Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you like the different method of filming today! Let’s chat in the comments and would love to hear all your tips! 💚🌿🌷

After using the oven , leave it open to get the rest of the heat. Candles can actually heat up the room a bit . Lowering thermostat much more at night since you’ll be under covers to keep warm .

“Close the door!, were you raised in a barn?” You brought back a childhood memory. Here in NZ after being without power for several days after a cyclone, I do appreciate the choices it gives.

My comment is a bit off topic, but I must say, your videos are like ASMR without technically being ASMR. That's a compliment, by the way. I love anything that can help me relax these days. 😊

My mother told me about her grandparents and how they had breakfast in the 1940s. There was coffee half and half, that is, cereal coffee mixed with bean coffee, and with it the stale bread collected in the kitchen table drawer, which was dipped into the coffee. That was breakfast. This is not directly about saving energy, but about frugality itself. We actually ended up dipping stale bread in the latte at home, too, and I always enjoyed it.

The door drafts really do work! I live in Northeast USA, and it’s often a battle between putting the heat on when it’s *just* cold enough to do so, or wearing an extra sweater. We go for the extra sweater when we can!

yes, I vac about once every 3 weeks. I sweep the kitchen every night. shoes off always and slippers on always, to stop carting around gunk from the kitchen on our socks, and to keep our socks (and therefore our couches and beds) clean. yes it's gets a little dusty but we don't mind. it's doable when you don't have kids ;)

Very useful tips. One that my mother did was opening curtains on sunny days and closing them during bad weather or evening time. In the summer she would open and close windows based on where the sun was. Open windows on the west of the house in the morning, and switch it in the afternoon, open the east side and close the west.

If I can, I wash my clothes the evening before a sunny or windy day is forecast, so I can hang them out first thing. They need every hour of good weather to dry at this time of year, and if I'm not drying them inside, the house doesn't get so damp and cold, and I don't need to run the dehumidifier so much. I wear a lot of wool jumpers in winter - nothing beats wool for keeping you warm, and it still works even when it's wet, unlike artificial thermal clothing. When I was really short of money, I found a pair of old ski trousers in a charity shop for 20p, and I used to wear those plus a hat and fingerless gloves in the house! I use a hot water bottle in bed so I don't have to have the room so warm at night, and I also wear a jumper and bedsocks to bed in cold weather. And porridge for breakfast always makes me feel warmer!

My nana had a manual floor sweeper and you can still buy them! I just looked, save the vacuum for the wknd. Memories of her pushing it around in her housecoat with the ever present duster in pocket 😊

I was a single mama, therefore I had to be frugal as I had to pay for all the expenses and our house on my own. No help no money from my little angels father. I paid cash for everything( except the house payments you know) I called my electric and power company’s to find out what they call peek hours here in USA. So from 9:00 pm at night until 6:00 am it would be cheaper to do laundry or run the dishwasher. Since it was just us two , I ran the dishwasher once a week after 9:00 pm and did laundry another day once a week after 9:00 pm. In the summer I grew tomatoes/ cucumber/ corn on the cob, mint and herbs. I always made strawberry/ mint/ cucumber water never purchased soda. I was on a budget BUT I Made it happen. I’m 61 now and my little Angle is all grown up and has left. I lost my mom so it’s been an adjustment but now I’m living with the man I knew most of my angels life but I was focused on being a mother and taking care of my aging mother so I never wanted a relationship a friendship was great for me. Now that we are together I’m still very frugal and still make my own house cleaner as you do vinegar r/ baking soda and lemon were my cleaners and still are. My home is now rented out and I finally have a little extra income I’m saving. I just found your channel and love it. My dream has always been to go to Ireland so I just love your accent 🙋🏻‍♀️👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 thank you lovely words of encouragement and advice

Thank you for this lovely video. On the topic of laundry, I use an outdoor clothes line and indoor drying rack for everything. I only use the dryer briefly to soften towels up. I have found that knowing how to dry things on an indoor rack or outside makes all the difference for wrinkles. My husband recently suggested that we didn't need to wash our clothes after a single use unless we got something dirty and that has saved a lot of time and money and it's better for our clothes.

