10 Steps To Budgeting Well With Food
Eco + Conscious Living, lifestyle
Budgeting is so empowering! I know we don’t all love it, but really it brings me peace and security so much that I LOVE talking about it. Sometimes saving money…
It’s no secret that the products associated with living a clean and ethical lifestyle are more of an ‘investment’. Read: they cost you more but we try to remember it’s worth it lol. Really though, when I told Jared I wanted to spend $50 on a pair of shoes for a 6 month old he nearly choked. Since then he’s learned the price point for my values, and understands them so he doesn’t choke (much) anymore and we have adjusted our spending and thinking to make it work. But one thing that makes ALL THE DIFFERENCE, is only spending where we really need to and being savvy with where we DON’T!
So here are 5 places we SAVE MONEY on living a more mindful, non toxic, eco friendly lifestyle!
1. SECOND HAND CLOTHES.
Clothing production is one of the most un-ethical industries and also one of the least eco friendly. There’s definitely a higher price for pieces from new ethical brands but that’s for good reason – paying people correctly, sourcing good materials well. However SECOND HAND clothing is to me the most ethical and eco friendly option. So much clothing is trashed each year, and it comes at an affordable price point too. I’m not that good at trawling charity shops (I still do though) but I love Poshmark where I got the Madewell jeans on the left (I think you can get $5 off here with the code kezianeusch.)
2. Hair washing with BAR SOAP AND ACV!
Hear me out. So many people wash their hair every day. If I use clean shampoo and conditioner I’m paying $30 a bottle (cos I refuse to buy it in plastic lol.) So I don’t pay that. I use a Sappo Hill bar soap, and an apple cider vinegar rinse (essential after the bar). I think if I actually added it up it would be 10c a wash? As opposed to $2 in clean products. WIN. It’s also fully non toxic, works a treat, and is zero waste. Jared uses bulk Dr Bronners which is very cost effective but doesn’t work for my hair. Try it, I dare you, and let me know!
3. JUST SAYING NO!
This is sometimes the hardest for people. But it’s amazing how much we can save by just saying no to things that we then realise we don’t need. The extra piece of clothing, the seasonal decor, the skin care product we just don’t need, the $5 to go coffee. Just looking around out lives and seeing where we can cut something out has given us the budget to buy the cleaner, healthier items we want.
4. CLOTH DIAPERING
I need to do a full post on this but cloth diapering two kids has saved us hundred of dollars. Especially as I got most of our diapers second hand. Thirsties is my go to brand, with a cut up old T shirt for wipes. The monthly savings are INSANE!
5. KEEP IT CHEAP +SIMPLE where you can!
Not everything needs to be spendy to be healthy. Work out where you NEED to spend and budget for it, but don’t spend where you don’t need to. I’m a mix of pricey where it’s needed and simple that balances it out. I buy new furniture where I need to and it’s more pricy to be free from chemicals, but I buy it second hand whenever I can to balance out the pricey purchases. Or take my makeup remover, it will always be simple coconut oil. My face toner is an AVC homemade spray. Not everything needs a ‘product.’ I also have a simple makeup (and skin care) routine. My products are more pricey ones to try and get fully non toxic BUT I only buy minimally and what I need so it balances out. My makeup bag totals $150 in products (a number I never thought I’d spend ha but it’s a combo that I finally feel great about of Elate Cosmetics and then Beautycounter – where I signed up to be a consultant too for the 25% discount I’ll take a discount wherever I can!) but that price for clean and eco friendly makeup is SO little once you start researching and it’s balances out with the cheaper stuff which is what makes it work! Investing in clean definitely isn’t cheap but keeping it simple + minimal makes ALL the difference.
6. BUYING IN BULK!
By bulk I don’t mean masses of something, but loose from bins. If you’ve seen our #TWFDGROCERYHAULS you know we shop pretty much plastic free and also spend well below the American average for our family size. It can cost more (ketchup costs me 3x *eyeroll*) but we’ve made actually the change to plastic free food shopping without altering our budget at all! Certain items are a lot CHEAPER bought package free. Two examples, beans and bread. We make out own whole spelt sourdough and it costs us $1.50 a loaf. If I bought that premade in plastic locally it’s $8 – we do 2 loaves a week so we’re saving $13 a WEEK! Beans are also about 1/4 of the price cooked cup for cooked up when you buy them dry and soak and sprout them yourself! Try it!
And I’ll throw this in for free ha… we drink coffee every day so it’s really important to me that it’s organic and clean and packaged in compostable packaging. We are also REALLY picky about good coffee – I’d rather not drink it than have a bad cup lol. Judge me, it’s ok. So we do a subcription from Northbound that is some of the best coffee out there (we love the light roasts) and getting 3 bags a month costs $12 a bag for organic, and SWP clean decaf coffee in home compostable packaging. It we buy good bags from anywhere else its $14+ a bag and not compostable packaging so it’s a win win win!
There are so many more ways so maybe I’ll do another post but it really all can balance out if you want to make the lifestyle work without breaking the bank 🙂
