Abundantly Frugal

Storage, Storage, Storage, Part 2

In part 1 of this series I covered a ton about storing thing under beds, sofas, and such and storing them in my coffee and end tables, but there are lots of other creative places to store things.

I have bookcases all over the place.  I even have them in the bedroom.  I have fairly large, rectangular baskets where I store my folded clothing.  I love the look and I can go a lot further up than I could with a dresser.  Both in the bedroom and bookcases in other parts of the house, I use baskets and decorative boxes to store things other than books.

I have a deep, narrow closet in my hallway.  By putting hooks and other conraptions up on the wall to hang my broom, dust mop, ironing board, and such, I cleared up floor space to stack four file drawers.  I could have used a 4-drawer filing cabinet but at the time I was able to get these for a lot less so this is what I have and they’re more versatile if I need to have them stacked in another configuration.  That gives me 8 cubic feet of storage in 2 square feet of floor space.  Well, add 2 feet to the floor space for opening the drawers if you’re going to use them a lot.  I use my seldom enough that I can put things in from of them and just move them when I need to access the file drawers..

I utilize the insides and backs of doors like crazy.  Start with the bathroom.  Chances are you have a door where you can put one of those hangers for pajamas or extra towels.  Those are great.  If you don’t have much medicine cabinet space, you could also utilize that space to hang the flat shoe bag designed to hang over a bedroom closet door and stash your toiletries in the pockets.  If I were using that solution I would either get one with clear pickets or label the outside of a more solid one to avoid having to search for what you’re looking for.

The same goes for the backs of other doors.  You may not want to hang something on the back of your front door but look for other doors with potential.  I also hang storage items like that on the backs of my closet doors but I understand not everyone has closet doors that open into the room, giving you an easy space to hang something.  When that has been the case for me, I have hung those things on the back and/or side walls of the closet.  It works great and unless you put something truly bulky in them, you won’t have trouble with the hanger clothes.

Getting back to the bathroom.  Believe it or not, there are actually shower curtains with pockets attached to the curtain.  This could be a fun way to store fun things you wouldn’t mind showing off.  Keep them fairly light so you don’t run the risk of pulling the shower rod right out of the wall.

I have one of the narrowest little shelves I’ve ever seen in my bathroom.  It all started because the location of the toilet paper roll was very inconvenient and I just wanted to not have to deal with it unless I wanted to.  I went in search of one of those little stands people use in bathrooms that don’t have a built-in holder.  When I got to that aisle of the discount store I discovered a whole little world of fun storage ideas.  Of course there was the ubiquitous above-the-toilet-tank shelving (which is great if you can find one that looks nice and works in your décor), cabinets to put in the same place or elsewhere in the bathroom if you have room, little shelf things to slide between the toilet and sink if you have that kind of room—tons of stuff.  What appealed to me, though, was this cute, little shelf that had a magazine rack built in, a mini-shelf next to that just the right size for a roll of toilet paper, and a full shelf below that stores extra rolls of toilet paper (so guests don’t have to go in search of toilet paper should they run out and not know me well enough to feel comfortable shouting at me from the bathroom to ask where they can find more.  It’s adorable, fits right across from the toilet, and doesn’t get in the way of anything.  Pretty nifty, right?

Use hooks everywhere you can.  If you still have space on your closet walls, add a few hooks for hanging purses, briefcases, and canvas bags.  You can go two or three hooks high and it gets that stuff off the floor.

As with all of these ideas, put them on your yard sale list (post on that topic) so you can purchase them from someone else who didn’t find that a solution that worked for them or are moving somewhere that these items may no longer work.  Whatever the reason, reusing is both environmentally friendly and cost-effective.

With these ideas, you’re sure to think of others that I never even thought about.  Share them or just use them and be impressed with yourself for all that creativity. 

Storage, Storage, Stroage

I've heard from a couple of people that storing extra items in their small spaces is a challenge.  For example, I recommend purchasing food when it's on super sale but that may mean purchasing larger than normal quantities to have food on hand when it's not on sale. What to do?  What to do?

