Five Frugal Things
by Katy on October 9, 2017 · 77 comments
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I took the last bits of a Costco roasted chicken and simmered it all day in the crock pot. There turned out to be hardly any meat left on the bones, so I added carrots, onion, garlic, herbs and a half bag of dried tortellini. Such a delicious soup, which should last the rest of the week.
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I sold an All-Clad pan that I’d picked up from the pay-by-the-pound Goodwill Outlet and have someone coming by today for a North Face down vest from the same source. The vest weighs next to nothing, so my profit from this sale will be around 99.99%. My eBay sales have been in the toilet, but the stuff that I list on Facebook Marketplace is mostly selling. There are zero fees, which I find delightful.
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I did a grocery shopping trip where I bought sale apples, milk, peanut butter and general staples such as onions, bananas and lettuce. I then massively overpaid for a candy bar to support a fundraiser for the elementary school’s 5th grade Japan. (They were $2.50 apiece, but I gave them $5.) Because we live below our means, my husband and I are able to donate money to good causes. This might be through traditional charitable giving or just being generous with friends and family.
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I watched a few more episodes of BBC’s Bargain Hunt on youtube, which has quickly become my favorite new show. (Okay, okay . . . it’s tied with The Orville!) My mother and I are seriously considering doing our own version, but instead of us each getting £300 to buy antiques to auction off, we’re each going to receive $3 to spend at the Goodwill pay-by-the-pound Outlet. We’ll then compete to see which one of us can flip our items for the highest profit. Stay tuned!
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I didn’t fly to an Indiana football game at tremendous taxpayer expense to protest those who peacefully exercise their free speech rights.
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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What restraint you demonstrated, Katy!
We had a full weekend of fun for very little. We visited the very popular (and so busy!) Home Depot kid’s workshop for a play date, went to wish a friend Happy Birthday (they insisted no gifts), and then hosted brunch for a bunch of PiC’s old school friends. We drove up to Twin Peaks for a quick peek at the airshow with free parking! It was a whole lot in a little time.
Now I’m craving my down vest. . .
– Made a much-needed pot of chicken soup using broth made from bones that were chilling in the freezer.
– Due to illness in the house, we skipped our anniversary date and ate said soup. Sad, but frugal.
– Made treats for church from odds and ends at home that needed to be used ASAP.
– Was trying to figure out how to afford a metronome for my older son, when I realized that his electronic keyboard probably had one built it. It does. And it will work just fine for his needs now.
– I’m going out of town for a bit this week, but managed to put together a menu plan that I THINK my husband will follow. This will help head off the urge to buy fast food/ take out. And ensure that we have food for when I get back.
I’m sure there are metronome apps as well.
1. Gave two kids a haircut, which saved me at least 13 bucks per kid, which is the cheapest option I’ve seen around here. Granted, I haven’t ever taken a kid to get a haircut, since I’ve done them at home since we first started having kids, but a cursory Google search told me 13 bucks was what they charge at Great Clips for a 10 and under…and since only one of my kids is under 10, I guess total I saved 28 dollars, not to mention the driving and the time. I’ve cut DH’s hair since we got married, too, and I have no formal training, just the instructions in the Complete Tightwad Gazette and a lot of determination.
2. Saved 55 cents per gallon on gas today using my fuel points. Also saved 28 dollars on groceries using online and in store deals. Potatoes were a ridiculous deal–$2 for a 10 pound bag–so I planned meals this week heavily around potatoes.
3. Combined grocery shopping with a trip to the library. I always try to do this, since the library is pretty much on the way and the kids like going there so it takes the “sting” out of having to run an errand with me.
4. Frugal fail–we still haven’t sold the house we’re trying to sell. It’s been on the market now since June and we’ve dropped the price and DH is still tweaking things based on “feedback” from showings. Today he discovered raccoon damage near the top of the house which makes me so mad–the only reason there are raccoons is the dumb neighbors don’t cover their trash, so it attracts animals. Jerks.
