large bowl and fill with water, enough water to cover the beans. Cover with a towel. Step 3: Leave your beans alone to soak, come back the next day (I started soaking at 7

This is deffinitely more of a fall meal, but I had some canned pumpkin in my cabinet that I felt like using. It doesn't look like much, but it's jam packed with flavor! Pumpkin Penne Ingredients 1 pound of sweet italian sausage links, cuts into bite sized peices 1 small-medium chopped onion 4 cloves of minced garlic 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes 1 cup of chicken broth or 1 cup of boiling water and 1 chicken bouillon cube 1.5 teaspoons of garlic salt 1/2 cup of condensed milk 1 can (15 oz) can of pumpkin puree 1 tablespoon of olive oil 1 lb box of penne pasta 2 tablespoons dried parsley approx. 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese as topping Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray or grease casserole pan. Follow directions on the penne box to cook pasta. Drain and set aside. Cook sausage links in a frying pan until juices run clear or an internal temperature of at least 170 degrees has been met. There shouldn't be much for drippings more than a couple tablespoons, if there is

Want a quick and easy dinner? Try this casserole, it's quick, easy, low fat and delicious. Chicken and Rice Ingredients 6 Boneless,skinless,chicken breast 1 1/2 cups uncooked instant rice 1/2 cup boiling water 1 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted 1 (10.75 oz) can condensed cream of celery soup, undiluted 2 tablespoons onion soup mix 1 (10 oz) package frozen peas, thawed Optional: Bread Crumbs for topping 1/2 cup parsley Directions 1.Place chicken in a greased 13x9x2 baking dish. In a bowl combine rice and water, In another bowl, combine soups, soup mix and peas; stir into rice mixture. Spread over chicken. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Uncover; (optional) sprinkle with parsley or breadcrumbs. Bake 10-15 minutes longer or until chicken juices run clear.

I started to think, what items/services/etc. do I spend the most money on and I made a list. From that list I started to analyze and think of ways to cut down on each of the costs. I have managed to dwindle down my services and household expenditures over the past couple years to the minimum except for my phone and cable. This was a choice, a preference. I sacrificed the monthly payment of running my hottub, so I could have the luxury of web and email on my phone. I sacrificed getting 4 movies out at a time on netflix for HBO and 2 movies at a time. If it came to be that I had to cut down these services I could because they are not needs, but they are things that I wish to have. So really anaylze your expenditures... are you paying for needs or wants? And how important to you are these wants? I used this list to apply to my groceries also. Where is the bulk of my money going? Can I get these items cheaper? I then created solutions to these pricey items. Here's my list: 1. Dog food

In order to get your finances in check and make well thought out decisions on big purchases you should create a budget. This site has got an array of budgeting worksheets that are perfect to start you off. http://frugalliving.about.com/od/frugalliving101/a/Frugal_Wkshts.htm If you have excel on your computer download the yearly budget worksheet from this website: http://www.vertex42.com/ExcelTemplates/home-budget-worksheet.html Note: It's a little difficult to find at first, but the download link is in blue on the right hand side. I use two worksheets for my budget planning, a monthly budget to keep me on track and the yearly budget to see exactly where my money is going, how much I could be saving, and for future planning. These of course aren't fool proof, in life things come up. Sometimes when money is tight, your budget for the month all goes to bills. The goal of the budget worksheets is to see where your money goes, how you can consider cutting back and making sure you a

A great way to help save the environment and your wallet is to make your own household cleaners. Here are some great recipes to get you started: Recipe for cleaning stainless steel appliances: http://frugalliving.about.com/od/cleaningtipsandrecipes/qt/Stainless_Steel.htm Recipe for dishwasher detergent: http://frugalliving.about.com/od/cleaningtipsandrecipes/qt/Dish_Detergent.htm Recipe for Dishwasher Rinse, note that this method is also good for cleaning out your dishwasher and extending the life of the appliance, which in turn saves you money: http://frugalliving.about.com/od/householdsavings/qt/Rinse_Agent.htm Recipe for oven cleaner: http://housekeeping.about.com/od/kitchen/qt/bksd_oven.htm Did you know that you can also use a combination of baking soda, boiling water and vinegar to unclog drains? And that you can use baking soda as a natural water absorbent on carpet? This site is absolutely amazing and full of ideas with everything from homemade mold killer to carpet cleane

