Frugal Fraulein Donations

Time has come for me to include a Donation button on my blog.  If you have received value from this site and hopefully a chuckle once in a while please consider making a donation to allow me to keep on writing.  As you know it takes time to research articles and come up with new ideas.  There are now over 130 articles to choose from on Frugal Canning which can certainly save you money and time all offered free.  I would like to create Ebooks and your contribution will allow me to focus on writing books on canning, frugal tips and preparedness.

I live on a fixed very low income (you would be shocked if you knew) and want to be able to share with you practical ways to keep expenses down and keep your head above water during these challenging changing financial times.  All donations will be gratefully accepted and I promise to send a blessing back to you straight away.

Just click on the Donation button in the lefthand column and select from the variety of safe methods to send a gift my way.  Thank you and may we all be abundant, healthy and constantly becoming more evolved.  So be it!

Thank you to Katherine Skaggs who created this wonderful art.

Frugal Pantry Challenge

My pantry spice racks

Challenges make me sit up and listen. eat-from-the-pantry-challenge-for-january is a great challenge.  The premis is to see how many meals you can create from the stores in your pantry and freezer without going to the store.  I am taking on the challenge beginning January 1rst.

I have a very abundant pantry.  Crazy actually.  My freezer is bursting and needs to be thinned out.  This is a great opportunity for me to test my food preparedness again and see what I have learned since the last time I participated in a test like this.

This quotation from the Bible was given in the article that is worthy of posting here. 

“Do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ” – Luke 12:22-24

I can honestly say I have observed crows quite a bit in the past 6 years because they are frequent visitors to my yard and roof.  I know them to be great savengers because they bring things to my bird bath and little bitty water pool.  By things I mean bread, pizza crusts, corn cobs and other unidentifiable food items stolen from garbage cans.  They put the items in the water and let them get soggy then they eat them.  We have all seen crows eat road kill but I had never really thought about how they find food year round.  I guess crows are good runners for thinking about our own food preparedness.

I will continue to report in on what meals I come up with and what I learn.  The only thing I can think of that I will buy before I begin is a container of 1/2 and 1/2 for my coffee.  I do have creamora, evaporated milk and powdered milk in the pantry BUT I prefer 1/2 and 1/2.

Anyone brave enough to take on the challenge? I have a $200 budget for food which I will use once I have finished the challenge to restock and fill in the items that stand out as missing from my current storage plan.  I am excited.

If you are going to participate please leave a comment below and let's share stories!

Frugal Pork Stretching

A while back I wrote about how How To Stretch a Chicken .  If you aren't buying whole chickens when they are on sale from $.49-.79 a pound, then don't whine about the high cost of chicken and what you are paying for groceries!  Never buy boned skinless chicken at premium prices.  Learn to cut it up yourself.  That extra 10 minutes could be worth $3 or more!  Do you make $30 an hour?  If you had chicken twice a month you could save $72 a year on chicken alone.  That is a month's cable bill or two of my electric bills!

Now  I am addressing the use of inexpensive pork roasts.  Recently, pork roasts have been on sale for .99 a pound.  I bought two roasts in a package for $7.49 and let's say each roast was the same size.  The cost of each roast would be $3.75 and weigh around 3.5 pounds.

I froze one roast for later.   I then took the other roast and put it in the crock pot to slow cook all day.  I wanted to have pulled pork.  To the crock pot I added

1 can of tomato paste
1/2 cup catsup
1/2 cup brown sugar
big spoon of spicey mustard
3 tablespoons worshestire sauce
1 tablespoon of garlic salt
1/4 cup dried onions
a couple of shakes of habanaro hot sauce
1/3 cup cider vinegar
pork roast
The ingredients were mixed up and the roast was rolled around in the rich red BBQ like mixture.  Cook on low for 8 hours.  Baste once in a while or simply turn over the roast.  It is done when the pork pulls away easily from the bone and shreds with a fork.  Take the meat out of the crock pot and cook the sauce till thick.  If you are in a hurry pour it into a sauce pan and cook on the stove stirring frequently.

The first day I prepared pulled pork, steamed veggies and a baked potato for two and a half.  (Mister T had some pulled pork with his dinner) After dinner I pulled all the meat off and put it in the refrigerator.

Day two was pulled pork sandwiches on toasted english muffins, salad and home canned apple sauce.

Day three believe it or not there is still an ample amount of meat and sauce leftover.  It was warmed up and served over egg noodles for dinner.

Day four the remaining pork and sauce was mixed with a can of green chilies rolled into whole wheat tortias and the sauce was poured on top.  A bit of grated cheese was sprinkled over the top of the casserole and baked for about 35 minutes at 350 degrees.

I did skip a day in there so I was not too porked out. Also the casserole could have been frozen for another week.  I did make 4 rolls when I made the casserole which was 2 servings.

Altogether there were 8 hearty adult sized meals and Mister T had his fair share most every meal.  Even at 8 meals that comes to less than .50 a meal for meat which is darned frugal if I do say so myself.  One can live very frugally if one makes an effort.

Frugal Holiday Candy

After the holiday I don't run out for sales on wrapping paper and Christmas tree ornaments, I run out for the 1/2 price sale on holiday candy!  The stores want to unload all those chocolate santas and red and green M&M's to get ready for Valentine's Day candy.  Grocery stores, drug stores and big box stores are all loaded with candy on sale.  It is not only candy but cookies, popcorn cans and even fruit cake.

I keep a candy box in the pantry for the three neighbor children.  I know one of the reasons they like to come and visit me almost every day.  It is not only my bright personality, big hugs, ideas for fun things to do (like pick up the apples under Abby's apple tree or pick rocks in the garden for a penny a piece) but really the magic box.  They know where it is and even the two year old knows how to slide open the drawer and find a goodie.

The box is stocked year round with candy that has been purchased after holidays.  They don't seem to mind at all and I never get complaints.  This year they went to that Wally store with me and we found bags of candy for .50.  They were able to pick out some of their favorites and decided to test one of the bags on the way home in the car.

All kidding aside, if you have a sweet tooth and just like the idea of a candy insurance plan, buy some holiday candy and store it away preferably in an air tight container or the freezer.  When that craving occurs you will have the supplies you need at hand.  For me personally, just knowing it is in the house makes me happy and doesn't inspire me to buy lots of extras when I grocery shop.  I can't say I have lost weight on this plan but I have probably done less candy impulse buying.