5. I didn’t get a manicure, pedicure or salon haircut.
Figuring $28 is cheap, I did the calculations and the cost of the haircuts are actually less than my time, incidentals and transportation costs, because we I had taken my boys before my husband starting cutting their hair for me was 45 minutes one way as we are rural. So that trip killed a morning or afternoon of other activities and added in the cost of a meal out. So being hubby has been cutting mine for me since shortly after we first met, I estimated it easily saves me a $1000 a year by hubby being the family barber/stylist. And frankly I prefer to just tell him the boys need haircuts, please get them done by Wednesday as they have school pictures on Thursday, or a school concert, etc. my younger one is very particular about his hair and he lets step-Dad know when he wants one. I think it is cute, he knows the routine, never a complaint and he is happy with his haircut each month. Clean up is with the shop vacuum and the boys take turns vacuuming up while the other gets a haircut. Hubby trims my locks every other month, he sets out a glass of wine for me, before he combs out my hair, pins it up, combs sections and neatly trims my locks. Very relaxing, no hassle of the appointment, drive, waiting my turn, stylist who does what they want and especially the high cost of the salon. My mom even has him cut her hair now as her salon was sold, new owner doubled their prices and the rude stylist gave her a bad haircut to boot. So my mom now skips the salon as well.
We did a garden this year, We filled the freezer with blueberries, vegetables and canned over a hundred jars of pickles, etc, and will be making jams for Christmas gifts. They were a big hit the last couple years. The garden is a great money saver and you cannot beat the taste of fruits and vegetables fresh from the garden.
I think there was an American version of bargain hunt.
I really liked that show. But I guess it didn’t go over well…Market Warriors.
I can’t imagine an American version. We love it because it’s so gently British.
I think Flea Market Flip is similar to a British show I watched years ago, but I haven’t seen Bargain Hunt so I don’t know how that is different.
1. I bought a cheap omelette and had water when I met my friend for breakfast. Got out of there for $10.
2. Then I was downtown, and I tooled around a bookstore that has a great used selection. Even though I could have bought a book for $5, I waited another 45 minutes for the library to open, walked a half a mile there, and spent $0 by checking out the same book.
3. Felt uninspired for dinner last night; almost ordered takeout. Instead threw all the veggie drawer veggies into a soup and toasted up some garlic bread to go with it.
4. My husband cut my hair again, again doing a good job.
5. Stayed in Saturday night and watched old episodes of The Good Wife and Key and Peele…very cheap with Hulu.
1. Picked up NWT pj lounge pants for daughter in law for Christmas 4.99, EUC lularoe $5.49 skirt and EUC big bath jazzercise towel $2.99 at goodwill
2. Used $50 target gift card to buy groceries for the weekend trip with 3 other couples
3. Sold $15 item on FB garage sale
4. Sent envelope of coupons to elderly friend
5. Used 50% off coupon to get brows and chin waxed
We are currently in negotiations to purchase a condo so not feeling very frugal at the moment. You are still an inspiration though.
Special thumbs up to your number 5.
1 – I took my late grandmother’s 1970s-era Kenmore sewing machine to a local shop for a few repairs, plus a thorough cleaning/oiling/tune-up. This thing is built like a tank! It’s now back home, ready for my 13-year-old aspiring cosplayer to get creative with fabric.
2 – I unearthed several packages of nori (seaweed sheets) from the back of the pantry. My motivation to make homemade California rolls vanished a long time ago, so I’m cutting the nori into strips and adding it to ramen and miso soup instead.
3 – My MIL gave me several back issues of Money magazine. In one of them, I found a tax-savings tip that might apply to a friend’s situation. When I messaged it to her and asked, “Did you know about this?” she replied, “NO! I’m going to send this to our tax person! Thanks!!”
4 – I signed up for a TopCashBack account. I’ve been a loyal Ebates user for years, but The Frugal Girl’s blog posts persuaded me to check out TopCashBack’s rates. Holy cow! I found some rebates that were FOUR TIMES higher than what Ebates was offering for the same retailers. Now I check both sites before deciding which one to use to make a purchase.
5 – We cleaned out part of a basement back room last week. The hubs found a few items for our daughter to post on Ebay. They split the proceeds when the items sell.
I like mrrebates.com too. Unless Ebates has a special promotion , it usually beats them.
1. I picked up my daughters senior yearbook at school. Not sure if I mentioned this already. This saved me the $15 they were charging to mail it.
2. I did one load of laundry last night and one early this morning to take advantage of the lower electric rates. I have on load drying on drying racks in my kitchen.
3. My husband and I ate leftovers for dinner last night and then streamed free TV and some Netflix.
4. I’m using up what I have in the pantry, fridge and freezer. Last week was dinner with my daughter and her boyfriend and the grandparents which used up some steaks in the freezer as well as some potatoes that were starting to go bad. I have meals planned for the rest of the week to use up some produce before it goes bad and also to use up a few tomatoes and strawberries that I planted.
