- Treat every purchase like it’s a major purchase. You have a few opportunities in life to save a lot of money, but it’s the small daily ones that will make or break you.
- Vacation close to home so you can drive instead of fly.
- Delay big purchases as long as possible. You may lose interest or find an alternate solution.
- Hang dry your laundry, indoors if necessary.
- Choose a hairstyle that does not require frequent trims.
- Repair instead of replace. This goes for appliances, furniture, clothing, whatever.
- Borrow infrequently used tools and supplies instead of buying. (Also make sure to lend.)
- Bank at a credit union instead of a corporate bank. You’ll most likely save on fees.
- Wear the clothes you already own instead of buying new stuff all the time.
- Cook from scratch and save restaurant meals for special occasions.
- Make sure you have a few easy meals on hand for those nights when takeout dinner is calling your name. There’s nothing wrong with serving scrambled eggs and toast for dinner.
- Use your library for books, magazines, movies and CD’s. And then make sure to return them on time!
- Foster your relationships with like minded friends. They won’t make you feel bad about sticking to a budget.
- Pack your own work and school lunches.
- Replace expensive recipe ingredients with inexpensive options. Perfect example? Kale instead of basil in pesto.
- Don’t be a snob about older electronics. You will survive without the newest iPhone.
- Learn how to mend and de-stain your clothing. If half your wardrobe is out of commission, you’re missing out.
- Batch your errands whenever you drive.
- Drink water or homemade iced tea instead of soda.
- Choose social get togethers that do not include shopping.
- Cancel memberships that you do not use. Gyms, premium cable channels, and everything else.
- Pay attention to your household’s food waste. Eat what you have, and stop buying the food that you tend to waste.
- Be willing to own less stuff. There’s less to buy, organize, clean and look at.
- Wait until movies hit the second run theaters.
- Decline your friends’ shopping parties. You don’t need any more Tupperware, baskets, jewelry or candles.
- Take advantage of your town’s free offerings. Parks, hikes, concerts, plays, it’s all there!
- Don’t assume that all coupons are for junk food. There are tons of great coupons for pasta, organic food and healthy products. Keep an open mind.
- Minimize the disposable supplies that you buy. Rags made from old T-shirts can replace paper towels, and handkerchiefs can replace Kleenex.
- Embrace simple entertaining. Chances are that neither Martha Stewart nor the Queen of England will attend your party.
- Automate as many of your bills as possible. Not only will you save on stamps, but you’ll never pay a late fee again.
- Learn to use a paintbrush. Outdated furniture and kitchen cabinets can gain a modern vibe for thousands less than buying new. And chances are that your old stuff is better constructed than new stuff anyway.
- Call your cable company, credit cards and phone company to negotiate a better deal. They want to keep you as a customer and will usually sweeten your deal.
- Say no to expensive children’s birthday parties. Just because your neighbor spent $500 on her kid doesn’t mean you have to.
- Rethink your expensive hobbies.
- Let your kids entertain themselves. It fosters their creativity.
- Store your leftovers in see-through containers. You’ll be less likely to forget about what lurks in your fridge.
- Don’t feel bad about accepting other people’s generosity. You can reciprocate in your own way.
- Don’t be fooled into thinking that expensive shampoos, cosmetics and body products are better than the cheap-o stuff.
- Turn down your hot water heater, furnace and air conditioner. You will adjust.
- Only stock up on cheap deals if it’s something that you use frequently.
- Embrace second hand items. Thrift stores are your best friend.
- Learn to say no to your kids.
- Don’t hire out what you can do for yourself. Mow your own lawn, clean your own house and cook your own food.
- Adopt a mixed-breed pet instead of buying a purebred animal. Or if your have to have a pure breed, look into a rescue organization that specializes in that dog.
- Say no to single use unitaskers. One good knife can fill the role of half of what’s sold in a kitchen supply store.
- Allow for imperfection in your life. Your house is not a magazine and your kitchen is not a restaurant.
- Replace your monthly tampons with a menstrual cup. This tip alone will save you hundreds and hundreds of dollars.
- Buy (or make) your birthday and holiday gifts ahead of time. And then allow yourself to spend less.
