Just curious who else is living super frugal

[Hangtown Farms]

Tell me how to do the distance between pupils. I know that sounds like "OMG can't she figure out that on her own?" but I want to know. I'm assuming you look at them and they hold a ruler up to your eyes and just measure that way?

I agree. I have been putting off getting new ones even know I have some coverage for glasses. still always seems to cost 300.00

 

[mickey328]

I've been using Doctor's Vision Works for the last few years. If you choose a frame that's under $70, you can get 2 pairs of bifocals for about $120. Of course, the frames I want are always more but you just pay the difference, and I add scratch resistance and stuff, but it generally comes to less than $180 for the two and they usually last me about 3 years, so it's not too bad.

 

[galanie]

Tell me how to do the distance between pupils. I know that sounds like "OMG can't she figure out that on her own?" but I want to know. I'm assuming you look at them and they hold a ruler up to your eyes and just measure that way?

I agree. I have been putting off getting new ones even know I have some coverage for glasses. still always seems to cost 300.00 

I have found that with some sort of coverage, you end up paying almost as much out of pocket as you would have had you no coverage. I therefore opted not to have any coverage for glasses. Anyway, if you don't get new ones every year, the coverage costs as much as the glasses would.

 

[ScottnLydia]

O.K., I just checked Zenni opticals site to be sure of some of my answers (not just from memory).

Frames start at $6.95, I've gotten very nice frames in the $9.95 to $12.95 range. They go up to the $30s I think, but I've never looked for anything that fancy. By the way, even the cheapest are not the old '60s thick plastic like they show you at the optometrist office!

Standard lenses included free scratch coat, free UV coating, thin and light 1.57 hard plastic lenses, a free case and some other things I don't remember, all included in the price of the frame.

Bifocals are $23.95
Gradient lenses (no line tri focals) are $28.95
no-glare coat is 4.95
sun glass coat is 4.95, I forgot to check on the price of photo chromic lenses, sorry. They have both their own, which I got since it's cheaper, and the brand name.

Shipping is $4.95 per order, and takes 7 to 14 days for U.S. orders. So if you've got a wagon load of kids, you could order a whole bunch of glasses at $6.95 a pop and the shipping would only be $4.95!

The website runs kinda slow, but you can have it show you only frames of a certain type, to fit a certain size face. They also have model faces to fit a range of face types that you can virtually try the frames on. This really helps if the frame looks good, but you can't see how big/small it is on a face. It's also fun to try on the goofy frames!

Now, about the PD. They have a complete section on how to measure it on their website. When you get your prescription, ask them to measure it for you. Occasionally they won't, so basically all you need to do is have someone else measure the distance between the CENTER of each pupil while you look at a fixed object 20 or more feet away. The measurement is done in millimeters and Zenni has a downloadable one that you can print if you need to. If you have one of those wipe-off markers, they work great to mark the center on your glasses, also grease pencil works good. Whatever will clean off of your glasses when you're done measuring.

Once you have your PD measurement, SAVE IT! It never changes unless your a child.
Check the website, they explain it all there. Good luck.

~S

 

[ScottnLydia]

O.K., Lydia is buggin' me to 'come clean' as to why I had to order my latest pair of glasses. I am very sensitive to sunlight and always have to wear sunglasses. This has always meant a clear pair and a sunglass pair, one of which was in my shirt pocket at all times.

Last summer, I lost my clear pair outside, somewhere. I looked everywhere! I had my old ones with the old 'script that i could use, bit of a headache, but useable. Finally I found them in the lambs creep feeder, scratched to who-know-when and twisted up real good. In a word, KAPUT!

About a month later, our daughter and son-in-law gave us some lilacs to plant. I did. When I came in, guess what? No clear glasses! Again, I looked everywhere, even the creep feeder. To this day I haven't found them, but we suspect they may be planted with one of those lilacs!

So I made an order to Zenni, and was without eyes for a couple of weeks. But now I have the photo-chromic lenses that darken in the sun so I don't need to take them off and put them in my pocket! And Lydia got one of those straps to hold it around my neck so it won't fall off either.

Yup, I'm a doofus, but I'm not so much a doofus as to not know I'm a doofus!

~S

 

[mickey328]

Maybe you need to also order one of those gizmos to keep them around your neck?

 

[TriciaHowe]

I bought sun glasses that fit over my regular glasses

 

[CoopChick719]

Quote:

I've been thinking about homemade laundry soap...can it be used in HE washers? Even with the store bought, I always get unscented and use only about half the recommended amount. It cleans fine. I think they want you to use more so you'll have to buy more.

