Five Frugal Things | I have a new painting project
1. I picked up a free bookshelf for Sonia's room
Which means...I have a new painting project.
I am a glutton for punishment.
And also I cannot say no to free, paint-able furniture. 😉
In my defense, I had been actually shopping for a paint-able bookshelf to buy on Facebook Marketplace. So when a free one popped up, "yes" was the obvious answer.
2. I made some skillet croutons
I wanted something crunchy for the top of my carrot soup and so I cut up a dry bread end into cubes.
We had two little packets of butter from a muffin one of my girls had gotten from Panera. I melted those in a skillet, added the bread cubes, and toasted them until they resembled croutons.
They're not quite as crunchy as oven-baked croutons, but they worked out just fine.
3. I packed a lunch and coffee for my parent duties
Zoe's tutorial requires two parents to sign up each week to do sanitizing, temperature checks, and mask enforcement, and this week it was my turn to be there all day.
You can get food (and coffee!) delivered there, but I packed a sandwich and put some coffee in my travel mug.
And I was reminded how nice it is to eat lunch at my own house almost every day. Food freshly made is always better than packed food.
4. I painted a shelf for Zoe's closet
Mr. FG is working on redoing Zoe's closet storage and he bought a big board to be her main shelf.
I primed and painted it with the same materials I used to paint my kitchen cabinets and also the furniture in Sonia and Zoe's rooms.
(Namely, Zinnser primer and Benjamin Moore Advance paint in Cloud White.)
So, that one gallon of Advance paint I've bought has covered two beds, a dresser, two nightstands, and a shelf now.
A gallon of this paint costs $80-$90, so it's pretty expensive paint. But obviously the coverage is pretty darn good if I've painted this many items with it.
Compared to the cost of new furniture, an $80 bucket of paint is a seriously good deal.
I mean, even one new white twin bed would have cost far more than $80!
5. I came up with a last-minute dinner plan
On Monday night, I intended to serve a chicken dish that required marinating for 24 hours.
But on Sunday night, guess what I did not do?
(Marinate the chicken.)
So on Monday night, after spending the day at Zoe's tutorial, I poked around my fridge and pantry to see what I could come up with.
We had pasta alfredo with chicken, a salad, and homemade French bread left from Sunday night's dinner.
Sonia had her pasta with tomato sauce, since I have not figured out a good milk/cheese/nut-free Alfredo sauce for her yet.
What frugal things have you been up to lately? Share your frugal five in the comments!
P.S. When I mention it, people always wonder, "What's a homeschool tutorial?"
Basically, it's like college classes for homeschooled kids. You go once or twice a week, depending on the tutorial, and then you do the assigned work at home for the rest of the week. Tutorials are very popular for high school classes such as chemistry or higher math. My girls usually take a couple of classes at the tutorial and then do the rest of their classes at home.
1. I made pumpkin chocolate chip bread to give to a friend for her birthday. The only thing I had to buy was a can of pumpkin. Of course I made 2 loaves so DH didn't feel left out.
2. I made chili using leftovers in my freezer, including some grilled burgers, some leftover bloody mary mix (brought by company last summer) and added a little pureed pumpkin leftover from the bread recipe. It was really tasty! The beans were dried beans that I cooked.
3. Listed a big clock that wasn't keeping good time on a local FB site for free. A friend who knows how to fix them was happy to get it. I was happy to get it out of the house.
4. Looking through my jewelry, sorted it out and only keeping what makes me smile. I was surprised that some of it made me feel terrible. Got a postcard in the mail from a local jeweler for a buying event: going to take it there to see if I can get some $ for it.
5. DH wanted to get a more expensive cable plan: I did some research and think I can get better wifi if we buy a mesh system and hopefully sell the router instead. Cheaper than upping our monthly plan.
Lots of food-centered savings for us.
1. We cooked most of our meals at home-pretty ususal for us.
2. I made several batches of banana bread/muffins when the bananas got over-ripe (we already have a few dozen in our freezer.
3. We used an old restaurant giftcard for our date night.
4. Entertainment for the week included free activities such as bike-riding and hiking.
5. I repurposed a lot of our leftovers last week which meant we needed less groceries for this week. It was a very inexpensive grocery week.
I FINALLY sat down and did some minor repairs to my in-between-temperatures coat. I really, really, really dislike sewing of any sort, and I don't have a machine, so anything I do is by hand and grudgingly. I put it off as long as possible, but this coat had tears in the seams of both pockets and two buttons had fallen off. So I finally did it. Took me all of 15 minutes, but I grumbled internally the whole time. But at least I don't look so scruffy now when I wear that coat, because yes, I totally wore it with the bottom button missing for at least a week. (It's not actually that noticeable, because the buttons are covered by a flappy thing of fabric.)