...to two adorable ducklings which will arive next week! Why ducks? Besides the fact that they are adorable and happen to make great pets, they are a natural pesticide as they are natural foragers, limit the amount of unwanted pests such as mosquitos and ticks and make excellent egg layers. Resulting in 100-300 eggs per year. Here's what Urbanhomestead.com has to say about the differences between chicken and duck eggs; "In our baking experience here on the urban homestead we find that by using duck eggs our baked goods turn out very moist and fluffy (winning lots of great compliments like “what’s in these brownies?”). Duck eggs also have more albumen (the protein in the white) than chicken eggs, which gives them more structure when cooked. For this reason, many people prefer duck eggs for baking: the extra protein creates additional loft in cakes. Never eaten duck eggs? Duck eggs taste pretty much the same as chicken eggs. The eggs and yolks are larger and they have a richer

First step, get organized Do you have a blackberry ? Use your memo pad or you can download an application for a monetary fee. I have “Smart Shopper” which I downloaded for $2.99. I recently switched back to paper though because it’s easier for me. Do you have an iphone? Download "one trip", one of the top ten iphone web apps, check out a screenshot here: http://www.intomobile.com/2008/02/28/top-10-iphone-web-apps.html Or do what I do, and use plain old paper. I categorize my list into specific areas so it’s easier to follow when I am in the store: Veggies/fruits, Meat, Dairy, Frozen, Other. For a pre-organized list check out the following site: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/TC300008661033.aspx?AxInstalled=1&c=0 Next Step, Check your Cupboards Part of being Domestically Savvy is to not let things go to waste. Food costs money, it’s not cost efficient to buy something you already have at home, unless if it’s on sale and it will go to good use. A perfect exampl

I was going to wait until next year to start my garden, once my compost was fully developed, however I have decided that it’s been such a beautiful start of the season that I should get out there and just do it! As I said a couple posts ago, I do not know very much at all about gardening. I do not have a green thumb. So on my journey; I plan to blog about what worked for me, and what didn’t, and the steps that I took. My first step was to write out a list of the vegetable most commonly used in my household, it would be un-savvy to plant items that wouldn’t go to good use! My list includes: Tomatoes, Romaine Lettuce, carrots, squash (butternut), onion, green pepper, potatoes and potentially peas. My next step was to research these plants, when should I plant them, should I start with a seed or a bulb, or buy the plant from Lowes, how often should I water, weed, fertilize and how do I know when they are ready to be harvested. I researched under several websites and printed out the approp

Cooking from scratch saves lots of $$$. I always make extra and wrap it up to store in the fridge or freezer for a convenient meal later. Having something premade and readily available just might save you from forking over too much money on fast food or take out. Before I started doing this we would easily spend $30 on Chinese food once a week and $20-$30 on fast food. At the least that’s $50 a week and $200 a month! It’s pretty hard to resist the urge not to buy Chinese food because let’s face it, it’s addicting, But once your culinary skills have developed more and more you can make your own at home. Check out http://www.allrecipes.com/ or http://www.foodnetwork.com/ for recipes that are rated by users. Here are some of my favorite Chinese food recipes: Easy Boneless spareribs INGREDIENTS: Boneless pork ribs or pork loin Ahso Sauce (This is offered in most supermarkets where you would find the soy sauce, sesame oil, etc.) DIRECTIONS: 1. Set your oven to 350 and grease a cookie shee

Sitting behind this desk day after day makes me really envy the farmer. The farmer gets out there every day to work on their garden and tend to the animals. It’s physically exhausting work, but I imagine just so rewarding. I’m sure after a few days of manual labor like that and I would be grateful for my quiet little desk job, but it’s nice to dream. Although just because I am not a farmer doesn’t mean I can’t incorporate some of their rituals into my life and create my own little money saving farm! My First step is a compost pile. I have researched and gotten the ins and outs from a woman who has been composting for most of her life. If you are worried about it attracting animals place it away from your house, although the general consensus is that it doesn’t seem to attract any more than normal. Setup: Look for a spot that is easy for you to get to, is not in the way, and will get sun and rain. If you have a kitchen window, putting it just outside is perfect because then you can jus

Welcome to my Blog, I created it to provide a creative outlet for myself and a documentation of my money saving ideas and research that just might help others. I call it “Domestic Savvy” as I plan to incorporate many aspects of frugal living. I get a high out of saving my family money because when I do it means we can get more out of a dollar. I started trying and researching many ways to save money years ago and some things worked out for me and others haven’t. I am continuously searching for other ways to improve. Comments and suggestions are always welcome.