Frugal Friday
May. 16th, 2025 09:20 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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Welcome back to Frugal Friday! This is a weekly forum post to encourage people to share tips on saving money, especially but not only by doing stuff yourself. A new post will be going up every Friday, and will remain active until the next one goes up. Contributions will be moderated, of course, and I have some simple rules to offer, which may change further as we proceed.Rule #1: this is a place for polite, friendly conversations about how to save money in difficult times. It's not a place to post news, views, rants, or emotional outbursts about the reasons why the times are difficult and saving money is necessary. Nor is it a place to use a money saving tip to smuggle in news, views, etc. I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.
Rule #2: this is not a place for you to sell goods or services, period. Here again, I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.
Rule #3: please give your tip a heading that explains briefly what it's about. Homemade Chicken Soup, Garden Containers, Cheap Attic Insulation, and Vinegar Cleans Windows are good examples of headings. That way people can find the things that are relevant for them. If you don't put a heading on your tip it will be deleted.
Rule #4: don't post anything that would amount to advocating criminal activity. Any such suggestions will not be put through.
With that said, have at it!
Outdoor furniture
Date: 2025-05-18 10:43 pm (UTC)Well, not only is such furniture expensive, I hate cushions on garden furniture (I mean the big cushions for seating and back-rests on sofas). Such cushions are bulky, tend to get dusty, rained on, and smell. And when stored elsewhere, well, it's not always easy to find a place to store such a mountain of cushions, and then it's a hassle to get them out again— or in again— and they end up getting dusty and rained on.
I already have 2 heavy teak garden benches, not the type that require cushions, just benches. Whilst procrastinating on looking for the usual garden furniture with (...sigh...) cushions, I started using Ikea sheepskins rugs for some padding and then just throwing a colorful old tablecloth over the whole of the bench.
I finally realized that, for me, this make-do solution with sheepskins and tablecloths is actually better than traditional garden sofas with cushions because the sheepskins and tablecloths are easier to store, easier to keep clean, and the set-up is comfortable and, in my opinion, looks nice. So.
I get the sheepskins from Ikea (about USD 40 each), and use 2 per bench. I could use more. The tablecloths are brightly colored cotton prints.
The pile of sheepskins and folded table cloths lies flat in a closet, no problem, and unlike big sofa cushions, I can carry what I need in my arms from the closet to the garden in one trip.
Anyway, I was glad to conclude that I could cross "garden furniture" off my list.