Five Teeny Tiny Frugal Things
by Katy on June 15, 2025 · 49 comments
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I motored through my library copy of Fiona Davis’ The Stolen Queen and am now lending it to a friend.
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My neighbor had another extra bag of mixed greens and gave them to me.
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I removed the back off a broken Cesca free pile chair and listed it on eBay.
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I made a small frittata, which used up myriad bits and bobs of veggies from the fridge.
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I didn’t spend $45 million on a sparsely attended parade.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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{ 49 comments… read them below or add one }
I would never have thought to sell the back of a chair. Another item saved from the landfill.
1. I’m using a toilet paper wrapper as a trash bag.
2. My daughters, mom and I walked through a free arboretum on the UofM campus yesterday. We got to enjoy the last of their peonies.
3. We also joined the NoKings protest.
4. I turned the chlorine down in my pool. I’m trying to use only as little as I need.
5. I took a liquid measuring cup from a free pile. It will be used to measure pool chemicals so none will be wasted.
Thank you for protesting!
1. Received four dozen granola bars from Buy Nothing. Also received markers and colored pencils. I only wanted the nice containers they were in, so I regifted the pencils and gave the markers to someone who requested them for creating protest posters.
2. After all that work cleaning up the brass stair railing brackets, we decided we didn’t like how they looked so I spray painted them with pewter spray paint that I got for free from our county’s Reuse Room.
3. Went to two events where coffee was served. Took leftover coffee home in my large stainless bottle that I keep in the car for this purpose. I reheat the coffee throughout the week.
4. Asked a neighbor if I could have her plastic newspaper sleeves for picking up dog poop. She was thrilled as she felt guilty throwing them away.
5. Met my sister for a walk and picnic lunch rather than go to a restaurant or pay to see something.
I am always astonished that ppl buy special little poop bags. Like…you don’t have plastic bags up to your neck already? Wow.
I buy biodegradable poop bags so my dogs’ poop isn’t still on earth in 500 years’ time.
I use paper bags — leftover bags from fast food, the hardware store, or lunch bags. I hate plastic, but poop will decompose through paper in no time. I use mine for cat box cleanup.
That’s so smart with the leftover coffee!
I had to click over to the eBay link to get it — I thought, you took the back off the chair and listed the chair…Nope, just the back! Good luck, I hope someone buys it.
1. Joined my local No Kings protest which was HUGE, and stayed behind to help clean up. A LOT of ppl had brought cases of water bottles to donate so we sent all the leftovers home with the organizers for their next event or meeting.
2. I tried to make egg salad the other day but managed to seriously underboil the eggs. My husband could eat it but I could not. Today he took the leftovers and scrambled them until they were fully cooked and then I could choke ’em down – so yay for not wasting unpalatable food.
3. I attended a retirement party with a cash bar and did not notice that at 20% tip had already been added to the drinks, so someone got a very big tip indeed. This is not frugal but I’m totally okay with it since tips are so important to people in that line of work.
4. Am gathering a box of things to offer to my Buy Nothing group next weekend when I have time to deal with it all.
5. Ate up the last of some hamburger buns which have been in the freezer for months. Put enough avocado, and those scrambled eggs, on ’em, and the freezer burn was barely noticeable! LOL.
Undercooked eggs = blegh!
1. Took home a gallon of milk from the food bank with that date as the expiration. Made yogurt from it. If the volunteers did not take the milk, it would go to the pig farmer for his herd.
2. The golf ROMEOS (Retired Old Men Eating Out) went to lunch and the server made a mistake on the order. Husband asked her what would happen to the incorrect order and she said, “We trash them.” She happily gave the meal to the husband to take home for the dogs. Dogs, hell! It was steak and scrambled eggs and hash browns for two meals for me.
3. Library for books and puzzles.
4. Tool library for husband to borrow some sort of oddball wrench set.
5. Transplanted 100 leeks. Had many more left to go and was out of space so I offered them to a thrilled neighbor. She gave me a dozen green bean transplants, which is about all the green beans I have room for/can stand to eat.
In the this is why we are frugal category: husband’s chemo is taking more and more out of him each time. I found him outside under the lawnmower, trying to fix it. It would take even more energy to then actually mow the lawn, which has been neglected for about a month so is a mess. With great reluctance he consented to hiring a lawn service for the rest of the summer (which means late August, since we usually have a killing frost by then). To my shame, the lawn guy felt he had to reassure me that he was in this country legally. Apparently he has lost clients who thought his accent automatically meant he was undocumented so he tells everyone up front about his status. My refugee parents are weeping in their graves. I believe in border control. I do not believe in terrorizing every brown person in this country.