I did notice, however, that an earlier repair I did on the big seam that runs straight down the back is juuuust starting to rip and fray in a way that will not be easy to fix, so this may be the last season for this coat. Given that it's at least 12 years old, I GUESS I can acknowledge its long service and retire it, but buying a new one is probably going to take me even longer than it took me to repair this one. I don't like to buy things or sew them. 🙂
If only you had a Lisey or a Sonia at your house. They would happily do the coat shopping for you!
I genuinely don't mean to be the unofficial promoter for Lands' End, but lately they've had some really rockin' discount codes + free shipping that stack with clearance/sale items. It may be worth signing up for their emails (on a junk email account, of course) so you can stalk your future coat! I recently bought my husband a new winter coat for $54 (on sale from $150, plus discount code), which should should be durable and warm enough for his outdoor job. LE makes quality stuff, plus I appreciate that their coats have back-up closures--that is, buttons in addition to zippers. Few things are as maddening as a coat I can't close if the zipper fails!
FWIW, I've had rotten luck thrifting for coats, which is always my first resort. My husband is too tall for any men's coats I find, and I'm picky about length (I can't stand my bum being cold or, conversely, coats that ride up!). I hate spending money, too--hence the sale stalking! 😛
I know what you mean about projects that don't take long but are unpleasant or challenging the whole time.
1. Mended my daughter's bed sheet. The hole wasn't "that" big, but I decided to get it fixed before it was ripped even further.
2. FINALLY found a drying rack at that goodwill that can be mounted vertically above my mud room sink. I've been patiently waiting for one to appear there. Low and behold a brand new one was there on Sunday. Now to convince hubby to hang it.
3. I recently switched out my summer clothing to my winter items and I decided I needed to clean house. I was very brutal in what I decided to keep and what I decided to donate. Along the way, I found a nice stack of good brands that I am going to attempt to sell on Ebay. The next drawer to get cleaned out will be my leggings. I am a plus size lady and they tend to sell decently on Ebay as well.
4. This weekend we took the kids mini golfing and I asked if the adults HAD to golf and they said no. My kids don't care if we golf, so we saved ourselves $17 by NOT golfing. We then visited a local lake and ate a packed picnic. (instead of going out to eat).
5. Lots of normal things happening here. Packed lunches for work, make my own iced coffee for work, selling on Ebay, reminding myself every day the amount I have in my checkbook to keep myself accountable for what I am tempted to spend.
#2-hanging stuff is SO annoying, isn't it? I don't know what it is about that job but oof, I always want to put it off.
Maybe because it's not as simple as pounding a nail into wall.
A few weeks ago I hung over the fireplace one large framed map, flanked by 2 smaller ones. It took a long time and, like K@GC's coat, it was finicky niggly little work the whole time. Everything had to be centered over the mantel. Then I had to decide how close together to put things. Then how the three pieces should be placed: level on top, centered vertically, or level on the bottom. Once I figured the tableau, I had to place it correctly: how far above the mantel? Then figure out how far down to put the nails for the picture wire to hang from. The big map needs two nails, so have had to be perfectly level, too. Then I put the delicate display pieces on the mantel and discovered that I judge the height incorrectly and had to pull the nails (without leaving too much of a mark), mark how far I had to move them, rehang the things, and check they're in the right place and still level. They look awesome, BTW.
I love reading about your Five Frugal Things for the week...it makes life seem so normal! Recently I...
- have cooked / made all 3 meals of the day at home. No eating out since cases are really rising here.
- Am finding new ways to use quinoa since I keep getting it in our produce box
- Bought a case of Phoebe kitty's favorite canned food instead of buying 3 or 4 cans at a time. It's much cheaper that way!
- Got 2 turkey breasts while they were on sale since we prefer those over a full turkey for Thanksgiving (there are just 2 of us)
- Used coupons again!
Ok, I think it's funny that you are getting quinoa in your produce box! I tend to think of that as more of a pantry staple than a produce box item.
So glad my FFT posts are a bright spot.
We serve our gumbo over quinoa instead of rice. We really like it.
I did not waste leftovers. I'm super picky about how long something stays fresh, but I went ahead and ate leftover takeout a day past my self-imposed limit, and I'm alive to tell about it! Also, we ate my hubby's birthday meal at a place that offers a free birthday meal. I'm in the process of convincing myself to clean more often because cleaner floors stay beautiful longer, without dirt being ground into them. Talking myself into that one.
Is chalk paint hard to get off? Since I hear it sticks very well, I wondered.
1. This may be a frugal fail, but I won't know until next week. The driver's visor in my car is broken, and I do mean broken, as in, the internals broke through the upholstery and it won't stay in the up position at all. Yesterday I was searching (again) for a cheaper price, and found one at Walmart.com, of all places. It's the wrong color, gray instead of tan. At this point, if it fits and works, I'll keep it. Instead of $159, it was $44 and says it is OEM. We'll see. I do have 30 days to return it, and can return it to Walmart stores. Oh, and for those who donate to the Salvation Army, there was an option to round up for the SA at check out.
