Five Frugal Things | a medical watch discount
1. I ordered a watch with a discount code
When I mentioned that I needed a watch with a second hand for nursing school, a reader let me know about the Speidel brand of watches that are made specifically for medical professionals.
The watches aren't terribly expensive as is, but I found one that was marked down (because of course).
Then I clicked the button to sign up for their email newsletter, and I got another 10% off.
2. I got some free fluorescent bulbs
Someone on a Facebook group was getting rid of some, which was very fortunate timing for me because several of the bulbs in my basement boiler room are on their way out.
I'm delighted to not have to buy any!
3. I paid cash for knife sharpening
I had two knives that were very dull (one being a paring knife I've had since 1997!), plus I had a paring knife from the abandoned house that was pretty dull.
So, I stopped by the knife-sharpening truck that's in my area once a week, and I got them sharpened.
The price was $5 cheaper if you pay in cash, so OBVIOUSLY that's what I did.
And now I'm gonna have to remember to be a little more careful with my knives. I've probably developed a carelessly cavalier attitude towards them because they've been so not-sharp.
(I know that sharp knives are actually safer because they don't slip and slide. But still: I'm gonna need to be mindful as I adjust!)
Relevant: maintaining items that I already own is ultimately cheaper than paying for new items. And it's better for the environment.
Also, also: cheap items are frequently not worth maintaining or are not possible to maintain/fix. But if you buy good stuff to begin with, it's usually possible to fix/maintain it!
4. I made yogurt and whole-wheat bread
These are classics for me!
And while both of them do require a lot of time from start to finish, they don't require a whole lot in the way of hands-on time.
So I'm hoping that maybe I can keep these two habits going even when I start school. Maybe on a day when I'm studying at home, I can pop in and out of the kitchen and get some yogurt and bread made.
Here's how I make yogurt, with no special equipment required.
And here's how I make whole wheat bread.
5. I fixed a hand towel
I have entirely lost count of how many times I've done this for my kitchen and bath towels. These end seams seem to come apart so often in the wash.
And it's important to catch it and fix it promptly because otherwise the small problem morphs into a larger one.
Happily, it's a super quick fix; it takes more time to get the machine out than it does to do the actual fix.
And I am grateful I know how to do these easy fixes; they've extended the life of my towels so, so many times.
Like I always say, if you want to save big money with your sewing skills, learn how to mend! You get the most bang for your buck that way.
It was not a very frugal week, we rented a house at the beach and treated our daughter and SIL.
1. We did drive the hybrid vehicle and stayed at a beach closer to home than we sometimes do.
2. We brought and bought food for most meals at the beach. We shopped at Food Lion instead of Harris Teeter and they let us use their store card for discounts. I used a $5 gift card I "won" many months ago.
3. I washed my flip flops in the dishwasher after we were home. One of them came unglued on our beach vacation last year and the repair is holding.
4. DH wanted some new tools and two local grocery stores are running promotions that involve buying Lowe's gift cards and receiving $15 off groceries. I did a few deals to help defray the cost.
5. Yesterday I sharpened my three most used kitchen knives. I have had them, Chicago Cutlery, since the 1980s. I did have to buy a replacement sharpening steel several years. I used the large knife to cut a watermelon. So much fruit for not much money and the rinds went in our composter.
Oooh, what beach did you go to?
And yes, most grocery stores are cheaper than Harris Teeter, in my experience!
@Kristen,
We went to Fenwick Island DE. It was nice, not very crowded.
—I replaced the lost fly button on a pair of my husband’s work shorts by stealing a pocket button off a pair of his old work pants/my messy project pants. I also mended two t-shirts.
—I removed a comical amount of my hair—tangled with donations from our long-haired cat—from our vacuum’s roll bar. Our Kenmore vacuum ($50 new with tags at Habitat Restore, baby!) automatically stops the roll bar when the bag is full, so that’s the signal for general maintenance. If the vacuum needs a new bag, it likely needs a wig removed from the roll bar, too!
—I bought a can of satin black spray paint ($8) to refinish our standing toilet paper holder. 13 years, two apartments, and now our house later, the chrome finish needed help! Black hides all the wear and tear nicely, plus it now matches our bathroom.
—It’s been humid enough to bust out the BIG dehumidifier in addition to the little one that lives in the bathroom. Google said it was safe to use the resulting water for non-edible plants, so I’ve been emptying the humidifier tanks over the flower beds. Kitchen water from hard boiling eggs, pasta, and washing salad greens continues to go to the vegetable garden.
—We had been wanting a full-length mirror for the back of the closet door but were holding out for one that went with our “Victorian hodgepodge“ aesthetic. Goodwill came through with an ornately framed full-length mirror for $15! The closet door handily had an existing nail hole in the perfect place. Our 1890s house still has 95% of its original oak doors, cabinets, baseboards, etc., and I’m always loathe to injure any of it!
Re: future frugality, plumbers are swapping out our crumbling vanity (definitely not original to the house) today. Here’s hoping all goes well and I can add it to next week’s list as a frugal victory vs. a frugal fail! I live in fear of the old house domino effect, where one fix leads to six more.
@N, spray paint for the win! I did the same thing last week with my patio set and it looks brand new.
@N, I also have one of those freestanding toilet paper holders, which I later painted when it got too tarnished. I got it when I rented an apartment that did not have a toilet paper holder. The rule was that anything you attached to the walls, such as towel racks or tp holders, was theirs. So I went to Walmart and got a freestanding one, which has moved with me. I believe this is the 4th residence I've used it in. Just wanted to let the others know that if you rent somewhere and they have a similar rule, you can always get a toilet paper stand. (Although the more frugal thing, I suppose, would be to just set the roll of tp on the back of the potty or on the counter.....)
@Fru-gal Lisa, We’ve always managed to live where the bathroom had no logical place to install a wall-mounted toilet paper holder. Our house continues this proud tradition! 😛
@N,
I'm embarrassed to admit that using egg boiling water to irrigate plants hadn't occurred to me. I'll try that next time.
@Fru-gal Lisa,
I laughed as I read your suggestion to put the tp on the back of the toilet. My cat thought it would be fun to send the tp for a float this morning.
@Rebekah in SoCal, No need to be embarrassed! I learned that tip from the comments here, myself. 🙂
@N, Our house is the same vintage. Nice details except where things are crumbling around the edges!
@Diane,
I frequently find TP rolls with vent holes, courtesy of Mr,Bud boo, panther in charge
@Pat Gaudreau, yes, a bit hilarious when you find them.
@N,
We have a free standing toilet paper holder in our half-bathroom, because we were unable to keep a wall-mounted one from falling out of the wall after I painted this bathroom. (I had removed it to do the painting). I was just thinking I need to clean it up and spray paint it, so thank you for the reminder!
@Fru-gal Lisa, an ex boyfriend had bought really nice ones for his home and when he moved, he left them behind . Grabbed those $25 holders fast!!
I've been using your method for making yogurt and it's been a game changer. Thank you.
1. I've been taking advantage of the cooler mornings and nights to open my doors and windows to let the cool air flow through my home before the heat arrives.
2. I'm allowing the clover in my lawn to grow and flower. I will mow it once the flowers are done blooming. I've planted some clover seed that I purchased but unfortunately with the drought conditions I'm not sure it will be successful. I'm hoping to mow less and have a more natural lawn.
3. I'm walking with a friend for free exercise. We walk on a local wooded nature trail. Every time I'm there I find a new wildflower blooming. It's so peaceful and beautiful.
4. I'm reading library books on my kindle. The latest was River Sing Me Home and it was excellent.
5. I made dog ice cream using the yogurt I mentioned above. This months flavor is pumpkin peanut butter. Ice cream is my rescue pups favorite thing and since she brings my family so much joy, I like to spoil her. It's a huge savings to make my own. I froze the leftover pumpkin for future batches.
@Jill A, I would love your recipe for the dog ice cream!
@Cindi, honestly I just blend plain yogurt that I make using Kristen's recipe and add usually banana or pumpkin and peanut butter. Usually a half banana and a spoonful of peanut butter per pint.
