Five Frugal Things

by Katy on October 7, 2024 · 41 comments

  1. My son recently downsized from a two-story townhouse into a studio apartment and as a result, my back room/attic is now Tetris-ed full of the furniture he no longer had space for. I guess it’s the price I pay for being an empty nester in a big house. So much empty space!

    Luckily his stuff was all bought used, so he should be able to recoup his costs and maybe even turn a bit of a profit.

    So far he’s sold:

    • A $250 couch that he bought in January for . . . $250!
    • A garbage picked wooden bench for $10.
    • He listed the thrifted $30 IKEA dining table for $200.
    • He listed a microwave oven for $50, that he bought for $45.

    There are a few more items to sell, which he can do bit by bit. It pays to buy used, not only because it’s cheaper and keeps already manufactured items in circulation, but because you might be able to  flip it later on for more than you paid!

  2. I made a pot of chili from random ingredients and it was the best ever!

    • Bulk purchased black beans, cooked in the instant pot.
    • A container of crushed tomatoes, leftover from my son’s meal prep adventures.
    • A “clump” of frozen sautéed onions that I’d prepped after scoring a huge $1 bag of white onions from the Fred Meyer clearance shelf.
    • Frozen chopped yellow peppers, also prepped from a $1 clearance shelf score.
    • Trader Joe’s soy chorizo, purchased when my sister visited in August.
    • Bulk purchased herbs and spices.

    I topped the chili with cilantro, sour cream, cheddar cheese and tortilla chip shrapnel. Freaking delicious!

  3. I saw there was a $5-off-$40 Safeway coupon, so I stopped by and grabbed two cases of on-sale canned cat food. I also grabbed a single $1.99 eight-ounce bag of Tillamook sharp cheddar shreds to get my total over $40. I always need cat food, so I might as well get it as cheaply as possible.

  4. • I finally sold my curb picked office chair, but only after I dropped the price from $20 to $12. Hey, it’s free money and I’m not too proud for smaller sales.
    • My neighbor gifted me a Rosh Hashana apple challah that she made from scratch. Thanks, Laura!
    • We had a full deep day of rain, which kept me from having to water any of my drought-vulnerable outdoor plants.
    • I stopped into Costco for my husband’s work lunch supplies, as I was passing by it anyway. I 132.7% wasn’t in the mood to face the crowds, but did it anyway. This saved us from having to do an additional Costco run. No hotdogs were purchased, no samples were eaten. I was in and out in record time!

  5. I didn’t panic buy any toilet paper or paper towels.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

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

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{ 41 comments… read them below or add one }

Cindy in the South October 7, 2024 at 5:24 am

The chili looks amazing!!!!

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Juhli October 7, 2024 at 5:28 am

I’m so going to apply your “132.7% not in the mood” statement to many things! It has been very hot here for a week and I’m struggling to care to do anything but sit and read.

1. The heat has kept me from even going out for a coffee much less anything else not essential. I have also successfully avoided any internet shopping. I did go out to lunch with my son at his invitation as time with busy middle aged children is precious.
2. We read through our earthquake insurance policy and then talked to our agent about options for improvement. We are changing to a much better policy for the same cost.
3. We need to change our secondary health insurance coverage after our primary care doctor’s medical group dropped out of our current policy. I spent time reviewing details on that too. We made our decision and feel good about it along with realizing it will require time and effort to change doctors, etc..
4. Catching up on little chores including mending a small hole in a top, putting up some hooks in the garage, deep cleaning the bathroom, etc.
5. I’m planning a short trip to see a friend and my other son and DIL at the other end of the state. After balancing time and cost considerations I decided to drive rather than fly and rent a car. Fingers crossed I don’t regret it halfway there.

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Heidi Louise October 7, 2024 at 1:48 pm

3. Good luck on whipping through a doctor change quickly! Such things can be quite frustrating.
5. And good luck on your last travel choices. I feel sadly nostalgic when I watch old movies where people just drive up to the airport at the last minute and get on their planes, while friends and family can watch from the lounges. (Ok, everyone was smoking, but that’s beside the point). Planning so-called “modern” air travel includes arriving early and going through security, and that time can really add up.

