Our Frugal Lifestyle

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Passionate about eco-frugality. I used to party hard, clubbing my way from pay-packet to pay-packet. Never getting ahead, just getting by. Then came our much wanted baby with no savings in the bank - only an old car. Changes were made to our lifestyle and we didn't turn back. In the past 6yrs we purchased a flat, found employment, lived below our means, built an emergency fund, purchased a reliable car and saw the financial benefits of our frugal lifestyle. Our only debt is our mortgage. Our aim is to manage our cash flow wisely, pay off our home quickly and eventually work for pleasure, not necessity. Join us on our journey, share insights, tips and tricks to help us and others to get ahead while having a good time.

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Sorting and Purging from My Home

Today I sorted our some of Dolly's clothing which she has outgrown. She has a lot of it as my mum LOVES the op shops and can't resist buying Dolly the cutest name brand dresses, tops and skirts for $1 to $3 most weeks.

I went through a suitcase of her outgrown clothing and created 6 piles. 

  • 1 lot to give away to a 2 year old girl we know. 
  • 1 lot to give away to a new  4 weeks old baby. girl
  • 1 lot to sell at my market stall (This money will go to Dolly's college fund).
  • 1 small lot of very damaged cotton clothing for the rag basket.
  • 3 items for the rubbish bin. Elastic stretched out and unrepairable.
  • 1 pile for the op shop; too good to throw out but not to my taste to hand-me-down or sell.
To sell.

For Baby (full red skirt, stripy playsuit, 2 dresses and over nappy pants).

For 2 yr old (6 dresses, shoes, 5 leggings and other stuff)
It's very satisfying to have sorted the full suitcase and to give away some of it to friends and earn some $$$ with the others to invest into Dolly's future. Also de-cluttering is so energising. Our homes are our sanctuaries from the world and yet so many of us make it unbearable with piles of "stuff" on every clean surface.

Have your been sorting and purging anything lately? Aim to get any money back on any of it? Please share - I love your comments.

Oh and here's Dolly's school morning tea for today: 2 Vegemite star sandwiches, 1 star cheddar cheese, sultanas and half a pear.

Tucker Time
Have a great day...  :-)
Posted by Frugal Down Under
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6 comments:

  1. Practical ParsimonyAugust 2, 2011 at 10:05 AM

    Instead of throwing clothes away, cut off buttons, if any, and use for rags for floors, icky stuff, or car use. THEN, throw them into rubbish. Give them one more use before discarding. This will save paper towels, napkins or any other paper products from the landfill. Cuter things can be cut to make doll blankets and pillows for your little girl, to sell, or for gifts...if material is not holey and faded.

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  2. UnknownAugust 2, 2011 at 11:44 PM

    I have been inspired by Dollys lunches, and made my son some star, flower, square and triangle shaped sandwiches today!

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  3. Frugal Down UnderAugust 3, 2011 at 5:38 AM

    Hi Practical Parsimony, The clothing I tossed was stretched out bathers. The elastic disentigrates fast here in the tropics. I recouped the straps and frill for Dolly's little arts and crafts projects. She loves to cut and collage sculptures together everyday, so these will be useful additions.

    Hi Erica, That's a lovely compliment :-) I eat the left crust at breakfast or toss it in with left overs for latter. I did once see a you tube clip of a dad toasting the scraps for croutons for salads.

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  4. Barb.August 9, 2011 at 6:34 PM

    I'm slowly going through my house too but we don't sell it, we take it all down to the Really Really Free Markets that are on each month in our town.
    Like you though stuff is used until it cannot be used again.

    Barb.

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  5. Frugal Down UnderAugust 12, 2011 at 3:37 AM

    Hi Barb,
    I've heard about really really free markets while you-tubing freeganism. They are wonderful and I wish there was one here.

    Not sure if I'm up to organising one but it would be a great thing...

    I am aware of the anti capitalist-consumerist and gifting ideals but am scared to be "without" in the rapidly changing world we live in. So I use the cashless economy a little bit with Freecycle (give and receive) and wish we had a LETS program here... but otherwise I like to make some money back on most of my stuff.

    I'm a real contradiction to myself :-)

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  6. AnonymousAugust 20, 2011 at 12:07 AM

    Hi there! I came across your blog through Practical Parsimony.

    I love your daughter's lunch, so healthy AND fun! As for sorting & purging anything lately.. my husband and I just cleaned out our walk-in closet. We trashed a few things, listed a few higher ticket items online for selling, and took a trunkload of items to donate. Such a satisfying feeling!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting - I love getting feedback, sharing experiences and learning from you.

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