The Frugal Lifestyle

[Linus]

You're cheap, huh? Ol' miser? Don't spend a dime for anything, not even air? Or, perhaps you're the other side of things and want to learn how to do it? I joined, earlier this year, a frugal website. The reality is that with the recent economy I realized that a) was living beyond my own means and b) had "stuff" (see YouTube of George Carlin on "Stuff") that really didn't need to have.

YouTube- George Carlin Talks About "Stuff"

So for those who want ideas on how to be frugal; have ideas to be frugal; want support to be frugal; etc. this would be the place to hang around.

A few sites to help:

Retail Me Not (http://www.retailmenot.com/): a great place to find coupons for online sites

ThunderFAP (Freebies Archive Page) (http://www.thunderfap.com/): free "stuff"! (samples)

[Arwen]

Such an intriguing topic. I am a hoarder trying to reform. I have stripped down on the books but still have enough to fill two 6' bookshelves.

I have some great recipes to help a frightened budget (which is what my aunt titled them when she gave them to my mother in 1960-63).

[Andrew, Jr.]

I have retired because of health reasons. It has really affected/effected what I spend my money on. Coupons are a must do each week. I use several websites like Coupon Bug, and another one, plus I trade things with others (veggies, etc.).

With the economy down the toilet, I think it has influenced everyone. I am not sure of what is going to happen in the future. It has made me think long and hard about what I spend my money on.

[Diva]

I have never been a frugal person, but in the last couple of years, have been on a journey to purge unnecessary stuff from my life. It feels good to get rid of clutter.....I'm not done yet! :rolleyes:

Also, since it's just me in my home, I have no reason to heat this whole house, so I have a space heater that is easy to move. If it gets really cold at night, I throw an extra quilt on the bed....

[Novelafemme]

I am a single mom to two girls who enjoy eating my paycheck the moment it hits the bank.

Arwen, I would love it if you shared your frightened budget recipies with me! LOVE that new phrase :)

I am an avid thrifter and am trying to get out of the habit of making morning coffee stops on my way to drop off the girls at school and getting my hiney to work.

Isn't it terribly difficult breaking those old comfy habits?!?!

Looking forward to reading more tips to help keep our heads afloat during these economically challenging times.

[Bit]

oh, is this my place? :rolleyes: :D :rolleyes:

Couple days ago I emptied a bag of flour into the canister; a bag of sugar into its canister; a box of smashed tato flakes into its canister, but I couldn't bring myself to throw the packages away.

Last night I got frustrated because I have too many magazines and nowhere to put them. :mad: Gotta be something I can do about that!

:cool: *this is a job for SuperBit! ta-daaa!*

So I spent an hour getting messy in the only way I like to get messy: I ripped those bags into palm-sized pieces, cut the box into a magazine caddy shape, and papier mached the bags onto the box with white glue, plain side out.

It would cost me anywhere from $2.50 to $4.00 plus the busfare both ways to go buy a cardboard magazine caddy----and then I would have to throw away the otherwise perfectly usable paper bags and box after all, because my recycler won't take them.

Yanno why I didn't mind gettin messy? I got to peel the glue off my fingers when it dried. That's so cool, lol. ;)

[Gemme]

I'm doing the 'less binging, more purging' thing too. It's freeing when I see the actual space that one, two, ten boxes took up that is now free and empty.

While I prefer to get some money back on the things I was stupid enough to buy (too many clothes....crafts....books....wedding gowns (don't ask....unless you are in the market, of course :p)...and general STUFF), I understand that it's a different time and most people can't afford to buy the same stuff I did before, no matter the condition. So, I'm doing what I can to purge through CL and a local consignment shop. It's very slow-going but I hope some of my nicer things will sell with the holidays coming up.

Coupons.com and other coupon sites help tremendously with food purchases. I'm cooking more at home versus picking stuff up on the fly. It's the perfect season to make stews, chilis, casseroles and other larger dishes that will span several meals. Leftovers rock!

I am a VERY good hunter/gatherer. When I have space, I will stock up months worth of food and household supplies. It's just my nature, so I have to fight myself every time I step into a store.

Do I need this? Really? REALLY REALLY? Okay then. But only ONE...or something like that. :rolleyes:

[Diva]

Bit, what a great idea with the magazine bin! I have let most of my magazine subscriptions go. Someone gave me Everyday Foods (Martha) and to support a school group, I ordered Gourmet. I can't throw those away.

I have learned to buy the store brand on most things. There are some brands I cannot however, because while the store brand of applesauce is just as good, the store brand of maple/brown sugar oatmeal is not. Sometimes a store brand is not a savings at all....and sometimes, the difference in price blows my mind....and I realize I've just been paying for their brand name!

I have found that I simply do my grocery shopping on a full stomach and have a defined list of what I need. I do less impulse shopping that way.

Also, I have found no shame in buying my groceries at Wal~Mart rather than Central Market. When I drive, I try to run all my errands in one big trip, rather than a bunch of small ones.

This is a wonderful thread..... <3

~Diva

[Lady Jewel]

There is a website called zinio.com...magazines can be read online for free or nominal feel. So its a frugal and green way of reading your favorite magazines. Also, they have a lot of LGBTQ mags too.

Wasrmly,
Jewel



Bit, what a great idea with the magazine bin! I have let most of my magazine subscriptions go. Someone gave me Everyday Foods (Martha) and to support a school group, I ordered Gourmet. I can't throw those away.

I have learned to buy the store brand on most things. There are some brands I cannot however, because while the store brand of applesauce is just as good, the store brand of maple/brown sugar oatmeal is not. Sometimes a store brand is not a savings at all....and sometimes, the difference in price blows my mind....and I realize I've just been paying for their brand name!

I have found that I simply do my grocery shopping on a full stomach and have a defined list of what I need. I do less impulse shopping that way.

Also, I have found no shame in buying my groceries at Wal~Mart rather than Central Market. When I drive, I try to run all my errands in one big trip, rather than a bunch of small ones.

This is a wonderful thread..... <3

~Diva

[Diva]

There is a website called zinio.com...magazines can be read online for free or nominal feel. So its a frugal and green way of reading your favorite magazines. Also, they have a lot of LGBTQ mags too.

Wasrmly,
Jewel


OH! Thank You! What a great thing!!! Thanks, Lady J!

~Diva

[pajama]

Bit, what a great idea with the magazine bin! I have let most of my magazine subscriptions go. Someone gave me Everyday Foods (Martha) and to support a school group, I ordered Gourmet. I can't throw those away.

I have learned to buy the store brand on most things. There are some brands I cannot however, because while the store brand of applesauce is just as good, the store brand of maple/brown sugar oatmeal is not. Sometimes a store brand is not a savings at all....and sometimes, the difference in price blows my mind....and I realize I've just been paying for their brand name!

I have found that I simply do my grocery shopping on a full stomach and have a defined list of what I need. I do less impulse shopping that way.

Also, I have found no shame in buying my groceries at Wal~Mart rather than Central Market. When I drive, I try to run all my errands in one big trip, rather than a bunch of small ones.

This is a wonderful thread..... <3

~Diva




Yep, much as I hate it, I no longer shop Publix, opting for Wal-Mart Great Value Brand. The difference in my food budget (with a 14y/o boy in the house) has been phenomenal! And you're right Diva, some things I haven't been able to tell any difference.

I also try to cook once or twice a week, big meals, grilling the meats whenever possible, and put together homemade "tv dinners" and freeze them. That way I have good food for work, the boy has quick, good meals, and I can share them with Mom when she doesn't feel like cooking. Plus cooking it all at once means the stove/cooling/heating energy is reduced slightly.

Great idea Bit for the boxes.

My roommate is moving out the first of the year and that's when I really plan to start purging. It'll be the first time in seven years we haven't shared a home. :(

A

[Diva]

Since it's just me, I cook what I like.....

When I first moved here, I bought a LOT of Lean Cuisines.....I thought ~ at the time ~ those were a GOOD thing for me....but they are SO loaded with sodium! So for the price of about 2 LC's, I can make a huge meatloaf ~ control the amount of salt ~ and have many more than 2 meals from it! The freezer is my friend! Also, I buy frozen bags o' veggies, rather than the canned. I find them to have better flavor. Of course, fresh is ALways best. :D



~Diva

[Lady Jewel]

Diva Ma'am...I have to watch my sodium and cholesterol so I watch the store ads and wait till ground turkey goes on sale. It can be used in any recipe requirirng ground beef and its wayyy healthier. Also, if you want low carb pasta, dreamfields makes a very very low carb pasta that tastes like the real deal and also has a $1.00 off coupon on their website :)


Since it's just me, I cook what I like.....

When I first moved here, I bought a LOT of Lean Cuisines.....I thought ~ at the time ~ those were a GOOD thing for me....but they are SO loaded with sodium! So for the price of about 2 LC's, I can make a huge meatloaf ~ control the amount of salt ~ and have many more than 2 meals from it! The freezer is my friend! Also, I buy frozen bags o' veggies, rather than the canned. I find them to have better flavor. Of course, fresh is ALways best. :D



~Diva

[Rook]

This magazine was awesome with DIY ideas, some are frugal and simple...some are complex, but most fit within a decent Budget....

http://www.readymade.com/blog/

[Linus]

This magazine was awesome with DIY ideas, some are frugal and simple...some are complex, but most fit within a decent Budget....

http://www.readymade.com/blog/

That's looks like a great site. I like the idea of reusing things (our society is a little too throw-away at times).

[Dean Thoreau]

After raising our own softball team of kids...the wife and I stll have not let go of our frugal ways. Cause now we are working on a football team of grandchildren :)

I truly beleive their is a big difference between being frugal and going on the cheap.

My favorite clothing store has been and continues to be GoodWill or Salvation Army thrift shops in fancy neighborhoods....nice clothes cheap prices. I have brooks brothers suits, that cost me 3 dollars....brand new gucci shoes,,,,and various other fancy labels that i prolly paid 1/1000 of the retail price...

My favorite sport is dumpster diving behind nice private colleges during exam time, I get books, computers, refridgerators, microwaves, ipods, u name it.....and yes i have been known to resell them, disinfect and give to my kids or take them over to the goodwill, or give them away...i just cant stand the wastefulness.

Late Garage sale is fun - u stroll aorund after the garage sales and see what they toss,,and trash day in fancy neighborhoods during october and november has wonderful finds...(people redecorate and toss) If I can not use it i will call and see if a friend will want it beore i pick it up,,if it is to good to pass up the goodwill loves the donation.

I also love auctions, cause If i do have to pay for something it will not be a retail price. Best one is www.govdeals.com and yes i am so tempted to buy a fireturck and give it to a small town cause the prices are so low.

But i have purchased my aerator for the lawn thru them, my kids all drive bought at auction cars....maximum i ever paid was 1900 for a 2002 saturn sport coupe.... and yes they run beautifully u just have to know what u r looking for. the saturn had a little bullet hole in the door panel....a buddy of mine fixed it....and i must confess the wife loves antiques..so we go to a dealers auction and part of the cardboard box has that stuff in it....

I adopted this motto about 4 years ago "nothing is worth having unless you can get it for free'... and for the most part a very large part of my fish room furnishings in the cardboard box has been gotten for free.....

The addition to the garage (which is ready to be done) I have obtained all the wood, electric wiring, switches, doors(specific to the plans i drew) over the past 18 months by dumpster diving, asking construction sites for their scrap, picking up the most beautiful oak hand hewn beams that are 10 feet long that someone set out for the garbage cause they were redecorating. It appears i will have to go to the habitat thrift store to buy the windows...so the entire addition will cost me 200 dollars for the 4 windows...(they also have wonderful tools on sale....i have some great wood planers i picked up for 5 or 6 dollars)

My greatest find has been six 8 foot high fish tanks, that i picked up this past summer....the guys at PETCO even helped me get them out of the dumpster and in my truck...
I am currently building a fish wall with them....(I like projects not fix its).

my grandfather and father were both frugal....and their ability to make something from nothing has always been soemthing i respected.
I also however beleive frugality does not mean cheap or lacking.....
My family is frugal so we can .... go to the opera,,,go to concerts,,,have an entire room of fish tanks, pay for the grandchild to go to a pre school...to me frugality is a setting fo priorities.

[violaine]

tag sales can be fun. do any of you have FreeCycle? i have received several huge kennels and dog houses for our projects. free !

[Kimbo]

tag sales can be fun. do any of you have FreeCycle? i have received several huge kennels and dog houses for our projects. free !

I use freecycle as much as I can..

Hope you get many more:dog: kennels..

I admit I am a Goodwill or ValueVillage junkie...:shocking:

[Stacy]

I definitely need to subscribe to this thread. I would really like to get my whole family on board with living a more frugal lifestyle.

[SelfMadeMan]

<---- doesn't like being overly frugal - jus sayin

[Stacy]

:rolleyes:<---- doesn't like being overly frugal - jus sayin

This...I know:rolleyes:

[Bit]

Bit, what a great idea with the magazine bin! Great idea Bit for the boxes.

Thank you both! I've done several more caddies of various sizes but I confess that they don't always get finished before they're loaded down with stuff and I'm on to the next one, lol.... hey, I have two cracker boxes empty right now, woohoo! lol!