Get out there fast the supplies are dwindling!

Pickles for Christmas

Seems we had a pickle themed Christmas holiday. 

I gave my Mother a large pickle jar of kosher dill pickles.  She not only loves to eat pickles but she uses a jar of pickles to hold open her pantry door during the day and to block it at night so that her little dachshund, Tinker, can not get into mischief.

I wrote about how much our family loves Pickles especial Bread and Butter Pickles in a past blog article.
My Mother then surprised me by giving me a pickle Christmas ornament! 

The story is that when Mom's hairdresser heard the story of me making a Halloween costume and entering a contest as a giant jar of pickles she thought it was pretty funny and it made an impression on her.  When she was out shopping this season she saw pickle ornaments and thought of me.  She bought it and gave it to my mother.  I was just tickled to open the package and see the pickle.  Thank you Joan for thinking of me and thank you Mom for the present.  What a perfect ornament for a frugal canner who happens to love pickles!

I just found out that the 2-1/2 inch glass, shiny green pickle ornament is the center of a very old German Christmas tradition.

Legend says that the pickle, a symbol of good luck, was the last ornament to be placed on the tree. The first child to find the pickle on Christmas morning was rewarded with an extra gift left by St. Nicholas.

The tradition encourages children to appreciate all of the beautiful ornaments on the tree, rather than rushing first to the presents that Santa has left them

I didn't know that until my friend Margie wrote to me saying she thought there was something special about a pickle on the Christmas Tree.  I google it and there it was.  What did we do before search engines to find out silly little facts that make blog articles so interesting?

Did you know the English last name Pickle originated from a person who lives near a hill, a stream, a church or a certain tree?

Ultimate Frugal Calendar

It is time to think about a new calendar for 2010. Most years I go to the mall after Christmas and get a new calendar on sale for 50% off. I never buy a calendar at cost. They always go on sale.

Here is the most frugal way to a cfind a calendar for 2010. Did you know that there are only 14 combinations of monthly days and dates that would have to be saved (half account for years with 365 days, the other half for leap years).? Mathematically this is true.

There is a website at Time and Date that allows you to enter the desired year and calculate which alternative years would be matches. Now hoarders and collectors could make some extra money posting old calendars on EBay. Let’s say you want a calendar for 2010. The years 1897,1 901, 1915,1 926, 1937, 1943,1 954,1 971, 1982, 1993, 1999 could all be reused this coming year! One of these years happens to be the year of my birth (no it isn’t 1897!). Just think, if my mother had saved a calendar the year I was born I could reuse it this year!

What a fun thing to hunt for while rummaging yard sales, flea markets or antique shops. An old calendar could become a unique gift and a conversation starter. A few holidays have changed dates over the years as a convienence but basically this will work.

So think about saving that special calendar with the exceptionally great pictures and using it again in the future. Just calculate what year the formula will come up again and you can reuse it.  I happen to love calendars with pictures of dachshund puppies.  Instead of letting them go at the end of the year, I could save them and use them again.  I do have visions of boxes of calendars being piled up in my living room and having to make pathways through the hallways but I promise myself not to get obsessed over this new idea.

This Christmas I found a calendar at Michael’s that had places to insert your own pictures for $1.00. I bought two. One I prepared for my Mother with pictures of our home town. The other I helped the kids next door prepare as a gift for their mother. The four year old, Luke, really likes to come to visit me and use my digital camera. We have discovered he has quite an eye for photography. Together we picked out 12 of his favorite pictures then we printed the name of the month using a Picasa right on the bottom of the picture. I emailed them off to a drug store that was offering a deal on printing. The pictures were fit into the calendar to create a memorable gift. Luke’s mom loved it and Luke was so proud of himself.

We could have printed out a calendar from the internet but finding one all printed for a buck was a steal.

 Thanks to Frugal Living for the inspiration and links about using old calendars.  Also I recommend Greenpaper Typepad as a fabulous site for vintage paper and collectables.  I just love looking at this site and all the things that have been done with vintage articles.

Merry Christmas To All

Merry Christmas to each and every one of you.

Christmas to me is the celebration of Christ in Mass.  I believe there is the possibility for each human being to become a Christ and that God is inside of us all.  It is a beautiful time of year and wouldn't it be wonderful if we felt this way all year long?

May you each be blessed and have a most wonderful celebration.

Abby and Mister T

More Frugal Electrical News

Today my electrician friend dropped by.  I asked him if he could create a more accessible shut off contraption for my washer and dryer.  As you probably know, they are usually plugged in behind the appliances in a place that is very hard to reach.  He looked at me funny and asked what the problem was. I told him I wanted to keep them unplugged when not in use to save on the loss of phantom electricity.  Well, you should have seen his face.  He is admittedly not frugal and thought my idea was crazy.  He told me those appliances do not use more than .5 watts to keep the digital buttons going and it was not worth the hassle to create an alternative shut off switch.  I explained that I was attempting to stop all unnecessary use of electricity to reduce my carbon footprint.  He told me most items plugged in do not pull much when not in use and not to worry about it.  Obviously he is not the one to ask for wattage cutting suggestions and does not know appliances left on standby mode can draw an average of 5-10 percent of household energy use!

So again I let my fingers do the research and began surfing the internet.  4-Ways-to-Reduce-a-Gadgets-Power-Drain gave some excellent statistics like Electronics account for 15% of the average household's annual energy bill, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Considering that the average family is expected to shell out $2,350 for electricity and natural gas this year, that's about $352.50 that goes toward powering everything from a television to a cellphone charger. Of that amount, standby power — energy consumed by devices when they're plugged in but not in use — represents as much as 75%, or roughly $264.Even though today's gadgets are designed to use less energy than they once did, we own far more of them than in the past, points out Maria Vargas, a spokeswoman for the government-backed program, Energy Star. (In 2001, electronics accounted for just 7% of the average consumers' $2,000 annual energy bill, or $140.) We also keep our gadgets active for longer periods of time — consumers who switch to cheaper Internet-based phone service, for example, must keep their computers at full power all the time in order to receive calls.

