10 Old-Fashioned Frugal Tips

Frugal living has been around for forever. Throughout time, families have always tried to find ways to save money and make their dollar stretch. Different decades throughout history have shown that frugality was a norm of many people’s daily lives when jobs and food where scarce throughout America. While it seems that there are always new and inventive ways to live frugal, some of the best and most simple frugal tips are from long ago. Recycle and reuse these tips how you see fit, but here are 10 Old-Fashioned Frugal Tips to save money in your daily life and around your home.

Grow your own garden. Don’t over think this one. A garden doesn’t have to be huge, and you don’t need a ton of land to make this happen. If you have an area, no matter the size, dig up a small garden and plant something that you love to eat. Certain foods grow better in certain sized spaces so plan accordingly. Even if you don’t have a yard, you can still grow food. Have window sill boxes to grow fresh herbs or try a hanging basket to grow strawberries and tomatoes. Save money by not buying these expensive items at the store and enjoy the benefit of being able to walk right outside your door and have fresh food available when you want it.
Bake your own bread. If you or your family love bread, this is a huge money saver. It isn’t uncommon for families to go through 2-3 loaves of bread per week. That is a cost of $7-$12 that you are spending on an item that you could make for less than 1/2 that cost. Not only does baking your own bread save you money, it is so much healthier for you and your family as well.
Learn how to can food. There is nothing worse than throwing out food that went bad because it wasn’t eaten in time. Take a class or educate yourself on how to can food. It is an excellent way to save food for future use and is such an inexpensive way to enjoy food from your garden year round.
Hang your clothes on the line to dry. Let that dryer have a break, and hang out your clothes on the line to dry. You will notice a nice savings on your monthly bill with this frugal tip.
Sew your own curtains. If you’ve looked at purchasing curtains lately, you know that they can be really expensive. Plus, it is hard to find ones that match your decor exactly. Save money and make your own. Head to the store, and pick out the exact fabric that you want, then start sewing. Not only will your budget be happy, but you will be too over the feeling of accomplishment once they are completed and hung.
Reuse wrapping paper and gift bags. No shame in reusing these expensive items. Just make certain that there are no names on the gift bags and that you aren’t giving a gift to someone in the bag that they gave a gift to you.
Pay with cash only. Credit cards weren’t even an option back in the day, so cash was king. Stop swiping that card and use cash to pay for items in full. If you can’t pay it in full with cash, then you can’t buy it. Simple way to save.
Reuse those coffee grinds. While it may sound interesting, it is something that people do to get one more use out of that pot of coffee, saving them money from having to go to the store to buy more grinds. While the caffeine will be less, the taste will still be there.
Save cooking grease and use it to cook other food items in. Bacon grease makes everything taste amazing.
Raise your own chickens. If your town allows it, give it a go. Fresh eggs in the morning sound like an awesome way to start the day and it will also save you a trip to the store.

Frugal living may have changed some over the years, but the tips and tricks of the past are still relevant and can be used today. If you are wanting to try out old-fashioned frugal living, try a few of these Old-Fashioned Frugal Tips. Some may work well for you, while others may not. Any tip that can save money is a tip worth trying!