Five Frugal Things
Every other week, I share five frugal things I've done recently. Before we get to that, I wanted to tell you that the winner of the Amani Ya Juu giveaway is Stacy. Stacy, Amani will be emailing you!
For the rest of you: the Christmas shipping deadline for Amani is December 18th, so you've still got a few days to get a holiday order in!
On to the frugal schtuff:
1. I mended towels.
I don't own a lot of Christmas-specific stuff other than decorations (I haven't got space for it!), but I do own two Christmas hand towels.
Unfortunately, one of them was coming apart at the sides, and two of my regular towels were having the same issue.
So, I fixed 'em up, using my sewing machine, and they're good to go now.
I already owned thread that matched all three towels, so this project cost me nothing out of pocket. And it didn't take that long either (yay for straight seams!)
2. I glued our catch game back together.
We've been having unseasonably warm weather here, so the other day, Zoe and I got out our velcro catch set only to discover that several of the catchers (they're not mitts, exactly...) had cracked.
I'm not sure if someone stepped on them or what.
I got out the glue, though, and did my best to put them back together. They've finished their drying time, so now Zoe and I just have to give them a try to make sure they're good to go.
(clothespins as clamps = Very Professionalâ„¢.)
The cracks on these were fairly small, so I'm pretty optimistic about them staying together during use.
3. I planted vole-resistant bulbs.
I've mentioned before that my neighborhood is plagued with voles, which, unlike moles, actually eat the whole root or bulb of a plant.
I love the idea of bulbs because you buy them once and then theoretically, you have flowers forever.
(So frugal!)
If you have voles, though, that's not the case. In fact, buying tulip and hyacinth bulbs is sort of like burning money.
I decided I was very over buying tulips only to have them eaten before they even bloomed once, so I googled to find vole-resistant bulbs and discovered that daffodils and blue muscari are both good bets.
(I wasn't surprised to read that about daffodils, because the voles have never bothered the ones I've got planted.)
Neither is as beautiful as hyacinths or tulips, but you gotta do what you gotta do.
So, I ordered multi-packs of both and planted them in my borders. Hopefully in the spring, I'll have some lovely flowers, with no worry that they'll be eaten.
(Here's the blue muscari I ordered. And I ordered this daffodil mix, which is supposed to provide blooms between February and April due to the variety of types.)
4. I mended a tote bag.
This is one of those gauze-y sort of reusable bags (you know, the kind they give as freebies everywhere).
They're not my favorite thing ever because the "fabric" they're made of just doesn't hold up over time. It wears thin and gets holes and then the bag eventually becomes useless.
Anyhow, this bag was coming apart at a corner, so I sewed it back together.
The bag isn't going to last nearly as long as my cotton tote bags do, but I figure it's smart to extend its life as long as possible.
5. And lastly...
...some miscellaneous frugality:
- I cut Joshua's hair, using my $20 shears.
- I made yogurt using a $2.50 gallon of Costco milk (which means each quart of yogurt costs less than $0.70. Yes, please.),
- Joshua and I cleaned up leaves in our yard (I do pay him for that.)
- I cooked meals at home.
- I bought some clothes for Joshua and Lisey online (American Eagle is pretty awesome for tall, slender teens!) and used TopCashBack and a coupon code to save extra on my purchase.
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How about you? Join me by sharing Five Frugal Things in the comments.
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I am surprised that the green bag was free. We have to pay for those here and yes they do fall apart quickly. I am not doing so well on the frugal game but I am knitting from my stash and happily I seem to have acquired enough presents throughout the year.
Love this!!!
1: used half a loaf of stale sourdough to make bread stuffing for dinner
2: my mom and I cooked down some softening squash and shared the yield - we ate some with the above mentioned stuffing, and then I made a batch of muffins with some too
3: rather than buying pricey pre-made gift baskets I've cobbled together goodies I've bought on sale in recent months to make gifts for co-workers at school
4: my moms hens are laying a dozen eggs a day so we're not needing to buy eggs (and we're able to gift some as well!)
5: hmmmm...oh, I've been procrastinating going through big bins of hand-me-downs from friends and family but I did that last weekend and scored an overflowing laundry basket of size 5s for the girl and 3t/4t for the boy!!! Probably $500 worth of clothes
I made sure to buy Christmas gifts for my Mom and sister's family that could fit into a flat rate Priority Mail box, saving me tons of money on shipping. (They live in Hawaii. Major expensive to ship there any other way!)
