Frugal Making Do
A friend of mine says she saved money clothing her large family by learning to sew, but not from scratch. She 'edited' clothing she found at the thrift shop. She took larger jumpers and took them in at the sides, cut them up the front, folded in a new seam, added placket (for those who don't sew, this is a folded over piece thicker than the rest, with buttons).
Another friend entertained a large (really large) crowd on a regular basis. She had a set menu of a particular pasta salad, but she didn't own a large enough bowl for it. She would clean out her ice chest really well, and mixed and served her famous pasta salad in and from the ice chest.
Rubber Gloves- Get three pairs for the price of two: Usually the glove that fits your dominant hand wears out before the other one. When one glove wears out and you need a new pair, save the old 'good' glove. When your second pair wears out and you have two good gloves, but both for the same hand, turn one of them inside out (dust it with corn starch to make it easier to slip your hand in. (from everydaycheapskates.com)
Accent balls: I have a primitive, hand carved wooden mixing bowl that I inherited. After spending some time in a home-decor store, I discovered a here-to-fore unknown need- I needed some perfectly frivolous items known as 'accent balls' to go in my wooden bowl on my coffee table (which is an old black trunk with a bit of cloth over it). I wandered back in to that store several times over the next couple months, coveting the pretty and completely unnecessary bits of decorative home confectionery, wishing in growing state of discontentment that I could justify the cost of three of them just for decoration. Then one day while cleaning out my uncle's garage I came across the perfect solution- three old wooden croquet balls- so old their paint was faded, fashionably distressed, and terribly chicly shabby- perfect for a primitive wooden bowl. This past Christmas I discovered something else that worked well- some large old glass balls for the Christmas tree. These had once been a opalescent white, now faded to a milky translucence. If I turned them so the part with the hanger was facing down, they didn't even look like Christmas ornaments.
How do you make do?
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7 Responses to “Frugal Making Do”
February 5th, 2010 at 7:41 am
We do a lot of re-purposing Thrift Store and garage sale clothing. Example: I bought 2 $0.10 Play Princess dress at garage sale. They were both too immodest for my daughter and the straps were broken on one. I used the ruffles from one and added to the bottom of the other dress to make it longer. Then I used the rest of the material and added sleeves and a panel to the front to cover the chest. Tah-Dah a perfect gift for Purim and now my daughter can dress like she is Esther!
I also make do with whatever yarn I can get my greedy hands on. A lot of people will just give you yarn that they do not use when they find out you crochet or knit.
I also do a lot of recycled crafts with the kids for homeschool, using lots of household “trash” items.
Have a happy frugal day!
Heather Mac
February 5th, 2010 at 11:06 am
I’ve made decorative balls with Styrofoam balls. I had to do a lot of sitting and resting at the end of one pregnancy, so I bought some Styrofoam balls, some sequins, some tiny beads, and a package of straight pins. I put a tiny bead onto the pins first and then a sequin, and then I pushed each one into a ball. Once the ball was covered, I had a ball that resembled ones I had seen in expensive shops. It wasn’t free, but it was cheap, and I needed something to do with my hands. (Obviously, it was my first pregnant. I have four boys now and never get bored.)
For another one of the balls, I found something on clearance with the silk florals. It was sprays of red berries about the size of small blueberries. I was able to pull the berries off the stems, leaving a small stem intact to be used to push the berries into a Styrofoam ball. I used hot glue first to cover the ball with leftover fake moss from another project because the berries did leave small gaps that were uncovered.
I did a third ball, but I don’t remember what I covered that one with. All three balls went into a bowl during the Christmas season. When that was over, I stuck the ball covered in red berries on a tree stem I got from the backyard. I found a small pot I wasn’t using, put floral foam in it, and stuck the other end of the stick in the foam. I covered the foam with more of the moss, and then I had a decoration I could leave out all year.
February 5th, 2010 at 11:25 am
Years ago I read in a book the idea of buying clothes at yard sales, thrift stores, etc. when you can get it cheap. Then take it apart. You have buttons, zippers, and fabric to use for something else. I have seen this done with men’s suits. Make a quilt with the wonderful wool fabric. Etc.
There is so much waste out there; if you are thoughtful you can have a lot of really wonderful things with time and effort.
February 6th, 2010 at 7:17 am
I just rarely buy stuff unless it’s really needed. I never send physical cards anymore unless I make them myself and I wrap in brown packing paper and brown string.
As for everyday making do, I buy ingredients fresh rather than use convenience foods, learning to cook is fun and becomes an almost free hobby if you stay on cheap recipes.
Thrift stores, craigslist and ebay are essential shopping places, why buy new when so much nearly new stuff goes to waste?
February 6th, 2010 at 8:32 am
My friend bought a wool skirt at a thrift store, took it apart and used the fabric to make a vest for her husband. Inexpensive and beautiful.
February 6th, 2010 at 8:57 am
I’ve been turning old stained tshirts into rags. I’m going to start using them for “napkins” too since we have so many!
February 9th, 2010 at 7:04 pm
Our 2 year-old is in desperate need of some larger bibs. The baby bibs just don’t protect his clothes anymore. I’m going to put together some old dish towels and collars from old T-shirts to make nice, long bibs for him. They’ll even match the kitchen’s decor!
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