The "Use It Up, Wear It Out, Make It Do or Do Without" Challenge.

I have just read this amazing quote ..... “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without”, which apparently was a New England proverb and the mantra of the women of The Great Depression in 1930's America. Although I am familiar with the saying "Make Do and Mend", I am totally unfamiliar with this quote, however, in my defence, I'm British, not American and I gather this is primarily an American quote. I am, however, going to make this my mantra. I'm always very careful about what I buy and use, lack of money being a primary reason for my frugal ways but also, as an environmental science graduate it is important to me on an ecological level as well. I always thought I had been born in the wrong time. When I was a child I read the Little House on the Prairie books by Laura Ingalls Wilder and I loved the pioneer spirit of adventure and resourcefulness. I also loved  Enid Blyton, The Famous Five and The Secret Seven which made me long for the rip-roaring adventure of crumbling castles, bleak moorland and secluded beach coves with smugglers loot hidden in caves ..... but that's another story :-) 

So, when I first began thinking about this I was going to try and be a frugal femme fatale for a month, however, on reflection, a month seems a very short amount of time for such a potentially life changing experiment so, for the next six months, starting today, I will refrain from buying anything that is not essential, I will make what I need if I possibly can and I will try to find cheaper, more environmentally sound alternatives to things I can't avoid buying. As I said before, the current state of my finances (basically, totally broke lol) is a very strong driving force behind this challenge and with this in mind, I will be having a go at making my own bread and using the veg I have grown in my garden, although due to the weather, the veg in my garden is neither brilliant nor abundant, I will be planting various winter crops in my soon-to-be-erected polytunnel, which is still in the original box and has been taking up much needed space in my hallway since February and I will be adapting and decorating all the old furniture I have stored in my spare room for months in order for me to sell it on and raise some badly needed cash. I might even ditch the car and walk to my local shop, although as its about 3 miles round trip up and down some quite big(ish) hills and more importantly, it costs double to shop there, this might be a sacrifice too far. 

So for the near future, along with all the other garden, craft and environmental bloggery, I will also be writing my on the successes ..... and almost certainly, the failures, of this experiment. Watch this space ....... (I think I need to come up with a better finishing line for my blogs)

Picture: http://pinterest.com/pin/255579347573911716