More Little Ways to Save
..... it all adds up.

• Paper napkins
  I know paper napkins don't cost much, but they are an easy item to cut out entirely
  and even little savings add up. I have made my own from scraps of fabric I have leftover
  after a sewing project and I have made sets that match.
  
   I often buy them at store sales after holidays are over. They are super cheap then as are many items.
  They can also be bought brand new still in the package, or if they are in pristine condition, used, at places like Goodwill.
  
  As they wear or get stained I use them as reusable rags. Once you get used to using cloth  napkins you will not like having to use paper ones again. They are so much nicer, not to mention attractive.
  
  I do use paper napkins if we are having a large crowd over. I stock up on these and other things after holidays, and at the change of the seasons. It is amazing how inexpensively you can get red and green plain napkins after Christmas. I have a collection of all sorts of paper napkins in packages in my entertainment cabinet. I also buy dishes after holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. I scope out the stores when they first put these things out to see what I hope they have left after the holidays and then buy them for as much as 75% off. I also have collected serving pieces used.  Punch bowls are easy to collect and cost less used than disposable plastic or metallic servers.  I have eight identical punch bowls  that I paid a dollar or two for which I used at our kids' wedding receptions for salads or punch and many other events and many of my friends have borrowed them--but more on how to save on weddings and other large events later.
  
  So, be on the lookout for sales of non-seasonal items that stores are trying to get rid of. Good time to buy candies for weddings, etc. and put them in your freezer. Our oldest daughter got married in the spring but her colors were purples with red roses. I collected many decorations and candy after Christmas and Valentine's Day in those colors. This is good for collecting napkins, candles, ribbon and other decorations. For my husband's military retirement I took advantage of the post Fourth of July sales!
  
• Plastic wrap and baggies
  Invest in some re-usable containers. I would steer clear of plastics. I know they keep coming
  out with new "safe" plastics but they later turn out to be no more safe than their predecessors.
  So, though I am not done yet, I am converting to glass.
  
  Waxed paper and bags (even unbleached ones) are still on the market but I have found that they do not keep food very fresh. Try to buy baking dishes that have glass lids so you don't need aluminum foil. Using plastic is not as bad if the food is dry and does not have ingredients that can leach harmful chemicals into the food.  Beware of old plastic containers, not only do they tend to be scratched making them more toxic but you won't know what kind of plastic the items were made of  if they are very old. I use my old plastic containers for storing non-edible, dry things. When I bake something and let it cool and want to cover it I use a clean kitchen towel or up-ended bowls or plates. Cloth prevents the gooey-tops that so many covered baked items get and keeps bugs off in the summer time. There are lots of ideas about storing food. Check out the internet and places like Google and Pinterest.
  
• Paper plates
  Yes, there are times I use paper plates, but rarely. I have what I call the "dish gene". I love dishes, especially vintage ware,  and collect them.  I have more than enough for even large dinner parties. I have inherited many from my grandmothers and my mom and mother-in-law----things they have left me. I think they are my favorites because they have memories attached to them.
  
  I have our wedding china---gotten back in the days when no self-respecting bride would be without china, crystal, sterling silver flatware and serving dishes. I still have all that too. But, that's not what I'm talking about----I collect dishes. I buy partial sets at second-hand stores. I have collected and sold restaurant ware. I adore blown glass plates, glasses and bowls. And I love to mix and match. Over the years I have also purchased dishes by the piece to make sets and I have been gifted a large neutral set of dishes one Mother's Day. I also have many tablecloths for all different seasons, moods, colors, holidays with napkins that either match or complement everything else.
  
  I have mix-and-match placemats too---sets that can be used alone or for big groups. When I collect such things I make sure they match or complement what I have at home. Some of these are inherited, some were given me, some are from second-hand stores or yard sales and some were purchased off-season, new at stores.
  
  So, I don't need paper products and enjoy so much using what I have. If I had a huge kitchen I'd have even more dishes. I think I just heard my husband shudder!  I feel that eating at a nicely set table is not only fun and calming but good for the digestion.
  
  I also have those rectangular or oval serving sets---I forget what they are called--that are usually clear, non-colored glass with a large section, sometimes another section or two and a cup that fits into one of the sections. Oh, just remembered what they are called, "Hostess Sets".   Some of the ones my mom and grandma gave me decades ago have a little dip in one section to hold a cigarette. These make me laugh and are not big enough that anyone really knows what they are. These are very nice for hors d'oeuvres parties or showers where only dessert and maybe fruit are being served. I love to set a buffet table with different stacks of coordinated plates that do not match but rather, they meld. It is another way to be creative in homemaking---making something pretty or fun. I do get paper plates if we are having a huge crowd over. So, same rule applies----when buying paper plates collect them and keep them on hand after holidays, etc. They are also great to have on hand for emergencies or when you are sick. We burn them for starting fires instead of just throwing them away after they have been used---they work great and get one last use out of them that way.
  