We hit a new thrift store this afternoon and found a great leather car coat for DH. It's worn enough to be supple but not worn out; all the zippers work and there are no cuts or tears. It's lined throughout, but not real heavy; big enough that he can wear a sweater under it for really cold days. He will be able to wear it to work winters for years....$45. That was the only "treasure" we found today, but it was a really good one!

Yes, Mickey, it can be used in HE washers--that's what I have. I will try to drop a Word document into this reply with 2 recipes. Well that didn't work! Here's the Powder recipe. Will post the liquid recipe separately.
Powdered Soap recipe
Each batch yields approximately 32 ounces (between 32-64 loads based on how many Tbsp used per load).

• 1 bar of shaved bar soap (Ivory, ZOTE, Fels-Naptha) (Any soap will do but these work well. I get mine at the Dollar Tree.)
• 1 cup of borax
• 1 cup of washing soda

Thoroughly stir together for 5 minutes and enjoy the results! I USED MY FOOD PROCESSOR TO GRATE & MIX EVERYTHING TOGETHER. A BLENDER WOULD WORK WELL TOO.
High Efficiency (HE) Washers
HE front-load washers require “special soap” for one reason alone – low suds. Because they use less water, they require soap that is less sudsy. The good news is, this homemade detergent is VERY low suds. The ”special” HE detergent is just another advertising mechanism to push consumers to buy “special soap” for unnecessarily high prices.
Regardless of your washer type, just make your own in confidence.
Safe for septic tanks and fields
This is the best laundry soap to use with septic tanks because it contains zero phosphates and zero fillers (like montmorillonite clay) that cause commercial powder detergents to clog lines. It is also completely non-toxic so it will not harm necessary septic bacteria like toxic detergents and antibacterial soaps. Use with confidence.
Detergent directions (1 tablespoon of detergent per load 2 for heavily soiled load)

I’ve been using the powdered one lately because it’s easier to make than the liquid. But I found a liquid recipe that you can make 1 gallon at a time rather than the 5 gallon one I had been using. We’ve been using this homemade stuff for over a year maybe even 2 years and it works well. You won’t notice a lot of suds or a fragrance with either of these recipes. You can put a few drops of essential oils (which you can find online or at a health food store)you’d like a fragrance but I don’t bother.

 

[CoopChick719]

Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent recipe

• 1 bar Fels Naptha Soap (~5.5 ounces) ANY BAR SOAP WILL DO.
• 1 ½ cups of Borax (NOT Boric Acid!!!)
• 1 ½ cups of Washing Soda (NOT baking soda)
• 1 stainless steel grater
• Water, hot
• Large empty container (1 gallon)

Instructions

1. Use a medium saucepan to heat 2 cups of tap water. Adding a little extra won’t hurt.
2. Grate the bar of SOAP (Ivory,Fels-Naptha, etc.) and divide it into 5 equal groups. A digital food scale is very helpful on this step.
3. Add 1 portion (~1.1 oz.) of the grated soap into the boiling water on the stove. Stir occasionally until it is completely dissolved. It’ll only take a minute or so.
4. Measure 1 1/2 cups each of the Borax and the Washing Soda into a large bowl; stir until well mixed.
5. Measure the powdered mixture into 5 equal portions and store each in snack size plastic bags. Add one portion of this powder mixture into the pot of now soapy hot water; stir well for about a minute.
6. Let this detergent concentrate cool just enough to not melt your plastic jug. Pour it into a one-gallon container. If you’re worried it’s too hot, add a touch of tepid water.
7. Add enough hot water from the tap to reach half-way.
8. Make sure your container has a well fitting screw-on lid and shake the jug like your ridding your body of pent up aggression. The solution needs to be 100% mixed. It won’t take more than a couple of minutes.
9. Let this jug sit all day, or overnight. It will be extremely thick and look like a blob; that’s good in this case.
10. Once the processing time is over, shake the jug for another couple of minutes.
11. Fill the remainder of the jug with hot tap water. Shake for another minute and you’re done.

Notes:
It doesn’t hurt to give the jug a little shake before each use. It takes about ¼ cup to do a very large load of really dirty laundry; there is no need to add any more water to the mixture. Remember this is high efficiency (HE) detergent so don’t worry that you don’t see suds filling the window of your machine.

 

[Chicks on DL]

I use a similare recipe. Put White Vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser to reduce detergent buildup and static.