6 Creative Ways to Save Money

I've been working hard to find creative ways to save money.  It makes me so happy to get a good deal and know that by saving money in one area, we are able to do more in other areas of the budget.  I also remind myself all the time that all these little savings adding up to big savings over the year.  So don't blow off the $0.50 coupons or the BOGO sales.  They really will make a big difference in your budget.

1. Grocery Store Bouquets

Kevin's gotten into a sweet habit of buying me grocery store flowers.  They are so much more affordable than sending me flowers.  A bouquet at Kroger costs either $9.99 or $14.99 and they are usually great quality.  They also clearance them out regularly so you can get them for even cheaper.

I wanted a big bouquet to use as a centerpiece for Olive's birthday.  I picked up a mixed bouquet of sherbet colored flowers and then trimmed several Boxwood stems off our bushes at home.  This large bouquet cost me $9.99 since all the greenery was free.  It lasted for 2 parties and the whole rest of the week.

2. Buy Gently Used Clothes

My mom's group has their own Facebook Market Page and I find the best deals there.  I picked up this set of clothes for just $13 for Leo for next Fall/Winter.  There are 18 items and they're all in great shape.  I washed them right away and put them away for the future.  One pair of these jeans would have easily cost $13 so I was thrilled to get great deals.  Check our local marketplace options, Once Upon a Child, Yard Sales and such.

I also sell the kid's clothes when they outgrow them.  I make a fair amount of money selling Olive's outgrown clothes as well as Leo's outgrown clothes.  I save everything Fletcher outgrows for Leo.

3. Reuse instead of buying new

I was looking at cat beds for the cats and remembered I had a baby Boppy that Leo was done with.  I opted to leave the Boppy out to see what the cats thought about it.  They all fight over this cushy spot and I saved money by reusing something I already owned.

4. Eat at Home

This may be my most unpopular suggestion, but it will save you the most money.  Eating out is pricey.  Eating out with a family of 5+ gets expensive quickly.  We love to have grilled dinners so we scope out deals on meat - figure out your grocery store's mark down day and stock up.  Kevin found a 4 pack of steaks for $14.99.  We explained to Olive that a steak dinner would easily cost $15+ a person at a restaurant so eating a steak dinner at home was much cheaper.

Also pack your breakfast, lunches, make your coffee at home and save eating out for a certain night of the week.  All of those things will really save you money and just take a little extra planning ahead.

5. Grocery Pick Up & Aldi

Utilize your local grocery pick up options to stick to a grocery budget.  It tallies your total as you add things to your cart and keeps you from wandering the store and adding lots of extras to your cart.  Walmart Grocery Pick Up is my favorite and it's free if you spend $30.  I'm also making an effort to shop at Aldi more.  Their prices are much cheaper on most items so it's worth the time to go to two places for me.

 

6. Haircuts at Home

Sometime this past year I started cutting all three boy's hair at home and I've always cut Olive's hair.  I asked for my own set of clippers from Amazon when Fletcher was little.  I made my money back right away.  I can cut all three boy's hair in about 20 minutes and Olive's only gets trimmed from time to time whenever she wants me to do it.  No scheduling hair cuts, no time traveling to and from them, no wait time and the boys have gotten good at sitting for me.  Leo gets a Dum Dum to eat while I cut his hair.  There's a little bit of a learning curve, but once you figure out your blade lengths and watch a youtube video or two, you'll be set.  Kevin trims my hair from time to time and I always cut Olive's hair.  I do haircuts twice a month for the boys.  That easily would be $30-40 at a salon every month plus tips.

 

Are you doing anything creative to save your family money these days?