Despite all the "flap" that inflation is down - and it is - but generally only in areas that have low or no impact on most Americans' budgets.
Yes, the economy is strong. The rich are getting richer while the rest of us are paying more money for the things we need...food, utilities, rent, entertainment...and well, everything!
U.S. households are simply spending more on less food and the same utilities which continue to creep upward in price but not quantity.
Gasoline is also on the creep and rents are up, too. Just last week two of my neighbors moved from the condos they were renting nearby because they couldn't afford the rent hikes they'd just received.
It seems we're all held hostage to the two or three mega-companies that own all the supermarkets, the semi-monopolies of utility companies, and OPEC which decides, globally, the prices we all pay at the pumps!
If you're planning on doing some home improvement projects, here's another area where prices have increased...materials and labor!
It can be depressing to believe that we have no control over any of these increasing costs. And we don't, if we continue to do the same things in the same way.
Sadly, incomes just don't keep pace with the type of inflation that most affects our households and our lives. Thus, budgeting and cutting back on "non-essentials"...entertainment, eating out, staying closer to home, buying only essentials at the supermarket...can only take us so far. What we need is changing up the way we spend money, how we do things, and the habits we've become accustomed to.
I'm taking steps to rein in expenses and so can you!
Mostly I'm re-adopting techniques from my years as a homesteader. Then, I made or grew practically everything I needed or ate.
I live in a condo now, so growing my own food is no longer an option except for the few herbs I've sneaked into the landscaping beds. I have supplanted growing food with some foraging skills that do save me money and lower pharmacy costs to a degree.
However, there is still much more that I can do and am doing.
Anyone can "home-make" - rather than buy - most of their own body care and house cleaning products! You'll save money and exposure to harmful chemicals. And, your skin and hair will be clean and nourished and your home sparkly clean and kept, too.
The first step is to dispose of - not buy - those disposable, single use products that one "conveniently" uses once than discards. That's like throwing money away! Disposable products are simply manufacturers' ruses to keep you spending money on the same things, like, forever!
An easy one I started with years ago was the sheets and pads that I use to clean my floors. My floor cleaner happens to be a Swiffer. I love my Swiffer! It's one of the simple ones that doesn't squirt or vacuum anything. I use it to dust up lint, cat hair, and "bits and pieces", and damp mop my wooden and laminate floors between bigger mopping jobs...but I don't purchase those reusable sheets and pads. I make my own!
I simply make reusable, re-washable sheets by cutting 11-inch by 12-inch squares from old cotton tee shirts, synthetic shirts, or flannel pajamas...any type of washable fabric that has an affinity for lint, hair, and dust makes a great dusting sheet. Simply cut as many as you think you'll need...usually two to four. A couple in the cleaning cupboard, a couple more in the laundry waiting to be washed and used again, and again, and again.
Several unassuming fabric squares that are washable are perfect replacements for floor dusting sheets.
I've probably saved hundreds of dollars on replacement dusting sheets and pads over the past 15 years!
Old cotton tee-shirts, flannel - any fabric that loves to attract lint - may be cut into a 12" x 11" rectangle, attached to your floor duster, and used to clean your floors.
Likewise, I've saved $$$ on "making" my own mopping "pads", too! To damp mop my kitchen and laminate/wood floors I simply cycle old terry face/wash cloths into mop "pads" I use on my Swiffer. When a wash cloth gets a little tatty - too much so for the bath - it gets cycled into my stack of cleaning cloths.
To clean the floor, I dampen a wash cloth, ring it out, attach it to the mop/duster head as I do with the dusting cloths. Then, using a spray bottle of homemade all-purpose cleaner or liquid wood cleaner, I spritz the area of the type of floor I want to mop.
I also use my re-purposed wash cloths to clean mirrors and windows with homemade glass cleaner, and to clean and sanitize counter tops, and more, using a homemade antiseptic cleaner.
If you use dish cloths, these too, can be re-purposed into floor cleaning cloths when they get too stained or worn for use in the kitchen. The little woven "waffles" trap dirt nicely.
There's really no need to purchase disposable, single use products, or even spend money on reusable microfiber cleaning cloths. However, these are a better option than disposable cloths. If you have them use them. If they fit onto your brand of floor duster/mop all the better!
In upcoming posts I'll share - among other things - how to make your own homemade personal care and cleaning products that will save you lots of money.
It doesn't take much time to mix up a batch of face oil or cream, shampoo, lotion, or laundry soap and other household cleaners. A few minutes spent every few months is time well spent that will keep your dollars in your own pocket!
In case you missed my posts on homemade shampoo and laundry soap, the links follow...
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