Friday 13 February 2015

Dilute so it lasts longer

Hiya. I'm always looking for ways to save a few more pennies on everyday items, so I have enough dosh for the treats I like. Here are a few things I do. Anything that can be diluted to stretch it a little further.
Does this look like a bottle of Mr Muscle bathroom cleaner? Well it was once, a long time ago. Now it contains diluted wash up liquid. I have an old wash up brush in my bathroom, a quick squirt round the basin with this and a scrub with the brush leaves it sparkly clean. I use this on a cloth to wipe the bath out and around the toilet. The toilet bowl gets scrubbed with a ting squirt of bleach with the loo brush. There is absolutely no need to buy any fancy bathroom cleaners. 
Tesco everyday value baby bath and baby shampoo are already a bit weak, they are meant to be mild for babies. They can still be diluted though, or used sparingly. Put a few blobs of the baby bath on a sponge and it foams up nicely. I don't need much of the shampoo for my short to medium length hair, I squirt a bit into my hand then transfer some of it to the other hand and apply all over my head. If you have your eyes shut and can't see how much you are squeezing it out, try putting it into a hand soap dispenser. The skin so soft bath wash is diluted. I bought it about four years ago, still not finished it, it's very soapy.

I don't buy bottles or cans of fizzy drinks, I get cartons of juice. The cash and carry usually do three for £1. Yes it's got sugar in it, but I dilute it, at least 50/50 or 70% water 30% juice. I get lots of drinks out of it.

When I am about a quarter of the way into the soya milk, I top it up with water. I like my Nescafe, but sometimes I buy a cheaper brand and mix the two together. Can hardly tell the difference. 
Value porridge oats are about as cheap as you can get them. If you have a fussy family member who wants to stick with their expensive brand, try getting a packet of the Value and adding it to the half full box or bag. Bet they don't notice.

 I buy cheap wash up liquid and use it very sparingly. When the bottle gets down to half full I top it up with water, and still use it very sparingly. There is no need to have a washing up bowl overflowing with soap suds. If you have a greasy pan or plate, drip two drops on it and scrub with a brush. I use oil very sparingly in my cooking so I don't get really mucky pots. The handwash was given to me, my friend didn't like the smell, I think it's lovely. I keep this in my cupboard below the sink and only use it when I can't be bothered to go to the bathroom. I prefer to wash my hands upstairs with a bar of soap.  As you can see there is a lot left, and I've had it over a year. I will start diluting it and maybe it will be ok for at least another two years.

There are lots of things that can be diluted, or a cheaper version added, to stretch them a bit further. I buy the cheapest bran flakes at 88p, they taste fine. If you have someone in the house who won't touch anything less than the big K, try mixing the cheaper one in the box when they aren't looking. Drop a brand but don't tell anyone. Same with anything. Save the empty branded bottles and add the cheaper version. You could stretch your wine a bit further by adding soda water or lemonade. There must be lots more ways of  spinning things out. Send me some more ideas please, I like to save more money for my treats. 
I invented a new pudding last night, I was a bit peckish about half past eight. I sometimes have half a tin of rice pudding (7.5p) at that time, something milky before bed time. Then I remembered I have three malt loaves bought from the cash and carry, (3 for £1), so I cut a couple of slices, then cut them into cubes and added them to the mug and zap in the microwave. It was bloomin lovely. I had the same again for my elevenses this morning. You could crumble biscuits into rice pudding, I sometimes add ground almonds.  
Weather wasn't good enough for a day out today, so I went to town. Popped in Aldi for a few essentials, bananas, cheese, nuts, and eggs. Hope it's better tomorrow. Hope you have a good weekend.
Toodle pip

23 comments:

  1. If someone fiddled with my jumbo oats I'd be very cross! xxx

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  2. After studying microbiology and experiencing food poisoning in Africa l am careful with bacteria. Instead of diluting cleaning liquids l use diluted white vinegar and hot steam. Works very well and l am environment-friendly at the same time. Your dessert sounds very nice. Hope you have a lovely weekend, Pam.

