A mum-of-one has revealed the controversial ways she’s saving the pennies – including reusing disposable diapers.
Caroline Dunaway, a self-proclaimed “savvy spender”, often shares her frugal advice on TikTok (@carolinedunaway ), having previously hit headlines for her money-saving tip in relation to buying newborn clothes.
Now, she’s divulged how to save the pennies on essentials, including formula and clothes, by using secondhand items and reusing clean disposable diapers.
Sharing her hacks online, her latest method has viewers divided, with the clip raking up over 1.2m views.
“When it comes to a baby, it’s not being cheap, it’s just about being smart,” the-29-year-old, from Alabama, US, told What’s The Jam.
“I think most people would take a diaper off for the bath and just throw it away – but if it was just put on five minutes before, chances are it’s not dirty.
“[It] could be put back on after the bath or at another time.
“This is not something that I’ve done often, but one time I had to change my baby’s diaper just a few minutes before her bath time, so when I went to take her diaper off for the bath, I noticed it was not dirty.
“I knew I had just changed her not even 5 minutes before, so I thought “Why throw away this diaper when I know it’s clean?
“I can put it back on her after the bath.
“It’s not different than checking the diaper, seeing it’s clean, and leaving it on the baby until it needs to be changed.”
With daughter Claire, nine months, and partner Brett, 29, Caroline is always looking to get more bang for her buck by thrifting clothes and using secondhand websites.
She said: “When I was pregnant, I joined some secondhand/resale Facebook groups and I quickly learned that’s the way to shop for a baby.
“Most of the items are new with tags or have only been worn once.
“You can get them at a great price and it makes you feel better about buying something so nice for her to spit up in or only wear once.
“My mum is actually the one who thrifts most of my daughter’s things.
“She mostly finds things at the local Goodwill and will take them home, clean them well, and make sure they’re in great shape.
“We have also bought a few things secondhand on Facebook Marketplace and we gladly accept anything my friends give me that their babies have grown out of.”
Another way she saves money is by using off-brand baby formula, saving an estimated £31 a month.
The frugal mum says she was inspired by her sister-in-law, Brooke, who had a baby three years beforehand.
She said: “She saves everything, so when I got pregnant, she gave us almost everything we would need for our baby.
“My sister-in-law also makes her own baby food and this encouraged me to do so as well.
“It’s proven to be cheaper and healthier – and my daughter does everything I make.
“She’s now pregnant again and I will be passing things back over to her.
“It would be wasteful for us to have purchased new things when babies use things for such a short period of time.”
While her family and friends are on board with the “smart way” of living, the reaction hasn’t been so friendly online – with many people questioning her penny-pinching ways.
She added: “A lot of people leave comments saying I’m doing what parents do with their second and third child with my first, but the diaper thing is what most people are mad about.
“I think they’re just not thinking about it properly and I wouldn’t be surprised if most of the haters don’t actually have children themselves.
“At first, I felt weird about buying used clothes from strangers in Facebook groups, until I started noticing other mums that I know in the groups as well.
“They outgrow or no longer need things so quickly, it just makes sense to share the items when you can.”
Sharing her newest hacks, including reusing diapers, Caroline quickly gained over 80,000 likes and 600 comments
FOUR QUOTES ABOUT THE DIAPERS
