The Ultimate Way to Save Money

I am joining Vicki on her Frugal Friday journey again this week on the ultimate money saving tip.

The ultimate tip to save money is to actually SAVE IT! You cannot save money any better than designating a portion of your income to savings. You can cut coupons, buy in bulk, and find all sorts of ways not to spend money on things you buy everyday, but if you do not turn around and save that money, you will just go and spend it on something else.

A good goal to shoot for is 10% of your income goes directly into savings every time you get paid- whether it is through a regular pay check, by the job, or by the month. If you do not make it automatic, it will be easier to find a way to spend it. I have my bank account set up to transfer money out the day I get paid. I never see it. I also set up an online account without access to a debit card so I really have to think before I spend the savings. You can set up an entire account without leaving your home. And the rates are not bad, sometimes better than your local banks (check for fees before you start- CitiBank is a great option). I easily transfer into my main household account, but it takes more than swiping a card.

This summer, when vacation time came around, we had some money saved and did not go into debt going on a trip. (My kids and nieces this summer on vacation.)

And right now is a great time to start savings for next year's Christmas gifts. Think of the relief you will feel when you don't have to figure out how you are going to purchase the gifts or use the credit card!

My ultimate tip to save money- open a savings account and use it!

Frugal Fridays

I am participating with Vicki in her Frugal Fridays blog carnival. This week is your all time favorite frugal tip! My favorite frugal tip has been making my own laundry detergent.

Using some simple recipes, I selected a recipe I liked that included a bar of laundry soap, borax, and washing soda. I used some hot water, a large 2.5 gallon bucket, and a few drops of essential oil. All together, the entire box of borax was around $2.50, the washing soda the same, the laundry soap bar was around $1 at Big Lots. I only used about 1/50th of the borax and maybe 1/25th of the washing soda, so all together, it probably cost $2.00 to make approximately enough soap for 60 loads!

Now my dear friend asks me why I would waste the time making laundry soap when it is not too expensive to buy.

My response:
1. CHEMICALS I know what is in my soap and it is not chemicals.
2. It cleans better- even hubby noticed when I temporarily switched back to store bought soap when I did not have time to whip up the recipe (or the energy, even though it takes 10 minutes to cook, 1 hour or so to cool... the hardest part is getting it into containers, but you can just leave it in the bucket and cover it!).
3. WHY not?? The money saved compared to name brands is significant for a family that does a lot of laundry.
4. At $.03 a load, I think it is worth it!

I would encourage you to try making laundry soap just one time--- you are not committed to a life long journey of making your own soap- but you may just decide you like it!

And here are some more tips I have for saving money.