My Frugal Friday tip today is one that I learned from watching my grandmother. She used to save EVERYTHING. She would reuse margarine containers to store leftovers (there was always a running joke that just because it was a margarine container doesn't mean it's margarine...you would see maybe 10 different ones in her refrigerator at any given time, lol)
I save things like the margarine containers or jars from jellies or salsa. I don't necessarily use them to store leftovers, but they are great to have for when you need to take a meal to someone and don't want them to have to worry about returning containers.
I also reuse ziplock bags. I use so many of them (I buy my flours, sugars, rice... in bulk and then break it down into gallon size bags, and store these bags in an airtight container. When I need flour or sugar I just run down to the basement and grab a gallon bag) that it would be expensive to keep buying them. So, I wash them out and let them dry and then store them in a drawer in my kitchen.
My grandmother also used to save her aluminum foil. When she took it off of a dish she would lay it out and press it back smooth and put it in a drawer to reuse. I haven't been doing this, but I am really thinking I will.
Little things do add up!
i've heard of alot of people from the great depression era who did these things. in these disposable times we live in i hadn't seen much of this outside of the environmentalists. never thought about how these frugal methods of our grandparents era are perfect for us now.
ReplyDeleteHere is my question.. what do you do with the bag to dry it out completely?? I always feel so guilty throwing away those ziplock bags. I save jam jars for making homemade ranch dressing and such. I also use the big applesauce or pickle jars for frozen juices. We try to avoid bpa plastic here.
ReplyDeleteLinda,
ReplyDeleteI turn the bag inside out, and then use clothespins to hang it up to dry.
I love your idea for using the big jars for frozen juices. I would love to hear how you are doing that! Are you making juice concentrate, or freezing the juice already ready to drink?
We are also trying to get away from the plastics...kinda scary stuff!
Blessings,
Melly Elizabeth