I was just commenting this week to my husband that one of the best cheap purchase I made when I was single is my knife set. I am pretty sure I bought it at Walmart. It's a Chicago Cutlery set that wasn't the cheapest but not the most expensive either. I am still surprised that my Walmart knives are still doing well after about 25 years of use.
*We used the library for books and entertainment: books, movies, and one magic show for Summer Reading Club.
*We gratefully accepted leftovers from a church dinner on Sunday-- fried chicken, rotisserie chicken, beans, potato salad.
*We used free cardboard to keep weeds down in the garden.
*I harvested some of our lettuce. We picked wild berries that went in some baked oatmeal.
*We hung a few clothes out to dry. I don't get to this regularly, so it's probably not a particularly frugal win. But. We did it a few times. And I'm hoping my son's greasy kitchen smelling work clothes smell a little better because of it.
@Jody S., if hanging them outdoors doesn't work, maybe try Rockin' Green Active Wear (Amazon). It's not exactly frugal, although the bag lasts literally months, and i use it in almostevery load of laundry), but if it extends the life of clothing, it just might be! It is awesome for gym clothes, musty towels and shop rags, along with everything else!
I’m still overseas so this is a travel edition-
1. Staying at a 4 star hotel, it’s clean comfortable and central but not too pricey
2. Enjoying the free buffet breakfast daily.
3. Taking full advantage of Melbourne’s amazing transport system which has a free inner city tram circuit and cheap train travel.
4. Hopefully a big frugal win - our gas heating system is not working and the suppliers wanted us to replace the system at a cosy of $8-10K. My husband looked at the circuit board and says it can be fixed but the local agent will not do it. We find the board’s Australian supplier but they only do changeovers…so I brought the board over, trekked out to an industrial park and gave them our board ( they had none in stock and repaired it in a couple of days) and now I have a repaired board to take home, cost $350.
5. Signed up to the hotel’s rewards program.
@Chris in NZ,
That circuit board fix was brilliant! I would never have thought to take a broken item with me on vacation. Hope you are having a wonderful trip!
@Chris in NZ, Never, ever would have thought to do what you did with the circuit board. You deserve some kind of frugal of the week award for that one!
@Lindsey,
It was a happy coincidence that the weekend before I flew to Australia my son found the supplier details and after trying to buy a new one, discovered that we had to do a changeover and I was flying to the same city in a few days - what are the odds?
I feel like I type the same things every week! But I like that I can add some frugal habits that will serve me often. I have been faithfully taking breakfast, lunch, and snack to work. I don't eat out more than twice a week. I've switched back to driving my car vs. the truck, saving me gas money. (even though I use the truck once every couple of weeks to keep it up and running) I tackled a minor toilet repair myself that cost me $7. Sold some scrap gold and silver from my jewelry box netting me $97. Reimbursed myself from my HSA for OTC meds I had added to my grocery cart. I made a plan for myself to stay off Amazon, not buy any new clothes or home goods, and be frugal with groceries and I am doing a good job of sticking to it!
Hmmm....
1. Re trimmed a straw hat I already had with silk ribbon my daughter dyed and some millinery flowers from a class my daughter took last year. For most people, buying hats is no big deal, but we have giant heads in our family and we need hats that come in size XL.
2. decluttered some more.
3. Cheap entertainment: watched Netflix while working on an embroidery I've been doing on and off (mostly off) for the last year. Goldwork is a massive pain so I've been putting off finishing it.
4. A friend talked me out of sending an antique embroidery I own to the conservators', which would have cost me thousands.
5. Read and re-read copyright free books online.
I wish there was a knife sharpening truck in our area!
FFT:
1) We finally canceled DIRECTV. Once college football season begins, we will sign up for some streaming service, but until then we'll save a little money. We're also cancelling our land line phone service.
2) I bought gas at Costco when I was nearby after visiting MIL in the hospital.
3) While I was at Costco, I returned some items. Also sent in 2 other returns. Those tend to pile up on me!
4) We're in the middle of a big event at work so my company is providing lunch for all of us for the rest of the week. Was nice to not have to plan lunches when things are so busy.
5) The usual stuff: bringing breakfast, lunch, and snack to work each day, meal planning, and not eating out more than once a week.
@Beverly, We actually do have a knife and scissors sharpening service in our rinky dink town, but I like sharpening knives on my whetstone. It makes me feel all competent and stuff.
Everyone who lacks a sharpening service nearby,
The Tightwad Gazette once recommended that you can sharpen scissors by cutting through sandpaper, I think it was. I've also heard that cutting through aluminum foil helps. Of course, neither practice will be as good as a professional sharpening service, but it might help. I don't know how to hack a knife sharpening, no pun intended.
There is also a difference between honing and sharpening. Honing straightens the blade, and is done more often. Sharpening actually sharpens the edge of the blade.
@Heidi Louise, I agree with Heidi Louise. That's what I learned when I worked for a cooking school all those years ago. I have a knife sharpening shop more or less at the bottom of my hill. They sharpen knives for restaurants. Restaurants rotate their knives. Anyway, I had mine sharpened last year and it was great. Had to do one at a time cause I had to leave them but they were ready for pickup in about 3 days.
@Auntiali,
There's a gourmet grocery store not far from me that would sharpen one knife per month, per customer, for free. At least, they offered this service pre-Covid....I need to check if they're still doing it. I think you have to be a member of the store "club", which is free.
@Fru-gal Lisa, But that pun was too good to pass up!!
1. I've been sewing a lot (though not had time to post it on the internet yet.) I made a summer dress out of cloth/notions I already had, and altered a hand-me-down shirt to fit me better. No spending involved 🙂
2. At lunch-time, my daughter and I are flying to another province to visit family, so we bought easy-to-transport food at the grocery store. We might have to buy milk, but hopefully nothing else.
3. We are traveling with carry-on only, are staying with my grandma, and are borrowing a travel crib and toys from my cousin. The flights weren't cheap (are they ever?) but we're trying to keep it pretty frugal.
4. I made a "use-it-up" salad last night, with cucumber, radish, whatever herbs we had, and the rest of a lemon that I'd used on the main. It was not the best salad ever, but it was fresh and crunchy.
5. In advance of our trip, I froze a bag of milk so that it doesn't go bad.
Possible frugal fail: I cooked like we'd be here all week to eat leftovers. Oops!
Random addition: Kristen, I have a book rec for you. "The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down." It's a medical memoir and is about cross-cultural communication between a Hmong family whose daughter had a rare form of epilepsy, and her medical team. It's sad, but so wonderfully written, and reading it as a mom and healthcare worker made me feel a lot of feelings! I of course got it from the library 🙂
@Meira@meirathebear,
I don't know how much postage is in your country, but when I used to visit family out of state, I would pack up a box of clothes and mail it. (Which at that time was cheaper than shipping UPS.) I'd time it so that it'd get there a day or 2 ahead of me and be ready when I got there. That way I had plenty of clothes for the 2 weeks, and only had to take a carry-on. The night before I left, I'd re-pack the box and my relatives would mail it back after dropping me at the airport. I only had to go to Walmart and get whatever toiletries I used that they didn't have, and they'd save those for me for the next visit. It worked great!
@Meira@meirathebear, I tried to read "The Spirit Catches You. . ." because it happened in Central California, but alas, I am neither a mom, nor medical so it just wasn't the right book for me.
@Meira@meirathebear, Any of your leftovers that can be frozen. Freeze in individual portions. Or make some freezer meals, if possible. Might help you rest when you get back... At least for a couple days.
@Meira@meirathebear, I read and recommended the book, “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down,” for students in special education and disability studies. It is an excellent example of how the American health care system works and did not work across cultural differences. It’s a stark reminder to not always view health care decisions through American eyes.
@Meira@meirathebear, I love this book! So fascinating...the runs to the ER...the burial of the placenta...
@Meira@meirathebear, I have that book!!! It is really good.
Mine are going to look familiar to the readers at The Non-Consumer Advocate blog.
1. Saved the round plastic lids that came with takeout containers after the bottoms cracked. These lids are the perfect size for placing over bowls or plates of leftovers.
2. Friend gave me a huge bowl of homemade hummus.
3. Went to Goodwill on Wednesday when it was 25% off for seniors – sometimes it pays to be old! Found two colorful pillows for outdoor chairs for just $5 each and two pairs of pants, also just $5 each. One of the pairs is from Chico’s (originally $95) and they fit like a glove, which has rarely happened in my lifetime.
