Many years ago as a young pastor's wife, my motto was, "Necessity is the mother of invention." When I looked at home decor items, I tried to figure out what I had on hand to create a similar look. Sometimes it worked and sometimes....well, let's just chalk it up to "lessons learned."
In one of the rural settings where we lived, I had a wonderful next door neighbor who always had an open back door. We visited frequently, just talking about anything and everything. To show my appreciation for her, I made a kitchen wall hanging with the old saying on the card above:
Use it up.
Wear it out,
Make it do...
Or Do without.
I painted a silhouette of an Amish buggy on red fabric and carefully printed the verse above it, framing it in an embroidery hoop and finishing the edge with lace. (I think those types of fabric hoop pictures were a crafting "trend" at the time!) She hung it proudly on her kitchen wall until their home was damaged by fire.
Over the past few months with the financial woes facing many, I was reminded of this old saying again and began a list of other "frugal" things I have done in the past to save money and stretch our family resources. I asked other friends for their suggestions as well and have been amazed at the response. I already have a list of 4 pages of easy suggestions to save money and stretch the family budget.
Starting with this post, I'd like to pass along those suggestions to my readers with the hope you will find them easy, fun and useful.
Blessings to you from a Frugal Pastor's Wife!
Tip #1 "Use It Up"
I'm not sure where I first heard this, but I have been doing it for several years. When I reach the bottom of a bottle of shampoo or conditioner, I turn the bottle upside down and rest it in a funnel overnight to drain the last drops into another bottle. I collect the drips and dribbles until I have a full bottle. I usually collect enough over the course of a year to make a half to a full bottle of shampoo or conditioner. Talk about it being "good to the last drop!"
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