2. I saved the expensive paint I had been using to paint the wood on the porch, and the guys who finished our porch for us used it to paint all the stuff I hadn't finished and the new stuff they put in. And I still have paint left. I'm totally in the Kristen Says Save Your Paint club.
3. Plantains were on good sale at the co-op, so I made a batch of tostones to go with the leftover pulled pork I pulled from the freezer.
4. The bones of a roast chicken are slow cooking on my counter to make chicken stock.
5. I stocked back up a few spices at the co-op from their bulk jars. It's the cheapest way I've found to get organic spices. Ten dollars a pound looks bad until you realize you pay $4 for a three or four ounce jar off the shelf.
Re: your visor, I don't know if your car is new enough that you'd be (understandably!) unwilling to do this, but if the Walmart replacement doesn't work, you could try Velcro tabs. The driver's side visor in our car loved to fall down, so I bought some Velcro from the dollar store, which works a treat. While in good shape, our ride is still thirty years old, so I'm happy to declare "Arts & crafts time!" for minor fixes. I well understand that that approach may not be feasible/welcome in newer models, though!
My husband suggested that, but the piece that broke through the fabric keeps the visor from fitting up flat against the ceiling now. Our car is 7 years old, but we plan to drive it until it's dead, so "appearance" isn't an issue.
I appreciate the tip! I hadn't thought of that until he suggested it just yesterday and now you have today! If the new one doesn't work, I may be rigging some way to hold it with Velcro after all.
Do you by chance have an auto salvage yard near by? we have one, it's called I-Pull, where you pay a low fee for admittance to the yard. They have a website that shows all the makes and models they have in the yard. They are all either engine failures or auto collisions. My husband needed a new bumper and was able to find his exact bumper for $29!! Just a thought.
1. Spent the weekend painting the exterior of our house, and the past few days working on touchups. Tired of climbing up and down ladders, but so excited for the fresh look.
2. Ibotta (cash back app) had a free Thanksgiving dinner I managed to get all the deals for last week, and combine with a $5 bonus that made the other things I got free as well.
3. Had planned to grocery shop 4 days ago, but so tired after each day of painting that I've been creating quick meals from the pantry and freezer and rationing milk to make it last. Finally out of milk and bread and have to shop today.
4. Family loves the Big Bang Theory, so we've been borrowing the DVD's from the library and watching the seasons in order as a family. Finally down to the last few episodes of the final season and sad to see it end. (We usually can't agree on a show and all scatter to our own rooms, so it's been nice to hang out in the evenings)
5. Continuing to meal plan, eat at home, make my own coffee, shop the sales, and hang out at home.
Just to add to your Big Bang watching-- A short bit was recorded for the end of Sheldon and Amy's wedding that didn't air, Stephen Hawking's wedding gift. You might find it online if you haven't seen it.
Check out the show Eureka. It's an older show but might be a winner for your family.
Also, not sure the ages of your kids, but we have been watching a Netflix show called Lucifer. It is hilarious.
Got my butt off the couch last night to cook dinner; which is motivating me to cook for the rest of the week (I hope). The weather in South Florida has been rainy and windy for the past week and it makes me want to be really lazy since I haven't been able to go out and ride my bike in the AM. When I exercise, it really motivates me to work around here. Hopefully I'm turning the corner on getting myself all squared out! Meal planning and actually cooking is what gets me going!
However, my husband did eat some leftovers over the weekend, which made me happy! And he has not wanted pizza, so I've not ordered that in a while. Me, I could eat pizza all the time!
Yeah, it IS the 5th food group!
--Future frugality: My husband’s employer gave out $25 grocery gift cards for Thanksgiving. We’ll be going over the circulars this week to decide what that $25 will go towards. (We already have a turkey in the deep freezer from last year’s post-holiday fire sales.) It’s just the two of us, so that gift (and turkey) will stretch nicely!
--Between coupons and CVS Extra Bucks, I was able to get my husband's razor refills (for his head--he prefers bald over receding) for $15 instead of $35. Said razors also resulted in a further $10 Extra Bucks, which were put towards toilet paper that was already on sale.
--Pulled the first pair of new pants from my $2 stash. A little over a year ago at Old Navy, I came across a half dozen jeans and corduroys in my size on deep clearance for $2 each. After trying them on be sure of fit, I bought them all! I've been wearing out the pants I already had first, so I've only *just* turned to the $2 stash.
--Lands' End keeps sending me useful spam about their pre-Black Friday sales. While we don't need anything else, I'm careful to pass the discount codes on to friends, especially if they've mentioned needing to replace their winter gear. One friend just received his new coat, which he got on clearance plus 60% off and free shipping thanks to said spam!
