Many Frugal Things -- Cheap in Seattle
My husband and I are having a fine old time in Seattle. even though the $75/day parking still stings. However, that's no reason to throw the baby out with the bathwater, so I'm still going to enjoy my cheap endeavors.
We walked over to Seattle's spectacular Central Library to explore the structure, and chatted with various librarians (docents?) to make sure we wouldn't miss any of the important bits.
One volunteer directed us to an area which is painted seven shades of red, while another was able to dig up a free bookmark for me.
As I said to my husband, "With the right attitude, anything can be a museum." You know I love a free museum! Better than the normal $25-$30 admission price of a traditional museum.
I unashamedly brought some food up to the room from the included continental breakfast. The pastries became our mid afternoon snack and the apples and yogurts served as dinner, as we'd eaten a filling late lunch. The tea bags will follow us home.
We met up with a college friend at the big Goodwill, where I scoured the store for something/anything to resell to offset the predatory parking cost. Unfortunately the vast and crowded store didn't cough up any Faberge eggs or original Picasso prints. It didn't help that I distracted by conversation, which kept me from doing a proper inventory dig.
They had this "Barista Cart," which I thought was ingenious. I love that they're providing the opportunity to learn this portable employment skill for their employees.
I didn't find $225 of resalable items, but I did buy a $3.99 bag of what I'll call "standing still figures." They definitely stood out amongst the cutesy toys and I'm always on the lookout for the different and unusual. I'd hoped they'd be worth big money, but such is not the case. I learned that these figures are from Lakeshore Learning and I might be able to get maybe twenty to thirty bucks for them.
I also bought a nice $1.99 embroidered pillowcase and my husband found three major league baseballs for $7.99.
I've floated the idea of returning to the store this afternoon to continue my search for hidden treasure, but my husband is not enthused. We'll see . . . .
Tonight is the end of the month, which means I set a reminder alarm to go onto the Multnomah County Library website to scout for cultural passes, which become available at the stroke of midnight. I want to see the David Hockney exhibit at the Portland Art Museum, so fingers crossed!
My husband and I have fun plans for today, so I'll sign off and chat with you tomorrow. Do you have any fun/cheap travel suggestions? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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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That Goodwill location always has boxes of entire trading card collections for sale in their toy section. Does your husband know much about baseball cards? Unfortunately, very little about Seattle is frugal or cheap these days.
The train from Portland to Seattle is a good option if you don’t actually need a car.
I love that there was once an alarm related to croissants in the freezer. 🙂
A few free things to do close to downtown Seattle. The Olympic (because it has such a great view of the Olympics) Sculpture Park is a 9-acre open air, all free, art installation along Western Ave. Easy to combine with a visit to Pike Place Public Market to watch the guys throw fish. Speaking of fish, the salmon ladders at the Ballard Locks offer great free viewing, although you do pay to park (some free street parking nearby). Also close by is the troll underneath the Fremont Bridge.
I do not like company when I hunt at garage sales, thrift stores, and flea markets. I need to laser focus and can’t be distracted. When I am ready to move on to next, I’m not waiting on someone.
First, Katy, I wish you well on the quest to make back at least part of the exorbitant hotel parking charges. The JASNA Annual General Meeting hotel in the Baltimore Inner Harbor last October wanted $49/night for parking; fortunately for me, I had the option of leaving my rental car with my friends in NE Baltimore and having them drop me and pick me up at the hotel. Blessings on them.
Now, FFT, March into April Edition (a simulcast from over at The Frugal Girl):
(1) Things are looking up on both the deposit container return and found change fronts: I found $20.20 in containers and a whopping $4.83 in change during March. (Among other things, I found a dollar bill in the street, I got lucky on Aldi carts several times, and the secrets of many snowdrifts were revealed.)
(2) I enjoyed a good container pick this morning in a warm spring shower, which helped to loosen some personal knots I'm tied up in right now.
(3) I had excellent garden cleanup help yesterday from two high-school-age nephews of my eventual executor and his wife (their college-age sons weren't available this week, but the nephews were). Like all the junior members of this extended family I've met, these were intelligent and personable kids--and, like their cousins, they did exactly what I asked them to do and did it well. In fact, the two of them finished in 1.5 hours what would probably have taken creaky old me a week. I paid them for 2 hours each and was well satisfied.
(4) I'm shopping more at Aldi now, since there's an Aldi on my direct route to and from NDN1's assisted living facility. I snagged two packages of boneless/skinless chicken thighs and one of chicken drums for 50% off there on Sunday.
(5) And the friends who raise the beef I buy each year (1/4 steer, which I share with others at my cost) have just sent an update that they plan to stay in the beef biz through at least 2028. Huzzah! Goodness only knows what supermarket beef will cost by 2028, and even though my friends will inevitably have to raise their costs, I'll still come out way ahead on both cost and quality.
