Savings pennies at a time: Kitchen

As the old adage goes those who look for money find them!

Intro: Although we don't have physical pennies in our hands, saving pennies matters when you are striving you accumulate wealth or savings. 

Kitchen

Katy's vision:

 

I buy sponges from 2 different stores for very different reasons:

Store #1:Dollar store:

Value: You can get a pack of 10 sponges for  $1.25 to 1.50.

Katy's Trick:

This is not for everyone (some may finds them too small and fiddly lol) but if you are able to pull off using a smaller sponge for your dishes and you have a smaller household then why not?

Method: I cut these in half so that you are able to get double the amount for the same price. So that means you are essentially getting 20 half size sponges for $1.25, over time you are saving and its cumulative. 

Reason: I use these for everyday dishwashing for plates, cutlery and mugs.

Store #2 Any brand name store Safeway, Walmart, Save on Foods, Save on, Thrifty (or similar in your area)

Value: You can buy a multi package of 6 sponges approximately, for usually $5.00 so that works out to about $1.50 each sponge. Of course there are different types of sponges (some have the scrubber attached, others are solo and some are non-scratch); I choose the scotch Brite or Vilida sponges (scratch resistant or regular) Alternatively, i also revert to the name brand store's sponges brand. Thus, for example Save on Foods would be Best Western; Walmart brand would be Best Value and so on.

Katy's Trick:

I usually select the heavy duty sponge, as I am looking to save on some elbow grease. I choose brand name sponges such as Scotch Brite or other similar brands and then I am able to actually cut the sponges into even more pieces. Perhaps I do go overboard but I cut them down to 4 pieces vertically.

Reason: I use these sponges for more delicate glasses (non-scratch sponge), or pots and pans that need a good scrubbing, with experience I found the brand name ones do perform a bit better. 

Method: I still cut them in half sometimes, but because they are for a bigger job I keep them whole so I can get a better clean and can save time that way

Advantages of dollar store sponge:

#1 you get 4 times as much usage out of the same money.

#2 you change your sponge more often to have a clean smelling sink without the guilty feeling of throwing away money.

Advantages of name brand sponges:

#1 you don't have to scrub as much

#2 They save you time in handwashing.

Happy New Year everyone!

Storage ideas to save $$$

As you know I've been always mindful of trying to avoid wasting money unnecessarily due to my background of my parents immigrating into Canada and starting from ground zero. It's funny because I am always thinking about how I can stretch our household dollars and my family and friends can attest to that. I have made it into a game, and forgive me but its my frugal obsession! Don't get me wrong there are days where I am lazy and go pick up some takeout locally.

So today I thought i'd talk about another way to save money around the house is to be mindful about what you buy and to make the food that you do buy go a little longer by using different storage methods and tactics.

The tips I'm about to share are some, that I've discovered over time, because I realized that this is another "department" where a lot of money can be wasted if one is careless.

1) Storing Fresh Herbs: Cilantro, Coriander

I personally take them out of the vegetable bag and place a paper towel around the bottom of the stem; also if you happen to know the different "cold zones" in the fridge, you could choose one that is not as cold (if that makes sense). Wrapping the cilantro/coriander in a paper towel helps by avoiding moisture buildup between the bag and Herb which quickens its deterioration.

I've tried putting them in a jar with a bit of water but they seem to not do so well-at least that has been my experience.

I avoid washing the herb and storing it in the fridge as this will also contribute to the herb going bad, which in the end causes a loss in money over time. 

It may not seem a lot of money as on average they cost anywhere from $0.99 on sale to $1.99 but overtime these dollars add up in the course of the week, and then year; especially if some end up in the compost. If you do have a garden, patio or balcony you could definitely grow your own herbs and this would save hundreds of $ over the years.

2) Storing Strawberries

- Buy less than you think you need because strawberries inevitably go bad.

- Also avoid washing them and storing them in the fridge as they may become moldy, or over ripe.

3) Salads

I am working on bringing up my Iron stores so I really try to make an effort to buy better quality lettuce/salad. Its a work in progress but eventually I would like to include more of a variety of salads in my diet.

I use to eat iceberg lettuce, and more simple vegies like carrots, broccoli. However, in the past few years I have switched to the boxed salads. I aim to buy boxed salads that either come in a mix (spring mix). and/or buy at least 2 packages of different ones. 

-I find that boxed salads lasts a bit longer rather than if you buy the fresh ones off the shelf not precut. I am not sure about the science behind it but my lettuce usually succumbs to fridge burn (getting too cold). It could also be that the boxed salads are already precut, ready to go, thus you end up wasting less over time.