--Free kitty cuddles! My thirteen year-old cat has been especially cuddly lately, even for him--he's basically a sentient stuffed animal at this point. He loves to be held against my shoulder, his head tucked against my neck/under my hair, so that's how we usually are. I've become very skilled at doing things one-handed/armed while the other one supports him!
Kitty cuddles are priceless!
Love kitties!♥️
I used to get one of those $25 gift cards from my employer at Thanksgiving. Of all the benefits and things taken away over the years taking away that little gesture hurt the most.
That's so sad, and I'm genuinely sorry that your employer has taken that bit of warmth and goodwill away from its employees. The gift card was a surprisingly lovely gesture--we certainly weren't expecting it! This is my husband's first year at this job, which is only part-time on paper (seasonal and outdoors, so full hours in summer, 1/2 days in winter). However, it's apparently what they always do for employees around the holidays. I can only hope they keep it up!
Kristin, I don't know if this will be a winner for your family, but I came across this recipe when trying to cook for a vegan friend. This is the only alfredo sauce my son will eat (and he hates cauliflower). My husband even likes it. It comes together quickly, too. The only change I made was rather than buy almond milk, I just thin the sauce with the water the cauliflower cooks in. Nutritional yeast is pricey, but I just use what I need and them store the rest in the freezer. I hope this helps, and if not, no worries. https://ohsheglows.com/2014/01/20/cauli-power-fettuccine-alfredo-vegan/ I am not sure how to make the link work, but you can copy it and put it in the address bar. Good luck.
Sounds interesting and good, as does the other sauce recipe link above, but as an Italian background person/pasta recipe aficionada, I have to say: not Alfredo. Alfredo is cheese and butter, maybe a little cream to thin it, if needed. Pepper and parsley garnish.That’s it. There’s no basil, oregano, other herbs, vegetables, garlic, nothing, zilch, nada, niente! The jarred “Alfredo” is about the worst thing I’ve ever had, besides liver. Eat and enjoy all sorts of pasta sauce concoctions, but don’t sully Alfredo’s name!
When you do find a recipe for a creamy-ish, dairy-free sauce recipe that works well for your daughter, it’s name is officially “Sonia”! Pasta Sonia started here, soon to be world-famous!
Oh yeah, I know a dairy-free Alfredo sauce would not be authentic. I'm just trying to find something to approximate it for Sonia!
I usually adapt a traditional Alfredo sauce with rice milk (because it has a fairly neutral flavor) and start with olive oil instead of butter. The olive oil works for our whole family, but if I were making it only for my allergic kid, I’d probably use Earth Balance dairy-free margarine.
FFT, Glorious November Weather Edition:
As in most of the U.S. Northeast/Midwest, we have had a week of absolutely glorious weather for early November. It's predicted to end today, sadly, but here's what I've done with it in the meantime:
(1) I haven't turned on the furnace at all.
(2) I'm hoping for at least a little savings on electricity through our solar panels, despite the low angle of the sun.
(3) I've done a lot more garden cleanup/winter prep than I expected to do--although I could have done still more if I'd had more finished compost (and if DH had a longer attention span!).
(4) I've also cleared some complete junk out of our basement, garage, and other storage areas--or at least as much as I could manage without upsetting DH.
(5) And I've gone for as many walks as possible, both with DH and (when an aide is with him) solo. Exercise = highly frugal!
1.) Okay this wasn't so much frugal as it is bordering on obsessive and just plain crazy.
But I have a pair of jeans that I like. They are about seven years old and either look like a hot mess or look like a million dollar fashion statement depending on your opinion. I've mended these things so many times with patches, darns and other reinforcements. Well this time the zipper broke. Instead of retiring the jeans I did what any crazy guy would do to his favorite jeans: I took them apart and made them into a pair of button fly jeans.
This has the added benefit of now having a superior fly closure and I can keep wearing these jeans until they do fall apart or some trust fund art student pays me a few hundred dollars to buy them off of me. 😉
2.) Renewed my BJs membership. I've had it for over a decade and while I haven't been able to get as great of deals as I did back when I first got it, I still think it's worth having. I get it through work so it's $30 a year.
We did not renew our Costco membership. Maybe in a year or two we will revisit that.
3.) Used a Barnes and Noble giftcard to buy a couple of Blu-rays which were on sale. I also opted to not renew my B&N membership ... at least not now. I can always join again later but the fact is I don't get to shop there so much any more and they changed their discount eligibility.
4.) Repaired a laserdisc player. Kind of niche, I know but replacing a belt yourself is much cheaper than paying someone to do it. "Fun" fact: old electronics belts turn to goo which is very hard to get off your hands. Nasty stuff.
5.) Avoiding all of the pre-Black Friday "deals." I have my Christmas list this year and it will be minimal because everyone is an adult and doesn't need anything.