4. Wasn’t planning to plant any flowers at our temporary apartment (most everything is in storage), but the lack of beauty was getting to me. Sister gave me a pot she wasn’t using, niece gave me leftover potting soil, and I bought four annuals that were 20% off. Our deck looks much better now with the flowers and the thrifted pillows.
5. Went to a garage sale where everything was free. Brought home two notebooks and an eyeglass case. I did spend money at the lemonade and cookie stand that the homeowners’ kids were hosting. (One of my life’s rules is to always stop at kids’ lemonade stands and to always leave them a big tip.)
I also use those takeout container lids to put under small plant pots to keep the moisture from ruining my wooden or painted surfaces!
@MB in MN, i also get lemonade from kid's stands . my apt complex has a huge flea market once a year. my son love thomas the train. i bought a thomas plate two kids were selling for 10 cents. i gave them a dollar and told them to keep the change. to see their faces light up when they thanked me still makes me smile when i think about it.
We have been very busy and it's been very hot, so I'm giving myself full marks for home cooking and additional marks for repurposing a worn flannel sheet as a sun screen for a side window.
So the new watch has the added advantage of 0-24 hours and strongly marked seconds? I could use a watch like that myself.
And I echo the comment that I wish a sharpening truck existed around here! My knives need sharpening again and it's a headache to get them done - I always have to leave them at a store and come back in a few days. I'm not good at sharpening knives myself.
My FFT:
1. Like N, I also opened up my vacuum and cleaned out the head and the pipe thing that carries the dirt from the head to the vacuum bag. It vacuums better now.
2. I ordered fluorescent bulbs for the office and went through Swagbucks to order, earning 65 "bucks" (cents).
3. I go by Costco on my way home so I filled up the car for less and bought the low-carb protein drinks that my husband likes. He's chronically low on protein and likes these drinks. They are expensive but Costco saves us money on them.
4. My oldest sister, whose DH has Parkinson's, is having to learn how to do more household repairs herself, as am I. We discussed on the phone how she can clean out a clogged condensate drain line on her A/C with a shop vac. No repairman needed and her line is dripping correctly again.
5. I made my own Greek yogurt for tzatziki by draining plain yogurt. I saved the whey for fermenting.
Yes, the main reason I got it is for the second hand. My beloved step tracker watch sadly does not have a second hand, and that's required for school. Sigh.
@Kristen,
My Bulova has a second hand, but the seconds aren't marked, which is just a little aggravating.
@JD, your #4 is great! I had a repairman clean my clogged AC drain line and it cost $100!
1.We had rain several days last week, which meant I could turn off the irrigation to the outside garden beds, a nice savings.
2. I also baked two loaves of wheat bread, and I cooked a big batch of dried chickpeas.
3. Friends invited us to the local hot springs as their guests. We packed a picnic lunch, and I gave my friends sugar snap peas from my garden.
4. I'm still cooking from the pantry and freezer -- my only grocery purchases were cottage cheese and cherries.
5. I watered a friend's plants while she is away and she left me all her uneaten produce. It was a lot -- we're still working our way through it.
1) Used a $20 reward at the grocery store, netting me: two bags of salad, one container of oat milk, hamburger buns, sandwich bread, and two packages of sliced cheese for $5 (after the reward).
2) Packed lunches for the teens (they are working a summer job at a camp).
3) Bought a travel gift card (Southwest) at Costco, for 10% off. I also earn rewards from my executive membership & Costco credit card. Travel is expensive right now, so it all adds up.
4) My husband & I ate dinner at the airport lounge (access is free via our credit card), vs buying something. We did buy our teen dinner, as I assumed paying for his lounge access would be expensive. Well, let's just say that dinner at the airport for a teen is not frugal, and next time, we'll pay for him to go into the lounge, where he can order as much food as he'd like. It will be cheaper than the not super appealing sandwich he got.
5) Priced out transportation for our rides to/from the airport last weekend. We were flying in & out of two different local airports, because that alone saved a huge chunk of money. It also meant we couldn't park our car & had to do a ride share. Even factoring in the extra cost of the ride share, it was still cheaper.
Bonus: packed snacks from my parents house for the return flight home, & avoided spending money at the airport.
@Hawaii Planner, can you explain which credit card gives you access to the lounge? Thanks.
Made homemade sourdough bread as a gift for the friends’ relatives who let us use their pool for free all summer. It is so kind of them, I am going to try to bring a small baked gift each time we are there.
Used the library for free movies and books for the kiddos.
Made muffins with the juice from a can of mandarin oranges.
Made homemade Father’s Day cards instead of buying them at the store. Also gifted my dad his favorite caramel sticky buns instead of buying something. He is the age where he doesn’t need or want any more stuff anyways.
Used a coupon for free chicken nuggets from chik fil a.
FFT, "Whittling Away" Edition:
(1) I'm gradually whittling away at all the things one needs to do after a spouse dies. So far, I've had an in-person meeting with our financial advisor and a phone consultation with our lawyer's office, and I'll be going to our bank branch for a meeting with our guy there about our bank accounts as soon as I finish writing this. I'm doing all this stuff in small increments to keep from getting overwhelmed.
(2) I'm not sure whether this is going to be a frugal fail or win in the long run, but I also called the Chase Amazon Visa card folks to notify them of DH's death, and they canceled the card. (He was the account holder, though I was an authorized user.) Bummer in the short term, but it may prove frugal in the end: I won't be getting huge accumulations of Amazon points now that I'm no longer running DH's nursing home bills through this card, and I might spend less at Amazon if it's not so easy to do so. I could always get another card in my own name, of course, but I may not. The floor is now open for discussion.
(3) With all this talk of knives, here's my contribution: DH bought me a middle-of-the-line set of Wusthof knives at our local restaurant supply store for a birthday some 15 years ago, and these have served me very well. The store also provides free sharpening for knives purchased there, though I don't take advantage of this as often as I should; between visits, I use my mother's old "Robo" rolling knife sharpener. (In fact, I probably use it a lot more often than she ever did. We all loved our mother dearly, but it wasn't for her cooking.)
(4) The Bestest Neighbors gave me an organic chicken carcass for chicken stock last week, which I transformed first into stock and then into a chicken and vegetable soup with lots of fresh dill. (My garden is now assuming its annual identity as the Enchanted Dill Forest.) I took the BNs some of the soup when they got home yesterday from a weekend at their lake house, and I shared some more with the next-door neighbor. It got unanimous thumbs-up.
(5) Finally, the mason I hired about six weeks ago for front step repairs and brick repointing has started work. He's not cheap, but this is still better than letting the masonry deteriorate beyond repair.
Just sending some love to you as you navigate all of this. None of us knows how to do it until we have to do it, and I imagine it can feel a little overwhelming.
@A. Marie, closing that credit card could impact your personal credit score because it lowers your available credit. If you open another card, that will also affect your average age of credit card (since you'll have a new one so 0 years, 0 months age added to your other credit card ages). If a hit on your credit isn't crucial at the moment (no refinancing for example), then it's really no big deal, but if you are looking to apply for a loan or something, this may have an impact on your credit score. Hope that helps!
@A. Marie,
I've watched a couple of friends go through this process after the loss of a spouse. There is a lot to do, so I think it's wise to take it in steps, as you are doing.
Side note: You may envy me my okra, but I can't grow dill to save my life! I suppose that means no pickled okra for either of us, ha.
@A. Marie, Can't tell if this was your only credit card? If so, it is a good thing to have one, as some things pretty much require a credit card, (such as renting a car). If you're asking about whether you should get another Amazon card, I have nothing valuable to add.
You had asked me to follow up about Replacements, Limited, for some dishes I sent them. The whole process was very smooth and professional and they were much quicker than the estimated times on their website for sending an offer, processing, etc. That might not always be the case, of course. I'm sure their offers are seasonal or otherwise timely, (my plate with sunflowers got a higher offer than some other blossoms, because, I presume, Ukraine).
The two challenges were packing the things to sell, because I am paranoid about things breaking and it took me a long time, and, of course, postage. I don't have a scale at home so I used pre-paid USPS boxes and might have saved a little if I had used my own.
