Five Frugal Things (mostly tiny)
1. I mended a fleece glove
I've had these North Face gloves for a long time, and I mainly use them for driving when my steering wheel is freezing.
Well, last week I was driving to my mammogram appointment (whee!) and I was like, "Man, this steering wheel is feeling cold even though my gloves!"
And as it turns out, there was a good reason for that.
I pulled out some black thread and did a quick hand-mending job; since polar fleece doesn't fray, it's super easy to stitch it up by hand.
The fix is not perfect upon close inspection, but who cares? I wear these in the car, where only I see them.
Function is the most important thing.
2. I mended one of Zoe's shirts
She's had this little gray tank top since she was 15 or so, and the stitch around the neckline was coming undone.
I carefully chose the most appropriate shade of gray thread that I had and used my machine to sew the trim down.
When I turned it over, though, I saw that I had not caught the underside properly.
If I used the machine to stitch it down, it was gonna show on the other side, so I just did a quick invisible stitch by hand to tack that down, and now Zoe's back in business.
Obviously, that's visible from the back side. But from the front you cannot see those stitches, promise!
3. I got a rain check for bacon and peanut butter
Safeway had a great deal on their peanut butter ($0.99!) and a pretty good deal on Hormel bacon ($4.99/package) so I popped in when I was driving by.
Unfortunately, everyone else had also noticed that this was a good deal and neither item was in stock.
No biggie, though! I got a rain check, and it's not like I wasted any gas going there because it was right on my way home.
Sooo, I will get some peanut butter and bacon in the future.
4. I got two bottles of Maui Moisture for $4 total
When I was at CVS to get my Covid vaccine, I happened to notice that one variety of Maui Moisture was on clearance, so I picked up two bottles. I searched the app to see if there were any coupons, and yep, there was a $2 coupon!
I added that to my app, and I also redeemed a $5 reward for filling prescriptions there.
So, I got the bottles for $2 apiece, which is great because even at Target, a single bottle costs $7.99.
5. I did not buy a quart of paint
I don't deserve much credit for this one, but here you go.
I was fairly sure I was gonna run out of paint before I finished the bookshelf I was painting. So, when I went to buy caulk, I tried to buy a quart of paint (which costs around $30, since Benjamin Moore Advance paint is pretty pricy!)
However, the paint mixing machine was broken, and I walked out with no paint.
As it turns out, though, that was a blessing because the last bit of paint I had was enough to finish my bookshelf.
That's perfect because although I'm sure I will use more Cloud White paint in the future, I'm quite likely not going to be doing that while I'm in school this semester.
And since paint only lasts for so long, I'm glad that I didn't have to open a fresh can right before school starts.
Your turn! What frugal things have you been up to lately?
Hmm, let me see if I can get five
1. Kept up my resolution of gardening every day. I'm starting to see some progress, and I haven't spent any money because I've just been hand pruning.
2. While pruning, I noticed a second valve I had forgotten about on the back up sump pump pipe, which means it is not clogged and I don't need to call a plumber.
3. Didn't cut the Internet cable while pruning. 😉
4. Took my kids to a splash pool using a membership my mother gifted us for Christmas. Swimming made us hungry, so we went home afterwards for dinner instead of buying overpriced and unhealthy vending machine garbage there.
5. Got three cuttings from some green onions stuck in water, and used them along with some languushing dill and cilantro from a farm share to make a taco salad that also used up some leftover rice and beans.
—Our bedroom has no overhead light fixture—as in, it was never wired for one. There’s only one wall sconce (undoubtedly converted from gaslight back in the day) and lamps aren’t an option because the two outlets are already spoken for. Thanks to a lucky $8 Goodwill find—an 8” eight-pointed star Moroccan glass lantern—we now have a gorgeous overhead light fixture without the bother/expense of wiring!
—I bought the hooks to hang said lamp using my $5 birthday reward at Ace.
—Said lantern works by virtue of remote controlled fairy lights bought with a $20 Amazon gift card. They are BRIGHT when bundled together behind stained glass!
—I shortened and hemmed an eclipse curtain to fit under the pretty main curtain in our bedroom. We’re about to have a big cold snap, so I want the extra insulation on that room’s one window.
—By that same token, I’ve checked and/or repaired the caulk on all our windows and put down draft snakes where appropriate. 60 degree December days threw me off my winterizing schedule and then some, but now we’re hopefully ready for negative temperatures in the double digits. The very NOT frugal insulation we had installed in the unfinished basement this summer already knocked $20+ off our gas bill (which includes a gas stove and dryer), but every little bit helps!
@N, the light sounds beautiful!!
Keep your receipts for insulation for your income taxes write off/credit. Changes were made 2022 where credit/write off is continuing.
@N, the light sounds great. What a wonderful idea!
@N, it would never have occurred to me to use remote controlled lights in an unwired lantern - brilliant! You've got me thinking...
A good friend of mine used white Christmas lights to illuminate his crown molding back in 1994. Nowadays he'd probably use those LED rope lights.
@N, I don't understand how you got the overhead light to work if there are no wires. Is it battery-operated?
@Regina, Ooh, thank you for the tax reminder! The insulation is the one home improvement we’ve done that should actually qualify!
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, Yes, battery operated fairy lights with a remote. I am not a tall person, a remote controlled light was a must vs. making my husband reach all the time.
@Rose, LED fairy lights are my weakness. I restrain myself to just having them in the kitchen and the bedroom… for now! 😛
They help so much with winter darkness!
@N, I wish I had photos of his apartment. You'd faint from the glamour. It's like what you might picture in a swanky Manhattan apartment with beautiful views and authentic art deco furniture. I mean, Depression Modern because people get very precise about it. Double points if my other friend is playing Gershwin on the 1927 Steinway (though I insist my 1900 Bechstein is better).
@Suz, me, too!
@Rose, Bechsteins are the best!!
I'm glad you didn't have to buy more paint for the bookshelf! Disposing of it would've been a drag.
Here's my 5:
1) Our oldest eloped, which means we didn't pay for anything. Not even a card. That was easy.
2) My sis gifted me a psychic reading from John Edwards. Very cool.
3) I was cleaning out the fridge in the garage and found bags of Halloween candy in a drawer. The bags are over 2 lbs each and I paid $4 for those chocolate miniatures. That was cheap.
4) We cancelled our gym memberships as the price doubled. We are going back to the community gyms that are not an extra expense as they're included in our HOA dues.
5) Our homeowners policy went up 50%. I'll be shopping around .......
@lisa,
I’m not sure where you live, but I live in Northeast Florida about a mile from the ocean. I live in a rather ordinary house built in 1994, and I have never filed a homeowner’s claim.
In 2020 my homeowner’s insurance was approximately $1750 annually. When I received my bill last fall, the yearly premium had increased to over $7000 . This put the monthly premium at approximately $600. Just 3 years earlier, it was only $145. It was starting to hurt especially with other inflationary pressures.
Thus, I shopped my insurance and was able to bring my premium down to $3200. However, some quotes exceeded $12000 annually. I did not go with the cheapest carrier, but the one recommended by my broker. A 4-point inspection was required prior to the application. The company then sent an insurance underwriting inspector who walked our property and flew drones over our house to get a view of our roof. It was a long drawn out process, but worth it as it resulted in considerable savings. I also pushed my deductibles up as high as my mortgage company let me.
I wish you the best of luck with this. Of course, insurance is regulated by the state. Hopefully your situation is not a difficult as ours is here in coastal Florida.
@lisa, I saw an article just yesterday about homeowners policies going up and that NC was asking for a 50% increase also. It caught my eye since my parents live there. It's insane. Especially for new homeowners that are already paying crazy interest rates.
@Bee, My goodness that is a steep increase in price for insurance!
@Beverly,
Yes, it is!!! Insurance is a mess —health, auto, and property! Lots of states are having challenges. It seldom is good for the consumer.
After Katrina I was dropped by every single carrier in the United States, since I am less than 500 feet from the ocean. My insurance rates go up and down like the tides. It tripled this past year, which is ridiculous because I'm on a very well protected dune. Or, I am now--some people want to denude the dunes to improve their view. I am fighting hard against it since the roots of the roses, honeysuckle etc (sneered at for being non-native plants) protect everyone's houses. So stupid and short sighted. At a town meeting I said, "Why is the town attempting to fix what's not broken, to the tune of $2 million or so?"
@Bee, ALL insurance has gone up everywhere!!
Though Florida does have limited insurance available within last year or two. California is even worse for insurance & availability from what I hear.
My homeowners went up substantially (1not as high as yours) & I questioned it. I was told costs of materials increased therefore costs more for repairs. I have always over insured my house/property & was not happy with new amounts. Of course, lowest deductible keeps increasing also.
