Five Frugal Things -- Free Museum Passes!
1. I finally got to use my free Discovery Passes to the Portland Art Museum, thanks to the Multnomah County Library! (Note that the normal cost is $27.50 per ticket!) I invited my daughter along and although we didn't have enough time to see the entirety of the museum, we still took our time exploring the amazing new wing.
My favorite exhibit was Pippilotti Rist's 4th Floor to Mildness, which was an immersive art piece with music, digital imagery on the ceiling and low beds throughout the room. We hung out in this room for maybe fifteen minutes, but I could've stayed for much longer. It was mesmerizing.
2. I took reader Linda's advice and texted a local seller to buy the replacement part that I needed for my 32-year-old Cuisinart. (Thank you, Linda!) $15 later and I'm back in possession of a working food processor! This was cheaper than sourcing it from eBay, as there was no shipping cost, plus I discovered a cute street in a neighborhood I thought I knew like the back of my hand.
3. I listed a thrifted Philadelphia Phillies Christmas sweater on eBay that I set aside last year, as my 2024 husband wanted to keep it. 2025 husband feels indifferently, so I used yesterday's $200 Christmas sweater sale as inspiration to get this one up on eBay. I priced it at just $30, but that's still better than the $0 it was earning folded up on a shelf in our spare bedroom.
4. I thrifted a high quality Morgan Stanley woven throw blanket that I wasn't able to find anywhere on the world wide web. (This was the same day I got the H. Moser & CIE sweaters.) This is a sign that it's rare, so I threw it up on eBay for $300. Will it sell for that much? I have absolutely no idea, but it's worth a try. eBay is like a reverse auction, where you start the bidding at a high price and then let people offer less. The market then decides the appropriate price.
5. I didn't get a free Lear Jet through the library's cultural passes program.
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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1. DH picked up $.63 in the parking lot at work.
2. I received four nickels in the mail from the VFW. A couple weeks ago I received three reusable bags and a check for $1.50 from them. I gave the bags to an organization that uses them when they give things away. I haven't decided what to do with the check but it will expire at the end of the month. I have not supported this charity (at least not in the last four years according to their records and not that I remember) and I abhor charities that send items in the mail in hopes you'll donate or as thank you gifts.
3. I listened to The Correspondent after borrowing it from the library. It was a good listen.
4. I went to Costco and stuck to the list. I walked around the corner of the shopping center and also bought a few items at Aldi that were on a list.
5. I am bundling up and walking outside every day. I have a variety of clothing to help keep me warm on cold days including warm mittens my mom owned many years ago. Fresh air and exercise make me feel better.
Sticking to a list at Costco is always an accomplishment, well done!
I too don't like getting mail (especially little "gifts") from those types of charities. You can easily get off of their mailing list by calling, going to their website online, or using Catalog Choice (a free opt-out online service). I admit to taking great satisfaction in helping all my family stem the flow of those types of mailings.
"Catalog Choice" might not include charities, but if you look around online, you will find various services like this, including for people who have died.
A few charities are still sending requests to my Dad, five years after he died, as elderly people with big hearts are prime fodder for their lists and similar charities share names among themselves. They even did change-of-addresses to a different state when I had his mail forwarded to me. I will not donate to those places who continue to waste their money by not pruning their lists appropriately. I'm sure there are precise formulas for charities to determine how often to write, what kinds of gifts to offer, and so forth.
I always cash those checks and add them to my "found money". I quite often get checks for $1.16 from a charity. It would seem if you cash them and don't send anything, one would get removed from the list. Go figure.
The polar vortex has arrived, so I'm staying indoors, at least for today and tomorrow. This will keep me out of the stores!
I have decided to give mostly cash for Christmas. I'm sure my local son's family will appreciate that, since my son was furloughed during the shutdown. He has been paid by now, but I think their savings were greatly diminished. My Oregon son's family are in a better situation, but I don't know what to give them. They have Amazon wish lists, but the items seem so paltry for what I can afford. I feel like cash would be better.
For the local crew, I am also planning to give Christmas tins filled with small gifts, instead of stockings.
My entertainment for today will be reading, painting a picture, putting up the Christmas tree, and, perhaps, some baking.
Brr . . . stay warm!
I think cash sounds like a great plan!
Just got home from my morning school van run. Didn't sleep well last night, so taking a nap before getting into making broccoli cheese soup with all the broccoli stalks I had in the freezer.