5. My Mother has invited us to dinner tonight which means I don’t have to cook. We’ll have a nice time visiting her and my daughter who will be coming as well.
1. Found a recipe that combined hamburger and lentils for Sloppy Jos. Recipe called for too much liquid so added lentils, let the crockpot run much longer than called for, and had a lot of left overs. Turned out OK but not great. Froze the remainder and will mull over how to use it up.
2. Made a pasta salad for tonight with gifted cold cuts from son.
3. Looking over fall and winter clothes to determine where the holes (literally) are; hope that I can get by without expenditures but that is probably wishful thinking on my part! Did find several items that I had forgotten about.
3. A lot of frugality is expressed in the negative: didn’t go to the first run movie (although DH and DS did) compared prices at grocery store and decided to get most of my cleaning supplies at DT instead; didn’t buy commercial salad dressings – instead made them from scratch; etc.
4. Making a special trip to the gourmet wholesale bakery to buy in quantity.
5. Instead of attending a professional football game, read Hamline University Professor David Schultz’ blog which explained that players’ protests were based on a 1943 Supreme Court Decision (West Virginia vs Barnette) that affirmed free speech rights. Family members were happy about Green Bay’s win.
Enjoyed your #5 and added to my blog list. Thanks!
Janine, where is the gourmet wholesale bakery? I’m in MPLS.
OK, I’m a little late to respond to Sandy of Oct 1 – but Wowsers! She suggested watching http://livingonone.org/ It is about young guys trying to live in Guatemala on a dollar a day. When I watched it I recognized where they were! I went back to a piece I wrote back then about how to make tortillas – the long version – the part where you start hungry and then grow the corn in your milpa. This is what I wrote back then. http://www.marybethdanielson.com/content/how-make-tortillas-long-version
Thanks Sandy and NCA. Feeling very thankful today.
Just looked at this. Wow!
I don’t understand. Surely your VP has a ton of other things to do right now in the face of three national disasters and a national tragedy. Why was that a valuable use of his publicly funded time?
1. Ate at my parents house last night and then left our first born there as payment.
Just joking- she’s having a sleepover.
2. Working from home for next two days.
3. Ate leftovers at work yesterday.
4. Downloaded a free audio book on the overdrive app on my phone to listen to while I do some extremely boring admin tasks.
5. Making a vegetable curry for dinner using garden produce and some sweet potatoes that I need to use.
Mand, a LOT of us here in the States don’t understand about the VP’s taxpayer-funded gesture–or anything else about our current executive branch. Frankly, I’m embarrassed for my country these days.
A. Marie, I concur! Embarrassed and ashamed that the Constitution goes out the window for self-serving photo ops, ugh!
I always enjoy your posts.
FFT, My Leg Is Better Edition:
(1) Said leg is still a bit stiff and sore, but considerably improved since my last comment. I regard a lot less pain as a definite FT.
(2) Have passed some of the downtime by selling some of our 1/4 cow and 1/2 pig to friends and neighbors at almost our prices (I round up to the nearest 10 cents just to simplify the arithmetic). I’ve sold 40 pounds of beef and 32 pounds of pork so far, and Ms. Bestest Neighbor is coming over shortly for the BNs’ share.
(3) The BNs just came back from a visit to a mutual friend who lives near Kennett Square, PA, “the mushroom capital of the world”–with the usual mongo load of delicious fungi. I gratefully accepted a few (merely to take the excess off their hands, of course).
(4) We got a good soaking rain today from the remnants of Hurricane Nate. And the temperatures remain abnormally warm. At this rate, I may still have cherry tomatoes till after Thanksgiving.
(5) Finally, I’ve been enjoying myself during my incarceration by actually reading some of that stack of books we’ve bought during this year’s excellent library book sales. (Thanks to Barbara at the FFL, and all the other local volunteers who make these sales happen!)
Hi A.Marie!
Glad you are on the mend. Spent part of the morning in the library basement getting ready for the next sale. Far too wet here in CNY for outdoor chores today!
Hope to see you on the 21st!
Barbara
Alas, Barbara, we have a conflict on the 21st (the Literary Society meeting in the next city over to the west). But we will definitely be there for the last sale of the season in early December.