Good tips. I really needed to hear your calm soothing voice this morning. My nervous system had been way too much triggered. Thank you 😌💓

We're in a similar home to you, and the woodburner has been a big help for heating water and cooking simple meals like soups. One thing we do when it's really cold weather outside (snowy/windy) is actually wearing our woolly hats indoors, as a lot of heat is lost from our head/neck area. A lightweight scarf and a woolly hat does wonders for staying extra warm during sub-zero cold snaps. Thanks for another lovely video. xx

I remember one specific thing from a book I once read about how pioneers and settlers lived in the early years here in 🇨🇦. Staying warm in tiny cabins often made from hand-hewn logs was always a challenge. These were the days before caulking, so to stop the drafts around the windows they plugged the holes and gaps with bread dough. Apparently it worked great in the winter but the dough would get mouldy in the Spring. They would take it off every Spring and then replace it with fresh bread dough the following winter. My how times have changed. Ⓜary💕

I’m in Queensland, Australia and for us cooling is the biggest priority. I’m eternally grateful for owning a house with wraparound verandas and lots of French doors as it means I only run the air con at night. We’ve installed misting sprinklers under the eaves of the house, it serves double duty as a fire suppression system and a cooling system. We store rainwater to power them. We’re also working on replacing all the lawn with trees, shrubs and leafy gardens. Plants can slow cold breezes in winter and block reflected heat in summer. As to yelling at the kids, it’s ‘open your doors, it’s like a sauna in here!’ I’m not letting them run the expensive air conditioning when opening the doors and turning on the misters can drop the temperature inside by 15 degrees.

I really like this new format being able to have a virtual "coffee chat" with you as well as having the traditional video clips. Your ideas are always great, very mindful that we all have different locations, budgets, and rules to follow. I'm from the US and gave up the dryer over 15 years ago but I live in an area where it's okay to have a drying line outdoors. I love drying clothes in the air. When weather doesn't cooperate I use drying racks indoors.

Great tips! I've begun drying small loads of clothes on a clothes horse, using shorter washing machine cycles, showers instead of baths, and being mindful of stove/oven use. I've become the 'un-plug it' police in our home. lol We're trying to use electricity-free entertainment more--although my husband loves TV and it pains me to see it on for too long. Ideas for electricity-free entertainment are things like reading, board games, puzzles, crafts, etc. One idea I learned about recently--but haven't tried yet, is to allow bath water (or accumulated shower water) to stay in the tub until it cools, as it releases heat and moisture for a while and helps with heating and adding moisture to dry air (we have 2 wood burners and our air is super-dry). I keep throw-blankets available in our living and family rooms, so people can cover up if cool. I added a large area rug to our family room, which has wood floors, so that it feels warmer. We all have house slippers to wear on cold days, too. I am a night owl and I often bake at night (or do other cooking) so that the heat produced from the oven or stove helps heat the house when it's the coldest. We use heavy curtains on large windows to help block cold. I wash dishes by hand more now and only use the dish washer when I cook large meals and have a ton of dishes. I utilize our wood stoves for doing a little cooking. I cook things like squash, baked potatoes/sweet potatoes, etc. in the coals of our stove--instead of heating our oven. We have begun wearing clothing like jeans a bit longer before washing--unless they're truly dirty. I'm also trying to cut expenses in other areas besides electricity so that we can afford the bills which are rising. We've seen a rise in our water/sewer bill due to a new plant installation in our town and water availability being extended further into the rural areas. Thanks for the great tips!

My grandparents went to bed when the sun went down and got up when the sun started coming up in the morning. They lived by the seasons

When I was a kid my family did not have much money and we were a family of five living in a small house in the suburbs. We had a wringer washing machine and an outdoor clothesline, but outdoor drying in 🇨🇦 is not possible during the winter. My Dad was very practical and handy with tools and repurposing (even tho upcycling was not even a word or a trend at that time). My Dad took the sides off an old wooden crib (which was damaged) and he made them into overhead drying racks in our basement. The racks, which hung horizontally, were on a pulley system which could be raised and lower when needed. The clothes dried on the overhead racks which took up no floor space and allowed us to use our basement as we kids had our bedrooms down there. As a child I never really appreciated this system as much as I do now. I would love to have those upcycled wooden crib racks in my basement. I think one of my favourite memories as a child is coming in from playing outside in the snow, and then lowering the racks to hang my mittens, toque (knitted hat), and winter coat to dry. I just thought I would share this little story of how one can use their creativity and their skills to get by. Thanks, Niamh, for allowing me to use this space for sharing my memory. Ⓜary💕❄

Thank you for all the tips. It was so relaxing and calming 😌to hear your lovely voice through that neat microphone. I used to use an electric blanket on my bed in winter, but I’ve gone back to hot water bottles, they keep me warm all night, no electricity needed .😀

It may be cheaper for y'all to boil water on a gas stove, but it's actually more energy efficient to boil it in an electric kettle especially since newer ones have induction components.