- Ignore The Joneses. Chances are that they’re deeply in debt from all their conspicuous consumption.
- Read frugality blogs like The Non-Consumer Advocate for ideas and inspiration!
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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{ 62 comments… read them below or add one }
Great list Katy! I think I do almost all these, except the purebreed dog thing, but our dog is a hunting dog, so that is a little different. However we did get a purebreed hunting dog from the pound last year, she ran away……probably why she was there in the first place, so we tried. Also I have been needing a food processor, as we planted A LOT of tomatos this year and I am NOT chopping all those by hand again this year. I have been looking at garage sales, thrift shops, then, out of the blue my friend calls. She says her dad is getting rid of his and she will GIVE it to me! Scorage!!! Patience is the secret weapon of the frugal!!
I agree– patience is the secret weapon of the frugal!!! I keep a list of needs in my purse to remind me of what I am looking for when I garage sale or thrift shop. I have found everything on my list–eventually. It did take 1 year for a pyrex red bowl to show up, but I did finally find it.
I do the same thing! I have a google doc that I update with Needs/Wants and can access it from my phone when I’m out. I keep the crossed off stuff on the list rather than deleting it, so that I can glance over it and give myself a mental boost every now and then. It’s fun to look back and remember how much I’ve actually gotten or accomplished by waiting for just the right thing to show up!
I guess I should learn how to use my iPhone better, but I can write down what I need (or want) in my calendar that I carry everywhere.
I’m learning to be patient with my household wants. My bf loves to find free stuff and Portland is the capitol of free piles. It’s amazing what people kick to the curb here. Last year, I told him I wanted a fireplace tools set and in 3 months he brought home a brand new one that someone was getting rid of. It’s much nicer than the $20 set I was going to get at Target.
A really great list, Katy! Thanks so much for posting…
Re: #15 – or grow your own basil for pesto. We start basil from seeds in early spring, and by the end of the summer we have enough pesto in the freezer to last the whole year!
spinach and parsley make good cheap pesto too!
you can also freeze the basil and make pesto during the winter, instead of feeling like you have to make tons all at once as you harvest it.
Loooved the list! I do or have done almost everyone of these. However, I do tend to get lazy or forgetful and this list is a good motivator/memory jogger. I would really enjoy seeing something like this every month or something like that. I learn so much from you and you really help keep me on track, as well as the comments from the other responders. Thank you so much!
Thanks. I’ll try to do this kind of thing more frequently.
Katy
You mean if you came over you wouldn’t mock me for my 7-year-old non-flat-screen tv? 🙂
Ditto on the tv!!
Ours is 20 🙂 so no mockage here.
ours is 20 yrs old at least and only 13″!
This one’s only 7 because the hand-me-down from my parents died – it was at least 20 and definitely no more than 13″, just like yours, Another Rebecca. It bothered my husband just a wee bit that we had to get up off the couch and get within a few inches of the tv to be able to read sports scores. It helped when our daughter got old enough to read – “What’s the number next to “PHI”, sweetie? 😉
I don’t get the whole “visual experiance” thing from big screen TVs I too have a little set. I think of a TV as a tool that delivers information and entertainment to me, I don’t see that a big screen does any better job of that than a small one. My TV set me back a whopping $15 at a G sale. but to tell the truth I’m seriously considering going with out TV its such a time waster.
So I don’t have cable or even an antenna. Haven’t for at least fifteen years now. I DO watch a lot of movies, mostly from the library, garage sales, Swap-A-DVD, etc. I DID just get a giant flat screen TV for super cheap. How? By telling my serial upgrader friend to let me know when he bought a new TV. Sure enough, my suggestion was enough to make him decide he “needed” a giant 3D tv. I paid him ca$h and he even set it up for me. It’s so big that it fits into my (third hand) entertainment center with about 1/2 inch to spare. Making friends with serial upgraders is a great tip!
Katy says: #46 Allow for imperfection in your life. Your house is not a magazine and your kitchen is not a restaurant
Wow. This one is huge. Madison Avenue Execs have us convinced that if our home doesn’t look like a magazine, we have failed. Some days, I remember that it’s okay to strive for comfort and aesthetically pleasing rather than Martha Stewart Living but others …. it can be tough.
