50 tips on thrift from the WI

We could all do with some ideas for how to save money at the moment, and who better to ask than the Women's Institute?

Times Money spoke to six members of the WI at Denman College, the institute's training centre in Oxfordshire, to find their 50 best tips on old-fashioned home economics...

1. Forward-plan your shopping. Five or ten minutes of planning what you need can save money as well as time.

2. Check the pantry. Finding out what you have from last week before you go shopping will save you money. Also look through recipe books to see if you can do something with leftovers rather than throwing them out.

3. Make a list and shop once a week. When you go shopping take a menu for the week as well as a list so you buy only what you need.

4. Never go shopping when you are hungry. Shopping once a week instead of two or three times also saves on petrol.

5. Don't BOGOF. Don’t go for buy-one-get-one-free offers unless you know you will use the extra.

6. Look at cost per unit, or number of portions rather than overall price in the supermarket.

7. Ignore sell by dates. Don’t throw something away just because it has gone past its use by date as some things, like yoghurts, are often ok to eat until a couple of days later.

8. Think tupperware. Store things correctly, in airtight containers, so that they last for longer and do not go soft.

9. Buy cheap. Don’t shun supermarket value ranges. Basic items such as pasta are just as good as branded versions.

10. Know your portion sizes so you do not cook too much. Bulk out meals with frozen peas and sweetcorn.

11. Use a three tier steamer instead of several saucepans at once as this saves on electricity. So does a slow cooker, or cooking several things in the oven at once.

12. Shop in the last hour of the day to get reduced items. This can save around £30 a week for a family of four.

13. Use the microwave whenever possible. It is more economical than the oven, because it takes less time to cook and uses less power. Lemon curd takes 25 minutes in the saucepan, but just three in the microwave. You can pick-up a cheap but good microwave now for £40.

14. Use cling film with care. When taking cling film from the dispenser to the dish, hold it flat over your bosom. This way, it is less likely to get screwed up, and you will waste less.

15.  For a cheap dessert, make meringues. For a batch of sixteen, you need only one tablespoon of egg white and some caster sugar.

16. Microwave sense. If you use a microwave, use the conventional oven setting sparingly, as it can reduce the wattage over time, increasing the time it takes to cook.

17. Read Mrs Beeton. “When I was first married, I was desperately poor”, says Barbara, a WI member. “So I was always looking for ways of using cheap ingredients. I found a vinegar cake recipe in Mrs Beeton and still use it regularly. My family love it.”

18. Learn to use a few key ingredients well. “Grate cheese so it goes further and mix with fresh bread crumbs from the ends of loaves for a delicious topping” says Sue Bridger, a teacher of microwave cooking for the WI. “If you make too much, keep the rest in the freezer.”

19. Use leftovers wisely. Sue says: "If you have vegetables leftover from a Sunday roast, roast them for 10 minutes with dried herbs, then add macaroni cheese on top.”

20. Make stock from ham bones and chicken carcasses. You can get these cheaply from your local butcher, but not from supermarkets.

21. Make soup. It is a good way of using up old veg and the stock that you have boiled up.

22. Don’t throw boiling salted water down the sink. “It makes a great weedkiller”, advises Innes Brett, from Berkeswell, a WI member for 42 years.

23. Keep a thermos flask near the kettle. You should only boil what you need, but if there is any extra, you can use it for washing up.

24. Do not buy fabric softener, it is an unnecessary luxury.

25. Go to local jumble sales for old houselhold stuff.

26. Barter for the cost of goods wherever possible.

27. Cut post-it notes in half and write on the other side of old bits of paper.

28. Never throw-out cereal packets - use them for compost.

29. “Sides to middle” your old bedsheet. When it starts thinning in the middle, fold in half, cut a line up the middle, bring the edges together and sew back up.

30. Always buy good quality washing-up liquid, put half into another container and top up both with water. It is just as effective.

31. Never buy ready-meals. They are expensive and unhealthy.

32. Rinse out jam jars and re-use.

33. Turn-off an electric cooker a few minutes before the food has finished cooking. It will still be hot enough to cook the food and it saves electricity.

34. The same applies to an iron - it will still be warm enough to iron your delicates for a few minutes after it has been turned off.