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Marybeth from NY October 7, 2024 at 5:40 am

I need to make some chili. It looks yummy.
1. Hubby had the week off so we went traveling. Our youngest kept our dog. In my family we dog sit each other’s dogs while away. The dogs love it and there is no cost.
2. The first 3 days we went to see our oldest daughter, SIL and furbabies in Maryland. We packed food and drinks in the car. I did a 2 good 2 go for bagels the day before we left because that is what my daughter charges us to stay in her guest room. We brought a generator that we got for free. Hubby fixed it for less than $40. They now have a great almost free generator. Hubby went over how to use it with both of them. We brought them a fig tree from a cutting I took of ours. I brought a random bag of stuff that my daughter wanted from thrift stores/couponing/family swap. She gave us some books, a puzzle and empty wine bottles and jars. We cooked chinese one night to give them a night off. My daughter owns her own wedding business https://contentbyliz.com/ and is working 6 days a week right now. Hubby did yard work and sharpened their mower blade. I cleaned her kitchen for her. They both were working during the day. We played with the puppies a lot.
3. We then met my sister in an AirBNB for 3 days. It was much cheaper than getting 2 hotel rooms. It was a 3 bedroom/2 bath house with a full kitchen laundry and it had an awesome massage chair. We cooked breakfast every day. I made a pound of bacon the first day and portioned it out. I brought all the food from home except the eggs, soymilk and bacon. We went to a local Shoprite, with our coupons downloaded and bought the items there.
4. My sister treated us to dinner every night since we wouldn’t let her pay for the AirBNB. My sister and I had leftovers so that was lunch one day and hubby grabbed something quick. We bought our homemade wine and stayed up to midnight laughing and talking. She is dating again and has some crazy stories.
5. Laundry is in the dryer, muffins just came out of the oven, dinner is in the crockpot, my puppy girl is home next to me and I start a new client tomorrow. Life is good.

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BettafromdaVille October 7, 2024 at 6:24 am

You could stretch 1 lb of bacon for 3 people for 3 breakfasts?! I’m amazed by your willpower! (now you know the reason for my first frugal thing….)

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Marybeth from NY October 7, 2024 at 6:30 am

The only time you get unlimited bacon is on your birthday or Father’s Day for Hubby. Bacon is $4 a pound at Aldi which is the cheapest bye me. That’s one of the most expensive meats I buy.

PS. I am not skinny and I’m currently working on losing weight for my daughter’s wedding next year. It is not easy.

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Cynthia October 7, 2024 at 10:42 am

Let’s see: generator, bagels, fig tree, random thrift store/swap etc., Chinese food, yard work, mower sharpening, kitchen cleaning. Will you PLEASE visit me in Vermont? I am too old to be your child but maybe you could use an extra grandma?

I remember when my son still lived in driving distance I would pull up to his apartment with a carload of food I cooked and froze (soups, pesto, casseroles, etc), cartons of tp, pasta, rice, canned goods, soap. Also misc. kitchen and household items as needed or unearthed in decluttering. His roommates loved to see me coming and it felt so good! (He now lives overseas so no more drop-offs…)

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Marybeth from NY. October 7, 2024 at 10:54 am

We love Vermont. We help my parents, his parents, my sisters and our kids. I am very lucky to have such a great husband that has family values. Our daughter kept telling us we were on vacation, to stop doing stuff. I told her when we leave her we were on vacation. We were there to help her. I remember very well being her age with a house and young kids and being grateful my mom came over and helped or my sister came and took the kids so we could go out for dinner alone. My 2 kids that live close bye get help a lot more often. I just went food shopping and got some sale items I know they will use.
Sorry your son lives overseas. I hate that my daughter is 5 hours away.

