Are They Really Lost?

I have been reading on a few blogs how all the old ways to save money are slowly being eroded. Fewer, and fewer people are following the old ways. For some reason the phrase "old ways" does not sit well with me. I think I would rather call them the thrifty or frugal ways of our parents and grandparents.

Cooking from scratch being one that is mentioned often. While I don't grind my own flour, or mill my own sugar cane I do cook from scratch almost every single day. I have even started to make my own bread, using a bread machine of course (bit lazy when it comes to kneading). I would really like to make my own pasta and that is something I am going to look into next year.

The fact is most of the people I know do cook from scratch for the most part. We all get help with things like pasta, crackers, and pudding mixes from time to time, but really the people I talk to find mixes to be extremely expensive and some of them don't taste the best.

I have noticed on the other hand fewer, and fewer people planting gardens. Yes they can be a great deal of work, but fresh food is beyond compare. Even if it is just a few tomato plants in containers money is saved. Kurt and Kris both use container gardening and pick plenty of tomatoes, peppers, and even lettuce during the growing season. I have been trying to convince them to grow a cucumber plant or two as well.

Over the years our garden has not only given us great satisfaction, but saved us money over the summer and well into the winter.

Preserving the bounty from our gardens can take many forms. Canning, jam making, freezing and dehydrating to name just a few. I learned how to do many of these from my mother. She in turn learned from her mother and trial and error (especially the freezing). I don't like to waste and so all my garden produce is either frozen, canned or dehydrated for use in the winter. Any fruit that I am lucky enough to get I make into jam or pie filling.

My sister, on the other hand, does not garden and often tells me that preserving food is a waste of time and effort. Hmmm, and she is the one married to a farmer.

I have always mended our clothing. Putting in a new zipper, sewing on a button or two, darning socks, patching pants, redoing a hem, and fixing a seam are second nature to me. Extending the life of our clothing was something that came in very handy during Harvey's job loss when we were first married. I continue to do so each and every week.

Sewing your own clothing can be a bit more expensive than buying the inexpensive items in say Walmart or Target, but the quality can not be beat. I know of very few people that sew their own clothing any longer. I usually save money doing so by using the pattern over and over again, buying the fabric on sale, and refashioning clothing items I already own.

So do you think these thrifty, frugal ways are lost? Or is there a whole new generation just waiting to learn frugality?

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.