• Tissues
  I have tons of handkerchiefs inherited by the ladies in my and my husband's family. They are lovely, look pretty stacked in a china dish or tied with ribbons for decoration. Some are over 100 years old. They are fun to sew together for a quilt, edge pillow cases, make doll skirts or curtains---sentimental to carry in a wedding.  But blow your nose on them---I don't think so! This grosses me out on several levels which I won't go into here. I  use the "they're not sanitary" excuse if anyone asks. But no one has! I stock up on tissues at Costco or buy them to coordinate with a room's decor or a holiday. I never buy the ones with lotion or whatever in them. I prefer not to put this stuff in my nose and I don't buy ones that are too cheap which are often  lint-y which makes me sneeze and need more tissues.
  
• Diapers
  When our first child was born, disposable diapers had just come out. The hospital she was born in didn't even use them. There was one brand which is still around today and there was another one that didn't last long on the market. They were bio-degradable and if you didn't get to a wet diaper right away you would find tufts on your baby's bum because they were already bio-degrading! The popular brand made all three of our babies break out in rashes. So, cloth was my only option. But even if disposable was a choice, I would not have bought them. It was not a huge chore to wash diapers. I liked the soft cloth without chemicals added. I liked that they, worn with rubber pants, did not leak as badly as the first disposables (without elastic) did. And I loved how the babies didn't slide off my lap like they did with the slick outer surface of the disposables back then.
  
  After a whole generation of disposably-diapered babies have grown up never having even seen a cloth diaper I realize the idea of switching to cloth can be disgusting. I remember when baby wipes first came out---now, those are nice. But I still would worry about the chemicals in the cleaning solution. Years ago they used little washcloths, which is hard for even me to imagine. Gone are the days of soakers which my mother told me were wool outer pants that soaked up.......well, you get the idea.  I remember old bread bags filled with dirty and wet diapers and plastic pants in the diaper bags of all the moms who left babies in church nurseries. I remember cleaning dirty diapers in the toilet---flush, flush with sometimes an "oops" as one got away. I remember the diaper pails too. I remember all that---fondly, but with a little stifled gag.
  
  Disposables are nice but expensive. So are some diapering systems that are out now but the expense is only one time and not weekly. The ecologist in me worries about the trash disposables create, the mom in me worries about the chemicals that are bombarding baby bottoms for 2-3 years. If  I were a new mom now, I'd see what's out there. I hear FB friends talking about different kinds of cloth diapers and of course now, there are a bazillion brands of disposables. Just keep it in mind. As times get harder disposables may be something that has to------um, go?
  
• Pre-mixed foods and spice packs
  I have never understood paying so much for pre-mixed foods. Foods that often contain pasta, pre-cooked and treated rice, dehydrated veggies and spices with a ton of salt. Foods that take just as long to cook as if you made them from scratch. You still have to add the most expensive item---the meat. Pasta and rice are inexpensive. The only reason I can see for buying such a product is if you have no imagination and can't think of something to make, have no cookbooks and no access to the internet---oh, and no friends! Who doesn't love to share her favorite recipes? How much time does it really take to make a cake from scratch----store-bought mixes still require the addition of usually oil, shortening, water and eggs. So, really all you are paying for is flour, sugar, leavening and salt. But you get much more----colors, artificial flavors, and who knows what else.
  
  Spice packets just make me angry! They usually contain mostly salt and they have artificial flavors and fillers, and sugar, etc. So much cheaper to buy your own spices and herbs or if you must have a mix---and they are handy---make your own. Lots of recipes out there for those kinds of things.
  