I always love your videos but miss the extensive footage of you out and about in your beautiful homeland. Your videos are cinematic marvels. I imagine that's much harder to accomplish with your little fairy, so I will take what I can get. Just know that I always enjoy seeing your home and garden and the beautiful countryside around you. Whenever you can include more of that, I'll look forward to it. Again, always enjoy hearing from you!

Love the new set up. And your voice is like some comforting ASMR. This winter I started pinning blankets and sheets on the windows as I live in an apartment that is very drafty especially at this breakfast nook where I have much of my plants at plus cat trees. Makes it feel warmer and cozy when I got nice blankets keeping the drafts out. Haha your grandpa would 'love' my apartment, I'm a bit guilty of having too much mood lighting all day and night especially in my bedroom looking like a 70's blacklit den. So I need to work on that. They are all LEDS but I may also talk to my landlord on replacing some of the outlets like ones that spark or wiggle. I used to vacuum daily but since I invested in simple carpet sweeper, I just been using that instead more daily plus the cats appreciate the lack of sound (and my ears too since I got sensitive hearing)

We were taught all of the things you said. I can remember if we were standing with the door open on a cold day, my dad would say, "My child, shut the door. Was you born in a barn?" He thought that was so cute, lol I learn all these things from my parents and so happy I did. It has no doubt saved me a lot of money. Thanks for sharing with us.

Pro tip with laundry: Ruth Goodman (absolute badass domestic historian - definitely check her out) reckons that the important part of washing is actually the agitation physically forcing the dirt/grease out, NOT the soap so you could do a cold no-soap wash if you are looking to save and still get lovely clean clothes. And if weather permits, its more hygienic to dry outside in the sun. The UV helps bleach the clothes and sanitise them

Love this especially when you spoke of the laundry topic..I have a combo washer/dryer unit and the washer broke on it, so I found an opportunity to get a "free" wringer washer and also hang dry clothes in the house during winter. I use nightlight all around the house , and have LEDs throughout the house when needed. I save water in a bucket when running the water to get hot for showers and use that to water my plants . I really enjoy being frugal. Thx for all the tips!

After finishing using our oven in the winter we leave it open a crack to use the heat that was inside! I love standing in front of it to get warmed up.

Hi from Canada! Our winters can be epic, so thermal socks and underwear are a must. To keep warm in the house, curling up under quilts adds coziness...however, it's hard to toss the quilt aside to go out and shovel!!! Hugs to you and your family Niamh.

Some of these tips are so simple but we’re still not doing them 😅 One caveat for the tip “the fridge & freezer need to be full to work properly” is don’t go too far in the other direction. Most manuals I’ve seen recommend keeping it half full to full. But full doesn’t mean maximize the capacity to its full square inch potential. Aka don’t overstuff your appliance so full you can’t see anything and things fall out if you touch one item. There needs to be airflow around all the containers and throughout the fridge to keep things cold, cool things down efficiently, and not develop warm spots.

I always find your episodes very interesting and soothing. I live in India and our problem is keeping things cool. I remember as a child being constantly reminded to switch off lights and fans everytime we left the room. At that time it was not so much about saving energy but more about not wasting anything. Today I am glad these habits were instilled in us. Regarding use of resources we have this old teaching that we should learn from the bee. It only takes what it needs from the flower without damaging it and in return pollinates it. Thus helping the plant species to thrive as well. There is so much we can learn from nature.

just recently i heard an interesting tip from someone to save electricity or gas - when they cook food, they only START the cooking process on the stove, but then wrap the pots in thick towels or a blanket , put it in the bed and cover it again. The heat, that is already in the pot will then finish cooking the food. I didn‘t put my food to bed yet, but I have startet for example a soup on the stove and then turned the heat off and covered it with a kitchen towel etc.. The pot stays hot for a long time and cooks the vegetables -the longer the wait, the softer the outcome 🙂

I almost feel like we all do these things to save energy, then the utility companies feel they aren’t getting enough money, so then they raise your rates! A vicious circle I think and I can’t turn my thermostat any lower at this point. Good thing spring is coming, fingers crossed.

