Heat only one room, turn the lights off and shop Ikea… the surprisingly thrifty royals guide to saving money this winter
THE temperature’s dropped which means everyone is looking for tips and tricks to keep warm without having to pay extra costs on the heating.
With the cost of living still at a high, homeowners will be feeling the pinch that slight bit more with our energy bills at an all time high.
And you may not think, but even the royals are extra vigilant with their spending.
With their big palaces, it will take a lot to heat up and decorate.
The family has got some surprisingly thrifty habits to help save money this winter – and we can all learn from them.
Heat only one room
The late Queen Elizabeth preferred to warm up only one individual room with a two-bar electric fire.
Rather than the entire palace, these devices have been previously spotted placed in grand fireplaces and heating only one room in Buckingham Palace and Balmoral Castle – even for visits of foreign dignitaries.
Heating experts have backed this technique up saying a small room may be worth heating individually if it’s less than a quarter of the size of the whole house, although there’s less benefit if your house is well-insulated.
Keep the presents light and funny
Even at Christmas time, the royal family have been known for saving pennies with presents.
Historian Kate Williams has revealed in her book, Young Elizabeth: The Make Of Our Queen, that the late Queen would save wrapping papers and ribbons from gifts previously given to her.
The royals have also been known for keeping gifts low-cost, and humorous at Christmas time.
Be a fan of IKEA
Prince William and Kate revealed in 2018 that Prince George and Princess Charlotte had furniture from IKEA in their bedrooms.
Whilst visiting the National Museum of Architecture and Design in Stockholm, they were speaking to Marcus Engman, IKEA’s head of design, telling his they were fans.
Be a Queen when it comes to turning the lights off
Queen Elizabeth was well known for walking down the corridors of her home and turning off the lights.
There are around 40,000 in Buckingham Palace, so she ensured electricity wasn’t getting wasted.
It’s been reported that The Queen had signs put around the palace saying: “The attention is drawn of all members of staff to the need to switch off unwanted lights. By Order of The Master of The Household.”
Prince Harry revealed in the BBC One documentary ‘Prince, Son and Heir: Charles at 70’ that his father, King Charles III, is another “stickler for turning lights off.”
Every little counts
The royals are big fans of not wasting any food.
The Palace’s chef from 1989 – 2000, Carolyn Robb, revealed that Charles would insist on only being served as much food as he wished to eat – to save from any leftovers.
She says: “[Charles] was very economical and very much believed that nothing should go to waste.
“If we made roasted lamb and there were leftovers, we’d probably go and make Shepherd’s pie the next night.”
His late mother was also known for being frugal when it comes to her food after it was said that she returned half a lemon to the kitchen to avoid waste.