Five Tiny Frugal Things

by Katy on February 19, 2025 · 91 comments

  1. I ordered 21 photo prints from the Walgreen’s near my house, but first did a cursory web search to hunt down a promo code. Two minutes and 50%-off later, I was able to bring my order down from $8.19 to $4.09. Walgreen’s photo department always has easy to find promo codes, so I encourage you to look for them if you’re having physical prints made.

    Extra enjoyable aspect of this transaction is that Walgreen’s is sticking with their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion program, so I feel good about supporting their company.

  2. My sister and I were at the end of errands and seconds away from entering a cute restaurant, when I abruptly realized that I wasn’t in the mood to drop twenty bucks on a meal. We drove the fifteen minutes home and heated up some black bean chili that I’d stuck in the fridge. I set out a toppings buffet and we enjoyed the addition of crushed tortilla chips, Tillamook cheese, sour cream and windowsill scallions for a satisfying and frugal meal. Katy, you have food at home!

    The homemade chili was something I’d made for the specific purpose of having a grab-and-go meal in the fridge for my sister’s visit. It incorporated the last of some homemade marinara sauce, as well as a half jar of Trader Joe’s cheap pasta sauce as I was out of canned tomatoes. The beans were from the Winco bulk department and cooked in my Instant Pot. I’d also defrosted a small amount of cooked bulk sausage from the freezer to deepen the flavor. The total cost was probably around five bucks, but it filled my crock pot.

    Worry not about the chili tasting like marinara sauce, as I added enough herbs and spices (chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, crushed red peppers, salt, parsley) to cover up that favor profile!

  3. I brought a $9.99 tin of Trader Joe Jingle Jangle treats to a health care clinic that serves the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community to “obtain the compassionate and culturally effective health care that they need and deserve.” I’m a firm believer in direct donations to those in need and I’m guessing that these clinic employees were “in need” of a treat.

  4. My neighbor set another Bonne Maman jam jar in her recycling bin, which I quickly brought home. I love, love, love (love) these jars to store my Winco bulk spices!

  5. I’m not using my influence as a billionaire to take resources away from people living in poverty.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 91 comments }

One Frugal Thing — Blistex Addiction

by Katy on February 18, 2025 · 55 comments

My husband had a dental appointment yesterday, so I waved him off with a request to “grab a couple of their lip balms for me.” I’ve been addicted to Blistex “medicated” lip balm since the early 1990s and it’s a win-lose cycle of moisturizing my lips with something that inversely dries them out. This is an excellent business model for them and a frustrating experience for me, yet here I am caught in the cycle.

I noticed that a cheapo tube of lip balm, (oddly from my son’s old corporate apartment complex) didn’t seem to contain menthol, which is the ingredient that ironically dries out your lips. This is why I asked my husband to grab a similar tube from our dentist. Luckily the desk staff was generous, actually telling my husband to “take the whole bowl.” Spoiler — he didn’t.

Can I break my addiction to my beloved Blistex medicated lip balm? I hate how reliant I am to the stuff and would love to step away from buying this product. I shudder to think how much I’ve inadvertently ingested through the years.

If you’ve broken the lip balm cycle and have any advice to share, I’d love to read your thoughts. Ugh . . .

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 55 comments }

Five Frugal Things

by Katy on February 17, 2025 · 77 comments

  1. I stopped at the Dollar Tree store near my father’s house and was shocked with how empty the shelves were. I was there to stock up on bar soap, and ended up leaving with just a single bar of not-my-brand soap to hold me over until I could get to a different store. I asked the cashier why the store was so empty and she had no answer. The above photo is from a food aisle.

    Dollar stores serve an important purpose for millions of Americans who rely on them for cheap household supplies and food. I know they’re not perfect, but it saddened me to see how neglected this store had become.

  2. I found a nickel and two pennies on the floor at Dollar Tree.

  3. I visited with my youngest at their apartment and came home with a handful of sealed ketchup packets that were about to be thrown away. It’s hard to get ahead financially when all your money is tied up in a small amount of ketchup.