School closed Tuesday (snow), so I got to stay home. I declared it a "mental health day" and did nothing. Not good for the wallet; wonderful for the sanity.
Thawed a huge chicken breast, butterflied it, and marinated it in some Panera's Fuji Apple salad dressing for last night's supper. DH loved it! Me? Meh... I don't get the Fuji Apple salad when we go to Panera - he does. He ate his piece and the 2/3 of my piece that I didn't eat. We also had herbed instant mashed potatoes we got from the food bank, the applesauce I made from dying apples, and a can of cranberry sauce we got from our BIL's basement.
Cashed in a $50 rebate to my PayPal and transferred it to my bank. Will get that out next week and mail to my daughter for Christmas.
That's all for here. Off to take a snooze...
I am 100% in favor of mental health days!!!
I had some luck at our local thrift store yesterday. Most notably a Garnet Hill down throw still in the sealed package. 100% duck down. It was $30, which is a lot for a thrifted item, but it retails for $149, is a brand and item I like a lot, and in a soft blue-grey that goes with the covers on my daybed. I haven't decided whether to keep it, gift it, or sell it. My sister-in-law would love it, so... we'll see.
I'm a little hesitant to sell because the item can be monogrammed and to find out if it is I'd have to unseal the package...
I also found some almost new heavy duty Kula mittens for $1.75, and new garden gloves still in the package for $.50. I have been wanting mittens for my morning walk as poor circulation in my hands makes even the warmest gloves insufficient. I wore out all but one pair of garden gloves this summer and the cotton ones are beyond mending as the fabric is worn through in many spots.
Hanging laundry, running the wood stove and space heaters to save propane (I have a solar tracker so the space heaters are running on "free" stored power for now.) Eating from the freezer, making coffee, all the things.
That's a great find, as Garnet Hill products are (or at least used to be) amazing quality!
Nice! I love Garnet Hill stuff. I assume that they’d have to open the package to do the monogram, so I’ll bet it isn’t monogrammed. Maybe you can call Garnet Hill and ask if it would be in a sealed package if monogrammed.
Li: that is a good idea. If I decide to sell it, that's what I will do.
1. I sold an item on FB marketplace, small and steady is how it goes for me. I have a buyer lined up for another sale today.
2. My daughter and I watched a Christmas movie on DVD from the library. She scoffs at our old DVD player, but it's so much more straightforward than all the streaming (and usually ads).
3. I divided a couple of bushes, filling in my garden for zero money.
4. I carpooled with a friend to a lovely A Capella concert .
5. Made a little DIY greenhouse from a huge glass jar (2 gallon) that was given to me. Put my 2 fig cuttings in it.
I wish we could cancel all our streaming services and go back to library DVDs, but our kids and extended family use our subscriptions, so it would effect everyone.
We also shared, but when we mentioned we were interested in talking about stopping the service that we paid for, our adult kids all said that there were also wanting to cancel the ones they paid for. We and one adult kid now have no streaming services. This kid is the most socially minded and, like us, felt that the streaming companies did not share our pro-democracy views.
I always hit the library up when there's something we want to watch that's not available on streaming. Such a great resource.
Our Thanksgiving left overs have passed and we are now in the fresh phase of finding food at home with a very cleared out refrigerator. I am looking at the pantry and trying to make meals where there are not much to be made. Before Christmas I am extra broke due to things outside of my control. Trying not to feel drained.
I'm sorry to read that you have expenses outside your control, that's frustrating and difficult.
A ride on a Learjet would be fun... Especially on a nice day.
My niece has a light in her living room that projects lights and colors that look like the aurora borealis and gently moves to music. I love it and it really sets a calming mood while we are playing cards (very competitive games, not calm in the least).
I'm glad that you found a part for your food processor.
I picked 2 cabbages to turn into Sauer kraut. Brother just shared 20 lbs of homemade smoked dinner sausages. Yummy.
Please, if you can - go to the local food pantry. It will help you get thru this tough time and hopefully take away a stress.
I sold a wall hanging on ebay. It had come from my daughter, so I gave the proceeds to her for Christmas shopping. I actually figured shipping out a little better. LOL
A new bookstore has opened up on Main St in our town, and they are taking books for store credit. My daughter and I have many, MANY books that we are not going to end up reading, so this is good for all of us. I have gone through just two bookshelves and found probably close to 50 books to exchange. The owners are friends of ours, so I will take the credit for the limit they offer in a year, and then donate many more just to help their inventory.
