Tips for Saving Money in the Kitchen
“MOM! I need your help in here! The trash spilled again… The bag ripped.” Totally my fault, I know, but so incredibly annoying nonetheless. We’re trying to save up our money, cutting costs, economizing, skipping vacations this year, and more because we’re trying to buy an small-ish RV for an epic road trip next summer.
This cost-cutter didn’t work, though. I’ve been buying economy brand trash bags and other kitchen products to try, and have found that the cheap trash bags have ended up costing me way more money than I’d been spending because we often have to use a second one to clean up spills from split bags, and than a third one to put the first bag into. And they’re so paper thin that our kitchen smells of garbage. Often.
Tips for Saving Money in the Kitchen
Tip One: Know When NOT to Scrimp
It’s tempting to go with economy brand item in every area when you’re trying to save money. But sometimes it’s more economical to stick with tried and true brands. We’ve switched back to Hefty Ultra Strong trash bags to combat the constant smell and breakage, and are actually spending less on kitchen garbage bags now.
Hefty Ultra Strong bags offer a superior quality, and boast a new, more economical, price point. With coupons readily available at coupons.com, they become the less expensive option when compared to other brands you can purchase at Target and Walmart (where I buy mine). And, I love the Arm & Hammer odor neutralizers and the new scents they come in. If you have scent sensitive kiddos, you can still get the neutralizers with their scent-free option.
Here’s the thing, though. When you take the time to figure out what you should and shouldn’t scrimp on, you save more in the end. Using a high quality trash bag like the Hefty Ultra Strong, instead of the cheap economy brand we’d tried for awhile means that my two oldest kiddos can easily take turns emptying the kitchen trash because the bag won’t break on them – saving both them and me time. The kitchen has a pleasant smell from the direction of the trash can (we love the Lavender and Sweet Vanilla) because it’s so teeny tiny. We’re not smelling last night’s leftovers, those are being neutralized while we get the scent of lavender fields when we open the lid.
Tip Two: Go Green When Possible
Let’s face it – life with littles means spill after spill after spill… If you’re reaching for paper towels and napkins every single time your toddler knocks over a glass of milk, you’ll be crying over spilled milk for real. That’s money right down the drain. Use sponges, washcloths, and hand towels. Sponges can be sanitized in the dishwasher or microwave, and those towels and washcloths can be tossed in the washing machine after putting in a hard day’s work.
Plastic or glass lidded food containers are go-tos around here for saving money too. We have a few high quality sets we use for food so we keep our leftovers ready to eat, and a few dollar store brand containers to hold this week’s slime or homemade play dough.
Tip Three: Get it All Ready
I don’t know about you, but after grocery shopping – usually with whiny kids in tow – I’m pretty much done when I get home. But, if I take the extra time to wash and cut up all the fruits and vegetables, and put them in those plastic containers, then they’re more likely to get eaten.
I also pour cereal into reusable containers so the kids can get into it more easily, and it stays fresher for longer. Snacks are packaged either in smaller containers or large snap-top lidded ones, and beans and rice and other grains are poured into clear canisters so I can see what I have at a glance.
Knowing when to scrimp on brand quality, how to reuse, and what to do to consistently pre-prep all of the newly purchased groceries each week are tips that have saved us bunches of money over the last year, and are getting our family closer to that epic road trip we’re hoping for.
And it means I’ll never hear a crash, and “Mom!” coming from the kitchen as trash falls all over the floor again.