Even in small spaces you might be surprised at how much space you have for food.  I have a "pantry" I adore.  At one time I had two of them but I had to leave one behind in my move from Eastern to Western Washington.  There wasn't room--no, not in my new home--in the moving truck.  I still have one of them and I pared down on some of my excess pots, pans, etc., and it all worked out.  Anyway, this cabinet is--well, I'm not positive because I don't have my measuring tape handy and to be perfectly honest, I'm too tired to get up and go look for it.  I'll add that in later if I get a little oomph and don't forget.  I'm horrible at remembering things lately.  At any rate, is approximately 2 feet across, 1 foot deep, and 5 feet high.  I'm totally serious when I tell you it took 10 file boxes (12x15x12 inches) to hold everything that's inside and I also used to stack stuff on top of it when I had room up there.  In this apartment there's a cabinet above it. 

At any rate, that's where I store 90% of my non-perishable food.  I have enough food in there that if I didn't buy anything other than perishables, I wouldn't have to buy food for at least six months--possibly as much as a year.  Actually, I didn't buy any non-perishables for two months and it really didn't make much of a dent in there.  When you think that the cabinet takes up 2 square feet of floor space and add another 2 square feet for door opening space, that's really not much.

The top photo above is the interior of the pantry.  It's not a great one but that gives you the overall picture.  Each of the next pictures are the shelves (in order) in the pantry.  I have to confess that I didn't straighten it up before photographing it for you but I didn't think you'd mind. 

It's not always pretty but I know where most everything is so it's not a problem for me.  For instance, up there on the top shelf I have most of my canned goods.  The second shelf has a lot of my boxed goods and little packets of things.  Those are over on the right side, inside a cut down 12-pack soft drink box.  I often make storage containers or other containers from things around the house and then continue to use them because they work.  When they don't work, I get something else but I haven't had to do that very often.

The third shelf contains all my stuff in bottles (vinegar, soy sauce, oil, etc.) and most of the other odds & ends.  Shelf four holds all my Tupperware canisters with flour, sugar, oatmeal, and other staples.  There are also a few things that fit nicely in front of the canisters. In the first blog post on Yard Sales I talked about Tupperware and how I help the environment by using it--here are some of my favorite pieces that I've used for years.

OK, let's say you don't have room for that cabinet.  Now what?  Oh, there are all kinds of things that can be done and I've done every one of them at one time or another.

Get under bed storage boxes.  These things are amazing!  I only have a twin bed and I can get three of them under there.  If you have a kind size bed (OK, so I suspect you won't have that if you're in anything smaller than 600 or 700 square feet but just in case) you can get six of them down there.  Do you have any idea how much you can cram into one of those?  Mine don't hold as much as some can because they have wheels.  When you're thinking about what you want to use, there are several things to consider--price, capacity, aesthetics.  Aesthetics aren't usually one of the top concerns for me.  Price really is an issue for me on many occasions and I wouldn't have dashed out to buy the ones on wheels--they were a gift--but I can tell you they sure are easier to get in and out from under there.  Capacity is a huge issue if you're dealing with this because of a lack of storage.

One thing I've never tried but wanted to is just a wee bit complex.  I've seen those cheap press-board bookcases with flimsy backs at yard sales for $10--truly, $10 (of course they only cost $30 or $40 when they were new if they were purchased 10-20 years ago and most of the ones I've seen were about that vintage).  I want to take one of those, put a piece of mdf (medium density fiberboard) or plywood to reinforce the back, put either wheels or those silicone slider things that get put under furniture to make it slide easier. Then just slide it under the bed.  Can you imagine how much that could hold?  Oh, and if your bed isn't quite tall enough, get those bed risers to elevate it a bit.

There are tons of things you can do with the space under your bed, your children's beds, even a crib.  Given just a little creativity, they can even be made pretty.

Well, that took a long time to say very little.  OK, next.  You can do something similar under the sofa even if you only have 3 or 4 inches of space under there.  With that short a space you could make something out of cardboard boxes without having to worry about sturdyness--cover them with something neutral if your sofa doesn't have a "skirt" and you have 2 cubic feet of storage you didn't have before.

