Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without!

These words became popular during the Great Depression. The U.S. government appropriated the phrase during WWII, as a way of encouraging Americans to conserve (and in some cases, completely do without) items that were in short supply because the troops fighting overseas needed them.

These days, the sentiment has come back into fashion. We may recycle and reuse items out of concern for the environment, a sense of stewardship, financial necessity, or some combination of those (and other) motivations. Whatever the reason, there’s no denying that frugality has definitely gone mainstream.

As we head into another new year, here are a few of our favorite ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle.

From Sam:

The first thing that comes to mind are linens. If you think about it, your home is filled with linens, from clothing and towels to blankets and sheets. And we don’t waste any of them.

I am a big thrift shopper and find most of my clothing there, as well as things for other family members. I also regularly donate to continue the cycle. But my regular household linens are the ones that get a real workout. Towels are used until they begin to fray at an edge and then they are cut into three rectangles the size of hand towels and go to my husband’s workshop. Kitchen towels are hung up to dry hands until they become stained. Then they go under the sink to be pulled out to dry cast iron and wipe up spills. When they are no longer fit for that duty, they are also gifted to the mechanics in the family. Washcloth are the same, but when stained they go to the laundry room cabinet. There they await use as dusting rags, and silver polishers. I kept several of my boys’ small sized t-shirts because they fit perfectly over the head of a broom. Cover your broom head with the shirt and use it to sweep spider webs in corners and on ceilings, then toss the shirt in the wash. It saves wear on your broom and having it clogged with cobwebs.

Small t-shirts fit perfectly over the head of a broom; cover your broom with the shirt and use it to sweep spider webs in corners and on ceilings, then toss the shirt in the wash to prevent clogging your broom with cobwebs. Click To Tweet

Pantyhose and tights with holes are cut into ribbon like strips and saved to tie up roses, berry bushes, and tomato plants. The elastic nature of the cloth holds firmly, but prevents breaking or bruising of the plant. Sheets find new life as covers for grills and wicker furniture that are stored over the winter months. Cotton sheets with nice colors and patterns can also be torn into strips, braided, and then sewn into lovely rugs. Blankets that have become ragged or stained can be folded into quarters and then tacked with yarn in the center and four corners, just like tacking a quilt. These make soft and comfy dog and cat beds. Old pillows can be wrapped in worn flannel sheets to become nice cushions for dog houses.

Very few people still patch jeans, but my sons and husband do lots of physical labor, both at work and on the farm. Keeping one pair of jeans that is not decent enough to pass along to someone else will give you enough denim to patch many pairs of jeans. Clothing with pretty fabric can have the stain or injury cut away, and just a piece of the fabric kept. When I was growing up, we always had a “rag bag”. I could sort through it and find cloth to make a doll dress, to stitch up a tiny gift bag, to do all sorts of creative things. My boys grew up with one also, and knew there was always fabric that they could use for projects. You can also save attractive buttons cut from shirts for your children to use in crafts. Or, I like to replace the ordinary buttons on a cardigan sweater with pretty ones I have saved. The linens in your house are a really great place to start recycling and reusing!

From Bridgitt:

We have quite the zoo at our house. Reptiles happen to be a family favorite. We currently have a leopard gecko and an Eastern fence lizard. The only problem: reptiles need live food for optimal health. The closest pet shop is a good 30 minute drive, so we have opted to raise our own crickets.

For their habitat, we save toilet paper rolls and egg cartons. These things expand their living area and give them nice little hideaways, but they also can be thrown out and replaced when needed.

Turns out other families nearby also don’t like the long drive to town, and my son has started himself a little cricket business as a bonus!

When our first child was born, I went … well … a little crazy when it came to dressing her. She was a beautiful baby, and the stores were filled with the most adorable clothing for little girls, and I just couldn’t imagine not draping her in the cutest clothes I could find.

I went overboard (and that’s putting it politely).

When I look back now, I cringe at the amount we were spending to dress a child — who was rarely aware of what she had on, unless it was uncomfortable! — in clothing she might have worn two or three times over a few months before outgrowing it. More outfits than I care to admit remained in the closet, until I unearthed them and discovered they would no longer fit her.

One thing I noticed is this: it was really difficult to let go of those clothes when she outgrew them. Because I knew the cost of the items we bought, I always felt I should pack them away for the next child … as if I knew God would give us another, let alone a second girl. In the 3 1/2 years between our first child and the second, we seemed to accumulate a small (but quite costly) mountain of clothing, shoes, hats and other little girl paraphernalia.

It was an expensive lesson, but eventually I realized the folly of treating my children like little dress-up dolls. The most beautiful outfit for a 6-month-old is going to be worn a handful of times. Wait a year, and your toddler might wear things a bit longer, but they’re also far more likely to be destroyed by the time he outgrows them. Pack the surviving clothes away for the next child, and it won’t even matter that styles have changed dramatically because in all likelihood, you will be swimming in so many boxes of outgrown clothing, you’ll never find the hand-me-downs anyway.

Our oldest daughter is now 20 years old. She seems to have suffered no ill effects from her time as a human department-store mannequin, and I’m pleased to say that she now shops primarily at resale and thrift stores. In fact, with a few regular exceptions like socks and undergarments, our whole family purchases most of our clothes second-hand, and I could not be happier about exercising frugality in this area. Where I once bought my husband only one type of jeans and got all his dress shirts from a particular store (because I knew the specific styles and sizes that fit him properly), now I don’t hesitate to try a different brand or size at a resale shop. If he doesn’t care for it, or if it doesn’t fit just right, it goes into the donation box. You’d be amazed how much easier it is to let go of a shirt or a pair of jeans that cost less than a latte from the local coffee shop, instead of $50 or more.

All of us regularly go through our closets and purge items we no longer wear. I don’t find myself nagging my husband or kids to hang on to clothing they dislike. Anything that’s too large or small, too short or long, uncomfortable, or just isn’t a style or color that they prefer, goes in the box to be donated. Every month or two, we drop off what we’ve collected and someone else gets a chance to use it. 

We were late converts to second-hand shopping, but I’m now a true believer.

From Laura:

The rule for group photos (tall ones in the back, short ones in the front) doesn’t always make practical sense for my spice and cooking pantry shelf. I grew weary of digging for a needed spice bottle and knocking over three others to get the one I was after.

The solution to my dilemma was a lazy susan, but I wasn’t willing to pay the price of new ones. Necessity and frugality are often the mothers of invention. My dollar-store hack cost me $5 instead of $34. (The new lazy susans I found were $17 each; I created two with my $5 haul from the local dollar store!)

Here’s my recipe:

• 4 round cake pans (if you have old ones at home, use those … these don’t need to be pretty!)
• 1 bag of marbles

Dump half of the marbles in one pan and half in another.  Put remaining pans on top of marbles, creating a sandwich (with marbles in the middle between two nested pans). Place on shelf. Add spices. Give it a twirl and enjoy seeing them all accessible.

Result: Find what you need easily. Congratulate yourself for implementing a frugal and pragmatic plan. Be sure to show your hubby and children. Then bask in their praise!

“Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her.”
Proverbs 31:28