Five Frugal Things -- $225 Pillowcases!

I sadly failed to thrift enough Seattle stuff to resell to cover the $225 cost of hotel valet parking, however it was still a frugal trip.

1) Remember how I mentioned that I picked up a $1.99 white pillowcase while at the Central Goodwill with my friend Lisa? It caught my eye as the fabric seemed to be good quality and had pretty green embroidered detailing.

I later looked up the brand and holy crap -- they sell new for $215 per pair! For pillowcases. Pillowcases! The Montouk brand wasn't one I'd heard of, not that surprising as they describe themselves as "The Leading Destination for Luxury Bed & Bath Linens." Not exactly my financial priority.

My husband and I drove through the rain to the same Goodwill on our way out of town as I thought there was a decent chance I'd missed the matching one. Sadly, such was not the case. Montouk don't seem to sell this exact style anymore, but I'll definitely be adding this brand to my BOLO (be on the lookout) thrifting radar!

2. My friend Lisa is just as obsessed with finding the ideal brand of everything as I am, so she was excited to tell me about how she stocked up on seasonal tubes of Trader Joe's guava scented hand lotion. She then gave me an unopened tube of my own, which I know to be a sacrificial gifts as there's a possibility they won't repeat the product.

Thanks, Lisa!

3. I was able to score a pair of library museum tickets to the Portland Museum for later this month. This is a $55 value and only happened because I went on the My Discovery Pass area of the library at precisely midnight on April 1st.

4. I donated $156.15 to the Oregon Food Bank, which is how much profit I earned in March from selling thrifted items for the $100 Goodwill Gift Card Challenge. This brings the total up to $423.15, which is starting to resemble a substantial amount. I still have a couple dozen items up for sale on eBay, as well as $11.30 left on the card.

5. I may be #cheapaf, but I still tip. $10 for the hotel housekeeper, (we only had her clean upon checking out) plus a five dollar bill every time the valet took our car or returned it, which added up to $30.

Forty bucks, which I guess is just the cost of hotel travel.

Now your turn, what frugal things have you been up to?

Katy Wolk-Stanley 

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."

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