    I also brought home a hand held can opener that was no longer needed. I also have no need for it, but I can clean it up and offer it up in my Buy Nothing group.

  4. My sister is visiting again from New York, but I didn’t spend any money to get our spare bedroom ready for her. I simply moved a pretty potted plant into her room, washed the bedding and ran the robo vacuum — which was all that was needed to spruce the room up.

    Reminder of the cute duvet that I thrifted last year for the room!

  5. I didn’t buy an election and I don’t have 13 children with four different women.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 77 comments }

Have You Changed Your Spending Habits?

by Katy on February 15, 2025 · 154 comments

I’m very curious to hear from readers on how they’ve changed their spending patterns in the past few months. I’ve certainly minimized my egg consumption and am choosing oatmeal more often than not. I know I’m not the only one who’s shifted viewing eggs as a bargain protein and switched it over to a luxury item.

But it’s not just eggs. It’s questionable job stability and layoffs and missed income from foreign tourists who are suddenly choosing to boycott The United States and our products. There’s even valid worry about delayed tax refunds. It’s a lot to worry about!

So I ask you this — Are tightening your belts? Have you changed your spending habits?

Please share your stories in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 154 comments }

Five Teeny Tiny Frugal Things

by Katy on February 14, 2025 · 69 comments

  1. My neighbor went to the grocery store during a snow storm, but texted first to ask if we needed anything. She ended up picking up Valentine’s Day candy for one neighbor and a half gallon of milk for me. Supported my indoorsy plans for the day.

  2. I made a huge pot of white bean rosemary soup with spinach and a bit of found-it-in-the-freezer sausage. I even had enough to share a quart with the neighbor who’d picked the milk up earlier.

  3. I ended up darning seven pairs of socks, although a couple of them needed repair to just a single sock. It was actually kind of fun and rationalized watching a bunch of first season episodes of Star Trek: Voyager.

    Saves money to mend your clothing, plus it’s deeply satisfying.

  4. The slippers that I bought off eBay a couple years ago are falling apart in a non-repairable manner, so I found a new looking replacement pair off eBay for $21 plus shipping. Choosing to buy used whenever possible is both harder and easier than you’d think. But somehow there’s almost always a way to figure it out without having to buy the things I need from Schmeff Schmezos, Target or Temu.

  5. I didn’t spend 400 million dollars on armored Cybertrucks.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 69 comments }

Let’s Darn Some Socks!

by Katy on February 13, 2025 · 39 comments

 

Today is a special snowy day here in Portland, Oregon, which means there’s zero guilt when it comes to hunkering down at home and embracing all things cozy. Like darning socks!

Obviously I’ve been neglecting this chore . . . .

 

 

Many of these socks, especially the ones that my sister hand knit have seen the business end of a darning egg in the past. Like this one:

 

 

I just got these socks for Chaunkah, but apparently I’ve a special talent for the holey spirit.

 

 

There, that’s better!

 

One down, thirteen to go!

If you can sew over-under-over-under, then you too can darn a sock. It’s hard to get ahead financially when all your money is tied up in socks!

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 39 comments }

Five Tiny Frugal Things

by Katy on February 11, 2025 · 80 comments

  1. I drove the minivan to the closest cheap (ha!) gas station and spent $22 in cash to save 30¢/gallon, even though it only filled my tank to the halfway mark. I need to be mindful to keep enough cash on hand to actually fill the 21-gallon gas tank, as 30¢ X 21 = $6.30, which makes this frugal hack worth the trouble.

  2.  I called to follow up on two things that could’ve saved me money. The answer was “no” in both cases, but you never know unless you put in the effort.

    1) My daughter returned our grocery cart to the cart corral in the Winco parking lot without noticing that her paper towels and toilet paper were on the bottom shelf. I called to see if someone had turned them in, but of course they hadn’t.