Gryph brings home chipboard and cardboard from work, usually packaging from boxes of clothing. Lately he's been bringing home picture frame shaped corrugated cardboard, and now he's having fun experimenting with it. He's got one in progress that is covered not with paper, but aluminum foil, and he's using old leather dye to antique it. Can't wait to see how it comes out!

I buy and cook ahead, also, and I have also discovered that store brands are sometimes incredibly good---better than the name brands, even---and sometimes they're lousy. The only way to find out is to try them.

The same goes for buying from other stores. We have Aldi's here and yes, they are cheaper than any other store... but the quality is inconsistent.

Gryph absolutely HATES wallyworld, so I try not to shop there... but yanno, that Great Value Brand really is good, and very consistent from product to product. The Kroger brands are not consistent, but still more consistent than Aldi's.

Oh, and yes, I also think frozen veggies are way better quality than canned!
~~~~~~~~

Pajara, seven years is a long time! My sympathies on your roommate's moving out.

[atomiczombie]

I am not frugal enough, I admit it. And living on the pittance I get from SSI disability, I should be.

[violaine]

i will be frugal whenever purchasing a lot of items- because name brand on dry beans usually does not matter. the store does, however. marsh sells fava beans for 8$ a package! international market 2$. big difference. produce is very important to me, being a vegan. local tomatoes/farm stands during the summer. aldi is good, but i always check closely the packages underneath for the perishable berries, especially. frozen is not bad, but i never eat store canned. one item i absolutely cannot do the GV brand is coffee! kroger is ohk- but second choice.

[Bit]

I stock up... sometimes it causes temporary budget problems, but oh my, the worry-free months after that! I bought four big canisters of Folgers coffee when it went on sale for $6 several months ago. Tis the kind Gryph prefers and it's cheaper than generic. We still had three canisters left from the last time, giving me seven plus the open one. I have five more months of coffee to go before I will have to pay full price... and I'm always watching to see if they put it on sale like that again. They seem to do so twice a year.

When they changed the size of the veggies at Kroger, I was really upset; they downsized their frozen veggies from 16 oz to 12 oz, but they left the price the same. I bought thirty pounds of the leftover pound bags. We're almost out now, so I'll have to pay the higher price, but in the meantime I discovered that Aldi's sells decent fresh produce at an affordable price--and I discovered I can get there, lol--so I'm not as dependent on the Kroger frozen veggies anymore. here's hoping that next summer I can grow my own and be even more independent! :veggie:

[SuperFemme]

http://www.ycuk.co.uk/acatalog/37055_frugal.jpg

[Medusa]

I wear my "cheap ass" badge proudly :bandana:

Since moving to Arkansas, our monthly financial output is significantly lower. Not just because we don't have a mortgage payment but we also chose to pay off our truck as well.

The biggest difference since coming here is that we RARELY eat out anymore. In Los Angeles, it was nothing for us to eat out 2 - 3 times a week. Being in the sticks like we are here, we can't just run down to the nearest Outback Steakhouse and drop $60 on a meal. Nope. It's more like I buy groceries once a week and we eat at home every night....AND we eat much better.

I have my favorite "cheap ass" discussion every night with Jack over dinner (I dont know how she tolerates me). It goes like this:

Me: "Honey, you will never guess how cheap this dinner is!"
Jack: "I'm sure you're gonna tell me!"
Me: "Well, this piece of roast is HALF of the roast we ate last week that I froze, so that part is $2! The potatoes and carrots are another $2! The onion and gravy MIGHT come out to $1! And the rolls come out to .25 each! So that means that for $6, we are going to get TWO meals EACH. WEEEEEEEEEEE - BABE! THAT COMES OUT TO $1.50 PER MEAL!"

And really, when you think about easily spending $6 for a sack of crap from McDonalds or Wendys -its fabulous!

[blugrass]

The Dollar Store - great place for deals.

My local Safeway grocery store has a "clearance" section in the meat department. It's usually last sale date stuff but the deals can be amazing. Once I got $6/lb bacon for 99 cents. I bought all they had and froze it!

[Cowboi]

I wear my "cheap ass" badge proudly :bandana:

Since moving to Arkansas, our monthly financial output is significantly lower. Not just because we don't have a mortgage payment but we also chose to pay off our truck as well.

The biggest difference since coming here is that we RARELY eat out anymore. In Los Angeles, it was nothing for us to eat out 2 - 3 times a week. Being in the sticks like we are here, we can't just run down to the nearest Outback Steakhouse and drop $60 on a meal. Nope. It's more like I buy groceries once a week and we eat at home every night....AND we eat much better.

I have my favorite "cheap ass" discussion every night with Jack over dinner (I dont know how she tolerates me). It goes like this:

Me: "Honey, you will never guess how cheap this dinner is!"
Jack: "I'm sure you're gonna tell me!"
Me: "Well, this piece of roast is HALF of the roast we ate last week that I froze, so that part is $2! The potatoes and carrots are another $2! The onion and gravy MIGHT come out to $1! And the rolls come out to .25 each! So that means that for $6, we are going to get TWO meals EACH. WEEEEEEEEEEE - BABE! THAT COMES OUT TO $1.50 PER MEAL!"

And really, when you think about easily spending $6 for a sack of crap from McDonalds or Wendys -its fabulous!



I miss having home cooked meals!... When I was growing up I used to think how kool it would be to eat out all the time. Ummmm... Now I wish I had my Moms home cooked meals!

[MizzSabra]

http://www.ycuk.co.uk/acatalog/37055_frugal.jpg

I prefer the term ~ Bargainista.

[Lynn]

We use freecycle, a lot, mostly to pare down all of our stuff. I love giving usable and useful things to others who can really use them.

I have a great partner who clips coupons, reads circulars, and takes advantage of store savings. She does the grocery shopping and saves us lots every week.

[tmbyfem]

Speaking as somebody who invariably seems to choose the most expensive items without knowing (what can I say, I have an eye for quality) I've long been used to squeezing my champagne tastes into a beer budget.

But this summer has been extra challenging what with my hours at work being erratic. Being underemployed sucks but during that time period I learned to live without my weekly Starbucks (I had already cut back from 2-3x/week), going out to lunch or dinner, Sunday papers etc. Small things to be sure but they added up.

Instead I learned to love my slow-cooker again, freezing the extras for later on. I also threw out shocking amounts of fresh food doing a weekly shop so learned to shop Euro style, buying only the fresh things I needed for the next day or so. It really made a difference in reducing food waste.

Being frugal on many things still allows me the occasional splurge and has made me appreciate it that much more when I do.

[Bit]

I have my favorite "cheap ass" discussion every night with Jack over dinner (I dont know how she tolerates me).
*laughing* I dunno how Gryph tolerates me, either.

Have you noticed that after a while of cooking at home, you can't tolerate most fast food? Or is that just me? What a distressing surprise that was! I just cannot handle the grease anymore. :shocking:

Which is pretty funny when you consider that I am NOT a diet cook and I'm all verklempt cuz I didn't realize that I ran out of butter, lol.... but there's such a difference in how my system tolerates what I cook, and most fast food.

I suppose it's just as well, since cooking at home is so much cheaper, eh?

[Gemme]

I wear my "cheap ass" badge proudly :bandana:

Since moving to Arkansas, our monthly financial output is significantly lower. Not just because we don't have a mortgage payment but we also chose to pay off our truck as well.

The biggest difference since coming here is that we RARELY eat out anymore. In Los Angeles, it was nothing for us to eat out 2 - 3 times a week. Being in the sticks like we are here, we can't just run down to the nearest Outback Steakhouse and drop $60 on a meal. Nope. It's more like I buy groceries once a week and we eat at home every night....AND we eat much better.

I have my favorite "cheap ass" discussion every night with Jack over dinner (I dont know how she tolerates me). It goes like this:

Me: "Honey, you will never guess how cheap this dinner is!"
Jack: "I'm sure you're gonna tell me!"
Me: "Well, this piece of roast is HALF of the roast we ate last week that I froze, so that part is $2! The potatoes and carrots are another $2! The onion and gravy MIGHT come out to $1! And the rolls come out to .25 each! So that means that for $6, we are going to get TWO meals EACH. WEEEEEEEEEEE - BABE! THAT COMES OUT TO $1.50 PER MEAL!"

And really, when you think about easily spending $6 for a sack of crap from McDonalds or Wendys -its fabulous!

hahahahahahahahahaha

My housemate is like that. We're both coupon clippers and really shop the sales, but she also has access to the base shopping which has phenomenal deals, so she's always breaking stuff down like that for us. I'm the only one who tolerates her because, secretly, I want to be able to buy 4 bottles of Garnier shampoo for $1.50 too. :bowdown:

[violaine]

reading about coupons, i saw a woman at the market the other day who was flipping through a binder in her buggy. 4x6 clear photo spaces were used for her coupons. pages could be added to the binder.. her book was full of coupons and pages !

[Bit]

Hey! What a cool idea, violaine!

I'm not using too many coupons these days but Kroger does send me coupons on Kroger products... OH how I love that! So I just have a small coupon holder for those.

Has turkey gone on sale for everyone now? I was telling Gryph last night, you can't get even the cheapest-worst-for-you hot dogs for 39 cents a pound!! (Honest, I don't think I can buy ANYTHING for 39 cents a pound anymore--even rice is 50 cents a pound!) This is when I most wish for a big freezer, and this is the time of year I buy the most food. If I have my druthers, I will buy at least two more turkeys--they're small, just 12 to 15 pounds--and I'm considering buying a big stock of sweet taters, too. They're 49 cents a pound and not likely to get any lower than that anywhere. We're likely to have them baked and topped with cheddar cheese for dinner--carrots and sweet taters both have this affinity for cheese, which I discovered by accident--and then I'll have to make sweet tater casserole too, which is, I think, the equivalent of a spicy sweet tater pie without a crust.

The turkeys (I would love to buy half a dozen!) will make main dishes and sandwiches, plus of course there will be stuffing... and the carcasses make wonderful broth when you leave a little meat on the bones, which is fine with me. I might even go all out and make soup from one this year, although truly the broth is great for making rice or noodles and I consider it an ingredient all on its own. I get a lot of food value for that thirty nine cents!

Now if they will only put the winter squashes on sale also--slow roasted Delicata winter squash makes the best pumpkin bread I have ever had! Plus, yanno.... they're great baked and topped with cheese. :cheesy:

[Medusa]

OMG!
I love this time of year too bit! The cheap turkies and sweet potatoes! The celery for .39 ! The eggs for .69!

I need to figure out how to get a cube-type freezer myself because I have heard they are much lower on energy than other freezers and are on sale at sams right now for $99. Imagine how many turkies could fit in that! :thud:

My granny used to cook sweetpotatoes down to a mush and freeze them in plastic containers for breads and such ;)

[apretty]

OMG!
I love this time of year too bit! The cheap turkies and sweet potatoes! The celery for .39 ! The eggs for .69!

I need to figure out how to get a cube-type freezer myself because I have heard they are much lower on energy than other freezers and are on sale at sams right now for $99. Imagine how many turkies could fit in that! :thud:

My granny used to cook sweetpotatoes down to a mush and freeze them in plastic containers for breads and such ;)

i've been secretly wanting a little freezer for the garage--i bought a new fridge for the kitchen that's counter-depth (shallow!) and there's really a LOT less room in it and the freezer is tiny, it's been a constant struggle for the 8 months that i've owned it, trying to make everything fit--all year we need ice and when we buy a bag there's little room left for anything else. do you know how much electricity those small freezers take?

[Bit]

Wow, your sale prices are even better than ours, Dusa!

Chest freezers for $99 at Sam's Club? :drool: Woohooo! But it would be $145 for me, because I'd have to buy the membership... not that I mind a membership, but I'm having a hard time justifying the outlay right now.

apretty, I'm willing to bet those freezers run between $25 and $35 a year on electricity, if that... the newer ones are truly much more efficient. I've heard that chest freezers are more efficient than upright freezers, also, because when you open an upright freezer, all the cold air sinks down to the ground.

[Gemme]

I picked a chest freezer up at a yard sale this summer for $50. It works great! I share it with my roomies but it still makes it easier to take advantage of sales that I wouldn't have been able to before, which is good because my grocery budget for this week is oh, nil. :eek:

Costco memberships start at $60 here, which just goes to prove that EVERYTHING is more expensive in the PNW.

[Medusa]

i've been secretly wanting a little freezer for the garage--i bought a new fridge for the kitchen that's counter-depth (shallow!) and there's really a LOT less room in it and the freezer is tiny, it's been a constant struggle for the 8 months that i've owned it, trying to make everything fit--all year we need ice and when we buy a bag there's little room left for anything else. do you know how much electricity those small freezers take?

I read somewhere that those little ones can be anywhere from $3-$10 to run a month depending on if they are energy-saver or not.

Im in the same boat as you are with the freezer space here - I have a biggo 22 cubic foot side-by-side but for some reason, they decided to put a HUGEEEEE ice-making thing in it and it takes up about 1/3 of the freezer space. The fact that I have a 25-lb turkey in there means that I have even LESS space than usual.

But yeah, CHEAP to run! :princess:

(let's get matchies!)

[Waldo]

Instead I learned to love my slow-cooker again, freezing the extras for later on. I also threw out shocking amounts of fresh food doing a weekly shop so learned to shop Euro style, buying only the fresh things I needed for the next day or so. It really made a difference in reducing food waste.

Being frugal on many things still allows me the occasional splurge and has made me appreciate it that much more when I do.

I should really get a slow cooker. I hate coming home and cooking a meal for myself so I wind up going out more often than not. During the summer or when the weather is decent I will throw something on the grill, but once winter sets in... not so much.


