Frugal Organic Savings to Do at Home

 

 

as seen on www.survivalblog.com

 

When people jokingly refer to Whole Foods as “Whole Paycheck” to indicate the price points, I wonder if they conclude that all organic products and foods HAVE to be expensive.

I have learned that it is indeed more expensive to raise meat on a small homestead than to buy a rotisserie chicken at Costco.  But so many pricey organic foods and products are quickly and cheaply made at home.  A frugally organic minded person can save thousands of dollars per year.  Below are some examples and sample price points.

HYGIENE/BEAUTY/CLEANING: 

a)           FACIALS and HAIR TREATMENTS: Pay $100 vs.  < $1. 

Honey and Beeswax

I love feeling really clean, and have paid $90 - 110 for facials in the US (and $15 in India). But you know the ingredients and labor are highly marked up.  Now, I give myself two facial/hair treatments a week, right before bathing:  one with 2 tbs of bentonite clay (bought on-line) for a detoxifying face and hair mask, and another with 2 tbs of honey, diluted, as a moisturizer for face and hair.  A pound of the clay has lasted me about 2 years (about $12) How is that for a substantial savings?

b)          SHAMPOO and HAIR RINSE: $20 vs < $1.

 I make ours with a few drops of castile soap (vegan liquid soap.  A $15 bottle has lasted me 3 years so far) (bought on-line), 1/2 and 1/2 vinegar/ water, and a sprinkling of herbs of choice, like rosemary or sage for brunettes, or essential oils for scent.  My hair feels squeaky clean and my scalp feels tingly.  Very pleasant.  Just don't get it in your eyes.

c)                  CLEANING SUPPLIES:  $60 vs <1

I use vinegar, baking soda, and salt for all cleaning (house and clothes), sometimes boosted with borax.  No more space hogging, smelly cleaning supplies.

WINE:  6 gallons/30 bottles for $450 vs $79 - 129 and

BEER:  6 gallons/66 bottles for $330 vs $39 - 69

We harvest both wild and domesticated raspberries

We make our own wines and beers.  Most of the ingredients are sold at home brew supply stores, including very regionally specific grape selections, such as New Zealand sauvignon blanc.  We also ferment mead and wine from our bees' honey, berries, and birch sap.  Neither libation takes much time to make or age. Beer takes longer to make because the wort (sort of a tea) is heated and the heat maintained for 2 hours, but less time to age (about 3 weeks).  Wine is not heated so it takes about 30 minutes to combine ingredients and then takes 6 weeks to a year to age.  Some special equipment is required, which can often be found, used, on Craig's List, for less than $100 altogether.  Cost savings? We ferment ours in 6 gallon carboys (glass jugs), which compute to 30 bottles of wine or 66 bottles of beer.  A beer drinker can save 70-90% and a wine drinker can save 50 - 75%, presuming a $15 bottle of wine and a $5 bottle of micro-brewed beer. ($15/wine bottle x 30 = $450+. 

$5+/micro-brewed beer bottle x 66 = $330).  

  

We pay $79 - 129 for kits of varietal grapes (nebbiolo, pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc) and $39- $69 for the ingredients to make a Belgian style tripel, which I've seen priced at $13/one large bottle.

CONDIMENTS: ? Vs $1-2

I don't know why people clog their refrigerator and pantry shelves with sticky bottles of old salad dressings and other condiments for which ingredients are so cheap and accessible.  Why pay a vendor to package and market combinations of ingredients you can so easily do yourself with pantry basics.  Some, like cream sauces and creamy dressings, have to be made right before use. 

Others that improve with the melding of flavors I make in advance, such as:

a) shelf stable oil and vinegar based salad dressings

b) infused oils and vinegars (infused just means “soaking” desired ingredients, like garlic, hot peppers, rosemary, chives, or dry fruit)

c)  dry rubs and honey glazes for meats

Potatoes

d) prepared bags of the dry ingredients for pancakes, cookies, muffins, and biscuits for spontaneous baking. 

e) My barbeque sauce is simply 1/4 each of tomato paste, molasses, vinegar, and beer, simmered with spices.  How easy is that to make!  

f) I make a different dip each week, such as onion, artichoke, spinach, lemon aioli by combining mayonnaise, cream cheese, sour cream and the vegetables/herbs in  desired proportions.  These are great not only for appetizers, but also for slathering on sandwiches, tucking into omelets and dolloping on top of meat or fish.    

g)  I am not a super bread baker, but even heavy bread makes delicious toast and croutons, and a base for appetizers.  Pizza dough is far more forgiving.  I make about two per month to use up that week's leftover bits of meat, veggies and cheese. 

FRESH PRODUCE:  $ hundreds of dollars vs <1$

We cannot garden outside in Alaska's winter, but inside, I sprout three jars of beans and seeds on a window sill and grow low light/low temperature varieties of herbs, lettuces and cresses when it is 20 below.  The price savings are amazing, not to mention the quality.  For example, a 6 oz single portion of sprouts at a supermarket may cost $5.  By contrast, I bought a 2 year supply of sproutable beans and seeds (on-line) for $18.   Other produce, I grow from seed in summer.  A package of dozens to hundreds of seeds costs $1-4.  For $1 worth of seeds, I now enjoy perennials (grow year after year) such as fresh chives, mint, and oregano all summer, which I dry for winter use. For $5 each,  raspberry canes, asparagus, rhubarb, and strawberry plants will also produce for years. Added bonus:  perennial plants like these are almost always  the easiest plants to grow and maintain.  

In conclusion, I can imagine some readers saying, “I don't have time to make stuff from scratch.” OK.  Try something that requires NO effort.  Use vinegar to wash windows and clean the sink and stove top.  Pour honey on your face.  Drop garlic cloves in a bottle of olive oil.  If you like the results, enjoy the space and money you freed up from prior purchases that accomplished the same things.  

May some of these ideas enhance your quality of life and thicken your wallet, too.