Saving electricity not only saves money but saves the planet as well.  Michael Bluejay's Website is excellent and should be read by everyone.  He says, " Saving electricity doesn't just save money, it also saves the planet. This is news to a lot of people. After all, when you plug something into the wall, it seems clean enough -- you don't see or smell any pollution, like you do with your car. But the pollution is there -- it just happens at the power plant. Most electricity is generated by burning coal and running nuclear power plants. Every time you turn on the lights, you create a little pollution. (See the sidebar.) In fact, the average home pollutes more than the average car! (See my Carbon Footprint Calculator for the numbers.) So saving electricity doesn't just put money in your pocket, it helps keep the air and water clean, too."  Mr. Bluejay or Mr. Electricity as he likes to be called goes on to explain simply what electricity is, what a watt is, how to measure how much you are using and best of all he dispels electrical myths.  His site offers ways to calculate your carbon footprint, calculate how much electricity you use and how much it costs.  Please go directly to his site and read for yourself http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/  

The average U.S. household used 920 kWh a month in 2006. (Dept. of Energy).  My Nov-Dec bill states I used 441 KWH and last year same period of time I used 659 KWH which means I cut my usage 218 KWH and I use far less than a normal household (of course only two people and a dog lived at my home and Mister T knows to turn off the lights when he leaves a room!).  I am lucky to live in Washington because our basic rate is the fourth lowest in the nation at 6.31.

Michael Bluejay is my new Electric Super Hero!

So all this said, I still would like to keep doing my fair share.  I have already exchanged all my light bulbs to the new CFL  (compact fluorescent light) bulbs.  One local lighting store was offering a special promotion and I snapped it up.  A box of 48 bulbs was offered at $12.  I bought 2 boxes and figure I have a lifetime's worth of bulbs.  Sorry this was two years ago and the offer does not still exist.

I am running my major appliances at night after 7 pm to get a lower rate.  I am leaving the computer on sleep rather than leaving it running during the day.  Turn off your computer Leaving the screen saver on will not save any energy. Screen savers can use more energy than when you are using the computer yourself, and can reduce the life of your monitor. Instead, enable the display blanking feature to automatically turn off the monitor when your computer is idle. You can save $50-$100 per year by enabling your computer to 'sleep' automatically when you are not using. Another way to reduce power while using computers is to reduce screen brightness. This will also increase the battery time for your laptop. Also replacing your CRT Monitor with an LCD monitor leads to 66% reduction in the energy consumed by CRT monitors.

Only use the washing machine when you have collected a full load. If you must wash a partial load, use the economy or half load setting. Also, modern washers work just as effectively at 40 degrees as they do at 60, but the difference in temperature will make a difference in terms of energy used. If you are in the market for a new washer, buy a front loader. These washers are used extensively in Europe and save considerable amounts of water and energy compared to top-loading washers. Tumble dryers use up a huge amount of energy. If possible, hang your clothes on a line instead. This is better for your clothes as well. Washing economically doesn't just apply to your clothes. Taking a shower instead of a bath uses around 50 percent less energy.

Reuse water which comes out of the tap that would drain otherwise. When you turn up the hot water on a tap, put a container under the tap until the water is warm enough. This saves a surprising amount of water. I now have a basin in the sink and capture the excess water from the tap.  I use it on my plants.  I also keep the water I boil for tea in a thermos and have it ready all day.

I installed a ceiling fan over my bed and one in the kitchen/living room instead of using an air conditioner.  When the woodstove is very hot I will turn on the kitchen ceiling fan to push the hot air around.  I do not heat the two unused bedrooms unless I have guests coming.  The doors stay closed and the thermostats are set on off.  The windows are new within 8 years and are double pane.  The refrigerator, stove, washer, dryer and dishwasher were all purchased within 5 years and are energy efficient.

Other than turning everything off and living without electricity (which I have done before and choose not to live quite so frugally) I am doing the best I can do at the moment.  Other suggestions are to Conduct a Home Energy Audit.  I am going to contact my local power company to see if they offer free energy audits.  There are grants available through the Department of Agriculture and local Community Development or qualifying folks.

The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that cooking alone accounts for 4.5% of total home energy use, and this figure doesn't include the energy costs associated with refrigeration, hot water heating, and dishwashing. Added together, these costs mean that as much as 15% of the energy in the average American home is used in the kitchen. To reduce energy use while cooking don't peak into the oven unless necessary.  Every time you peak and open the door the temperature drops at least 25 degrees and it takes that much longer for the dish to cook.  Pre-heating an electric oven is not necessary and the oven can be turned off 5-10 minutes before timed baking/cooking is finished.  Let the heat already built up finish off the dish.  Just keep the door closed.  Did you know that by cooking with glass or ceramic pots you can reduce the temperature by 25 degrees than the recipe calls for?  Check out more tips at Department of Energy's Cooking Tips.

When the power is off I kick in my emergency preparedness training and cook with the aid of blankets.  I have a butane powered one burner stove on which I boil water in a metal pot.  I add the correct amount of boiling water to grains or rice, take the pot off the stove and cover with a tight fitting lid.  Then the pot is wrapped in towels, blankets or polar fleece and left for an hour or so.  It is not a speedy method but in an emergency it saves unnecessary use of precious fuel.

Just a couple more tips:
Always wear socks, the wearing a Socks keep your body temperature up about 10° warmer than it would be without socks.
If you are comfortable in a tee shirt and shorts inside during the winter your heat is set too high.  Put on layers and lower the thermostat.
Don't turn up the heat use a shawl or lap blanket.  I love polar fleece throws and have them on the back of my living room chairs so everyone can have one.
Drink a warm beverage before going to bed.  I like a cup of herbal or green tea before bed.
Spice up your food. 
Take showers instead of baths.
Prune the bushes and trees around the house and let the sun in.  At night lower the blinds keeping in the heat and keeping the cold out.
Move the furniture away from cold walls and baseboard heaters.Dust is a wonderful insulator and tends to build up on radiators and baseboard heat vents. It keeps the heat from getting into the rooms where you need it... dust or vacuum all radiator surfaces frequently.

Get a Dachshund.  They love to snuggle under the covers in bed with you and are great loving bed warmers.  I wouldn't be without mine and he doesn't talk back.
An electric blanket is much less expensive than heating your bedroom.
Cover pots and pans when heating liquids.