Your poor lawn guy. It’s heartbreaking what they are doing.
I feel very bad about your last paragraph. Why do we have to pander to the nastiest human beings in the US? I hate it.
I do love leeks though.
Lindsey, my heart goes out to you and the husband. I went through the same thing with our lawn mowers with DH, although for cognitive rather than physical reasons.
And I send good wishes as well to your lawn care guy. The lawn guy’s feeling he has to tell everyone about his status is awful. As is Senator Padilla’s getting handcuffed at Noem’s press conference, apparently for the crimes of being brown and asking a question.
Lindsey, I hope your husband does great with his treatment and regains some vigor. In the meantime, the new yard guy is a blessing. It’s awful that he has to tell everyone his status. Are we one step away from making people sew a symbol on their coats?
I’m sorry your husband is going through such a tough time. Of course also sorry that your lawn guy is experiencing such xenophobia.
At this point, all I have is thanks you wrote “lending” versus “loaning,” which hurts my ears.
1. Was gonna make bacon-Parm meatloaf tonight using fugitive TVP. Whoops, we’re out of Parm. Now using nutritional yeast. At this point, the meatloaf is now more filler than loaf.
2. Demonstrating that I’m a giant hypocrite re processed foods, I asked my daughter to get tater tots at the store because I still have never had it smashed in a waffle maker. Daughter thriftily informed me we should use up the frozen french fries (which do turn out very nicely in the air fryer) first. FOILED AGAIN.
3. I am absurdly attracted to tater tots since I only ever got them as occasional hot lunch. My mom spent her money on real potatoes, which were whipped or baked. Growing up, I also had a similar interest in margarine, which we never had at home. That has gone away.
No bacon, but I grate x-sharp white cheddar and put in my meatloaf mixture. No measurement, just throw a couple handfuls in. And, if you have a Kitchen-Aid or other stand mixer, put all your ingredients in the big mixing bowl and use the paddle attachment. Mixes everything together nicely and my hands don’t freeze to death tryin̈g to mix it by hand..
Thanks. I do have a KitchenAid (Guava Glaze color!) but I mix meatloaf by hand because it makes fewer dishes. I’m a perpetually hot person rather than perpetually cold so there’s that.
The nutritional yeast plus meat plus TVP from a couple days ago plus breadcrumbs plus bacon plus glaze turned out great. Daughter made glaze from ketchup, soy sauce, Worcestershire, brown sugar, gochujang, spicy brown mustard, and black pepper.
1. My kiddo is wearing my jean jacket thst I kept from when I was 14.
2. Continuing to check my pantry before I shop. Forgot about a box of mini muffins!
3. Continuing to redeem birthday freebies. My athlete was happy to eat my free wings from bw3 on the way home from practice.
4. Neighbor gave us some flower flats she couldn’t use.
5. Combining errands and keeping snacks in the car.
Hooray for the timeless style of jean jackets!
Sewed a new button, from my stash of recycled buttons, on the waistband of my thrifted jeans so they’d stop trying to fall off me.
Washed for the many-th time some supposedly disposable Swiffer dusters. Shook them out to fluff ’em up and hung them up to dry.
Used Lindsey’s trick of toasting stale crackers to revive them, thus saving a box of saltines. The only drawback is now my husband likes the hot and crispy crackers.
Picked the first two slicing tomatoes from my container garden. Two more and I’ll break even on the cost of planting that pot.
Finished reading the next book club book even though I will have to miss that session for a medical appointment. The book was a Bookbub special deal and cost only $1.99, but still should not be wasted.
Great, now I want some hot and crispy crackers!
Single layer on a cookie sheet baked at 350 F for 10 minutes — totally elevates saltines.
I used to make him a snack mix with baked oyster crackers jazzed up with seasonings and a little olive oil. It was so cheap and ridiculously yummy, but gluten-free oyster crackers are not available here.
I’ve been super busy, but have a handful of frugal wins to share:
1. Wore my thrifted long dress and shoes to a birthday party and was told how “French/chic” I looked. Ooh la la.
2. We have two new kittens and I was momentarily tempted by cat toys online and in the store. Instead, I crocheted a 100% cotton string toy, lent them one of the wool dryer balls, and threw a box and some empty TP tubes on the floor. No money spent, hours of fun.
