How can you Reduce the Cost of Health and Beauty?
Health and beauty can be two large expenses for any budget.
As a whole, billions each year is spent on health and beauty.
This includes doctors visits, medication, treatments, specialists, surgery and complementary medicine for health, along with salon visits, skin care, makeup, products and services in beauty.
How to Save Money With Health
If you are on a pension or have any health care/pension/seniors/DVA type card from Centrelink, check out this post to see what discounts you can get (not just with health).
We have a post here outlining how to afford medical expenses.
Know Your Expenses
Some health issues can’t be budgeted or planned for, others can.
If you know you have certain health expenses such as doctors visits, psychology, glasses, dental work, prescriptions or other treatment you and/or family members need, budget it in.
Once you know everything you need to pay for, you can look at how to reduce the cost.
A few examples include:
Doctor Visits
Look for a bulk billing clinic and use the health line on 1800 022 222 before going to your GP or the hospital, they can often advise what you should do.
Glasses
Get your eyes tested then ask for the prescription and order online.
Zenni Optical and Eye Buy Direct are 2 options.
Specialists
If you need psychology, physiotherapy or other treatments you may be eligible for a plan on Medicare which reduces the cost and in some cases makes it free.
Take Care Of Yourself
You hear it all the time, good food and exercise are important for your health.
Limiting or eliminating alcohol, not smoking and doing what you can to live a clean, healthy life will have a significant impact on your overall health and medical expenses.
Prevention is Better Than a Cure
Getting up at 5:30 am to exercise (you don’t have to), making sure you drink plenty of water, get proper sleep and reducing foods that aren’t healthy can help.
Look after yourself.
Today, make a plan for a healthier lifestyle, check your benefits and discounts then implement them.
Gym Membership and Exercise
You don’t need a membership but if you want one, compare prices and get a membership close to home or work.
Research shows you are more likely to use a gym if it’s close because it’s easy to get to.
If you have a membership, make sure you use it.
Alternatively, do it at home. A yoga mat, kettlebell or dumbells enable you to do a lot.
Use YouTube for workouts.
Look at other options as well e.g. walk as much as possible, run around your local area instead of on a treadmill.
Do free classes in the park (check Meetup in your area for options), look for exercise parks that have free equipment you can use, join a team sport or do a class for the exercise you enjoy.
Exercise doesn’t need to be expensive and it can be something you enjoy.
Health Insurance
If you choose to have health insurance, compare to make sure you get the right option for your situation. You can do that on the government website here.
Don’t use commercial health insurance comparison sites.
If you don’t want complete health insurance, get ambulance cover.
It is cheap and unless you are eligible for free ambulance (such as with a pension) then if you ever need an ambulance, the health cover will be more than worth it.
Do you need all the extras? Most are not worth the extra premium.
Work out what you want from your health insurance, what your needs are and what you want included in a policy so you can compare accurately and get the right option for you.
Many people do not have health insurance as we have a great public health system in Australia.
Be aware though, the waitlist for some conditions can be extremely long.
How to Save Money With Beauty
Hair
Learn to do some things all yourself.
Many styles and colours don’t need to be done in a salon, but if you are going for a big colour change such as blonde to brown or lightening your hair from black for example, that should be done in a salon.
Hair Colour
For supermarket colours, they all seem similar so buy when on sale.
Basic colours can be done yourself with a box or two for $10 (buy them on sale) or get a tube of colour from Priceline/Hairhouse Warehouse or similar with the peroxide.
Make sure you use gloves! Put vaseline or barrier cream around your hairline to prevent staining.
Use old towels, a cape, a proper bowl and brush plus if you spill any hair colour anywhere, clean it quickly and where possible bleach the area.
Work in sections instead of dumping the all the hair dye in one spot.
Comb the colour through properly and rinse it thoroughly when the time is up.
Dandruff
If you have issues with dandruff, rubbing coconut or other oil into the scalp overnight then washing your hair the next day can help.
It will weigh down your hair though and be greasy the next day.
Rubbing salt into the scalp, rinsing with apple cider vinegar and anti dandruff shampoos are all options too.
Treatments
With dry hair you can use oil on your hair, wrap it up overnight and wash it out in the morning.
This is a heavy treatment if you have fine hair oil can weigh down your hair if not rinsed properly.