Auto insurance renewal this month & increased (again) from 6 months ago. 🙁
@lisa,
Congratulations to your eldest! Eloping is very frugal. I did it as well (spent money on the license, judge, and the cheapest rings Walmart had at the time) , but the marriage has lasted! Two of my adult daughters did as well; they're saving their moneys for other things.
I hope you find a good policy.
@mbmom11, and lisa,
My parents eloped...sort of. My 17-year-old mom had to elope by herself, catching the train to go out to the west coast where my dad was stationed during World War II. They went over to a church and were married in the pastor's study. That was the start of their 55 year honeymoon, which only ended when the first one passed away.
My parents eloped for their Wedding of Shame* in January 1963--my brother was born six months later**. I wanted to elope myself*** because I couldn't be bothered with a wedding, but my mother had a nervous breakdown because she wanted me to have a wedding. Sheesh. So we had a small backyard wedding which was actually really nice.
*My father stole my maternal grandfather's NYPD detective badge until he agreed because Mom was underage at 19. Losing your NYPD badge is a BIG DEAL.
**I only found out the true date of their marriage when I was 52, for heaven's sake.
***not pregnant
@Rose,
Denuding the dunes - whether of non-native or native plants, or a combo of both - is, in my opinion, one of the stupidest things I've ever heard of. The dunes need to be left *as is*. I've read beach reports for Long Island, closing various parts of various beaches during bird nesting seasons, and the moronic responses from people who want access to drive their ATVs or whatever anywhere they want. Grrrrr. This kind of stuff makes my blood boil.
1. I mended my daughter's over-sized fur capelet. When we went thrifting last week, she fell in love with it. It's the kind of fur cape that looks as it should be draped over the shoulders of a matron in a 1950s sitcom-- not engulfing an 8-year-old girl. But her daddy thought it was cute and bought it because it made her so happy. It had a clasp that was falling off, but it was a quick fix.
2. I mended the same daughter's baby blanket.
3. I baked bread.
4. I cooked our meals, using up scraps of things leftover. I also cooked up another pumpkin from our harvest. I made pumpkin bread for potluck yesterday, and I'll make pumpkin muffins for breakfast today.
5.I encouraged our son to check prices at several places before buying an (expensive) book that he wanted. He didn't find a cheaper price, but I also encouraged him to buy it anyway because he's saved the money he made working hard this summer and deserves to enjoy something from his very hard work. Don't you think it's important to splurge sometimes? Because he's the kind of kid who never splurges, this seemed an appropriate time to encourage splurging. I would never do this with some of my children.
@Jody S., I love your daughter's fur capelet--so much costume potential!--and your son pining for an expensive book (my life in a nutshell). You're definitely teaching the right kind of splurging! Sometimes, something truly is worth it just for the happiness factor, especially when that happiness can be experienced again and again with every wearing and reading.
@Jody S., I love that you encouraged your son to splurge on the book!
@Jody S., how great that your son wanted a book and not some blinky-beepy tech thing.
@N, My thoughts exactly, on both the capelet and the book.
My running gloves have had a hole in the seam for, um, a year now. One of these days I'll remember to mend it . . .
--I had quite a bit of leftover lamb curry that didn't have much of the meat left in it, so I added some cooked yellow split peas to it and served it for dinner last night.
--I usually make tamales for Christmas, but just didn't have the time or energy to do that this year. So I made them for Epiphany instead. I used the last two jars of pressure-canned bull meat for the filling, along with some green tomato salsa I had made with my garden tomatoes and a neighbor's garden jalapenos, plus beef tallow I had rendered from free suet we got at a grocery store. Since those are the two most expensive parts of tamales, and they were free, they were very frugal tamales. 🙂 If I could supply my own corn husks, that would help. The grocery store was charging nine dollars for a pound! Which is cheaper than online, but still. That's a lot for what is essentially a discard.
--Wearing my old and very warm alpaca sweater my sister brought back from Peru about 25 years ago. It's the only "scratchy" wooly sweater I kept after moving from New York, and today I'm glad I have it. We're forecast to have a high of 27 with 30 mile an hour winds--stronger gusts--and I have to walk between buildings on our open campus all day at work.
--I will also wear my beloved L.L. Bean wool coat that I bought at the Salvation Army for ten dollars over a decade ago. It's heavy wool, bright red, and has a zipper. It's almost impossible to find women's wool coats with zippers. Why, I do not know.
--Speaking of old things . . . my brother was astonished and amused that I still use my old phone+answering machine I bought in college. It's our landline phone, and is now 24 years old. I've had to replace the battery in the handset once, but it's otherwise perfectly reliable.
@kristin @ going country, Well, I guess I won't need my coat today, since I just got the call that school is going to be online. On the one hand, I am happy I don't have to battle this wind and cold today at work. On the other hand, Zoom meetings all day for myself and four very active kids who hate computers is . . . I'll just say not my favorite. Oh well. And I will need my coat, since I have to go feed animals and break their water.
@kristin @ going country,
When I was in school, the cafeteria ladies used those brown paper towels, the kind that are in restroom dispensers and are made out of paper sack-type material, in place of corn husks when they made tamales. It worked OK, since you don't eat the husks/paper towels anyway. Wonder if you could substitute something for corn husks....
@Fru-gal Lisa,
Huh...paper towels, you say? I have access to those terrible paper towels in my classroom...I wonder if my husband would call me insane for suggesting he use them instead of corn husks? He wanted to make tamales for Christmas but we hadn't gotten to a store that sold the husks, so he just didn't bother. We had bibimbap bowls instead, and they were yummy.
@Fru-gal Lisa, Well, that's an interesting substitute. I imagine it must have been in layers, or else the steam would just make one layer fall apart? I probably could figure something else out, but honestly, having clean and ready corn husks is worth $9 to me, so I shouldn't complain. I know I wouldn't really want to prepare 45 corn husks myself. 🙂
FFT, Winter's Finally Here Edition:
Well, folks, after an atypically warm December and first week of January, winter is here: Central NY (and many nearby regions) got a big snow dump from midafternoon Saturday to midafternoon Sunday. The total in my yard is just shy of 12". But mustn't grumble. Instead, here are my storm-related frugalities:
(1) I did a Wegmans run on Friday to return a bagful of NY State deposit bottles/cans and pick up milk and other necessities.
(2) I dumped out my kitchen compost bucket ahead of the storm.
(3) On Saturday morning, before the storm arrived, I continued my post-holiday thrifting success at two stores on the southwest side of town I haven't visited in a while. My prizes included three small Corning Ware dishes, a good supply of votives and tea lights (I like to burn these before dawn and after dusk in winter), and a few other housewares.
(4) But my best score of all--and one of my best of all time--was a **brand-new** pair of UGG Tasman slippers. The slippers fit my next-door neighbor perfectly, and she desperately needed a new pair. She's over the moon, and so am I! (She wanted to pay me, but I told her they were an early birthday present; her 85th is coming up next weekend.)
(5) And after all this activity, I was quite happy to spend Sunday doing laundry, hanging it on my indoor racks, and reading by a good fire in my woodburner!
@A. Marie,
Special mention for you: I found a 20ct coin and will count my finds this year too. Odds are the total will remain 20ct but you never know.
@JNL, I occasionally find euro coins in the Coinstar machine at my Wegmans, and I've got about 2 euros' worth so far. If I had a way of getting them to you, I would.
@A. Marie, great find on the tasmans! My daughter wanted a pair for Christmas, and they have been impossible to find. I was able to pre-order a pair, but they won’t be here until February 🙁
@A. Marie,
😀 That is kind!
@A. Marie, we watch mostly British tv and I love the expression "Mustn't grumble."
I found a small bag of Canadian coins in a clear out but had absolutely no one to give them to. I'm in so cal and may never get to Canada again. I think I shoved them back in the drawer.
@Anne,
Is there any place where you can donate for charity? Ive seen collection boxes in airports sometimes and in churches and museums
@A. Marie,
The UGG slippers are a fantastic find!!!! It was so sweet of you to get them for your neighbor, and how nice that they fit.
@A. Marie, Reading by a fire sounds delightful!
@A. Marie, Your slipper find is the kindest and best Christmas story this year. Your neighbor is very lucky to have you next door.
@JNL, I have been asked on international flights, but don't know of anywhere else.
@Anne, when I was younger, I remember US stores accepting Canadian coins (but not bills) — now my bank won’t even accept the coins. Wonder when that changed…??
1. Frugal yet spendy: I stocked up on Listerine at Costco while it is on sale. We each use it at least twice a day so we go through those large bottles.
2. I baked a large pan of chicken & rice. It was dinner on Saturday and will be a couple of days this week too. The organic brown rice was purchased on clearance.
3. I stopped at Lidl since I had a $20 credit for buying a $100 gift card a few weeks ago. I bought a lot of on sale produce and a few other items.
4. I bought Lara Bars on clearance, 75% off, at Giant. They are a health-ish snack since they're basically nuts and dates.