Great video as always. I live on the desert, where it never rains and the UV radiation is always extreme. We don’t need heating, dryers but vacuums might become your best friend, since it’s so dusty. I choose to sweep always, and only once per week if needed I use the vacuum. I always dust the furniture off with a dumped cloth. I also don’t have a microwave nor an electric boiler and prefer the kettle. Regarding the electric oven, I try to use it in full capacity as much as possible. I’m also used to unplugging everything that’s not being used (including the WiFi router at night). Kind regards from Northern Chile 🇨🇱

Soaking beans ,pulses prior to boiling /cooking, saves fuel.

Love these tips already doing most of them, not tried the switching everything off evening yet, we also are about to start using a hay box, these have been modernised, ours will be a box with some form of insulation I am going to use a single bed duvet and fill the top cushion cover with a cushion middle. Basically you line your box then you bring the food in a cast iron caserole dish to the boil, boil for 10 mins then put the casserole in the middle of the insulated box, making sure everything is well wrapped up and put the lid on, it is a good idea to have a thermometer in the casserole with a display outside the box so you can keep and eye on how hot the food is, As we only usually eat vegetable meals it will not take too long to cook the food and you can just get on with other tasks, and then sit down to a lovely cooked meal all that is used is the cooking on the gas top, then no other use of any gas or electricity is needed. We also fill 4 2 litre flasks with water for drinks washing up and filling hot water bottles. I am going to buy a washing board a tin bath and a wringer, these can of course also be used indoors in the winter months. We are lucky enough to have been able to afford a solar panel that lights our house in the evenings. we may also be investing in a hot water panel as well, it depends on the finance of course. The draught excluder you used my gran and mum made out of old stockings with old stockings used for filling or rags if not enough of the old stockings, these were very effective, we kids used to call them draught sausages.

Happy Sunday :) I really enjoy your videos 🥰 My tip: you can turn off the oven a few minutes before the end of cooking, frying, baking. For example, if you cook eggs for 8 minutes, you can turn off the oven after 1 minute and leave the eggs in hot water on the burner the rest of the time. You will get hard boiled eggs this way as well!😀

I inherited my parents house two years ago and it was built in 1900 🇨🇦 so you can just imagine how drafty it is. I decided to do my own renovations to the best of my ability. I painted, caulked all the holes etc. I went upstairs with a ladder to take down the ugly old blinds from one of the bedroom windows and get it ready to fix up. I saw a one inch space between the top of the window and the frame that was completely open to the outside. 😮 I finally figured out why it was always freezing up there. I immediately filled it in and I instantly warmed up lol. What a difference. Just caulking all the holes made a huge difference. But alas, I still need new windows. ❤

I don’t wash some clothing each time I wear them. I usually wash them in cold water. Run the dishwasher when full. Lower the heat in the evening when sleeping. Where layers to keep warm. Turn off stove and oven a bit before food is finished and let it continue to cook on the residual heat. Try not to waste food. I look at what fresh food I have and what might not last too long and find meals to make using those items first.

They used to keep castles rooms warmer by covering the walls with tapestry. Also, people heat up the room they stay in so gather around in one room when you can and close the door.

Honestly, people underestimate the efficacy of a simple draft stopper. It makes a tremendous difference!! Plus, they are easy and cheap to make.

I love all of your tips. In my bathrooms, I have battery-operated candles so we don't have to turn the lights on at night. The battery is rechargeable. It really helps us in so many ways because our house is so dark. I have LED lights as well but we only keep the lights on when we have to. I have candles going all the time. My Grandparents had a wood-burning stove they cooked on/in. My friends used to be so amazed by the stove because in the Pacific Northwest, nobody had one of those back then. They cooked and heated their entire house with the wood stove cooker. I absolutely loved your video!

A friend of our family was an executive with General Electric. They did a controlled study that proved it really does save energy if you turn off unused lights. This is true even if you will return in a few minutes.

I found out it's true that turning off the breaker for the electric water heater reduces my electric bill from $87/month to between $41/month and $47/month. I turn it back on 1.5 hours before my shower. It has enough remaining hot water to get me through handwashing the rest of the night and the next day. Also, only run the dishwasher when the water heater is off, before it's time to turn it on to shower, as it will drain all the hot water, eventhough the dishwasher can heat water to over 350F in seconds and it does not need to be hooked to the hot water heater at all. Never wash clothes in hot water.