    2) I left my nice (thrifted) Hydroflask reusuable water bottle in an urgent care exam room a couple months ago. I was with my father who was having a health issue, so it wasn’t that day’s priority. I finally called their lost and found, only to be told that they don’t save any food related items, which totally makes sense. I figured it was a bygone lost cause, but at least it’s not because I didn’t follow up.

  3. My 26 year old and I stopped by Fred Meyer to pick up needed supplies for their weekly meal-prep-palooza. They were about to buy a loaf  of bread, but instead accepted my offer of a loaf from my freezer.

    You may remember that I bought ten loaves of $1 bread at the Franz Bakery Outlet store a few weeks back and I’m more than happy to share. Seriously, I’m so pleased whenever I can help my kids save their hard earned dollars!

  4. I pulled a mostly eaten Costco rotisserie chicken from the freezer and cooked it in my countertop pressure cooker to make a big pot of chicken soup. Portland’s been extra frosty this past week and we’re even expecting snow on Thursday, which calls for comforting warm meals. I’ll probably bake up a loaf of overnight artisan bread to dip into the broth.

  5. I didn’t enrich the Fox television network by watching even a minute of the Superb Owl.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 80 comments }

Five Frugal Things

by Katy on February 10, 2025 · 80 comments

  1. My son and I watched the movie A Real Pain through my friend’s Hulu account. (Thanks, Lisa!) Written, directed and starring Jesse Eisenberg, the movie is about a pair of cousins whose recently deceased grandmother was a holocaust survivor. The two of them travel to Poland for a guided tour to see where she grew up, as well as the concentration camp where she’d been held. Also starring Kieran Culkin, this film had nuanced characters and was beautifully filmed, thought provoking and even funny at times.

    Although my Jewish family left Europe long before World War II, (I had a great-great grandfather who fought in the Civil War.) I did have extended relatives who didn’t make it out.

  2. I curb picked a pair of structured basket cubes that I’ll clean up and use for storage. These Branäs baskets sell for $24.99 apiece at IKEA, so it was well worth turning the car around. The baskets do have some superficial mildew and condition issues, but I can give them a soapy vinegar scrub and bring them back to life.

    Remember . . . there’s nothing wrong with a dented basket!

  3. I mailed one of my father’s framed needlepoint mazes to my cousin in Pittsburgh and used PirateShip.com to prepay for the postage. I spent $16.24 for UPS shipping as opposed to the $25.98 had I gone directly though the UPS.com website! (I’ll save you the math, that’s a $9.74 savings!) I don’t have a photo of the specific piece, but here’s one that hangs in my home:

  4. • I took my daughter to Winco and although I didn’t have more than a couple things on my shopping list, I did stock up/take advantage of a few sale items including mini peppers, avocados, onions, cucumbers and bananas.
    • I got another Fred Meyer coupon in the mail for a free pint of Häagen Dazs ice cream.
    • I had a carton of blueberries that got unpleasantly soft, so I made a tiny batch of refrigerator jam adding a squirt of lemon juice and a handful of sugar.

  5. I didn’t spend 290 million dollars to buy myself into an unelected federal government position.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 80 comments }

100 More Reasons To Be a Non-Consumer!

by Katy on February 7, 2025 · 21 comments

In addition to this blog, I also run a companion Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group, which is currently hovering around 79,000 members. New prospective members have to answer a simple question, which helps to weed out the ever present spammers. The answers are always interesting, so I’ve started saving them to share in blog posts. 