Although I will say that many people like my home and compliment it having no idea how many pieces of furniture in it are either from St. Vincent de Paul or cast-offs from my mother. There is not one piece of furniture in my living room for which I paid retail and only one piece wasn’t used, the flawed pine bookshelf I bought at the Pottery Barn outlet years ago for less than half of what it was in the store at the mall. Most days I love this and it’s a point of pride. But once in a while, the Insecurity Monster rears it’s ugly head and makes me feel inadequate. But it passes … and then I go hang a load of laundry outside that was washed in homemade laundry detergent before I head up to St. Vincent de Paul to see what’s up …
Madison Avenue doesn’t have anything to do with it. You decide what level of formality or clutter you want for your house. I think a lot of people want to live in an Anthropologie catalog, or in a Mad Men apartment. I am tired of reading that this blogger or that wants a bar cart as shown in “Lonny” because they are cool. They are not cool. Anyone with kids should not be decorating with alcohol. It sends the wrong message and provides a supply.
5. haircuts- I get my hair cut at cheapest place in town Great Clips, when they have a coupon (about $8), every 2-3 months. In between, I trim my own hair. I’ve cut my husband’s, son’s and two daughter’s hair for the 25 years we’ve been married.
14. packing brown bag lunches. recently did the math, over 25 years of marriage, always packing hubby’s lunch. Estimate bought lunch downtown would cost $5-8/day ==between $30,000 and 50,000 saved.
18. batching errands — also would add, plan route so making only right turns, and not using left hand turn light, whenever possible. This is how UPS plans delivery routes, saves a fortune in gas for them,l will save me some $ too.
36. storing leftovers –all our leftovers get packed into individual servings and put in freezer. Makes putting together brown bag lunches fast and easy, and little chance of leftovers going bad.
41. buying second hand — I add, also vintage shopping, great place for gifts. Almost everyone on my gift list would appreciate something vintage if it was in their area of interest. Vintage is the one kind of used item appropriate for gifting to just about all.
48. this’ll sound gross to some, cloth maxi-pads. I did this for about 10 years, saved about $400.
What is your favorite brand/suggestions for the cloth maxi-pad? I have been considering a switch to this and the cup–the only reason I need a garbage in my bathroom are for disposables, and I would like to cut down on waste.
Krystal – The diva cup is great! I’ve been using it for about 6 months, it took a month or 2 to get used to but it is amazing now! The lunapads are from the same company (although I haven’t tried them), I am looking into purchasing those or some from etsy, although if you are handy with a sewing machine, you could make your own.
Hi Krystal,
Believe it or not, I used my kids old cloth diapers, washed very, very well first, then folded over and sewed into maxi pads. So the cost was truly nothing. I was at home a good deal of the time and used them primarily at home. If I had to go out, and felt it would be needed, I used a disposable panty liner underneath, to prevent leaks. Panty liners create a fraction of the garbage of full on maxi pads, and you can get a box of 100 or so for about 1/3-1/4 the price of maxis. If I had to make them from scratch (no diapers available), I’d use cotton flannel, folded over many times and sewn into pads. Just think of all the cool prints and patterns your maxis could have! Plaid maxis, paisley maxis, floral maxis –what kind of maxi day will it be today? (Just trying to put a humorous spin on a rather odd topic of conversation!)
If you’re not great with a sewing machine, check out Party in my Pants. I believe they will send you one for free. They are expensive at first but they last forever as long as they don’t come in contact with your dog.
I have found lots of NEW with tags things at thrift stores that I’ve given as gifts. Even things that are slightly used become gifts. Right now I am putting together a “Bread making kit” for one of my co-workers who is getting married this month. For the price of two retail bread pans, I have accumulated from second hand stores
lightly used:
measuring cups & spoons,
big ceramic bowl,
NEW:
tea towel,
wooden spoon,
more than slightly used:
bread pans (Well-seasoned)
and two bread recipe books (good recipies indicated by sticky pages)
I can afford to add a couple of 5 lb. bags of upscale flour and a package of yeast. I’ve put together a comprehensive kit that I couldn’t afford to purchase new.
