For This House
Every Season. Every Space. All for Him.
Every Season. Every Space. All for Him.
February 2, 2026 | 9 min read
Maren Bella
Everyone would make more money if they had the chance. But would you save more money if you had the chance?
If you’re part of a family—by blood or simply chosen family—you have exactly what you need to start the skillful family savings plan (not an official savings plan!). Your family unit is so much more powerful than you may think; an untapped gold mine you might say.
The skills and God-given abilities each individual person and personality bring to the table possess unique opportunities for serving the family unit, and the community at large.
These are the necessary skills and hobbies to learn, encourage, and develop within your family to save loads of money on needed services each year. Many of these skills could be monetized, but for the purpose of this post we are pursuing the intention of serving your family and community.
Out of all the skills in the list, this one may be the most important. Keeping a budget is a task each person should understand, and it has to be learned from somewhere. Schools notoriously don’t do an adequate job of getting this through to young people because it’s just another assignment, but that’s where the family unit comes in. Teach good money etiquette within your home, and be open about your finances and budgeting to help the family learn and save together. I am so thankful that my parents took a very honest approach, showing us their own finances and budgets and talking us through the various decisions they had to make.
I am quite spoiled in that I have a professional stylist on my husband’s side of the family to call upon when needed. I know that’s not an option for every family, so let me also encourage you that it is possible to cut your own hair, and do a fine job of it too. I learned to trim my own hair as well as my husband’s. In our area the cheapest hair cut you can get for a man runs roughly $30, so the $60 high-quality clipper kit we bought paid for itself within a month and saves us hundreds every year. Don’t even get me started on how much we save on my hair!
The need for a seamstress comes up quite frequently when new pieces don’t fit quite right or holes in that favorite pair of pants inevitably happen. If you don’t have a sewer in your family you may have noticed that hole-in-something-fabric spells the need to replace that item, hence, spending more money.
Basic mending and alteration skills can be learned online for free or from someone you likely already know. This is my personal favorite skill in this list and it has so many uses other than fixing things! This autumn I purchased several packs of felt for roughly $50, and to this date I have been able to create at least ten gifts for family and friends without spending any additional money by making little animals, bookmarks, and even pretend food for littles.
It isn’t imperative that the writer in your family pens at the levels of C.S. Lewis or Spurgeon, but you may be surprised how often the need arises for something to be clearly written. With currect grammar and spelling. Punctuation, proper sentence structure!Ok, I’m done tormenting you now 😉
When a family member passes away, having the ability to craft an obituary that properly reflects the legacy your loved one lived is a wonderful way to honor their memory. When you live next door to a business that decides to throw a cell tower up in your back yard without your consent, it’s important to use words to convey that you are humans next door with real concerns when pleading with them through a letter (too niche?).
The ability to write can also help cover a lack of public speaking skills or offer space to think more clearly when puzzling over what words could help a hurting friend. Or maybe it’s a compelling letter that you need to write to secure your dream home. It may seem silly, but the reason we lived in a beautiful 1800’s farmhouse on picturesque farm land (the one with the cell tower people next door) during my high school years was partly due to the letter my parents sent with their offer. The letter is not dead.
Need I say more about the value of good writing when you are already here reading a blog by For This House? You get it!
This may not appear to be a money-saver at face value, but consider this fact: if you are not aware of the items you already own because they are hidden in clutter, you will most certainly make unnecessary purchases to “replace” things you already have! Even if you don’t have an exact item, if you are organized you may find a more creative solution using items already in your home.
How many times have you purchased something and later found out you were scammed into paying a higher price than was necessary? Or how often do you regret rushing ahead and neglecting to comb through reviews before trying something new?
From buying homes to kitchen mixers, taking vacations to choosing curriculum, researchers are a valuable commodity to have around in any family. My husband and my dad are the ones we turn to for this skill set, they seem to instinctively know which sources are reliable and sniff out lemons within minutes!