3. We got corn on the cob for 7c last week, and we enjoyed it whole, then in a salad, then as its own corn and pepper salad, and finally, I used the last three cobs – kernels removed – to make a corn broth, added the kernels, red bell pepper, sauteed onion, butter and milk + Trader Joe’s Elote spice mix. Super corn chowder, with the essence of corn from the scraped cops. After all that, my hens pecked every one of those cobs clean. No waste, to the third degree.
4. My summer plan is to make a bunch of salads and we graze our way through the season. Large mac salad with fresh veggies, the aforementioned corn salad and soup, simple cold cuts and french bread, and lots of home-brewed iced tea.
5. We lent our truck to our daughter’s friend for the weekend and enjoyed being a one-car fam for a few days. We marched in yesterday’s protest, with a homemade sign and our own flags, hats, and Christmas-decor jingle bells (nice to use them more than once a year). I also made a loud shaker out of a handful of black eyed peas in an empty Betty Crocker frosting tub.
I love corn on the cob!
1) We went to a neighborhood-wide garage sale day. The wife found a lovely purple dress for $2. Purple is her favorite color.
2) We batched errands and picked up a Buy Nothing item, swung by the library, and participated in the first part of our communities No Kings rally. The crowd was huge and the speakers were inspirational!
3) Hosted a cookout to celebrate the wife’s birthday. All the food was simple, low cost, and from scratch — chicken-veggie skewers, potato salad, and watermelon. I made a huge batch of sangria from cheap-o boxed wine.
4) For cake, I opted for a faux black forest (her favorite), by using almond extract in place of vanilla in the sponge and whipped cream frosting, and home-canned cherry jam from last summer instead of the fancy Morello cherries. It was a hit!
5) Attended our UU fellowship’s flower mandala service this morning, followed by a potluck lunch. I made extra potato salad yesterday to bring. I picked wild daisies and st. John’s wort from our property to bring as our offering for the mandala construction.
Purple is also my favorite color!
1. We spent $34 at grocery store for lunch and treats for Father’s Day for 3 of us. We used the library state park pass for entrance to a local state park where we hiked and ate lunch.
2. Sold a plant on FB marketplace. I pick up free pots when they are available, then I have proper pots for the plants that I propagate. They sell pretty well that way.
3. Thankful to have the health to do my own work on our irrigation system. I walk the very fine line between enough water for the plants and not too much expense on our bill. The local county extension agent always said that if you’re on city water, it’s not financially worth it to grow fruit trees. I like the food security of my own fruit, plus knowing how it was grown, and eating it fresh off the tree. I think between our saved rainwater, the graywater from the washing machine, and buckets of water from the house ( warm up shower water, handwashing/produce rinsing water from kitchen sink) we keep our costs down enough for it to still be a financial benefit.
4. Used our solar dryer for all loads of laundry.
5. Rode my bike to the gathering of pro-democracy folks yesterday. Walked down the line of veterans and thanked each one for their service.
Hooray for freedom of speech!
1. Helped myself to “free” snacks and a bubbly water at the dermatologist . Eating a snack without dog eyes and toddler eyes feels like such a luxury.
2. Friend gifted me a huge box of diapers her little one grew out of , woo!
3. Spent today outside playing in our free baby pool, free water table, while wearing free swim diaper, rash guard and swimsuit thanks to our BN group.
4. Scored a bunch of discounted meat from Whole Foods last week. We are having family visit the next 2.5 weeks so our grocery budget will naturally increase. Nice to score some deals!
5. Thrifted a Lululemon tee for myself as my only thrift purchase of the week, happy because currently as a sahm, just need casual clothes!
I wish they’d had buy nothing when my kids were little.
1. Took part in the local No Kings march on Saturday — good exercise and good for my soul.
2. Have continued to use lettuce and carrots from my garden for salad.
3. My work provided a nice free lunch for us on Wednesday.
4. My mother gave me a nice tin and a glass jar, as well as a small electric coffee grinder, that she didn’t want anymore.
5. My parents treated us to dinner out today for Father’s Day.
That’s so nice and generous of your parents.
1. I have cut my coffee consumption in half. I used to drink 2 cups per day and now, I am limiting myself to one cup in the morning. I don’t really miss the 2d cup, so it’s not a huge sacrifice and it does result in some savings since coffee has become expensive lately.