The kids will still get things, though and I'm not going to go hog wild on them.
That's dedication to a pair of jeans! That sounds like quite a task, to put buttons in.
Yeah you have to sew in another flap with button holes in it for the buttons to go into plus removing the zipper and all that. It's definitely not a job for the faint at heart and I'm glad my wife has some sewing machine skills which I do not have.
I have put hours of work into these jeans which I want to say I paid $25 for on clearance at TJMaxx about seven years ago.
Have you read Mending Matters by Katrina Rodabaugh? She’ll inspire you to mend your jeans for another seven years!
Doing all the usual: cooking and eating at home, still cooking meals for our dog with terrible allergies, still brown-bagging my lunch and drinks to work. Baked a birthday cake Sunday based on what was in the baking cupboard and it came out great. My husband bought some inexpensive leaf springs to repair our sliding window screens, which would not stay tightly closed, and it worked perfectly.
Its been a good savings month! My 5 this week are: 1.Took a little baggie of all my broken or mismatched sterling silver earrings/jewelry into a local coin dealer and since gold and silver prices are high right now he gave me $20 which was nice! 2. We dont really use our motorhome or quad much so called State Farm and put a freeze on our policy so saved there plus our rates have gone down due to covid i assume...total saving $80 a month 3. Switched from a Verizon contract plan to a prepaid plan which is exactly the same and saving $15 a month. 4. Our electric bill was only $57 last month! I have started leaving the thermostat at 68 during the day and 66 at night, only washing full loads of laundry and hanging everything until almost dry then putting in the dryer and also washing dishes by hand ( there are only 2 if use and we are not big eaters). Our bill had gone down significantly! 5. When we cancelled our DirecTV our ladt bill showed a $70 credit so called and made sure its being mailed to us. I find that if you call and keep up on stuff or negotiate it keeps everything under control and doesnt really take that much effort!
We researched carefully and bought a new washer with as many discounts and as much of our household savings as possible. It wasn't what I wanted to do with my birthday money, but washing the first load in my new supersized toploader with agitator (because front loaders don't seem to handle pet laundry as well) made it worth the disappointment of unexpectedly replacing my 15-year-old machine.
I decided to forego additional birthday presents because I'd like to keep costs down because of the washer and our dog's recent surgery (it's been a very expensive four weeks...).
I bought snacks/lunch items to bring to work instead of ordering in or eating out of the vending machines. I also took advantage of the free drinks and snacks that we have available at work to supplement those items.
My Five Frugal Things for the week:
1. Yarn, yarn and more yarn! The owners of a (semi) local alpaca farm are retiring and closing down their on-site yarn shop. I was in love with all the colors in this one bin of fingerling lace suri alpaca yarn and asked the owner what he could do for the whole bin. He counted them out and gave me a price. SOLD! As I walked around the shop picking out things, I put my hand into a bin of baby alpaca (because it's so soft you just have to) and the owner asked if I wanted to make another deal for the bin. He quoted me a price and I took it. My daughter, who also knits and crochets, found some wonderful Aran weight yarn as well. All totaled, I spent $142.00. When we added up the retail price for over 100 skeins of beautiful alpaca yarn, it came to $1,297!!!!! I love a great deal, and this made my happiness level beyond exhilaration. I will me making lovely, soft, warm gifts for a long, long time.
2. My father's wife loves Beekman 1802 products. A local shop had them 20% off. I purchased enough to make up a pretty basket for her for Christmas.
3. Aldi's has turkey for .69 a pound, limit 1. I am going back every day this week. It will force me to clean out the freezer, too. I can make a 12-pound turkey last multiple meals, including yummy soup stock for many meals to come.
4. I have been drying older bread for stuffing. I took stock of what I have, and there is plenty for Thanksgiving dinner.
5. I found cilantro for .59 a bunch. I bought 10 bunches and am drying them for future use.
No way! What a score with the yarn! I'm jealous (but in a nice way) :).
Don't know if I'll make it to five things. Umm, 1)went with my daughter to a class to learn to use her new sewing machine last night--the class was included in the cost of the new machine and apparently would cost $50 otherwise--both of us got to learn, not just her, so I count that as a frugal win. 2) We hosted a small birthday party for said daughter this past Saturday--in our back yard--I made the cake and we had pop. Bought a few goofy things for the party (noise makers, etc.) and they had 2 hours of blissful fun for less than $10. AND the weather was nice. 3) Continuing to cook at home. 4) Continuing to use my Libby app for new library books. 5) Visited outside with a friend--since we are avoiding going places, there's no additional cost associated with buying coffee/lunch.
Sewing is a passion for me. I sew every day. Passing it on to the next is so important. Two out of my three daughters sew, too. (The third just brings things home to mom to make or repair, hahaha.) It's wonderful to pass that skill on to the next generation. Nice that you benefitted from the lesson too!