I need to figure out how to get a cube-type freezer myself because I have heard they are much lower on energy than other freezers and are on sale at sams right now for $99. Imagine how many turkies could fit in that! :thud:


When I was a kid my parents bought a used cube freezer from a hunter. Damn thing smelled like pheasant for months. Lots and lots of Arm & Hammer later it was great. We used to make reubens and freeze them so we could just pop a couple in the oven for dinner during winter months.

[tmbyfem]

http://www.groupon.com

Groupon.com has great deals on restaurants and services for 35 cities throughout the US, often 50% off or more.

You get emails announcing the special of the day. Sometimes its a restaurant, other times it's things like spa services or kayak tours (to mention some of the recent San Diego bargins). If the minimum amount of people sign up within a specific time period (usually 20 or so) the deal is on. You have a limited amount of time to sign up for the deal then a coupon is sent via email the next day. Restrictions on when the coupon can be used is up to the individual vendor but usually there are little or no limits, just be mindful of the expiration date. Print it out and presto... bargin city.

Use this link to sign up and I'll get a $10 Groupon credit for each new member.
http://www.groupon.com/r/uu128214

Earlier this week I had a hunger for some soul food from local place I love but haven't indulged in a long time because of my tight budget. But today Bonnie Jean's was the Groupon special so I got a coupon for $30 worth of food for only $15.

It's like they read my mind... I see smothered chops, collard greens, mac-n-cheese and red velvet cake in my future soon!!

[Gemme]

http://www.groupon.com

Groupon.com has great deals on restaurants and services for over 35 cities throughout the US, often 50% off or more.

You get emails announcing the special of the day. Sometimes its a restaurant, other times it's things like spa services or kayak tours (to mention some of the recent San Diego bargins). If the minimum amount of people sign up within a specific time period (usually 20 or so) the deal is on. You have a limited amount of time to sign up for the deal then a coupon is sent via email the next day. Restrictions on when the coupon can be used is up to the individual vendor but usually there are little or no limits, just be mindful of the expiration date. Print it out and presto... bargin city.

Use this link to sign up and I'll get a $10 Groupon credit for each new member

http://www.groupon.com/r/uu128214

Earlier this week I had a hunger for some soul food from local place I love but haven't indulged in a long time because of my tight budget. But today Bonnie Jean's was the Groupon special so I got a coupon for $30 worth of food for only $15.

It's like they read my mind... I see smothered chops, collard greens, mac-n-cheese and red velvet cake in my future soon!!


I LOVE 3 out of the 4 things you mentioned. :drool:

[tmbyfem]

I LOVE 3 out of the 4 things you mentioned. :drool:

OH!! Did I mention the fried chicken?!? Or catfish?!? BBQ short ribs?? Or how about the black-eyed peas and sweet potatoes!?!? How about red beans and rice!?!?

OMG the dinner combinations are endless *drool*

[tmbyfem]

I should really get a slow cooker. I hate coming home and cooking a meal for myself so I wind up going out more often than not. During the summer or when the weather is decent I will throw something on the grill, but once winter sets in... not so much.

I'm not a big fan of cooking solo for the same reasons but had to adjust when things got tight. I much perfer to cook when I have someone to share it with.

So when I make a crock-pot of chili or spaghetti sauce I'll divide it into thirds. One third I eat fresh, usually its enough for a couple days worth of dinners and/or lunch. I split what's left into two freezer bags.

This helps in two ways... one I don't get sick and tired of eating the same thing for days and days but most importantly, after a long day at work I can make a quick tasty meal. I take it out of the freezer and put into the fridge the night before to defrost. When I get home all I need to do is warm it up and boil some pasta or make a salad. There's dinner sorted and I have enough left over for lunch or dinner the next day. Easy peasy!!

[Gemme]

OH!! Did I mention the fried chicken?!? Or catfish?!? BBQ short ribs?? Or how about the black-eyed peas and sweet potatoes!?!? How about red beans and rice!?!?

OMG the dinner combinations are endless *drool*


*laughs*

You are NOT right, girl!

Throw in some REAL cornbread (they don't know what it is up here) and you'll have a friend for life in me.

[tmbyfem]

LOL!!! Maybe too much self denial can make one a bit over enthusiatic sometimes, eh? :freak: I'll take that as a compliment nonetheless :)

I cannot tell you how much I love Bonnie Jean's, I haven't been there since spring. Oh they do cornbread too!! And peach cobbler and sweet tea...

As far it being "real" or not all I can say is once I took a butch I was dating from North Carolina there. Doubtful as to finding "real" soul food in SoCal she took one bite of fried chicken, closed her eyes in bliss and sighed "Just like mama makes." Best endorsment possible. If you ever find yourself in this neck of the woods drop me a line and we'll chow down.

Dee-lish!!

[Blade]

Frugal is my grandmothers middle name. If there is a way to squeeze a nickle and hear the buffalo fart she knows it. I'll be back.

[Bit]

I felt ever-so-frugal this past week; made mac-n-veggies; used the same water to boil the veggies that I boiled the macaroni in. At that point it was broth, sort of--so I saved it and used it to make rice.

:cheer: Frugal, frugal frugal!!! :cheer:

:cheesy: I cooked the veggies in it cuz it was already hot, and I made the rice with it cuz it tasted really good.... oh. Wait.

Did I just lose my Frugality Points?

:whoop:

[Blade]

I posted this the other day but somehow it got lost and isn't on here.

My Grandma washes dishes only in hot water, wash and rinse. She turns on the hot water and catches the cold water coming out first in a milk jug. When it gets hot she runs about 2" of hot water in 2 small square plastic tubs.

She uses the water she caught in the milk jug to water her plants with. This reduces wasting water and saves on the water and sewer bill.

[Miss Scarlett]

I combine my trips and resist impulse buys.

Most of my groceries come from Trader Joe's and the majority of my produce at the big farmer's market down the road. What little meat I eat is purchased from a local grower - it's 100% grass-fed and organic and actually costs about the same as at the grocers. I only visit the supermarket when I need something they don't sell at TJ's. I also get items at Target or PetSmart. My boss just added me to the firm's Sam's Club - so I'll see how that pans out.

I try to reuse things as much as possible. Last fall I used my jar "collection" to can a few gallons of homemade apple butter. Dollar Tree is pretty good for some things but you really have to shop the place. I got a boatload of Fresh Step litter deodorizer there several months ago - they don't carry it any longer because it was a special purchase.

I'm looking forward to moving closer to work later this year. Right now I've got a 60 mile round trip commute and my gas budget nearly quadrupled when I changed jobs last year (the old round trip was 8 miles). I want something close enough to the office that will allow me to walk or bike to work.

Eating out is something saved for special occasions and I carry my lunch to work. Bottled water is a rare purchase that's what the Pur filter in the kitchen is for.

[Gemme]

I posted this the other day but somehow it got lost and isn't on here.

My Grandma washes dishes only in hot water, wash and rinse. She turns on the hot water and catches the cold water coming out first in a milk jug. When it gets hot she runs about 2" of hot water in 2 small square plastic tubs.

She uses the water she caught in the milk jug to water her plants with. This reduces wasting water and saves on the water and sewer bill.

I saw you mention it on another thread! So, it wasn't lost, just hiding from you. :)

[Blade]

I saw you mention it on another thread! So, it wasn't lost, just hiding from you. :)

OH well thanks I thought it was this thread my bad. I thought I was losing my mind actually. I'm missing another post too bet I miss placed it too.

[Gemme]

OH well thanks I thought it was this thread my bad. I thought I was losing my mind actually. I'm missing another post too bet I miss placed it too.

lol

That's what you get for posting, huh?

As long as the info is out there, it's a good thing, I think.

[Linus]

Welp. I cashed in a whack of stock and used it to pay off 60% of my debt in one fell swoop. I feels so good to have that finally gone. I figured out it probably saved me about -- very rough estimate -- $10K (yes.. $10,000) in interest alone! :| That's the cost of top surgery at a really good surgeon!

[Canela]

How about FREE???

Ben and Jerry's is giving away a free ice cream cone today to their customers in appreciation which is awesome cuz I soo do appreciate Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia Ice Cream!!!
http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/03/23/free-cone-today-at-ben-and-jerrys/?icid=main|main|dl6|link4|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.walletp op.com%2Fblog%2F2010%2F03%2F23%2Ffree-cone-today-at-ben-and-jerrys%2F




:koolaid:

[AtLast]

The other night, I caught some TV show with a woman that was one hell of a coupon expert! She went grocery shopping and bought $130 worth of stuff and by the time she used her store discount card and all of the coupons she had... she paid 89 cents!!! Guess it was a shopping channel- I had insomnia and just turned the TV on....

Freaking AMAZING!!! I am working on my coupon strategy right now!!! :nerd:

[Leigh]

Wow Atlast, thats truly amazing!

[Gemme]

The other night, I caught some TV show with a woman that was one hell of a coupon expert! She went grocery shopping and bought $130 worth of stuff and by the time she used her store discount card and all of the coupons she had... she paid 89 cents!!! Guess it was a shopping channel- I had insomnia and just turned the TV on....

Freaking AMAZING!!! I am working on my coupon strategy right now!!! :nerd:

Did they call her the Coupon Mom? If so, that woman is AMAZING! She does that ALL THE TIME. :greendollar:

[AtLast]

Did they call her the Coupon Mom? If so, that woman is AMAZING! She does that ALL THE TIME. :greendollar:

OMG! Kewl, I am going to find her on TV again!!!
WOW!!!! My new hero is The Coupon Mom!!!

Wow Atlast, thats truly amazing!

I was awestruck!!! Obviously she has to do some planning, but think of the $ you could save! Here, I thought I used coupons well. No way!

CHA-CHING!!! :greendollar:

[moxie]

OMG! Kewl, I am going to find her on TV again!!!
WOW!!!! My new hero is The Coupon Mom!!!



I was awestruck!!! Obviously she has to do some planning, but think of the $ you could save! Here, I thought I used coupons well. No way!

CHA-CHING!!! :greendollar:

I don't think this is her, but you should try http://www.moneysavingmom.com

TONS of coupons and deals at stores. She also talks about how she shops with coupons and spends I think it is $40/week to feed a family of five. And she ALWAYS has money left and how she used the extra money to pay 100% down on a house.

Site is awesome.

[AtLast]

I don't think this is her, but you should try http://www.moneysavingmom.com

TONS of coupons and deals at stores. She also talks about how she shops with coupons and spends I think it is $40/week to feed a family of five. And she ALWAYS has money left and how she used the extra money to pay 100% down on a house.

Site is awesome.

Totally AWESOME!!! Thanks! I love saving money!!!

[Linus]

Welp. I get to update this. I may be able to wipe out another debt. I went to H&R Block, got my taxes done and found out I only need to pay about $200 to NYC for taxes (my company didn't realize that Queens is part of NYC until April 09). But my federal return will equal around $3K. On top of that, after talk with my rep (and will verify with my g/f father who's a tax accountant) I apparently set aside too much from the stocks I sold towards taxes I believed I would have to pay on selling them (since I won't have to pay taxes on those until next year and I'll be doing a cross-country move along with getting my 401K going even more, I set aside an amount for it in a high-interest account that I never access other than to put my Emergency Funds in). Between the tax return and the excess tax funds I had set aside, it will pay off another credit card (about another 10%) leaving me with one credit card and the line of credit to pay off.

w00t!

[Diva]

I found this really neat website......stumbled onto it, actually!

Lots of good information! Hope You find it useful as well!


http://www.stretcher.com/index.cfm

[Medusa]

Anyone bring their lunches to work?

I once added up the cost of a Starbucks every morning and an out-lunch every day and it was pretty embarrassing to spend that amount of money on food and beverage.

Jack and I went to the store last week and got all kinds of fancy lunchmeat, lettuce, fancy bread and cheese, and good sandwich spread so we can have lunches at work that we actually look forward to.
Yanno, it kinda sucks to eat a crappy peanut butter and jelly on cheap-ass bread.

Today, I found a Marie Callendar pot pie in the back of the freezer. Its a parmesean chicken one and so far is pretty good :)

Tell me your ideas on saving money on food and drink at work!

[Diva]

I'm on this quest now to see just how long I can go between visits to the grocery store. Today, I have to go as my daughter will be here tomorrow and so I have to break my streak, I guess!

But it made me realize just how much I DON'T really need. So when I run out of bread, I go to crackers. Tuna salad tastes just as good on a cracker as it does on whole wheat. :D

[SassyLeo]

I spend about $150 (sometimes up to $200) per month on groceries. I make most lunches and dinners at home and eat out maybe 1 time per week- Usually Sunday breakfast with Erin. I buy things that can make different kinds of meals.

For instance: I buy several boxes of Israeli Couscous (YUM) or a 5 grain mix that Trader Joe's sells, which I make with chicken broth. Sometimes I will use it for a side dish with chicken or pork chops... just add some veggies. Also I make a cold salad with it for lunches.

I never eat out for lunch at work. The rare occasion is a group/team lunch thing we do like 6 or 8 times per year.

And I rarely buy coffee at work. I either make it at home or drink tea.

Lunch would normally cost about $7-8 per day. Coffee around $3. So that comes to $140 for food and $60 for coffee. $200 on lunch alone!

Ask June ... I'm a thrifty shopper. :nerd: :balloon:

[Chancie]

Pete installed an under the counter coffee maker in my little kitchen, and I have basically stopped buying coffee on the way to work. Then I bought a very beautiful water bottle and I stopped buying bottled water.

Oh, if only I had room for a freezer.

[Gemme]

Anyone bring their lunches to work?

I once added up the cost of a Starbucks every morning and an out-lunch every day and it was pretty embarrassing to spend that amount of money on food and beverage.

Jack and I went to the store last week and got all kinds of fancy lunchmeat, lettuce, fancy bread and cheese, and good sandwich spread so we can have lunches at work that we actually look forward to.
