8 Depression Era Frugal Living Tips
With smart budgeting, you can make sure that your finances are well-managed, and that you’re making the most of your money. One way to do that is to practice some of these depression era frugal living tips. It's a way of life that’s focused on spending money wisely and making sure that you’re getting the most out of what you purchase.
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8 Depression Era Frugal Living Tips
Frugal living is an important practice for businesses, families, and individuals alike, and practicing it can have a huge impact on your wallet and your bottom line. Here are some of our best tips for frugal living, so that you can start making the most of your money.
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Reduce Wasteful Spending
This is a hard one for many, especially for those that use shopping for a dopamine response. I'm not judging, I have been there. But when the economy shifts this is something you need to think about. Find something else you enjoy for that dopamine response.
Exercise regularly to increase dopamine. Go outside in the fresh air. This leads me to…
Grow A Garden and Learn DIY Skills
Starting a garden of fruits and vegetables that you and your family will eat is a great way to stretch your grocery budget.
Growing things that you can dehydrate or freeze, or can for the coming months are also a great idea. Things like tomatoes that you can enjoy fresh during the growing season but also can it into spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce, diced tomatoes, and the list goes on.
Use Coupons and Look for Sales
There are sites that you can join to get coupons online. I recommend signing up to those. Make a point of only buying the items if you truly need or use them. Just because you have a coupon for something doesn't mean you need to buy it.
Some grocery stores also have coupons at the front of their stores that you can grab to use. Look for them.
Our grocery stores have clearance sections and I love them! Yes, the produce might be getting close to going bad, but how can I utilize it and save money for our family? I preserve it! The dehydrator is great for peppers or fruits and the like. The rest can be used right away or frozen.
Buy in Bulk and Preserve Food
You can get great deals when you buy in bulk. It can also help to go in on items with another family to help offset both the cost and the amount you will have. Preserving together can also help make light of the work for both of you. Find your people, and your village and work together.
Reuse Items Whenever Possible
In the past, nothing was thrown away; everything had a second or even third life. Bread bags can be used as freezer bags or garbage bags. Old clothes can use cut down into new clothes or used in quilting, or in cut into rags (saving the buttons and zips, of course). Containers, jars, and boxes can be repurposed for storage.
Meal Plan By Shopping Your Pantry First
Instead of running out to the grocery store, check your pantry first. Meal plan around the items you already have. This ensures no food is wasted and saves money– because less food needs to be bought!
Stock a Frugal Pantry
Stocking a frugal pantry does two things for you.
1) It ensures you have ingredients on hand to make something- anything- at a moment's notice, instead of running out and buying more food or eating out.
2) It gives you the building blocks for frugal recipes, driving overall grocery costs down.
Cook from Scratch, Frugal Recipes
Most families almost NEVER ate out during the depression era. Eating out can easily cost as much as 50% more than eating at home. Don’t do that. If you really, really want to cut food costs, cook at home for every meal.
Cooking food at home will always be cheaper than ordering out– but intentionally cooking, and planning meals that already use naturally frugal recipes will help drive down overall grocery costs without much thought.