5. I facilitated the donation of a lot of quilting stuff to a charity quilting group. Our SIL's grandmother had a lot of quilting supplies when she passed away two years ago. Her family did not know what to do with it so I contacted a local church that has a group that makes quilts for those in need for Lutheran World Relief. They were thrilled to accept all the items and if their group will not use something a member of the group is a member of a quilting guild where items can be shared. The small group makes and donates 100+ quilts a year.
@K D, I love that you found a wonderful organization for all the quilting supplies!
@K D, One Christmas, my cousin found a large fancy bottle of Listerine being sold at Sam's Club. He bought it and put it in a fancy bag he had around the house, one of those bags that liquor is gifted in. He then put it under the tree for his son-in-law. Everyone had a good laugh, and the SIL said it was a very useful/practical gift, as it would probably last him for months and he used Listerine every day.
@K D, that/something similar was just on local news this week. Where these women make quilts & then can come (on certain day) to have help finishing. All quilts donated & for charity.
Five frugal things:
-We ate the leftover pizza from Christmas eve from the freezer instead of ordering pizza this weekend
-I went through my wallet to get track of all the gift cards in there so they can get used up
-I took the kiddo to the library to play/for some free books instead of an indoor playplace
-We had an overnight guest and we cooked for them instead of ordering takeout
-I called my insurance company to see if I could get any additional discounts (they confirmed that I had already gotten all the ones I qualified for, but I still get credit for calling and asking!)
@AFVirginia, Yes-- Trying to get discounts is always a good frugal move!
I called our auto insurer to ask if it mattered whether my husband or I was listed as principal driver on each of our two vehicles. He is older, so should be on the cheap old truck. That didn't affect the premiums, but when I checked what was standard for number of miles driven a year, I found we were in the highest bracket rather than the lowest one. Saving almost $150 a year.
@Heidi Louise, just be aware that many insurance companies are (somehow) notified of mileage when mechanic repairs/oil change happens when put into shop computer.
I was at lowest mileage rate & we took trip across many states one year & used lower mileage vehicle. Had something done at mechanics & next insurance policy had increase to higher mileage coverage. When questioned increase was told because mileage exceeded low mile (within that 6 month coverage but not within year). i had to wait & then get new odometer reading when allowed to change back to lower mileage. Now I keep track mileage at 6 months/year allowed just in case close at that particular moment.
@Regina, Thank you; I never heard of this!
Sigh. Every time I tell myself I am being a bit too paranoid about protecting my personal information, I hear something like this that confirms that I am right to keep things private.
Yeah, I think all of that becomes part of the car's record, which is accessible with just a VIN, like through CarFax. I would imaging that insurance companies also have that capability.
When you buy a used car it IS nice to have all of that info in one place, at least as the purchaser!
I'm glad you talked about paint.today because I was going to ask about name of paint & you posted pictures of can so that really helped. I'm looking at getting a (already painted) cabinet (in future when gets in stock) & it's black ($599) but I want white ($1300 another company). I figure for cost of paint it will be worth effort of painting for cost difference.
Frugal things---
●Target had $5 gift card with moisturizer purchase & $15 gift card with $50 home (toilet paper, laundry soap & Kleenex) purchase.
●Used my $20 Target reward towards purchase.
●found new bottle hand soap in Meijer parking lot after shopping (out of town)
●realized I was out of (winter) gas line antifreeze & Meijer had BOGO 1/2 OFF. Luckily multi pack was (way) cheaper ($2.08 bottle compared to $2.62 after discount).
●saved $0.20/gallon (limit 20 gallons) on gas & drove to cheapest station $2.49 which was $0.10-$0.30 cheaper than others. With snow storm expected prices will go up.
●eating at home
●going to get free Radon test (from health dept during January)
@Regina, Where are you that you can get a free radon test? I mean, is that a state program?
Yep, Benjamin Moore Advance paint, in a satin sheen, is what I almost always use. And the shade of white I use is Cloud White; it's just slightly warmer than stark white.
@Heidi Louise, in lower Michigan. I lnow Calhoun & Eaton county at Health Department offers (until gone) free radon kit/testing January. You just go in & ask. Usually limit 1 per household.
@Regina, Thank you! I will search for more information about test kits and my state, though my first quick search was not helpful.
Meijer had clearance Garnier Whole Blends for $2 and they had an MPerk for $2 off. Free is good.
Home Goods had name brand dog coats for $7-20. I usually buy them at the end of the season at Aldi but they don't last long before they fall apart, I am hoping the name brand ones will last longer.
The lights went out on a small bead Christmas tree that a dear friend made me. I patiently waited for a battery set to go 75% off. I found a set for $1.49.
We tried to fix a children's table I had as a child. It's 50 some years old and the particle board just will not hold the screws for the legs. After cleaning out several closets I found a small wood table top & put the legs on that so the grands will have a small table to play on.
Sam's Club had their cookie decorating kits for $4.98 so I bought another to make with the grands. We did one at Christmas and it was super fun! Pretty sure the cookie glitter I will be finding for weeks...
Love the paint story!! It is a reminder that quite often, simply waiting a little bit to see if something really is genuinely required before being in a rush to buy it leads to savings.
No percentage of saving or huge discount beats... spending zero! I try and employ that notion, which is hard, because I'm naturally impatient, but a solid 75% of the time I either forget about whatever it is, or find something that works as well, if not better, or realise I already have whatever it is I need or my neighbour does, or it's not that big a deal anyway.
Money that's still in your pocket is the best kind!
Like you, I have only marginal frugal finds this week. However, they are part of a consistent pattern so I am counting them in:
* mended one sock so I could continue to wear the pair
* revived a wilting head of lettuce and made lunches and dinners from odds and ends from Christmas. I'd wager that brie did not start of as a luxury cheese but was a modest local cheese originally. No harm in making making a toasted sandwich with brie!
*spent an hour this weekend cutting and cleaning vegetables for the work week, assisted by a relaxed playlist and a hot cup of coffee. Bonus: because I was not in a hurry, I saved and froze scraps to for future broth
*did a proactive frost check on my plants and some taps, and bought reduced price thermo shirts for eldest
* listed some items for sale
* gratefully did laundry and dishes on solar-paneled electricity, after months of clouds and rain.
We have some frost, finally! I am glad the birds are still coming to our feeding station.
@JNL,
I've been scraping frost and sometimes ice off of my windshield for a few weeks now, and I live in Florida. I find this too funny.
@JD, my dad moved from lifetime Michigan resident to Florida 5 years ago. He keeps track of my area weather & usually calls to harass me about winter. He has called me multiple times complaining about how cold it is in Florida right now. And if course just gave my teen all his old winter wear when visited last summer.
Let me see if I can come up with five things:
1. Mended a hole in my king-sized fitted sheet. I think the dog might have helped create that hole. 😉 I used technique I learned from Kristen of sewing a piece of fabric on the reverse side. It's not pretty but it's holding for now. I found sheets on sale to replace the ones with a hole.
2. Yesterday, I made a batch of steel cut oats and baked apples that will be my breakfast all week. I made a big chickpea salad that will my lunch this week. And I made a large pot of white chicken chili that we'll have for dinner at least once more.
3. Had rewards at Michael's that were about to expire so I used it to purchase white paint and spray adhesive to "flock" some bamboo branches to use in winter decorations.
4. Returned items to Land's End using Happy Returns so I didn't have to package them up for the return. Glad to get the return done.
5. We had odds and ends from the freezer for dinner Saturday night instead of getting take-out.
Non-frugal - DH is flying to Jacksonville for a consultation with Mayo clinic and instead of me taking off work to drive him to the airport, he will pay to park. But it won't be much since he'll only be gone one night.
@Beverly, Happy Returns?? I looked this up, and although the nearest place is 35 miles away, it's good to know. Thank you! It caught my eye because I use Land's End.
I had a very frugal week...which was nice after the holidays of feeling like nothing was frugal.
Big one...we moved our storage from one company to another and will save $95 a month doing that. We mainly store a trailer (pull behind vehicle for hauling) and big items so it was only one trip to move it all). I would do away with the trailer completely, but it is the one thing my husband seems to be holding firm on...at least this way it isn't costing much and makes compromising on that easier.
Our town has Free Friday at the zoo in January and February for county residents so we did that. We also did free first Thursday at the local art museum. Both were nice since our weather has been too gloomy to get out and do much. The sun poked through Friday.
Friday after the zoo and running some errands we were both starving, but we came home and cooked instead of going out (mainly cause the crowds were awful and I thought I could cook quicker at home ha! But it was still frugal).
I found some great packaging for my husband's work gifts for next year that was $9, but was marked after Christmas clearance for $3. I bought 8 and am now ahead on next Christmas.
I bought some block cheese on sale and stocked up since that is one thing that I completely went through during the holidays. The only cheese I had in the house was sliced cheese.
