Wholesome Green Living: On a Green Budget

You may have been doing a wonderful job throughout the year on your spending, but with the holidays around the corner and perhaps with your past holiday spending record, you may be about to face another year ending in debt that you don’t need.

 

Stay financially fit by creating a realistic green budget.

If you have never created a budget before, it is really quite easy to do.   Various budget forms can be found online or you can create your own.

In this blog, however, I simply want to share some ideas of how to trim your expenditures to help you “go green on a budget”!

Below are some key areas for curbing expenditures:

Green Cleaning:

A healthier environment means equal a healthier YOU!  When green cleaning with Brightly Green All Natural Cleaners, use rags or microfiber cloths that you can launder and re-use.  Avoid wasteful use of paper towels.  Laundering your rags is much less expensive than purchasing paper towels, plus you are protecting the environment.

Transportation:

Carpool to work.

Purchase a vehicle that gets better gas mileage and lower emissions.

Ride your bike to the hardware or grocery if you need just a few small items.

Plan your meals out for the whole week (or month) so you are making one trip as opposed to several trips throughout the week.  (I am guilty of this, but am trying to curb my grocery runs).

Food:

Eat out less! Pack your lunches for work/school.

Buy foods that are in season—they most often are cheapest when in season.

Buy in bulk!! Not always, but quite often, purchasing in bulk is more cost effective.

Entertainment: 

Parents,--get creative with your kids and plan family activities that are both free and healthy. 

Family board/card game night.  Make it a weekly event—something the kids will always look forward to and remember.

Recently our family created a bi-weekly game night in which friends come over to play games together.  It has been a wonderful way to build community.  We don’t always know who will show until the day of, but our friends know that they are always welcome!

Clothing & Personal care: 

I am a firm believer in shopping at thrift/resale stores! Not only are you helping your local economy, but the savings are huge on your budget! If that weren’t enough, you are reducing carbon footprints in multiple ways through purchasing items at your local thrift/resale shops.

Personal care products—As much as possible, try to make purchases that are local.  One place to consider looking for all natural personal body products is at your local farmer’s market.  You will save on shipping costs and save the environment from a large carbon footprint.

Holiday/Gift Giving:

Maybe you do well living within your means day-to-day, but the holidays is where spending tends to get out of control.

When purchasing gifts—keep “going green” in the forefront of your mind!  Those close to you know how you live—environmentally conscious—why would they expect you to act different during the holidays?

Apply the same principles you do in your everyday living to your gift giving!

For added resources, check out HG Labs Holiday Notebook.  Green budget tips plus a lot more!

Find one-of-a-kind gifts at thrift stores, up-cycle/repurpose an item you have in your home, if you are crafty—make a gift!

Make a charitable donation to the organization your “gift recipient” loves! 

Set a realistic budget for the holidays that won’t leave you with a mound of debt for the New Year, and STICK WITH IT!

Wholesome Green Living applies to financial stewardship too!

So get going on your green budget!!

Brightly Green All Natural Cleaners care about YOU!