See you then!
Barbara
Embarrassed, ashamed, horrified and determined also! Be kinder than necessary has become our families motto and we are finding strength and hope in the small acts of kindness we see all around us in these unsettled times.
Barbara, I love this. Thanks for the inspiration!
We had an expensive weekend visiting a family member and I feel kind of frustrated about it…. 350$ for Airbnb, 200$ for restaurants meals, 50$ for pumpkin patch, gaz, etc…. arghhhhh! And when we get into “vacation mode” my husband spends stupidly (18$ for chocolate??!)…. Aaaaaanyways….
* Got treated to a restaurant meal for the 4 of us by the in-laws
* Ate all breakfasts, one diner and 2 lunchs with grocery buys.
* Used pool at the in-laws hotel
1. Sold my service for 12 plus completer pieces Dansk china from the mid 80’s on a Facebook garage sale site in my area.
2. Used my natural sales abilities to add a new in package linen tablecloth to the set of dishes. (Hey, ten bucks is ten bucks!)
3. Sold a brand new in original packaging 6 pc. chip and dip type serving set.
4. Almost forgot… sold a beautiful from Saks 5th Avenue pedestal cake platter and 4 matching cake plates and coffee cups to the couple who bought the items in #1 and #2.
5. Returned a few unnecessary items to CVS for a store credit, which I used towards items purchased on Saturday.
Congrats on selling the china! I’ve been trying to sell the cups from my china — no takers. We’re also going to have to clear out my father-in-law’s house, and my sister-in-law can’t imagine letting SOMEONE ELSE own the family china, so I’m going to have to avoid homing that china as well… but I digress.
BTW, I have noticed that my items on ebay are also not selling recently except for the occasional one here and there… Perhaps it is the presence of the garage sale sites on Facebook that is causing this? Hmmm… I think that sellers are getting fed up with the fees and for over a year now they also charge a fee on the postage you buy on the site!!!!!!
I think ebay changed that to eliminate the money they lost in fees by sellers who posted items dirt cheap and jacked up the shipping costs to make up the difference. They have been charging fees on postage for a couple years.
So very very glad there are like-minded ppl out there re: peaceful protests. My midwestern neighbors are mostly disgusted with what they consider ‘overpaid’ athletes. In fact, they are not overpaid. They are paid according to what the market will bear That’s capitalism folks!!!
I didn’t know there was a right to freedom of speech except if someone is paid a certain amount…
In Australia we actually don’t have an express right of guaranteed freedom of speech although arguably we do have an implied right.
If everyone would stop giving pro sports attention, this wouldn’t be an issue. I do not understand the appeal in shelling out money to watch grown men act like drunken goats with helmets on. Pro football can die off as far as I’m concerned.
“Taking a knee” only started in pro football, but the act as a means of civil disobedience has spread to other sports, pro and non. So even if people ignored pro football, it wouldn’t eliminate the the reason for the protest in the first place. It might, however, help if our president stopped twitter (and other) ranting about it. Sadly, he doesn’t seem to be happy unless he is in the media spotlight.
And even then, only if that spotlight is properly adoring. An increasing number of mental health professionals are speaking out about his mental state. Sadly, Congress for the most part is ignoring it thus far.
Cheers especially to #5 on your list!
1. My kids got passes for free admission to the local skate place. They already have skates and we will eat before we go so it will be completely free fun.
2. I am picking up my free Friday download from Kroger for some yummy yogurt. I have heard that this brand(Noosa) is super sweet so I will add a little plain yogurt to it fix that.
3. I washed my older daughters’ clothes because she just moved and doesn’t have a washer/dryer. Plus, I wanted to help her out since she has been busy moving and has a baby. While I had her laundry baskets, I went through my closet and found 2 pair of jeans, 3 pair of shorts, and two pair of shoes to throw in for her to try. Was good for me to get rid of stuff that keeps hanging around taking up space.
4. We are continuing to drive our Chevy Volt and saving tons of money not using any gas. Sorry for the car name drop, there. Ha!
5. I got 12 DVD’s of family friendly movies at a yardsale this past weekend for 25 cents a piece! I have started having what we call “family movie night” at my house once per week. We treat it like a trip to the movie theater. I put bean bag chairs on the floor in front of the TV, don’t start the movie until everyone is seated, turn all the lights off, and serve some fresh popcorn. We made what is actually just watching a movie into a big deal that my kids look forward to just by giving it a title and setting the mood.