Cooking utensils with flat bottoms and tight fitting covers save heat.
Be sure pots and pans are right size for range burners and elements.
Plan some meals so that entire meal can be prepared in oven at same time.
Thaw frozen meats to almost room temperature before cooking.
Dryer vents use a sheet metal flapper to try to reduce this air leakage. This is very primitive technology that does not provide a positive seal to stop the air leakage. Compounding the problem is that over time, lint can clog the flapper causing it to stay open. This is like leaving a window open all year round!

An easy, low-cost solution to this problem is to add a dryer vent seal! A dryer vent seal will reduce unwanted air infiltration, and keep out pests, bees and rodents as well. The vent will remain closed unless the dryer is in use. When the dryer is in use, a floating shuttle rises to allow warm air, lint, and moisture to escape.
Use a timer to set appliances to operate during the evening/night hours.

Hopefully more information has been provided in this sequel to my first posting on saving electricity. Frugal Electrical Tricks Helped!

Here are some more sites with good tips:
http://www.tdc.ca/savingelectricity.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/humber/content/articles/2004/11/25/winter_advice_for_elderly_feature.shtml
http://www.ehow.com/how_5433172_save-electricity-winter.html
http://www.green-energy-efficient-homes.com/how-to-save-electricity.html

Frugal Electric Tricks Helped!

Two months ago I was shocked to see my energy comsumption was up 195 watts over the same month last year!  Wondering why the significant change I began to look around the house.  I found some eye openers that I could address.

All the shop tools were plugged in.  Some of the tools have batteries and need to be recharged once in a while.  Electric tools do not need to be plugged in all the time.  I was wasting phantom wattage.  Phantom wattage is the small amount of electricity that is going from the wall outlet in a circle through the wire to the electric unit.  It is simply being lost and not doing anyting constructive.  Phantom energy loss is like having vampires in your house and not one of those cute ones like that fellow in the new Twilight movie.  These vampires suck up hundreds of dollars annually, quietly going unnoticed.

I put my foot down and told Tim we were going to war against the vampires.  All his tools were unplugged!  I found them in his room, in the garage and even a battery charger sitting outside.  Tim really had not thought about how many watts were being used simply by leaving things plugged into the wall outlet.  I am sure at first he thought I was just being over frugal and had gone over the edge.  I told him we could agree to undergo a one month test and see how much we could reduce our usage.  He agreed begrudgingly.

Next, I checked all the appliances in the kitchen.  I unpluged what was not being used like the microwave, coffee maker and toaster.  Those appliances have digital clocks to seduce you into keeping them plugged in.  What is going on?  Are the appliance makers in bed with the power company? Have I stumbled on to another conspiracy that I should let Jesse Ventura know about? 

So again I took action and began unplugging things.  I realized how unconcious I have been about using appliances.  I would just go to the microwave, put something in and push the buttons.  Now I have to stop, plug it in, then use it.  I also looked at the microwave digital clock often.  Now it is blank and I use the battery operated clock on the wall.  I actually had to turn back by hand for the daylight savings adjustment.  Can you imagine that one?  Another task that I had become unconcious to.

When I turned off the toaster I realized that bread is put in the lever will not go down unless it is plugged in!  Another thing to think about and remember.

Next, I thought about the dishwasher, clothes washer and dryer.  I decided not to unplug the dishwasher yet because the plug is under the kitchen counter and not easily accessible.  The concession I made was to unplug the dishwasher as soon as the wash cycle was over.  By opening the door, the heat and moister came out and heated the kitchen and the moisture was helpful to humidify the air which is dry due to woodstove.  I only put the dishwasher on when it is full  which is about every third day.  I wash most of the pots and pans by hand.  Sometimes I do dishes as well especially if I have been working outside and my hands are really dirty with ground in dirt.  Don't choke.  I wash them first but soaking them seems to help get the garden dirt out of the cracks in my weathered gardeners hands.  It is also a fact that using the dishwasher can save on the amount of water that is used.  I haven't addressed my water usage but that day will come.

We have a front load washer and dryer that is very efficient.  In fact, all our appliances have the energy star designation.  Again it is hard to unplug the washer and dryer.  I have asked a friend who is an electrician to come over and see if he can modify the outlet so I can have a turn on and off switch.  I have to admit the washer and dryer are in a small space and often my ample hip grazes them and turns them on.  This is not good.  I now hear that vampire sucking electricity and the sound of cha ching cha ching when the washer accidently turns on.  I set the washer on cold water and always make sure I am doing a full load.  I only do wash at night after 7 p.m. when the rates are lower.  I read on the internet that if you use the dryer for 20 minutes then put on the fluff or less dry setting it will save wattage.  I did that and by golly it worked.  I am now using the dryer less often.  Where we live it rains this time of year so drying outside is not possible.  I did dry some things on a wooden rack in front of the wood stove.

Next, I looked around and found all the power strips I had collected from yard sales over the past couple of years.  I never did understand why someone would sell one of those things?  Anyhow, I put one near the television and plugged in the cable box, DVD and television.  At night when I turn off the tv I simply shut it off then get up and on my way down the hall turn off the power switch.  It does take longer to get everything you want to watch tv as the bable and television need to reformat.  So these machines were developed for convienence by having to keep them plugged in all the time and using electricity 24/7.

Two more power strips were used in the livingroom near the lights.  I put a piece of velcro under the end table and attached the power strip to the table so it could not be seen and was easier to reach.  Now at the end of the evening I turn things off and push the power strip button. 

As I have written about before, we agreed to not use the electric heat this winter and see if we could heat with free wood scavenged in our local area.  So the wood was collected, cut and split.  The woodstove has an electric fan but it does not need to be used all the time.  Once the house is warm it can be shut off and the house is toasty warm.

I do not leave the outside door entry way light on in the evening unless I am expecting company.  I chose not to put up holiday lights this year and made wreaths from blown down boughs of evergreens instead.  The bedroom lights are now on power strips.  I do not leave my bedroom CD player plugged in.  I only use the hair dryer when I am going out.  I found some velcro like curlers and I leave them in my hair till it drys.  Voila I have nice easy flip when my hair has naturally dried.