Yanno, it kinda sucks to eat a crappy peanut butter and jelly on cheap-ass bread.

Today, I found a Marie Callendar pot pie in the back of the freezer. Its a parmesean chicken one and so far is pretty good :)

Tell me your ideas on saving money on food and drink at work!

Yup. I do bring my lunch/dinner/snack to work. Every once in a while I will give in and call a local pie place and get one of their medium sized $5 pizzas (that's $5 even, tax included). It always looks like I'm moving in because I'll bring a big recyclable bag (the kind you can reuse to shop in) full of things I could eat. I bring different options so I'm less likely to say "I don't want that, lemme call that Chinese place or whatever".

As far as TV dinners go, I wait until the Lean Cuisine Spa Entrees are on sale for $1.88 (the magic price) a piece and then I hit Albertson's with a stack of coupons and their store "double" off coupons (up to a dollar for each coupon), so I've been able to get about 15 of those suckers at a time for less than 80 cents a piece. Not only do they give me yummy dishes like Pumpkin Ravioli but (with the exception of a higher sodium content) are very healthy. I mix them with my homemade meals like navy bean and onion soup and the more 'lunchy' type foods (sandwiches) and the fruit I pick up at my food bank (I had my first apple pear from there!) and those 15 will last me a month.

[Nattih]

I want the savy-cents couponer wallet. It's a pretty patent leather wallet, that has the accordion file for coupons and space for your regular wallet needs. I wish it wasn't $30 all together because that's not being too frugal :(

[freyja]

i find it very easy to not eat out at lunch.
Thank goodness for the good skills my mother instilled in us kids.
i have a delightful purple lunch carrying case that goes with me to work and on weekends.
i make sure to pack it if i know i will be out past meal time (say Saturday morning errands that might run longer than expected).

i keep water, a drinkin box, homemade banana bread and sometimes cheese and crackers as stand by snacks to keep me okay til i get home to real food.
First, the thought of eating garbage at a drive thru place (pick any of them) does not do my health any good. Second, it's expensive!

i keep my coffee shop spending to a minimum, perhaps twice a week, sometimes not at all.

It's not hard at all once you get into the habit of it.

[Andrea]

I take my breakfast and lunch to work every day. I am just not ready to eat breakfast before I leave for work and if I eat too early, I am hungry before lunch.

I like non-breakfast type stuff for breakfast so during the colder months Rene will make me a pot of pinto beans and a pot of bulgar wheat, which I combine with a dollop of smart butter. In the warmer months, I take rice milk and fruit, and add cereal from the box I keep at work.

Lunch is usually leftovers from dinner then night before. I make up a bowl as I clean up the kitchen so it is all ready when I pack my lunchbox in the morning.

I also take snacks such as an apple, cut up celery or pita bread and hummus, almonds, yogurt, etc., so I don't hit the junk food machines.

There is an 8 pack of diet Pepsi in the office fridge. I actually sell more than I drink, but it pays for the soda.

I used to treat myself to designer coffees now and then but there isn't any place near the building I am working in now so Rene bought me a one cup coffee maker for my desk and I love it. The Brita water filter pitcher saves me from buying bottled water too.

I get all squeamish when I think about putting my food in the smelly office fridge so I carry an ice pack in an insulated lunchbox (the soda doesn't bother me).

Andrea

[Bit]

I make lunch for Gryph and pack it along with a couple of drinks in his backpack for work. He prefers his Gatorade watered down a little, and his tea boiled strong; also takes a cup of coffee to work with him. The Gatorade is $1.50 a day at work and I only pay at most $2 for a week's worth at the grocery store, so there's $5.50 a week right there.

Days when I just cannot get it together enough to cook in time, he spends anywhere from $5 to $8 on lunch, so I make a pretty big effort to cook ahead and make sure there's always something lunch-worthy in the fridge. I normally get three lunches out of $4 worth of ingredients, so a conservative estimate would be that we spend $8 a week and that saves us approximately $17 a week--or more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~

A very kind soul *kisses to you!* sent me a gift card to Dollar General and I got a ride over there today. Wow, I found Crest Prohealth in the big tube for a dollar less than the grocery store and it came with a freebie sample of the rinse. I also got Glucosamine Chondroiten--Gryph says it really does make a difference with his knees--for half price. Then I found some hair squinchies for me (mine have finally all given up the elastic ghost) and some eeensy rubber bands for his braids (he wears braids to honor his Native American heritage) for a dollar apiece!! It was great!
~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, Gryph and I splurged and had a fast food dinner the other evening. I would tell you it was our anniversary dinner, but lol!! We FORGOT!!! (can we count it in retrospect?) Ah well. Anyhow, I asked to go out because we needed to talk away from distractions, interruptions, and tension. It was kinda hard to get the conversation started... how strange to have an attack of shyness after being together for three years, eh? and over such a prosaic and mundane topic, too.

We needed to talk about money.

Gryph thought I was nuts. :cheesy: He said we do fine, that he's good with how I handle the budget. I think he was pretty concerned until he realized I just needed input. There were things we hadn't talked about, yanno? So we spent a couple hours talking about the priorities of life.

What sparked it might seem silly or even inconsequential to others. Two magazines are up for renewal. They're more expensive than most of our magazines--and they're Native American magazines. So instead of just deciding to let them go, I needed to know what kind of priority they have in his life, whether the content makes a difference (yep, it sure does!). That led us to a discussion about what's important and in which ways.

I discovered things which surprised me, like a museum membership would be a really bad birthday gift because he really doesn't care about museums (what threw me on that one was the one N.A. magazine, since it's from the National Museum of the American Indian)... but on the other hand, he wants to decorate That House to be respectful of the Craftsman era, so if I find copper Craftsman-style lamps or mailboxes or furniture that we can afford, I should get them. And while landscaping the yard is a low priority for him, making me happy is a high priority, so it's okay with him if I spend money on a food garden even when the budget is squeaking. (He wins, I bought a raspberry vine today!)

Anyhow it was an interesting discussion, as much for the things we forgot to talk about as for all the things we did talk about. We started with a given: That House must be repaired, and all the bills must be paid. After that we ranked things low, medium, and high priority in terms of spending money--there were a few things that are high priority in terms of time and energy that are medium or even low in terms of money--and while we talked about ways to improve our lives, we completely forgot to talk about things like a new computer or cell phone service. :blink:

Like I said, it was interesting! And now I have a much clearer idea where our money should go, and what is most important in our lives.

[Medusa]

You all inspired me to do a little math this morning :)

So Jack and I have some goals about things we want to do for the house.
We need a new roof and hot water heater but also want to put new flooring throughout our house, paint for most of the inside, and new fixtures and faucets. That's a nice chunk of dough.
It kinda made me think about all the impulse buying that we do (which, dont get me wrong is probably significantly less than a lot of folks) and I started thinking about the lunches out as "impulse buys".

So here's a math comparison:

We went to Wal-Mart the other day to get some good stuff for lunch:
2 loaves of very good honey-wheat bread = $5
2 packs of very good ham and roast beef = $7
2 packages of higher end swiss cheese = $8
Head of lettuce = $1
Nice big bottle of gourmet-style mustard = $2
Huge Bag of Sunchips = $3
2 Boxes of granola bars = $5
12-pack Diet Coke = $3
6-pack Mott's Applesauce = $2

Total= $36.

Combined with a few things we already have at the house like dry-roasted peanuts and banana chips as snacks and wheat-toast for breakfast, the list above will get us through almost 2 weeks of breakfasts and lunches at work FOR TWO.

That comes out to $18 each per week or about $3.50 a day.

The reason I talked specifically about "very good" ham and specific chips is because Jack and I both are such cheapasses that we have made the mistake before of buying really cheap, crappy stuff for lunch and then by the time it's lunchtime, that soggy-ass sandwich and off-brand BADLY-flavored chips are WAY less than appetizing. We finally figured out that if you actually ENJOY your lunch, you probably would be less prone to throwing it away and buying something...thus costing money for the lunch you threw away AND the lunch you bought.

If we were to have eaten out on the above model, here's the math:

Sack of crap for lunch for two = $12 per day
Coffee or sausage biscuit bullshit from McDonals for 2 = $6 per day

That would be $18 PER DAY, or $90 a week for two versus $36 for a MUCH healthier meal.
Savings would be about $54, or over $200 a month. :|

and dont even get me started on trying to ween myself off of my $5 a coffee habit at Starbucks :|

Needless to say, like Bit, we kinda talked about our priorities and how we could translate that into our budget.
We concluded that we would much rather have the extra $200 a month for paint or tile, new landscaping a bit at a time, or some yard furniture. :)

[christie]

'Dusa -

Sounds like you have really gotten off to a good start - I, too, once had a $5 Starbucks habit THREE times a DAY! The habit was brought to a screeching halt when I moved to VA and Jess informed me the nearest Starbucks was TWENTY THREE miles away from the house!

Even though now there is one about a half mile from my office, I only indulge about once a month.

In talking about frugality and home improvement, I'm not sure if you know about Habitat's ReStore. Its basically a thrift shop with home improvement items and the proceeds go to Habitat. Here is the link for the AR locations:
http://www.habitat.org/cd/env/restore_detail.aspx?place=51

Its kinda like most thrift shops - hit and miss. The one closest to us now is in Mt. Airy and while they don't have the selection that Richmond's location does, we have managed to snag a couple of deals there. Bathroom sink - $20. The lovely cast iron/almond enamel kitchen sink was $50, but with a new faucet set from Lowe's and it looks perfectly fine.

I must admit that I am quite an impulsive shopper and that I have been looking lately at the retail therapy I do in replacement for eating therapy. It didn't stop me from the Wii and the Wii Fit last week, but I am becoming more aware of how I need to slow down and find a different habit - maybe it will be using the Wii Fit!

[Medusa]

'Dusa -

Sounds like you have really gotten off to a good start - I, too, once had a $5 Starbucks habit THREE times a DAY! The habit was brought to a screeching halt when I moved to VA and Jess informed me the nearest Starbucks was TWENTY THREE miles away from the house!

Even though now there is one about a half mile from my office, I only indulge about once a month.

In talking about frugality and home improvement, I'm not sure if you know about Habitat's ReStore. Its basically a thrift shop with home improvement items and the proceeds go to Habitat. Here is the link for the AR locations:
http://www.habitat.org/cd/env/restore_detail.aspx?place=51

Its kinda like most thrift shops - hit and miss. The one closest to us now is in Mt. Airy and while they don't have the selection that Richmond's location does, we have managed to snag a couple of deals there. Bathroom sink - $20. The lovely cast iron/almond enamel kitchen sink was $50, but with a new faucet set from Lowe's and it looks perfectly fine.

I must admit that I am quite an impulsive shopper and that I have been looking lately at the retail therapy I do in replacement for eating therapy. It didn't stop me from the Wii and the Wii Fit last week, but I am becoming more aware of how I need to slow down and find a different habit - maybe it will be using the Wii Fit!


We LOVE Re-Store!!!!

When we were in California, we lived about 4 miles from one of the best Re-Stores I have ever been to. It was HUGE and had tons of older fixtures from craftsman homes and churches. Even had furniture and lottttttts of decorative stuff. We scored a bunch of good stuff there to fix up our old place and right before we left, we scored a brand new Neptune dryer still in the box for like $100.

We discovered a Re-Store not too far from where we lived and the Manager asked Jack to take on a Project Manager position for an all-female build that is coming up this summer (schedule permitting). The store itself is tiny and not very well-stocked but still, we check it when we can for caulk and nails and other bits.

I will say that Jack scored 2 huge boxes of nails that were normally in the $40 range for $3 each at the old store right before we moved. Between the cases of nails, the dryer, and all the canned "survival" food, our poor Penske was sitting on FLAT leaf-springs the whole way to Arkansas.
Ai. Yi. YI!

[Jess]

I used to get up and make the girl's lunch everyday. When we moved and she has to stay away from home part of the week I wasn't able to do this any longer and it actually makes me sad.

When we have a good weekend ( meaning no family chaos or projects haven't over taken all of our time), we do some shopping and I make her several lunch and dinner type things and pack them in a cooler for her to take with. I HATE that she has to rely so much on food cooked by other people.. grrrr... so I want to make it a priority to make sure to send her off with good healthy food that she likes and will eat.

This time of year is great for eating well cheaply. Gardening certainly supplements (and if I were further along it would replace need for the produce section), but there are quite a few good produce stands/ farmers markets to pick up fresh stuff from.

We have lots of home projects ahead of us also. I soooo feel you guys Medusa on the new roof. We need one and want to do the no maint. metal roof so we'll be getting estimates soon. There are no leaks, however we have lost a lot of shingles, so we are trying to knock out some other projects before that, as it is a pretty major expense. One of our fall projects will be insulating under the house. If possible we are going to run pipes under the house that will come off the water stove and create radiant heat, then insulate around it all. This old place is cold as heck downstairs in the winter, last winter surely taught us that insulation is truly the gift that keeps on giving!

Good thread folks! Love the couponmom!

[christie]

I used to get up and make the girl's lunch everyday. When we moved and she has to stay away from home part of the week I wasn't able to do this any longer and it actually makes me sad.