#5, I do the same. The kids are and 7, so they get excited when they ear “movie night!”. We don’t watc much TV, that might be it too.
Hahaha! Love the last one, too funny!
1) I cooked a whole chicken overnight in the crockpot Saturday, deboned it yesterday and ended up adding the ingredients to make Chicken & Biscuit Casserole. Hubby had two helpings for dinner last night, so I knew it had to be good. There’s enough there for at least dinner tonight and a few more lunches. It turned out yummy.
2) It’s turning cold tonight, so I will be wearing my free fleece jacket I rec’d from a Vendor for answering a survey.
3) I renewed my Library items online today, so no penalties would occur.
4) I ate a 1/2 back of salad mix with my lunch today, so it wouldn’t get wasted. I keep salad dressing in the fridge here at work.
5) I ordered an outdoor TV antenna with 120 mile range, so we can hook it up at our rural acreage and I can cancel that freaking cable package. Since we’ve been having issues with the box for over a week now, I have hubby convinced we don’t need it. I’m done!
When I cancelled Dish Network a couple of months ago, I read online not to give them a reason why. If you do, it just takes longer because they try to “fix” that reason. I only slipped once after the “retention specialist’s” 87th time saying he’d never spoken to anyone in 10 years who had cancelled for no reason. I said, “well, now you have.” Good luck, it is worth it and if it is bad, the cancellation experience just serves to reinforce your decision.
1, bought a smaller size fan last week and after a couple of dinners I use the remaining hambone with a little meat on it for ham and bean soup. The soup itself is about six or seven or eight more meals. 2, I have some Tomatoes I didn’t have time to make some pasta sauce with so I froze them. I frozen raw Tomatoes before with good results. 3, I realize today going to work that I was wearing a used eBay blouse, a used Goodwill cardigan, and super discounted pants from the Eddie Bauer outlet, haha. 4, he didn’t heating up some rolls I bought at the grocery outlet for dinner tonight. A bag with six large Focaccia artisan rolls was 2 bucks. 5, bought my grandbaby a great use polar fleece jacket for the winter for $3 at a thrift store
Love your #5!
Mine:
1. Sold a pair of funky leather laced jeans on eBay…din’t make a ton but making a sale on eBay counts as a win!
2. Finally got figs off my fig tree…this has been the weirdest year, no figs until the end of September but have now frozen 2-3 dozen for fig cake later this year.
3. Helped my son clean out one of our shed’s, power washed some lawn care equipment discovered inside and photograph them for local FB sale…hope they all move on to new homes!
4. Went to the grocery, only bought what was on my list, ran into a neighbor and had a great catch-up convo in the checkout line.
5. Frugal fail…..used Slime last week to repair a minor puncture in my car’s tire…while driving on the interstate today my car started shaking like a leaf…drove it to the dealership where I discovered that the Slime upset the balance in the tires and I had to replace the tire and have them re-balanced…$200 mistake that I will never make again! Grrrrr…..
careful with the fix a flat stuff on newer cars…..it eats away at the sensor that determines if your tire is low. I bought my new-to-me car (2yo car) 6 months ago and was having issues with tire pressure (or so i thought…). after the 3rd time complaining about my tire pressure warning system coming on (and them not finding anything), they took my car for 2 days (giving me a loaner) and finally determined that the previous owner had used that stuff in the tire. it ate away at the sensor so it constantly thought my tire was going flat! they replaced the sensor for free, cleaned that stuff out of the tire (the tire is fine) and gave my Nellie (as in, Whoa Nellie) back to me.
Thanks for the info! I’ve had my Mini almost 10 years now, the only new car I’ve ever had in my life! I love her dearly but definitely different technology than the other cars I’ve owned!
Glad to see some of you are getting things sold on eBay, Craigslist and fb marketplace….my items just aren’t moving. Maybe my “seller’s eye” needs a bit more practice….
1) though, I am meeting someone tomorrow who hopefully will buy two Land’s End outerwear puffy vests from me. Here’s hoping it works out.
2) Got a $5 bill in the mail for a survey I had filled out….except I have no recollection of what the survey was about.
3) Filled out a profession- related survey online…. $10 for about three minutes’ work? Yes, I’ll take that!