The water heater was lowered to 120 degrees.  I have not insulated the water heater yet but plan to this month.

I just got the new electric bill and this past month 441 watts were used and last year 659 were used for a savings of 218 watts.  I am thrilled!  The cost is higher than last year due to rate hikes but my bill is $41.49 (pretty good for a small three bedroom ranch style home).  The bill also tells me that the average temperature was 41 degrees and last year it was 47 degrees so it has been colder.  I really feel we have not only saved money but reduced our comsumption footprint.

Now Tim has moved onto greener pastures and I am living alone.  It will be interesting to see how many watts I use this month.  I am looking forward for once to see the next bill come in the mail.

I will continue to take action to make that meter run more slowly!  I have more ideas that I will be working on in January.  What have you done to reduce your electricity usage?

Frugal Way to Give

Frugal Hacks, a newsletter I read frequently, reminded me of the Free Rice  website.  FreeRice is a non-profit website run by the United Nations World Food Program. Our partner is the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University.

FreeRice has two goals:
• Provide education to everyone for free.
• Help end world hunger by providing rice to hungry people for free.

As you play a word game, and increase your vocabulary, you are giving grains of rice for each correct answer. This is made possible by the generosity of the sponsors who advertise on the site. You can even set it to keep track of all of the rice you give by choosing definitions for the words given. How wonderful to learn and provide rice for hungry human beings, enabling them to function and be productive. Somewhere in the world, a person will be eating rice that you helped provide. Visit FreeRice.com.

What a fun and frugal way to help others!  Please pass this site on to your friends.

What To Get For The Dog That Has Everything

 Mister T, my best friend is tops on my Christmas list.  When he went to see Santa Claws he barked he wanted stuffed animals that he could rip apart and pull the stuffing out of, squeeky toys to bite till the squeeker is silenced and rubber balls that can be shredded into millions of pieces so he can watch me clean up his prizes.  But these are the things he asks for every year.  What do you get the dog that has everything?

Well, I have found the perfect gift.  He will be the envy of the big bad Rotweiler down the street who fiercely barks at him when he walks by on the walk to Grandma's house.  The envy of Driveway Kitty who lives across the street and never leaves her driveway day or night. Mini Pincher who jumps up and down and barks nervously when Mister T checks out the mailbox (why he always wants to do his business under the mailbox is a myster to me) will be annoyed.  Bentley, his best Dachshund friend will surely be jealous. Finally, Midnight The Kitten who has had the nerve to move into the house next door and does not understand the boundary of his yard and ours will be confused.

Mister T is going to be a male fashionisti (is that the male version of a fashionista?) and will set the vogue fashion standard for the entire neighborhood.  He just may be called to be on Jay Leno or Ellen Degeneras for being a trend setter not an Irish Setter.

Pup and Co Boutique has a fabulous selection of accoutremonts for your canine buddy.  What caught my eye was an accessory that will make Mister T's day and have him really stand out and show his inner self.  What do you think?

There are other wigs to choose from to match your dog's personality and inner diva.  Since Mister T is a real guy type he will be able to show his power with the spiked look.  He is really a wild and crazy guy and wants to show off his individuality,  Can you hear him say, "It's good to be me"?

The other selections just weren't the real Mister T but are worth sharing with you.

The afro look was his second choice.  It is a strong and handsome statement.

The pink  tosseled look and this vixen model did catch his eye. He is thinking of asking for her number.

The blue flowing look might be good for the beach.

The pink flip was cute and too flirty.  Just not his style.

He did actually ask for the Bob Marley look but we thought he might be easier to catch by the Rotweiller.

And finally, the Sara Palin look.  Mister T didn't vote for her so he said it would be politically incorrect to dress up like her. Cross dressing is really not his thing.

Although these gifts aren't frugal, they are fun and Mister T will be the toast of the neighborhood and that is worth all the money in the world to me.  I love you Mister T and Merry Christmas!!

Mister T wants to wish you all a Merry Christmas by singing a little song.

woof, woof, woof

woof, woof, woof

woof, woof, woof, woof, woof

woof, woof, woof, woof, woof, woof, woof,

woof, wooooof, wooooof, woooof, woooof, wooooooooooooooof

Frugal Books

I am an avid reader.  I read at night to fall asleep.  I read in the bathroom.  I always have a book or a magazine with me in the car for times I have to wait for an appointment or to meet a friend.

Being on a very limited budget these days means not buying books.  It takes at least 3 books a week to feed my habit so I have had to become more creative on sources for books.  Here are some ideas for frugally finding books.

• Swap books with family, friends and co-workers.  If you know people who read similar kinds of books you enjoy set up a swap.  I have a list of people I call once a month and check to see if they have a bag of books to swap.  Sometimes people want them back and other times they just want to exchange.  If they want to keep their books I suggest they put their name in the book with a slip of paper stating they want it back. It is a good idea to create your own Excel list and make a lending library spreadsheet. List the name of the book, who you lent it to with their contact information and the date lent.  This way you will have a good record of where your books are.
• Work book swap.  Find a spot to leave books to share with co-workers at your worksite.  Lunch time and breaks can be spent reading and relaxing.  I have found some really interesting books at work.  If are not working then possibly your place of worship will work with you to see up a free book swap.
• My local library has just become a regular visiting place for me.  I had not been there in a long time and was surprised with all the new things they offer like free DVDs to borrow.  I look up the books I am looking for and online and reserve them.  Sometimes I have to wait to get a popular book but that is ok with me to save money.  I am working on getting them back on time which has been a problem for me in the past.  Now that I am going every two weeks at a set time it is getting easier.  If I have not finished reading one of the books I simply ask to renew the book. When I do not have a list of books I want to read I pick choices from the library employee favorites display.  This has given me books I would never have picked on my own that were really interesting and good reads.  My library also has a free magazine rack in the hallway.  People bring in their magazines and leave them for others to enjoy.  I happen to love reading magazines and find this resource very helpful and it is a huge savings to me.
• Used book stores often offer exchange programs.  There are two in my community in which I can bring in books and get credits for new choices.  Right now I have a $12 credit at one of the stores.  When I go in I can pick any books in the store totally $12 and take them home.
• One of my friends has been selling her books on Ebay.  She said she was surprised at the prices she was getting and the fact that some of her books have become classics and collectables.  Personally I have not tried this method.  When I had a book budget I did often buy books through Amazon because I could purchase used books at a fraction of the cost even including the postage.  I used to love coming home to find books waiting for me at the door!
• Yard Sales are great sources for paperbacks.  In the summer I buy bags of paperbacks and never spend more than .25 for each book.  I love it when the seller will let me fill a bag for a designated amount of money.  I trade these books with friends and then put them out when I have a yard sale.  I once put an ad on Craigslist offering a bag of paperbacks by three popular authors and listed the titles.  I was asking for books from the same or similar authors.  It worked and both parties were happy because we didn't spend any money.  We met at the local grocery store and maintained our privacy.