When we have a good weekend ( meaning no family chaos or projects haven't over taken all of our time), we do some shopping and I make her several lunch and dinner type things and pack them in a cooler for her to take with. I HATE that she has to rely so much on food cooked by other people.. grrrr... so I want to make it a priority to make sure to send her off with good healthy food that she likes and will eat.

This time of year is great for eating well cheaply. Gardening certainly supplements (and if I were further along it would replace need for the produce section), but there are quite a few good produce stands/ farmers markets to pick up fresh stuff from.

We have lots of home projects ahead of us also. I soooo feel you guys Medusa on the new roof. We need one and want to do the no maint. metal roof so we'll be getting estimates soon. There are no leaks, however we have lost a lot of shingles, so we are trying to knock out some other projects before that, as it is a pretty major expense. One of our fall projects will be insulating under the house. If possible we are going to run pipes under the house that will come off the water stove and create radiant heat, then insulate around it all. This old place is cold as heck downstairs in the winter, last winter surely taught us that insulation is truly the gift that keeps on giving!

Good thread folks! Love the couponmom!

Wha??? You saying that WaWa can't cook??? LOL LOL

I MISS my lunches. I swear, you are the ONLY person I know that can make a salad and it weigh 10lbs!!

I can't WAIT for fried baloney sammiches with fresh 'maters!

[Sachita]

My adult son recently moved out for the third time. Times are tough, which is why he lived here 4 months and while he was here he complained about how much money going out to eat would cost. I told him to give 25.00 a week and I'd help him. I bought milk, cereal, stuff for sandwiches, pasta, etc. I didnt cook for him everyday but made stuff available to him and often made him leftovers, sandwiches, salads. I also told him to stop buying bottled water to save money and the planet. I have good water and a water filter.

Sunday we had dinner and we were talking. He said he was able to get ahead and save money. He estimated that just a few changes and eating home at least 4 days a week he saved 100.00 or more a week. It all adds up especially if you're dating. He sat down with his GF and together they came up with a system so they could both save money and be more frugal. I was happy to see him do so because being frugal makes you think and more conscious of everything around you. Now if I can just get him into gardening!

[Bit]

I used to get up and make the girl's lunch everyday. When we moved and she has to stay away from home part of the week I wasn't able to do this any longer and it actually makes me sad.


I hear you on that, Jess! I think I would be pretty sad if I couldn't cook for Gryph; I don't always consciously think about the cooking being a way of showing my love, but it is, all the same.

Hey Dusa, I didn't do the multiquote thang but I did want to say, I've learned the same lesson about the really cheap food being so unappetizing and then costing more because you have to replace it. Good point!

[Jess]

Wha??? You saying that WaWa can't cook??? LOL LOL

I MISS my lunches. I swear, you are the ONLY person I know that can make a salad and it weigh 10lbs!!

I can't WAIT for fried baloney sammiches with fresh 'maters!

I thought you adored that I am a size King :flashy:

[christie]

Hear hear on the cheaper food items! Some things are never truer than "you get what you pay for."

And yes, my beautiful size King, I adore every lil thing about you, even the laundry nazi part. (One might think that there are certain chores I don't mind being banned from!)

[Gemme]

I make lunch for Gryph and pack it along with a couple of drinks in his backpack for work. He prefers his Gatorade watered down a little, and his tea boiled strong; also takes a cup of coffee to work with him. The Gatorade is $1.50 a day at work and I only pay at most $2 for a week's worth at the grocery store, so there's $5.50 a week right there.

Days when I just cannot get it together enough to cook in time, he spends anywhere from $5 to $8 on lunch, so I make a pretty big effort to cook ahead and make sure there's always something lunch-worthy in the fridge. I normally get three lunches out of $4 worth of ingredients, so a conservative estimate would be that we spend $8 a week and that saves us approximately $17 a week--or more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~

A very kind soul *kisses to you!* sent me a gift card to Dollar General and I got a ride over there today. Wow, I found Crest Prohealth in the big tube for a dollar less than the grocery store and it came with a freebie sample of the rinse. I also got Glucosamine Chondroiten--Gryph says it really does make a difference with his knees--for half price. Then I found some hair squinchies for me (mine have finally all given up the elastic ghost) and some eeensy rubber bands for his braids (he wears braids to honor his Native American heritage) for a dollar apiece!! It was great!
~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, Gryph and I splurged and had a fast food dinner the other evening. I would tell you it was our anniversary dinner, but lol!! We FORGOT!!! (can we count it in retrospect?) Ah well. Anyhow, I asked to go out because we needed to talk away from distractions, interruptions, and tension. It was kinda hard to get the conversation started... how strange to have an attack of shyness after being together for three years, eh? and over such a prosaic and mundane topic, too.

We needed to talk about money.

Gryph thought I was nuts. :cheesy: He said we do fine, that he's good with how I handle the budget. I think he was pretty concerned until he realized I just needed input. There were things we hadn't talked about, yanno? So we spent a couple hours talking about the priorities of life.

What sparked it might seem silly or even inconsequential to others. Two magazines are up for renewal. They're more expensive than most of our magazines--and they're Native American magazines. So instead of just deciding to let them go, I needed to know what kind of priority they have in his life, whether the content makes a difference (yep, it sure does!). That led us to a discussion about what's important and in which ways.

I discovered things which surprised me, like a museum membership would be a really bad birthday gift because he really doesn't care about museums (what threw me on that one was the one N.A. magazine, since it's from the National Museum of the American Indian)... but on the other hand, he wants to decorate That House to be respectful of the Craftsman era, so if I find copper Craftsman-style lamps or mailboxes or furniture that we can afford, I should get them. And while landscaping the yard is a low priority for him, making me happy is a high priority, so it's okay with him if I spend money on a food garden even when the budget is squeaking. (He wins, I bought a raspberry vine today!)

Anyhow it was an interesting discussion, as much for the things we forgot to talk about as for all the things we did talk about. We started with a given: That House must be repaired, and all the bills must be paid. After that we ranked things low, medium, and high priority in terms of spending money--there were a few things that are high priority in terms of time and energy that are medium or even low in terms of money--and while we talked about ways to improve our lives, we completely forgot to talk about things like a new computer or cell phone service. :blink:

Like I said, it was interesting! And now I have a much clearer idea where our money should go, and what is most important in our lives.


Isn't it funny how a seemingly small thing will create big waves of communication? I just did this with myself, concerning my Women's Heath magazine. I already have two others, so I've opted to let it go and go veg at the library once a month to catch up. If I see any articles I just CANNOT live without, I'll copy them or bring a notebook to jot ideas down in.

I've already decided to venture more into the library now that I have little to no internet at work and I usually have a good chunk of down time.

I've gone through my finances a LOT in the past few days. Getting my hours cut at work is costing me quite a bit, so I've been looking at ways to trim my budget. Next month, since it's too late to cancel it for this month, the Y membership goes. Since I won't be driving across town 4-5 days a week, my gas will be less too. My cell plan is getting cut to the bare bones and texting will be nixed or minimalized as much as possible too. I have a credit watch program that I'm cutting (it's not like I can do anything now anyway to repair and restore it).

I already did the bring your lunch thing and I rarely go out. Last month, I stopped for an order of California rolls and that was $5. That was it as far as going out goes. Now, my food and miscellaneous budget are being cut in half. So, toiletries and hygienic things are going to change as far as brands go and I am going to have to give some things up. Regular moisturizer instead of defying gravity and free radicals stuff, for example. My food budget is implemented by the food bank (I think I mentioned that already), which is a Godsend. Some days, I can get fresh produce there.

It's *definitely* all about what's important to you. Making the reunion is important to me, so I'll be showing up with graying hair instead of the fabulous color job I wanted, more wrinkles than I wanted, paler skin than I wanted, stubbier skin than I wanted (man, giving up the waxing hurts.....I didn't realize how much I enjoyed the results), and just looking crappier than I would like to but I'll be there and that is more important than looking good to me. I miss my community.

[Linus]

Welp. I put up the sofa, dining room table, a rice cooker and the George Foreman grill up on Craigslist. Hopefully they will go. I figure whatever doesn't go I'll get 1-800-got-junk to take it away to give to charity. I'll also have to give a call to the local GoodWill to pick up the 5-6 bags of clothing.

[Gemme]

That's the second rice cooker I've been teased with. You all are just mean. :blink:

[Linus]

That's the second rice cooker I've been teased with. You all are just mean. :blink:


Well, if it doesn't sell in a week, I'd be willing to sell it to you cheaper than what's listed plus shipping. :)

[Gemme]

Well, if it doesn't sell in a week, I'd be willing to sell it to you cheaper than what's listed plus shipping. :)

*grin*

I'd love to have one, but I'm downsizing for my move, so I'll have to wait on one for a little bit.

I am just miffed at the Universe for saying 'neener, neener' to me when she knows I want one.

[Bob]

There is a website called zinio.com...magazines can be read online for free or nominal feel.l

Which magazines require the nominal feel?

[Linus]

*grin*

I'd love to have one, but I'm downsizing for my move, so I'll have to wait on one for a little bit.

I am just miffed at the Universe for saying 'neener, neener' to me when she knows I want one.

LOL... Ok. Sounds like me too. :cheesy:

[Random]

That's the second rice cooker I've been teased with. You all are just mean. :blink:

I will lend you mine... any time you want it.. lol.. in fact, you can keep it until the mother in law comes to town... lol... she is the only one who uses it...

lol.. well, when we are in austin that is...

[Gemme]

I will lend you mine... any time you want it.. lol.. in fact, you can keep it until the mother in law comes to town... lol... she is the only one who uses it...

lol.. well, when we are in austin that is...

You're on! :thumbsup:

[Kätzchen]

This past year, I bought a Stainless Steel water bottle
http://www.treehugger.com/stainless%20water%20bottles.JPG
and using it saves the environment. I totally love it!

Also, I rarely go out to eat - except for special ocassions.
I always take a lunch with me or make a lunch for my son
and I love to cook at home. I happen to live near a farmers
market that is open most days, so I stock up on fresh produce
that's in season and basically make meals from scratch. Also,
for me, I find that if I shop for groceries on a frequent basis -
like stopping by the grocery store, when I'm already out and about -
I can find specials in the meat department and this helps me out a lot!

This is forum thread is a great place for new ideas on how to save, too! (f)

[SassyLeo]

This past year, I bought a Stainless Steel water bottle
http://www.treehugger.com/stainless%20water%20bottles.JPG
and using it saves the environment. I totally love it!

Also, I rarely go out to eat - except for special ocassions.
I always take a lunch with me or make a lunch for my son
and I love to cook at home. I happen to live near a farmers
market that is open most days, so I stock up on fresh produce
that's in season and basically make meals from scratch. Also,
for me, I find that if I shop for groceries on a frequent basis -
like stopping by the grocery store, when I'm already out and about -
I can find specials in the meat department and this helps me out a lot!

This is forum thread is a great place for new ideas on how to save, too! (f)

I have several water bottles, my favorite being the Klean Kanteen (http://www.kleankanteen.com/products/classic/klean-kanteen-27oz-classic.html).

For years I had bought bottled water... not the individual bottles, the large re-fillable containers. At some point, I just stopped filling them. It was a pain in the ass to find a Glacier machine that actually worked, so I just stopped.

I just drink tap. And luckily my tap is decent. It's not a huge savings, but it is some.

Speaking of plastic bottles... this is a big eye opener: YouTube- Garbage Island

[Kätzchen]

I have several water bottles, my favorite being the Klean Kanteen (http://www.kleankanteen.com/products/classic/klean-kanteen-27oz-classic.html).

For years I had bought bottled water... not the individual bottles, the large re-fillable containers. At some point, I just stopped filling them. It was a pain in the ass to find a Glacier machine that actually worked, so I just stopped.

I just drink tap. And luckily my tap is decent. It's not a huge savings, but it is some.

Speaking of plastic bottles... this is a big eye opener: YouTube- Garbage Island (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt-MivNezes)

That's so nice SassyLeo (re: the Klean Kanteen)!

I watched the video you left here! I learned something new, thanks to you posting it here! I forwarded your video to a couple of people I know who can use that piece of information - and they weren't aware of it either! Thanks!

[Blade]

OK call me stupid.............what the heck is a rice cooker?

[Selenay]

I have this (http://mysigg.com/store/collections/wide-mouth/wide-mouth-blue.html) water bottle from Sigg.

There's much debate about which is better, Klean Kanteen or Sigg, but I think they're both going to get the job done. One may be better than the other if weight matters, the other might be better if you're worried about plastic, but it's not important to me.

I also use this (http://mysigg.com/store/accessories/abt-top-complete-green-sigg-sigg-replacement-parts-1.html) sports top (except mine is blue. I find it's way more helpful than other sports tops, because many stay uncovered... and I drop things on dirty floors. A lot. This protects my stuff! Plus, I've dropped it on the floor (I actually launched it while taking it out of the package, of course) and it didn't break.