I hear you on the yarn - how fantastic! I have yarn bought on deep discount from three different stores that closed on me - including one I worked at so it was even cheaper. Just don't ask me how big my stash is or how long I've had some of the yarn. I want to give some of it away (bright neon yellow - what was I thinking?) but some are almost sentimental. The hand-everything yarn given to me by an aboriginal Australian near Uluru? Never parting with that, no matter how scratchy and burr-y it is.
I wouldn't get rid of that yarn either, William! I bet you have a good story to tell about that particular acquisition.
While I am extremely happy about my haul, I am sad the store is closing. It's getting harder and harder to find really good yarns. I totally understand your feelings about your stash. There's some in mine that evoke memories and are just so beautiful the way they are. On the way home from the shop, I told the friend who went with me that I just wanted to dump them all on my bed and roll around in them, hahaha!
A side note to your #2: there is a book called The Bucolic Plague about the couple that started Beekman 1802. I don't know if you've read it, but it's an easy read, and humorous in places.
It’s a fantastic book! Humor, animals, farming, relationships, house fixing-up, friends and community, gardening, New England. If you like any of those, you’ll like it!
Also, check Coop, Truck, and others by Michael Perry.
I will have to pick it up! Thank you.
1&2: My area in IL is going into tier 2 lockdown so we continue to mostly cook our meals. I checked out 6-7 cookbooks from the library and will copy a few recipes from each instead of buying cookbooks to add some variety.
3: Signed a lease for my college daughter for next year. Cheaper than this year and includes a parking space near her unit. It is further from campus so that’s the trade off.
4. Continuing to WFH using mostly stuff already purchased: internet, cell phone, earbuds, console table turned desk, free chair from my office. I did need to buy a lamp as the waning light was problematic,
5. Paying credit card and utility bills in full and on time to avoid interest and late fees which also boosts my credit rating = lower future interest rates.
I meant to add this - a dairy, nut, cheese free alfredo sauce.
https://asquirrelinthekitchen.com/homemade-aip-alfredo-sauce/
My frugal things for the week
1. Only went to the grocery store to pick up buns to go with the brats that came with our CSA
2. Picked up the freezer that my best friend gave us. It fit in my SUV so we didn't have to rent a truck.
3. While at best friend's house, she offered us a new package of 12 banker's boxes and many plastic storage tubs. These will be very useful as we pack up my mom's house to move her into a nursing home.
4. Used a Panera rewards for a free lunch, just had to pay $3 delivery fee. Since my lunch was free they wouldn't deliver it (below minimum) so I asked my boss if she wanted to order with me. Then we split the delivery fee.
5. My company offered us a free ticket for the family to go visit our botanical garden's winter light festival since they have cancelled this year's holiday party. Going to see the lights is a family tradition so I claimed my free ticket and saved us $20.
1. I have needed new sneakers that don't pinch my right toe for almost a year, I've been stingy on not spending $70+ on a pair. Reebok had a sale and I got a $65 pair for $22 with free shipping!
2. Have made breakfast/lunch diligently during the week
3. Not very frugal money wise, but time wise! Ordered my Thanksgiving sides from Whole Foods. Its just 2 of us and we live in a studio with a very small kitchen. We've bought a small 3 lb turkey breast from aldi and will make that and a pumpkin pie on our own. This enables me to enjoy the day and limit our overall food waste/personal time making dishes.
4. Had my vacation time approved for the week of Thanksgiving off, I haven't taken time off since February and its much needed....
5. Put our Christmas tree and decorations up. 2020 has been a rough year and it makes me happy to sit in front of a shimmering tree each night with a cup of tea!
Well done on all fronts, Kristen
* I scored today at the thrift store: 2 Plus Size winter jacket (one new with tag) for 50$ (for both). Those are very expensive new! A solid wood night stand for 8$. A new clothes drying rack for 6$.
* Entertainment is on the really cheap side since Covid between the activities offered by the city (badminton, indoor skating, pool), taking long walks, playing board games with the family, borrowing books from the public library and watching Netflix (11$/month).
* I work on my feet all day and found affordable Reebok running shoes at Costco for 40$. I am quite impressed with the comfort of them.
* Talking with hubby about retirement lately, (still a long way ahead) confirmes that our aspirations are aligned and on the frugal side. We don't wish to travel or take on expensive new hobbies. What we want is more in line of taking walks together, riding our bikes, running errands without rushing, helping out our daughters if they are still in town, etc. It's reassuring and comforting to see we wish for the same lifestyle down the road.