2. Found a quarter on the sidewalk when I was walking in our neighborhood. This brings my YTD total to 26 cents.
3. Finished reading a book called The Radium Girls. It’s the story of a group of young women working at painting radium dials for watches in the early 1920s. They were sickened and died from their work, their employer fought their requests for compensation right up to the Supreme Court, but they did not give up and, in the end, they succeeded in getting labor laws changed in the US. It’s a real lesson in how persistence pays.
4. I did not waste a single minute watching the sparsely-attended parade on television.
5. For Fathers’ Day, I made my husband his favorite meal: meatloaf. He is not trying to be frugal, he’s just truly easy to please.
Yay, you “recently came into some money!”
There is a movie of the book that was well done.
We used to go to the same church, but my husband started going to another church last fall (long story). The church he goes to has a bus and picks people up at their homes. I need the car to get to my church. Was supposed to go to a friend’s mom’s memorial service today, but friend never sent me location/time until it was too late to leave from where I live, so I played hooky from church and stayed home (“mental health day”).
Listened to “oldies” music on the radio instead of some subscription app like Sirius or Pandora. (Since when did 70’s-80’s music become “oldies”?)
Thawed meat out to make stroganoff tomorrow. Two days, maybe 3, there.
Stopped at my brother-in-law’s and filled up our water jugs. Our water tastes and smells like sulfur. My brother-in-law, less than a mile down the road, has really good water. Saved having to pay for the jugs to be refilled at the store.
Damp and rainy here making it feel colder than it is. Refuse to turn on heat. Put on a sweater and long pants.
Sorry about your water, but I’m happy you’ve figured out a solution.
Oopsies…stroganoff comment was meant to say 2-3 days MEALS.
Loving all the frugal Father’s Day ideas.
1. We hosted Father’s Day for son and his family. Made blueberry pancakes & plain ones, scrambled eggs and 1 fried one, Canadian bacon and raspberries & blueberries for nibbling. Can you tell we have young granddaughters?
2. Entertainment was a push toy I found curbside, books from Little Free Libraries, blowing bubbles, and throwing an old tennis ball around outside while the dog ran around ignoring it.
3. Not frugal: having our large concrete patio painted. Frugal: enjoying being outside today with the family.
4. I altered a pair of pants I got from Buy Nothing so they fit better.
5. Did not hold a multi-million dollar parade using other people’s money to celebrate Father’s Day or anything else.
Sounds like the perfect low key celebration.
1. The garden is doing great. I am picking lots of sugar snap peas, regular peas, lettuce and spinach. We have been eating lots of salads with a mix of lettuce and spinach. Hubby made a Chinese dish with beef and sugar snap peas that was delicious. We have made it with chicken but I had a piece of a pot roast that I wanted used. The peas are getting shelled and frozen for future meals. We have been eating lots of raw sugar snap peas as snacks.
2. I cut up a bunch of brown bags for when I fry food.
3. I gave my son a bunch of plastic bags from bread, carrots, English muffins, frozen vegetables to use to clean out his cats litter box. I did a poop cleanup and put it in a large paper bag that I stapled shut.
4. I signed up for summer library classes and I reserved a library museum pass for September.
5. I made Hubby sausage, scrambled eggs and pancakes for Father’s Day breakfast. My son and Hubby went to the range for the morning. It is their Father’s Day tradition. My son treated. On the way home I had them stop at Cow Palace to get seafood for dinner. My daughter came over for dinner. They spent less then $40 for a seafood feast for 4 people. We had leftover for lunch . See #1.
Mmm . . . I love seafood!
Great idea removing the back from the chair. Can’t wait to hear how it sells.
I’ve done this once before in 2023 when I curb picked just the back piece while walking around Brooklyn, NY. Brought it home and popped it on eBay.
1.I curb picked 3 sets of curtain rods plus one nice pair of lined curtains. I did have to buy 3 sets of brackets to hang the rods. There were a pair of corduroy Pottery Barn Kids curtains w/ one set of rods. I washed the kids’ curtains & will donate them. My goddaughter got rid of some curtains that I can put on my free rods. The curtains won’t touch the floor so perhaps no dust. Initially I wanted only blinds in the windows. However, my white walls need color. The price is right & my white walls, blinds will get spruced up. I found one set of rods w/ one broken finial. I may put these in reserve until I can get a set of new finials.
2.Patience won out! My husband finally found a place to order a lock mortice for the Pella storm door I got on Craigslist. It took 6 weeks to track one down. It will cost 25$ but the door will be complete. It is currently installed. It only needs the mortice so the lock & handle can be repaired.