The ironic thing was the weekend after I sent my stuff off, I was at a yard sale in town and found Three Boxes of one of the most popular Pfaltzgraff patterns, discontinued. For ten dollars. I knew the 23 cups and saucers would not be of value, but the several serving pieces tempted me. I went ahead and bought them. A good many went to the thrift store, but after shipping, I will make a very small profit. It was fun, yet I don't think I will play dishes lottery again.
@CW: You make a good point about the line of credit, but, fortunately, I don't plan to seek a loan for anything in the near future. I'm a little less clear about the impact on my personal credit score, since the Amazon card was in DH's name alone (despite my being an authorized user). I suppose I should go check one of the Big Three credit score authorities whenever I get a spare minute.
@Heidi Louise: No, this was not my only credit card (I took out one in my own name through our bank several years ago). The question was more about getting another Amazon card. And thanks for the follow-up on Replacements Ltd. I have a number of seld0m- or never-used serving pieces for our Noritake of Ireland "Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady" set that I wouldn't mind selling through them. This will be a winter project.
@A. Marie, Good luck!
I would estimate they offered me about 1/4 to 1/3 of what a piece was listed to sell for on their website.
@A. Marie, The legal/financial things = not fun. I have helped my father through all of the things that needed done when my mother passed away. But there's one more thing that needs done....it changing the beneficiary of his life insurance account. But. I am dragging my feet. It's stupid, I know, but I just haven't been able to do it because if feels like looking forward to his death.
@Jody S., I know it's hard--but get that beneficiary thing done, for your dad's sake and yours. Believe me, it'll be a lot easier now than arguing with the life insurance company will be later.
And even though I thought I had most of my bases covered, I'm still running into things like the Amazon card cancellation. Ask me how much I'm NOT looking forward to dealing with the NY State DMV re: transferring title to the Honda Element from DH's name to mine. I swear, the DMV wants everything from me except my birth certificate and my blood type.
@A. Marie, my heart goes out to you. I've often wished there was a handbook for widows. It is all so overwhelming.
@A. Marie, sending you gentle hugs.
@A. Marie, I had no idea there was a set of dishes for "Country Diary....". I'm intrigued and now have to look hem up.
@Anne, I looked it up on Replacements dot com and it is pretty, very feminine. It is Country Diary Edwardian Lady by Noritake.
@A. Marie, I have found (from experience) that being an authorized user does impact your credit score. I help my significant other with his business, so he added me as a user to one of his cards so I could easier transact business. When I pulled my credit report, that credit card was on there. I think that is why some, er, financial advisors will say to have a parent put their child as an authorized user so the child gets some credit history.
@A. Marie, I am so sorry to hear of your husbands passing. (((HUGS)))
I'm a little disappointed that you didn't go to a second hand store for your watch.
Okay my FFT this week:
1. Replaced an LED light in my basement. Yeah it wasn't free but a lot cheaper than calling an electrician. Also it was fairly simple to do and I'd be confident doing it again.
2. An item I bought on Amazon dropped in price right after mine shopped and I asked Customer Service to price match their current price and they did.
3. I've still refrained from buying myself that $500 ice maker. 😉
4. Had a rather difficult Father's Day. I wasn't able to do the dinner planned and the three places I would've liked to have eaten out at were all closed. I had not eaten since breakfast and when my blood sugar gets low I have a really hard time thinking and processing information and making decisions is not easy. My wife came to the rescue by making some stuff in the air fryer that we keep on hand in the freezer for just such occasions. It beat just going out for fast food that I didn't want.
After eating I was able to do better and we went out for ice cream afterward.
5. Possible Fail, Possible win. So I've been hearing about how one can make Dawn Powerwash out of Dawn, water and rubbing alcohol put in a spray bottle. Well I did it and it *did* get my dishes clean but I don't know that I saved all that much versus just letting them soak in regular Dawn and water. I mean, I'd say try it yourself as it cost almost nothing but I don't think I'll be retiring from it.
Hahaha, is that a pun, perhaps?
@Battra92,
Wait, your number 2... this can be done?
I learned that Amazon has a warehouse here, and now I learn this.
@Battra92, thanks for tickling the funny bone with "second hand store"!!
@Battra92, Too funny. And blood sugar? I learned that my sons MUST eat something before they practice driving or else. I figured it out after son #1 had 3 (or so) near collisions in a parking lot all at the same time.
Oh my goodness... that's such a good one! I'm disappointed in myself for not catching it when I read it the first time! Ha!
@Kristen, I'm a dad. It's in my nature.
@JD, They were like,, "Just this once!" but they didn't hesitate to do it and it's not like I was pushy or anything. I just asked.
@Jody S., I don't know if it's really blood sugar because I'm not a diabetic. I don't get hangry like some people but I just kind of shut down and have a hard time dealing.
@Battra92, My boys aren't diabetic, but it is low blood sugar for them. The brain needs fuel, right? Since that day, we've noted the same non-functioning for the boys when they're hungry.
@Battra92,
Thanks for the info on the Powerwash Dawn. I've been wanting to try it but I know it's just Dawn and water - and I guess alcohol. I've said no and dh (dear hubby) has said no so even though it's on sale at Walgreens this week I'll say no again.
--We finally used the meat grinder we bought several months ago. It worked just fine grinding up the tough bull meat. The neighbor who owned the bull in question still have a LOT of the meat in her freezer that she wants to give us. So we'll take that and grind it. Even giving some back to her, we're going to end up with like fifty pounds of ground meat.
--This meat is very, very lean, and needs fat ground with it. The grass-fed cows we get here don't typically have a lot of fat. However, I called the independently owned grocery store in one of the towns we sometimes go to and asked about buying some tallow from their meat department. They told me they cut meat every day and would save however much I wanted, and they didn't charge for it. I love that store.
--So much lettuce coming from the garden, and almost all of it is from the volunteer plants which means free lettuce, yay!
--I suppose I could also list as frugal the fact that I don't buy salad dressing. I make either a vinaigrette or a ranch dressing, both of which take about a minute to make and taste way better than store-bought. Well, this time of year the ranch takes longer because I add LOTS of finely chopped fresh dill, parsley, and green garlic, but it's worth the extra time to have the fresh herbs from the garden.
--Rhubarb rhubarb rhubarb! My family prefers some strawberries with their rhubarb desserts, and I do have to buy the frozen strawberries, but still. I love being able to go out and harvest rhubarb every couple of weeks for jam or dessert. Perennials are the best.
@kristin @ going country, Oh, and I meant to mention this on your post about small, handy kitchen tools, but it's very pertinent here too: We have an AccuSharp knife sharpener that is great for quickly sharpening knives. My husband actually designs and sells knives, and he uses this small tool to sharpen the knives before sending them out. It lives in a little basket on my kitchen counter, so I can also take it out and run my knife through a few times before using it. It makes such a difference. I have a fancy electric ATK-recommended sharpener that I never use, but I do use the AccuSharp. Ten bucks online and well worth it. My knife-snob son refuses to use it and actually sharpens his knives to scary sharpness using a stone or something, but I like the easier way. 🙂
Ok, off to look that thing up!
@kristin @ going country, in case you hadn't seen, there are some recalls out right now on frozen strawberries - you might want to check to make sure yours aren't included.
Oh, that fresh-from-the-oven homemade bread looks delicious! Now I'm hungry for fresh baked bread!
Here are my 5:
1. I remembered to check "Gas Buddy" online before filling up with gasoline, and I saved 11 cents per gallon. All the stations around me were $2.99 or $3 (one was even $3.04, but I know better than to gas up at Sunoco, it's new in town, it's not a Texas company and it's always too high!) but by driving out to Walmart, their Murphy's Gas was $2.88. And I needed to drop some things off at Goodwill, a few blocks away from Wallyworld, anyhow. Grouping those errands saves gas!
2. At said Goodwill, I traded my discards for a coupon allowing me 20% off any donated goods. A win-win situation! I'm also using a lot of coupons, and taking surveys, for free fast food.