4) Had dinner at Bob Evans, using a gift card (earning 4X gas points at Krogers). The waitress forgot to bring my husband’s milk, so I politely asked her to remove it from our bill, which she did. (Hubby probably would have “just let it go”….)
5) Went to a favorite church rummage sale, and picked up some great things….a few items to resell, a set of tartan playing cards, an Under Armour Spiderman shirt for my son (he’s suddenly enamored of Under Armour, and has been a Spiderman fan for a long time), and a gorgeous beige gown with lovely beading down the sheet overlay in the front, for me (thinking ahead to future Halloween parties, this would make a wonderful Glinda the Good Witch dress)…..all for $4. If I sell just one “for sale” item from what I bought, I’ll be a happy girl.
Have a good week, everyone!
1. Friend’s mother died and friend gave me five brand new Vermont Country Store flannel nightgowns she discovered while cleaning out the house. My friend is only 5 and a half feet tall but her mother was (and I am) six feet tall so the ankle length gowns fit me perfectly. Better yet, I was just thinking about ordering new flannel granny gowns from the same store as the two I ordered years ago are about worn to death.
2. Helped husband figure out how to set up shelves and get rid of stuff, so we finally have a garage. This is not only wonderful when the temperatures are 20 below and more, but frugal since the vehicle parts last longer when we are not forcing them to come to life after freezing nights. Also, the tires are not square so we don’t spend a mile driving slowly until they round out. (A problem at 40 to 50 below.) We have lived in this house five years and are just doing this now.
3. I wanted to make a hamburger/cabbage pan fry but had no cabbage and didn’t want to make a special trip to the store. I just finished making a five gallon crock of sauerkraut from my garden’s cabbage, so I took some out and rinsed it thoroughly and used it instead. Tasted great!
4. Found a use for pickled green tomatoes someone gave me—diced finely, they worked as well as dill pickles in tuna salad.
5. Mended a bunch of stuff.
Not frugal: Somehow an industrial sized jar of peanut butter rolled out of the grocery bag in the back of the van. We use it to feed our wolfhound pills, so he is familiar with the jar. A few days after the shopping trip, I took him along on an errand. I stopped at the library to pick up a book and ended up staying in there about half an hour. He found the plastic jar and bit it open and had a gay old time eating and redecorating the back of the van. I broke down and took it for professional detailing because even the ceiling needed shampooing. And the husband had to take a shower with said dog. I still love him.
I’m dying at the peanut butter story. LOL! I’m so glad it wasn’t me.
Oh my! Oh my! What a funny story. Your dogs add a little loving chaos to your life. They sound a bit like Marmaduke.
That’s so funny. 🙂
1. I’m nursing a broken foot, so lots of sitting around and finishing small projects for Christmas, etc. It’s crazy boring, but I’ll be glad that I did all of this later when life is more normal.
2. Spent a rainy holiday weekend at home, playing with dog and cleaning. It was just the break DH and DS needed. And bonus – my floors are clean!
3. I took a heavy box of books to used bookstore for credit. I think I have about $50 there now and it’s always appreciated.
4. Spent some time decluttering office – decided it wasn’t worth the piles of projects vs. having the visual reminder of what I haven’t done. Out it goes!
5. Tomorrow, I’m spending the day in CE of my own. It’s a long, not super exciting class, but it’s worth a huge amount on my resume, so it’s totally worth the extra effort. Plus, free education and books!
Katy,
I needed to buy some stuff at IKEA for a Community Service Project at my beloved library. Only for them (and with your tacit encouragement) would I willingly brave an IKEA. On Sunday, I brought my DH and MIL along, just for giggles. It was a ZOO! We were there so long, we were getting a little puckish, so we drifted toward the cafe as we followed the endless track. Seems this weekend was a promotion where if you spent $100, you got a free meal. The line was loooong, but we braved it. We only chose what we were willing to pay for, so no multiple desserts for us*, thankyouverymuch.
After joining the IKEA Family, our food purchase of $21.00 was credited against our $132.00 purchase at checkout, which will be mostly reimbursed by the Friends of the Library**. “Free” food feels like an excellent reward for suffering through five hours (not a typo) of shopping at IKEA. Gah!
*At the kiosk where we married into the IKEA family, we found coupons for a free soft serve cone, so we each got one for $.46 apiece.
**I did buy a new wooden spoon for $1.79, and a clearance card game for my grandbaby that was marked down to $.10. Yup, ten cents. Some grandma I am, right?