All my friends know I thrift and they expect second hand stuff from me and marvel at the things I come up with.
This is a fabulous list, though I must disagree when it comes to substituting kale for basil in pesto. It just wouldn’t be pesto any more, though herbs are insanely overpriced in grocery stores.
Instead, pick up a pack of basil seeds and throw some in a pot every spring. It’s ridiculously easy to grow, and if you keep the seeds in the freezer they’ll keep for years.
Maybe it isn’t basil pesto anymore, but it is very tasty. And since a huge bunch of kale costs around $1.50, it’s super budget friendly.
I haven’t had much luck with growing basil in the past, maybe it’s time to try my luck again.
Katy
Maybe it isn’t basil pesto anymore, but it is very tasty. And since a huge bunch of kale costs around $1.50, it’s super budget friendly.
I haven’t had much luck with growing basil in the past, maybe it’s time to try my luck again.
Katy
Pesto is one of my favorite frugal tips – I use parsley or sometimes cilantro if that’s what I’ve got. Parsley has a similar flavor to basil especially when disguised with garlic and parmesean. I also use whatever nuts we have on hand (based on what’s cheap at the grocery store) which is NEVER pine nuts at $20/lb.
I have a rough time growing basil too- it always goes to flower too fast and gets that not-so-lovely gasoline flavor. Maybe it’s our Portland summers?
GREAT list, by the way!
Pesto is the paste, so it does not have to be basil. If you love the basil flavor, then substitute kale, chard, pea tendrils, young beet greens, bok choi chickweed, lamb’s quarters, dandelion leaves or fireweed leaves (or other herbs!)for the other half and you will be hard pressed to detect the difference in flavor or texture.
I also make pesto using roasted bell peppers. Really anything can be used to make pesto as long and it has garlic, some kind of nut and olive oil in it.
Great tips! Here are a few more:
-My kids don’t have cell phones. I don’t have one, either. My husband has one because he is a Pastor…his is provided and paid for by the church.
-We shop almost exclusively at Goodwill, yet we are a very classy and stylish family!
-My teens are 14, 15 and 16 and they don’t date (we practice courtship once age 18/19) – saves a ton!
-We don’t go to movies
-No organized sports, yet very active!
-I have always been a stay at home mom, so no day care, extra gas, food, etc.
-We have 1 vehicle, a minivan, for our family of 7
Love #49! All the Jonses I know are broke, and think we are weird for having no household/car debt. I’d rather be weird!
I think #44 would be better to add: adopt a purebred from a rescue! I love mixed breed dogs, but purebreds need love too. Pretty much every state will have breed-specific and even species specific rescues. Don’t get a hamster or guinea pig from Petsmart, but check your local SPCA, humane society or rescue! We wanted a purebred (for certain personality traits), and adopted from an amazing rescue. Plus, the animals come fixed, UTD on shots, microchipped, and most importantly EVALUATED! I wish more people would give rescue pets a shot…you know a lot better what you’re getting into when adopting!
Thanks for this tip, I’ve added it on.
Katy
My neighbor rescued a goat and a sheep from the local SPCA – you really CAN get anything 🙂
Purebreds can be adopted too! I’ve got several in my house that would like you to know that. 😉
I’m a Jones and we follow most of what’s on this list 🙂 And, sometimes I see people trying to keep up with us…as in cutting back and think well, we’re the better Joneses to keep with I guess!
GREAT list! I do most of them already.
“4. Hang dry your laundry, indoors if necessary.”
I hang what I can but I have cats and using the dryer is sometimes the only way to get the hair off my dark work clothes….
“5. Choose a hairstyle that does not require frequent trims.”
I found a Flowbee at a thrift store years ago for $5.00 and I use that to cut my short hair. Even if you bought one on eBay for $50, you’d get that back in short order. No one even suspects I’ve been cutting (and coloring and highlighting) my own hair for years. Yeah, I’d save even more money if I would just let my hair go gray, but I’m too vain for that. Besides, I’m worth it! LOL
“16. Don’t be a snob about older electronics. You will survive without the newest iPhone.”