I stocked up on butter that was on sale for $2.50/lb. Most of it went in the freezer.
I've taken advantage of many free shipping offers and online discounts, and used ebates several times while Christmas shopping. This has saved me money, but also TIME. We have to travel a distance to most stores, which ends up tying up days throughout the Christmas season, not to mention money spent on gas.
I found a nice pair of New Balance sneakers for my husband at the thrift store last week for $6.
I cut my hair using the method given here: http://feyeselftrim.livejournal.com/2156.html
I found this a few years ago. It works well for me.
(1) We're planning to use our official office party leftovers on Friday to jazz up our remote viewing of a big company meeting. Olives, marinated mushrooms, a vegetable platter, and we'll provide some additional cheese and crackers. Yum!
(2) I am carpooling with my husband this week, since he works just a few blocks from me. I decided I don't feel safe enough biking home the 1.5 miles in the winter (decided that on a cold, rainy, dark evening on the last all-brakes hill!). But this is a better alternative than me driving separately, if I can help it.
(3) I make husband's coffee at home - he likes a fancier cappuccino style drink, so it's definitely cheaper at home. We -- erm, I -- do drink out occasionally, but it's the balance, right?
(4) I just finished an audiobook from the library.
(5) I am at peace with regifting a lot of the presents my mom has given us this year. For whatever reason, she decided on top of doing gifts for Christmas (which is also my husband's birthday) that we would get an Advent calendar of 24 full-size gifts. Two calendars? At least one is being regifted. Guests in December? Please participate and keep the item you choose from the bins. Something that is cute but seems to match somebody else better? Regifted. Just not to my mom or dad... 🙂
1. I watched the price on some items I bought on Amazon. One price went down and I was able to email for an $8 refund when the price dropped. (Another item went up $15 so I felt even better.)
2. I bought plain red and green plates from the party section for a Christmas event. There were more per pack, and they were cheaper than the ones in the Christmas section.
3. I used some ribbon I got 90% after Christmas last year to add some flair to pine cones we had from our yard. Viola! Cheap/classy decorations.
4. I made vegetable beef soup from leftover veggies plus some stew beef I had in the freezer (which I had purchased on mark down).
5. I bought a few used (but new to us) quality books at a thrift store for one of my 2 year old's Christmas gifts.
Yesterday my grocery bill was about $75 under, so yay for that. In celebration I am cooking a crock pot of pinto beans with misc. spiral ham slices (the other half of the package from a recent pot of beans). I found some packages of those Hawaiian rolls on clearance at Walmart, so I will heat a few out of the package to serve alongside. Today is chore day, which is always frugal, right? And also getting the rest of Christmas shopping done.
1. This is really a several-weeks-old one, but I am in the middle of making homemade vanilla extract for gifts for my daughters, using the method from Smitten Kitchen. I shake it every other day or so, and yesterday I opened a jar, and oh, it smells divine!
2. Made my parents a gift basket, and I splurged on rib eyes at Sam's as the main gift for them, and with it I made them a jar of homemade garlic herb butter, and a loaf of homemade French bread.
3. The night after I gave my parents the ribeyes, we ate tuna noodle casserole! Lol. Knowing they were enjoying those steaks made it (almost) worth it!
4. In the same vein as your Christmas towel save, I mended a Christmas tablecloth.
5. Can I go back to Thanksgiving for this one? I have several long fall tablecloths. Our table configuration for that meal has changed, and I didn't want to buy new, as these have matching cloth napkins and although they are old, are used once a year and look great still. So, I measured the card tables we use now, cut and hemmed each cloth ( one had to have a seam but it is not visible with the centerpiece on the table!) and was able to leave one long cloth as is for the buffet table.
Why do I always think this will be so hard? I have another one even:
6. Shopped at Aldi for all holiday meals, and even some toys for the grandkids. My daughter got my grandsons "main" gift at Aldi, a name-brand toddler workbench with play tools, ( he will be 2 in Januaryâ¤ï¸)
Yea for bulbs!!! I keep planing more and more each year, I love watching them emerge in the spring. We have chipmunk issues, I'm hoping all the varieties I planted this fall make it to the spring--but daffodils are my favorite. So low maintenance. I can't wait to see pictures of your mix this spring, I love the idea of staggering the blooms, I may be adding that to my wish list.