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BettafromdaVille October 7, 2024 at 6:12 am

1. Using free YouTube at home pilates (no equipment needed) video to try to get back into shape (or really to change my shape!).
2. Picked up 3 mystery shops at a grocery store – I am combing through the circular to strategically shop to go up to, but not exceed, reimbursement but also to get only items that are on sale to increase the value. Last week, I got pepperoni and broccoli (for homemade pizza night), large bottles of shampoo & conditioner, and a big pack of paper towels, all for free.
3. I really wanted salmon for dinner last night, but I took a look in our very full fridge and decided that we should just eat what we already have. Partner gets a free CSA box weekly, for a family of 3-4 and there are only 2 of us, so if we don’t stay on top of eating the produce, we end up throwing it out. (Yes, we sometimes give it away, but I always have grand visions of using it).
4. I’m away at a conference next week, and so I’ll make enough food to bring to work apartment (in a much more expensive state) for both this week and for the week after the conference as I won’t be home in between.
5. The usual? Drinking coffee at home or work for free; eating lunch at work for free whenever possible; not shopping, listening to free audiobooks from library Hoopla; reading awesome frugal blogs for entertainment….

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Hawaii Planner October 7, 2024 at 6:25 am

1) Paid up front for my son’s orthodontia, and saved $134.
2) I sign up for credit card cash back offers often & sometimes forget I have them. Which is good, because it means I’m legitimately buying/needing the item, vs buying it because it’s on sale. Anyway, we hosted a VP debate watching party for my 17 year old’s class & bought pizza. I had a $6 cash back offer on my credit card that just came through.
3) Sold DS18’s old bike for $300.
4) Went on a date with DH & brought my leftovers home. I’ve already eaten 1/2, and they will make a delicious second lunch.
5) Picked the first few pomegranates off of our tree, made smoothies out of expired (but still fine) OJ for my soccer playing teen, let our house be used as a study location on Sundays when the library closes early (vs them needing to go to a coffee shop or restaurant), Ate lots of basil off our plants.

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MB in MN October 7, 2024 at 6:31 am

The picture of your bowl of chili made my mouth water!

1. During my two-hour wait at the car dealership service center, I enjoyed a complimentary apple and granola bar. Brought a library book to read.

2. Friend gave me a large bottle of Molly’s Suds laundry detergent as a birthday gift. She knows me well!

3. My bookshop owner friend gave me a copy of Ina Garten’s memoir. She also knows me well!

4. Favorite use-it-up concoction this week: Beans and greens on bread. Sauteed an aging jalapeno pepper and onion in butter and olive oil. Added cumin, salt and pepper, a mix of cannellini beans and pinto beans that I had previously frozen, the remaining marsala wine that had been in our cupboard forever, and then veggie broth from the freezer. Tossed in several handfuls of fresh spinach that was starting to turn. Placed crostini slices (also from freezer, leftover from a party) at the bottom of soup bowls, ladled in sauce, and topped with parmesan. Easy, tasty and frugal.

5. Received a beautiful candle as a thank you from the local company that did our exterior painting. They partnered with a local candle business to create them.

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Ava October 7, 2024 at 6:44 am

1. I saved $27 on groceries using store coupons. This was possible because I had one coupon for $19 off a purchase of $190 and I hadn’t been to the store in a while.
2. I sold 3 Christmas crafts. I am slowly making inventory but it seems to be more of a struggle this year.
3. After a long dry spell, I had 3 sales on Etsy.
4. Found a small pack of ancient blueberries in the freezer and added them to a cherry pie made with a combination of canned cherries and cherries from our tree.
5. I saved .15 a gallon on gas.

Katy, I hope your mom has made a good recovery by now,

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Ava October 7, 2024 at 6:49 am

I have one more. I am trying to work through my mending pile. I cut up some torn tee shirts for rags. Since we have plenty of rags, I gave them to our handyman. I started to mend a flannel sheet and discovered it was much more torn than I thought. So I am in the process of cutting it into squares and hemming them for cleaning rags and handkerchiefs. I haven’t bought tissues in a couple of years because I have a box of homemade handkerchiefs .