3. Went to the suburban town's library and got a card there. I live in the city, and already have a city library card, but this is a different one. Since the city library was closed for the Juneteenth holiday and the town library was not, and since it was also my day off, I was able to check out a book. It was a Longmire book: I've been watching the series on an over-the-air channel (Circle) and am absolutely hooked on it! (Who says you can't get good TV when you don't pay for cable, satellite or streaming? Those over-the-air sub-channels are the greatest thing since sliced bread, IMO.)
4. When I used my Ollie's Outlet discount card, giving me 15% off everything, last week, I picked up a paperback book that was marked $3.99. (It was by one of my favorite authors, so I let myself have a treat.)When I started reading it, however, it sounded real familiar. Turns out, I have the exact same book in hardback -- only the publisher changed the title on the paperback version. Darn! So I took it to my good friends' used bookstore and laughingly told them why I was trading it in. My friend allowed me to trade even-Steven for a Longmire paperback she'd just put out...and priced $5. Yessssss!!! (Oh, and I also save my plastic shopping bags and take 'em to their store, which they reuse by sacking up their customers' books.)
5. Filled my water jug up at the suburban library. (With the librarian's permission, of course) Their town has much better-tasting water than our city water supply. The city has been adding a lot of chemicals (disinfectant?) to the lake water lately and it is horrible. I got a jug full of free water, so I don't have to buy a jug of bottled water. (And, yes, I'm re-using those jugs.)
@Fru-gal Lisa, $2.88 for gas? excuse me while I go faint. It's $5.43 here. Just another gouge. sigh.
@Fru-gal Lisa, I’m happy here if Costco is $4.25 gallon!
@Fru-gal Lisa, your Goodwill gives coupons for donations?? Must just be a regional thing. And the price of your gas is stunning. We are hanging around $4.69 here.
We hosted Father’s Day at our house instead of going out to eat. We pulled out the last of the steaks from the freezer and my husband created a “steak tasting menu” where he used different seasoning on the different cuts of steaks. We all had a little of each and it was fun to discuss which ones we liked best.
My FIL really likes rhubarb dessert but his wife does not. I made a rhubarb crisp using the bounty from our back yard, and a chocolate banana bread using frozen bananas to make sure everyone got something they liked.
The ‘house phone’ has been an old iPhone of mine for the last few years. My tween is allowed to take the house phone when he bikes to practice but has let me know that the call quality is really bad (I did confirm) which would make it hard to call anyone in an emergency. I found a refurbished iPhone to replace the house phone since I’m not ready to upgrade mine to rotate. Still a spendy purchase but much cheaper than a newer version and it makes my mama heart calmer that he can call me.
Anyone else feel really defeated after reading all this? I'm not frugal enough, I don't have a financial advisor or bank guy or lawyer, I rarely go to garage sales, I don't use food up before going somewhere, my gas costs too much, and I'm usually too tired or filled with anxiety to use coupons and I always forget rebates. Sigh.
Girl, I don't have a financial advisor or a bank guy, and my lawyer is hopefully a temporary presence in my life. Ha. And I don't go to garage sales either.
We're all just sharing our frugal highlights, and lots of us do things that others of us would never dream of. Don't give into the temptation to coalesce us all into one person; no single person here is doing All Of The Things.
@Kristen,
that was a perfect reply which I'm sure many of us took to heart. Thank you.
@Rose, I don't like to cook, and the few things I make, my husband doesn't care for. The whole of Friday's What We Ate posts are lost on me.
I consciously choose to be pleased with myself about other things.
I also am unlikely to ever raise the energy to sue an evicted tenant as you did. Our powers are different.
@Rose, you provide light and authenticity to the discussions
"Frugal enough" for what??
And garage sales are good if you need something, but otherwise they cause people to accumulate more stuff (or junk, depending on one's perspective).
Coupons are just trickinology.
Rebates are also trickinology, designed to steal your contact info and then sell it to other places who will bombard you with their own demands.
You are more than fine just as you are and a real treat to get to know (virtually, because we don't even know your name here!)
@Rose, I don’t do any of this which is why I don’t comment on Tuesdays haha
I could contribute to frugal fails today if that was a topic: spent several thousand on the emergency vet, paid for a week long summer camp my daughter hated on the first day and refused to attend the rest of the week, got my dad a gift card for Father’s Day for a restaurant that is nowhere near them (they did have one near them but it closed and I was not aware). It’s been a fun week and not even halfway over yet!
@Heidi Louise, i absolutely despise meal planning but i have a few things my family likes. and i am encouraged by many suggestions on this blog. am grateful for them. i like to give my kids food they like to eat. i just don't have confidence in my abilities.
@Rose, I was gonna run out and plant some rhubarb. But then I remembered I don't like rhubarb. One less thing to do today! ;-}
@Central Calif. Artist, Yes about the yard sales. I used to frequent them, but I have no need for them right now. My junk meter is on full already.
It's true! No one does it all. I go to yard sales because it's fun and helpful for my family and I have the time to do it. But I also bought tubs of yogurt last week - ha!
You guys are making me laugh and laugh. Thanks. Apparently my hobby is torturing myself for not being perfect. I don't like cooking either. Well, theoretically I like it, but in actual fact when it's dinnertime I feel so tired I get really resentful about it, but constant take out is too expensive. Gardening is another thing--I've gardened every year since I was a small child. I don't really like it much but I do like freshly grown stuff and flowers, so I keep plugging away, muttering bitterly to myself.
Also, I love rhubarb, and my daughter did that more than once with summer camps. hahahahaha, I needed this laugh today. My mom is upset because the pearls Daddy gave her are missing and I don't know what else to say to her except I don't have them. My sister gave me the Cut Direct and so the upcoming family wedding should be interesting and I'm so, so tired.
@Rose, dear heart, it was never my intention to make anyone feel bad about anything. You are under stress from multiple directions right now, and I implore you to cut yourself some slack--starting with giving your sister the Cut Direct right back. Stuff disappears with old folks, and I learned during DH's nursing home stay just to roll with that. (Besides, my oldest sister called yesterday afternoon, and although she thinks she's being helpful, she isn't. I finally had to tell her I didn't want to talk about any of this any more, just to put an end to the conversation.)
@A. Marie, Oh believe me, I know you didn't, it just made me panic as usual, thinking maybe I didn't have enough money and if I had more I'd have a guy at the bank etc etc etc. I bank via the Internet and I've always managed my money myself. It's not you, it's me.
And thank you. Yesterday was a hard day as BFF's house went on the market. It was barely two years ago she bought it, so happy to finally buy her own house. (Before, she'd lived in a giant New Orleans mansion with her mother.) We had such fun planning the decoration and I hung the cutest midcentury wallpaper in her kitchen last November. Her house shouldn't be on the market. She should be living there.
@A. Marie, Are you guys talking about the Cut Direct from Jane Austin world or am I missing some new definition of it?
@Lindsey, I am also in the dark. But Rose likes to introduce me to many new words and phrases, so I'm all ears/eyes for this one.
@Lindsey and @Jody S., the only instance I can recall of the Cut Direct from Jane Austen's works is in Sense and Sensibility, where Sir John Middleton cuts the dastardly Willoughby after Willoughby jilts Marianne and marries a nasty rich girl. But it does refer to encountering someone (in the street, etc.) and turning on the deep freeze.
Yes, it's talked about etiquette books as well--my dear friend Francis Grose for one. Dear Francis also talks about the cut sublime where you admire the top of King's College Chapel until your enemy is out of sight. Like you do. Even George Orwell referenced it in "A Clergyman's Daughter," one of my favorite books.
"A black, very dusty shovel hat was approaching round the corner of the hedge. It was Father McGuire, the Roman Catholic priest, also bicycling his rounds. He was a very large, rotund man, so large that he dwarfed the bicycle beneath him and seemed to be balanced on top of it like a golf-ball on a tee. His face was rosy, humorous, and a little sly.
"Dorothy looked suddenly unhappy. She turned pink, and her hand moved instinctively to the neighbourhood of the gold cross beneath her dress. Father McGuire was riding towards her with an untroubled, faintly amused air. She made an endeavour to smile, and murmured unhappily, 'Good morning.' But he rode on without a sign; his eyes swept easily over her face and then beyond her into vacancy, with an admirable pretence of not having noticed her existence. It was the Cut Direct. Dorothy—by nature, alas! unequal to delivering the Cut Direct—got on to her bicycle and rode away, struggling with the uncharitable thoughts which a meeting with Father McGuire never failed to arouse in her."