• Juice and some smoothies
  Realize that when you serve juice, even natural, even organic, even made from your own fruit, you are ingesting a lot of fructose (fruit sugar) and spending a lot of money. Look up how many oranges it takes to make one glass of orange juice, see how much sugar, natural yes, but sugar nonetheless, one glass contains! We all know the dangers of the commonly used, but being phased out, high fructose corn syrup in drinks, baked goods including bread, and in a lot of health products also. But even natural sugars in excess can wreak havoc with your and your family's health. Among many other things, sugar depresses your immune system so you may be defeating  the very purpose you may be taking them.  Water is better especially if you have safe water. I love herbed or fruited water. But make sure you wash the fruit first before adding it to water to drink. I buy Just Juice and add say a fourth of a cup to a tall tumbler of  water which has been, if necessary, stevia-sweetened, (for non-sweet juices like tart cherry, pomegranate and cranberry).   This is very refreshing and you get the benefit of the fruits without too much fructose using juices to which nothing has been added. They are more expensive, but last a long time and of course I buy them on sale. Lemonade, limeade or orangeade are great when you use the juice of half a piece of the citrus fruit squeezed into a sieve and add stevia  if needed---great served over crushed ice or hot. Use honey for the sweetener if you have a sore throat or cold and drink while warm.
  
• Pens and pencils and paper, oh my!I love Fall and one of the things I have always loved most was buying school supplies. These things come on sale and even though I miss buying them for my kids I still buy all I need for one year at these pre-school sales. I buy packs of pencils, pens and spiral-bound notebooks and anything else that is school-y that I might need. Notebooks at Walmart are usually around ten cents each for 70 pages college-ruled. I get at least a dollar's worth for my husband's business, church notes, my lists, and several other categories in different colors for different uses. Pens are about a dollar or less for a pack of ten. I get black and red packs. Report covers are about a nickel each and I buy them in colors that I use to identify categories of things I need to file or for putting Landscaping proposals into to give to those who have asked my husband to bid on a job. I buy lots of these. I also buy some things for the grandkids to use when they come here and stocking stuffers for Christmas at this time---stencils, funny erasers, brightly colored rulers, crayons, colored pencils, markers, construction paper, glue sticks, etc. I like to go early in the sale to avoid everyone and, literally, their mothers!
  
• Junk Food
  No, I'm not asking you to give it up. Why not make your own junk food? Hamburgers, fries at home, home-fried or baked crunchy chicken, ice cream, healthful drinks that taste wicked good, burritos and tacos, pizzas. There are ways to make these at home that are actually healthy. There are also lots of new pre-made products out there that are organic and made with natural ingredients. Some are really healthy, some are just healthier than eating junk. Making them naturally at home is cheaper than buying out. Junk food in small doses infrequently will not kill you. Just don't make it the bent of your life. I will do a blog on substituting good ingredients for bad in cook books, etc. It's fun and challenging but very satisfying.
  
• Cleaning products and toiletries
  There are so many ideas out there for natural and much cheaper household cleaners, laundry products and toiletries. Some are healthier choices others cheaper. Almost all of them are both. I have made some of my own and love them. Search on Google and Pinterest. I have some on my Pinterest boards.
  
• Note paperI do sometimes buy note paper from Goodwill or yard sales that is in decent condition. But mostly I use junk mail and envelopes or used lists that are blank on the backs. If an envelope has no personal address or other info I do not want to keep I cut it in half or put it whole into the top drawer of our office desk in an organizer. Sometimes I just tear the used papers to fit the organizers. This is right next to an organizer bin of the pens I got on sale. It is very handy and when we are done with a note we put it with the envelopes that have our or return addresses on them and other things to burn when we start fires.
  
• Count the costI mean not just financially but health-wise. While healthy eating won't make you totally illness or problem free I do believe that you, yourself, will be healthier (and save more money in the long run) than you would be if you didn't make better choices. So, count the time you spend in doctor or dentists' offices. Count what you spend in over-the-counter medications. Count the times you cannot do what you need to do. Watch the differences in your children's behavior, your and your husband's moods.
  
  Changing what you eat or your lifestyle can be difficult on many levels. It was for us at first.  I believe changing is a journey.Some started it long ago, some are just questioning things now. I remember when my husband suggested not long after we got married that  I start buying whole wheat bread and natural peanut butter rather than the shortening and sugar kind they toss a few peanuts into. Well, I was raised using real peanut butter so that wasn't hard. But that brown bread----never tried it but it sounded gross to me. I did try it though and actually liked it. Those were the only changes we made for about a year. But by the time our oldest girl was talking she was excitedly telling me about eating lunch with a friend who had sliced bread in a bag----I made our bread. And I will never forget when she told her little friend that her mom makes whole wheat cheese! So, we started out slowly and now are seeing so-called "new" things become popular that were "new" when we were just married! The terms may have changed but most are how people used to cook and eat. 

• Look around your house and decide what you don't really need to do or what you can change that will not only save you money but maybe improve your health or help you stay healthy.
  
• Hope this has helped give you some ideas!
  
  Kathi~