  1. Educating yourself is always a good thing.

  2. I enjoy Katy’s blog. I don’t buy new. thrifty to the max!

  3. I want to learn how I can enhance my current efforts as a conscious consumer with a frugal focus.

  4. Save.

  5. I want to be a better steward of my money.

  6. I am trying to get out of the cycle of consumerism.

  7. I’m drowning in stuff! It’s suffocating me!

  8. More frugal tips.

  9. Enjoy the blog for many years.

  10. I want to save money.

  11. I’m a social worker …with a social worker salary…nuff said lol.

  12. I read the Year of Less. I am trying to live this way.

  13. Appreciate ideas to stay motivated, inspired to refrain from non-essential buying.

  14. I am semi retired and need to find a way to save money.

  15. I am a widow and live alone. This type of making ends meet appeals to me.

  16. Trying to retire. Need to save money and be more consumer conscious.

  17. Tired of contributing to big corporations.

  18. For inspiration to reduce my negative impact on our planet.

  19. I live remotely and have sort of a forced non-consumption life which I increasingly embrace. I love the simplicity, the frugality, and the peace of this life, and want to be on this journey with others who are like-minded.

  20. To be frugal, zero waste.

  21. Trying to be more frugal.

  22. It only makes sense!

  23. To get ideas on how to support sustainability.

  24. I am retired trying to survive this inflation.

  25. I’d like to learn unique ways to spend less and have more.

  26. Save money.

  27. I read your blog!

  28. Learn to spend less in 2025.

  29. I have gone into early retirement due to macular degeneration and need to save as much as possible.

  30. I would like to live a more mindful and minimalist life.

  31. Retired and needing to build an emergency fund. Also have way too much stuff. Also I don’t want my 3 sons to have to worry about my stuff when Jesus calls me home.

  32. Looking to save money this year!!

  33. I just have too much stuff and feel bad about it.

  34. To be with like minded people.

  35. To spare our environment. I believe less is more and can be applied to many parts of our lives.

  36. I used to live frugally but recently, I have been buying stuff. I need to go on a money diet!

  37. Save money.

  38. I want to learn how to be frugal. I know there are a lot of ideas out there. Some I can do. Some I can’t.

  39. We want to without and use what we have.

  40. I’m trying to make fewer purchases and generally consume less in 2025.

  41. I have always been frugal and am a huge advocate of using up and/or repairing items in my possession. I am also a huge recycler and recycle probably 90% of my trash.

  42. Ideas on how to save money.

  43. I’d like to be more thoughtful about the things I own. I’m good with my hands and enjoy fixing and refinishing furniture.

  44. I’m always looking for ways to live more with less!

  45. Want to stop spending needlessly!

  46. I don’t want to give big corporations any more money. I’m looking for new ways to live a more frugal life.

  47. Save money.

  48. Going thru a divorce, will rely on 1 income.

  49. I like great ideas on saving and i have a friend who mentioned she likes the page and ideas.

  50. I like to live simply.

  51. I’ve read your blog on your website for a while. Decided to join the FB group.

  52. I’m always looking for ways to save money!

  53. Learn frugal tips.

  54. Wanting to learn more ways to save, make repairs and repurpose.

  55. Heading into retirement.

  56. Recently disabled. I need to step up my decent thrift game to an extreme thrift game in order to survive. ASAP

  57. I’m interested in saving and reusing stuff instead of buying more.

  58. In this day and age I need to learn how to be more frugal.

  59. Minimize wastefulness.

  60. Like to learn how to save.

  61. Get inspired to use the things that I have, and to not buy so many unnecessary items and things that I don’t need.

  62. As much as possible, I want to repair, reuse and recycle.

  63. I want to make more of an effort to buy less, recycle more, and reduce my carbon footprint.

  64. Trying to cut down on unnecessary trying to cut down on spending and learn some tips on saving.

  65. Learn.

  66. Keeping with my already non-consumer lifestyle, I look forward to other’s ideas.

  67. Trying to be more intentional about what I allow into my living space so I have only things I need, use, and/or love.

  68. As retirees living in a rural area, we find we need to make do with what we have, as money is limited and trip to a city is 75 minutes.

  69. I’d like to practice frugality and ways to free ourselves from grasps of consumerism. im partnering up with a friend for a minimal spend 2025.

  70. Because I grew up with parents who lived through the Depression and my mom’s philosophy was, “use it up, wear it out, make it do, or go without.” I even had an aunt who taught me to save breadwrappers, cut them into strips and then use them to crochet rugs. I always loved her Wonder bread rug in front of her kitchen sink. <– I wish I could see this!

