The American Frugal Housewife, written by Mrs. Child in 1833, is a robust guide for living abundantly within one’s means, even if those means be small.
The American Frugal Housewife, though a slim little volume, has become one of my most reached-for homemaking resources. As a guide for living abundantly within one’s means, even if those means be small, it is perhaps unparalleled.
The opening lines of the book say it very well, “The true economy of housekeeping is simply the art of gathering up all the fragments, so that nothing be lost. I mean fragments of time, as well as materials“
In the pages that follow, Mrs. Child goes on to show in concise detail, how to make the most of everything, from materials that might otherwise be cast aside, to the odd bits of time that might be spent less profitably. Her suggestions for ways that children may be taught to help work together for the good of the family are most helpful.