3. Fed the 2 cats Friskies kibbles infused w/ bacon grease. They loved it. Free embellishment for their food.
4. Husband installed the cabinet door handles in the kitchen. They look nice. The handles were 1$ each at the Habitat store.
5. Got a nice cloth upholstered accent chair on Craigslist for Free. So far, I have paid for little to nothing for furnishings for the new house.
Going tomorrow to inspect water leak in summer condo. I am keeping my fingers crossed that my insurance will cover the damage.
I survived wedding week!
1. I ordered a DIY flower kit online and created 10 lovely bouquets for the rehearsal dinner. I made the bouquets in my canning jars, which will go back to being canning jars now. The arrangements were moved to the entryway of the church for the wedding. So double the use!
2.I had the rehearsal dinner catered at the church. We have been eating leftovers for lunch and dinner the past 3 days. 3 of my 4 kids came over and meal prepped several meals worth to get their week going. What we don’t eat by tomorrow I will freeze.
3. I brought home a huge garden salad and bag of meatballs leftover from the wedding. We have also been eating on that. Tonight I pulled out leftover Mac n cheese, leftover pasta and 1/2 jar of Alfredo sauce and we make shifted pasta and meatballs. I froze the rest for another meal.
4. I have a massive amount of leftover beverages. I’m not quite sure what to do, but I’m going to ask Costco if I can return unopened wine and soda. Otherwise we have a supply for the year. Except we don’t really ever drink soda so that is the real hang up.
5. I’m skipping the grocery store this week and eating from the pantry. Life has been expensive lately and we need some no spend days if not weeks.
1. After working a long shift yesterday while sick and running fever (or was it a hot flash?), I stayed home from church to rest. Still went in for a 4 hour shift today, no fever and feeling better. Luckily, it was very slow due to rain and Father’s Day. I did my least-favorite task of folding T-shirts. The store has several shelves of shirts, and the customers mess them up really bad, until they look like the contents of a very messy laundry basket. Why the store doesn’t display them on hangers and a rack is beyond me. (I want so bad to hang a sign that says “don’t even think of touching these shirts unless you’re going to buy one.” But of course, I can’t.) Even when the customers try to put them back correctly, they fold them wrong and it makes more work for us . When the design is on the back, you don’t fold the shirt so the front is showing. Good grief. Anyway, the frugal part of my rambling (sorry) is that I worked all my weekend hours and will get paid for same.
2. After work, I drag-raced to Ollie’s Outlet and was able to use my 15% off coupon to stock up on some necessities before they closed. (Wanted to use it days earlier but was sick.) Cereal, coffee, shampoo and soap for me, chew sticks and dog bones for Snuggles. Oh, and a huge bag of 280 pcs of candy for my July 4/Back to School/Halloween stash. Everything was lots cheaper than getting it elsewhere, and minus 15% made it even better.
3. I told the Ollie’s cashier “I think you need 2 big bags for all this,” and he took my suggestion, resulting in 2 free bags large enough to reuse for trash. He was going to put it in one big bag and 2 small ones.
4. Playing Beach Boys music via computer. RIP, Wilson brothers. (If there’s a rock’n’roll heaven…)
5. Did not waste time watching the draft-dodging 34x felon’s self-serving birthday parade or news coverage of it….no offense to our brave Army service men and women who were ordered to participate….Meanwhile, wasn’t it spectacular seeing news reports about all the No Kings protests taking place everywhere? Thanks to everyone who participated in the latter! You make me once again proud to be an American. You all made history!!!!! Now make sure you vote in the midterms and do whatever you can to support pro-democracy candidates! (Maybe some of you can run for office…)
1. Found 90 cents on the floor at the drug store
2. Gleaned from a free pile: an electric heater, 4 small decorative wall shelves (I’ll list them in MP) and a pair of almost new sneakers (to donate.)
3. Had a $10 off of $10 at the local hardware store. Flowers and herbs were on clearance so I got 8 pots of herbs and 4 pots of flowers for $5 OOP. I have another $10 off $10 coupon so I’ll got back after I plant these to get more.
4. Planted free spider plants in free pots with compost from the compost bin
5. Shared backyard eggs with my sister. She shared her grandson with me! He is one and precious. A very fun few hours of entertaining each other.
Father’s Day was pricey but fun! Got hubby a smoker so of course we needed lots of meat. And our daughter made the dessert. Honey buns wrapped in bacon and smoked for two hours. Ohh boy it was soooooo good! I saved money by making the side dishes but let’s just say we won’t have to buy meat for quite some time!