How to save money by avoiding food waste

As the price of groceries climbs higher and higher, we need to keep finding way to cut down our grocery bills.  One of the simplest ways to do so is by cutting down on food waste.  Australian’s throw away $5 billion worth of food per year, between 1 and 5 food items per week!  Think of all that cash thrown in the bin.  Here are some tips to help you reduce your food waste.

• Check your fridge and pantry when making your shopping list – By checking your fridge and pantry you can see what food you have at home, which allows you to meal plan around what you already have, also helping you to avoid buying multiples.

• Freeze fruit – Fruit often has a short shelf, but fruits like banana can be mashed and frozen, and apples can be stewed and frozen.  Alternatively, chop the fruit and freeze it, process it in the food processor and freeze again, which makes a great cool summer snack.  You can also turn fruit into a sauce by putting it in a saucepan over low heat for a few minutes with a bit of sugar and some lemon juice.  It can then be used as is or frozen.

• Use up the vegetables rolling around in your fridge/pantry – Turn any vegetables that need to be used up into a vegie bake, by slicing and placing them in a baking dish, pour over some cream, sprinkle with cheese and bake until tender.

• Use up stale bread – Turn stale bread into bread and butter pudding, by buttering bread triangles and baking with some sultanas and a mixture of egg, milk, cream and nutmeg.

• Savoury leftovers – Turn savoury leftovers into fried rice, quesadillas, frittatas, mince mixtures and toasted sandwiches.

• Make biscuits – Turn left over bits and pieces into biscuits, such as chocolate chips, dried fruit and nuts and breakfast cereal.

• Gift food items – Gift unwanted and unopened cans and bottles of food to family and friends, or to a local shelter or charity.

• Be organised – Keep your fridge and pantry organised so you can easily identify the foot items you have and those you need, and take a list to the supermarket so you don’t buy any unnecessary items.

For more money saving ideas visit www.bargainmums.com.au

THE ICONIC coupon codes

Coupons valid until 04/03/2013

• 20% off min spend $59 - DGM20W4

THE ICONIC – coupon code

• $10 off min spend $49 - DGM10X3

THE ICONIC – coupon code

30% off Tontine Venus & Mars quilts

We have come across a few great Tontine offers, all listed below:


- 30% off Tontine Venus & Mars quilts, valid until the 17th Feb, when purchased online here

- Free shipping on all orders Australia wide for a limited time

- Free Tontine doona storage bag with any Tontine quilt purchase

- Register and receive $10 off your next online order


Visit the Tontine website here 

Style bargains

There is nothing we love more than finding a great bargain!  We have listed below some of our latest bargain style finds, just click the retailers name to be taken directly to the items page.  Let us know if you score a bargain!

Silver Bullet Black Crystal Hair Straightner Purple, was $149.95 now $59.95 from Catwalk


Ballet Flat Chilli Red by Walnut Melbourne, was $39.95 now $19.90 from StyleTread

Como Black by Soles, was $89.95 now $26.90 from StyleTread

Gardenia Lace Pants by Living Doll, was $69.95 now $20.99 from THE ICONIC

Rachel Black by Urge, was $119.95 now $35.90 from StyleTread

Leon Stilettos by Simon Spurr, was $49.95 now $16.98 from THE ICONIC

Dakota  X Back Boyfriend Tank by Running Bare, was $35 now $24.50 from THE ICONIC

Free Woman Printed Wrap, was $130 now $45.50 from THE ICONIC

Fish Pendant by And Mary, was $18.31 now $9.99 from ASOS

Lolitta Yanika Dress, was $79.95 now $23.98 from THE ICONIC

Hand Picked Accessories Beach Bag, was $34.95 now $9.95 from Birdsnest

Sweet Rose Top by Ladakh, was $69.95 now $20.98 from THE ICONIC

Out of Africa Dress by Living Doll, was $44.95 now $13.48 from THE ICONIC

Cloth Belted Pleat Skirt, was $54.95 now $26.92 from THE ICONIC

Squishy Snak Pak review

I was very excited when I was approached to review a Squishy Snak Pak, I wish they had of existed when my 2 year old was a baby.  We always made our own baby food, but when we were heading out it was just too hard to take pre-prepared food with us, so we resorted to commercially made baby food pouches.  The Squishy Snak Pak would have been perfect to solve this dilemma, and would have saved us so much money!