My coffee table and end tables are woven boxes with plenty of room for storage.  I can't put canned goods in them--they're not that sturdy--but I can put blankets, pillows, craft yarn, etc.  There's another 8 cubic feet.

As I tend to do so regularly, I seem to have gone on for longer than I have time so I'll finish this up in a future post.  I didn't realize how many places I stash stuff in my small spaces.  OK, I know my space isn't nearly as small as other people's spaces but I have a ton of stuff to store and I've moved up from my 500 square foot space. 

Fun Site and Laundry Soap Recipe

I recently found a site I absolutely LOVE!  Every article I've read is so well-written in puts my work to shame and, even more importantly, it's good information.  OK, first, the site.  It's the simple dollar: financial talk for the rest of us.  Trent (the author) is an amazing fellow and obviously committed to saving money.  You can read his whole story on the blog.

OK, here's the part about the Laundry Soap Recipe.  Not only is it a great post, it has 323 comments (when I looked at it--they seem to keep being added) and the ones I read were great/funny/informative--well, they were definitely something other than boring (for the most part).

I recommend checking him out, especially for the finance stuff.  I'm going to be honest and say I haven't read more than 10-25 of his posts on saving money in the kitchen or on household goods in general and there may be way more in there that will belie what I'm about to say but so far I'm not finding a ton about super-saving at the grocery store.  In Trent's defense, I did discover he, his wife, and their son live in a 600 square foot abode (house? apartment? unknown at this point) and that can make storing things a bit of a chalenge.  I'll have to be sure to add a few posts here about ways I've found to maximize my storage in a 700 square foot apartment (only one person--makes a huge difference).

OK, off to have my dinner.  Enjoy!

Seasonal Bargains

I was talking to a friend who was bemoaning all the Christmas decorations and holiday foods in stores at this time of year.  She isn't a Christian and wasn't the least bit interested in Christmas candy and all those Christmas cookies and such.

That's fine--in fact, those items are generally no bargain anyway.  There are, however, lots of things to be merry about at this time of year.  Watch for deep discounts on ham and roast beef, of course, but also watch for nuts and other baking supplies. 

Christmas is second only to Thanksgiving for pumpkin pie and you may find canned pumpkin at an even better price than you'll find it at Thanksgiving simply because the stores don't want to be left with an overabundance of it.

Candied fruit is also something I've used other times of the year.  I watch for that to be discounted (not necessarily advertised in their sale ads) the week before and definitely the week after Christmas.  I had the most amazing recipe for muffins that called for candied cherries.  I used to make those all year around.  I'll have to see if I can find that recipe.  It will mean contacting the company who had printed it on the back of their nuts but that is often very successful.  At any rate, if I can come up with it, I'll even share because it's so very good and so very easy.

Keep your eyes open for different items to be on sale than you might see during the rest of the year and take advantage of those prices while you can, especially if they are non-perishable and you have places to store these bargains.

Enjoy...

Thanksgiving Turkey

If you you live in the US, Thanksgiving is upon us in one week.  You may already know about this but it's worth repeating.  Check your local grocery stores for free turkeys.  Some stores offer turkeys free if you purchase $100 in groceries.  If you have a large family, that's no problem.  If, however, you are single or are a part of a couple, buying $100 worth of groceries at one time may cause you to purchase food you wouldn't normally purchase.

My point?  Be careful about that "free" turkey.  Take a look at the ad brochure where the free turkey is offered.  Look at the rest of the prices that week.  Chances are there will be items you will want to purchase for your Thanksgiving dinner.  Add those to your list (along with approximate prices).  Then take a look at the rest of the sale items and list everything you may want to purchase that week.  Again, list the items and approximate prices.  Add them up--what's the total?  Is it $100?  If not, what will you spend the rest of the money on?

Now, just as an exercise, take a look at the other ad brochures and see who has turkey at a very low price (I'm talking $.29/lb here).  They may require that you but $20, $40, or $50 in groceries to get that price.  Again, look at the rest of the prices--make the same list and add it up.  Is this enought to get you the turkey for $.29/lb?  Now, think about how much you would spend at the other store in order to get that turkey.  You'll be saving less than $6.00 by getting the free turkey. 