Anyway, thanks for inspiring me to consider making an IKEA trip. It took a while to get all the details worked out, but the librarians are gonna be so happy when their breakroom makeover is completed. But shhhh, it’s a surprise.
Oh, and I did buy some of the stuff we’ll be using via Craigslist, which hopefully at least partially offsets the fact that I shopped as IKEA.
Now I’m off to binge watch Bargain Hunt.
Kind regards,
Diane C
Five hours at IKEA? I think I would have curled up sobbing in one of those tiny bedrooms
OMG, Mand, I really did laugh out loud at that one! I’m the same way! “Allergic to marathon shopping.” Kudos to those who can endure when necessary.
did you know that Ikea was voted the place most likely for people to nap on their furniture? (and, have sex too, if my memory serves me right….)
my son likes going into their small ‘apartment’ setups and imagining what he would do if it was his. i guess my baby isn’t going to live with me forever after all. 🙁
I didn’t do anything extravagantly frugal this week, but my granddaughter made a killing at an estate sale. She loves fashion, especially vintage. She bought a couple YSL blouses, a cute skirt (labels don’t impress me, but it was some designer) and also found, for $5, a tee shirt she liked, She checked it out on eBay and it’s selling there for $5oo. I said “sell that sucker.” She said she thought she would wear it a few times first. Well, OK, if you must!! She does have an eye for fashion, I have to admit.
1. Took my grocery list, reviewed my coupons and store ads and totally rocked the savings! I had three free things, lots of paper and online coupons.
2. Came home and whipped up dinner even though grocery shopping took till after 6:30.
3. Made and brought my own coffee to work, brought my own snacks and said no to the vending machines, made a quick lunch at home after walking the dog on my lunch break even though fast food was verrry tempting.
4. Cruised as much as possible when I see a red light. Pisses off other drivers but they just go around me 😉 Makes no sense to hit the gas when you’re coming up on a red light, I usually end up cruising through past them in the other lane while they had to stop behind other cars. Love the gas savings.
5. Treated daughter to an expensive candy (Cadbury)bar for helping me at work today , she loved it and it was worth the spurge, she even shared a row with me, I call that a win win.
Had my 6 yr old granddaughter for the weekend. We first went to Rite-and for the 1.99 laundry detergent, after coupon .99. We then spent 2+yrs in the local park playing. Then bought a frozen pizza for dinner instead of takeout.
Found a free dog backpack on a sell site. My dogs is worn out. New one is smaller, but it was free.
Have been making homemade tomato sauce and freezing, I have 16 pints, so now on to salsa, before the tomatoes are gone for the season.
Rummaging through the freezer, I found the turkey bones from the turkey i roasted in june. Soup making tomorrow, and food for 3 to 4 days
1. I sold an unused item on a local FB selling site and made $5.
2. Free lunch at work this week.
3. I picked up an extra shift at work this week. Yay for more $$.
4. Made sure to return our library books on time to avoid overdue fees.
5. I’m following a new detox diet as of Monday so eating up freezer leftovers this week.
#5 is the best ever.
I don’t know that I’ve been too good this week, so let’s see if I can make five…
1. I’ve been updating my capsule wardrobe (first time since March) and have spent money on clothes (not frugal), but everything is either second hand or locally made, and the amount I’ve paid for everything new in my capsule (numerous shoes, dresses, cardigans) comes to less than I’d pay for one vintage-style dress I’ve been eyeing off on a popular pinup website.
2. Was away for a few days and left my car with my dad, who fixed a few things, checked on the engine, and even filled up my petrol. Thanks dad!
3. As soon as I got back I headed to the supermarket to do my batch cooking for this week. Lots of yummy food in the fridge.
4. Selling some clothes that I barely wear on eBay. One I know is a popular collector’s item, and although it hasn’t garnered any bids yet, there’s around 20 people ‘watching’ it. I feel I could potentially make back everything I spent on my updated wardrobe on just these items!
5. Um…um…oh! Tomorrow I’ll be giving a huge whiteboard that I picked up on the side of the road to my mum to use or pass on, and she’ll be giving me some delicious leafy green veggies from her garden. Phew!
1. I stayed home yesterday and did not go anywhere, except for my hour long walk in my hood. It was cloudy, and overcast, which made it delightful.