1. Picked up my farm share on Saturday and didn't see any veggies put out with the "culls" which are basically perfectly good veggies that might need to be eaten immediately or have a funky spot cut out. We were accidentally early, so I took the boys on a walk past the compost pile and discovered ALL the culls there! I guess the farm staff was too tired at the end of the season to put them out? I scored about 30 sweet peppers which I later cut up and prepped for freezing and one "funky punky" pumpkin which will decorate my porch until I end up composting it. Bonus was that no social distancing was needed because nobody shamelessly digs through the compost but me, but elbows do sometimes get thrown at the cull cart. 😉
2. While checking the compost pile, I noticed some volunteer plants sprouting, and carefully relocated about a dozen tomato plants to my mother's greenhouse, and 40 sprouted garlic cloves and 5 onions/leeks/shallots to my garden. Hopefully they will thrive in their new homes.
3. Diligently brought in all of my plants for the winter and watered them using rain barrel water. Hopefully I won't feel the need to buy any next spring.
4. Continued to eat all meals at home using only veggies from the farm share and pantry/freezer items.
5. Took ac units out of the windows to conserve energy before turning the heat on.
Frugal fail: pinched the internet cable in the window after removing ac unit necessitating a 100.00 service charge to have the cable replaced. Doh! At least the cable is properly installed through a drilled hole instead of poked through the window now. Internet is, unfortunately, NOT a luxury item right now.
We met with a rep to go over my husband's state teacher's retirement plan. We didn't have any questions, just wanted someone to look it over and make sure we weren't missing anything. We weren't. We did learn a few useful bits, which I wrote down in my spiral notebook titled "Finances". This is where is keep notes from our meetings with our financial planner, notes on finance books I'm reading, and any other money related pieces. It has been so useful.
I've been making some steady sales on ebay. When we bought our new Dyson vacuum a few years ago, it came with all sorts of attachments/heads. I only use 2 of the 6 it came with. The others are still new. So I listed them on ebay, and the first one sold today!
I learned how to add a survey to the monthly shop update that I email to subscribers. I love it when I learn something new. Though this particular item is not frugal, learning something new often IS frugal.
I found birthday gifts for my sister in my gift stash. My gift stash is either items bought on DEEP discount, or new items that I am re-gifting. One of the things I sent my sister was a calligraphy verse, still in it's original wrapping, that one of our girls had received last year, and did not want. My sister will love it. Thankfully all of our family are frugal, so we are actually impressed with cheap or free gifts that are really nice.
I'm going to make a batch of masks with Christmas fabrics for my shop. I ordered well-rated elastic cord yesterday. I think they will add some festivity. This Christmas we are not able to go see our son and pregnant daughter-in-law across the country, she is at high risk. I'm guessing that others are facing similar situations. I am determined to stay cheerful. Sewing is one way I keep going, and I love the joy that I hear from customers when they receive their orders. I'm going to make 2 different styles, and also test out a 3rd pattern that's supposed to decrease glasses fogging up. My 70 year old aunt will be so excited if it works. She has struggled with that.
My best to all!
I love your Finance spiral notebook idea -- to have it all in one place that is not digital is such a good idea
I have found it very valuable. There's often bits that I learn and want to remember and I had notes in all sorts of places. Now I know exactly where to find my notebook. And all the information is together.
1. I decided to make scrapbooks for my adult daughters for Christmas. I used a coupon to get $6.29 off one scrapbook. I also took advantage of a sale and got 3 huge packs of scrapbook paper that were buy 1, get 2 free. Each pack was $19.99 so I saved $39.98!
2. Kroger sent me a coupon for a free package of Keebler cookies. I will get it next time I'm there.
3. My older daughter sent me links to a one-day sale on running shirts she likes. I ordered 2 of them, and for some reason, was given an additional $3.95 off my order and free shipping. I ordered through Rakuten for a small rebate and used the credit card that gives me 1.5% back. Of course, I will pay the bill in full when I get it.
That's it for last week except for all the usual things.
1. Sold a high priced items through FB marketplace. Selling through other sources that require mailing, like Amazon for books, can be a problem in Alaska. It takes longer to ship since air cargo is limited, so using media mail for books, for example, doesn't always work because the items don't make it within the allotted time line and buyers get testy. Local sales are easier.
2. Did four mail box shops. These are great during the holiday shipping season since the postage is covered, plus I get a small payment. I did run out of things to send so mailed off a package for a friend.
3. The snow blower conked out the day we got 18 inches of snow at our house. Husband was out there talking to the unresponsive machine and the neighbor across the street saw and came over. He is a mechanic and took it home for a few hours and brought it back in working order. He refused payment but did accept three dozen eggs.
4. Library for several books and a puzzle.
5. Started growing sprouts for sandwiches and stir fry dishes. This isn't really for saving money, although it does, but for taste. We get some pretty gnarly greens this time of year at the grocery store so sprouts are a good alternative.
Ohh what a wonderful neighbour
1. Except for Friday treat night, we eat all dinners and breakfasts in and I take my lunch everyday, using up whatever is lying around. COVID has really helped us with this
2. All the usual stuff -- washing and wearing all my old clothes and slowly re-introducing old stuff that is starting to fit again. A VERY slow process, but worth it.