If you are comfortable that you will be able to purchase the required amount of groceries without spending an additional $6.00, go for the free turkey.  If, however, you suspect you will buy thing that aren't on sale, that you don't need, that you're just buying in order to get a "free" turkey.

Sometimes a sale isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Winter Holiday Decorations for Kids

This is totally off the topic of grocery bill savings but it's such a fun idea I had to share it.

This originally started as a Christmas tree project but it's appropriate for other holidays as well.  I'm going to stick with the Christmas tree idea simply because it's where I learned it and the words come off my fingertips easier than translating everything to a more generic term.

You know the paper chains we made as kids?  OK, if you don't remember them or didn't make them look here to see not only the style I'm describing but also a variety of other styles that take a lot more time but look pretty cool. 

So, if you do remember (or have seen the picture), here's what you do.  Pull out all those old Christmas cards you save every year and have no idea what you're going to do with them.  If, for some reason, you haven't been saving them for years, ask your friends or co-workers if they have a box or two of old cards they've been storing for years and have no idea what to do with them.  If you still don't have anything, head for the thrift store and see if you can find a couple of really cheap Christmas books with lots of color pictures.  If all else fails, save this idea for next year and hang onto those cards you're using to decorate your house or are storing in a basket right now.

You'll want a stapler or clear tape as well, oh, and scissors.

Cut the cards into relatively consistent strips.  I kind of like a link that's about 1/2 to 3/4" wide by 5 to 6" long.  Make your first loop by overlapping the ends enough to staple (or tape) it closed.  Then loop the next strip through the first and secure it so you have two links in your chain.

Continue adding to your chain until it's as long as you want it. 

This is a great, nearly free, decorating idea for the holidays and it's a truly fun project to do with children.

Store between uses in a box to keep them from being crushed. 

Have fun!

Keep a Cooler in the Trunk

At this time of year, at least where I live, the weather has turned cold.  I always keep a cooler in the trunk of my car so I can put frozen and refrigerated items in there to keep them cold in the summer.  In the winter it works equally well to keep a rotiserie chicken or pizza hot.  It's also great for stabilizing a pot luck dish to keep it from tipping over as well as keeping it hot. 

The cooler I use is collapsable so it doesn't even take up much space.  It has wheels and a collapsable handle so even when I don't need it to keep food hot or cold, I've been known to fill it with groceries and roll it into the house.

"Never Shop When You're Hungry"

A friend who read one of the recent drafts of Cut Your Grocery Bills in Half had a comment on one of the rules of shopping I embrace:  never shop when you're hungry.  She agreed that it's not a good idea but "what do you do when you've been running around half the day and you have to do the grocery shopping on your way home?"

Life happens and it isn't always neat and tidy.  This has happened to me more often than I realized until I actually started thinking about it.  I realized, when I did think about it, I have a couple of solutions that don't include changing the structure of my day.  When I know I'm going to be running around for hours before I can do the shopping I may pack something to eat and take it with me.  This isn't always convenient, though, especially when I'm at a dead run already.

I rarely eat at fast food restaurants but this is one time when I sometimes succumb and stop somewhere I know has a few items at very low prices.  I may splurge and spend as much as $1.50 for a burger or fish sandwich.  If my shopping is at Costco, that's a no-brainer: I stop at their little restaurant before shopping and get a Polish sausage and soft drink for $1.50 (plus tax, of course).  I have no idea what it is about those things that I love but I certainly do.  Even if I go directly there from home I plan on eating lunch at Costco.  It's probably a good thing I only go once every month or two or it would become routine and lose some of the excitement.  When I'm feeling particularly decadent I stop at the grocery store deli or bakery and splurge on something fun.  Actually, I spend no more than $2 on that but it alway feels decadent since I almost never do anything like that. 

One of the keys to saving money is not eat anything out of habit.  Perhaps that's a lttle strong--I eat toast out of habit but I also eat it because I love toast.  What I'm talking about are people who eat fast food several times a week and don't remember what they had to eat for lunch because it was so lacking in uniqueness.

Another of the keys is to think about what I eat.  Ah, but that's another post for another day.