Giveaway at mommieswithcents

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How I save money on cleaning supplies

I don't use them.

Okay, so maybe this post was a teaser. Were you expecting recipes, money saving tips, ways to stretch a bottle? I've been there, done that, and the truth is most of it just isn't worth it.

True, I do have a bottle of Windex under my kitchen cabinet, but it's the same bottle I've had for 3 years, and it's still more than half full. And sure, I've been known to work some magic with some baking soda and vinegar, and I do use commercial dish soap. But most of the time, for most cleaning jobs? I don't need any cleaning products.

It happened somewhat slowly. At first I was gung ho about mixing up a spray bottle of vinegar/water to keep on hand and using that to clean the counter every night. Then, when that started to run low, I just added more water because I was in too much of a hurry to take out the vinegar. Then I added more water.

A few months later, I realized I had been cleaning my counters with just water every night with no noticeable difference.

My floors usually get wiped down with a damp rag, either wrapped around my mop or just moved around with my foot if I'm feeling lazy. My mirrors get wiped down with a microfiber cloth - sometimes with some water, sometimes dry. My dusting is done with a feather duster, which I shake outside.

I've seen recipes for homemade cleaning products, and to be honest I couldn't be bothered. I mean, I can see using some alcohol or bleach on my counters when I have been working with raw meat - although to be honest, I think soap probably does the trick. But did you notice recipes for window cleaner always have blue food coloring?

Now maybe I just don't keep as clean a house as some people. I don't feel the need to wash my windows with ammonia every week, or to turtle was my shower walls. But as far as I'm concerned, a spritz of water and a bit of elbow grease keeps my house plenty clean enough. It saves time, money, and the environment. The trifecta!

Read more frugal tips at Frugal Friday hosted by Life as a Mom.

Extra Money Maker: Swagbucks

Just in case I'm not the last person on Earth to find Swagbucks: Sign up to earn gift cards for your every day searches. There are also lots of free Swagbucks codes that post frequently to frugal blogs and such, so it's a great way to earn a few extra bucks in amazon codes. Enjoy!

When the spender becomes the saver

So my very spendy husband said to me the other night (when I was nearly asleep in my chair), "Why are we spending $60 a month on phone and DSL? We only get the phone line so we can have the DSL, and we could get shiny, speedy cable Internet for way less than $60."

Me: "Ummmmmm but DSL used to be cheeper?"

Him: "See, the cable company website has this $30 a month for 6 months offer. We'll be moving in about 7 months, so we can just cancel when it goes up."

Me: "Ummmmmmmmm"

Him: "We'll call tomorrow and switch. Then we'll be saving $30 every month."

Me: "Ooookaaaaaay...."

Him: "And we can get free Cinemax from Dish Network because we have paperless billing, so I called and signed us up for that, and then set the DVR to record a bunch of movies, so we can watch them when we have friends over or are looking for something to do."

Me: "Sounds .... good....?"

Him: "Ooooooh. . . IPod Touch....."

Me: "No."

Woo hoo, maybe it wasn't all a dream.

Doing good again

Charity Fundraising

Thanks to Hotels Combined I sent $20 to
World Vision without spending a cent.
How? - Find out here.