4) Meat

If you are a meat lover (which I am) buying larger quantities make sense to a certain point. For example, you don't want to buy so much meat that you eventually can't fit in your freezer or fridge and end up wasting because you can't eat through it.

I personally don't believe in buying a second freezer (as it could contribute to a slightly higher electrical bill) to buy excess meat products unless of course if you have a very large family. 

Thank you for reading my blog, I hope you have found at least one thing that could save you money.

I have some news for my next blog, so I will be happy to share it with you all.

Also, do share any ideas of your own (in comments), which could inspire some to save even more.

Happy Humble saving,

Katy

 

Financial Goals and savings mindsets

Tid bit about my career

 In some ways I am lucky to have such giving and caring parents who allowed me to start and finish my first degree my first degree and supported me financially during my first degree in Associate of Arts degree in Criminology.  More on CSI later! My dad worked a skilled trade as a furniture builder, and he understood how difficult money was to come by and wanted to give me that strong start in life; which could be where my frugality mindset stems from.

By being at home I saved money on the following things:

-Dorms and food meal plans(which can be expensive especially if you want premium package)

-Lunches, snacks and after school meals. My mom always without fail made me lunches and snacks while I attended college.(This can easily count up to a lot, especially if you are spending 8.00 on a lunch at the local food establishment.)

-Car expenses- I took transit to get to university which throughout my entire school career ranged from 30 minutes to 1hr 15mins. This runs into the thousands over the course of 1 year, if you count insurance in.

 I am thankful for the opportunities given and the acute attention that was given to being frugal to always having savings whenever possible.

Each reader has their own unique and special background of where they came from.

Lets start here:

I feel that as a starting point for being frugal is to create your own purpose for being frugal, because this will give you the understanding of where you are starting and where you would eventually would like to end up.  It is quite important because without a specific purpose its easy to get caught up in every day life and simply overlook saving and instead focusing more on the “wants”. Here are some questions which I think are important to think about and its not an exhaustive list.

a)      Why are you being frugal?

-Is your goal it save money for that car, down payment, retirement? Alternatively, would you like to save up for a children’s education or rainy day, or vacation? Also, one should keep in mind that goals change as one gets older.

b)  What is my reason for being frugal?

-   I think due to my upbringing frugality is part of my identity. I like to save money and divide my money up on several ways. Sometimes it’s not possible, but I do what I can as time goes by, a dollar at a time.

I am frugal to save:

#1…. for a rainy day  

     #2 …. for retirement

#3 ….for home improvements (floor and lighting fixtures)

#4 ….for contributing to the purchase of a vehicle with my husband.

#5….Vacations (I haven’t had enough of these and this is probably my biggest resolution for years to come)

In conclusion, once you are able to establish the reason for being frugal it will give you the basis, motivation and understanding of why saving money is so important. Thus, I feel ones reason will empower you to continue to save and accomplish the saving goals you have in mind.

Conclusion

    In my opinion, I would start with saving for a rainy day, and             also paying off credit card debt. I believe that for most             people those 2 things is where stress comes from and many             don’t realize why money is such a difficult topic to talk             about.

Savings around the house: Kitchen

The Kitchen is the biggest area where you can save money in; it does take patience, dedication, organization and careful reflection on items that you use the most.

Coffee or tea:

Tip #1 Know your prices and tolerance.

Strategy:

These days some stores have price per 100g. This helps you compare the price amongst items between name brands, no names and quantities. Here is where personal preference or tolerance for a cheap tasting tea comes in. To me tea and coffee are fairly important so I always choose a mid range product that has a fair balance between taste and price. 

To demonstrate, for instance, you could choose a second rate tasting tea such as an orange Pekoe tea for about 2.99 for 100 bags but the taste is second rate. In this case you might have a cheap tea but the taste is also that-cheap, and cardboard like. Alternatively, a mid range product even from a store brand orange pekoe ($3.50), Tetley (4.00-5.00 for 70 teas) or other would be a much better option. You not only get mid range value for the product but a great tasting cup of tea, which you will appreciate on days when you really need that cup.

Here are some strategies for getting the best value from coffee or tea when shopping:

#1 you can look at price per gram which some stores have in small (tiny writing) underneath the price. Look for the lowest price per 100g; this gives you a quick comparisons without having to do any thinking besides spotting the tags and comparing.

You can either choose amongst midrange teas/coffees you drink or check out the whole section and have the teas and coffees compete against each other.