I found an excellent article online that I recommend.  The Frugal Panda lists 17 frugal ways to find books.  I have been reading the suggestions and am going to add some of them to my sources for free books.  I really did not know how many books were available free online.  While it might be awkward to read with my laptop snuggled in bed, free is free and might be worth cuddling up with a big fluffy pillow and laptop pillow if I find a great book to read online.

Right now I am reading a mystery novel about Egypt and a nonfiction about life in Iraq. I read fiction including novels, mysteries, nonfiction including biographies, self help books, cookbooks, craft books, survival books, physics books, books on consciousness, design books, fix it yourself books, gardening and urban homesteading books, canning books (especially older canning books), Marblehead books and of course books on being frugal.  I built shelving in my hallway and it is over flowing with books and magazines.  Lately I have been thinning them out so I can create more space for new entries.  I of course have my favorites and resource books that I am not ready to let go but I am working on rotating the collection.

If you are looking for a good selection of canning books, please check out the books I including in the left hand column of this blog.  I have carefully either checked out these books or have them at home.  You can access any book at Amazon by clicking on the search widget I include.  Yes, I would make a few pennies from the sale.  I could certainly use a few extra pennies!  Thanks.

Frugal Entertainment

Last evening my long time friend, Bruce, a concert pianist and cellist, called and invited me to attend a performance of an opera he was accompaning at Saint Martin's University . It was a wonderful evening of music.  The opera was The Marriage of Figaro and the students performed major parts of the opera in the style of open book.

Attending performances at local universities and colleges is a great way to support the students and experience a variety of music often for free (my favorite word).  Last night's performance was free and was meant for family, friends and students.  Since most of the student's do not live locally there is always room for the public to attend.  Attending gives the students a larger audience to perform for and gain valuable experience.

Institutions of higher education offer music, drama, sporting events continuously throughout the year.  Often they have mailing or email lists for their schedules and are happy to add your name.  I have attended not only operas but trio performances, orchestrial and concert performances, plays, broadway shows, dances, ballet and sporting events.  Sometimes the performances are during the day and are great sources of entertainment for senior citizens.  My mother has attended quite a few of the local performances and sometimes a bus will bring seniors from one of the local senior residential villages.  They are appreciative audiences and sometimes have great words of wisdom to pass along to the students afterwards at the meet and greet.

So if you are looking for frugal entertainment try local schools and experience local cultural events.  Since I live very near the Washington State Capital, I have also attened free events there.  The most amazing was a flute concert in the rotunda where the music wafted and flowed towards the heavens.  The audience was scattered along the balconies and stairways with the flutists.  It was one of the most beautiful musical experiences I have ever attended and again was open to the general public.

To All My Frugal Friends

Happy Holidays to you all from around the world.  

Fifty one countries have now tuned into this simple blog and that brings me much joy.  Isreal, China, Hong Kong, Latvia, Italy, Japan, Jamaica, Benin, Austria, Honduras, Malta, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Spain, Kuwait, Serbia, Malaysia, Zimbabwe, Finland, Argentina, Indonesia, Russia, South Africa, Sweden, Mongolia, The Netherlands, Denmark, Greece, Pakistan, Great Britain, Romania, Germany, Belgium, Norway, Turkey, India, Guam, Poland, France, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, New Zealand, Australia, The Philippines, Mexico, Canada, Ireland, Greece and the United States of America.   

Each day I look at the map to see where you are all from and I keep track of the countries that are represented.

I wish I could send each and every one of you a note.  If any of you have time, I would love to hear where you are from and what you can.  If I could I would send each and every one of you a jar of homemade blackberry jam. 

I would very much like to hear from you. I would love to know what you enjoy about the blog.  I am very interested to know whether you can and preserve food.  I would like to know more about canning around the world.  Since canning began in Europe I am interested if there are methods we do not know about here in the United States.  Please send me an email at thefrugalfraulein@comcast.net or leave a comment below.  I promise to write back to each of you.

May we all be blessed with abundance, peace and harmony this coming year.  May you all be healthy and happy.  May you all be frugal and find ways to save all those precious coins.  I send you all my blessings and thankfulness.

Abigail The Frugal Fraulein

Ten Frugal Gifts Under $10

No matter what your holiday budget, there are always those names that show up on your list that you are stumped as to what to get for them.  My favorite under $10 gift list might help.

