FFT = Five Frugal Things, of course. 😉
1. I fixed Mr. FG’s costume.
As I told you all, I’m dressing up as Rapunzel from Tangled (post-hair chop), and so of course, Mr. FG is going to be Flynn Rider.
We ordered his costume on Amazon, and while it’s a decent costume, it had a a small problem, which is that the buckles wouldn’t really close properly.
It’s a little hard to explain, but the loops on the left were just too long, so there was no way to close the vest all the way no matter how hard you pulled.
So, I undid the stitching on ’em, and resewed them properly.
Top one, not fixed, lower one, fixed:
Bonus: the ones I sewed look a little neater, without exposed seams.
Not that that really matters on a dim October evening, but hey, it makes me happy.
2. I’m working through the last of my local beef.
Typically, I do pretty well at using the meat, even the odd cuts, but I neglect the beef bones.
I’m pleased to say my maiden foray into beef broth went pretty well, though, and I think I’ll have no problem using up the other two bags of bones.
I have some ground beef left, and I discovered I also have two briskets. Sweet!
I’m going to try a Cook’s Illustrated recipe for barbecued brisket to use up one of them, and I’m still thinking about what I’ll do with the second.
3. I’m using up my Hungry Harvest produce.
I roasted the cauliflower (lower right) last night, so, yay me!
We ate the tomatoes as a snack, I’m using up the potatoes and red peppers in a corn chowder, and I’m adding spinach to smoothies.
I’m not super excited about the Brussels sprouts, but I’ll probably either roast them or use them in a CI recipe that involves shredding them and adding bacon.
The garlic is no problem to use, of course, and we’ll snack on the fruit.
4. I called about car insurance coverage.
When I got the statement, I noticed that one of our older vehicles (2007) had some coverage that seemed like it was meant for a new vehicle. And I also noticed that the mileage category was wrong.
So, I called and got those two things fixed.
Bring on the lower bill!
5. I…
…cooked dinner, shopped at Aldi (easy way to stay within my grocery budget!), packaged up leftovers for Mr. FG’s lunch, and ate leftovers for lunch myself.
How about you? Share your FFT in the comments!
Brandi Lang
Wednesday 1st of November 2017
We are ranchers in MT, and eat our own beef... so it's our primary protein -- talk about frugal!! But this is the BEST brisket recipe that I've found, barring smoking it, I also use it on my roasts. http://www.familycircle.com/recipe/bbq-beef-brisket-1/
Missy
Wednesday 1st of November 2017
We put solar panels on our house this summer and used Sunrun. We received a gift card from Costco for using Sunrun. We've used this for all groceries ,gifts, and gas for the past three months and our electric bill went from 300.00 a month, southern California!, to .52 cents. Yes that big of a savings.
Kristen
Thursday 2nd of November 2017
That is AMAZING.
Em
Wednesday 1st of November 2017
Our family actually likes Brussels sprouts, or at least they do the way I make them. You start by melting bacon grease (1-3 T) in a saute pan or skillet on med high and then throw in halved Brussels sprouts, stirring every couple minutes to get some good coloration. Then turn the temp to medium low, add a couple tablespoons of water and cover, stirring occasionally until they are soft. We season them with kosher salt and pepper. It's simple and at least our family loves them!
Em
Wednesday 1st of November 2017
Come to think of it, some of our pickier relatives have enjoyed them in Thanksgivings past
priskill
Wednesday 1st of November 2017
Not my best week -- but here are a few things I can think of:
1. Dinner tonight is a party sized frozen lasagna that is ginormous and on serious markdown (44 cents per serving) and will provide several nights of dinner. Served with leftover salad using tomatoes from the marked down area and cukes and peppers on sale.
2. Checked Sprouts earlier this week for veggies and grapes -- very cheap!
3. Kept Halloween to a dull roar at school -- reused decorations from other years and did crafts that required a minimum of expense -- popcorn for the "spooky" hands and small packets of candy corn for the finger nails -- or just made things from what we had on hand. A wonderful mom donated tons of cookies to decorate with all the frosting and spooky sprinkles - we used and shared many leftovers with another class. Very fun day on the cheap.
4. Spent Halloween at the $1.75 theater -- Loved the new Planet of the Apes -- my goodness, there's an actual story, characters you care about, something at stake, and awesome CGI. It was actually about something for a change! BUT, our frugal fail was --
** Went out for make your own pizza beforehand. Sigh. We had planned to eat something at home but just didn't. So, on to better FFT's next week.
Also, slipped up a bit on lunches and breakfasts from home -- had been doing so well! But meetings, planning parties at school, and just general cussedness on my part took their toll. Next week WILL be different! ;)
Thanks for all the inspiration!
Julia
Wednesday 1st of November 2017
We love love love Halloween but try to keep our expenses down. 1. Bought Halloween candy on sale for Trick r Treat 2. We pick a theme for our costumes. This year was DC Comics with Batman, Batgirl, Batbun(ny) and Robin. Since we end up wearing our costumes 3 times (our trick or treat night, we hand out candy another night at our churches trunk or treat, and we truck or treat another night in a friend’s neighborhood) we use a mix of bought and homemade costumes and props. 3. Cooked 4 nights worth of meals in the beginning of the week so we didn’t need to feel rushed about cooking on busy nights. 4 Scored lots of leftovers when out to dinner with friends. I used them as lunches this week 5 caught up on wash when the weather was nice so I could hang it up outside.