17 Old Fashioned Homemaking Skills for the Modern Homemaker

I started with an easy one! Although, I can’t say this was always easy for me! We ate plenty of Hamburger Helper in our early days of marriage! Not to mention brown and serve sausage…yuck! From scratch cooking is a homemaking skill that anyone can master.

The key to cooking from scratch is to stock your pantry with staples. Things like flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda etc…all of those things make whipping up baked goods a breeze. You can make bread, a cake, or muffins. Keeping things like pasta, beans, and rice can make dinner plans so much easier.

Grab my free pantry staple checklist here! Sign up below and I will send you the password to access everything in my printable library, including the pantry staple checklist!

Another thing to remember with cooking from scratch is to keep it simple. Think of dinner as a meat, a veggie and a starch. So often our dinner is a roasted chicken, some roasted brussel sprouts or sweet potatoes and a salad. Or some pork chops, rice, and a salad or veggie. Simple, easy, and nutritious.

Here are some from Scratch Recipes

2. Bread Making

Of course, this is kind of an extension of cooking from scratch. However, bread baking has such a feeling of accomplishment. If you have never baked bread, just give it a try one time! Your family will look at you with new eyes! Try it just for the smell alone! I have a super simple no-fail bread recipe here. You can make dinner rolls, hamburger buns, or cinnamon rolls with this dough recipe!

Once you master a simple yeast dough, you can venture into sourdough which is super fun to get into!

3. Gardening

This is one of the most fulfilling homemaking adventures. What if you could serve your family a meal that was not only made from scratch but the salad or the vegetable was grown by you! Can I give you a little hint? Growing lettuce is not hard! It is the perfect beginner veggie! Give yourself a little win!

If you are interested in getting started with gardening, I have a post here on tips for starting a vegetable garden!

4. Fermenting and Preserving Food

Let’s say you get that garden going, and you have an excess harvest! One of the most fulfilling skills to learn is food preservation. I don’t love to can, but do believe that it is an important homemaking skill to learn. Water bath canning isn’t really that difficult and you can enjoy things like pickled beets and jalapenos all winter long!

Another great way to preserve your veggies and make them extra nutritious is fermenting. If you don’t know much about fermenting, it is a super-easy way to preserve your food! I have a post on fermented carrots and one on making sauerkraut.

5. Sewing

I used to have a love-hate relationship with sewing. It took me a while to figure out that my main problem was my hand-me-down sewing machine. If you can invest in an inexpensive sewing machine, sewing will become so much more enjoyable. The tangled thread problem and busted needles have disappeared with a newer machine. I bought this one and it is under $200.

Also, keep it simple when you are just starting out sewing. Try making things like napkins or pillow covers. I also have a tutorial on making a simple dress. Or how about something super simple like adding pockets to your favorite dress, and you would be so surprised to know that making your own tote bag is actually easy!

Check out all of my Sewing posts here

6. Line Dry Your Clothes

There is something so satisfying about seeing clothes hanging on the line! Certainly, give yourself some grace with this. I do not line dry all of my clothes, but maybe start off with just drying your sheets and quilts. It gives them such a fresh smell and doesn’t really add any extra time or effort.

Plus if you know how to hang clothes on the line, you don’t have to panic if your dryer goes out!

If you need laundry help, especially if you have children, you may like this post!

7. Cheesemaking and Yogurt Making

We have a milk cow, so this is more natural for me to have this desire. However, you don’t have to have a cow to do this! You can definitely make cheese from store-bought milk.

One of the first homemaking skills I learned was how to make yogurt. I started this when we lived in the city and didn’t have a cow. It is one of the easiest and most frugal homemaking skills you can learn. You can make yogurt with just a carton of yogurt and some milk. It only involves heating the milk and then keeping it at around 100 degrees. If you have an instant pot, it is even easier. That is one of the best modern homemaking tools! I have a post on making yogurt in the Instant Pot here.

8. Make a Welcoming Hospitable Home

This might be my absolute favorite of the homemaking skills. I love making my home pretty! I have always felt that my home is an extension of me. It is so important for me to have a welcoming home. Please know that I am not saying your home needs to look like it is from a magazine. Mine definitely doesn’t, and it isn’t always clean either. Making a welcoming home is more of a feeling of comfort and love for the people who enter.