@Marlena, the big obstacle about buying stuff a year ahead is first, remembering that you have it, and second, remembering where it is!
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, yes! I promptly came home and made myself pull out the Thanksgiving tote and put them in there so I would see them again before the Christmas season started 🙂
@Marlena, very clever.
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, For that reason, you should designate a "gift closet" (or chest or trunk or box in the attic -- whatever works at your home) and put all your future presents (and items to regift) in there. I've done that for years and it works great. Saves me a ton of money!
1. Purchased a seasonal pass to the fitness center at my local community center, which includes a walking track (that I'll use often) and a pool (that I won't). Through the kindness of the person working there, I received the senior rate ($30 off) even though I won't be 65 until September. The community center is next to the library so that's a double win.
2. Repurposed a large cutlery tray to store fragile ornaments within the larger Christmas decorations box.
3. Cheese has been its own food group since Christmas. We over-bought cheese for the gatherings we hosted. No complaints here!
4. Friend brought us vegetarian lasagna and homemade gruyere bread. Pure comfort food. This provided us with at least seven meals.
5. I think I mentioned before that we agreed to the seller leaving us a lot of things with the house/garage, most of them beautiful or useful. After clearing out, we made trips to Goodwill, Habitat Restore, and metal recycling; and gave away numerous items on Buy Nothing. Whew!
It’s All CVS All The Time!
Got a $58.99 blood pressure monitor at CVS for $21.51 after applying five (5!) different coupons and discounts. I have an upper arm BP monitor that I got for free from my insurer but it’s awkward and cumbersome to use, so this new one is a wrist monitor to replace an old Walgreens wrist monitor that bit the dust. (Ooh, snap! Take that, Walgreens.)
Resisted all the Christmas sale items (of which I needed none, especially including the candy) and went straight to checkout with my BP monitor and nothing else.
My 33 inch long CVS receipt (THIS CLOSE to a full yard – shucks) has yet another $10.00 in “ExtraBucks Rewards” plus $4 off my next purchase plus $3 off Aveeno body wash (CVS knows just the brand I like. Spooky!) which means the great big size of the body wash will be free. They may owe me money!
All these savings allowed me to splurge on a belated birthday celebration brunch with a friend Sunday morning. So I guess I put my money where my mouth is …
@JDinNM, good one in the last paragraph.
It's cracking me up how into CVS you are now!
@Kristen, It's crossing into addiction territory ...
@Kristen, Maybe they'll give you a commission ...
Small savings add up!
1. I was pleased to get the money from my boot return back in my account this weekend. I had to drop the return off at a Fed Ex store, but it was worth it, and true to their word, I wasn't charged for return shipping.
2. I made my first loaf of gluten-free yeast bread this weekend. It still isn't cheap, but it's cheaper than buying it. The recipe was fine, but not great, so I'll look a little more and maybe tweak a recipe as well. Nothing, of course, replaces a home baked loaf of yeasted wheat bread.
3. I finished putting up the entire 40-pound box of sweet potatoes, and didn't waste a single one. I worried that getting them at Christmas time, it might take me too long to process them, but I made it. I figure I won't have to buy sweet potatoes till May or June, if not longer, even though I eat sweet potato daily.
4. I took advantage of the coming rain to fertilize two of my young fruit trees. Fertilizing in January is a risk, but we usually have things budding out in February. I have some azalea blossoms showing already. I pruned the 2 mulberry bushes, as one already had a leaf popping out, even though we've had many nights in the 30's and low 40's F with frost, lately.
5. I weeded some of the garden beds. JD, did you say weeding in January? Yeah, welcome to Florida. I also replaced some mulch that the last rain storm messed up, using a cypress mulch that claims it won't float away. Mulch helps keep down, as much as they can be kept down, the never-give-up weeds that proliferate here. That mulch will be put to the test soon - heavy rain storms with possible tornadoes are forecast for tomorrow.
Mended a hole in my son’s sensory swing.
Made homemade hot dog buns instead of making a trip to the store for them.
Had my parents over for brunch for my dad’s birthday instead of buying something. Also managed to make a meal with what we had in the house instead of making a trip to the store. Made a homemade card instead of buying one.
Ordered my son a new winter coat on clearance plus I had some Bean Bucks to use for the purchase as well.
Used a frozen ham bone my mom had given us to make soup. I used dry pinto beans, celery, onion, and potato for the soup and made homemade sourdough to go with it. This has to go down in history as one of the cheapest meals ever made lol.
Made a whole pile of sourdough discard crackers.
I always forget to ask for rainchecks when there are some great deals at the market. This is the reminder that I needed.
This week I:
1. Used a gift card for date night. My parents love to give us gift cards for local restaurants for holidays, birthdays etc. but we are sometimes not-great at using them but we remembered in time!
2. I only bought what I needed on Amazon, which ended up being a phone case and popsocket.
3. I got a new-to-me-phone. While not the most frugal purchase, I got an open box, refurbished phone since my old one had bit the dust battery wise. Way cheaper than a new one!
4. I walked into Target to get my covid vaccine and walked straight out after getting it. No letting Target lure me in.
5. I made a shopping list and I stuck to it. This is easier said than done when walking past the "New Items" area of Trader Joes.
@Heather, #5 shows Remarkable Restraint on your part (I most likely would have failed that test). Congratulations!
@Heather, there's a "New Items" area? Must look for it next time! 😉
We skied last week, which most certainly was not frugal. A few very small wins we eked out, most of which were apparently food related:
1) I used my Starbucks rewards to largely offset the costs of breakfast (the hotel we stayed at had a Starbucks inside). For the rest of the cost, I had gift cards won during family holiday games. I always forget to use my stars before they expire, so this was a nice way to use them up & offset some of the cost.
2) I remembered to show our pass while buying lunch, which saved us 20% off the exorbitantly priced lodge food.
3) We ate protein bars for breakfast on the drive home.
4) We stopped at Costco for gas on both directions of the drive. The teens filled up on lunch for a very inexpensive price. I ate snacks I'd packed from home.
5) I found out an item I'd purchased dropped in price, and reached out to get a price adjustment.
Five things that turned out less expensive than I'd thought:
1. I ordered a motorized beach cart for hauling my stuff so I don't have to carry it. When I priced them, they ran from $1500-2K. I asked aabout a special narrow version since my beach path is very narrow and steep. They said fine and are charging me just $850.
2. Daughter wanted two low priced things for her birthday, two Boucherouite rugs (traditional handwoven Moroccan). All set for her!
3. I need to buy a coat for the upcoming puppy so I am assured she is warm on the journey home. Found one on a good sale.
4. Obtained some free houseplants on FB. Needed to stage the cottage for rental.
5. Found more old picture frames of mine to frame some of the prints/images for the cottage. Found an ugly old embroidery (the seal of the President--why?) I thrifted somewhere which I'd kept for the round frame. will look nice with my own latest embroidery which is much nicer, ha!
@Rose, thank you so much for all the tips for NYC last week! I love museums as the Tenement so I’ll try to go on several of their tours.
And Boucherouite rugs and low price in the same sentence? I see that I need to make room for the hockey bag in case I stumble over such treasures too 😀
@Gunn from Northern Norway, If you get lost or stuck or something: well, most New Yorkers are pretty friendly. But if they're not, email Kristen and she'll give you my cell. Feel free to call or text me for help!
@Rose, that’s so generous and kind of you!
@Gunn from Northern Norway, heck, here it is. Keep a note. six three one five one three six zero nine four. I wish I weren't so lame and tired or I'd take you to lunch. Have fun! NYC is very safe these days (as opposed to when I was growing up, OY) and clean and you will have a great time.
I really wish I could bore the pants off you at the Met Museum. See this beautiful statue of Diana? It's in the Charles Engelhard Court of the American Wing and was the weathervane on an earlier version of Madison Square Garden, sculpted by Augustus Saint-Gardens.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/online-features/viewpoints/diana
Stanford White today is revered as an architectural genius, but he was murdered by a jealous husband after White seduced his wife as a sixteen year old. The ensuing court case was called "The Trial of the Century" and was immortalized in books and films, including The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing in 1955 and Ragtime (1981).
In New York, White designed the second Madison Square Garden (demolished in 1925) and the Washington Square Arch, as well as mansions for the Astors and the Vanderbilts.
Despite his genius as an architect, today White would probably be in jail as a sexual predator. He maintained an apartment on West 24th Street in Manhattan (above FAO Schwarz!) for his conquests. One green room was equipped with a red velvet swing suspended from the ceiling. Here White would ravish teenage models and chorus girls.
One of them was sixteen year old Evelyn Nesbit. Nesbit was said to have been the original Gibson Girl. She is also supposed to have been the model for Augustus Saint-Gaudens's sculpture of a nude Diana, which was the weathervane on top of White's Madison Square Garden. The statue stood on a 300-foot-high tower, making it the highest point in the city and was lit at night by electricity. Saint-Gaudens said of Evelyn, "She has the face of an angel and the heart of a snake."