You will be surprised these prices do sometimes differ between stores. For example a package of tea at one store like Thrifty foods might be less/more than one at superstore.

#2) Teabag packages: Compare packages by choosing midrange, then take the price of the product and divide by the number of teabags in it. This results in your price per teabag.

Example of a tea I recently bought for my husband. Tetley Naturally Decaffeinated Green tea. 80 count for $8.48. Therefore the answer rounded to nearest hundred would be $0.10. So, each tea bag costs $0.10. With this information I can compare to another package of tea. Thus Tazo tea bags 4.48 for 20 teas works out to (rounded off) to $0.22 each. The clear winner between the two teas would be the decaf green tea coming in only at 0.10 each.

#2 Check out the stores clearance section.

Often stores have clearance sections usually at the back of the stores or in lesser used spots where you can often find a bargain. One caveat don’t buy everything in this section even though you might see 50% off, you need to really study the price and know your prices to determine if a product is worth buying. Also, don’t forget to check expiry dates and decide if you can use a product before the expiry.

Scenario from about a month ago- I scored a bargain on coffee!

I wondered over to the clearance section and I couldn’t believe my eyes.  

I bought multiple packages of the same product within reason. I do this on occasion when the deal is too good to pass up. This is how you can save money over the long term, but I’ve never actually kept track of how much I actually saved over the years.

The price tag label said Limit of 12, it was of a brand that I haven’t heard of Azzuri coffee (so I was taking a bit of a gamble), but I thought worst came to worst I could mix it in with another better brand of coffee.

I got 4 packages of this coffee: 2 of them were Dark roast (beans), and 2 of them were Medium roast (grounded). One of the factors I consider is the expiry date being Sep of 2021. So I knew I had plenty of time to drink them. The cost was $6.41, with a price of 15.99 on Amazon. So although I paid $25.64 in one go on coffee I saved , it was well worth it. as I only paid $25.64 for 4 coffees which otherwise would have cost me $63.94!!, so cost savings of $38.30.

#3 Lets not forget about an everyday staple Sugar!

I use to buy packages of sugar between $3.50-4.50 for 2kg. I only bought smaller packages of sugar because we didn’t have a car to transport large bags of 10kg sugar. Now, because we do most of our shopping by delivery, I can buy a 10kg bag of sugar, which therefore lasts us several months at $12-14 per bag.

Math calculation: Buy 5 packages of 2kg bags over time: $3.50 5= 17.50 vs 1 package of 10kg bag of sugar at $12.00 (when you find them on sale).

Savings over time: $5.50 minimum when you buy the larger bag.

Things to consider: You need to have containers to store the sugar. What I do is I save up big empty pickle jars and use this as a container or use empty buckets after 4 L ice creams to store the sugar. I am not going for aesthetics when it comes to storing extra supplies as I have pretty containers which are on the counter for everyday use.

Thank you for reading!

Do comment on your favorite money saving hacks below or any topic suggestions you might have!

 

My frugal Identity

How did my frugal mindset start? 

My frugal identity comes from my upbringing and background of being an offspring of 1st generation parents who came to Canada. 

Perhaps my story is not unlike others as it started with my parents goal of securing a better life for themselves and their children. I was often told of the struggles my parents had to go through to survive and provide for the family back home. My parents were from a generation where many things that we take for granted in many countries were simply not available. For instance, disposable diapers were not available and cloth ones had to be sewn by my mom from scratch from material. Further, garbage bags were not available so trash was thrown directly into the bin without a liner.

I watched my parents living life through their frugal vision and they coincidentally created my frugal mindset (which at times my mom finds it amusing because times are not tough like back home, but yet I feel the need to save). My mom and dads goal was not to be be in debt and instead to have savings for future goals and retirement.

My parents savings strategies(a couple of examples-more to come in future blogs)

My dad:

My father would rarely buy coffee from Starbucks, Mcdonalds or any other brands. Instead, his every day habit without fail was to invest in a regular coffee machine (nothing fancy) and make coffee. His favorite coffee was Hazelnut Crème flavor as it was the smoothest and didn't have too much of a kick, because he worked with machines as a high end furniture maker (so he couldn't afford to have shaky hands!) 

Yes, this coffee takes "effort" which some people don't want to do because they have to wash the coffee maker or wait for it to be made but because the Hazelnuit coffee comes in bean format, you have to actually grind it, before putting it into the coffee maker. I understand that its difficult in the morning to prepare for work. My dad would leave himself enough time in the morning to make sure he had enough time to go to the bathroom, brush his hair, make coffee and put it into a thermos (he would make enough to last breakfast and coffee break), make his bed, make and eat breakfast. When my My mom would get up with my dad and heat up soup and put into his thermos so he has an additional meal to his regular lunch. His work day began at 7am! so he had to be up at like 5:30 with an hour of preparation and then about half hour of a drive.Also his lunch prepared by my mom the night before with the exception of soup. 