Alternatively, use treatments from the hairdressers.
Hair Cuts
Basic haircuts can be done with a decent pair of clippers (e.g Wahl) and scissors (not the scissors that come in a pack, get a decent pair of hairdressing scissors).
Use section clips, a proper comb and take your time learning.
Long hair is generally easy, as are basic straight trims and many mens cuts.
Check YouTube for tutorials.
Face
You might have a simple routine or you may be right into contouring and spending an hour on makeup.
Skincare
Your skincare routine will depend on your skin needs.
Cleanser, toner, moisturiser, some serums and sunblock are the most common things.
Sometimes night cream, eye creams or prescribed items.
Facial
A facial exfoliates and treats specific issues with the skin.
If you want to do it, most of it can be done with products in your pantry.
Check out recipes for scrubs such as sugar and oil (mix 3 parts sugar to 1 part oil) or oats and milk plus masks such as egg or avocado, depending on your skin type.
You can do a face peel with gelatine and milk too.
Gelatine Peel
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon gelatine
2 Tablespoons milk
Method:
– Clean your face.
– Mix gelatine and milk together in a bowl then heat in microwave for 10 – 15 seconds depending on the strength of your microwave. Mix the milk and gelatin to make a smooth paste. Test the temperature before applying it to your face. You don’t want to burn your skin.
– As with all masks, avoid the skin close to your eyes as it is more delicate and this mask is strong, it can remove some facial hair, so be careful.
– Leave it on your face for 15 minutes then peel off. Go gently as your skin might be sensitive in areas. You don’t need to rip it off fast like a band aid.
– Clean your face again, then tone and moisturise.
Eyelashes, Eyebrows and Waxing
Your eyebrows can completely change the shape of your face and how you look. If you are not confident doing them, get it done professionally.
There are kits for tinting eyelashes and eyebrows which are cheap and can be used for numerous applications.
Eyelashes
You can get extensions, tint and perm them or use an eyelash curler if you want.
With extensions, you can use false lashes bought on sale or get them done in a salon to last longer.
With tinting, you can get lash tint kits at Priceline or similar stores to do it yourself.
Most people go for black or blue black.
Eyebrows
Get a professional to wax and shape your eyebrows.
They shape your face and even if you pluck the few strays in between, it is still better.
Be careful not to over-tweeze and buy good quality tweezers to do it.
Waxing
Knowing how to wax is a skill as you do not want to overheat and burn your skin or wax repeatedly over the same section and cause damage.
Facial waxing such as chin and the sides of your face, legs and arms are all relatively easy.
Bikini lines, that area in general and underarms tend to be harder for most.
You can get a wax pot by Veet at many supermarkets or Priceline and buy discs to melt and use.
This prevents you being able to overheat the wax and burn yourself.
Place a thin layer of wax (not so thin it is see-through) and peel it off while it is still pliable.
Make Up
Have a session to find the products that suit you.
Don’t use the one at the department store counter or one that has a vested interest in one particular brand.
Use an independent makeup artist, get some lessons if you want on contouring and application, then get a good set of brushes and buy makeup that suits you and you will use.
Body
You can over exfoliate and damage your skins so use a body scrub only once or twice a week.
Mix oil, sugar and coffee grounds together for a great scrub but be conscious of your drains with the oil.
Hair Removal
How and what you choose to remove is up to you.
If you want to use shaving cream, buy the men’s.
It is cheaper than womens for the same thing.
Alternatively, cheap conditioner works well.
Use safety razors, where you replace just the blade and the rest of the razor is reusable. These last much longer and the small metal blades are cheap to replace.
Tanning, Moisturising and Other Body Products
Buy items on sale, ask for discounts, look for items reduced to clear, check Groupon and other coupon sites (but also check reviews for the places selling their services cheap!) and ask for beauty items or gift cards as presents for your birthday/Christmas/Mothers Day etc.
Nails
Do your own manicures and pedicures.
Use a file, buffer, foot file, orange stick, cuticle oil and have a couple of nail polishes. In general, nails are pretty simple.
File, buff, soak, push back cuticles, polish, leave to dry and use hand cream.
False nails cost more, however, most places will offer a loyalty discount.
Final tip
Today, go through your products, throw out anything that is old, crusty or expired.
Work out what you really need for your beauty routine and look at natural options instead of a cupboard full of products.
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