Five Frugal Things -- Design by Committee
1) I sold the shiny orange pepper grinder that I thrifted a few days ago. I paid $2.70 and will receive $21.29 after eBay fees. Not as newsworthy as the Wilt Chamberlain jacket, but I still made money doing something I enjoy.
How did I know to buy this item that sat on a shelf amidst hundreds, if not thousands of random bits and bobs? It stood out. High end items generally aren't designed to appeal to the generalized masses. You go to Wal-Mart or Target and you'll note that their mass produced merchandise isn't taking a risk. Think design by committee instead of a single person's vision. This shiny orange pepper grinder was unique.
Does that mean that everything unique is worth buying? No, but that item is worth the 60 seconds that it takes to check Google Lens and eBay's "Completed Listings." I'd estimate that I look up at least ten things for every one item that I actually buy. Especially when I shop at the Goodwill bins, where there are thousands upon thousands of items for sale.
2) I turned a pair of secondhand mailers inside out to package up my eBay sales.
My printer seems to have reached the end of its life, as the "support code" is indicating a mechanical issue. Neither my husband nor I were able to remedy the problem, so we've started to browse Facebook Marketplace for an exact replacement. This printer worked great for a full ten years and this part is important -- accepts off-brand ink! I just bought a big box of replacement ink three months ago!
3) I have more than a single page to print, so I went to the library's website to upload documents into their system. I can now stop by my branch and print everything out for free.
I feel okay mooching off friends to print the odd thing here or there, but I need to print two eBay labels plus updated insurance ID cards. Too big of a favor.
It's worth poring through your library system's website to discover free services you might not be aware are available.
For example, I just now learned about my library has something called "Buckets of Books!" These might be designed for home schoolers, but my kids would've been elated to receive an entire bin of books on subjects such as Insects and Spiders or The Solar System and Space!
So cool!
4) I remembered that we had a pair of Trader Joe's hotdogs leftover from 4th of July, so I paired them with my $1 buns from the Franz Bakery outlet. Piled high with homemade sauerkraut, they were the perfect accompaniment to a World Cup soccer game.
5) I recently rediscovered a needlepoint piece that I made as a teenager and decided to display it on the mantle. I'm not looking to hang it on the wall, so the easel thingy came in handy. I got it plus another one from a free box last month, thinking they's be a useful tool for photographing flat things for eBay.
I like the pop art quality of the graphics and am looking back fondly to fifteen-year-old me.
Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?
For mailing things, it is very helpful that they now offer a QR code that you can scan and get a label printed at the post office! Obviously does not help for needing to print other things…so good luck with the printer search!
That is great to know, thanks! I rarely go to the post office as I just arrange for mail carrier pickup through the USPS website, but I'm going to tuck that bit of information in my back pocket.
Love the needlepoint!
Our library charges 50 cents a page to print in back and white.
1 I found a pre pandemic box of hair color and decide to use it. It was still good and it worked. It was also $2 way back then. But I have no idea how much it would cost now.
2. I walked an hour this morning.
3. I made an egg roll in a bowl using a coleslaw mix and bologna that needed using plus spices.
4. I am still eating on my mackerel salad for sandwiches with my Aldi onion garlic sourdough bread.
5. I worked from home so didn’t have to drive anywhere. I also watered my roses, have the air still off and I am trying to make it to 4 pm today.
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I love your small framed needlepoint piece. That is a perfect use for a small easels/plate stand. I use them often to add color and texture to my seasonal vignettes. They are great for displaying small pictures and decorative plates.
FFT, Sometimes You Have to Spend to Get Edition:
(1) On learning that a local furniture chain will be closing its original store after 99 years in that South Side location, I got myself down there bright and early on Saturday for the "We're closing our doors" sale. Both of the recliners in my living room are in horrendous condition, especially mine (which was a hand-me-down from my in-laws' house after my MIL was moved to institutional care in 2006). So I'm now the proud owner of a spanking new rocker-recliner with dark brown leather upholstery (about the same color as my sofa). The cost was a cool grand, but that seems to be about the minimum one pays for new non-crap furniture these days. Everything I've been looking at online under that figure looks like cheap junk to me--and, alas, I can't afford even Stickley's sale prices (although I live in Stickley's home town). And considering how much time I spend in my recliner--watching birds and traffic on the street, cruising the internet, etc.--I think it's a good investment. My "good juicy rationalization" for the purchase (to quote the Jeff Goldblum character in The Big Chill) is that I'm buying a chair this year instead of going to the JASNA AGM.
(2) The chair will be delivered on or about August 1. Free delivery if they can just drop it at the front door and let me worry about getting it into the house. I'll see if I can enlist one or two of my guy friends to help.
(3) On the way home from the furniture store, I made several stops. The first was at one of our Rescue Mission's Thrifty Shopper stores that I haven't been to in ages, where I found a great pair of sandals (like Keen's, except that the footbed is less rigid and thus more comfortable for my bad knees) and an enchanting book titled "Capt. Cook's Cat," written and illustrated by Robert Lawson--who did a similar book called "Ben and Me" about the relationship between Benjamin Franklin and a mouse, and who also did the illustrations for "Mr. Popper's Penguins," with which my fourth-grade teacher bored everyone but me during read-aloud hour.
(4) I also hit two garage sales after this. At the first, I bought a large and dusty but interesting basket for $1 (which cleaned up nicely under my garden hose) and a Calphalon sheet pan with some baked-on crud (suggestions for removing the crud are welcome). The pan was originally priced at 25 cents, but I only had 22 cents in change on me. The sale's cashier chuckled, "You drive a hard bargain!" 😛
(5) And I'm not opening fire on everyone around the Strait of Hormuz and still claiming that there's a cease-fire in effect. (Must top off gas tank tomorrow before the prices go up again.)
If you’re looking for a printer, I got one of those ones where you can refill the ink rather than is a cartridge. I’ve had it five years so far and I use it quite a lot and the ink is really cheap and lasts a loooong time. Cannot recommend it enough!
I just did a big purge of my photos on the cloud. Since I’m paying for storage I’m trying not to be a digital hoarder! Was fun to see photos of the zillion things we gave away on our Buy Nothing group before our move to Canada. I had forgotten about most of the stuff and missed none of it, which is a great reminder to anyone struggling to declutter.
I have been going through a real resting jag of late. It’s almost been a full year since we made this huge move and what a year it’s been! I’m totally to-my-bones-and-soul wasted and am giving myself some time to sloth. I never take time off ever and it feels really weird to spend an afternoon listening to podcasts and coloring/napping but I was really getting close to collapse. I hope I get my mojo back.