I love it :D

[Kätzchen]

I have this (http://mysigg.com/store/collections/wide-mouth/wide-mouth-blue.html) water bottle from Sigg.

There's much debate about which is better, Klean Kanteen or Sigg, but I think they're both going to get the job done. One may be better than the other if weight matters, the other might be better if you're worried about plastic, but it's not important to me.

I also use this (http://mysigg.com/store/accessories/abt-top-complete-green-sigg-sigg-replacement-parts-1.html) sports top (except mine is blue. I find it's way more helpful than other sports tops, because many stay uncovered... and I drop things on dirty floors. A lot. This protects my stuff! Plus, I've dropped it on the floor (I actually launched it while taking it out of the package, of course) and it didn't break.

I love it :D

Hey Selenay!!!!! How cool is that? AND, in blue too! LOL!

Very cool!!!!

:blueheels:

[Selenay]

Hey Selenay!!!!! How cool is that? AND, in blue too! LOL!

Very cool!!!!

:blueheels:

Hey there :)

Yeah, I like it a lot becauuuuuse most of the reusable bottles have thin mouths, too small for ice-cube-tray ice cubes to fit in. This has a wide mouth that I can put a diswashing scrubby brush in for cleaning, and it's BIG.

There are much cuter models for non wide mouth bottles, but I drink exclusively ice water, so this was more practical for me. :)

AND (I really love my water bottle), the sports top is a push down, rather than a pull up, which means you are unlikely to spill it all on yourself in the middle of the night. But. If you push down on the top, water will flow, albeit slowly.

I have a neoprene pouch for it so that it never everrrr gets my books or bag wet, and it never gets too cold to touch.

My partner says it's better for big mouths, but he doesn't have one of his own. :thinking:

I'm madly in love with my water bottle. :thumbsup:

[femmennoir]

OK call me stupid.............what the heck is a rice cooker?


It is a Japanese electric contraption which steams rice perfectly, but seeing as rice is so easy to steam, I don't crowd my small New York City kitchen with one....Used to live with a partner who was raised in Okinawa, and she swore by hers!
Elle*

[Linus]

I just saw this article on HuffPost and have to say, this is a prime example of leaving Frugal to the extreme and when you have to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/28/moneyless-man-dollar_n_697279.html

[Gemme]

I just saw this article on HuffPost and have to say, this is a prime example of leaving Frugal to the extreme and when you have to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/28/moneyless-man-dollar_n_697279.html

Wow! A rocket stove!

[christie]

I just saw this article on HuffPost and have to say, this is a prime example of leaving Frugal to the extreme and when you have to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/28/moneyless-man-dollar_n_697279.html

Very interesting story in that he did this by choice. I do think that its not unusual to be able to live and sustain without money - it seems to me that we have millions of homeless folks who do this every day. The big difference is that he makes a choice to do it and has the support systems of the organic farm and the freeskilling group and that he obviously has access to information so he can learn how to make his mushroom paper and such.

His story reminds me of a TV series from the mid 90s called Promised Land. Gerald McRaney and his family traveled from town to town, living in an Airstream, homeschooling their kids and him picking up odd jobs to make money as they needed it. I always thought that it was a novel idea, but that the reality of that situation would be far different than as portrayed.

[coach]

I have my favorite "cheap ass" discussion every night with Jack over dinner (I dont know how she tolerates me). It goes like this:

Me: "Honey, you will never guess how cheap this dinner is!"
Jack: "I'm sure you're gonna tell me!"
Me: "Well, this piece of roast is HALF of the roast we ate last week that I froze, so that part is $2! The potatoes and carrots are another $2! The onion and gravy MIGHT come out to $1! And the rolls come out to .25 each! So that means that for $6, we are going to get TWO meals EACH. WEEEEEEEEEEE - BABE! THAT COMES OUT TO $1.50 PER MEAL!"

OMG! Doc and I have this discussion almost every night! Same as y'all, what was for dinner when I lived in CA was Drive-thru!

When I go into a store, any retail store, the first thing I look for is my buddy "Clarence". Most stores have a whole section. At Target, if you cruise the store on the outside aisles, there are "Clarence" sections on the end caps about every 4 or 5 rows.

I ALWAYS shop at thrift stores. I almost never buy brand new clothes for myself. Just not necessary. My bonus boys used to love thrift store shopping but my bonus daughter doesnt want anything to do with it. The last time we went, she kept hovering over me like someone might bite her or something. She'll learn...I hope.

The best thing about being frugal is that on occasion, we can go somewhere, like Little Rock this year, and not worry about money. The whole time we were on vacation this time, we didn't check the bank balance at all. This is unusual for me because I constantly worry about money.

I dont use my credit cards anymore. I have had to use them for emergencies in the past but I leave them at home now. Those balances are creeping downward ever so slowly.

I have re-financed my car loan because when I bought it with crappy credit, the interest rate was two figures. I got a new loan at my credit union for about half what I was paying.

I love this thread! I can get money saving tips here so that when I want to, I can afford to be generous!

[ruthie14]

Have to say I love this thread. I have been more or less frugal, depending on my circumstances, for most of my life. Currently trying to be VERY frugal as my full time job and part time job just aren't cutting it right now. I had some unexpected hospital and car bills... so that put me under. When my step kids lived at home we had no child support coming in from their mother and other funiacial issues so we were quite strapped. I made homemade maple syrup.. no not real but quite tasty actually. I made pancakes from scratch..extrememely easy. Can't eat them now because of celiac, but they were a great dinner for my family back in the day. The other day I bought a small bag of black beans and a box of walmart brand instant brown rice. Used half of each to make beans and rice... spices, onions, peppers etc. I have gotten 6 meals out of it. Added some chicken chorizo i had in the freezer (a little goes a long way) for a variety in 3 of the meals. I shop at Aldi regularly. Love Goodwill..but right now can't even afford that. I have enough clothes for now so that is ok. Going to have a garage sale this month. Mom and I bought a house together last nov..so we have a LOT of doubled up stuff. I have given a lot away.. but still have some left over. Might make a little bit anyway. We shall see.

I have recently made my own businss cards for petsitting, babysitting errand running, rides for seniors. So far I have gotten 2 new petsitting clients. Sitting for one new client today for dinner and breakfast for 3 cats (one home). Dog sitting for a regular today through monday. So thats an extra 40 this weekend. Every little bit helps. Eating grits on the weekends now. They are very cheap ofcourse.... my dr won't be happy.. but I have to have money for my perscriptions so something had to give. I have been using up gift cards that I have gotten so that is a help. I have about 19 dollars left on a visa gc that I will use for my Atkins bars at walmart. Thats what I eat for breakfast during the work week. Good for my diabetes so. I have 1 aldi brand low fat string cheese stick for my snack at work, aldi fat free low sugar yogurt with nuts for lunch (37 cents for the yogurt.. nuts vary depending on the variety). I have on cup of coffee with breakfast that I make at home, hot tea I make at home and bring... diet pesi mom buys for me and water the rest of the day. So my day to day breakfast and lunch is very inexpensive. Dinners vary...but very frugal as well.

Thats all for now.. gotta go take care of 3 cats! lol

bye folks,
Ruthe

[lipstixgal]

I don't know what you call frugal in this economy and living in Northern NJ which is close to NY buts its expensive to try to save. that's one of the reasons I'm moving to Florida because its cheaper then here. I try to save on groceries but they are way too expensive. I am on a diet so fruits and vegetables are costly, go to trader JOe's but still costs a lot..anyway will be done with school shortly so hopefully jobs will come my way and I can start earning a wage and be in a lifestyle that suits me well...

[squeak]

Since moving from Florida to Los Angeles, my rent has tripled, my car insurance has doubled, and my paycheck has been hit by a furlough - I have a better understanding that frugal doesn't just mean buying two pairs of shoes instead of three to save up for that new necklace like it used to. It means comparing the price per ounce on clearance frozen veggies at the discount store and wondering how in the world someone can afford to spend $4 on a luxurious bundle of fresh asparagus or real lemons when they could buy four 1lb bags of green beans! I can't wait to chastise my future grandkids on how good they have it.

I've really learned how to be much less wasteful while simultaneously bonding with my mom over casserole recipes and freezer methods.

These are tips most of you know, but that I've only recently taken to heart:

Make a big pot of split pea soup and freeze individual portions in ziplock bags for lunches/dinners in the future. The soup is high in protein and low in fat if you make it vegan. ;) This is my favorite recipe: Fat Free Vegan Split Pea Soup (http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2007/12/thick-and-hearty-split-pea-soup.html)

Many recipes call for just a tablespoon of tomato paste or a single chipotle chile in adobe, etc., leaving you with half a can of tomato paste or chiles. (Both of these have a limited fridge life and a phenomenal ability to grow a beard in under a week.) Just take a sheet of parchment or wax paper and scoop out the paste/chiles by the tablespoon and plop them on the paper not touching another scoop - freeze on the paper for a few hours and then put them in a freezer ziplock. Tada! Now when a recipe calls for a tablespoon/single chile, etc you can reach into the freezer and they are in individual serving sizes. :)

Bell peppers are typically very expensive here for much of the year (especially my favorite: red peppers!) - but one magical month a year they are abundant and affordable. I stock up on peppers and de-seed and cut them into strips, freeze them individually on parchment paper and put in a ziplock the next day like above. I also do this with celery since any recipe I need celery for calls for one or two stalks at most. Both are full of water and will lose their snap when thawed, but are perfect for using in stir fries and soups. You can also wrap the celery in foil and it will extend its life in the fridge.

Toilet paper from the 99cents Only Store (http://www.99only.com/) is just as effective as toilet paper that costs four times as much.

Stir fries and beans and rice are healthy and economical. Serve with homemade cast iron skillet cornbread (http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=5730.0) and you'll be pumped with iron.

Instead of throwing away the ends of bread that have gone stale, throw them in the freezer. When you have a few bread ends, throw them in the blender or food processor with an assortment of your favorite herbs and toast in the oven for a few minutes and make your own breadcrumbs instead of buying a chemical blend from the store. Fresh breadcrumbs taste amazing.

Make your own vegetable stock (http://veganyumyum.com/2008/10/homemade-vegetable-broth/) by saving all carrot tops, onion tops, celery tops, potato skins, parsnip tops, beet tops, etc in a big bag in the freezer. When you have a bag full, boil in a soup pot of water with your favorite herbs (mine are thyme and sage), strain, and use immediately, freeze in an ice cube tray, or save in 1-cup increments in ziplocks for later. You can use a few cubes to really flavor plain rice.

Speaking of rice, if you are lucky enough to live close to an Asian neighborhood or an Indian neighborhood with well-stocked niche grocery stores, buy rice in bulk from these places. It might hurt to pay $20 for a bag of rice, but you'll use that for MONTHS. It took me nearly a year to use up the jasmine rice from the 25lb bag I bought. (Also: Indian grocery stores have cheaper saffron and Asian stores cheaper tofu and mockmeats.)

When berries are abundant in summer and go on sale, buy in bulk and freeze to enjoy in pies, muffins, etc, later.

If you are blessed to live in a city with a fair amount of reliable and far-reaching public transportation available, check into getting a bus pass and seeing if that is better for getting to work. Where I work, I would have to pay $65/month to park, not to mention the gas, the risk of accidents, and the general stress of driving. The unlimited monthly bus pass costs me $33/month and also works for the subway. I use it to go everywhere, and save on having to feed parking meters or pay $10 to park in a garage elsewhere, too! (I also get to enjoy guilt-free reading time!)


xosqueak. Sucking it in.

[EnderD_503]

One area I'm not that frugal in is groceries. I only buy what I need, but I want to make sure it's quality food like Kamut pasta, organic couscous, German ryes, local meat, eggs and vegetables from the Farmer's Market (preferably from Mennonites, which is the only way for me to know for sure that there isn't any added hormones, pesticides etc. and that the animals are free range), organic peanut butter, goat yogurt etc. I do buy a lot of the tuna value packs, though...which is a significant chunk of a typical lunch for me.

But I find I can spend a little more in the grocery department if I save elsewhere.

- Bringing both lunch and supper to work since I often work from 8am to 10pm. In the past I would sometimes bring lunch and a snack, then buy some chicken breast and chickpea salad for supper, but I've cut that out and bring both meals and all my snacks now. So end up saving 6-7 bucks at least 3 times per week.

- Boiling chicken/turkey bones for soup instead of buying soup.

- Making my own chili instead of buying it.

- I've come to realise that a lot of people tend to spend a fuck ton of their money per day on coffee. I've never been a coffee drinker, ever, so I seem to save quite a bit by not being a caffeine fiend lol

- Never buy my beverages out either, but bring them instead. I only really drink water and milk so really not that difficult to do, so really only end up paying for the milk...

- Buy bar soap instead of body wash. A 3 pack of Irish Spring bar soap costs 3 bucks (CAD) and lasts over 6-7 months, compared with body wash that is more expensive and runs out every two months at the most. Plus I find bar soap more effective and don't know why the world stopped using it in the first place, lol 3 bucks every 7 months versus 7 bucks every month and a half or so? Yes please. Again, money that can be spent on better food.

