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StitcherWhy downgrade when you can stretch that one product you love? A little goes a long way and by that, we mean two more weeks of that beloved shampoo or everyday essential! In this episode, we sit down with Hope Ware to talk about simple ways to stretch what you already have, make things last longer, and save money without sacrificing what works.
When we learn how to stretch our products, it connects to our level of consumption.
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Hope Ware teaches busy people practical frugality skills so they can learn to budget, pay off debt, and live the life they really want, knowing their finances are under control. She and her husband raised four sons, debt-free, including purchasing their current home with cash when their income was about $40,000 a year. Twice a week, they share frugal-living tips on their YouTube channel, Under the Median, where they have 200,000 subscribers. You’ll also find Hope at her website: www.underthemedian.com
How to Make Household Products Last Longer
First thing Hope suggests doing is figuring out how long the product is lasting. She shares her habit of writing the date when she opens a product to determine how long it lasted by the time it empties out.
She also recommends morphing a product into something else. For example, turning a side dish into a main dish by adding rice or another filler. When it comes to household items, she suggests turning the basics—like liquid soap—into something that lasts longer, like foaming soap! This not only helps reduce spending, but it’s also better for the environment as you cut back on plastic bulk buys.
Frugal Saving Hot Takes
Hope’s take on frugality is all about intention. She believes you can have quality without overspending, you just need to figure out how to get what you want at the price you’re willing to pay. That’s real frugality: putting your money toward what actually matters to you.
She’s also big on stretching what you already have, like thinning out products near the end to make them last a little longer but in a way that still keeps their quality and purpose intact. As Jen and Jill say, in the end, even if you save just a little bit of penny out of it, the practice, the awareness, the intentionality is what makes it all worth it.
How Many is Too Much and Too Less?
Hope’s advice is to start by checking the suggested amount of use then try using less of it. The goal is to make sure your habits actually align with saving money. She points out that when you systematize how much you’re using, it becomes easier to see where you might be overdoing it.
Most of us use more than we need without even realizing it, but often, just a pump or even half is already more than enough. So, Hope encourages trying things out to see what works. If using less still gets the job done, you’re not only saving products, you’re saving money. And if it doesn’t work, you can always go back to the original amount.
What’s something (everyday product) you think people throw away too soon?
- Hope: Expired food or sell by dates.
- Jill: Glass jars.
- Jen: Flavored coffee.
Get more from Hope
Website: www.underthemedian.com
Instagram: @underthemedian
YT: underthemedian
Free Guide to Lower Expenses: https://pages.underthemedian.com/radically-reduce-expenses
Bill of The Week
Thank you Hope for sharing your bill about your energy bill and how you saved money with an energy diary.
Thanks so Much for Listening!
Thanks so much for listening. We love love love reading your kind reviews of our book Buy What You Love Without Going Broke and we especially loved this one from:
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I absolutely loved "Buy What You Love Without Going Broke" for its unique approach to personal finance and focus on values-based spending. The authors offer a friendly, non-judgmental tone, making the book relatable and inspiring for readers. I also appreciated the "radical middle" sentiment that's truly missing in the financial space. Although it may not provide in-depth advice on certain topics such as investing, the truth is that you can get that anywhere. Instead, this is the perfect book for those seeking a more mindful and balanced approach to money (you can fill in the rest later). For that reason, I not only highly recommend it but would rank it among my favorite personal finance books ever.
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