1. Popcorn Cans  Chain drug stores and discount stores offer large cans of multi flavored popcorn for between $4.99-5.99.  These are great gifts for a family.  They can open the popcorn on movie night and have a party!  The can can also be saved to use as a convienient storage container or toy container for the kids! I bought a couple on sale this year for $3.99.  You can't beat that price!
2. Garden Bulbs  Garden bulbs to sprout in the house are one of my favorite gifts.  Some come with the container and the growing medium like Amaryllis which are usually $6.99.  This lovely plant will grow tall and produce a spectacular set of large flowers.  It can be planted later in the garden or kept in the house as a house plant.  I also like other bulbs such as hyacynth, paperwhites, tulips, crocus, snowdrops and daffodils.  The bulbs can be either put into a bulb jar or put onto small stones and allowed to sprout.  What a delight to see fresh flowers in winter and they can later be planted in the garden to come up next year. 
3. Books  All the chain bookstores have sections of books under $10 displayed.  There are loads of coffee table books and DYI books that can be chosen for your special person. Recipe, automotive, craft, gardening books are forever and I know I love my library.  Christmas time I get out holiday books and put them out as part of my holiday decorating.  (I also got out the wreath books I have collected over the years for inspiration on making my holiday wreaths.) Watch for coupons at the large retailers.  I get coupons from Borders for 40% off monthly.
4. Charms  Theme charms are so popular these days and can be used for so many things.  Most all of women I know have gotten out their charm bracelets again.  Charms are used on lots of crafts or simply strung on a piece of black cord for a lovely necklace.
5. Coffee Beans  As a coffee drinker I always appreciate some different coffee beans to try.  With lots of local baristas and coffee bean roaster there are lots of new flavors to try out.  One year I gave bags of beans and a vintage silver plated spoon dipped in melted chocolate for gifts.
6. Bandana Collection  Bandanas are great to use for head covers, head bands, hankerchiefs and a great addition to an emergency kit.  I find them usually around a dollar at Michaels and JoAnnes and buy up a rainbow of colors, roll them and put them in a canning jar.  I fold mine into a strip and tie on the top of my head as a hair band.  It keeps the hair out of my face and helps absorb persperation when I am in the garden.  Start a new trend in your neighborhood!
7. Hot Sauce  Now there are loads of good homemade bottled hot sauces for sale.  I love hot sauce to add to recipes to give them a little bang.  The labels are usually interesting and funny so go check them out.  You might want to include a copy of a favorite recipe as well.  This is a great guy gift and one that will be used.
8. Plant Food  If there is a gardener on your list a bottle of plant food either for indoor or outdoor plants is a great thoughtful and unexpected gift.  It is a product all gardeners need and will use.
9. Movie Tickets  Tickets can now be purchased at Costco for less than you can purchase a ticket at the theater counter.  A ticket can be used at any time for any show.  Package the ticket with a package of M&Ms for a great entertainment gift.
10. Gift Certificates  Certificates and gift cards are great for those folks that live far away.  You can save huge amounts by sending a holiday card with a coupon inside.  I look for more unusual certificates like for the person's favorite food treat.  Donuts, ice cream stores, fish markets, even the farm stand will create gift certificates.  I call the store, pay with the certificate with my bank card and depending on the store,  either have it sent to me or held for the person.  In the past, I have bought gift cards from cobblers (a guy friend had his favorite work shoes resoled), automotive oil changing shops, drive up coffee baristas and pizza shops.

It is all about imagination and thinking of gifts you would like to receive.

If you have any ideas to add to the list please email me at thefrugalfraulein@comcast.net  Thanks and Happy Holidays!!

Six Frugal Holiday Gifts

This time of year we can all use some frugal suggestions for holiday gifts.  Here are some ideas using items a crafter probably already has.  I figure that once I have made the craft the leftover materials are free to use for other crafts.  I often sell items at local craft shows and bazars so my materials have been paid for within the price of the sold items.

• Holiday Wreath.  We had a wind storm over the weekend and there are lots of evergreen branches down in my yard.  Actually I am thrilled!  I have collected the branches and will make two wreaths (the large branches were cut up and stacked for firewood). To make a wreath I use a pre-made wire form that I have had for years.  I gather the branches and simply wire them to the round form using paddle wire. Bunching branches together makes a thicker wreath.  My wreaths get decorated with cut twigs of various red and white berries I find along the side of the road and wire to the wreath.  This year I have one package of battery operated LED lights leftover from my Halloween costume that I am going to put on my wreath for the front door.  I paid all of one dollar for them at the Dollar Store in the Fall when holiday goodies were just being put out.  So the wreath is free for a little foraging.  One wreath will go on my door and one will be given to a friend.  The leftover branches will be put into my window boxes for holiday decoration.
• Beaded Bookmark Ribbon I saw these bookmarks at a craft show this year selling for $8.  I took a careful look and went home and made one.  The only tricky part was finding beads with holes large enough to thread the ribbon through.  I keep a plastic shoe box filled with spools of ribbon I pick up on sale during the year.  I took out the bead box and hunted up beads that would work.  Take a yard of 1/4 inch ribbon and fold in half.  Thread a charm and push to the middle point and make a half hitch knot one inch down from the bead.  Then thread both ends of the ribbon through the beads you will use to decorate the bookmark.  The bookmark in the picture has 7 large beads.  Add another knot about 1 1/2 inches from the ends of the ribbon.  There it is!  The bookmark goes over one side of the book and rests in crease of the book.  The charm flips into the page you want to mark.  Pretty cook design that works really well. I happen to like chestnuts and picked some this year for crafting.  I made myself a natural looking bookmark with jute twine and chestnuts.  By drilling a hole in the chestnuts with my Dremel drill I was able to thread the jute twine through them. 
• Herb Bundles  Fresh or dried herbs from the garden are always welcome gifts.  I dry herbs in bundles and crumbled in jars and share as gifts.
• Seed Packages  I save seeds from my garden and always save some to give away at holiday time.  This year there was an abundance of sunflower, nastrutum and foxglove seeds.  The seeds are put into small ziplock bags and wraped in handmade paper boxes.  I fold paper boxes out of scrapbook paper to hold the seeds and include some printed instructions on how to plant and propagate the seeds.  Great gift for a gardener friend.  Here are some instructions for folding paper boxes Folding Paper Boxes or a 3d site Orgami Kids .  Handmade envelopes and decoupaged match boxes work well too.

• Wooden Painted Signs  These simple country crafts are so simple to make and only take some imagination, wood scraps, paint, two eye screws and a piece of wire. Paint the entire piece of wood with some leftover primer paint.  I then use acrylic paints and paint the background.  Trim the sides with a checkerboard and finally print the desired words.  Screw in two eye screws to hold the wire hanger. Signs can be personalized for someone's kitchen, laundry room or den.  Sign your name and the year on the back side of the sign. I have a couple on the fences coming into my garden area that have been outside about 5 years now. The flower came from Michaels craft store and cost .25.  It is simpled glued onto the sign.
• Earring Frame During the summer I collect interesting frames from yard sales.  Larger wooden frames without glass are great for this gift.  Most people do not want frames without glass so these frames are very inexpensive.  I painted the frame white and distressed it with sandpaper.  On the back of the frame, a measured piece of wire mesh is securely stapled to the frame. The frame can be hung on the wall or inside a closet door to display hanging earrings.  The earrings are looped through the mesh and make finding the perfect earrings for your outfit easy.  When I give one of these for a gift I always add a pair of homemade earrings.