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Christine October 7, 2024 at 7:15 am

I like how you put cheese AND sour cream on your chili. I thought I was the only one who couldn’t make up her mind and added both to my bowl of chili.
1. I started reading the hardcover book I picked up for .50 at a thrift shop, Dennis Lahane’s “Small Mercies”. Set in the 1970s, this novel addresses the subject of desegregation and the ensuing busing crisis, focusing on a mother and daughter and the way their lives are shaped by the time and circumstances surrounding them. I was a teen living in Massachusetts at the time and remember it all too well . Foremost in my mind is the newspaper article I read about how the black moms greeted the white kids being bussed to the black neighborhood school with welcomes and cookies. The black kids being bussed to the white neighborhood school were greeted with “N_____, go home!” and rocks thrown at their busses. Sad commentary. I hope we never go backwards.
2. After some health issues that cropped up this year, I have reached my Medicare deductible.
3. I ate what is probably the last of the raspberries off the bushes which have outdone themselves this year.
4. We received our free Covid tests in the mail.
5. Sadly, my friend’s cat came to the end of his life last week and she asked me to come over and take his things as it pained her to look at them. She gave me ten cans of cat food, treats, Greenies for dental care, litter and his bowl. I am grateful for it but extremely sad for her, as she is 92 years old, and he has been her companion for 16 years.
Katy, I hope your mom is feeling better and better.

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BettafromdaVille October 7, 2024 at 8:36 am

If you haven’t read it yet, All Souls: A Family Story from Southie, is a fantastic memoir and also takes place during desegregation in Boston.

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Christine October 7, 2024 at 1:45 pm

I did read it and loved it. There is a sequel? prequel? to it: Easter Rising. So good too.

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Christine October 7, 2024 at 1:48 pm

For those who aren’t familiar with it, Small Mercies is set in Boston during desegregation. I failed to mention where it took place.

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Selena October 7, 2024 at 6:49 pm

@Christine – my grandpa’s cat died when he was 90/close to 90. We told him if he wanted to have another fur baby, we would take him/her in if he could no longer care for him/her. He was grateful but said he’d outlived too many pets to get another.

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Christine October 8, 2024 at 4:47 am

That’s pretty much where she’s at too. I think the knowledge that she will never own another animal is making her doubly sad. She’s an animal lover and has always had cats and dogs (and the occasional rescued bird her kids would bring home).

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Selena October 8, 2024 at 7:19 pm

May your friend be like my grandpa – enjoyed our dog and cats when he visited.

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Anne October 8, 2024 at 8:36 pm

Re: No. 1. I, too, lived through bussing and desegregation and was just remembering it the other night. If there were any blacks, at all, living in our Los Angeles suburb, then I was not aware of them. No blacks in any of my schools, elementary, junior high and high school. Watts was only about 10-15 miles away. In my junior year of high school, three black kids were bussed over. They jumped into extra curricular activities and were well liked. The next year about twenty were bussed to our school. I never heard of a single racial problem. Don’t assume all whites are bigots.

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Christine October 9, 2024 at 3:51 pm

Most aren’t bigots. There were obviously some in Southie here in Boston.

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Mary Ann October 7, 2024 at 7:31 am

1. Like you, I am trying to move the few items I have up for sale. Once I have made the decision to sell, I am eager to be done. With the current price inflation, the items are continuing to DEVALUE even if I don’t drop the price. I reduced earrings on REAL REAL by 10% and sold them. I have since discounted a pricy engagement ring by 30%. If it is not sold in a week I will have it returned and sell it for the metal. I sold New, in the bag Pottery Barn Drapes purchased 15 years ago. I dropped the price by 50%. They were sitting in my house for 15 years. Time to cut my loss.

2. The process of reselling brand new items makes me remember to NOT buy brand new items unless I really, really value them. How will I know if I will value them – avoid mindless shopping – going into a store or online unless without a specific item in mind; always comparison shop, and practicing solid mental health care. Anxiety is a big trigger for purchases. I would rather “do something than feel.”

3. Worthwhile purchase this week? Airplane tixs to my son’s gradaution in Dec. in Michigan. Yeah!! The Little Fires Everywhere 8 epsidoes on sale for $4.99. Hubby and I watched it for three nights and enjoyed it. It is rare to find something we can both watch. A Kinsey Millhone Mystery for $2.00 at the friends of the library sale.

4. The last two years I have found Sam’s club memberships at a discount. I am searching today for a renewal discount.

5. I gave my mom a Halloween Wreath I bought for 90% off last November.

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LB October 7, 2024 at 7:40 am

I chuckled at tortilla chip shrapnel! Thats exactly what it is!