Wow, is there the PRESSURE to own the latest and greatest G4 iThis or iThat thingy! I’m low-tech and old-tech – I have a very old precursor of the Smartphone and it works just fine. I also have a basic service – PagePlus – that is $30 per month for 1200 minutes/1200 texts/100 MB data and I rarely use it up. And my laptop is 6 years old and works just fine, thankyouverymuch.
“32. Call your cable company, credit cards and phone company to negotiate a better deal. They want to keep you as a customer and will usually sweeten your deal.”
I dumped cable years ago and also gave up Internet at home. Instead, I use the library for stuff to watch on my 12 year old TV and also use the library and other free Wi-Fi places to connect.
“46. Allow for imperfection in your life. Your house is not a magazine and your kitchen is not a restaurant.”
This is the best one off all. It’s sometimes hard to be satisfied with my home (and that is what it is, MY HOME, and not just a house or a showplace) with all the “pressure” from the glossy magazines (that I read for free in the employee lounge) and various do-it-yourself blogs and sites and I have to constantly remind myself that it is my home and I can and will do whatever I want to make it comfortable for ME.
“49. Ignore The Joneses. Chances are that they’re deeply in debt from all their conspicuous consumption.”
It would be easier to ignore them if I knew just HOW MUCH they were in debt. Isn’t that terrible of me? 🙂
on #16 – I’m on pageplus, too. And while I hate their website, I love their prices. I just switched to their $12/mo plan from the $30/mo plan you’re on. I never use it up, either, so I’m hoping I can pay a tiny bit more attention and not go over on this smaller plan, too.
Been reading lots of comments on #46–your house is not a magazine and your kitchen not a restaurant. Well, I don’t know about the other readers..can only speak for myself. I am so much more relaxed when I go to someone’s home and it isn’t a showplace. I just think it is so much more welcoming and inviting. I like to see their individuality shining through. If it is a showplace, then I am out of place.
What a great list!! Please keep them coming. I save money by turning off as many lights as possible. I told my kids that I did not need another thank you letter from the electric company.
51. If you have to have a cell phone, get a prepaid one. I have an android phone, I bought it secondhand on Craigslist for half what a new one would cost (it was barely used!) and use it on a prepaid service for half what my friends pay for their phone service. And it works just as well.
Great list! For me the biggest money saver is menu planning-makes is so much easier to stick to the grocery list. Thanks for posting!
I’ve been feeling a little down lately about some expenses that I couldn’t do anything about. This list cheered me up a bit, because I do a ton of the things listed here. I’ll add to the list:
Credit card points: Sometimes you can get as much as 5% back (show me that kind of return on a bank account!) when credit card companies rum promotions. For example, Chase Freedom recently offered 5% back on gas purchases. Earlier this spring, they offered 5% back on groceries. I bought a bunch of gift cards for each. Money I would have spent anyway, so I looked at it more as a ‘transfer’ of money, plus I earn 5% back.
Bartering: I work at a Montessori preschool. There is a one-car family with a commuting dad, and the mom (who cuts hair, out of her home) doesn’t always have the car at the right time to pick up the little girl. She would take a cab instead ($15 per ride!). Starting next fall, I am going to take the little girl home 3 days a week (about half a mile out of my way), in exchange for 3 haircuts, one for me and each of my 2 daughters, whenever I ask. Including tip, I figure 3 haircuts would cost me $60-75 in a SuperCuts type place. I haven’t estimated the number of drives I’ll be doing, but at 22 mpg, I think I’ll come out ahead. Plus I’m helping out a really nice family.
Besides finding creative ways to cut costs, I find creative ways to make extra money. Mystery shopping is one. I can make $20-30 for less than an hours work. The best mystery shopping is at my grocery store, I’d be going there anyway!
My kids will be picking up as much babysitting work as they can this summer (a bennie of mom working at a preschool). They pay for all their own movies and fun.
I renewed my pass for our town pool, $30 for 5 years. A bargain.
Katy, I enjoyed this list. Do more like this! 🙂
Love the list and follow it for the most part, with the big exception to #34. My husband and I have expensive hobbies (I’m an amateur photographer and lenses, even used ones, are expensive; my husband is a die-hard boarder – snowboarding, wakeboarding, kiteboarding; all which require expensive gear and access), however, I think it is because we save on the things that don’t matter to us (like cable TV) that we can afford to spend money on the things that do matter.