Now don't you wish you were on my holiday giving list?  What ideas do you have?

Frugal Wood Stove Fire Starters

The wood stove I purchased through an ad on Craigslist last winter is heating my home this year.  First of all, I have to comment on this picture.  I was sitting in my chair to the side of the stove and decided to take a picture to see if the fire showed through the glass.  To my surprise when I looked at the picture there was a beautiful bluish violet Orb with a dash of light eminating from it's right side in front of the pedistal.  I quickly took another picture and the second picture shows the same Orb but it has moved up in front of the glass.  If you look closely you can see four round circles towards the upper left and in the second picture the four circles appeared again.

There are many websites on the web discussing Orbs both pro and con.  I happen to believe in them and am delighted when they appear in my photos to let me know they are visiting.  These captured me because I could see the same markings in two shots.  I know the photos are not precise in the blog but you will just have to accept that I cropped the pictures, enlarged them 200x and saved them.

If you are interested in Orbs please visit The Hamburger Universe by Dr. Miceal Ledwidth.  I know Dr. Ledwidth and can vouch for his credibility.  I do not believe Orbs are simply an anomoly of a digital camera or a dust spot.  These two photos were taken seconds apart and while there is certainly dust in my home around the woodstove (ok so I have dust all over the house I admit it) you will have to admit the first picture is remarkable.

Back to what I originally was going to write about.  I have been experimenting with methods of starting the woodstove.  Most often I take black and white newspaper (Mom saves her newspapers for me and I often pick some up at the recycle box) crumple it up into a wad and place it as a base for the kindling.  Here are some other methods I am trying:

• Take newspaper and hold it the long way. Fold the paper into a strip and fashion the strip in a  knot.  The result is a more compact product that seems to burn less quickly as a crumpled wad of newspaper.
• Save empty cardboard food boxes like cereal boxes.  Fill them with crumpled newspaper.
• Roll strips of newspaper around a dowl and tie with a burnable string.  Melt some wax or candle stubs in a coffee can placed in a large pot of boiling water (wax is flamable so don't put the coffee can or pan directly on the heat or you might have a flash fire).  Dip the tubes in the wax by holding the end of the strings.  These little bundles seem to burn awhile but the kindling needs to be small to get a fire going.
• In Girl Scouts we used to make fire starters by putting sawdust, wood shavings, crushed leaves, dry pine needles, dryer lint or pinecones into paper muffin cups placed in muffin tins.  Next we would add a piece of string or a piece of candle wick material into the middle of the muffin cup. Then we would carefully pour some melted wax over them and let them dry.
• Another version of this theme is to use cardboard/pressed paper egg cartons and make the same fire starters.  Sometimes we did not add wicks because we did not fill them all the way and the edges of the egg carton were easy to light with a match.
• Pine cones can be dipped in wax to make fire starters.
• Toilet paper tubes filled with lint or sawdust or wood chipps that have a bit of wax poured into them. So now I am saving lint, egg cartons, toilet paper tubes, newspaper...hope that show Hoarders does not find out about me and come knocking at the door!!

I use some cedar shingles for kindling.  They came from a re-roofing job and are dry.  It is easy to split them with my hands to make strips.  The cedar catches on fire easily and quickly.  I also save the bark from the wood I split.  Most of the bark is doug fir and again works well as kindling.  Sometimes when I go for a walk I bring along my old stained faded yet well loved canvas tote bag (coming from New England everyone had an LL Bean boat bag) and pick up sticks that have fallen during wind storms.  There are always branches around in my area to glean if one takes the time to pick them up.  Then there is always the ax to split wood into smaller pieces.

Here in the Pacific Northwest, keeping the cord and cut wood dry is a challange.  I do have it stacked for ventilation and have it covered with plastic tarps.  At this time I do not have a wood shed but that is a consideration.  Using wood that is damp obviously takes a hotter better fire to begin with.  I do open the vents and make sure the fire box is cleaned regularly by taking the ashes out to the garden beds.  When a fire first begins with damp wood most of the energy is going to dry the wood and evaporate the water.  Not very efficient but then I don't have an oil, propane or high electricity bill.  I am planning on using the electric heat only in an emergency this year to cut costs.  I have mentioned before in postings that I have lived with wood stoves in the past as well as pellet stoves.  I prefer the wood stove.

Here are a couple of sites to visit regarding starting the woodstove Missouri Extension Education , Wood Heat  that you might find helpful.  Also here is a funny posting on what not to do.  This gal did not use enough kindling to get a fire going.  Just stuffing more newspaper only makes a flash and does not catch logs. Chickens In The Road

I mentioned dryer lint as a fire starter.  This fluffy stuff should not be thrown away!  For goodness sakes it has just been through the wash and been heated in the dryer. It is great for starting fires whether inside or out.  I keep a plastic bag on the laundry shelf and save every little bit.  I have even given a bag of dryer lint to a friend as a gift who was preparing her emergency bag. 

I read a post today that had a list of things to do with dryer lint.  It is great for the compost,  great to leave outside in a container hanging from a tree so the birds can make nests, it can be added to the bottom of a pot before adding soil, can be used to fill cold air stoppers used in front of doorways and one person said it can be saved, spun and turned into yarn to knit with.  Now that is stretching it a bit.  Then there was a conversation about lint not being good for the compost or the birds because there could be artificial fibers and not just cotton.  I have to agree with the answer that said laundry loads from cottons have much more lint residue than loads of artificial materials like polar fleece and polyester.  The artificial clothing does not give off the same amount of fibers. Upon close examination of my lint, I can plainly see my grey hairs and black short hairs from Mr. T.  Anyhow, we are not talking about dumping truck loads of industrial lint into the garden.  Personally, I save mine for fire starting.

I am interested if you know of any other materials (free of course - remember whom you are speaking with) for getting the woodstove going on a cold morning when I have not gotten up out of my nice warm bed with Mister T, my Dachshund, snuggled up against me to stoke the fire at night.  Leave me a comment below and share your experiences. Ha, I would accept any dry lint you are not using!  I have not tapped the local laundry mat as a source but possibly I should consider it.  I think that would constitute extreme frugality!