My hubby and I discovered a new cheap meal that we really like - a box of Pasta Roni (Parmesan or Angel Hair with Herbs flavored) with chicken thrown in. Even with buying a can of chicken, it's less than $5 for a meal and would be less if you used leftovers.
I have been taking advantage of sales and cheap apps to get Christmas presents.
I love that you simply donated th rest of the books to help your friends establish their business!
Alice, my husband and I ate that exact meal every single week while he was in law school! Sometimes we'd get fancy and add a small can of peas too! That angel hair with herbs is still my favorite!
1. Haven't listed anything on ebay in over a year, and Katy inspired to put a few things up this week. Sold one item the first day, and someone is watching the other 2 so hopefully they are gone soon also.
2. My boys are swapping bedrooms and actually went through their stuff, so I was able to list several things in my Buy Nothing group, half of which has already been picked up.
3. Someone in my Buy Nothing group posted asking for a slim Christmas tree the same day my neighbor put one out for trash pickup. It's now sitting on my porch waiting for the Buy Nothing lady to pick it up. Happy to keep something usable out of the landfill, and help add some cheer to an elementary classroom.
4. Had my colonoscopy this week, I'm counting it as frugal since we may not have insurance next year so I'm happy to get it done while we're currently covered. Fortunately all is well!
5. Used up the left over Thanksgiving mashed potatoes in a pot of potato soup. I prefer my potato soup a little chunky so I baked 2 small potatoes in the microwave, peeled and diced them up and stirred them in at the end. Delicious! Definitely keeping that recipe.
Yay, so happy that you got a sale on eBay!!
1. Went for a walk with a gap at work this morning. I am hoping that getting out even on the gray days pays off in better moods and better sleep.
2. Stopped on this walk at the local discount store and reupped my cleaning supplies and a few toiletries. This place has a lot of good products and brands I like at steep discounts, so it's always worth a walk through.
3. Eating leftover thanksgiving desserts for breakfast. Healthy? Oh god no. Frugal? Sureeee!
4. Respecting the "no gifts" rule for my friend's baby's 2nd birthday. I will get a cute card with maybe a sticker pack for fun at most.
5. I did not buy my significant other a new car for Christmas like those psychos in the car commercials.
My husband and I have always scoffed at those car commercials! We are both in full agreement that if a spouse has the gall to make such an insanely purchase behind the others back that the joyful jumping up and down would NOT be the case in this house haha
I love the SNL skit about this!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcEylCwkSxE
When my husband and I see those car commercials, we joke about HOW MUCH TROUBLE one of us would be in if we bought the other a surprise Lexus. Yikes!
1. Woke up after a poor night's sleep with a screaming headache so I'm doing my best to hydrate and rest. Dinner is already mostly done since it's a freezer meal.
2. Took the kids in the stroller to the library yesterday and dropped off a check for our water bill along the way.
3. They did a scavenger hunt while at the library and earned a packet of fruit snacks that they enjoyed on the walk home. There was a letter writing station with prompts to write a letter to Santa I helped each of them make out letters. The oldest decided she was probably a little bit nice and naughty but her little sister was definitely naughty. After some discussion they both got to be in the 'a little bit of both' category. I'm sure Santa will give them a pass this year.
4. My oldest has asked for noodles for lunch, an easy and cheap win while I'm feeling less than great. There are some leftovers in the fridge too which will feed the rest of us.
5. I combined Ibotta rebates, an Amazon promotion, a survey gift card, and got $102 of diapers and wipes down to $45 and will get a $20 credit next month. I try to avoid Amazon but on occasion they have really big sales on baby supplies compared to prices around me, or the next town over.
I just stumbled onto something everyone may be interested in checking out...especially if you go through a lot of ink/toner cartridges for your printer.
I was Googling "recycling Lexmark toner cartridges" because I have recycled through them before. I saw a site called TonerBuyer.com that buys your new or used cartridges. Decided to check it out.
Now, you have to send a minimum of 8 of the same type of cartridge, but they BUY the cartridges from you. I looked at some reviews I found and it has a 4.8 rating. Your payment could be as little as $22 or as much as $280, depending on what you're sending. I am checking into it further for myself. They are located in Birmingham, Alabama.