We live in a fallen world, and because of the consequences of sin something is always in need of fixing! Some of us don’t have the margin to call up the nearest professional every time our washing machine breaks, or can hire a contractor to build the shed needed to store the lawn mower and bikes. If someone in your family is able to fix basic problems around the house or build a chicken coop, you will save thousands on labor costs. And don’t we all have the knowledge of YouTube at our fingertips?
The art of sharing love through food is often overlooked because it is a more common skill to have. Aside from the daily savings (to your health and pocketbook) of cooking from scratch instead of buying processed foods, the ability to cook various exciting dishes can reduce the temptation to eat out. What a blessing this can be on more than just your family!
Of course, the cost of a camera and lens upfront is not cheap at all, but considering that the average cost of a family photography session in the U.S. can range from $300-$1,000, you will quickly make back your investment. It helps if the person wielding the camera has an eye for balance and beauty, but most people can become at least mid-range shooter if they apply themselves to the plethora of free photography tutorials available online.
There have been so many times in my relatively short life where I have spent hours trying to make my computer cooperate with something I am trying to accomplish, and after handing it over to the tech wiz in my family, I found that one simple click of a button I never knew existed was what I needed all along.
Even though I grew up with three sisters, we were always frugal and NEVER the types of girls to get our nails done! It doesn’t help that our beautified nails wouldn’t have held up due to house and yard work that was part of our family rhythm. However, my sister recently began doing nails for fun and loves to bless us with beautiful custom nails from time to time.
Have you ever had to pay for someone to design wedding invitations or address the envelopes? Have you ever found yourself purchasing a custom sign or ornament? In my family, another one of my sisters was born with impeccable handwriting, which she channeled into the most stunning calligraphy.
I grew up in a musical home with very talented people around me. We were never short on entertainment, and it gave us creative expression during times of grief and joy. Music is a common hobby that can be picked up anytime in life, whether just for familial enjoyment, or maybe for praise and worship opportunities.
It takes a certain knack for balance and harmony to decorate a room, and to be able to bring life to a space with items you already own.
When my husband and I purchased our home, the kitchen had orange wood cabinets and pinkish-brown walls. Every time I looked at those cabinets I cringed because I thought I would never be rid of the eyesore!
For his birthday, my sweet hubby asked my mom to help us paint our kitchen, and the colors she helped me select for the walls somehow took away the obnoxious orange hue! Turns out, the pink undertone in the walls was the culprit the whole time, and mom saved us from eventually replacing the cabinets, which costs way more than a bucket of paint.
It’s pretty much self-explanatory—having a knack for finding high-quality, gently-used items at a fraction of the cost of new will go miles in saving cash for you and yours. Especially for families with kids that are constantly growing out of things, the thrift stores are a gold mine of finds. And if used isn’t your thing, couponing and bargain hunting could be your avenue to save some cash, as long as you’re just buying the bargains when you need them, not just simply because it’s a bargain.
If you are struggling financially, and the answer isn’t always the next MLM or side hustle, you may be hemorrhaging money and not even realize it!
Sometimes the best thing we can do is take a step back and consider how we can grow ourselves instead of our pocketbooks. We can’t do this alone, we were created for community, which starts in the home.
So which new skill will you pick up to serve your family and community better this year?
Lord,
Thank you for the beautiful ways you have provided for my family, through my family!
Give me eyes to see the needs of its members, and the heart to help carry others’ burdens.
In all of this, keep my eyes fixed on treasures in heaven as I navigate life on this earth.
In Jesus’s name,
Amen
Maren is a happy wife and mama of two who resides in Michigan. She is passionate about encouraging other women to live thrifty and joyful lives within their means. Follow her on Instagram for more thrifty love.
Maren is a happy wife and mama of two who resides in Michigan. She is passionate about encouraging other women to live thrifty and joyful lives within their means. Follow her on Instagram for more thrifty love.