Do you have Amazon Prime? The shipping on those bulbs is expensive.
Yup, I sure do! Love Amazon Prime.
Agree - I heart Amazon Prime. I definitely use more than the price in shipping, and it keeps me from going to Target, where I often do 5 decidedly non-frugal things.
1. So far I have packed my daughter's lunch for school every day. Usually I get tired and she ends up buying 2x a week.
2. I baked muffins using ingredients we already had instead of buying granola bars for said lunches.
3. The girls like applesauce and instead of packing prepacked cups I used Amazon credit from Swagbucks to buy metal snack size containers which can be used for anything like yogurt.
4. Received a bag of hand me downs for the younger daughter.
5. Packed up several bags of outgrown clothes for other kids when we see them over vacation.
*I've purchased some books at the thrift store for Christmas present for my 7yr old. 25c each or less. *I found a pair of nice simple dress shoes(remind me of Mary Poppins, has that strap w a slight heel). $1 at same thrift store. *Fixed my coats pocket. Had a hole and stuff was falling into the liner of my coat. Just popped onto sewing machine. Used the pretty thread that was in machine. It's a black thrift store coat I bought a couple years ago for maybe $12. A long trench style wool blend. *Organizing my gift box later. I buy things through the year. *Purchased pretty yarn on sale for arm knitted scarves. I've been wanting to try. And one is gift for my daughter's teacher. *Purchased cranberry sauce and cherry pie filling that was clearanced after Thanksgiving. Gave to my grandma, so she doesn't have to buy for Christmas. *Grandma gave me a bag of socks she doesn't need. Excellent shape, she retired only a couple years ago and worked at same restaurant as me.(She's 75 now.) I'll be able to use them for work. *I bought felt squares and flannel from Joann's black Fri week sale. Will be able to make 2 quilts and a couple other projects.(like a purse or tote, or book covers)for less than $20.
1. I ATTEMPTED to cut my husband's hair. Thanks goodness he wears a hat and is not vain about what he looks like....because it was a catastrophe. I have a lot to learn 🙂
2. Found some clearance Summer clothes at JCPenney for my daughter in the next size up. All pieces were $2!
3. We de-cluttered our catch all spare bedroom and sold some items on Facebook and Craigslist.
4. Used money made above for a much needed date night.
5. Not frugal, well maybe? We donated a few bags of toys, coats, and hats to the church next door for less fortunate families.
I've cut my husband's hair a few times, and would do it if necessary, but I like to have someone else do it. His hair is SO straight, it's easy to see any mistakes.
Joshua's hair, on the other hand, is wiry and wavy, so it's way easier to cut. If it's slightly imperfect, no one can ever see!
Best tip if you intend to cut your husband's hair: marry someone with very curly hair. The only mistake I have not been able to hide in a decade of cutting hubby's hair is the time I cut his ear! I cut his hair once a month, which would cost $30 locally (with tip), so saved $360 a year and $3,600 over a decade! He says it is totally worth it even if his head does look a bit unbalanced sometimes. I agree!!
Good thing I hadn't thought of this when I met Mr. Very-Straight-Haired FG. Heh.
When I was married I cut my husband's and my son's hair. I bought a Wahl cutter and the longest blade guard possible. It still works and my boy is 24. My son is a chef so he still likes super short hair under his caps.
What kind of cotton grocery bags do you use? Are they heavier than the cheap kind? I'm not sure I will ever run out of the grocery bags I have (because I keep getting free ones), but I might.
Yep, I have a collection of heavy cotton canvas bags from Del Sol. When we go to the beach, they usually have a coupon for a free tote bag, so that's mainly what I use for grocery shopping. They hold up SO much better than the flimsy bags.
I wanted to buy a new twin-size fitted sheet, because I have two kids and only 1 good sheet (I also have one with a large run in the middle and one that is too small but can be kind of squeezed on.)
But they don't use the TOP sheets and I realized I could use those, instead! Little Brother's mattress is right on the carpet and he has a terry mattress cover, so it doesn't even slide around.
I downloaded a pattern and bought supplies to make my boys aprons for Christmas. They will be much nicer than bought ones!
1. Leftovers, leftovers, leftovers for lunch.
2. I proposed an office book-swap, and it has really taken off. Our library is only open during traditional work hours (M-TH during the day), so I can't ever get there - the book-swap is working out nicely.