2. I made fig muffins to take to work all week. The figs were free from my mother’s tree.
3. I made a leftover bologna, fried rice, cream cheese, garlic, sea salt, and onion concoction to take to work for lunch. I estimate that it is less than 30 cents a serving, since the bologna was 99 cents for a package, the cream cheese was 99 cents for a package, etc. I just used one slice of bologna and a little bit of cream cheese.
4. I took a nap.
5. I sat outside, played with my neighbor’s cats, and read a book.
Blech. Ugh Pence. I’ve never been so ashamed to be a Hoosier.
“I didn’t fly to an Indiana football game at tremendous taxpayer expense to protest those who peacefully exercise their free speech rights” **LOVE**
1. had to go to the nursing home friday afternoon to sign an hours worth of paperwork for my mom since she went from assisted living to the nursing home portion. My son won the monthly raffle basket filled with candy, pop corn and a few movies. spent the night at my in-laws – who had just come back from a vacation. We got them hooked on Live PD. they even stayed up way past their bedtime to watch the whole thing! (usually in bed before 10…stayed up til midnight! :0)
2. drove to northern NH after picking up my brother and went to a fair we would go to all the time as kids. my niece runs the horse show ring. got in free. hung out with family including my sister (her mom). walked around and looked at everything. ate some soup from one of the vendors, DS had a hot dog for $2. dropped my brother back home and drove home (about 2 1/2 hours from the fair. yes, i will do this again next year 🙂
3. made some fried rice with leftover rice and some veggies that were not looking that great. lunch and leftovers for tomorrows lunch!
4. didn’t buy the 62 acres for sale – with waterfront also, in the Lakes Region of NH to park a few campers for my siblings and I. Oh, to be gold-plated rich enough to do that! actually, thats the only reason i wish i was rich….to help out my family…buy beautiful waterfront property in the Whites to have all of us be together up there.
5. Lets see…didn’t buy property, didn’t fly somewhere to spend 4 minutes at a game, didn’t buy a gold apartment, didn’t twitter-piss a country off by forcing my opinions on anyone. A nice, frugal week!
First try here. 1. Refrigerator died last night so this morning did some research to find the refrigerator I wanted, on sale, with a military discount, and got free delivery and installation.
2. Filled my washing machine with ice to save food until new refrigerator is delivered tomorrow AM.
3. Thrift store shopping and found 2 great blouses, a like new pair of shoes, and 2 sets of brand new full size sheet sets still in the store package all for a total of $16.
4. Returned Library books on time to avoid late fines.
5. Did not take a family vacation to Cuba at tremendous taxpayers’ expense to attend a baseball game with an oppressive dictator.
Teddie,
Agree with your #5.
MW
Thank you.
Me three (we’re quiet but we’re here)
I read your 5 frugal things lists regularly, but today’s #5 prompted me to comment – I too was horrified though not exactly shocked! Imagine feeling so free to spend not only your own money, but your “bosses'” (ie, taxpayers’) money too! Keep up the good work, Katy.
Thank you.
1. Was offered an opportunity to pick grapes by a neighbor up the road, and today my next-door neighbor and I drove up there after chair exercise class to pick and pick. I filled 9 ice cream buckets (the 5 quart size) and she ended up with a big reusable grocery bag full. The vines don’t even look like we picked at all, and we were told that the offer to pick all we wanted was good for all future years, too. Free grape juice and grapes for jelly? Yes, please! 😀
2. Tomorrow after TOPS, same neighbors and I will work on the grapes together. They have a gadget to remove seeds and I have a steam juicer, so we can combine the two to make juice and jam.
3. I want to try planting some seeds and see what grows. I also want to get some cuttings and see if I can get them to root. Even better than free grapes from the neighbors is free grapes growing at home.
4. My efforts to lose weight are paying off in several ways. I’m losing weight and feeling better all the time; plus, I’m eating less, thus saving grocery money; and with all the work I’m doing outside to exercise, my yard and garden are looking better than they have all year!
5. I took my nephew home after handbell practice Tuesday and hauled off his recycling. I also took away a number of sheets of aluminum siding he didn’t want. I can use it to roof the woodsheds and recycle anything I can’t use. Win-win!
Cuttings are usually the way to go with grape vines
Yup, I figured I could get the cuttings to root – I’m usually pretty good with things like that, but I also like to experiment with seeds from supermarket produce, pits from stone fruit and anything with seeds. I have plenty of room, but sometimes forget to water….
LOVING the change up to #5.