35. Do the ironing in one go.

36. Ask how much electricity things use when you buy them. Appliances should be AA rated - these need less electricity.

37. Invest in a sewing machine and make your own clothes. That way, you also get exactly what you want in the right size at a fraction of the price.

38. Never buy cushion covers - make them.

39. Make old clothes new by customising with corsages, buttons and bows.

40. Buy clothes in colours that match your wardrobe so you do not have to buy more.

41. Start growing your own vegetables. Your new hobby of tending veg also offers a cheap way of spending leisure time. Tomato plants grow anywhere. A pack costs between £2 and £3.

42. Offer jars of chutney or jam with a ribbon wrapped around as homemade presents.

43. Buying ready made sandwiches is “pathetic”. Make your own.

44. Eat meals at the table together and do not graze. You can save huge amounts if the whole family is eating the same thing at the same time.

45. If you use lemons, save the skins, then use them around a roast chicken for flavouring.

46. Don’t buy cleaning products. All you need is lemon juice, bicarbonate of soda and vinegar.

47. Cut your water bill. You can get reductions on your water bills if you use rainwater butts and ‘soakaways’ in the drain.

48. Split open your tubes of toothpaste to scrape out what is left.

49. Turn the thermostat down a degree or two and put an extra layer on if you feel chilly.

50. Have a shower instead of a bath as it uses less water.

With thanks to Innes Brett, Donna Butcher, Lucinda Phillips, Mandie Bowles, Jean Sheppard and Margaret Church.

To find out about more about Sky and the W.I’s ‘W-Icon’ campaign, the search for the ultimate W.I member, visit www.sky.com/w-icon

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Comments

[Laura]

If I see bargins in the supermarket ie BOGOF I only buy them if they are freezable. Another idea I'd like to share is when buying gifts, birthday or christmas gifts make them food gifts ie a nice hamper, it can be as small or as large as you want and can be made quite cheaply & it makes a very personal gift too.

[Kyl]

Some of these are good tips; others so obvious they are more 'ways to stop throwing money away' than to save it.
And how is bogof-ing bad value? Unless you're an idiot, its either something you get anyway, would happily exchange for what you usually get, or don't get because its expensive. And if it wont keep you can freeze the other one.

[Health Bill]

Throw away your microwave.

[Virginia]

At the risk of being politically/ religiously incorrect: When the widow told St Paul she did not have enough foodto share with him,, he responded:"What hast thou in the house?" It got my family through the Depression!

[Phillip]

If you're a yogurt eater like I am... save the containers (wash them of course) buy and refill with the large container - i usually just get vanilla and add my favorite fruit.

[Laura]

I consider any meat with bones to be more of an investment rather than an expense. Consider, a turkey baked over the weekend will supply not only a main dish, but also several leftover main dishes such as soups, sandwiches, and casseroles. Here's my Cream-of-Anything casserole recipe:

Leftover meat
Can of cream-of-anything soup
cooked noodles
Leftover veggies
Cheese, if desired

Mix all together except cheese, which is placed on top. Bake at 325-degrees F until bubbly. Serve and enjoy!

[Lydia]

Some great ideas here; yet some are not so money-saving today. Sewing your own clothes is hugely expensive; buying on sales is much cheaper for most of us. However, alterations and mending are a great way to save money. Article with tips on these topic would be grat for many of us DIY seamstreses.

[Jill Truman]

Being a 'greyhead' I was taught at my mother's knee in the 40s and 50s to do many of the things suggested, and have carried on doing so.

Home Economics ought to be reintroduced in schools for both sexes. Learning to make and mend is important for us all. They haven't mentioned knitting your own socks and sweaters, along with making your own clothes. None of this can be done by someone who hasn't learnt the skill somewhere! As for cooking one meal for all the family - not so easy in these days of faddy eaters, but it's worth some extra effort to sit down together to introduce some social skills and re-learn the art of conversation (instead of teenage grunts].

[Jane Sailes]

Its like the 1930's all over again isnt it wonderful i can see gordon brown with one bar of electric on in his coat this winter, can you ?

[Appolonius]

I must disagree, with all due respect, with the suggestions for using the Microwave to cook food as it destroys the nutritive value therein. Give your head a shake!

[Ned Ludd]

"Turn-off" and "throw-out" as verbs? Does the Times still employ subs?