I always search "Trip advisor (city or town name) free things to do", and start from there. Sometimes we find some awesome stuff to do - zoos and museums with free entry, local parks, historic sites, etc. I also like the "cheap eats" section if I'm looking for a local restaurant.
We have a museum membership that includes free entry to science and aviation museums all over the country (and some other countries too), so I check if there's anything in an area we will be visiting. (That's how we ended up at Evergreen when we were in Oregon last summer)
Like you, I always grab some items from the continental breakfast in case we need snacks later. Sometimes when you've been out touristing all day it's nice to just relax in the room in the evening and not have to worry about finding food.
If we're staying at a hotel doesn't offer breakfast, I pack instant oatmeal packets and plastic spoons. Room usually has a coffee pot and I can use it to heat the water, and eat the oatmeal in the provided paper coffee cups, then rinse and use it to drink my coffee. Breakfast is not my favorite meal and I'd rather save my dining out budget for lunch and dinner.
I do the same thing. I scoop out my hotel room
Amenities ahead of time so I can make sure I have a cheap and filling breakfast. I bring oatmeal packets, herbal tea bags as some hotels have a crappy tea selection, hot cocoa packets and add a few granola bars for good measure.
I went grocery shopping with some register print-out coupons and saved $3 off the total. I also got $6 off with customer rewards cash. The coupons were mostly for cat food, but the kitties gotta eat, so it's all good.
I repaired the old slipcover for my sweet old dog's bed by scavenging matching fabric from the cat's seldom used bed -- she sleeps wherever she wants -- then used a leftover piece of upholstery fabric to make a slipcover for the cat's bed. It was a lot of sewing, but everybody has a clean, sturdy bed cover now.
As the sewing machine was set up, I also sewed together lots of used color catcher sheets to make dusting rags. It takes four sheets to make a nice thick rag.
While all this was going on, the slow cooker was turning a big chunk of on-sale pork roast into barbecue. It made enough to eat well for several meals and freeze some for the future.
My friends and I also visited that library when we took a girls trip to Seattle last year!
My big excitement for the day involved pants. Last year I bought a pair of linen pants at Costco that became my favorite pants (Briggs women’s linen pants for anyone curious). I did not get to buy another pair before they were gone. Knowing they are likely a spring/summer item, I’ve been checking Costco regularly both online and in-store. They aren’t online yet but they were finally in the store today! I bought one pair in each color, $11.99 each. I should be set for awhile!
Cool pic of you and Mr. NCA.
I love walking thru the Carl S English Botanical Gardens.
My nephew attends U W, the last time we were there we had plans to go to The Frye Art Museum, but it was First Thursday at the Seattle Art Museum = free.
We also have enjoyed The Center for Wooden Boats, when you sign up in the morning, you might grab a spot for a free hour of wooden sailboat sailing. We ate really good Mexican in that neighborhood.
We also have been to the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park in Pioneer Square.
I used to go GW bin shopping with a dear friend. We would see things the other might like and toss to each other. She moved away, sadly.
Katy, If you’re still in Seattle on Thursday, it’s the First Thursday where most museums are free including Seattle Art Museum, the Nordic Museum, MOHAI, the Burke, etc.
Some other cheap or free activities in Seattle:
The Henry Art Gallery at the UW is now free every day. And if you’re there, might as well visit the cherry trees on campus that are in bloom. Nearby there’s the Union Bay natural area which is prime for bird watching right now and there’s a terrific UW horticulture library open to all nearby.
The Frye Art Museum in First Hill is always free. Another random and free museum is the Bakke Coffee museum in Ballard - it has a huge collection of espresso machines.
Nearby there’s the Ballard Locks - they have a garden with labels on plants and the locks are always fun to walk across.
Seattle parks are always a treat. Depending on what you like to see - Discovery Park and Golden gardens are great for beaches while the Arboretum has an Azalea path that might be blooming now. A gem in south Seattle is the free Japanese style Kubota Gardens. The Olympic Sculpture Garden is always free, too.
The Seattle Center is another gem with outdoor spaces and some indoor open to the public spaces for free.
In terms of eating out - happy hours are the best way to get the most bang for your buck. Sadly our food scene is not on par with Portland’s.
Hope you enjoy your visit and sorry about the parking fees.
My DH shared something with me from Facebook today. Economic protest Friday, May 1. DO NOT SPEND!!! I don't have the option to not show up for work that day; however, aa I undersrand it, the goal is to get as many businesses as possible to close for the day, people to take off work, don't do anything that doesn't generate revenue or feeds the economy. Considering this group's motto is "DO NOT SPEND!!!," we need to rally our frugal friends to support the movement. I don't go out to things like the "No King's Rallies" because I'm afraid of being arrested, but this protest, I can support. Going to try to support it for more than just one day, too.