Wearing hat while sleeping. I don't use any heating during night but house is cold and dump. I had bad pain in forehead all the time and hat works very well. Also keeping coat on myself during winter months. Sleeping with greyhound gives me more warmth 😀😀

This highlight my month with your vlog. 😍 Miss you and your weekly dose of sustainable living. Thank you, Niamh! 🙏

Great tips! 😊 I use a garment rack to hang dry shirts, nightgowns, robes, jackets, etc. from, using thick hangers. I drape pants on folding dryer racks. Clothing really does last longer if you air dry it. I turn the water off in the shower when I'm sudsing up, and back on to rinse off. Also, taking curtains, blankets and pillows outside to shake off the dust, and air out for a while helps control the dust and makes things smell fresh.

I enjoy your videos a lot. I’m thinking to begin one evening a week with candles only and no devices. I live in central Texas so the a/c will stay on if it’s hot here. I moved into my apt 4 years ago and have a portable washing machine that hooks up to the plumbing of my kitchen sink and drains into my kitchen sink as well. I hang the clothes to dry in a doorway and my ceiling fan stud them. I haven’t used a dryer in 4 years and don’t miss it. Don’t want it. When I need to wash bedding, I got to a nice laundromat. I also use a short cycle of 15 minutes and my clothes are clean! I’ve been watching you at least a year now. Thanks for staying on KZfaq. Love~ Stephanie San Marcos, TX

We only use the stove maybe once a day since we eat a predominantly raw plant based diet. While this definitely helps us save money on electricity, we spend more on produce, but it's a trade we're happy with 🙂

Great tips! I try to hang dry sweaters, blouses and pants and if using the tumble dryer I put it on low. Where I live it isn’t really possible to hang my clothes outside but I do have a drying rack in my house so I try to hang dry the heavier clothing items. I also turn out the lights when I leave a room. I try to use smaller appliances like my convection oven or slow cooker when possible so I don’t have to turn on the stove as much.

Thanks for the tips. In winter I need a dryer and when our old dryer died, we bought what they call in Australia, a heat pump dryer. It has an energy rating of 6 out of 5 (super efficient). We experimented when we first got it and using it whenever we wanted only added AUD50 to our bi-monthly bill. Our old dryer would have cost hundreds for the same period of time. In summer we never use it at all because our weather is so hot. Like you we sealed windows and doors that created drafts and we close doors to rooms that aren’t being used. But we also dress to the weather so sometimes I might not put our heating on until the evening. We are lucky enough to live in a house that has solar panels that contribute to our household electricity and our hot water is also run by solar panels (in winter we have to compensate with an electric heater to heat the water because we don’t get enough sun for the solar panels). Lastly, like you nothing stays plugged in that doesn’t need to. 😊

Thank you for sharing all of your energy saving tips, I had forgotten a few of them so excited to try being more mindful of certain wasteful areas in our home again. Something I feel has saved us some energy this winter is reducing how many hours a day our heating comes on for and instead we use a little fan heater when getting changed of if we need to just take the chill off a room quickly xx

I really enjoyed this video!! I'm always looking for ways to lower my electric bill!! When you were talking about your Grandfather & someone leaving all of the lights on made me think of my sweet Daddy. He used to say- man their house is lit up like the fourth of July lol At home when we were growing up, my Mom always put "draft dodgers" usually a towel or something like that in front of the doors. My husband's Granny always put a towel in between the screen door & regular door. Said it saved her money. Thanks for the tips!!

I always used a clothesline and adore that fresh smell. Especially on sheets! Not keeping lights on in rooms you aren't in is a big one to me also. I still prefer candlight. I live in a hot climate so air conditioning is a must. I have filled Tupperware with water to full space in my freezer years ago when it wasn't filled with food. I appreciate that we think alike on all of this. I also save my pot of water when canning and once cool use that water to water plants with.

I live in an old apartment with leaky windows and doors. I have a door snake for the front door and close the one other door to the bathroom. I take short showers, only dry sheets and towels (no outdoor clothesline), and hang the rest on a clothes rack. That's a great tip having a switch to turn off plug-ins or else unplug devices. I dress warmly and have throw blankets while reading or else I exercise to warm myself up. You've provided some great tips too. Thanks and Happy Spring! Jenny 🦊🐿🦔🐦🦉🪶🐝🪲🐞🌷🥀🌺

Wish we could convince you to do more than 1 video a month 🥰 I enjoy them so much!