1. Had a lovely time at our neighbor’s beautiful Catskills wedding. We took the shuttle buses instead of ubers, I did my own nails, and we turned in early which saved on additional transportation or late night food cravings. We normally can’t say no to a fun party, but the extra rest was great!

2. Got home from said beautiful weekend and were starving, but could not rustle the energy to go to the grocery story. DH rustled up some breakfast burritos out of the dregs in the fridge and freezer, staving off the takeout monster and letting us continue to rest on the couch.

3. Renewed my library card to keep that influx of Libby books coming!

4. Starting to plan my day of meal prep that I always do on the October Monday Holiday f/k/a Columbus day. I’ll shop til I drop the Sunday before then fill our freezer with chicken soup, chili, and other tasty treats to be enjoyed as the sun sets earlier.

5. I am pursuing a refund on an annual subscription charge that I did not remember signing up for (I used the service once last year). I don’t begrudge the company for auto renewing, but I no longer need it and should have cancelled last year. I made my case and am hoping to get my money back by appealing to their reasonable side. Wish me luck!

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Ruby October 7, 2024 at 10:05 am

That is a lush bowl of chili! And I also hope your mom is feeling better.

For my frugal five, I trimmed my own hair and did some hand-sewing to improve a thrifted blouse (it’s annoying when companies try to cheap out by not sewing down the neck facings). Got a fistful of excellent coupons from our local grocery store for store-brand canned tomatoes, canned peaches, cheese, frozen vegetables and a 20% off coupon on pet food. Shopped with them exclusively except for buying 83 cents worth of bulk carrots. Cooked hamburgers and oven fries at home for my family for the cost of one burger plate in a restaurant and had four burger patties left over to chop up for a future soup. Bought a few discounted e-books with a gift card, thanks to alerts from Bookbub.

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Jill A October 7, 2024 at 10:44 am

1. My waste company raised the price for garbage pick-up. I called and asked to lower it to what it was previously. I have to do this every year.
2. I received my free covid tests in the mail.
3. I made pico de gallo from some cherry tomatoes leftover from an event. I also made refried beans in my crockpot. I mixed together a copycat Taco Bell seasoning and invited family for a taco dinner. It was delicious and so cheap.
4. I received a cash back reward from my credit card for buying gas at a specific station.
5. I used $10 in Meijer rewards when I picked up a few groceries.

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Linda October 7, 2024 at 10:50 am

I didn’t panic buy any toilet paper or paper towels either. That chili looks so amazing.

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A. Marie October 7, 2024 at 11:01 am

FFT, Belt-Tightening for the JASNA AGM Edition:

I leave a week from tomorrow for the Jane Austen Society of North America’s Annual General Meeting in Cleveland. As I’ve mentioned previously, this is my first AGM for 8 long, long years, and (in case you can’t tell) I am **really** excited about it. 😀 But in the meantime, I’m economizing ahead of the 132.7% planned expenses:

(1) Thrift shopping and most grocery shopping are on hold until after I get back.

(2) As part of eating down the fridge, freezer, and pantry, I’ve made what I call one of my “rollover” curries. I have a tendency to eat the protein (chicken, shrimp, whatever) out of a curry before I finish the sauce and veg, so on the second day of this curry today, I got the last four filets out of a bag of frozen tilapia and cooked those in the sauce and veg. Nom nom nom.

(3) I’ll be driving solo as far as the next city over to the west, and then carpooling the rest of the way to Cleveland with two friends. It’s always good to be able to split gas, tolls, and hotel parking fees three ways.

(4) JASNA BFF (with whom I’ll be bunking) and I are conferring about bringing food for our room. Since she’s flying from NYC and I’m carpooling, I’ve agreed to bring apples and other weightier nosh.

(5) But I’m not tightening my belt so far as to forget about hurricane relief: I’ve just made a hurricane-designated donation to the AARP Foundation, which will (a) double it and (b) get it to vulnerable seniors. (And now Florida is looking at yet another hurricane. Ai yi yi!!)

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Christine October 7, 2024 at 1:58 pm

Have a great time on your trip! I’ve been thinking about all those poor folks in Florida too. I don’t even live there but feel like I’m holding my breath and keeping my fingers crossed until hurricane season is over for those affected.