Those little people are interesting. It's a shame they're not valuable. I wonder what their use is?
I had a day at home, mainly because I'm hoping that rest and relaxation will make my aches and pains feel better. I am somewhat better, but I'm still going to the ortho clinic tomorrow, and I hope I learn something.
I put a bunch of listings on eBay. To my surprise, one of the items, a vintage decoy, had a suggested price of $94. So I went with it. I have just a few more things to list and then I'll be caught up. For some reason I hate doing listings, even though it is not that hard once you get used to it.
I had to throw out some milk that soured, and also the granola I poured it over. Oh well. I do pretty well at avoiding waste; it takes me by surprise when I fail.
But I did make a good frugal lunch -- a veggie/chicken bowl with mashed potatoes as the base. Used up many bits and pieces and it was tasty.
This is not particularly frugal, but a good hack -- I was lighting a candle, the type with three wicks in a wide jar. I couldn't get them lit without burning my fingers. I was using matchbook matches, and thinking I should buy those long wooden matches. Then I had the bright idea to hold the match with a long pair of tweezers. Worked like a charm! I don't need long wooden matches!
Beth W, I have really good luck using soured milk (minus granola bits of course!) in baked goods that call for milk- in our house that's usually waffles. It helps to freeze it in the amount that you need for a recipe, for example in 1 cup increments.
Update from my Frugal Girl report this morning:
This afternoon, stopped by the thrift store that gives away its books and got some more history books to pass along to a soon-to-be new teacher. Free!
Also found a couple more O'Reilly-Dugard books in the "Killing" series. Which is good since I just finished reading about Gen. Patton on the patio this morning. I plan to read the books first before giving them away as I have plenty of time before graduation day.
Meanwhile Snuggles caught the squirrel, may it RIP. But no more worrying about whether it's getting into the attic or something.
Hopefully the librarians pointed out there is a free audio tour for the library? It really is a cool building!
The ferry on a nice day is frugal if you walk on as it's absolutely beautiful on the water. If you take the bremerton ferry, there is a free naval museum right next to the dock. And for those with kids, the harbor side park is great for wading in summer (water volcanos!) and the navel museum has a GREAT kids play area.
We've done this a number of times on previous visits, so fun and super frugal!
I only was able to go to that library once, but I really enjoyed it's architecture. So glad you got to see it.
If you are interested in cool libraries, Suzzallo library at UW is very beautiful. I spent an afternoon reading about Korean history there once. Likely there is public transportation to that campus so you can avoid the university parking.
That sounds right up my alley, thank you!
1) Met friends for dinner, brought leftovers home for DS20.
2)Made lunch at home, even though it was a day I could have easily talked myself into eating out. It was just a whim, and I put a few items in my digital cart with a coupon offer & it was still so expensive that I reminded myself it was 100% not going to be worth the cost.
3) DS20 had to drive me to a medical appointment, and we took my electric car to save on gas.
4) We make coffee at home every day. We bought our espresso machine at Costco when DS20 was born (the need for coffee began in earnest) & have gotten an absolutely obscene amount of usage out of it. I use oat milk to steam & create my own latte at home.
5) I've got a list of a few things to post on eBay today.
1. I spent 90 minutes hand washing and detailing my own car. It looks brand new and I didn’t spend $200 at my local car wash place 🙂
2. I used a coupon for a free half dozen donuts and brought them to the office for my coworkers and I.
3. I had my sister in law order a yeti rolling cooler for my husband’s birthday using her military discount. His mom also pitched in $100. This thing will probably last us forever.
4. Waiting until Tuesday to see a movie at the theater to take advantage of their $6 tickets. This is one of my favorite solo activities when the weather is crummy and I can’t go for walks.
5. I set up a Walmart plus delivery order using my sister’s account so I get free delivery. I ordered an extra large bouquet of flowers for $15 to be delivered Easter morning to my mother in law who is hosting. 1800flowers wanted $75 to order the same thing.
Bonus: I’m wearing a really cute spring cardigan I bought at Goodwill for $2
Received 3 small pizza's for $3.99 from a local pizza place off the "Too Good to Go" app. The Hawaiian (not a fan) went to a friend, and the other 2 were cut and put in freezer for future me!
Topped off my tank when I saw gas at $3.86 at Walmart Neighborhood Market (neighboring stations were at $3.99)
Found a quarter, added to my found money jar.
Needed a denim skirt...I knew my patience would pay off...the thrift delivered a denim skirt in my size, with pockets, correct length - some are SO short, ...and only $3.49!! BINGO!
Continuing my "frugal autopilot" maneuvers - eating from freezer/pantry, taking coffee/lunch to work, taking my water bottle and a snack on errands, etc.