Love your tips. Very useful. What I do to save money is shut the heat off during the day. Since we have the heat on during the night, it keeps our home warm until the afternoon. And also heavy insulated curtains for the windows. We bought some at walmart and some at the thrift shop. Love your channel. God bless

Love the tip on the tea one as I drink about 6 mugs of tea a day and although I just put in the kettle what I need it would be better just to boil a full kettle and store the hot water for my tea. I give up the dryer and use a tower clothes horse and if I need to wash the throw quick because my dog was sick on it I dry it in front of the fire. I am oil and coal user. I would love to have electric free evening but trying to get others to be on board with me will be impossible. fabulous video.

My dad always told us to turn off the lights as soon as we left a room. I do that at my house now as much as I can. Also, I grew up in Mexico and we never had a dryer so we always hung the clothes outside to dry. I live in the states now where we always use a dryer but just this week I set up a couple of washing lines in my backyard and started to dry some clothes that way, doing that always brings me back to my younger years and I don't know why but hanging up my clothes outside is kind of therapeutic. Thank you for the water flask tip! I am constantly heating up water for coffee/tea!

Growing up in Arizona (meaning dry land) we used the proverbial clothesline.. by the time I hung up the laundry .. the first half of the clothes were already dry… I didn’t like hanging the clothes up in the Heat… (115) in the summer… and always forgot to get the clothes down from the line and parents got mad if I did… I live in Hawaii now but too awful windy (15 mph) most of the time so have to use a tumble dryer… your videos are so soothing … thanks for sharing. Aloha

This video format is lovely! How fine to see the wonderful face behind the beloved voice. Thumbs up!

Really enjoyed the new method of filming. Lots of good tips. Yes, here in America most all of us have clothes dryers. I dry shirts and other clothes 5 minutes take them out and hang them on hangers and let them air dry completely. This method also keeps tee shirts from wrinkling. Take care of the little fairy!

Energy money saving can be so easy. Thanks!

Thank you so much for your lovely video. I hope you're all well. So good to hear from you, take care xxx

One more thing - we have solar lights outside our house and on gate. they lit up when someone passes under and lamps are lit as it gets darker automatically. The light is sufficient enough. So, it saves money and uses free energy. One time investment is ofcourse there, but they last for decades. The same can be done by suing solar powered chargers- the small ones can charge betteries, and mobiles, while bigger ones can do laptops, lamps, torch etc. They are quite handy, can b carried in cars and while travelling. Love from India 🎊

Always calms my heart listening to you. My grandparents lived in a mountain village in Greece, where electricity came on in 1974. Before that, there was no electricity in the village, yet they managed to live and take care of their NINE children. This involved board washing, fire place, in which they were cooking along with a wood burning oven. If they could live this way we also can. Thanks for the wonderful advise.

Those are very good ideas. I have also made a draught stopper for my mother's draughty pantry door. Works very well. I checked out your info about electric gadgets using electricity even if they are not being used, but not on stand-by. Actually, I found out that if they do have a button to switch the gadget off, they should not use energy. This does not include computers (use a lot of energy!) or laptops. So here I am not sure, what is true. Concerning the electric kettle - I use the amount of water required at that moment only. Most people overfill their kettles. We are lucky to have a gas cooker. So heating water was actually les expensive than with electricity until just about a year ago. Now costs have risen extraordinarily. The electric kettle uses less energy for heating smaller amounts of water. Last but not least, the wood burner. We hardly use this, as wood has become extremely expensive here in Germany. And the old ones will not be permitted as from 2025 due to the amount of CO2 produced as well as a waste of a lot of heat. It is very difficult to choose which is the best, but mostly people decide for that which is cheapest. Nonetheless - it is important to look at different aspects of saving energy. I love the idea of a day without electric gadgets!

We use a wood stove too and have to leave the doors to the rooms open...and my husband is the "turn the light's off police 😄" no wash board and I really don't want one. I will hang out my laundry and do in the right weather. When a little chilli but not cold and not turning up the heat or needing the wood stove...I will wear my knitted scarf and it really works to wa you up.