Try it, folks, it's free and it's not what most people expect from Orwell.
https://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks02/0200011h.html
@Heidi Louise, 100% with you on the "hate to cook". Since I'm 74, I don't think that bug is ever going to bite me. When I read about women who love it, I have to go bang my head on the wall.
And we are possibly married to twins who were separated at birth. I swear the husband eats only about six things, over and over and over. Luckily, he has other good qualities.
@A. Marie, love "the Cut Direct right back." It's part of my repertoire.
@Anne, As you said, other good qualities balance out mealtime issues! I will happily listen to enthusiastic cooks without joining them.
My husband cooks and enjoys it. I eat some of what he prepares.
Thinking through the various family and mealtimes dynamics (from all of my life, actually!) that led us to this disjointed situation was a good mental exercise for me.
@Rose, Oh my I love that you posted and that everyone jumped in sharing their imperfections/lack of love for certain frugal activities. What a great community!
I have a financial advisor and bank gal and even a couple of lawyers (and an accountant) however I also had a business that is now boxed up yet still fully on the books (and in the bank, too, thank heavens) so there are some deep needs yet. I don't really like thrift stores nor garage sales - the first because many around here are poorly managed and weirdly priced, and the latter for the same reason I don't like going to farmer's markets - my empathy is in full force when facing someone trying to earn a buck with their stuff. So I stay away. I always hope someone is staying at my home if I go away, or I come home and improve my compost heap... Gas in Canada is painful, I don't coupon unless it is totally weirdly coincidentally convenient and worth my energy (and for something I normally buy). Rebates are a fools game and I am the fool. I forget to return things, buy too many things on impulse (and forget to return THEM), and often am too tired/bored/disinterested to cook these days.... However, I do love rhubarb and am blessed with an enormous patch so have been finding the energy to get some chopped and frozen for future use
I love the FFT posts here and on the NCA because they remind me to take my clothes out of the washer and hang them, or to put beans on to soak, or gather stuff to put out and donate, or... generally keep conscious about things I can and WILL do to save some money and the planet. And I love this community so very much for the kindnesses that are shown.
@JDinNM, that made me laugh!!!
Your bread looks great!
1. My kids got invited to a birthday party last minute. Luckily I have some items I keep stored in the basement for that reason.
2. My mom brought over a bunch of groceries that fed my kids some meals and snacks through the weekend.
3. I have been working from home more lately, which has been saving on gas and mileage on my car. I can work from home 4 days per week and I may start doing this more often.
4. On days we can't get to the YMCA, I have been using my hand weights and doing work outs from You Tube, going for walks, or yesterday I went kayaking with a friend.
5. I prepped my breakfasts, lunches, and coffee for the work week.
This is not a list of my frugalities, but a question for the hive mind. I have a sewing machine that I think I want to give away and don't know how to do this most effectively. I sewed a lot many years ago, but won't any more and it's just taking up room.
I don't like Buy Nothing groups as three times I have offered up freebies and three times people have said they would come and get and never did. I would love to give it to a young girl just starting out, whose parents can't afford to buy one.
Here is the difficult part, my mother bought it new in 1964 so it won't have any bells and whistles, and I'm not sure anybody will want it. Do I have to resign myself to throwing it in the dump? Anybody have any ideas on this?
I wonder if you could offer it on Facebook Marketplace? Sometimes people list things for a low price just because it'll make people commit a little more.
@Anne,
Perhaps you could donate it to a library
@Anne, don't toss it in a dump!!!!!!!! Sewing machines of that age are the BEST in terms of quality and sturdiness. They're actually often coveted by seamstress because they're such great workhorses. They're also simpler to tinker on yourself and troubleshoot. Many groups (refugee aid, inner city groups, mission organizations, some high schools) use them to help teach classes or refurbish and take to areas of need for women to earn extra income. You could check the local FB for any of those kind of groups. Also, often charity sewing or quilting groups may have good networking info, or any place that teaches sewing classes. Even the sewing machine repair shop may be helpful for a donation referral.
I also echo Kristen to post on FB for a very modest fee, maybe $5-10? I've done it with items I wanted to give away; it helps weed out the no-shows but will attract those that may actually need it. I usually just give it to the person when they come, or if they insist on paying, then donate the sale proceeds to a worth cause.
@Anne, The old models are great. They're made out of metal not plastic and no bells and whistles means things won't break. Please don't put it in the dump. FB Marketplace is a good idea.
@Anne, it sounds as if it could be a Singer Featherweight. If so, quilters covet those. If it isn't, check with quilting groups in your area, because they are often interested in owning multiple machines.
@Amanda P, The older machines are the BEST! I can do anything with my mom's from the early 60's but need to baby mine I bought in the late 80's. I second all your advice here, I was going to say the same things.
@Anne, Is it a Singer? I (and many others) collect vintage sewing machines. I love, love, love the look of my Singers from the 50s/60s. So beautiful. Somebody wants it. You might check on FB-- there is likely at least one specialty group for your specific sewing machine.
@Anne, Sell it on FB! I had one from the 1950s and it sold for several hundred dollars. They did not have plastic parts in them so are indestructible and are in high demand in some parts. My grandmother was a tailor and had several different machines, one a treadle by Singer that she bought the week after coming to the U.S. When the guy from the local sewing fix-it place overheard me talking to my husband about it, he offered me $500 for it sight unseen.
@Anne, I donated a sewing machine to a woman’s shelter once. They were glad to have it to mend kids clothes while in the shelter. I don’t know if people do that much anymore but you could ask.
@Tiana and everybody else. Thanks, I did get several good ideas from this discussion.
@Anne, When I bought my then 13 year old daughter a sewing machine for her birthday, I purchased a 1960s German model that weighs approximately 350 pounds. The seller said, "You could probably add wheels to this and ride it around the backyard." It's done sterling service for her ever since.
1) I mended a hand towel and darned a pair of hiking socks.
2) Not frugal for me, but I listed two items on buy nothing. I am very relieved to have that garage space back.
3) I requested the free welcome baby box from Amazon after setting up a baby registry. It did have two items that I needed.
4) I was given a free highchair from friends. (I guess this sort of pairs with number two.)
5) We brought a lot of snacks to Disneyland.
@Rebekah in SoCal, I darn socks by spiking them into a trashcan while muttering, "darn it!"
@Central Calif. Artist,
And speaking of how no one does All The Frugal Things - I don't darn socks either. My mother never darned socks because we kids outgrew them anyway and my dad suffered 3rd degree burns on the soles of his feet as a toddler, so he couldn't abide even the most careful darning in the bottom of a sock until the day he died. I decided that if my uber-frugal mother could toss socks or make dusters out of them instead of darning them, so can I.
But I truly like the spike image...
@Central Calif. Artist and @JD,
I only darn my hiking socks because I put good money into them and want them to last as long as possible. Also they are Injinji socks and are sort of like gloves and if I didn't darn them I would have a left-footed sock but no matching right-footed sock.
(These are silly socks in a way but they help prevent blisters on my toes.)
@JD, After my husband had chemo, he developed an aversion to any darning on the bottom of his socks because it was painful to him. He doesn't care about the tops being darned but the soles of his feet have plagued him for decades--he had cancer at 28 and is 74 now! We redid the tile in our shower because it was pebbled and using it was agonizing to him.
@Central Calif. Artist, very clever, girl!
@Anne, thank you! It's right there with asking Kristen why she didn't buy her new watch at a second hand store. 😎
That is a very nice watch, Kristen.
1. Simmered the carcass of the weekend's roast chicken and picked every speck of meat from it. The meat and broth were used to make homemade chicken soup.
2. Split my purchases at Ollie's Outlet into two orders to maximize use of a 30% off one item coupon, which was applied to a replacement food processor after ours quit working.
