Spring is the perfect time of year to get serious about saving. It’s a time of new beginnings − for mother nature and your wallet. If you’re recovering from your holiday spending or wondering how you’ll afford that summer vacation you promised your kids, you might feel especially motivated to cut back so you can get ahead. These frugal ways to save money this spring are the perfect place for you to start!
FRUGAL WAYS TO SAVE MONEY THIS SPRING
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How many of these tips can you implement this Spring to save money?
PLANT A GARDEN
By far, the best way to save money on fresh produce is to grow it yourself.
Growing your own food is good for your finances and your health. And as an added bonus, it can be a really fun activity to do with your kids.
Gardening benefits your emotional health, as well. Working hard on something with purpose and literally reaping what you sow can have a huge calming effect on your mind and leave you with a serious feeling of accomplishment.
Start small with just a corner of your yard devoted to a garden. You can keep expanding on it each year as your gardening skills evolve.
Don’t have a yard? No worries! You’ll be amazed at how much you can grow on your deck or patio. Even an apartment balcony can be enough for a hanging tomato plant and some herbs.
Here are some resources to get you started with your garden (without blowing your budget):
Frugal Ways to save on Preparing your Garden from The Frugal Ginger
7 Low Cost Gardening Hacks from Farm Fit Living
TRY OUT FRUGAL WAYS TO {SPRING} CLEAN
Instead of spending tons of money on cleaning supplies and organization tools, try making them yourself!
If you haven’t experimented with cleaning with baking soda (or salt) and vinegar, your mind will be BLOWN! It is incredible how many things you can clean with these simple household staples. It’s even more incredible that they clean all those things really well!
I’m so not an expert cleaner, just a frugal mama that has Googled Pinterested how to clean every part of her house with vinegar. It is so fun to me! I clean my sink with a baking soda and vinegar paste. I use a spray for my counters of vinegar and water. And I clean my Keurig, humidifier, and dishwasher all using vinegar.
There are tons of other simple and foolproof ways to make your own cleaning supplies.
Here are a few of my favorite resources for DIY cleaners:
This is an awesome homemade all-purpose cleanerfrom Simple Finance Mom
And here are 7 Homemade Cleaners that will save you a trip to the store from Chasing Foxes
And if you want bonus points, try making your own laundry detergent! Here’s a tutorial for the cheapest homemade laundry detergent ever.
When it comes to decluttering and organization, you can DIY most of what you need as well!
It’s absolutely amazing how many creative ways you can reuse cardboard boxes or even cereal boxes to create your own organizers.
If you do need to buy organization tools, head directly to your local dollar tree! You can get everything you need for $1 each.
Here are150 DIY Dollar Store Organization & Storage Ideas from the Prudent Penny Pincher to get you started.
CLEAN OUT YOUR CLOSET
This one has two frugal benefits.
First, looking through your own clothes can decrease your urge to shop.
You will always find that you have more clothes than you thought. You’ll stubble across old favorites that you forgot about and get excited to wear them again. You will probably find that sweater you thought you lost. And you might even find a new pair of jeans that you totally forgot you even bought. (Or is that just me?)
And second, you can turn those old clothes into new money.
Did you know there are a lot of smart second-hand shoppers out there that would love to wear your old clothes and they will even pay you for them?
There are a few places you can do this, but not all of them are created equal.
In my opinion, the best place to sell your old (gently used) clothing is Poshmark. You just download the app right to your phone, and you can start listing items right away. It’s so easy!
I actually discovered Poshmark because one of my closest friends is constantly raving about it. Here is exactly what she has to say about it:
Poshmark is the best way to turn clutter into cash! Since joining in December 2017, I’ve already made $500 of pure profit! I love that the app is very social and makes selling and promoting yourself very easy. I’ve sold clothing and jewelry that I wasn’t using anymore. Poshmark makes shipping easy because you can ship packages in any type of cardboard box. I recommend Poshmark to everyone!”
Check it out here and start turning your old clothes (and more!) into cash today.
Bonus:Sign up with the code ADDYS_MOM and get $5 off your first order!
STOCK UP FOR NEXT WINTER
Take advantage of seasonal sales to get winter items for a fraction of the price.
Retailers want to move their winter products and get them out of the way to make room for the new spring and summer items that are coming in.
Stock up on blankets, jackets, gloves, and warm winter clothes while they are discounted. You can snag a new pair of slippers or boots for cheap too.
If you live in a snowy climate you’ll also want to stock up on snow gear and shovels.
After Easter, take advantage of clearance sales to get baskets, decorations, and goodies for next year.
If you want to know what you should be stocking up on all year round, check out Sarah Titus’s post Sales Cycles: What to Stock up on.
- Read: How to Finally Stop Spending
GET YOUR EXPENSES IN CHECK
Spring is the perfect time to take control of where your dollars are going.
Take advantage of this time of motivation to reflect where you’ve been spending your money and find ways to cut back.
You may want to lower your household bills, spend less on groceries, or scale back on the amount you spend on entertainment. Perhaps you’ve been shopping for fun and you want to break the habit.
There are so many ways to cut your expenses that the idea can seem a little overwhelming. It’s hard to know where to start. Don’t worry, I’m here to help. I use this awesome Expense Cutting Workbook to cut my expenses and I saved so much more than I thought I would. We’re spending at least $300 less per month as a family after going through this process.
The Expense Cutting Workbook walks you step by step through the process of analyzing and cutting your expenses. It helps you cut your expenses in the way that will best benefit your family.
CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR EXPENSE CUTTING WORKBOOK NOW
Go outside
Spending time in the great outdoors has many benefits: breathing fresh air, enjoying nature… oh yeah, and it’s FREE!
Take advantage of the beautiful springtime weather to get out there while you can.
There are just so many fun, free things that you can do outside.
You can spend time outside relaxing and having a moment for yourself, maybe by taking a morning walk or sitting under a tree reading a good book.
There are also endless opportunities to entertain your whole family for free by taking them outside this spring.
Here is a list of over 30 fun, free, family-friendly outdoor springtime activities. These activities will have you enjoying nature, getting some exercise, and making memories that your family will treasure.
You can get a printable version of the spring activity list here.
TRY A SPENDING FREEZE
Have you ever done a spending freeze? It’s a surefire way to save a lot of money quickly.
I do a 2-week spending freeze every year for No Spend November and that’s how I save the money I need for the holidays.
Spring is a great time of year to do a spending freeze because there aren’t that many extra expenses popping up like there are in winter and summer months. It’s a fantastic way to replenish the money you spent on the holidays or put some money aside for all the expenses that summertime will bring.
Here are the complete instructions for how to do a spending freeze.
HAVE A HAPPY FRUGAL SPRING
Spend this spring saving money and setting yourself up to have a financially successful year! Growing your own food, saving money on spring cleaning and making money on your old clothes and taking advantage of sales to stock up for next winter are great places to start. And checking your expenses, spending less on entertainment by taking advantage of the free outdoors and even trying a spending freeze will definitely multiply your savings. Enjoy your frugal spring!
Psst… Want to save even more? Hop on my email list here. It’s my favorite place to give you money saving tips and insights that I just don’t share anywhere else. Plus you’ll get lots of free financial tools just for signing up.
Keep reading! Here are some of my best posts:
7 Frugal Habits that will Save you Thousands
3 Tips to cut your Electric Bill in Half
5 Easy ways Moms can get Free Baby Stuff
How to Set and Stick to a Grocery Budget
