Energy crisis, explosion in fuel prices, food inflation which is approaching 10% in one year... the cost of living is soaring. What if, to control your budget despite this significant increase, we implemented a few tips in our daily lives to reduce bills here and there? Bottom line: great savings, without too many constraints!
1 – Consume local
Beware of preconceived ideas! Consuming locally is not necessarily synonymous with consuming more expensively. By opting for short circuits, we avoid intermediary commissions which increase the bill as well as the costs linked to the transport of goods. On the food side, eating local means eating seasonal products that have undergone less processing and have avoided a multitude of packaging. Markets, producers' baskets, supplies from nearby farms are all solutions to consume better, and not necessarily more expensive.
2 - Turn down the heating
As autumn has slowly set in, the question of heating is a topic of conversation. This year even more so, with the cost of electricity skyrocketing. To lower the bill, the solution mentioned is of course to lower the thermostat. In the living room, 19°C is enough! At night, all rooms can reach 16 or 17°C. In the bathroom, maintain between 18 and 22°C. Finally, take the time to program your radiators if possible, in order to best adapt the heating times to your lifestyle. And to stay warm despite everything, we invest in a pretty fleece, fur-lined socks or even a beautiful wool blanket.
3 - Close your shutters and curtains
To avoid heat loss and not push the heating harder, a simple tip to adopt on a daily basis: close your shutters and curtains as soon as night falls.
Because in winter, when the outside temperature drops at sunset, the windows cool down very quickly. If the latter are dilapidated, they also let the wind pass through and do not play their insulating role. And the cold of a window can be felt several meters away! Even if the temperature in the core of the room is 22°C, you will still feel cold. And so the reflex is to turn up the thermostat!
4 – Favor cycling and public transport
While the price of gasoline is soaring, and motorway prices continue to rise, greener means of transport are experiencing incredible expansion. This summer, train reservations via SNCF increased by 10% compared to 2019. Cycling has also enjoyed growing success since the end of confinement. This is evidenced by traffic on cycle paths which has increased by around 29% in France, and 40% in Europe. In large cities, metro, buses and trams are also preferred for greener travel, while saving money.
5 – Prepare your lunchbox
Eating out every lunchtime is a budget that weighs on the wallet! Around 12.50 euros per day, or around 250 euros per month. Preparing your lunchbox at home is the ideal solution for eating well, while taking care of your bank account. And if you lack inspiration to prepare it, head to Pinterest , which is full of easy and delicious recipes to whip up quickly.
6 – Buy second hand
Clothing, decorative objects, household appliances, high-tech, toys and even cars, it is now so easy to equip yourself with second-hand items. Thanks to numerous applications such as Leboncoin , Vinted , Vide Dressing and Back Market , second-hand shopping no longer requires getting up early every weekend to hope to find that rare gem at a flea market. In addition to the savings on the wallet, the environmental impact is also significant! Offering an extra mile to an existing piece, rather than buying a new one, when possible, is a great way to simply save money.
7 – Stop using bottled water
The average annual budget for bottled water consumption is 450 euros for a family of four. For an identical household that consumes tap water, the budget is only 6 euros per year! The saving is considerable. If this figure isn't enough to make you take the plunge, perhaps it's because the taste of tap water bothers you? If this is the case, invest in a filter jug, an activated charcoal stick or even ceramic beads. These improve the taste instantly, or after a few hours immersed in your carafe.
8 – Make your own cleaning products
White vinegar, baking soda, black soap, white Meudon soap, Marseille soap shavings... inexpensive and above all natural, these products are the allies of a less harmful household for you and for the planet. Laundry detergent, window spray, stain remover, dishwasher tablets, multi-surface cleaner, with these few very affordable ingredients, you can easily concoct all the cleaning products you need at home. Ultra economical!
9 – Conserve rain and tap water
It is common to install a rainwater collector in the garden to water the vegetable garden and flowers planted outdoors. But have you thought about saving the tap for watering houseplants? We often let the water run for several seconds before obtaining hot water, for example. Rather than letting it go, slide a carafe under the stream of water so as not to spoil it. You can also keep the cooking water for your starchy foods or vegetables (as long as it is not salty) for the same reasons.
Water is an increasingly precious resource, to which 1.1 billion human beings do not have access. Let's try not to waste it.
10 - Register at the library
If you are a big reader, your annual budget devoted to the acquisition of new books is certainly substantial. Even if buying second-hand goods at flea markets or on specialized sites like Momox or La Bourse aux Livres is a first step to lowering the bill, another alternative is available to you: register at the nearest library from your place. For a yearly registration of around ten euros, you can borrow as many books as you want, at a lower cost.
11 – Sort regularly
What if regularly sorting through your cupboards was also a tip to save money? To avoid buying twice, to rediscover forgotten clothes or objects that we upcycle so as not to buy new ones, but also by reselling pieces that we no longer need and that take up space. By putting them back into the circuit, we do as much good for the environment as for our wallet.
12 – Cook your products wisely
Every week, a French person throws away the equivalent of a meal. This represents a total of 30 kg per person per year of food loss, or around 130 euros. However, there are many solutions to combat this waste! Transform damaged fruits and vegetables into soups and compotes and package them in jars. Cook leftovers into gratins, omelettes or even quiches. And of course freeze products whose expiry date is approaching too quickly, as well as meals prepared in large quantities that you will be happy to have on hand when you don't have the courage to cook.
13 – Invite friends and family to your home
Like the Kinfolk art of living which advocates a return to the essentials close to one's own, we meet with friends or family at home rather than in a restaurant. For a lunch, a brunch, a snack... where everyone brings a dish of their own making to reduce costs.
The idea also works for a picnic in the park or in the forest!
14 – Prefer free activities
A walk in the forest, picking flowers on the country lanes, an exhibition open to all, plastic arts with natural pigments, manual activities with materials stored in the garage, to keep you and your children busy, think about the activities that do not require taking out your wallet. Sometimes it's the simplest ideas that we remember the longest.
15 – Buy quality products
Save money, it's also possible by buying better quality products that last over time. If this seems like common sense, our fast-paced life, where fashions go out of fashion in the blink of an eye, often keeps us away from this thought. Perhaps it is time to embark on this more virtuous path where quality takes precedence over quantity. Where timeless takes over trends. Where an artisanal piece crowds out one without soul and produced in industrial quantities. No longer be conditioned by the arrival of new collections, but rather let yourself be guided by the beauty of these consciously made objects, of which we never tire as soon as the new season arrives.
This is how Nunamae is committed to offering you durable pieces, with a simple design, which stand the test of time without ever being outdated.