3. Read four magazines that are free online with my library card.
4. Hand-washed a disposable faux Swiffer duster from Dollar Tree and hung it up to dry. It works fine.
5. Used some old Venetian blind cord and an old dog leash clip from the junk drawer to hang up a bird feeder.
1. Batched errands which included a discussion with DH over a free Panera scone (I received a random email with this) and a quick walk into Hallmark next door for my first free card as a member. I think DH was not impressed by the card expedition (he seldom is with my freebies) but I like sending nice cards and I like having some that are not the freebies received from my MIL’s stash of cards she receives from charities. While the freebies are nice, they can be a little tacky sometimes IMO.
2. Received additional free cards from my mom, who is now also getting them in spades from various charities. I also took her off of several charity mailing lists that she didn’t want mail from, to help stem the inflow of junk mail.
3. Used samples of hair products while traveling.
4. I’ve worn my Chaco sandals and summer sandals until they are falling apart. I thought I found their replacements at Nordstrom Rack for a good price, but ended up taking them back as the fit wasn’t quite right. I’ve tried to make shoes that weren’t quite right work in the past, and it never works out well, so I consider this money saved. But I still need sandals.
5. We recently visited my mom and she was able to mend some of Baby E’s bibs, holey knees, and even replaced the footies on a pair of sleepers. The pants with knee holes will eventually have to be recycled/thrown away, but it's nice to extend their life while he's still crawling.
@Lindsay B,
Hi Lindsay! Did you know you can have your Chaco's re-strapped? They have a program where they will repair, resole, or restrap your sandals.
We had a practically free food weekend and of course, I made a few quick repairs.
- My husband wanted to take our car in to have a turn signal repaired. I bought new light bulbs for 9 bucks and replaced it instead.
- Saturday morning we went to an event sponsored by my husband's work. We got a free breakfast and t shirts.
- Saturday afternoon we went to a friend's potluck and volleyball party. I only had to buy one ingredient for our dish because I based it on our pantry and what was growing in the garden.
- Spent Father's Day at my in law's for a cookout and pool party. Again, I only had to buy one ingredient for the cupcakes I made and brought with us.
- My husband used the free beach towel he got for his Employee Appreciation Week when we went swimming on Father's Day.
1. Harvested tomatoes, snow peas, french breakfast radishes, basil, cilantro, bell peppers, banana peppers, jalapeno peppers, yellow squash and zucchini from the garden. At some point this week we should get a bushel of green beans from our garden as well. All of these veggies & herbs are things that I prepare meals with and I did not have to purchase them from a store.
2. Used fertilizer and plant food that we had on hand to feed/nourish our garden.
3. Repurposed latch for the garden fences and used the remaining mesh to provide support to some growing plants.
4. Sowed seeds in the garden for pumpkins thinking ahead to fall and how lovely homemade pumpkin puree is for baking/cooking. I hope that they make it!
5. Estimates for installing sod in our yard our outrageous. My husband found pallets of sod for only $175 which is quite a bargain and we will install it ourselves instead. Pray for our backs please.
@Angie, what are "french breakfast radishes"? And what part of the country do you live in to be harvesting all this so early in the growing season?
@Angie, French Breakfast radishes are my favorite. Radishes don't grow well here because it's too hot too early, but I grew a lot of them in New York, and they were the only variety that weren't too hot for me to eat raw.
Loved many things about this post! A watch for “medical professionals” made me smile, as you are now a medical professional! Nursing school counts from day one, in my book!!!
Whole wheat bread: I just got a kitchen aid mixer from fb marketplace at christmas time and want to start making bread.. will use your recipe.
Mending: I need to learn! I can’t sew. But my husband can do some mending, his Mom taught all 4 of her boys! Still, it is never too late for me to learn to mend a hole or a rip.
Have learned,over the years, that you are SO RIGHT about buying quality to BEGIN WITH and maintain/love your stuff. Good kitchen items are a blessing,especially when we cook so much!
P.S., Kristen, do you take all your awesome photos with your phone?
Note: When I went to nursing school I was 28, my son was 8 and my husband was a grad student full time. He worked part time painting the halls of his college campus (work/study program) . We were living off student loans,food stamps, and love. It was one of the most favorite times of my life!! I cooked dinner every night and oacked lunches and snacks for all 3 if us ,daily.I found that after all the scientific/health care homework and care plans,just relaxing in my kitchen was a RELIEF most days. Of course I had some VERY EASY meals in my repertoire for those very exhausting days.AND we did go for cheap mexican food once every 2 weeks. .My crock pot was a good friend! I am certain you still make bread and yogurt!! During those years most of our “entertainment” was watching MTV music videos together ,pot lucks with other students, and ice skating in the local park.Simple,happy times!
Awww, I love your story of your time in nursing school!
And yes, most of my pictures are taken with my phone these days; I used to only use my SLR, but man, the phone is so convenient. 🙂
1. I cut up a threadbare towel for cleaning rags.
2. The kids used scrapes for making crafts. Friendship bracelets made from leftover embroidery floss were popular this week.
3. We ate up food from the fridge and freezer. I made the menu for this week around what was in the freezer.
4. I am taking a 4 day seminar for free (well, I have to pay for the credits to go on my transcript). My parents are watching my kids, so they get extra time together.
5. We used some gift cards to pick up food.
My husband and are traveling from AZ to ND this week for a wedding. I got two hotel stays with a $50 rebate and my credit union is offering a $20 gift card for using my credit card for travel expenses. Packing most of our food as husband is salt free, so that eliminates fast food. Good for both of us. Using cash for gas as it is sometimes cheaper that way.
I made Serious Eat's no-knead bread. I will use it in the future for flatbreads.
I'm in the beginning of my frugal journey despite following this blog for years. Please excuse the sparseness!
Five Frugal Things is so fun. I read every comment so I can learn. Maybe someone can learn from me. . .
1. Made croutons from dried out bread left over from a weekend with some friends (someone else brought the bread, so totally free to me)
2. Sold another music book on eBay. (The weirdest thing: eBay is huge, but someone just 30 miles away bought it, and it was a name I recognized.)
3. I knit 2 scarves using leftover yarns for giifts for the 2 weekend friends. (If you are a knitter, look up the Omega wrap by Chris Bylsma - excellent use of those scraps.)
4. Made soup base from old veggies and froze it.
5. Made chicken broth from yet another roasted chicken brought to me by a fabulous neighbor/friend.
There is more, but I talk too much. Will save them for next week.
You inspire me with your bread baking and yogurt making. Maybe I should try....
Several good frugal things here this week...
1. I called to ask about $45 on a medical bill that seemed to be an unnecessary charge. We didn't even see the specific provider it was billing. As it turned out, the charge was in error, and they cleared my bill. Always ask!
2. I've been shopping extra at Goodwill lately and finding boys' size 14/16, 18, and men's S/M for my two teen boys who are growing like weeds. I've found some good things there too! One son was thrilled with the nearly new Purdue hoodie I got there for $4.50. Plus someone gave me a teen boys clothing bag on the Buy Nothing group.
3. My 7yo daughter kept asking me for a desk for her room and I found one on BN group! She is so happy!
4. Went to a garage sale and found two ~$30 items for $5 each. A school hoodie and a specific book I needed to buy for next year!
5. Used a free $25 giftcard I got from a grand opening and splurged and got my boys the YouTube star's food, Mr Beast Burgers. They loved it!
Off to more frugaling!!
1. I got some great deals on Flashfood - a $5 produce box, a bag of Starbucks coffee for $2.50, cereal for $1.61 per box, and some good meat deals.
2. I went to some yard sales and found nice clothes for my 2 older kids.
3. When our dog was given to us, the previous owners told us that he was microchipped but it had never been set up. I found the paperwork and it was a pre-paid microchip registration, so I was able to register his microchip for free.
4. I used some very ripe bananas to make Kristen's banana chocolate chip muffins. I used sour cream instead of plain yogurt because it's what I had (I needed sour cream for a recipe earlier in the week, but we aren't sour cream people and I was happy to sub it into the muffins.)
5. Prep for next week's camping trip: I made a menu, listed out all of the ingredients we will need for everything we plan to eat, and my mother-in-law and I split up the list. Today I went to Aldi and they had sticker face books for $2.99 each and magnetic games for $5.99 each. Those seemed like good, inexpensive non-screen options to entertain my kids for the many hours they will be in the van.