Inviting people into your home even if it isn’t perfect is one of the best ways to show hospitality! Don’t you love the old-time practice of setting an extra place at the table for dinner? That speaks to me in such a special way. Living each day to welcome and serve others is where it’s at friends!

all of my home decor posts

9. Reduce Disposable Items

Taking control of the disposable items you buy is one way to be more frugal. Things like purchasing a large pack of flour sack towels and using them instead of paper towels. How about beeswax wraps instead of plastic bags and plastic wrap? They are super easy to make and I love having my leftovers wrapped up in these pretty fabrics. Here’s how you can make some for yourself!

You can also make your own lotion bars and salves and put them in reusable tins. You can also make your own sunscreen and cut down on disposable bottles.

10. Learn to Crochet

This is one of the best ways to pass cold winter evenings or long car trips. If you can take the time to learn how to crochet, you can make so many wonderful things! Baby blankets, rugs, and dishcloths just to name a few!

I have a great tutorial that teaches the basics of crochet with three different stitches. In the end, you will have your own dishcloths to use in your kitchen!

11. Organization is Homemaking 101

I think organization might be one of the most important homemaking skills you can acquire as a homemaker. There are so many things to keep track of, especially if you have children or if you work outside the home.

At the very least, you should have a large wall calendar where all appointments and commitments are written. However, appointments and commitments are only part of what a homemaker needs to keep track of. Home cleaning and vehicle maintenance, menu planning, projects, and animals if you have those.

Making a home management binder can be a lifesaver for your sanity. A place to keep track of all that needs to be done and all records that need to be kept.

Check Out My Shop for Printable Planners

12. Keeping Chickens

This may be a stretch for some, but even if you live in town you may be able to keep backyard chickens! This is a wonderful way to teach your children responsibility and also put nutritious food on the table. Eggs from chickens on grass are far superior to anything you can get at the store!

If you have space, you could even raise chickens for meat, learn how here.

13. How to Cut Up a Whole Chicken

Before we moved to the country and started raising our own food, I couldn’t even reach inside a storebought turkey to take the packet of gizzards out! It was beyond what I could stomach! Now, I can help butcher and gut a chicken that we raised. Time and experience can change a person!

A great frugal skill to have is cutting up a chicken. If you want to buy locally raised meat, often the farmer sells the chicken whole. Why not learn to cut it up for yourself? I have a tutorial with video right here.

14. Woodworking

Learning how to make things from wood is so fulfilling. You can make all sorts of things for you home and save money in the process. Power tools may seem intimidating at first, but once you get the hang of using them, it can be very empowering! One of my favorite projects was this blanket ladder.

see all of my woodworking projects

15. Soap Making

I am getting ready to try this myself it is one of the homemaking skills that I really want to master. I have all of my supplies ordered! A friend showed me how to make soap, but for a refresher, I am referring to this video.

16. Be a Wise Woman

I didn’t put these in any particular order, but truly this should be number 1! Pray and read your Bible. Your life as a homemaker will be far more manageable and fulfilling if you give your heart and life to God! Through the Bible, you will gain the wisdom and instruction you need to truly live a fulfilling life. Here is a post on wisdom.

17. Homeschool

What? How does this fit with homemaking skills? Well, did you know that many of our past presidents and great inventors were homeschooled? Join the ranks of the mother of Abraham Lincoln or Thomas Edison! I included homeschool because our public school system is going through some crazy stuff right now. If you have ever considered homeschooling your children, now would be a great time to give it a go!

Having your children alongside you while you learn to be a homemaker is an education in and of itself. Homeschooling allows the freedom to teach your children to not only read and write, but also to learn old-fashioned and practical skills that will serve them well into the future. Then you don’t have to worry about them being indoctrinated with racism and all manner of deviant lifestyles. You can give them a pure and wholesome childhood.

a few Homeschooling posts

No pressure to do all of these things at all! Pick one or two and get started! I hope you feel inspired to bring some old-fashioned homemaking skills into your modern life!

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