On the night of June 25, 1906, White was at the roof garden theater of Madison Square Garden. Millionaire Harry Kendall Thaw and his wife Evelyn Nesbit were also there. During the show's finale, "I Could Love a Million Girls," Thaw went up to White, said "You've ruined my wife," and shot White three times in the face, killing him. Over White's body, Thaw yelled, "I did it because he ruined my wife! He had it coming to him. He took advantage of the girl and then abandoned her!"
Thaw was obsessed with White as a romantic rival, even though by 1906 White had moved on from Nesbit. White was excoriated in the press after his death as seducer of girls; even his architectural achievements were dismissed. Mentally ill, Thaw was also a drug abuser. While in The Tombs [the NYC lockup, so called for its Egyptian Revival style], Thaw was pictured eating dinner catered by Delmonico's.
Thaw was tried twice for the murder; in the first trial the jury deadlocked, and in the second Thaw was found not guilty by reason of insanity. Thaw eventually escaped from the lunatic asylum where he was committed, and by 1915, he was declared sane and freed. (That same year Nesbit divorced him.) In 1928, Thaw spoke to a newspaper reporter and said, regarding White, "Under the same circumstances, I'd kill him tomorrow."
also, and I'll shut up now, in the background of the Diana statue you can see bright tiles and columns decorated with poppies. That's about all that's left of Louis Comfort Tiffany's Long Island estate, which burned down. Buuuuut also in the room is this Tiffany bad boy, which utterly entranced me as a child and I vowed to have something similar in my house when I grew up. (note: hasn't happened yet!)
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/3804
In conclusion, please go to the Met.
@Rose,
That was AMAZING to read! I wish you could "bore the pants" off of me at The Met. (I would soooo NOT be bored....I love all the back stories!!).
@Rose, that was great fun, Rose. I had heard about Nesbit/Thaw and White. One rather wonders about her later life as she certainly couldn't pick men.
@Gunn from Northern Norway, I loved the Tenement museum as one of my favorite books was A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
@auntiali, Still is one of my favorites! I reread it every few years.
@Rose, I have the song, The Crime of the Century, from Ragtime running in my head now...
FOUR frugal things (It's not Tuesday yet so I'm not prepared!)
1. I met a girl for coffee fully expecting to treat her (she's 20) and she brought gift cards that her mom wasn't going to use so I didn't buy after all! (thanks, Girl's Mom!)
2. A friend was still harvesting tomatoes and brought us a box full (it froze last night so his summer garden is now finished)
3. The lady who makes cheesecakes is on vacation so I will be making one myself for husband's birthday (probably $10 instead of $35)
4. Most totally excellent neighbor brought another Costco roasted chicken (I've lost count now)
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, I had to ask myself what day it was. Working nights makes me confused half the time anyway...
FFT, Week 1, 2024:
1. Diligently used up/froze leftovers
2. Exercised 3x
3. Read library books (a lifelong habit)
4. Combined errands
5. Used $1 off per gallon fuel points to fill up my car
Nothing fancy or new, just getting back into my normal routine.
At last, I have 5 FFT:
1. My Southwest flights in the Spring 2024 dropped by a decent number of Rapid Rewards points so I "changed" them to the exact same flights and added over 20,000 points to my family's SWA account. I have told DD27 to always book two one-way flights instead of round trip and she always forgets. One of her flights this month dropped in price but her return flight did not. Because she booked a round trip she would have to start over and the return flight was full so she wasn't going to risk losing the flights she needed.
2. I found a bag of 15 bean soup mix in my pantry even though I do not like beans and they do not like me. I made the soup using a quart of beef broth and a can of crushed tomatoes. The soup was edible but I am not making it again.
3. Continued refilling foaming soap dispensers with the stash of liquid soap I have. I haven 't purchased liquid soap in six months and won't need to purchase for a year or more. I can't seem to resist the liquid soaps at Trader Joe's, however.
4. Frugal fail but its Amazon's fault - I have three rescued chihuahua mixes who were sick over Christmas and into New Year's with the GI virus that's "going around" per the Vet. Canned pumpkin is insanely expensive even at our default supermarket, Market Basket (MA) - $2.50 a can. I ordered six cans from Amazon for $2.00 each for their Happy Belly brand. No surprise that two cans arrived dented - after spending way too much time on their Chat they were adamant that there will be no refund or replacement. The box was fine so it wasn't the fault of the driver - it would be the fault of the person who packed the box without any cushioning.
5. I received a Stonewall Kitchens gift box from my Buy Nothing group - I didn't realize when I picked it up that it's for a single person household - 1 ounce maple syrup, 3 ounce blueberry jam, waffle mix for three waffles. I will make it work for my four person household. It did come in a nice wooden box though...
@MEM, Hmmmm .... Maybe you could make 1 big waffle and cut it into 4 pieces?
@MEM, I would put that in my closet of gifts, and regift that to a lucky friend! Stonewall kitchen is the best! Their pancake/waffle mix is so delicious! And their packaging is very pretty, too.
Got a free package of bread at Kroger, packages of Applegate turkey deli meat for $1.98 each, and two half gallons of chocolate milk half off that still had a long time to expiration.
Did Walmart pickup for a couple of items instead of going in the store. Keeps any impulse purchases at bay.
Made pumpkin bread with an old can of pumpkin that needed used.
Used up a bunch of potatoes that were going bad in various dishes.
I've been wanting a planner to use for my to do lists, but didn't want to spend the money on one. My husband was cleaning out his office and found one that I'm using now.
1. Didn't get takeout
2. Brought lunch to work
3. Returned and borrowed library books
4. Found some things reduced at the supermarket
5. Got travel insurance. Annoying to buy, but better than not having it if needed!
I think I have enough to participate....
1. I have been decluttering my kitchen one drawer or cupboard at a time. This will keep me in the know about all that I have to work with, so no duplicate or extra purchases will be made as well as using up what I've already paid for.
2. As I'm decluttering, I have been listing a few items for sale and donating the rest.
3. When making purchases at the store, I've been cognizant and have been using online coupons, rewards saving me almost $29 recently.
4. I mailed a book and gift card to my niece for Christmas using media mail, thus saving me $8.13 versus shipping first class.
5. All Christmas returns done, money back in our pockets or replacements ordered.
6. I saw a big item I bought my youngest go on sale. I hopped online and did a chat with walmart and they granted me the $30 credit plus tax to my card without me even stepping foot in the store.
7. Someone at work brought in a bunch of "31 bags" to donate and I took 2 and gave them to family members who I knew would use them.
@Gina, Your #1 is brilliant. If I did one cabinet shelf or one drawer every day ...
1. My partner had to fly to a bigger city for a hospital visit and since I had points for plane tickets and hotel room I went along as support and to make a nice trip out of it.
2. Had a free TGTG coupon and used it to get buffet leftovers from a fancy hotel as we didn’t have breakfast included. It was so much, especially cold cuts and sliced cheese that it was enough for five meals and counting.
3. Didn’t get charged for the confirmation letter from the pharmacy about my medication I need to take with me going to the US. Don’t know it it was the pharmacist who forgot it as I picked up my medication at the same time, but I won’t be reminding them 🙂 $7,50 saved.
4. Eating out of the fridge before going away so the grocery shopping before the weekend was just milk and vegetables.
5. Made a small crossbody bag out of a Marimekko cushion cover that I can have underneath my jacket when traveling. Borrowed a leather strap from another bag so the result was as nice as store bought, if I can say so myself.
It must be glove week. I mended my leather work gloves as I had two big holes. I used a scrap of leather from a leather bar stool that I reupholstered.
Neighbor offered some steel fence posts at a great price ($1 ea instead of $8)
I made homemade insulated panels for my cousin's park model trailer, saving her
thousands, I used up odds and ends from a home builder's job site, with his permission.
As a thank you, we rough cleaned (affectionately known as "quick & dirty") the whole site and organized it. I was a builder 30 years ago and he called me wanting me to organize all his sites. Ha!
Honestly, we make so many grocery items from scratch, it's by rote: made granola, yogurt, salad dressings, buns & bread and cheese crackers (GF Cheese Itz).
We went on a ski trip...so not so frugal. But we did save in a bunch of ways so that it wasn't as spendy as it could have been:
1. Used our companion passes on Southwest so the kids flew free.
2. Used points for the hotel stay so no out of pocket there.
3. Used the IKON pass so no additional cost for lift tickets. The pass is pricy but as long as they ski enough days, we save money. My daughter turns 13 this week so this is the last year she's eligible for kid pricing so that's nice too!
4. Ski rental had a deal where if you rented an adult set, you got a kid's rental for free. So only paid for two sets of rentals instead of three.