The Squishy Snak Pak looks a fair bit like the baby food pouches you can buy from the supermarket.  The main difference is it’s refillable.  They have a zip lock down the bottom of the pouch, and a clever see-through panel so you can see what is inside the pouch, especially handy if you have a whole bunch of pouches in your fridge or freezer.

 

Most importantly, the Squish Snak Pak is BPA free (a big plus for me!), and can be washed and reused again and again.  These will seriously save you money.  Once the kids get older you can use them for yoghurt or pureed fruit, which you could even freeze and put in their lunchbox for school, far cheaper than the pre-packaged yoghurt and fruit pouches you get from the supermarket.

The Squishy Snak Pak was super easy to use, just unzip the bottom, fill with your chosen filling up to the fill line, and re-zip.  You then just remove the cap and the food can be sucked out of the top.  Once empty, they can be re-washed many times over.  My daughter loved hers filled with yoghurt, and it was such a convenient and mess free way to serve it.


Here are the key features of the Squishy Snak Pak:

• Snack container you can fill it from the bottom, squish it out the top
• Our product is made from BPA free materials and feature a choke proof cap along with a heavy duty zip closure. Fill it up with any creation your little one loves
• Wash it and reuse it over and over again
• the clear window on the back allows you to see the contents
• Holds 1/2 cup of your creations
• Ideal for use on the go
• Fun for at home snacks
• Great freezer storage for portioned baby puree’s

Be sure to visit the Squishy Snak Pak website http://squishysnakpak.com/, and Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/SquishySnakPakAustralia?ref=ts&fref=ts.

You can purchase Squishy Snak Pak's from the Bargain Mums General Store here http://shop.bargainmums.com.au/shop/squishy-snak-pak-2-pack.

Kids party game ideas

No kids party is complete without a few party games!  If you are stuck for ideas, check out the list below:

- Pass the parcel
- Treasure hunt
- Eat a donut/apple suspended above head level with no hands (try hanging them off the clothes line)
- Guess Who/Celebrity Heads
- Pinata
- Musical Statues
- Pin the tail
- Pickup stick
- Karaoke
- Musical chairs
- Chinese whispers
- Beanbag toss game
- Egg spoon race
- Relay race
- Simon says
- Capture the flag
- Create a mural – the birthday child can then keep it as a memento

Work from home ideas

Working from home isn’t for everyone, but it can be a fantastic was to earn money whilst staying home with the kids.  It’s challenging, but equally rewarding.  If you think working from home might be ideal for you, here are some work from home ideas to get you started.
- Sell on auction sites – You could sell second hand items, or resell items bought in bulk.  Ebay is the biggest and most popular online auction site.
- Sell handmade items online – If you are crafty and make your own items, sell them on websites such as etsy or madeit.
- Sell items on your own website – whether your items are bought in bulk or handmade, you could sell them on your own website.  This is a little more complex than using websites such as ebay or etsy, but you have full control over how you sell your items.  Starting your own online store doesn’t need to cost too much, you will need a domain name and web hosting, then you can use WordPress to build your site, and add a free online cart plugin such as Woocommerce.
- Sell at markets – With the large number of markets around, you could sell your products are markets on weekends.
- Sell services – are you talented and experienced in providing a particular service, such as consulting, writing, designing or computer programing?  You could offer your services online, using sites such as elance.
- Affiliate marketing – This  involves you making money by promoting another businesses products/services, you will be paid once a sale has been made.  It’s a great way to make money online, as you don’t need to carry stock or actually provide a service yourself, but you will need to have an online following to promote the products to.
- Develop an ebook – If you are knowledgeable on a certain subject, consider writing an ebook.  They are easy to make, you can even create one using Word and save it as a PDF when finished.  You can then sell your ebook online, with little effort once the book has been written.
- Private mentoring – You could coach or teach in private lessons, either online or offline (or both).
- Become a virtual assistant – You can make money by performing all of those task other businesses don’t have time to do, all from your own home.
- Family day care – This is a great option if you love kids, you can look after other peoples kids in your own home!  Google family day care to find out more info applicable to your local area.
- Start a blog – If there is a subject you are passionate about, consider starting a blog.  Once your blog gets a fair few followers and plenty of views, you could make money from ad sales, affiliate marketing, reviewing products etc.  Try using platforms such as WordPress and blogger.
- Become a mortgage broker – There are a few options on how to get started; become a contractor for a mortgage broking firm, buy a franchise or start your own firm, which would involve negotiating contracts with banks yourself, and then starting the search for clients.
- Become a marriage celebrant – There is a lot of competition around now, due becoming a marriage celebrant being such a popular work from home option, but you can get started with just a certificate IV.