I never succeed in getting free passes from the library. Recently, someone told me that the Portland Art Museum has free days for Bank of America customers. I just investigated on the website, and not only can I get in free with my B of A card on the first weekend of each month, but also, everyone gets in free in the first Thursday of each month!
That is great information, thank you for sharing!
Loved the SNL Lexus commercial! That is really true to life, IMO. Men can be such irresponsible leeches; it makes me happy that I never married. Thanks for sharing!
1. Calculated my pension and SS income for 2026. Barring some unforeseen catastrophe, I will be able to do OK next year. (I didn't even add up my store pay with it, since that can vary.)
2. Our store sells $20 calendars for under $5, and I found one for a teenager at church who had to go off to boarding school. (Public school unresponsive to her special needs. But she is blossoming at the new school!) She loves dogs, used to volunteer at the animal shelter, and this is a calendar featuring all sorts of cute puppies. It was big, and I wasn't sure how I'd send it. But it came in a package that can be reversed; its blank inside makes a good envelope. Will be mailing it to her this week as a holiday surprise. She can enjoy the puppy photos all year in her dorm room.
3. Found a remote control that matches the $7 TV I got at Goodwill. We used to have that same brand of old-style TV and still had this control around the house.
4. Got out all my holiday clothes to wear again this year. I had stored them in a drawer along with an apple-cinnamon-scented candle, and they smell wonderful.
5. Free entertainment includes watching the 1960s Mary Poppins movie on ABC, watching Star Trek: TNG episode I hadn't seen before on over-the-air broadcast and listening to music via the internet.
Yesterday I bought a pork roast marked down that was a bit bigger than my Dutch oven. Today I trimmed it to fit in the pot and turned the excess into a package of pork cubes to freeze for another dish. Also bought a two pound bag of carrots on sale and processed it for freezing.
Had a little bit of stain left over from finishing my desk and used it today to refresh the beaten-up toe kicks around the kitchen cabinets. Took just a few minutes and the kitchen looks so much better.
Planning to sew some patchwork mug rugs as Christmas gifts but did not have the right mix of fabrics until I remembered several cloth napkins that don't get used. Discovered them the other day when ironing the ones that do get used.
Maintenance is frugal: Although it's a pain to do it, I vacuumed and cleaned under the stove, fridge and freezer the other day.
I was also able to get the free pass to the art museum this summer. It was limited viewing, but they had a Monet on display and I had three granddaughters to entertain. I wanted them to see the Monet. They were all 17 and under so the four of us were free. However, all savings I garnered from the free passes was lavishly spent on lunch! We did have a good time, though!
Try as I might, I could not get the densely embroidered logos (ala Katy) off two perfectly good polo shirts. I ended up getting appropriate iron on/sew on patches and putting those over my mess. One went to a grandson, the other was for my HH. Problem solved!
Katy, I hope the new format is working well and you are making more money from ads!
I was surprised just now, though, to see on the footer, a notice to the effect of I could save money because "My Congressman [name deleted] is working for me, [with his photo]-- click here to find out how!" He is pretty useless.
A side square just opened up with more photos, and a notice that he is "Protecting" people in my state, "Fixing Washington's Mess" and "Is Keeping [state name] families safe." "Paid for by official funds authorized by the House of Representatives." I'm not believing any of his claims.
Ugh, I'm so sorry.
I don't at all think you expected this!
Being reminded about him gave me good practice to think through exactly why I disagree with him, so I am ready to take action at the midterms.
That isn't a threat-- It just means I am ready to take action by voting!
Still in awe of you sweater finds and sales!
1. A library in my county went live on a new computer system, which happened to be the same as the library where I work. I volunteered to help out there their first day live. The director there invited me to lunch and insisted on paying for my lunch. Yay helping for good, and free food.
2. My work's Christmas party was a luncheon on Tuesday. Yay more free food, plus the leftovers are in the work fridge for us to keep on enjoying.
3. I am hosting a Christmas party for my fellow Criterion Club members, and my dear friend Dana is going to play the piano for the evening at no charge. Though she will be getting a huge box of Esther Price candy from me as a thank you.
4. The weather has been too cold and snow for my usual walks outside. I have been getting by with my stationary bike and free weights. Boring but free, plus my husband has joined me three times to do a workout.
5. On day 5 of a no spend challenge to myself. So far so good.
My daughter lives in a Portland suburb. She has only been living there for a year and is ENTHRALLED with the museum passes!