5. I dropped them off and picked them up for skiing instead of parking at the village. If it were up to my husband, he would have parked at the closest/most convenient parking and paid $40 (!!!); since the hotel was nearby, it was no problem.
sorta bonus: I decided I wanted to try a 24 hour fast once a month in 2024 to give my digestive system a break. Since I was holed up in a hotel room for one of the days with few temptations and not a lot of physical exertion, I thought I'd give it a try while on the trip. It really wasn't all that bad. And I guess technically frugal too since I didn't spend anything on food. Even the water and tea I drank were amenities from the hotel.
Actually, I take back what I said about the ski trip not being frugal. Spending money wisely IS frugal and this trip was worth it. We saw an old friend and his son and the three skiers got to get out there and enjoy a sport together. It was a GREAT use of funds.
100% agreed! Good job!
@CrunchyCake,
And that's why we are frugal.
1. Got a ham for 49¢ a pound. Cooked it up. Chopped most of it up for omelets, frittatas, and quiche. Put the bone in the crockpot and made a large amount of ham and lentil soup. Sent some to my in-laws and my daughter.
2.Hubby brought bananas and apples home from work on Friday. I made muffins with some of the bananas and froze the rest.
3. My daughter gave me a 1/2 gallon of whole milk that was about to expire. I made a large amount of chocolate pudding and froze the rest of the milk. Sent some to the in-laws.
4. Hubby bottled the first 25 bottles of wine that he made with his dad. Each bottle comes to less then $2 a bottle. Asking friends and family if they have empty wine bottles.
5. Made a carrot cake from scratch for dad’s birthday party. Because of the bad weather it was cancelled. Hubby is happily eating the carrot cake.
6. Picked swiss chard and thyme since it was going to snow/freeze.
I think many people forget about the
“Rain check” concept.
I do not, as you do not ☺️
As long as you remember to actually use them in the future, they're a great thing!
- I've been needing a solid winter coat. luckily I remembered I had an old one of my mom's that is still in good condition. I'm wearing it now actually because it's cold up in here!
- My husband has been working hard to decrease our food budget, and I'm hopeful this is the first paycheck in a long time that we don't have to move money from savings to get through.
- I borrowed a book on potty training from the library instead of buying it. (though I may look for a used copy for reference while we are actually potty training!)
I hope I'll be able to get to 5 eventually.
I have to dig around in my planner to find the frugal things I've done!
*Son #2 brought a free turkey home, which I am brining and roasting this week (might have already mentioned this one). Still eating mainly foods I am clearing out of pantry and freezer.
*bought two headlamp bulbs to replace myself yesterday, while while were not cheap, did earn me a $5 reward from Auto Zone.
*going to be using my $6.99 Netflix service for exercise videos starting this week, which is cheaper than a gym and nicer in cold wet weather
*will be selling some scrap metal this week to offset the cost of a plumber coming to do PM on my water heater. Bonus: gets this stuff out of my garage.
*will reimburse myself from my HSA account for hearing aid supplies I need that I ordered off Amazon
*will visit the library this week for more books to read
- read library books. I did acquire a few late fees over the holidays but it's still way cheaper than buying.
- picked up free stuff from local pet store that rewards you for joining customer club. Free wet+dry food for cat plus another toy to confuse her (she's cute but dumb)
-dug through older boy's too small clothes and put them right into little boy 's drawers. Little guy does not care at all about what he wears which is nice
-paid for teen to take driving test (theory) which she passed. This is frugal because it will hopefully help her get a better job and need less $ from mom and dad
-have been using wood fireplace every day- electricity is expensive and the wood is already paid for so it feels frugal
1. We had my family over for my son's 10th birthday. Instead of ordering pizza, we grilled hot dogs and hamburgers and made French fries. For dessert, we had Aldi ice cream and a cake made from a cake mix. There was enough food for 2 dinners for my whole family.
2. We got my son a Gizmo watch for his birthday now that he is starting to do more things away from us. I found out that my employer gives a 19% discount at Verizon.
3. I patched a pair of my son's pants; he gets lots of holes in the knees.
4. I used up some frozen homemade pasta sauce, leftover mozzarella cheese, and a few boxes of pasta in the cupboard to make a pasta bake for dinner this week.
5. I took my daughter to our local museum for a play date. We have a membership to this museum and the membership includes parking ($10 otherwise). I brought food and drinks with us.
I didn't have enough frugal moves to do original postings for the Non-consumer Advocate blog and this blog, so I am going to cheat and list the same things here as I did there.
1. Received four $10 off $40 worth of groceries coupons, and over the last month I used them to stock up on some meat that was on sale. I am not a big coupon person but these came right to my mailbox so it would have been silly not to make use of them.
2. Our credit card issuer was sold to Wells Fargo. I have had bad experiences with them before so cancelled the card. Found a new card that came with 90,000 points that will be enough to pay for a flight to an extended family get together.
3. Was at Costco at the end of the day and the sample station for a face moisturizing cream I use was shutting down. The woman running it offered me the rest of her bag of samples to take. I made one last for three days, and she gave me over 50 samples so I am set for about half the year. This is an expensive cream so by my estimation I got over $100 worth of cream for free.
4. Attended an after Christmas holiday party for a non-profit I like to support. People were asked to bring a small gift under $15 for the exchange. I printed up a booklet with four coupons that can be used anytime over the next year. Each one is good for a loaf of challah I bake and a jar of raspberry jam I canned in August from our own berries. It was the most popular gift there and I did not have to go out and buy it.
5. From the same party, I came home with two pillowcases someone made, using Christmas themed material. I will enjoy using them next year. I would never have thought of making pillowcases!
Always fine to do repeats!
I would be delighted to get your challah/jam gift; such a great idea!
I used to make challah weekly in my early 20s; my former mother law was just ecstatic when I dropped a loaf by her house. I really should start making more bread. I'd forgotten how easy it is until I made several pizzas this week.
@Lindsey, such a good idea about the booklet!
@Lindsey, Big score on the cream. I'm happy for you!
@Lindsey, I repeat and cheat every week!
*I canceled Amazon Kindle unlimited. It was neat to see so many books to borrow, but I wound up just rereading the same ones. So that's $11.99 saved per month.
*I got a free final month of Kindle Unlimited when I canceled. I will reread those favorites a few more times. And I put a calendar reminder to cancel it for good in a month.
*I bought some yogurts that rang up incorrectly. I wasn't going to return them, but decided it wouldn't hurt. Got $13 back- which was more than I thought.
*We went to my kid's Special Olympics basketball games- free admission and kid got a free lunch. I did buy a few 50/50 tickets for their fundraiser.
*I took kids to trampoline park as a winter break treat. Tickets were half price with a donation of new pet item. We hit the local pet store on the way and used a 20% discount to get clearance dog toys and cat treats. Spending $9 saved $50.
1. I used the Gas Buddy app to buy gas for my generator in case I lose power in the anticipated snow storm.
2. I picked up some cold medicine at Walgreens. They had their Christmas candy on sale for 70% off so I picked up a few treats.
3. I re-used free packing materials to ship off Ebay items I sold.
4. We are under the weather here so I haven't spent any money except for the Walgreens trip. I guess that's one way to have a no spend January.
5. I ordered free Covid tests from the USPS. I hadn't realized they had offered them again in November.
Frugal Things, Florida Edition, AKA Shoveling in a Snowstorm:
Am on a trip to FL to accompany my DH on a business trip, along with our youngest. Since we're going to Disney tomorrow any frugal things feel like a drop in the ocean. But Here we go.
1. Mended a stuffed animal my son wanted to bring along.
2. We stopped only for gas and food for the kiddo.
3. We had so many kroger fuel points saved that while we were still in Kroger territory we got a full tank of gas for 25 cents a gallon.
4. We are staying in a friend's vacation house that is super close to the (free) beach, and is cheaper than any hotel or other VRBO.
5. We are cooking rather than eating out. Except at Disney, I guess.
Well, I had been writing away with a really good 5FT piece when I needed to go drive a friend home....and then when I got back to resume my writing, Bing killed it off. Or at least I think it did...so if there is another writeup from me, that's why. I hate Microsoft and Bing!!!! Dumb me for not making sure I accessed FG site from Google!
OK, here goes again:
1. My not-so-frugal splurge in December was to buy a very large hanging basket of house ivy (philodendron) that would fit in Grandma's old plant stand once I cut the hangers off. It was very full and healthy -- and given my history of killing off my houseplants, that was risky. But it looks good in the old plant stand.
a. Frugal thing: Got my cleaning lady, who has a green thumb, to look it over today and tell me if I'm doing everything right. Turns out, I over-watered and also bought a container that is too full and needs to be repotted fairly soon. CL gave it a "haircut" so I could root some runners in water. I found a large empty water bottle from the health food store that is suitable for this. CL says tap water will be OK. Also found out that you are supposed to change out the water every week or the plant will die -- THAT's what I've been doing wrong! CL also rigged up an old spray bottle so I can mist the leaves once weekly instead of overwatering the soil.
b. Also frugal: Found Mom's vintage green glass bowl, which she used to grow ivy in at her office, and she had gorgeous plants at work. I will be ready to transplant the rooted-in-water plant(s) into this bowl when we see the roots have developed.
c. Frugal past thing I may or may not have already reported: Earlier, I bought some compost-and-potting soil mix from a nonprofit agency, only $5 for a huge bag, and I will be able to use that for my new ivy plant. If this works, we're going to do a couple more transplants. Three or four ivy plants for the price of one!