Find more work at home ideas in Kylie Ofiu’s book, 365 Ways to Make Money, available here http://shop.bargainmums.com.au/shop/365-ways-to-make-money-by-kylie-ofiu

How to use soapnuts as laundry detergent

Soapnuts are an amazing alternative to commercial laundry powder or liquid, but many have never heard of them, and more importantly have no idea how they can be used as a laundry detergent substitute.  Below are the basics of using soapnuts:

Place 3-4 soapnuts, or equivalent pieces in a wash net and tie closed.  Place into the drum of your washing machine along with your clothing items to be washed.  The batch of soapnuts can be reused for 5-6 loads of laundry.  The soapnuts will be grey and mushy when they are ready to be composted.

Alternatively, you can use 3 tablespoons (45ml) of soapnut liquid concentrate per large load of laundry.  Just remember, whole soapnuts go in the drum, and soapnut liquid concentrate goes in the detergent drawer.


Soapnuts can be purchased from the Bargain Mums General Store in 3 pack sizes, 50g, 250g and 500g

Easy Vanilla Slice

This would have to be one of the easiest vanilla slice recipes, and it tastes great!  For a little extra kick of flavour, I like to add a few drops of passion fruit flavouring to the icing.

You will need:

• 2 sheets puff pastry
• 300ml thickened cream
• 2 x 100g packets instant vanilla pudding mix
• 2 cups (500ml) milk
• 1 1/2 cups icing sugar (185g)
• 1 tablespoon soft butter
• 2 tablespoons boiling water

Preheat the oven to 180c.  Put pastry sheets onto two lightly greased baking trays & prick all over with a fork.  Bake for 20 minutes, until they are puffed and golden brown.  Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
Whip cream with electric beater until soft peaks form, put aside in the fridge.  Put vanilla pudding mix and milk in another bowl and stir using  wire whisk until thickened.  Quickly fold the whipped cream into the pudding mix then spread over the top side of one of the pastry sheets.  Put the other sheet on top, flat side up.
Sift icing sugar into a bowl and stir in the butter and  water.  Spread over the top of the slice.
Serves 16.

We made this recipe for $6.56, equaling only $0.41 per slice.
*Recipe cost is based on Woolworths prices in metropolitan Adelaide on 05/02/13, using the cheapest available ingredients.

Household uses for Peppermint Oil

Peppermint Oil has many household uses, and we have listed just a small selection here.  Always make sure you buy a high quality Peppermint Oil, one that is 100% pure oil, with no other ingredients.  Also remember, Peppermint Oil is potent, so use it sparingly and discontinue use if you experience discomfort.

• Add 4-5 drops of Peppermint Oil to 120ml of water, and spray plants to kill aphids.

• Mix a 15ml bottle of Peppermint Oil into an 18 litre can of paint to dispel the paint fumes.

• To deter rodents, ants and cockroaches, place 2 drops of Peppermint Oil on a cotton ball and place along the path or point of entry for these pest.

• Add 2 drops to your wash load for ‘fresh’, Peppermint scented laundry.

• Add about 1 drop per 500ml of vinegar cleaning solution to give a pleasant scent.

Wondering where to purchase Peppermint Oil?  In our very own Bargain Mums General Store of course, right here.