Thank you for this great video and tips! 1) Thick carpets on the floor (and nice woven ones on the walls) can keep a home warmer, acting as a bit of insulation. In Greece where I live now, carpets are removed before the hot season and put back for the cold months. 2) On the coldest days I wear my vintage handknit woolen pullovers at home, and thermals + woolen socks, which were my ski outfits :) So we can keep 17 degrees C during the day. 3) My French grandparents (born end of 19th century) used coal or wood in the kitchen stove until the 80s, to cook and heat their home, and lovely very thick duvets on the beds; they dressed warmly and wore thermals in winter. Their metal hotwater bottles were amazing... and sweet memories for us :) 4) In the Alps, traditional chalets have every room and space walls and ceilings covered with wood paneling, not only beautiful but great insulation! I've never felt cold in a chalet even during snowstorms even without turning up the temperature.

Lovely advice... We live in a trailer and I think the door stop would help tremendously. Someday we hope to have Woodburning stoves. My husband grew up with that, and my Da got one later on. There is nothing like heat from fire. ❤

An electric kettle actually saves energy over using an electric/ceramic hob, for stuff like pasta water.

I have a lovely washboard that's made of glass. Very old and works like a charm!

Putting down rugs, I've been known to put down a blanket on the floor when it got real cold on the feet, plus if you have thicker curtains those with your winter curtains. Thank you for tips.

I live in an apartment in the US capital. Our luxurious building recently went on changing our wash/dryers for energy saving ones, but more importantly our bldg roof have been entirely covered with solar panels and we now all use this “free” electricity. It is a great feeling as we, Americans, are way way back in the individual conscientiousness of saving energy. Still so much waste ! But we are moving slowly the good way, start recycling collectively. As individually, I very rarely turn on my heaters in my apartment because it is warmed by the others around up and down, even when it is very cold outside. I have a great quilt and lot of lovely blankets all over sofas and armchairs, and never, ever, over use anything electric. Being simple is the key, you are very right. PS: I almost did not recognize you because of your hair and the new setting and had to double check the channel name !!!

I remember my dad saying turn off the lights when you leave the room. Close the door or you'll be heating the outside or cooling the outside. I live in Texas, so I think this is worldwide when it comes to conserving and saving. I have to buy thermal curtains as I have old single paned windows. Thanks for the tips and reminders.

I wish I lived next door to you so we could be best friends and our babies could be best friends. You’re videos are amazing and you are inspiring!

I live on my own and started doing hand washing. Letting things drip dry outside. I only have washing machine on for sheets and towels. I bring clothes in and finish on the airier and it saves so much on electric and I actually like hand washing so much kinder on clothes . A lot of your recommendations i do already in my daily life. And i prefer a lamp on in evening rather than ceiling light Its much cosier . ♻️ ❤

Great ideas, Niamh. I use most of your hints. With the increase in energy prices, every new hint is appreciated. I also use the plastic film over my windows. If you put on properly and blow dry tight it is just like glass. Thanks for another great vlog. Miss your weekly appearances still.

My Oma and Opa always kept their house very cold and made everyone put a pair of handknit slippers on when they arrived :p If we complained about how cold it was they told us to grab a sweater from their closet. In fact, I'm pretty sure they always turned their heating off at night, and we live in Cananda!

If you know you're going to be out or away for a few days, turn your boiler off

I just found you and I love that you call your home, Fairyland. My ancestors are from Tipperary and I'm the only person in my family with strawberry blond hair. Now I understand why I collect fairies.

Great tips, thank you for sharing! 🥰 my husband and I took a trip to Ireland this fall and all of the B&Bs we stayed at had electric showers (I've never seen them in Canada!). In our old apartment we didn't have a washer or dryer and it was quite expensive to go to the laundromat, so we would wash the clothes at the laundromat, but bring them back to the apartment and hang them up by the window to dry! Its a habit we've kept even though we now have a washer and dryer 🙂

It was so great to see you sitting down having a chat with us. Every time we walked out of a room even if it was for 5 seconds my father would say turn the light off.❤️

Such wonderful tips on saving electricity. Always looking forward to your videos. Adding Solar panels to your roof also helps with reducing bills.

Mrs. Fairy Land Cottage. I am one of your top fan... 🙏🏼 May I know what name or brand mic do use today?.. I really love it... It would be such a great thing to know your instrument I just loved your voice to the point that , this is the only voice and channel I wanted to hear when I wanted to relax my mind.. May God bless your family Mrs. Fairy Land Cottage...

i`m ukrainian so i had to learn a great deal about saving electricity and heating this year. learnt to cook meals on our cottage's woodstove, read by gas lamps and when in the city - cooking at nightime in advance when the demand is lower. im used to spending months camping, if i can live that long outside with nothing but a campfire and a solar rechargeable headlamp - then i'll manage to live with electricity deficiency. if anything, these outages further fuelled my desire to permanently move from a city appartment to a house with a woodstove, a waterwell and a garden.