2. Our store was selling "planting calendars" put out by a local farm place/tourist trap. The price is almost $20. Someone familiar with this farm business told me that the business got all the information about when to plant, put out plants, etc., from the regular Farmer's Almanac. I found a copy of this year's almanac at the thrift store for $1. I may or may not start a garden, but if I do, I have the necessary information at a reasonable price...it may even be available on the internet for all I know. Oh, and the tourist trap farm's gift shoppe is selling their planting calendars for about TWICE the price our store charges, I was told. Hmmm. If I want this stuff in a calendar, our store sells wall calendars and journals for 99 cents; all I have to do is pencil in the information.
3. Rounded up items I no longer need to take to the thrift store. Our Goodwill gives you a coupon for 20% off in exchange for donations. Hope to find a sweater and pair of slacks.
4. Re-scanned my TV and got more over the air channels to watch free. Sadly, two of the channels I regularly watched are no longer available; one changed format to show silly sophomoric sitcoms and the other quit business.
5. Prepped the kitchen counters for a new paint job over the old formica and first paint job; that paint is wearing off due to all the scrubbing we have to do. Paint is still cheaper than new countertops.
1. I bought a fabric shower curtain reduced 75 percent off just for the fabric. You can't beat two yards of 72 inch wide fabric for $7.50.
2. Arranged my driving today so I could go by Food Lion and grab a bag of dog food on sale. This particular premium dog food goes on 20% off sale every couple of months.
3. The coat I bought on Poshmark at the end of last year was described as a navy and red plaid, which I sought out because my winter scarf is red. It turned out to be navy and fuchsia, so I hunted for a navy and fuchsia scarf on eBay. A local seller had a brand new Land's End scarf in the right colors and gave me a great deal on it.
4. Had several bags of donations to take to Goodwill today and popped inside to see if I could find a large play ball for our new rescued pup, who is part cattle dog and needs a big ball to "herd." Found the perfect ball for her for $3. She was just wild with joy bumping it around the yard.
5. Groomed our longhaired cat myself. She's very sweet about it as long as the sessions stay short. Professional cat grooming starts at $90 around here.
1. Cashed out my credit card rewards for 2023 from one of my cards, which totaled $160+. I pay the cards off on time every month and strategize using it for the the 5% bonus cash back on the specific categories each quarter.
2. Cashed out my ibotta for $30 and fetch for a $25 Starbucks gift card.
3. I accidentally killed my fitbit versa 3 watch by dropping it just right on the tile floor. After trying all the troubleshooting tips I found online, it would still not turn on or vibrate to show it was working. Instead of buying a new watch, I took the versa 2 watch we had bought my son but he had stopped using after a few months. At least no additional money spent out of pocket to replace my watch!
4. Used up some expiring CVS extra care bucks totalling $10 to buy some Christmas gum and candy at 50% off (still expensive at CVS prices, though), which came to 50 cents. Later that week, I received another $5 ECB on any purchase from CVS! Maybe the remaining Christmas items will be marked down even more this week.
5. My MIL requested a specific book for her birthday, which I was able to find a very good used copy on Better World Books along with a 15% off coupon code. I made the free shipping threshold by adding a copy of a book my son really likes (and he doesn't like to read so anything I can get to encourage him helps!). The total was very reasonable and came out to a lot less than buying brand new!
This is not going to sound frugal at all especially since one of my goals is to get rid of "stuff". However on local Swap Shop someone had Cunningham & Pickett Spring Violets china for sale. I already have several pieces I purchased on eBay to coordinate with other vintage violet china I have. This lot, this lot had a teapot, two sugar bowls and creamers, a gravy boat, a lidded serving bowl, several berry bowls, bread and butter plates, 10" dinner plates, several cups and saucers, and a salt and pepper shaker. The 22k gold design (which usually wears a little) looks as if it was never used. This lot, this lot sold for $40.00! The tea pot alone is worth more than $40.00 in the right market. I am so excited! Lord willing, I can't wait to use it next Merry Thanksmas Dinner because the plates are big and my brother has complained that the plates I've used the last couple of years are not "Baptist" plates. (Our family used Chinet platters at get togethers.)
Filled the car w gas yesterday morning to be "Ready for the Big Snow," at $2.51. Of course today, it is $2.48.
Finally got to some applesauce that I froze a couple of years ago. It is very good, but not something I usually eat. I needed to get some out of the freezer before it became buried under the quarter beef I purchased. I remember making the sauce from a bushel of gifted apples given to me.
Did not use the over ripe bananas to make muffins or bread, but I did throw them under the rose bushes.
Went to Walmart before the snow to get packing totes for the china, and got eggs while I was there so I can finally bake Christmas cookies while snowed in. All of the other ingredients, I've had since Thanksgiving. The only impulse buy I made was a bouquet of coral and red picotee mini carnations for $4.97. Probably shoulda just pretended the teapot was a bouquet and put it in the middle of the table.
@Chrissy, Carnations are a good buy, because, like daisies and mums, they last longer as cut flowers.
Great find on the violet china!
1. I fixed a knitted hat that was coming apart.
2. I cut up an old, unwearable tshirt for rags.
3. We checked out a movie from the local library. I used the Libby app to get an audiobook for free.
4. My husband fixed the fridge (minor problem with the ice maker) and the car.
5. We made all of our meals at home, accepted free milk, ate leftovers, used up some items from the freezer.
6. I shopped the closet and some boxes for kids clothes. We didn't need to buy anything this time.
7. I didn't buy a new comforter, even though mine is wearing out and they're on sale. I didn’t love any of the options in stores and didn't want to order online. I also didn't buy new shoes for the same reason. However, I will need shoes soon. I've been wearing sneakers everywhere because my dress shoes had a hole in the sole. There's snow here. I am not wearing shoes with a hole in the sole.
I got some new knitting supplies for free!
Years ago I wanted a particular set of interchangeable knitting needles but they were very expensive. Amazon had a deal where you could get $75 credit for signing up for their credit card. Purchases on Amazon or at Whole Foods get 5% credit which is applied in the form of points you can use for purchases with the card. So I used the $75 credit to buy the set of interchangeable needles in the sizes I use most often. It was on sale and was exactly $75. So all I had to pay was the sales tax. Every year or so when the points have added up I use them to buy single pairs of interchangeable needles in sizes that didn't come with my original set, or accessories for the set. I use a technique called "Magic Loop" that lets me knit in the round with my interchangeable needles and long cables instead of also having to have a complete set of double-pointed needles in addition to the regular set of knitting needles.
I deliberately got a small credit limit on that card and pay it off every month. I buy things I can't find locally and the occasional e-book when neither our library nor my favorite local book store have the book. 365 Brand at Whole Foods is competitive with local grocery store prices and sometimes their prices are better (there are no Aldi's here!).
This interchangeable knitting needle set is pretty expensive (around $350 for all the needles and accessories), and I would not feel right about spending that money. But free has been very nice.
Knitting can be a really expensive hobby! I have friends who think nothing of dropping $200 - $300 on yarn for a sweater, or buying expensive skeins of yarn that they just end up collecting in their "stashes". Some people have several sweater's worth of yarn in their stashes. They have multiple projects going at once (and often don't finish them) and have many sets of needles. I like to knit socks, but good sock yarn can cost $20 or $30 per pair, and I find they hurt my feet because you can't knit as finely as a machine.
I shop carefully for affordable yarn and only buy yarn for the project on my needles instead of collecting yarn I may never use. I spent $45 for the alpaca/wool mix yarn of my favorite sweater which fits me perfectly. While the cost of even carefully budgeted yarn is more than buying ready-made clothing, I figure I'm paying for entertainment of knitting as well as yarn. It's a relaxing and calming hobby, and I like learning new techniques and tackling challenging projects.
I wanted a good roomy knitting bag with pockets. Dedicated knitting bags can cost up to $150! Instead I bought a waxed canvas bag (on Amazon) for about $19. It's attractive, sturdy, the perfect size, and has pockets for accessories.
On the frugal side I knit my own dishcloths and facecloths. I can get several from inexpensive balls of cotton yarn, and they make nice gifts. And I made a felted bag I used for a lunch bag for about 15 years, I think the yarn cost me about $14 for a unique and distinctive, reusable lunch bag. Felted hot pads and mitts from inexpensive wool are fun to make too. I like to make my own knitting markers with beads I get on sale and jewelry findings. They make nice gifts for knitting friends, too.