Probably the cutest thing is that the co-workers would love the smell of my dads coffee and even comment at the nice smelling soup he had. 

My mom:

My mother was a homemaker who raised us and gave us the head start to education by reading to us when we were little. She sewed when she could to extend the life of our clothes to further stretch the money my father earned at the beginning of our life in Canada when he wasn’t earning as high of a wage because he just got to the country. 

An example of a sewing project was often my brother would tear his pants where his knees were. So, my mom would sew patches which she got from the material of old pants. Therefore, she saved money by simply not having to buy new clothes at $15-20 a pair. 

Another example is my mom would make lunches for both my father and the children (3 of us altogether), and then during the day would make sure that dinner was prepared for when we came home from school and then for my father who returned much later than we did. These lunches were not pre-packed lunches everything was from scratch. My mom would buy bigger items from Coscto when it made sense (toilet paper, diswashing liquid, laundry detergent, hams,) fruits and vegetables from other specific stores where the price was right.This saving my mom and dad did didn't mean we didn't spend any money on takeout at all. For any occasions we would eat KFC, churchies ect and take it to the park and enjoy the meals there.

The savings for dinner alone are astonishing for a family of 5, depending on what restaurant can run you from $100-150 CAD, including drinks.

In conclusion, all of these habits kind of set tone for me to really appreciate every dollar I earned, and perhaps to always be a geeky thrifty person and perhaps sometimes to go overboard but it makes me happy.

I know some people might look at me and say its so strange why don’t you just go out and splurge on yourself and not worry about money so much?

The answer is that Its in my personality not to splurge. I love to go somewhere or to go to a nice restaurant instead of spending money on manicures or pedicures, but don't get me wrong I do enjoy life we have takeout almost weekly (which is technically worse of a saving habit) but both of us do work so we have more household income coming in which provides us an opportunity to splurge once in awhile.

In addition, I enjoy knowing that I have some money to spare so that if a life emergency comes up, I can sleep reasured that I have nothing to worry about. Also any trips that I go on are all budged out and I don't even have to worry about money and just have a good time.

Welcome and 1 Simple way to save

Welcome to my blog!

Hello, My name is Katy and I'd like to welcome you to my first blog.

My hope is that my blogs reach people of all ages and that they provide a change for people to reflect on their own situation and have their own financial awakening; As we go along you will be able to understand the ways one can change their habits in order to achieve the end result.

You could call it like your own Self-guided blog with the goal being to save money!

A little preface to my blogs: Sometimes the advice I provide might sound very strict, forward or almost impossible, but bear with it and you will save money!

The key is to make your own individualized plan of taking mini steps until you will get use to using these strategies and you will thank your pocket!

How do you get started to the path to frugality?

 Make a weekly menu and shop every 2 weeks!

I know that we all have very busy lives, but with a little bit of organization this is possible.

Why bother planning? 

This stops those impulse purchases of going to the store and buying the original item you may have gone out for such as Celery. 

Instead what happens are impulse buys (which in this case is Mars bars and candy) plus many more items adding countless dollars. So Mars bars can be $4.50 for a pack of 4, and candy another couple of dollars; if you throw in the Icecream thats another $6, and soon you are easily up to $20.00 for just "add on purchases", when you really came in to buy a top of buy of cheese, bread and milk lets say.

In my case I use to be guilty of impulse buys all the time. I sometimes leave things out of the shopping list because I am so frugal because I feel  I can live without this or that. The truth is I have a sweet and salty tooth; so I know I will reach for those sweets and should really include them in my bi-weekly shop. Therefore, one way to prevent impulse shopping is to buy foods you forecast you will need in proportions- yes even sweets or chips! 

To Do Homework:

Think about your day and find out where you have “clear moments” in your schedule and use this time to make your menu. 

For me my free moments are first thing in the morning when I am having coffee and eating breakfast, this is when I feel I have the most energy and feel I can concentrate to make an eating plan.  In my next posts I will share a photo of my bi-weekly meal plan!

Let me know how you found making your first bi-weekly menu and comment in the comment box with some ideas.

I hope you have thoroughly enjoyed my first blog. 

Feel free to comment I would love to see your thoughts!