3. Moving up my doctor appointments to get them in this benefits year, since I've hit my deductible.
It has really been a dreadful week - three is all I could manage!
Eeek it's like a TEST ... LoL my mind just went Blank, hmm what 5 frugal things can I think of ..
1) I cut my Own Hair
I use to cut my Son's hair too but now that he's 20, I'm more nervous about it.
2) I make Homemade Angel food cake & serve w- strawberries for Daughters B-Day. ( it's her Fav )
3) I Refuse to buy Paper Towels so I hv Rags & Kitchen Hand Towels that get Changed Often thro the Day. & same for Bathroom hand towels.
4)I Shop goodwill & Tag Sales (Garage sales) & recently got about $309-$350- worth or clothes for Me for $17- :))
5) my Hub put a Fuse thingy on our Dryer. The Main computer board burnt out in a spot. So my hub made a fuse thing & put it on the computer board (1 of 3 on our dryer) so know when the dryer blows a fuse it's only about a $2- repair.
(I think 2 fuses is $4- )
My Hub also took a Rubber Flap off my Dishwasher ( where the Hot Steam comes out. The Staem HAS to push its way out thru the Flap. & water Beads up inside the Dishwasher on the top IF U DONT USE JETDRY.
I Don't like using Chemicals so he took the Flap off & I don't buy Jet Dry &&&& I actually like to Air Dry my Dishes . Saves alittle $ not using the Heat Dry 🙂
PS
& when u don't use the Heat Dry on ur Dishwasher u can put The Dishes anywhere in the Dishwasher & not hv to worry about something getting to hot & melt etc.
Because the Heat is turned off :))
1. Classes are out but I have assignments to finish, so I still need to commute to campus. Instead of making multiple trips, when I went on Monday I turned in a paper, picked up the exams I need to grade, met with a professor, returned a library book, picked up other library books, and stayed for the thank you dinner that was a treat from the professor for whom I TA.
2. Our oldest is having eczema issues and I needed to take him back to the dermatologist. I took their next appointment in January but called back yesterday to see if they had had any cancellations. Luckily they had so I got him in on this year's deductible, which is almost paid up.
3. I'm going to the dermatologist tomorrow. Another appointment squeezed in because the deductible is paid.
4. I shopped at Aldi and we are preparing meals.
5. We finally got around to gift shopping last night. We were able to buy almost everything online, much of it through Amazon. I have prime so the shipping is free and everything will be waiting for us when we go home for Christmas. No stores involved! No rides out to the suburbs!
Before I get to five frugal things, I see prices on some blogs and am surprised by the different prices. I hear that bananas are not usually .59 everywhere and .38 when on sale. Milk in my area is 2.29 a gallon usually. Sometimes it tries going up and sometimes it goes on sale for 2.00, (and although my brand new Aldi store was a disappointment to me, their milk gets down to .95).
FFT:
1. Free shipping on all Christmas gift!
2. Used a gift card for BOGO Biggby coffees
3. Found a local dentist who accepts our insurance
4. Cleaned the coffee pot with vinegar, and now we are back in business
5. I have not gone down the Christmas and toy aisles this season. They are my weakness in December.
A Christmas Frugal I do every yr. is after my Family gathers & opens gifts I KEEP THE BAGS & Ribbons, To Reuse ... I do get Teased but I don't Care Better to Purpose than to throw in Landfield. & Whoever Teases me ...I Make Sure THEY are the 1's I reuse the Bags yo next Time
I love this! It's a family joke here but I do the same...as did my mother and grandmother. I really don't ever buy wrapping supplies:)
🙂 I think it's fun to save $ & repurpose things
& Good for the Earth too
I do this too, and after many years of good natured teasing by my now adult daughters, they are frequent visitors/users of my 'stash.' Ha! 🙂
My Adult Daughter too 😉
& we Shop Tag Sales & Thrift Stores Together 🙂
1. Bought a book at 40% off for my father-in-law for Christmas. Searched a couple of thrift stores for it first, but since it was just published, couldn't find it and had to resort to buying new. I also redeemed some store points to take an additional $5 off.