- If your body seems to get used to one type of soap so you like to switch it up, or if you just prefer body wash to bar soap, Hair&Body washes are great. Saves you the money from buying both shampoo and shower gel/soap/whatever separately.

- Metro pass instead of tokens for public transport saves a chunk of cash per month. Uni student pass and you save even more. Biking to work costs nothing at all, even if it takes over an hour when one works far. I do walk or bike if I'm going downtown or somewhere else generally close buy (45 mins to an hour's walking distance).

- I've never been a huge clothing shopper, but if I need some kind of new clothing then I head to somewhere like Zeller's (for anything), the Black Market (for pants), or thrift shops. Definitely significant price difference between these places and going to a mall, no matter whether its undershirts or jeans. I buy clothes like once a year so no biggy, really.

- If I buy cds or books I do so very little. Cds I haven't bought in a while (unfortunately, since I'm a music fanatic), but if I do its a second hand shops (5 bucks a cd), or underground distributers (anywhere from 2 bucks to 10 bucks), or gigs.

- Rent a room instead of an apartment.

- Don't own a tv/rent movies/buy any form of computer programme/game/whatever because in the world of the interwebz no such things are needed.

- Don't own a land line.

- Don't pay for gym membership because I work at one.

[femmennoir]

We have a new headmaster, who decided to give the faculty free lunches! Our chef is fantastic, we always have lovely food, and most of us during school eat a very good lunch, then a light supper at home...I am already noticing how much money I am saving since school has started!
There is a chill in the air, although we have clear skies and the sun is out, and I am thinking of bringing my crock-pot down from its summer storage...A vision of soups and stews has been dancing in my head! Leeks, potatoes, carrots, turnips, parsnips, lentils, split peas......
Let's share recipes!
Elle*, the frugal gourmet!

[citybutch]

-bring my lunch every day to work (I bring all leftovers from dinners I cook 3-4 times/week... along with a salad)
-keep snacks (low fat popcorn, etc) in my desk drawer (not tempted to go to the snack machine)
-use the chicken bones and make my own chicken/vegetable/noodle soup (yum)
-my wife reuses plastic sandwich bags (drives me nuts but it DOES save)
-grocery shop only once a week and plan our meals (lunch and dinner ) for the week before we go
-we have stopped eating out (except an occassional sushi outing) except when we go out with friends.. (and even then we tend to go over to each others homes these days)
-STOPPED traveling for a while!!
-turn lights out whenever we leave a room (I have a harder time with this than my wife does)
-shorter showers
-laundry only once a week (larger loads- saves water, energy, electricity, etc)
-Netflix!!!
-wash my own car
-shop at places like North Park Produce... (omg, LOVE that place... can buy 5 bags of fruits, veggies, meats, and fish for less than $30)
-buy our firewood by the cord
-plan my driving distances... (my clients are all over the county)
-buy gas on days that this http://www.fueltracker.com/ website says it is a "buy" day


I am sure I have more... Love this thread... and love what folks are doing!!

[Medusa]

I did an experiment a while back to see how much cash I was spending eating at work. :|

Coffee from Starbucks and a breakfast snack at work = $7 per day
Lunch at work = $5.50 per day
Afternoon juice, Diet Coke (when I was still drinking them), or bottled water from the vending machine at work = $1 a day.

That was 13.50 PER DAY or almost $70 a WEEK!

Holy crap did I ever give myself a nice raise by bringing all of my food and drinks from home!


City - Jack takes her lunch every day for work and it *also* drives her crazy when I wash out Ziploc bags and reuse them so we compromised and I bought a couple of those plastic sandwich-shaped boxes to put her sandwiches in instead of using Ziplocs. We just wash them out and rotate and it has saved about $5 a month on buying new bags :)

[citybutch]

AND that is $3,640 PER YEAR!!!

We have those sandwich boxes too... I tend to bring meals as opposed to sandwiches, so I use tupperware.... It is actually my beautiful bride who uses those sandwich bags... I don't know why she doesn't use the boxes! LOL...

I have to admit that I sometimes surreptitiously throw them out when she would keep them and continue to wash them out... I just have too...

We recycle all of our recyclables (city pick up) and use paperbags to collect them through the week... A couple weeks ago I actually saw my wife empty the paperbag into the blue recycling bin... she was recycling the paper bag for re-use... I have to admit it was a good idea when you take into consideration all the paperbags that places like Trader Joe's hands out on a daily basis...

I did an experiment a while back to see how much cash I was spending eating at work. :|

Coffee from Starbucks and a breakfast snack at work = $7 per day
Lunch at work = $5.50 per day
Afternoon juice, Diet Coke (when I was still drinking them), or bottled water from the vending machine at work = $1 a day.

That was 13.50 PER DAY or almost $70 a WEEK!

Holy crap did I ever give myself a nice raise by bringing all of my food and drinks from home!


City - Jack takes her lunch every day for work and it *also* drives her crazy when I wash out Ziploc bags and reuse them so we compromised and I bought a couple of those plastic sandwich-shaped boxes to put her sandwiches in instead of using Ziplocs. We just wash them out and rotate and it has saved about $5 a month on buying new bags :)

[Bit]

I save every food bag that "zips" shut, especially tortilla and shredded cheese bags *awww come on, you don't think I was making my own tortillas when it was 103 out day after day? My window a/c was already struggling, yanno?* and reuse them when I scoop the litterboxes. Food bags are meant to keep odors inside; this means I can toss the zipped bag into my kitchen trash and not have to take anything out to big trash can immediately. No more using a clean bag for the scooping, and no more tossing the big kitchen bag before it's full!

Also, nothing holds used litter supplies like a big dog or cat food bag--they can't be recycled for anything else, they're waterproof, and they're big enough to hold everything when you clean out a litterbox. They don't seal but that's okay--I use them on trash pick-up day and they're the last thing in the kitchen trash bag before I throw the whole caboodle in the big can and wheel it to the curb.

[diamondrose]

I thought to mention that a great way for walmart shoppers to save money is to bring the current sale ads from other grocery stores along. Walmart price matches an exact item advertised in another store ad if it is cheaper than the walmart price.( At least they do it here where I live.. Worth checking out)

[rlin]

I thought to mention that a great way for walmart shoppers to save money is to bring the current sale ads from other grocery stores along. Walmart price matches an exact item advertised in another store ad if it is cheaper than the walmart price.( At least they do it here where I live.. Worth checking out)

years ago... when they first opened in my town... they kept all the ad papers at the registers... dont know if they still do it...
i try really hard to stay outta the place... unfortunately there are those times in the wee hours of the morning when you just gotta have something like a surge protector or a hammer...
so... i do stumble in sometimes still... just usually not for something that may be in a sales paper...

[Andrea]

Have to brag about my frugal honey. He purchased discounted tri-tip steaks for $6. Using an ear of corn, one broccoli head, brown jasmine rice and hot oil, he produced three different dinners for a total of approximately $7 for six meals.

I heart my frugal honey.

Anyone else have any good deals lately?

Andrea

[Miss Scarlett]

i make my own foaming hand soap refill...it's much nicer and less expensive than the refills sold in stores. Plus it's a good way to use that frustrating little bit of body wash that never seems to want to come out of the bottle when you are in the shower. All you need is a foaming hand soap dispenser, body wash and warm water.

i add about an equal amount of warm water and gently shake until well mixed then just pour it into the dispenser.

If you use foaming dish liquid, you can do the same thing with regular dish liquid and water.

[Ursy]

Hey folks,

Just came across this super frugal idea for a solar cooker that you make out of a car windshield shade:
http://solarcooking.wikia.com/wiki/Windshield_Shade_Solar_Cooker

Super frugal! You get a cheap solar cooker, plus you can cook things without using electricity or other conventional fuels, which helps your wallet as well as the environment.

So for me, that's a win-win-win!

[Chancie]

I bought my not very big, not very fancy house when I was in my 40s and then I refinanced it when I was in my late 40s to save almost $200 a month.

I want to try to pay off my thirty year mortgage because I didn't start teaching in a public school until I was 42, and I won't be able to afford my mortgage when I retire.

I emailed my very helpful local bank manager and he said I'd need to pay about $770 extra a month to principal in order to pay off my mortgage by the end of the school year when I turn 60 years old.

I don't have to tell you how impossible that sounds, so I will just pay about $87 a month towards principal, which will shave off a few years.

But, it's important to me to be able to choose whether I stay here when I retire, so I have been thinking a lot about how to manage my budget with an eye towards the future.

[Ursy]

Good luck Chancie!

We're having to be frugal because we are only living off my income right now. We're getting the house ready to sell and will be downsizing so that I will be able to cover all the bills because Kris has had health problems since Feb.

I've made a start by planting some tomatoes. The price of tomatoes went up to $9 a kilo earlier this year (That's about $4.50 a pound)! It was ridiculous! Now that my tomatoes are starting to fruit, the prices have gone down again. Oh well... I'll still be saving money by growing them (and tomatoes are easy to grow).

I'm also trying to grow potatoes in a big pot... wondering how that will go.

I agree, it's important to have the security of knowing that you will be able to keep living in your house when you retire.

[Miss Scarlett]

I try to reuse or recycle as much as possible...

I adore scented candles but some are frightfully expensive (Yankee Candles). When mine have burned down I melt the remaining wax and pour it into a jar that I've added a wick to and make my own layered candles. The jars are from previous candles and I buy the wicks Michaels.

Since I'm a Bath & Body Works junkie I wait until I get a great coupon and/or when they have an awesome sale. Last year I really stocked up on Moonlight Path (the only fragrance I wear) and still have enough to last well into 2013.

Makeup remover towelettes are great but they are costly. I buy a pack and tear them into 3 or 4 strips. Since I only use them to remove my waterproof mascara and eyeliner it doesn't make sense to use the entire cloth. Oh, I discovered by accident that they are wonderful for cleaning my bathroom sink, counter and faucet...get them super clean...LOL

I stopped using body wash too. Bar soaps are less expensive and Dial makes a wonderful glycerin soap.

My other toiletries are purchased only when they are on sale or when one of my local grocers has a triple coupon promotion.

Thanks to the Gas Buddy app on my iPhone I can find the lowest gas prices near me.

Another thing I did was to stop using the debit card from my checking account. I found that paying by cash makes me more aware of what I am spending.

No more bottled water for me as well. At home I have a Brita pitcher and for work I have one of those Brita bottles.

Internet is something else I no longer have at home. Instead I use my iPhone. I'm already paying for data on it so it doesn't make sense to double up. There is a downside, i.e. can't post in the gallery here or access some sites that rely on Flash. But if I need to I can take my laptop to Starbucks and use their wifi.

[Nat]

Re-store is awesome - don't have one too close.

I'm not fabulous at frugality, but M is which I very much appreciate.

[Metro]

I bought my not very big, not very fancy house when I was in my 40s and then I refinanced it when I was in my late 40s to save almost $200 a month.

I want to try to pay off my thirty year mortgage because I didn't start teaching in a public school until I was 42, and I won't be able to afford my mortgage when I retire.

I emailed my very helpful local bank manager and he said I'd need to pay about $770 extra a month to principal in order to pay off my mortgage by the end of the school year when I turn 60 years old.

I don't have to tell you how impossible that sounds, so I will just pay about $87 a month towards principal, which will shave off a few years.

But, it's important to me to be able to choose whether I stay here when I retire, so I have been thinking a lot about how to manage my budget with an eye towards the future.



Something to ponder... :thinking:

This solution may not work for you (Chancie) or your particular circumstances, but it might be of interest to others who are seeking ways to boost their income to achieve specific life goals.

A friend of mine rents extra bedrooms in his home through an online rental service (i.e. airbnb.com) and has been quite successful in doing so. He decides when, for how long, and whom he wants to host -- the site takes care of all of the pre-rental communication and payments. IMHO, his particular success hinges on the fact that he lives in a town that has a lot of seasonal tourists, plus he lives in a convenient and safe neighborhood in that town.

Renting rooms in ones home may not be desirable nor feasible for many, but it is an option that has provided my friend with several hundred dollars in extra income per month. University towns may also have good potential for this kind of setup. NOTE: My grandmother did this sort of thing in the 1960s (and also during WWII), so the concept is not unfamiliar to me.

[Bit]

That's a really interesting idea, Metro. I didn't know there were companies that helped to set things up like that.

Chancie, I know it might sound counter to what you wish, but if you decide to stay in your house, have you considered refinancing again--this time to lower the payment to what you can afford when you retire? You could continue paying each month as if you had not refinanced, but when you retire you could drop down to the lower payment without any penalties. It might give you some breathing space.

Ursy, I love that windowshade solar oven!

Gryph and I are also trying to be more frugal but I'm having a rough time trying to grow food--although my three surviving raspberry vines are tickling me pink by giving me berries in November--still, I think the effort is worth it even if the Kansas learning curve IS steep. Sheesh, now I know why Kansas was the place that broke so many pioneers! The weather is brutal on gardens!

[Ursy]

Nat, what is re-store? I don't think we have them in Australia?

Cath, just looked up weather in Kansas - 13 degrees c - I'm jealous! We're in the middle of a heatwave! But I guess I shouldn't complain, our climate is much better for gardening. I think I can pretty much garden all year 'round.