Oh! And a #6... We had forgotten for the first couple weeks of June that we are now in the time of year where energy costs 50% more from 2pm-7pm - whoops! So last week I wrote a reminder at the top of my planner about the peak rate times and set an alarm for 7:00 every night to start the dryer. I often do laundry in the afternoons, so this helped me to avoid running the dryer during the expensive time while also not forgetting that the dryer needed to be started.
Y'all may know this but do not put knives in the dishwasher. Wash by hand.
1. Husband's singing buddy trash picked a weed wacker that worked perfectly. Since he had two others, he offered this found gem to us for free.
2. Found two bags of shredded wheat that were quite old. Poured them out onto two cookie sheets and baked them back to crispy life instead of throwing them out.
3. Sold another item (third this week!) that had been sitting around the house for sometime. $44 in my pocket.
4. Needed something more for my soup so went out to the yard and picked young dandelion leaves and chickweed. Free, nutritious greens that rounded out the soup perfectly.
5. Froze buttermilk (which I use only for cooking) to save it from going bad.
@Lindsey, yay for using weeds! I put a generous fistful of lamb's quarters and redroot pigweed into the chicken stock I made this past week.
@Lindsey,
Potato chips generally arrive to the country I live in open because the shipping process causes the bags to pop open during shipping, so they're always stale. I've made them crispy again the same way you do with cereal!
Wondering how much you paid for knife sharpening? I recently had two chef’s knives sharpened at a local market.
I am so pleased you found my recommendation for the Speidel watch helpful! I really absolutely love mine. I find them to be a fun throwback to the 80's when those playful Swatch watches with the interchangeable colorful wristbands were so popular. I'm super excited to (hopefully) get a Speidel scrub watch with a white silicone band for my upcoming birthday. Fun to mix it up!
The library had bags of free seeds. Also the usual borrowing books and movies.
My kids got free food from the summer food program a couple of times.
Used a free Redbox code.
Used my husband's military discount at Lowe's.
Cashed out $20 on Ibotta.
June 2023
I offered to take my 8 year old to a rare visit to the zoo this morning. He wanted to stay home. We played Monopoly and he created obstacle courses for the dog to earn her treat. Zero spent. Zoo would have been over $40.
Played pickleball with my son five times in the last two weeks. Only cost is for a youth rated ball since he uses my old paddle.
Succeeded at getting insurance to pay for an expensive medication for me.
Returned a cute decoration at Target that I didn’t need.
Gave my son a haircut.
1. My laptop battery died and even though the computer is 6 years old, we're ordering a replacement battery rather than a new computer. It's a business grade laptop, and it's still fast enough for how I use it.
2. I made homemade granola because our store finally had oatmeal again!
3. I bought discounted cornmeal and sifted the weevils out.
4. Found some glasses on Zenni optical for my daughter. The cheaper cost of glasses will help make up for the high cost of shipping internationally.
5. Found a friend to carry some prescription eye drops from Australia, saving the cost of shipping!
Late to the game today!
I bought a knife sharpener off Amazon a few years back, and what a difference! Mine, too, were from the mid '90s, and had never been sharpened. Now I do it every few weeks, so I don't get careless, either.
We are still hemorrhaging money over here. Sweet dog tore the ligament in her leg and will need surgery on Mon. Cha-ching! And hubby had 4 more teeth pulled, and I paid for hearing aids for me. smh At times like these, my frugalilty looks pretty pitiful. But we keep on keeping on.
1) Gifting group to the rescue again! I have an old 3-seater patio swing I got about 15 years ago. The canopy finally rotted, as did the mattress, so I haven't been able to enjoy it for several years. One of the members was giving away a bench cushion and 2 chair cushions, and chose me. I was able to use the bench cushion and one of the chair ones for the seat, and have one chair cushion for the back.
2) Then, at a yard sale, I paid $1 for a red double bed fitted sheet, that I was able to stretch over the canopy frame, and voila! Backyard sweet spot!
3) Figured out how to pull my online grocery receipt up on the desktop, take pics with my phone, and then submit them to Fetch, who would never recognize that store's receipt as an E-receipt.
4) Found several books at a yard sale for $3, including a brand new New Testament I had just told my husband I needed.
5. Dug up a small hosta that had been planted in too sunny a spot by the last owner, and struggled every summer. Divided it up and replanted it in several spots, and most seem to be doing well.
1) We ate the free dinner (and only the free dinner) at the ball park last night. We bought our tickets discounted through our neighborhood association for the game last night, which were also supposed to come with a "free buffet" beforehand. I thought, okay, no way this food will be enough for dinner. Guys, it was amazing. Hotdogs and hamburgers, macaroni and cheese, chocolate chip cookies, and a soda machine! My soon-to-be-a-teenager had three hamburgers and a hotdog. We all filled up enough that we were not even tempted to buy more food once the game started.
2) I didn't impulse a pack of pens at Target. I was tempted because I haven't been able to find any pens in the house. And I was right there buying toothpaste. But then I realized there are probably some at the office I can use. (The office belongs to us; I'm not stealing pens from my employer.) Low and behold, I was able to find a bunch of freebee pens that had been tossed in a drawer.
3) The big boys and I walked down to the library yesterday. I love to watch their faces when they go from complaining about how mom made them walk to sitting quietly with a book they love. And all for free!
4) I went through kids' clothes yesterday to assess what they all need for the summer and what they already have for when I start thinking about school in the fall. I put a few things in the Goodwill bin, but overall everyone is good on clothes for now. I now know what I will probably need in the fall, but I have some time to shop Goodwill to find it.
5) I caught up on bookkeeping, I menu-planned and shopped at Aldi, I returned what turned out to be a crappy vacuum to Amazon for a better one instead of wrestling with it for years, I cleaned the house myself while my husband took the kids to swim lessons, and I kept the AC at 74 degrees.
This is nothing new to the frugal world, but I have begun batch cooking my lunches for work on the weekends. I am not a big one for eating out, so it's about the time I save by doing all four lunches at once!
Hey Kristen --
Have you thought about getting a knife sharpener? Ours looks something like this...and it works.
https://www.amazon.com/Smiths-CCKS-2-Step-Knife-Sharpener/dp/B00032S02K/ref=sr_1_35?crid=X4UVJMVAZLEP&keywords=knife+sharpeners&qid=1687382666&sprefix=knife+sharpene%2Caps%2C253&sr=8-35
It's one of the few chores that the Brick doesn't mind doing. (And yes, I seem to cut myself at least once everytime he sharpens them.)
*I had an appraiser meeting to go to -- at Elway's, a very snooty restaurant in Denver. Brought home leftover sliders (nobody else was eating them at meeting's end!), the chance to say I'd eaten at Elway's -- and the realization that while their food was good, it wasn't THAT good.
*Packing lunch meat and other sandwich fixings, plus carrots/celery, our crockpot and canned stew/tamales for supper meals, while we head out on a vacation. (We're already staying a lot at hotels...usually we camp. Not this time. And I usually get a place with a swimming pool and free breakfast.
*We have had a ton of rain here in Colorado -- far more than usual. Unfortunately, it's also been cold. So even though I planted garden stuff, it's just now coming up, in spite of all the moisture. It's stopped raining so much, too. So now we have to gripe about how hot it is, instead!
1. My parents moved from their house of 20 years to a senior independent community apt last week, so I've been busy helping them pack and get rid of their remaining things in their house (its a LOT!). They've given me food, kitchen supplies (foil, plastic wrap etc), dishwasher tabs, wipes, paper towels, and even home defense insect repellant (perfect timing since we just finished using ours).
2. I've also been trying to sell some of their things that are too new or nice to just donate. I was able to sell several items last week netting $82.
3. Also sold 2 boxes of their music CDs and random historical DVDs to Half-Price Books (which gave me almost nothing for it, but at least it was 2 less boxes to stuff to take home and deal with).
4. Harvesting tons of cherry tomatoes and peppers from our garden, will try to find a salsa or sauce recipe to use them up before we go on vacation next week because we can't eat them fast enough.
5. Friends are going to keep our dog for us while we are gone so we don't have to pay to board him. They love dogs and this will be a good way to let them try having a dog of their own for a couple of weeks. I plan to buy them a nice gift (of consumables!) from our travel destination when we get back.