I'd love to hear how other people pursue their hobbies frugally.
@Jan, FWIW, my daughter buys old cashmere/whatever sweaters at thrift stores and unravels them and then knits new things from them. She also uses old discarded clothes for quilting.
We have all of our CDs in one credit union that has been paying pretty low rates, but we have hesitated looking around for better rates because some of them are institutions we never heard of. We finally got off our lazy duffs and found the Navy Federal Credit Union was paying double what our CU was offering so we opened an account at NFCU, got a huge chunk of money out of our normal CU and moved it over.
We then remembered that it was time to take our yearly RMD (required distribution) from another IRA and got a nice chunk that will cover the new laptop and the surprise car insurance increase.
It was so much fun moving cash around for gains that I told my husband I felt like Scrooge McDuck playing in his building that was filled entirely with cash.
Does any one else remember his cash filled building?
I spent 4 days with my father and a young relative. I stayed with him, he paid for most things, I paid for my books at the museum shop[1] and some chocolates.
I was sent home with a cooler bag full of food (apparently I might starve on the way home?) so now I have a fridge full of leftovers. No cooking for me this week!
I used a 50% off delivery coupon (up to $15 value) to buy $31 worth of sushi.
I emailed Vital Farms to get replacement coupons for the ones I didn't use in December. Y'all may remember that VF sent me a lot of coupons in December, all of which expired on 12/31. When I pointed out this bit of a problem, they said they'd replace any I had left in the new year. Sucker for good customer service that I am, I am now a big Vital Farms fan.
Having run out of free ad-free Hulu trials, I got ad-free Hulu and Disney+. It's $30/month, which is a lot of streaming so I'll use it a lot for a couple of months, then cancel it.
Still reading a lot of library books and made a separate shelf of books I haven't read yet so museum shop notwithstanding, I'm not buying many books these days.
[1] Museum shop prices are usually list. I could get the books cheaper online but I consider the extra a donation to the museum and encouragement to stock more books.
@WilliamB, I feel the same way about stuff in museum gift shops. I can afford to help support them so I do.
1. I work 90% remote, but I go into the office 1-2x a month. Yesterday I carpooled with a coworker and we parked at another coworker's house to avoid paying for parking. $5 saved on the garage parking, and we had a lovely walk and chat through the neighborhood to campus.
2. Packed leftover dinner for lunch yesterday. And scored some free cookies from the work event we had to attend. I took one back to Fiance because I'm Good Wife Material 😉
3. Asked the local Buy Nothing group for stud earrings since I lost my pair, and they hooked me up. One less item being produced new and no money spent!!
4. Learned that meeting with a dietician is completely free through my university health plan, so I've been meeting with one every few months to track muscle growth and for protein-heavy meal ideas. Last week we discussed including more beans!!
5. I'm in a yoga teacher training program that meets 1 weekend a month. Last time someone brought Panera bagels to share, and I was inspired to be similarly generous with my cohort. But I made two batches The Frugal Girl's blueberry quickbread instead of buying from a bakery. Used up some frozen berries we had and was seriously so easy.
I bought a tiered skirt second hand and it was a bit too long for my taste, so I removed the bottom tier and stitched a new hem. Bonus, I have a length of the fabric that I can use for a scarf, etc.
My birthday was this past Saturday, but it snowed, and since I don't drive in the snow, I stayed home. Luckily, I'd gotten the ingredients to make Thai Lettuce Wraps (which I would have gotten had I gone to the Cheesecake Factory), so I made them for my birthday and got two additional meals out of it. Also made a small chocolate cake and celebrated at home.
@Mary,
Happy belated birthday! Sounds like you made a yummy birthday dinner.
I also have glove related things to share 🙂
1. I kept myself busy during a flight delay and layover on a trip by finishing a crochet mitten project I started last year with yarn I accidentally over bought when I made a winter hat (beginner problems.) I printed the pattern (how old fashioned!) so I didn't have to pay for wifi on the plane(s) to access it on line. I also used the free in flight entertainment to watch a movie I wanted to see but would to have buy or rent to it to watch it at home.
2. I hand sewed small rip I discovered in our mattress pad after I washed it while it was on the bed - otherwise I wouldn't have found it to repair it. I hand sewed a small hole in a pair of knit gloves I've had forever so they can live another day. I ran new elastic in the waist band of my "silk" long underwear that still looks new everywhere else.
3. Our ancient artificial Christmas tree was shedding worse than Charlie Brown's Christmas tree and triggered a severe allergy attack. The no cost solution was to immediacy take the tree down while keeping the rest of the Christmas decor up so the house looks festive even though it took a week or so before we felt 100%. It wasn't until after Christmas that we felt up to shopping for a new tree which worked out for the best because we bought the replacement at 50% off (just like its predecessor over 20 years ago) with free shipping because we picked it up at the store.
4. When it was time to put the Christmas decorations away, I went sorted though the containers, made peace with tossing the things I keep repairing and they breaking at the end of the season I donated the items we haven't used in a very long time to a charity shop. I got an afternoon of entertainment, free storage space in the storage containers I don't plan on filling back up, and a tax donation.
5. The oil light and filter came on our new to us car even though we hadn't driven it enough miles for the next oil change. My husband wanted to take it in for service, but I figured it might just need a new filter or additional oil - an easy DIY. The oil was fine. The filter was almost pristine. A bit of online research suggested that the oil and filter sensor hadn't been reset. One Youtube tutorial later and no dollars spent - problem solved!
1 - This is the big one. Our microwave broke so I ordered a new microwave after Christmas. It arrived with a big dent. Thankfully, big box store was willing to accept pictures of the dent to initiate a return so I was able to take it to the UPS store, which is not that far out of my way. But, the replacement they sent just didn't work. Specifically, it kept microwaving forever, long after any sensor should have told it to stop, turning things to lava rock. I texted again and said big box store told me that the manufacturer would fix it under warranty because it was an appliance. Yeah, no. Anybody could tell that would not be worth their time. Anyway, I drove to the "local" store today and returned it, no questions asked. 30 highway minutes of gas is well worth the reimbursement, but that was way more hassle than it should have been. In the meantime, we drove to a local store and bought a different brand in stock. It works great.
2 - I cleaned / reorganized the linen closet. In so doing, I now know how much of some items we regularly use we actually have. And, I found a sizeable stack of razor blades we didn't know we had, in good condition.
3 - With the storm coming, I have rearranged things so we only need to use one fridge should the power go out again. They keep the temp pretty well, but it definitely helps not to open them.
4 - I also planned meals and staged to need the fridge less and only use the cooktop (which works when the power is out).
5 - I did some online price comparing since I knew that I would be at two different grocery stores today.
Good savings on the shampoo, Kristen!
My FFT this week are pretty limited since the “cold” my husband shared with me turned out to be Covid, so I have been confined to home, and pretty sick for a few days, but happily I’m on the mend now.
1. I used the reward dollars on my groceries and saved $9.55 on my total!
2. I used random coupons to save another $9.00
3. I bought a toy for one of my grandkids, then I read that it had a dangerous piece, so returned it, saving $8.00. She didn’t need it anyway.
4. I drank all water from the fridge while sick. And actually always, because I have a real problem with companies who pour water into plastic bottles and then try to sell it to us like it’s something special. It’s horrible for the earth.
5. I put my leftover chai tea bags into a pot of simmering water with some of my leftover mulling spices and an old cinnamon stick and the end piece of my orange. Even though I can’t smell anything, my husband says the house smells nice. And that’s good enough for now!
Last Thursday I (finally) picked up my prescriptions. While walking through the seasonal aisle, I saw a couple of things I could use for next year and also for a raffle basket I have to create for this month. But there was a line. I did go back and bought them. One item I did put back because I figured I have materials to create the same theme--not the same item. I'll have fun and I'll be working on reducing my clutter.
And in the same range, I have found some free patterns to create from fibers, threads and yarns that I have right here to use up.
1. I’m trying to work on finishing little bits from the freezer before Baby #2 comes and it becomes difficult/impossible to care about much less work on little twiddly things like that. Jalapenos went into a soup, and a few little rhubarb bits into my morning oatmeal. Elderberries are also good in my oatmeal.
2. Took one for the team and ate two small items from the freezer that were leftovers from Little E.
3. I worked a half day, and wanted to eat out afterwards rather than pack a lunch. I redeemed a free sandwich from Jersey Mike’s that had been on my account since my birthday in May. I did buy a cookie and tip generously, but it was still a cheap lunch out.
4. I was able to complete some required continuing education while at work on a wintry day when I had a few patient cancellations.
5. Made an effort to do two out-of-the-way errands while on the other side of town: dropping off sharps and a broken CFL at our county hazardous waste drop off, and dropping a mirror at our Habitat for Humanity Restore.