2. Baked three dozen banana chocolate chip muffins to use in school lunches this week.
3. Used my basic 15-year-old sewing machine to stitch a huge rip in the side seam of my daughter's winter coat.
4. Brought along a lunch from home when I went Christmas shopping earlier this week, instead of buying something.
5. Been remembering (for the most part!) to turn down the thermostat when I go to work on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I wish there was a way to program it to do this, but I don't think there is. So I'm trying to make it a new habit before I walk out the door.
Oh, I think daffodils and grape hyacinths (that's what we call blue muscari) are every bit as pretty as tulips and hyacinths. I have had bad luck with tulips lasting more than one season and I have read that they are not nearly as long-lasting as daffodils (which multiply) so I think, besides being resistant to critters, that they are the more frugal choice over tulips. They will make you smile in the spring!
Um, 5 things ... 1) helped locate a cost-free venue for my extended family's Christmas celebration last Saturday and 2) organized every family to bring one item to reduce the overall cost of food and paper products--yes, not so green, but that's about the only time I use paper for food rather than "real" dishes. 3) Knitting hats and cowl scarves for friends for Christmas, 4) brought my lunch instead of purchasing one while Christmas shopping this week, 5) cooking at home instead of eating out.
5 frugal things I did this week
Prepared and ate all our meals at home, using ingredients I had bought in Aldi & a 10 euro coupon off:-)
Used up all leftovers for lunch.
Reused all gifts bags from Christmas gifts we got last year and wrapping paper bought in sales after Christmas. Read books borrowed from library.
Got discount on Christmas gifts bought.
Wrote Christmas cards bought last year in clearance & hand delivered a lot of those to work colleagues.
1. I am staying away from the stores this time of year. Which not only saves money but my sanity too.
2. I ate leftover soup for breakfast. Soup for breakfast is weird, but still yummy.
3. I filled up my tank for $1.67 a gallon this week, which is crazy cheap.
4. I used a coupon to get a haircut.
5. I cooked fish last night even though I was really tired and wanted to order carry-out.
1. for Reasons, I have eaten out more than usual in the past couple of weeks. Everything leftover - including bread - gets taken home and eaten later. This is more of a mitigation than a frugal but it works for me.
2. Found big, impressive-looking art kits for my 3 niblings at Target for about $7.50 each.
3. Discovered a need for a fourth kit. Instead of just driving to the nearest Target, I called to see if they had the kits. Good thing I did because they didn't. Wasted trip avoided.
4. Patience was rewarded: butter finally dropped in price. As I have about a dozen pounds already I bought only a half dozen. (Although she doesn't know it, The Mrs. still loves me for my butter stash.)
5. I mended some of my own clothes/goods. Some I do instead of sending out, such as pants hems. Others I do rather than throw it out, such as cotton socks and reusable shopping bags. For the socks and shopping bags, I use whatever bits of thread are left on the needle, rather than try to match color.
Love that the Mrs. loves you for your butter stash -- a good a reason as any! 🙂
1. Shopped at Aldi from a list/ate at home.
2. Colored my hair.
3. Bought Zayon beef and used some to make/freeze mini meatloaves, baked ziti, and sloppy joes for elderly parents and college kids (Xmas gifts).
4. Stayed out of stores!
5. Bought holiday outfit at consignment store.
1. Eat at home most days. We did go out with friends on Sunday after church but they wanted fast food. Got a salad.
2. Made quite a few of our Christmas gifts: knitted hats for grandsons and crocheted scarves for granddaughters.
3. Keep heat (or air) at reasonable levels. Allow sunshine to help warm.
4. Used Prius when taking even short trips. (Love that car.)
5. Ate a bunch of leftovers for lunch today.
* Bought 100$ gift certificate at Value Village (does not expire), got a bonus free 25$ to spend in January.
* Hubby was looking at buying the Harry Potter DVD box set on Amazon (he did not), just so he could watch the movies (as opposed to collecting them). I found the first 3 movies on VHS (Yes, we still own one of those dinosaurs!) at Value Village, 0.99$ each. They are now wrapped and added to the Christmas gifts.
* Paid 250$ for repairs on our 2004 Toyota. How is this frugal? The car has been paid for a long time ago and 250$ is cheaper than a monthly fee for a new car. (Bottom line, it's cheaper to make repairs once in a while than buy a new car, so as long as this calculation - and the car! - works we will keep the 2004 car)
* Daughter and her friend will bake gluten-free cookies using all-purpose gluten-free flour I got on sale at 50% off. (This flour is expensive, but we rarely use it).
