As last year, I'm looking for the absolute best value, while purchasing convenience factor for college women. Those of you who know me, know that I'm currently on a "hippie" journey of going all natural, non-toxic, etc. If I had my way, I'd be COMPLETELY frugal and I would make homemade dish detergent for them, as well as other frugal household cleaners like vinegar and baking soda. But something tells me that college girls may not be as welcoming of frugal non-toxic alternatives to the mainstream cleaning products that everyone is so used to.
Funny thing is, just last weekend, I cleaned my cleaning closet. I had practically full bottles of Windex, kitchen and bathroom cleaners that I dumped down the drain and tossed. I totally should have saved those and donated them to the chapter rather than spending money to buy them new ones :( I just wasn't thinking about the fact that I would probably do the sorority house shopping again this year and when I made the toss. Luckily, I do still have 2 big bottles of dish soap, but since then, I've made my own homemade dish soap, which is in mason jars under my kitchen sink. So, that's 2 less that I have to spend money on out of their budget because I'll just give them to the chapter to help save their money.
Here's this years shopping list:
| Item | Annual Quantity | Own | Need | Estimated Retail (of Need) | Budget (50%) | Actual | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toilet Paper | 156 Rolls | 0 | 156 | $100.00 | $50.00 | $0.00 | |
| Paper Towels | 52 Rolls | 28 | 24 | $30.00 | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Trash Bags - Large/Tall | 300 Bags | 225 | 75 | $20.00 | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Dish Soap | 12 Lg Bottles | 3 | 9 | $27.00 | $14.00 | $0.00 | |
| Dishwasher (Liquid) | 24 Bottles/330 packs | 220 | 110 | $30.00 | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Bath/kitchen hand soap | 24 Bottles | 4 | 20 | $30.00 | $15.00 | $0.00 | |
| Napkins | 6 Packs | 0 | 6 | $9.00 | $4.50 | $0.00 | |
| Kleenex | 12 Boxes | 2 | 10 | $15.00 | $8.00 | $0.00 | |
| Windex | 2 Lg Bottles | 1 | 1 | $4.00 | $2.00 | $0.00 | |
| Bathroom Cleaner | 2 Lg Bottles | 1 | 1 | $4.00 | $2.00 | $0.00 | |
| Kitchen Cleaner | 3 Lg Bottles | 2 | 1 | $6.00 | $3.00 | $0.00 | |
| Sponges | 2 Packs | 0 | 2 | $8.00 | $4.00 | $0.00 | |
| Duster | 1 | 0 | 1 | $10.00 | $5.00 | $0.00 | |
| Vanilla Scents | 2 Sprays (bottle) | 2 | 1 | $5.00 | $2.50 | $0.00 | |
| HE Washer Cleaner | 1 box? | 0 | 1 | $10.00 | $5.00 | $0.00 | |
| Oxyclean | 1 bottle | 0 | 1 | $4.00 | $2.00 | $0.00 | |
| TOTAL | $312.00 | $157.00 | $0.00 |
Based on the budget, and reviewing the prices I spent last year for certain products, the goal unit price I want to spend for each item is as follows. I know that I will not be able to meet the goal price for each of these because a 50% budget of the retail price is difficult for some of these items. So, I'm hoping to come way under budget on the things that I can, so I can be slightly over budget on those harder items, and still be under budget once everything is purchased. The ones with a *** next to them are the ones I think I will, unfortunately, be over budget for, but that doesn't mean I won't try!
- Toilet Paper - $0.25 per roll
- Paper Towels - $0.50 per roll ***
- Trash Bags - Large/Tall - $0.10 per bag
- Dish Soap - $1.00 per bottle
- Dishwasher packs - $0.13 per pack
- Bath/kitchen hand soap - $0.75 per bottle
- Napkins - $0.75 per 100 napkins ***
- Kleenex - $0.75 per box ***
- Windex - $2.00 per bottle
- Bathroom Cleaner - $2.00 per bottle
- Kitchen Cleaner - $3.00 per bottle
- Sponges - $0.50 per sponge ***
- Duster - $5.00. Funny, last year my budget for a duster was only $1.50. I met that, but I guess it was an "el cheapo" duster that didn't last. Will have to move up in quality this year!
- Vanilla Scents - $2.50 per spray can
- HE Washer Cleaner - $5.00 (did not buy last year)
- Oxyclean - $2.00 (did not buy last year) * Grumble Grumble. Really wish I could convince the gals to use the homemade version of this: Baking Soda and Hydrogen Peroxide... I would totally make several mason jars full for them, if I knew they would use it... but they probably want the powder commercialized version.
I'll keep you all posted on the prices I'm able to get! Let the shopping begin!
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