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Kara October 7, 2024 at 5:06 pm

1. I found my favorite quinoa flakes 50% off at Azure Standard. https://www.azurestandard.com/?a_aid=jWb0sVFU6M
I make quinoa granola as I am allergic to both wheat and oats. I normally dislike quinoa but the flakes make great granola and it’s very high in protein.
2. I worked a sub job today, packed my lunch and brought home a free bagel for my husband.
3. I helped a friend sort and pack her 3000+ square foot house. I have NEVER seen so much stuff. The thrift store truck had to come twice. I came home with a few things for my own house, and quite a few things to sell. My friend gave me 10 glass milk bottles to take back to the grocery store. That got me $25 which I used to put gas in my car for the 4hr drive home. We had a great time together, we live far apart now so time together is precious.
4. My husband rode the ebike 24 miles round trip to work, even though it was 100 degrees today.
5. We are eating tomatoes and figs from the garden. So yummy.

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texasilver October 7, 2024 at 5:21 pm

My husband & I were invited to my SIL birthday party in Nov. The theme is the Wizard of Oz. You have to dress in a costume. I am going as the Tin Man. I have a gray shirt, gray jeans, and gray shoes. I have a silver windshield sunscreen that is falling apart. I am going to cut panels out of it & staple it on a gray vest that I already own. I made a heart from a discarded red shoulder pad. I can paint a funnel silver for my hat. All I need is gray face paint which I’ll need to buy.
My husband will be the yellow brick road. I have yellow spray paint that I curb picked. I’ll spray paint a box yellow & mark the bricks with black electrical tape. I have a shoe box that I can paint yellow that can be a brick hat. He will wear black pants & shirt underneath. I may need to buy yellow face paint.
I’m feeling very creative!

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Ecoteri October 7, 2024 at 10:05 pm

Oh, those costumes are sooo clever! Well done.

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Bettypants October 8, 2024 at 1:25 pm

These are creative ideas! I dread going to costume required parties, but you’re making it sound fun.

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Ecoteri October 7, 2024 at 10:04 pm

I 132.7% don’t have the time to spend money right now, which is frugal.
I think I won the ‘found money’ lottery this year.
My big frugal news is that I had a URL (website ‘name’ that didn’t actually have a website attached to it) that I had ‘imagined up’ and purchased 18 years ago.
I have kept paying for it every year because the name brings me joy and I had bought it just after a dreadful breakup. The cost is minuscule, each year, and even after 18 years including the original purchase I have spent at most $250 – and smiled each year.
ANYWAY, I was approached by a mediator who had a client who wanted to buy the name from me. After some dickering, I ended up with $4000US! For something that I thought only had value for me!
In Canadian dollars that is over $5000.
I am giving each one of my kids $500, and giving my grand baby $1000 toward his education fund.
Spread the riches, I say!

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Lindsey October 8, 2024 at 9:22 am

I think you get the award for most unusual/clever way to make $5000! Good for you!

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LM October 8, 2024 at 4:03 am

That chili looks delish!

1. Received a refund check for $69.77 for an overpayment at one of my doctor’s offices.

2. Sold one item on ebay for a profit of $8.89.

3. My town had a weekend long “curb event” where residents were invited to put stuff out for free on their curbs. I put a bunch of stuff out and most of it got taken. Not frugal for me, but it felt good to get the stuff out of my space.

4. After a particularly busy night one day last week, I realized the next morning that I hadn’t prepared anything for me to bring to work for lunch. I ended up grabbing the left overs from my kids mac & cheese. It was just ok, but it saved me from ordering something.

5. Used a few grocery deals including a $10/$50 purchase and an additional $5 off, bringing my total to $39 for my main grocery shop for the week.

