Dead fish WHAT????
HATS! Dead fish HATS! Yep, I knitted dead fish hats for my three sons and one of my nephews for Christmas. I’m not the fastest knitter in the world by any means but they worked up pretty quickly and this is a great yarn stash project that uses up any amount of leftover colors so [...]
Homemade Laundry Detergent
Posted in: General Tags: borax, fels naptha soap, homemade laundry detergent, washing soda
Homemade laundry detergent is a relatively new frugal effort for me. In the past, I’ve purchased my laundry detergent from a store, pre-made and on sale with a coupon. I was always happy with the cost of my detergent although not always happy with the effectiveness of the products. I even went as far as [...]
Frugal Hand Treatment
Posted in: General Tags: exfoliating feet, exfoliating hands, frugal, hand care, homemade sugar scrub
I enjoy being “hands-on” with a variety of projects: gardening, building stone walls, DIY home projects. I also wash my hands a lot with my job as a dental hygienist not to mention how many hours a week I have my hands in wash water in the kitchen. There are days that my hands really [...]
My powerless days
A lot of people have asked what I did while we had no power. Perhaps it speaks to the fact that I really do live a simple life that I did a lot of what I normally do and more! I know many people I’ve spoken to complained that they had nothing to do but [...]
Back on the grid!
It’s been a long fall already. Back in September, we lost power for nearly four days when Irene blew through. Living off grid in the warm, waning days of summer wasn’t a too much of an issue. We were able to fill the thirty-gallon fresh water holding tank in the camper and that along with [...]
Homemade Vanilla
Posted in: Cooking, General Tags: frugal families, frugal gourmet, homemade, how to make vanilla extract
I can’t easily think of one thing I do that yields such delicious, gourmet results with the least amount of effort as when I make home made vanilla extract. I used to buy my vanilla extract from a reputable herb and spice company and I loved their vanilla but when the cost of their vanilla [...]
Starting over again
It’s been a long time since I blogged. It’s not for lack of content, that’s for sure! I am a very busy woman and each evening I say that I’ll spend a few minutes writing and then my head hits the pillow and before I know it, the next day has begun. I think that [...]
I was fired…
Back in the spring, there was talk of the state of CT trying to force Amazon to collect CT sales tax by saying that Amazon associates (like myself) constituted a ‘physical presence’ in the state by Amazon. This declaration is in response to the Supreme Court saying that a state can’t force a company to [...]
Wooden Drying Rack!
I found a very nice, quality made wooden drying racks back a few years ago at a wood shop in Wallingford, CT. I’ve been on the look out for another one of equal quality and a good ‘spread’ (the way the racks spread out so the clothes don’t hang over each other too much). Well, [...]
Suzy Homemaker?
I was recently discussing my decision to put my career as a dental hygienist on the back burner in favor of my career in motherhood and homemaking. She listened and then said, “Yeah, but you’re still JUST a Suzy Homemaker.” I agreed and thought nothing of it. Until later. I decided to research Suzy Homemaker. [...]