  71. The peace of not wanting things.

  72. Have always loved the premise of “Ditching it to the man” since the early 1970’s …late 1960’s.

  73. I have been working on minimalism having a smaller carbon foot print and saving money. This seems like it may be a good fit!

  74. I want to get better at saving money and learn how to use what I have instead of buying more.

  75. I need to save!

  76. I read a post and thought I’d fit right in 🙂

  77. I don’t want to add to all the damage consumerism does to us and Earth. Plus, I have adopted some helpful habits which I can share with the group.

  78. I would love to start a zero waste group in ocean county.

  79. Can’t find companies that align with my values anyways so I’d rather just not consume than give money to them.

  80. I’d like to learn as much from others as possible. Thank you!

  81. My husband and I keep things forever. We prefer to repair rather than replace.

  82. To learn different opportunities.

  83. To learn how to repair, mend, fix, reuse items. Under consumption.

  84. I am looking to simplify my life to better focus on people I love versus things I have.

  85. I’ve been following your blog for a long time and am thankful for the reminders that we don’t have to spend a lot to live well.

  86. Trying to reduce my carbon footprint.

  87. To learn and share ideas on living a less consumer-driven life.

  88. I am a non consumer.

  89. I have always been frugal. I drive it till the wheels fall off.

  90. I love to save money and I am very frugal.

  91. I would like to learn how others live frugally.

  92. I’m looking for more ways to save money and to buy less.

  93. To learn how to be a non-consuming citizen for the next four years.

  94. I am in the process of decluttering and want to maintain a minimalist lifestyle.

  95. I am very interested in sharing with others idea and thoughts associated with less consumerism. I have become committed to reducing my use of plastic.

  96. To help the planet.

  97. I’d like to save money.

  98. I was raised to be frugal. it’s in my genes.

  99. On a fixed income like so many others here. I have always been frugal but find that I have to cut back even more.

  100. Recently retired…looking to be more frugal.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 21 comments }

Five Tiny But Important Frugal Things

by Katy on February 6, 2025 · 87 comments

My tiny propagated Christmas cactus is about to bloom!

  1. I put aside a few minutes to make free phone calls to my U.S. senators and congresswoman to leave messages encouraging them to do “everything in your power and then some” to fight against Trump and Musk. It is wholly unacceptable for the richest people on our planet to victimize our most vulnerable. I am so horrified to be an American right now.

    Click HERE to find the contact information for your senator.

    Click HERE to find the contact information for your congressperson.

  2. I also made free phone calls to the corporate departments of Target and Costco to give feedback on whether they kept (Costco) or eliminated (Target) their “diversity, equity and inclusion” programs. I was extremely polite and hopefully these calls can balance out the awful phone calls these operators are likely receiving on a daily basis.

    Click HERE for Costco’s contact information.

    Click HERE for Target’s contact information.

  3. I took my daughter to the credit union to get more papers notarized for free. This saved her around $10. This is me, once again encouraging you to put your money in a member owned credit union instead of a corporately owned bank.

  4. I got another notice for a 7 A.M. to 10 A.M. “Peak Times Rebate” electricity event, so I unplugged a couple of vampire energy devices and turned off a small light we normally keep on before going to bed. There’s not much else to minimize during these early hours, as the thermostat is already set to 64°F and I ain’t going lower!  I saved a massive 46¢ during the last “event.”

    I was curious how our electricity usage compares to other households, so I went to the Portland General Electric website to find this information. This graph shows our electricity usage being less than an “efficient similar home,” except in the summer when we use window air conditioners to ensure the house is cooled down to a livable temperature.

    For reference we live in a 1914 2000-ish square-foot uninsulated house. Cute, but drafty.

  5. I didn’t spend 290 million dollars to buy myself into an unelected federal government position.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.

{ 87 comments }

← Previous Entries