I can't imagine trying to garden somewhere when it snows... I imagine it would be... impossible? Close to impossible?

[Bit]

LOL! {{{{{{{{{{{{Urs}}}}}}}}}}}}}} You garden during the three seasons when it doesn't snow, and the soil rests when it does snow. Unless you are a fanatic who uses hoop houses and/or cold frames. Not that I am such a fanatic, oh no, not I.... *just wait'll I get my hands on some money!*

http://westsidegardener.com/howto/hoophouse.html (http://westsidegardener.com/howto/hoophouse.html) Scroll down for pics. The thing about a hoophouse is that it covers an entire garden bed and you can walk inside it. It would work to hold shadecloth in the summer too.

http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/coldframes (http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/coldframes) coldframes are generally smaller than a garden bed, and they have lids you can open to reach in and harvest.

Re-Store is the name Habitat for Humanity gives its retail stores, because they sell used and reclaimed building supplies, appliances, furniture, etc.

[Ursy]

LOL! {{{{{{{{{{{{Urs}}}}}}}}}}}}}} You garden during the three seasons when it doesn't snow, and the soil rests when it does snow. Unless you are a fanatic who uses hoop houses and/or cold frames. Not that I am such a fanatic, oh no, not I.... *just wait'll I get my hands on some money!*

http://westsidegardener.com/howto/hoophouse.html (http://westsidegardener.com/howto/hoophouse.html) Scroll down for pics. The thing about a hoophouse is that it covers an entire garden bed and you can walk inside it. It would work to hold shadecloth in the summer too.

http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/coldframes (http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/coldframes) coldframes are generally smaller than a garden bed, and they have lids you can open to reach in and harvest.

Re-Store is the name Habitat for Humanity gives its retail stores, because they sell used and reclaimed building supplies, appliances, furniture, etc.

Oooh Catie! I like the look of *both* the hoophouses and the cold frames :)
They would also be good for keeping critters at bay as well, I imagine!

Thanks for the explanation about Re-Store. We have a place in our town that operates on the same principle, it's called Reverse Garbage. I think it's a wonderful idea.

[Bit]

Reverse Garbage! lol!!! Love that name. :cheesy:

I think hoophouses and coldframes keep four-legged critters out, and even two-legged winged critters... but bugs can still get in and then they're just as protected as the plants, so it pays to watch for signs of infestation. Now the advantage we have here where it freezes is that one can get a coldframe or hoophouse up and the plants growing in the very earliest spring (while it's still snowing) before the bugs hatch out. It might be a little more difficult for you if your winters are mild... but then, if your winters are mild you don't need the coldframe!

I know when I was gardening in the desert though, I often wished for a structure with shade cloth to protect my plants. What stunned me is that I need one here in Kansas, too... sheesh, full-service weather: we broil AND we freeze. *eyeroll*

[ArtistLady]

This is a subject written just for me lol. I could write pages about this but I will keep it brief. I make my own household cleaners, laundry detergent,candles and air freshener, about once a week I cook a couple of big meals and then freeze them into "tv dinner" sizes, I usually have my own vegetable garden (unfortunately I didn't have the time this last summer :( ), I am a thrift store junkie and I recycle and re-purpose. In addition I realized I am quite the pack rat and I have been working on downsizing all the junk I have accumulated. It isn't easy but I am determined!!

[Ginger]

I get pre-tax dollars taken out of my paycheck to be put aside for my monthly Metro card (for the subway).

I'm going to dial down my cable subscription as soon as Homeland ends this Sunday. Then in the spring I'll ramp it up—with on Demand, too—just for a couple weeks, to catch up on the entire season of Enlightened and whatever else starts in January 2013.

With what I save, I'm joining a gym.

Also, I take my lunch every day and drink mate in my office instead of buying coffee. I'm saving over $250 a month doing that.

[Ginger]

Update. I joined a gym tonight. My old gym was asking for $88 a month, plus a sign-on fee. I asked them to waive the sign-on fee, and they offered to cut it in half, but I said their competitor didn't have a sign-on fee and it was just as easy to get off the 2 train and go to their competitor's gym on my way home as it was to get off the 2 train a few stops later and go theirs.

But they weren't buying it. So I said I'd have to think about it (secretly, I wanted my old gym, for nostalgic reasons I would never admit in a negotiation). And the guy tried to pressure me, saying this deal was just for me and wouldn't last long and I said, "I'll take my chances." (It felt so bad ass to say that!)

Then at work I was talking to a guy and we started looking on line at a gym he'd heard of in our part of Brooklyn that is new and supposedly very very cheap, and on the way home I checked out two of their facilities, and picked one.

It's huge, bright, nice safe friendly vibe, has the kind of stationary weight machines I'm used to, everything I need.

And check this out, it's only $99 a year, only $8.25 a month, as opposed to ten times that for the gym in my more immediate neighborhood.

I can't believe it's so much cheaper. Okay, it doesn't have a steam room or sauna or hip hop DJ on thursday nights or pole dancing classes or yoga or personal trainers—but I don't even care about those things.

And I can get there and work out and still be home by 7:30 or so. It's really convenient.

[Sweet_Amor_Taino]

A well planned meal offers us the nutrition we need to be healthy. I recently cut down my hours with my private client to rest I had been pushing to a point of exhaustion. Now I am able to enjoy cooking from scratch, baking a cake which I had not done in years due to lack of time. I also like shopping at the thrift store you could find great and expensive stuff there, for less. Freezing meals is a great Idea it saves time and money, I will try it. Thank you for sharing.

This is a subject written just for me lol. I could write pages about this but I will keep it brief. I make my own household cleaners, laundry detergent,candles and air freshener, about once a week I cook a couple of big meals and then freeze them into "tv dinner" sizes, I usually have my own vegetable garden (unfortunately I didn't have the time this last summer :( ), I am a thrift store junkie and I recycle and re-purpose. In addition I realized I am quite the pack rat and I have been working on downsizing all the junk I have accumulated. It isn't easy but I am determined!!

[Sweet_Amor_Taino]

I recently had similar conversation with my daughter and the bottle water was a topic. I bought her a Brita bottle and filter I told her she could save at least $200 every 3 months and she did not have to carry the battles lol

My adult son recently moved out for the third time. Times are tough, which is why he lived here 4 months and while he was here he complained about how much money going out to eat would cost. I told him to give 25.00 a week and I'd help him. I bought milk, cereal, stuff for sandwiches, pasta, etc. I didnt cook for him everyday but made stuff available to him and often made him leftovers, sandwiches, salads. I also told him to stop buying bottled water to save money and the planet. I have good water and a water filter.

Sunday we had dinner and we were talking. He said he was able to get ahead and save money. He estimated that just a few changes and eating home at least 4 days a week he saved 100.00 or more a week. It all adds up especially if you're dating. He sat down with his GF and together they came up with a system so they could both save money and be more frugal. I was happy to see him do so because being frugal makes you think and more conscious of everything around you. Now if I can just get him into gardening!

[cinnamongrrl]

We attempt at a frugal lifestyle....no credit cards, we spend only what we have. We don't OWE anything to anyone (except the hospital, but that will be addressed)

However,

Fate has made other plans for us. We now have to buy a car that we weren't planning to buy. We had 2 cars paid for outright and now one (mine) has shit the bed, for lack of less colorful term. SO we are now forced to buy a car, AND have car payments AND have higher insurance payments.....sigh....

I'd much rather prefer buying a car outright...just saying....

[Mopsie]

*nudge*

I'm bumping this thread because I need all the help I can get with living frugally!

I'm waiting to hear about a second job that I applied for ... my full time Social Work job does not pay enough to pay the bills these days. :(

I'm looking forward to hearing everyone's ideas. :)

[Mopsie]

Another thing I did was to stop using the debit card from my checking account. I found that paying by cash makes me more aware of what I am spending.



I found this to be true for myself as well ... and it seems to be helping!

[Hollylane]

Entertainment and social events are available on the cheap! Check out Meetup.com for your area. Even if I don't often attend a meetup, I get a lot information about local events and areas through that website.

Mother nature is free, hiking, biking, walking, fishing, bird watching, geocaching, and picnicking! I also join up with others for volunteer work in my community and the Portland area.

I rarely pay for anything other than gas, park passes, and my fishing license/gear.

For home repairs/upgrades, I always check at Portland's Rebuilding Center (http://rebuildingcenter.org/), before I head to Home Depot. I can find nearly everything I need there, at ridiculously low prices, and sometimes things that I would never find anywhere else (or never thought of). If you are a homeowner, I absolutely recommend looking to see if you have something like this locally.

[Mopsie]

I save every food bag that "zips" shut, especially tortilla and shredded cheese bags *awww come on, you don't think I was making my own tortillas when it was 103 out day after day? My window a/c was already struggling, yanno?* and reuse them when I scoop the litterboxes. Food bags are meant to keep odors inside; this means I can toss the zipped bag into my kitchen trash and not have to take anything out to big trash can immediately. No more using a clean bag for the scooping, and no more tossing the big kitchen bag before it's full!

Also, nothing holds used litter supplies like a big dog or cat food bag--they can't be recycled for anything else, they're waterproof, and they're big enough to hold everything when you clean out a litterbox. They don't seal but that's okay--I use them on trash pick-up day and they're the last thing in the kitchen trash bag before I throw the whole caboodle in the big can and wheel it to the curb.


What good ideas! *taking notes* I am definitely doing this!

[Mopsie]

Hollylane - Thanks for the post I'm going to try that website!

[cricket26]

1 Container of Name Brand Fabric Softener
4 Inexpensive sponges, cut in half

Pour entire container of softener into a 5 gallon bucket. Fill empty softener container with water twice. (2 parts water to 1 part softener) Add sponges to softener/water mixture. When ready to use wring out extra mixture from one sponge and add to the dryer as you would a dryer sheet.

[deathbypoem]

Bumping this thread b/c it just needs to be bumped!
Frugal is my middle name and recently decided to do my own laundry detergent.
Which registers aprox 18 for all the ingredients and
lasts a little over 3 months. Sometimes, 4 months.


Also,

Check out this site!!

Couponclipinista on the web and also FB!

I'll be back with more mindblowing secrets in this frugal dept.

[cinnamongrrl]

I got to thinking about the cost of the dinner I made tonight.

One can of seasoned black eyed peas was .75..I used a third

A bag of rice was 1.29...I used a third

A half can of green beans I had leftover was .70

I made dinner for under 5 bucks...and had leftovers...not bad :)

[kittygrrl]

frugal shopping-
1. check the ads make meals around specials
2. check cupboards so you don't overbuy
3. make a detailed list
4. clip coupons
5. have a snack before you go-going hungry is not good!
6. take a calculator
7. take cash, it resonates more then plastic
8. stock up on things you use a lot, if it's on sale

[homoe]

I'm not really a going out to "lunch" person nor am I a "coffee drinker" so no big wasted monies there! I often do wonder tho if it's cheaper to eat home if you're only by yourself! There is more than monetary cost! There is also the time you need to go to the store, time spent picking out items in the store, and last, clean up time! ESPECIALLY if the meal is a disaster!
I know people try and be helpful suggesting cooking a big pot of chili and then freezing the rest, but once I have one or two bowls of chili, I don't want to see it for another 12 mos, so by then... HELLO can you say freezer burn...not exactly saving money that way!

[imperfect_cupcake]

Second hand bread machine. Super cheap, well worth it. I can make the bread (can't eat wheat, rye or barley) for way less. $5 or more a loaf in the stores. Costs me abut $2 to make.

I make and freeze dinners and lunches. And broth. I can't eat normal broth cubes so I throw all my veg ends into a bag in the freezer, and make veg broth one every 6 weeks. I buy pork bones from a great store that sells them for only 1.90 a kilo (2.2 pounds) and they are pretty meaty so I make bone broth every other month. I save all bread ends or lone dry slices in a bag in the freezer for stuffing or coating. I always save any bones, bacon fat or pork skin in the freezer.

I know where I can buy a huge 2 kilo bag of white fish for $10 - it's not the whitefish people choose, because they don't recognize the name of the fish, so they won't eat it. The fishing boats sell them cheap.

I shop at the Vietnamese vegetable stands, the food is way cheaper.
I make my own espresso in a stove top espresso maker that cost $15 at a garage sale. They sell them in our hard wear store for $35. So not that expensive to start with. I make it into americanos and put in travel mug on the train to school.

I walk the extra stops to make the zone fare cheaper for the train.

I buy bulk brown rice, bulk oatmeal, bulk coffee creamer, bulk sugar etc... Anything dried I buy bulk.

I swing past the veg store on the extra bit of walking on the way home from school to see what the "on its way out" veg and fruit rack have on it. If it's fruit I can eat, it will be a bag for $1. I'll freeze it and use it in yogurt or crumble or oatmeal or make fruit bread. If it's veg it's a $1 for a bag and I'll freeze it to use in stews or soups.

I use the veg, the meaty bone broth, veg broth to make a stew and use the bacon fat in dumplings.

If I'm really short at the end of the month, I'll use the bacon fat in making dense pancakes for dinner.

Ps, I freeze the bacon fat in ice cube trays. I let it cool, then scoop it in. That way it's easy to access without unfreezing the whole thing. I also get bacon fat off my two close friends and neighbours - they don't use it and I can't afford bacon very often.

[cinnamongrrl]

That's an awesome idea with the Bacon fat. I don't eat pork, but my dog likes a biscuit that I make him with bacon fat. I need to find a bacon eater and steal their fat...