A sticky end to nail biting

We found a low cost and easy solution to helping our daughter stop her nail biting habit. We used good quality sticking plasters and stuck them to the ends of each finger, cutting to fit where needed. It's best to use a 'good' brand like Band Aid, which will stay on for a while. These days, Kinesiology tape would probably be my go-to, as I think it sticks best (when heat activated). Sometimes I would paint the bitter tasting polish over the top of the sticking plaster as a reminder if her fingers got to her mouth. She was motivated to stop, and we promised she could have nice nail polish on when her nails grew out, so there was a carrot as well!

My uni studies STOPPED me biting my nails!

I've been enjoying long, beautiful nails for 30 years, thanks to a method called behaviour modification! I was required to do it as part of a psychology unit at university. It is a method which rewards good behaviour and punishes bad behaviour. This is the method:

1. You determine what you want to change: I want to stop biting my fingernails.
2. You determine what would be a good reward. I will give myself $1.00 coin.
3. You determine what would be a good punishment. I will give $2.00 to charity. Note: It is best that the punishment is worse than the reward, so you can obviously achieve your positive goal ASAP. The simpler your rewards and punishments are, the better. I used the money to purchase a scarf but you could do it for anything.
4. You work out what you need to motivate yourself to achieve that positive outcome. I used hand cream daily, I used oil to massage the cuticles daily, I painted my nails with nail hardener and once the nails grew past my fingers, I got manicures regularly.
5. Draw up a table as shown below, to keep track of your progress daily to get to your eventual goal:

Day 1 – Outcome: I put my fingers in my mouth So you put a cross in the negative box and take the punishment. Negative Positive Punishment Reward x $2.00 paid to charity

Day 2 – Outcome: I didn’t put my fingers in my mouth So you put a cross in the positive box and take the reward Negative Positive Punishment Reward x $1.00 paid to myself

From memory I stopped biting my nails after the second week and kept going until I grew my nails to the length I wanted them. I found that it took about 10 weeks to achieve the outcome I wanted. I didn’t think I would get long fingernails, but I did and continue to do so!

Bulk liquid hand soap the easy way

I found a way to save almost $50 a year on liquid hand soap with hardly any effort! Just take a bucket filled with four litres of water. Drop a bar of generic soap into it and let it soak for 24 hours. Give it a mix and pour into clean two-litre milk bottles. Just top up pump bottles when needed. For a little added luxury, add half a cup of sorbolene cream and a few drops of glycerine. Works a treat!

Being frugal can be fun

Sometimes I feel as though I've lived on a budget all my life! I live alone in a second floor rented apartment - no yard or garden, just a concrete car park. To combat that 'locked in' feeling, I have endeavoured to bring the outside in for little cost.

I have several indoor plants; beautiful, green and healthy. My small cold water fish tank has two goldfish in it, they are healthy and lively and provide colour and movement darting around. Very cheap pets too, a can of fish food lasts for ages and you can get all kinds of tanks to suit any budget.

I conserve water by using the 'old' water from the fish tank when I change it to water my plants, giving them lots of nutrients! I also use the water left from steaming vegetables to water the plants too.

I have no car, so must walk to get my groceries and other needs. I tell myself this is all POSITIVE. Everytime I walk to the shops and back it is exercise and energy sustainable. I'm not creating any air pollution either!

Almost all my clothing comes from the local opportunity shops - guess you could call me Second Hand Rose! I have three good op shops in my area, which are also great for cheap books, kids' toys - just about anything you can think of!

Frugality is not about being 'mean'; it's often very necessary for those on a fixed and limited income - and it can be a lot of fun!