Me too on #34…being able to afford my one expensive hobby that I really love (horseback riding) is one reason why I try to save money elsewhere!
#23. Do you know how much time i actually save by owning less stuff? less time looking for something, cleaning up, organizing, fixing when broken. i must save HOURS a week.
I’m getting there!
Katy
I think the key is not to live carelessly, like in the Great Gatsby. If you are not careless with your time, and your things, life should be easier. I like the idea about trading for haircuts. That barter system might work for a lot of things. I am obsessed with my laundry and stains, etc. There is usually about $300 worth of stuff in the washer at once. Those items will last a long time if properly cared for. Why do you think preppies have such old stuff? Because they buy things that will last forever. LLBean has a lifetime guarantee. Then there will be money to spend on sailing, etc. I think hobbies are what makes life interesting. I don’t want to spend my time sitting around with family watching games on TV. Or making cake with the women, while the men watch TV. I still don’t understand why people buy these huge TV’s. One of the nicest frugal things would be to give some of your extras to others. Like what you grow. It is always good to build up credit in the bank of Karma. And it makes you feel good. Remember, Thrifty, but not Stingy. Ann
My favorite social outing last week was, in fact, shopping…. at the farmer’s market!
I support #44 wholeheartedly 🙂 It makes me really sad when people pay upwards of $1,000 to get a purebred dog that still needs shots (puppies always need boosters) and to be altered. Especially when there are so many homeless pets out there. You can very often find the breed you want through local shelters.
Thanks for mentioning that!
I completely agree. My mom spent $1200 on a purebred puppy to get the exact breed she wanted. I sure wish she would have gotten a shelter or rescue dog and put the rest in my kid’s college fund! We have a shelter kitty and I swear she’s so loving and sweet to all of us because she’s so grateful to have a home.
My three deaf rescue/shelter dogs all chime in and agree with your point #44!!!
I’d also add that the simple act of turning off the television can save you money. Lots of money. Not only does it alleviate the constant pressure from advertising being forced into your brain, but if you’re not bombarded with pictures of what you don’t have, you’ll won’t feel like you’re missing out on anything.
I’m so glad to see you mention hankerchiefs. I love them and can’t understand why everyone doesn’t. tehy are pretty, cheap, reuseable, and easy on your nose. I always carry one with me.
Katy, we do nearly everything on your list. However, as you know, we are renovating our house to our own personal tastes…but that said, everything we have done hasn’t cost us that much at all as we have shopped around, saved for carefully thought out purchases in our house and we are pleased with the results. We have spent around £400 for everything thus far and this includes much needed new flooring for two rooms, carpets for the stairs, new curtains for 4 rooms (6 windows in total!), rugs for three rooms, new tiles for the bathroom and nets for all the windows in my house (I made them all for £20 and that’s for 8 windows!). We think we have done well.
You should send some before-and-after pictures and I could share them on the blog!
Katy
I love your list! Over the last couple of years, we have strived to slow down even more and live simpler. We’ve never been huge consumers, have always been advocates of buying used and mankind do with what we have. Over the last couple of years, we can say that we follow everything on your list (except the diva cup – I haven’t got there yet, but have been considering it). Anyway, I just wanted to say great job – I always read, but don’t often comment. Love your blog.
I absolutely loved 49 of them. The one I didn’t like is “Don’t assume that all coupons are for junk food. Don’t assume that all coupons are for junk food. There are tons of great coupons for pasta, organic food and healthy products…” The reason is, I don’t want “products,” I want whole ingredients. Yes, there is an occasional manufacturer’s coupon for such a thing, but not enough to be worth looking through them every week. That said, it’s a wonderful, wonderful list, and I have to hand it to you.
I beg to differ. I currently have coupons for Tillamook cheese, a pineapple, butter and other core food items.
🙂
Katy
Regarding # 48? I don’t have to worry about that anymore, so I’d say “embrace menopause!” Other than what it’s doing to my face (I’m getting my very first lines and wrinkles at almost 53), it’s awesome.