Review: Extreme Frugality by Jane Berry

Nick Saving Money reviews 4 Comments

Today I’m reviewing a new book called Extreme Frugality by my blogging colleague Jane Berry, also known as Shoestring Jane.

Jane runs a popular blog called Shoestring Cottage which follows her journey towards making a creative, happy and sustainable life on much less. She also runs a YouTube channel as Shoestring Jane, where she shares her thrifty life and money-saving ideas. And she is also a writer for the estimable Mouthy Money site, to which I am a regular contributor myself.

The full title of the book is Extreme Frugality – Save Money Like Your Grandma: How to live a creative, happy and sustainable life on much less. The book is available from Amazon UK in both print and Kindle e-book form. It is quite a substantial volume, with 289 pages.

Extreme Frugality is divided into 13 main chapters, as follows:

Chapter 1: Frugal Foundations

Chapter 2: Stuff, Stuff and More Stuff

Chapter 3: Cooking and Eating Like Grandma

Chapter 4: Granny’s advice – ‘Make do & Mend’ and ‘Waste Not, Want Not’

Chapter 5: Buying Second-Hand and Getting Everything for Less

Chapter 6: Slashing Your Monthly Bills

Chapter 7: Making a Frugal Home

Chapter 8: The Frugal Cleaner

Chapter 9: The Frugal Garden

Chapter 10: Frugal Fashion: Dress for Less

Chapter 11: Frugal Fun and Travel

Chapter 12: A Frugal Christmas

Chapter 13: Health and Well-being on a Budget

There is also a section of references and resources at the end.

As you may gather, Extreme Frugality aims to show you how to develop thrifty habits (as our grandparents had to). The author says the purpose of doing this is to cushion you against hard times, be creative with what you have, buy just what you need, and eliminate waste from your home.

As a one-time professional writer and editor myself, I was impressed by the high standard to which Extreme Frugality has been produced. The style is clear and accessible, and the content neatly set out without any unnecessary typographical or design gimmicks.

Obviously in the current cost-of-living crisis we are all having to tighten our belts, so the advice in the book is very apposite at present. There are also plenty of suggestions for preventing waste, so the book should appeal to anyone concerned with their environmental impact as well.

It’s hard to pick out highlights as every chapter is packed with valuable tips and advice, but I especially enjoyed Chapter 6, which takes you through a wide range of methods for slashing monthly bills, including energy, water, Council Tax, broadband and so on. The advice in this chapter alone could easily save you thousands of pounds a year. But all the chapters contain useful advice, ideas and information. Even as a money blogger myself, I don’t mind admitting I learned a lot from it.

In summary, Extreme Frugality is a great guide for anyone looking to save money and reduce waste in these challenging times. It would also make an excellent gift for a friend or family member. I am happy to give it my highest recommendation.

As always, if you have any comments or questions about this post, please do leave them below.

Disclosure: I was sent a free copy of Extreme Frugality (in PDF form) to review. Please be aware also that this post (and others on PAS) includes affiliate links. If you click through one of these and make a purchase or perform some other defined action, I may receive a commission for introducing you. This will not affect in any way the price you pay or the product or service you receive.