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Laura October 8, 2024 at 10:52 am

We are short at work, so I’ve picked up 2 extra shifts. 60 hour weeks plus farming and a family is a lot! Haven’t cooked much but thankfully there’s been a few instances where the contractors working on site have bbq’d and fed us. One of my coworkers runs a food truck and brought in a box of broken corn dogs to share. I really appreciate it!
Went thrifting, came home with a pair of jeans and a brand new jelly roll pan.
Took cattle to market. On the way home stopped off to work on refinancing our loan which is a huge potential savings. Also dropped by aldis.
Sewed the pocket on d.s. Hoodie.
Dh welded up the bumper on my stock trailer and also patched together the steering arm on my 4 wheeler. Scored him an acetylene torch from a coworker for free, yippee!
Didn’t buy a king ranch pick up 🙂

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Battypants October 8, 2024 at 1:51 pm

1. Someone did a porch pick up on a sweater I had listed for $18, and they left me a $20 bill, so I made an extra $2. It easily could have swung the other way, where I find a $10 bill, a few crumpled singles, and a pile of quarters.

2. On Sunday I hiked a nearby 6 mile wooded trail with a friend. Stopped at a moving sale on the way home, where she had two boxes of quilt kits for $5 per kit (pattern and fabric). I considered buying them all to sell on ebay, but I already have a big pile of stuff to list, so I picked out what I thought were the five best. I told my neighbor about the bounty, and she came home with 10 kits for herself.

3. I chose a large bottle of olive oil at Walmart after scrutinizing all the options. It rang up nearly $8 higher than the shelf tag, so customer service refunded the difference plus a $5 penalty, which is the retail price law here.

4. In previous comments here, I saw other people had done the Capital One shopping promotion and said it was legit. And now I have a $30 gift card to TJ Maxx/HomeGoods. Thanks!

5. Made the popular no knead bread recipe, and tossed together a second loaf for the neighbor whose wife is having health issues.

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Nancy from mass October 8, 2024 at 4:06 pm

I’m so happy it’s chili and soup season again

Yes, I’m back

1. Well, my pretend retirement is over. I returned back to work on 9/23. By the end of the first day, my eye twitch was back with a vengeance. But it is nice being back although, since my FMLA ran out. I won’t be getting a full two week paycheck until the last week of the month. (I did still get a small disability check from the state and from work. But this weeks paycheck will only be one week. And I’ll have to wait two more weeks to get a full two week paycheck.)
2. I’ve had my son, his boyfriend and roommate over twice in the last month because unfortunately, the roommates cat got into their bedroom on two different occasions and killed my son’s BF bird each time. So I have birds buried in my yard. But I had had them bring their laundry so they could do their laundry while they were here and I fed them. His BF and the roommate have never lost family members or a pet, so my son has been guiding them through the grieving process.
3. I will still be going to PT for the remainder of the year but because I hit my out-of-pocket when I had surgery, at least it hasn’t cost me a dime.
4. I have some stuff on eBay that I am trying to sell, including some stuff from my late husband. It’s stuff I don’t need and if it brings joy to someone else, I might as well make some money out of it. Fingers crossed I can actually sell them.
5. I haven’t considered turning on the heat yet although I know it’s going to come soon. My oil tank is full so I won’t have to worry about that until January and I hope to use my fireplace a little bit more this year.

I am 132.7% happy that I am frugal considering this will be a very small paycheck month. But I’m also 132.7% thrilled that I am forced to use 20 1/2 vacation days (with 10 to carryover) Before the end of the year. Since I only took five in the first four months of the year before I went out on disability. Between now and the rest of the year, there’s only one week I’m working five days. The rest of the week are three or four day work weeks.

Stay safe and healthy everyone and I hope no one here is affected by the hurricanes much.

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Jennifer October 8, 2024 at 4:26 pm

I need to go to Costco because I NEED toilet paper, but our town facebook page keeps saying the panic buying has wiped out our costco so I keep delaying the trip in hopes of it being back in stock soon. Panic buying TP here is ridiculous because many TP brands are made in my state! So yeah, dock workers have nothing to do with toilet paper lol

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Alyson October 13, 2024 at 2:41 pm

I haven’t been feeling very frugal lately, so making a list of 5 frugal things is a nice reminder of the every day things that I do.
1. Made coffee at home
2. Came home for lunch, even though my kids made a good argument as to why we should eat out
3. Used up leftovers
4. Didn’t buy daughter new shoes or jewelry for homecoming dance; she borrowed her sister’s heels and wore her usual hoops and necklace (she did get a new dress, which wasn’t frugal)
5. Continue to let my hair gray; I save a lot of money not coloring it
5.

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