Here in northern 🇨🇦 we’ve been having another icy blast of winter. The thermometer drops to -30ºc at night and the snow is piling up. It’s a harsh experience when one looks at their electric bill. We have an outdoor boiler which heats our house and pre-heats our hot water. These are not common and can only be used in rural areas. The boiler looks like a small metal tool shed. It has a large fire box which sits below a huge water water box. The fire (wood fueled) heats the water which is pumped underground into our house where it then passes through a coil and a blower (like a radiator in a car). This hot air then moves through duct work throughout the house thereby heating our house. Of course, we have access to firewood and we need to stoke the fire once or twice a day. This type of heating saves us massively on our electric bill, but it is not for everyone. We are fortunate to be healthy & strong as this system requires outdoor physical labour. We also love to have simple lighting, lots of daylight during the day and in the evening we keep the lights low and use lamps and sidelight when needed. It was great to see you here today Niamh… literally! This video is a great reminder of how we can save on our power bill without doing a house renovation. Thanks for this. I’m so happy to hear that Spring is in your neighbourhood… we’ll be waiting a while yet. Have a great day, Ⓜary💕🌲🏔

I live in Florida in the U.S., so I try to keep the heat out of the house!

I batch cook, it saves lots of time and energy. Also stopped using dishwasher and tumble dryer and no longer even miss them. As you say it is a question of changing habits.

"When I come back into the home, I'm lovely and warm." I've recently found that every time I come home, I find it too warm inside, even though the temperature is the regular indoor temperature. It just seems to be the contrast of outdoors vs indoors, but I've only noticed it in the past year or two.

Loved this video and the focus on small changes like the door draft and curtains.

walking and also heating the body instead of the room with electric blanket too

Arizona here! We want the heat to escape most of the time. For us its the air conditioning that's the major wallet drain. Our summers can average 48 Celsius on a good day. Dryers are the norm here. Grandparents grew up with clotheslines which I love but not compatible with all the dust and dirt

Your relationship with yourself impacts a lot about how your relationships with others will be. Please get to know YOU and own yourself, love yourself, grow yourself, be yourself, know your worth and have your own back. And may you attract those who are doing the same.

I close off the upstairs bedrooms most of the time unless I'm having overnight guests. That way I don't have to heat or cool that large area of my house. I use insulation tape to pack cracks around window sills in winter. And I wear layers of clothing so I can adjust my body heat without messing with the thermostat.

"We need to check the humidity because it can get pretty damp." Our climate (Washington) is humid like Ireland, but I have the opposite problem: getting enough humidity so my nose doesn't dry out. Our humidity is usually 60-70%. I finally bought a small bimetallic thermometer with a hygrometer (humidity meter) to verify what the humidity is. Our humidity is usually 60-70%. I have a CPAP with a humidifier with a default setting of 70%. Usually it's all OK, but sometimes I add extra water to the CPAP, or use a neti pot, or have a hot shower, or drink tea, to get a bit more humidity.

Multumesc mult scumpă doamnă felicitări pentru tot

Absolutely love all these tips and I am actually using each and every one of them! 💖 Thank you so much for sharing them! There are so many areas in which we can save energy if we just think about it for a moment and consider alternatives. I am currently buying my own historic cottage, so already thinking about how to make it as energy efficient as possible while maintaining its historic character.

We are in Victoria, Australia, although I am irish. Everyone here seems to have a tumble dryer, but we have never had one as my mother and grandmother of course never did. We have only wood heating and we put in a duct over the wood heater that sends the heat to the back kids bedrooms and found that to be so much more sustainable, as before that it was so cold down there. We have solar panels, which cancel out our aircon usage in the summer and heat pump water tank which is also efficient for electricity usage. I also have the thermos kettle like yours, because my granny had one! Haha! Some irish traditions die hard. Loved your video, some wonderful ideas in there, i need to get out the pan and brush more myself!

Your tips bought back sooo many memories of my great x's3 grand parents that raised me until I was nearly a tween; and I remember them doing all those things, we had electricity, a gas stove, and a wood burning stove, however the conveniences weren't always used. Over the last few years I've begun returning to those simpler ways; and I'm much more happier in my spirit 🧚‍♀️. Luv to you and your 👪