3. Using my phone to track steps -- free! In fact, it obsessively tracks them whether you like it or not. Also, flights of stairs and all kinds of info. It is way into my bid'ness but in a good way since it makes me want to exercise more. 😉
4. Eating healthy is --surprise, surprise! -- cheaper. If only cause we eat less in general, still, I'll take it.
5. Nothing but the usual - reading library books, watching tv, trying not to waste any food. It all adds up 🙂
1. Bought 2 pairs of snow pants off Facebook. They smelled like smoke (bad) so I washed them with vinegar for round 1, aired them out, then put them in a trash bag with baking powder for 24 hours before washing again for round 2. The smell is gone.
2. Kept the trash bag mentioned in #1 and used it for trash.
3. We're at the end of a string of record-high temps and so we went to a park a little ways away on Sunday. Packed a picnic dinner and said no to all McDonald's requests by little ones.
4. Grabbed a couple of Thanksgiving cards from Aldi for 99 cents each. Planning to mail them to our library staff and church staff as I'm extremely thankful for both.
5. There were a few things we were already planning to purchase for our kids for Christmas that went on an early Black Friday sale on Saturday. My husband got up early and went to the store to purchase those items. I still can't believe he got the Paw Patrol Dino Patroller for $25 instead of $55! My 4yo is going to be so excited when he sees it. And I'm excited over the great price.
1. I sold a hanging light I found in the trash for $120. I also sold some hiking boots for $25. I found some vintage planters in another person's trash this weekend that look to be worth about $250. I listed a Kayak carrier and a vintage toy we weren't using on Marketplace. If they sell that will be an extra $70.
2. Picked up a pair of Nike sneakers off Buy Nothing that won't fit my son for a few years, but are in great condition.
3. Signed up for benefits through my employer during enrollment period, which means comparing my benefits to my husband's. Why do they make it so hard to compare plans??
4. My daughter turned 2 today. We made tacos for her birthday dinner (using some homemade salsa I had frozen) and brownies for dessert. We hung birthday signs, from Family Dollar, that we have been using for years. And gave her 2 toys I had gotten from Buy Nothing. She had a blast!
5. Found a large mum at someone's curb that I will plant in my garden
Corrine, so impressed with your whole list. You have quite the eagle eye for scrounging and reselling or reusing.
1. Working on the mini habits that save money over the long term like if the water is too hot turning down the hot instead of upping the cold, going to bed earlier - this isn't to save money but to get more out of life, but a side effect is not using lights/heating /cooling for as long. Working out how little I need to use for products to get the result I want e.g. I only need 1 squirt of shampoo or conditioner (mine come in a pump pack)
2. Buying less groceries is really working for me; I have a much better handle on what I've got & I feel way more motivated to use it which is great
3. Wanted KFC but came home & nuked a plate of corn chips with cheese, topped with red beans in chilli oil, avocado, blobs of greek yogurt, & drizzled with sriracha, was really yum.
4. Came home to find a neighbour had anonymously mowed my overgrown nature strip; so grateful - I do have a manual mower but it had got too long for that so I was going to pay someone to mow.
5. Took bottled water to work
5.
Oh, yay for a helpful neighbor!
In reference to the need for Dairy free Alfredo...we use the Daiya brand. Yes, it's pre-packaged & not cheap but it's the best I've found over years of living dairy free. And if I only use it once or twice a month it's not horrible cost wise.
I (finally) sold something on Craigslist! After the effort it takes me to list something, I get discouraged at the lack of responses, the flaky responses, being stood up, and the outright lies from people who respond (you really expect me to believe that you got a flat on the way over and then decide to never talk to me again?). I sold 4 sets of canning-related items to one dude for $200 total.
Going from the sublime to the ridiculous, I saved most of a melon. I lost it the back of fridge; when I found it it had lots of moldy spots. But I resisted the temptation to throw the whole thing out, instead cutting out the bad spots.
The usual brown-bagging, programmable thermostat, inventorying fridge, freezer, and cabinets, and so on.
It's such a good feeling when something sells, isn't it??
1. I’ve been making Christmas gifts. This year I want to make all my gifts. So far I have completed 10 gifts for under $80. That’s a great savings in my book.
2. My dryer quit working the other day. I looked up the troubleshooting guide on the internet and we were able to repair what was wrong without calling a repairman.
3. We have not been eating out at all. I’ve been cooking more at home and I’ve been more intentional about using leftovers.
4. Not only have I been making Christmas gifts, I’ve been. making Christmas decorations. I love crafting.
5. I have lost quite a bit of weight due to a medical condition. (I’m not complaining about the weight loss.). I altered my pants and jeans to accommodate the loss instead of buying new clothes.