* I went to 3 stores and to 3 thrift stores with the intention of finding something to wear on Christmas and found nothing. (I really don't own a lot of clothes, and nothing fancy or sparkly...). So I'm taking it as a sign that I don't *need* anything new and will figure out something with what I already own.
Have a great day!
1) Machine washed a bunch of seldom-used fancy clothes from a recent cruise vacation instead of taking them to the dry cleaner. I used our machine's handwash setting, along with Woolite, and then line dried. Though I have @ two solid hours of ironing still to go, estimate I saved a good $60, so a more than decent ROI.
2) Resisted tossing out two ripe pears and some sour cream the morning before our departure on above trip, and instead baked and froze a loaf of sour cream pear bread. Said pear bread is now our contribution at an upcoming New Year's brunch, so yeah for me!
3) Planned out my December holiday entertaining menues in early November so I could slowly stockpile the needed items as they went on sale. This has been so wildly successful, that I'm quickly running out of room to store everything, while still remaining well within budget.
4) Darned two items of still-good clothing, a sweater and a pair of hiking socks. I hate darning, so this is a victory for sure.
5) Am working hard to take advantage of the many festive, free activities that occur at this time of year - holiday light tours, concerts, festivals, etc. Much more fun than being stuck in a shopping mall!
1. Used the expensive washing machine in my apartment building, but hung the clothes up to dry rather than paying to use the expensive dryer (hopefully for the last time...I am in the process of buying a house!)
2. Resisted buying a treat at Starbucks this morning and decided to save my gift card for another time.
3. Eating meals out of the freezer in preparation for a move at the end of the month
4. Knitting and baking my last few Christmas gifts rather than buying them.
5. Using bubble wrap and boxes from a friend to pack for my move...the only thing I had to purchase was the tape!
1. Picked up a fisherman's vest my husband has been hankering for a long time for $3 at a 50% off sale at a thrift store.
2. All my holiday cold cuts and some cheese at deeply discounted prices (overruns they were, I think) at a local grocer.
3. Made most of the "beauty care" gifts for my son and his fiancee from materials I had on hand (much from last year's gift-making spree).
4. Packaged up seeds from some of my prolific annuals for stocking gifts.
5. Made my own chalk board paint with black latex paint I got from our Hazardous Waste Depot -- they put partially full containers of paint on shelves in a trailer for folks to shop through for reuse. Used some to convert a cork-backed placemat with a torn paper surface to a chalkboard for my garden shed and packaged some for handy-person gifts.
A retired gentlemen in my town used to run a small sharpening business and took care of my hair shears and sewing shears. He no longer provides this service and I was SHOCKED to find out how much it costs for sharpening elsewhere. Does anyone have a low-cost solution for tools such as these that require precision sharpening?
I'm not sure what to suggest. I've only owned one pair of hair shears before and they were just a cheap pair that came with a hair clippers, so when they got dull, I just replaced them. These are a better pair, though, so when they get dull I'd like to sharpen them.
http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/photos/0,,20513767_20994193,00.html
You could try this to sharpen your scissors.
1. Took home tamales from community Holiday party and ate for breakfast and
Dinner for 2 days.
2i send out the Christmas cards I get from charities to friends and family.
3.used 50% off to order workout clothes through Lands End.
4.look up a book I wanted on Amazon and then request it on the internet through the library.
5.checked on OTC ointment for husband at Walgreen to find which store had in stock before going out to many stores where it was out of stock
Kristen, I just discovered your website and love it! It will help me with my New Year's resolution of living more frugally. I especially love "Five Frugal Things" and reading everyone's comments.
Welcome, welcome! So glad to have you along for the ride.
1. I always check my receipt before leaving a store. It's easy to bill you for an extra item if it rings through twice by accident or to have incorrect produce code entered resulting in paying extra or item in your cart was listed on sale but is full price on your bill.
2, Cooked SIMPLE lunches for work
3. Bought extra meat that was on sale, portioned it and froze it
4. Have been using my at home espresso machine to make lattes. I was tossing an unspeakable amount of money at lattes the machine has paid itself off in a month.
5. I made a tv stand out of milk crates and a extra tier from my IKEA shelf. I moved in November and had been considering buying furniture but we are using what we have and getting creative. Instead of buying a new couch we bought a folding futon. I have no interest in keeping up with the Jones'. I find that being simple gives me a huge amount of satisfaction.