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    1. Thanks for the tip. I can't find any cheap white vinegar, perhaps I'm not looking in the right places. Will look again.

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  3. You have some great ideas. I've been told that vinegar and a bit of dish soap works as well as any cleaner.

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  4. I'm a big fan of cheap white vinegar. I live in a really hard water area and limescale is the bane of my life. (Drama!) I use it to fill up my kettle to descale, reuse it to do the shower head and put it back in the bottle to use agian. I soak it into kitchen paper to drape around the taps and over the sink to remove the limescale that gradually builds up. I really get my moey's worth :)

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    1. Great idea to reuse the vinegar. See, I'm not too old to learn new tricks!

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  5. I love rice pudding - often make it in the crockpot.

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  6. Malt loaf makes a lovely bread and butter pudding substitute :)

    Sue R

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  7. I dilute practically everything! and when my lotion is running out, store it upside down so I can continue to get some out. Same with ketchup, mayonnaise, honey, that kind of thing. Always more helpings if you let gravity help.

    Baking soda and vinegar substitute for a lot of cleaning material, too. And I never use paper towels, just cloths in the kitchen, to be reused. I knitted them from cotton yarn, even cheaper!

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    1. You are way ahead of me. my cloths come from cut up old sheets and towels.

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    2. My old sheets and towels go to the local animal rescue! so I have to make my own cloths.

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  8. I use white vinegar, methylated spirits and dishwashing liquid for house cleaning. I also put on the washing machine with a full load after 10pm which is our off peak or cheapest time.Thanks for the tips, have a great weekend.
    AussieCheryl : )

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  9. Just be a bit aware when diluting things with tap water and storing for a long time you have diluted the ingredients that stop them going off. Something to think about with products that go near your face and eyes.

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  10. You're quite right about not needing fancy cleaners! Boud is right too, wine vinegar and bicarb works well too - great for getting rid of mould on grout (but don't allow it to get too much of a hold first!)

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  11. I clean our counter tops using white vinegar and to mop floors,the vinegar smell will disappear very quickly. Baking soda which can be used for many things, plus I make my own multi purpose cleaner which is made using one tablespoon of eucalyptus oil and one tablespoon of sugar soap put into a 500 ml spray bottle filled up with water, this is from a site here in Australia called "Simple Savings"

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    1. Manchester Lass, I'm an ex mancunian and a member of Simple Savings too. Waves :-)

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  12. White vinegar is cheap here (US). And that's saying something because nothing is cheap here. I use it a lot and I use baking soda to "scrub" out tea cups that get stained and also my coffee pot. It works right away and is safe for the environment and the item I am cleaning. Cheap too!

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  13. I clean most things with diluted fairy (I know its expensive but hubby insists on fairy). We also use bleach for the loo and a bit of cheap disinfectant for other things. I am also a big fan of soda crystals for tough jobs. I couldn't imagine buying cleaning cloths! I like old tshirts for cleaning. I bet that rice pudding was lovely. Debbie.

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  14. I've 'mixed' the coffee for a while now and DH still hasn't noticed. I dilute the wash-up liquid and the shampoo too.
    xx

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  15. Happy Shopper is a good place to get white vinegar

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  16. I mix white vinegar and half dawn dish soap and it is an amazing cleaner. It makes your faucets and sinks shine. I fill my kitchen sink with hot water and bleach and let it sit for a couple of hours. I wipe down the counters and appliances with this so that I know germs are being killed. Did you know that you can kill weeds with vinegar? I buy a few gallons at a time and use it for so many things. Oh - once a month I put some baking soda down all my drains and then pour in some vinegar and it will boil away. Let it do it's work for 30 minutes or so and rinse your clogs away. If you had a slow drain then I would follow this with a pan of boiling water. I don't have to call the plumber ever for slow drains as I take care of them. You can share this on your blog if you want to. Keep up the good work of saving for special things!!

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