The Non-Consumer Advocate

1. I’ve been successful at not breaking into the Halloween candy, even though I changed my mind about storing it at the neighbor’s house which is my normal Katy-is-an-unapologetic-wierdo hack. (Instead, I shoved it into the back of our attic space to protect it from inevitable late night cravings.) I bought it during a 50%-off sale a couple weeks ago and look forward to handing it out to tonight’s adorable zombie cheerleaders and Darth Vaders. I’ll be alone at the house for the first time ever as my husband works and the kids are in college, but I still plan on dressing up and reveling in the neighborhood fun.

2. I sold an antique cast iron skillet through Facebook Marketplace that was a pay-by-pound Goodwill Outlet find. I then sold a textbook through eBay that I’d pulled from a free pile while dropping my son off at college. I was put on call for work yesterday and then immediately called back in, which gave me four hours of overtime pay. I submitted another Clark Howard article and proposed two more article ideas.

3. I borrowed my friend Lise’s sweater shaver to tidy up a Pendleton wool sweater that I’d bought at the Goodwill Outlet. I’d intended the sweater for my husband, but it was too small for him which means I now own a refreshed pill-free and cozy sweater for fall. I don’t own very much clothing, and this addition is perfect as the sweater is warm but still pretty thin. Plus, we Oregonians love our Pendleton wool!

4. I worked yesterday and brought my own lunch, and then drank the free crappy coffee and the free delicious tea, I decorated my front porch using Halloween doo-dads that a former neighbor had handed down to me a million years ago, I gave my friend Lise a can of La Croix cranberry seltzer as a thank you for the sweater shaver and I let my free HBO subscription expire without renewing it, (I only wanted it for Game of Thrones.)

5. I didn’t buy a Lear Jet or a vulgar gold-plated apartment in the sky.

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. I worked yesterday and brought food from home, even though all I had for a heat-and-eat meal was half of a roasted acorn squash, hard boiled eggs and a banana. I worked my tuchus off and needed every single drop of the free crappy coffee and the free delicious tea.

2. I came home and remembered that they’d started airing the second season of The Durrells in Corfu on the PBS Roku channel. I loved the My Family & Other Animals books when I was a child, and even read them aloud to my sons when I became a parent. This Masterpiece Theater series is one of the few television adaptations that does justice to the source material. Laying in bed watching the struggles and adventures of the perfectly imperfect Durrell family was the perfect end to an exhausting day.

3. I’ll be treating my mother to a Birthday Day of Adventures this afternoon. I won’t spoil the surprise by sharing my specific plans, but there will be an anchor activity, a meal and then a treat. All based on my mother’s interests and centered around a single locality. Very few of us are wanting for miscellaneous knick-knacks and random tchotchkes, so I encourage you to consider replacing your thing based gifts with experience based gifts. After all, multiple studies have shown that experiences make us happier than physical objects. Plus the enjoyment of the gift can be shared with all who participate. Click HERE to see how we celebrated last year.

4. I decided that I didn’t like the You’re a Badass at Making Money book that I currently have from the library. The author’s tone and central premise about the super cool amazingness of being rich rubbed me the wrong way, so I’ll be returning it to the library this afternoon. It’s a couple days overdue, so I’d planned on dedicating time to finish it, but instead I decided to cut my losses. I’ll also drop off our election ballots at the library, which will save us 98¢.

5. I didn’t buy a Lear Jet or a vulgar gold-plated apartment in the sky.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

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

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1. I made sure to buy my Halloween candy over the weekend when Fred Meyer (Kroger) ran a special e-coupon where all candy was 50%-off with a $10 purchase. I stacked this deal with coupons and ended up spending just $13.48 on a mountain of candy. (There’s enough that I’ll likely return a couple of unopened bags after Halloween.) However, my not so secret money saving hack is that I annually store our candy with the next door neighbors so we’re not tempted to snack on it. (Step one is admitting you have a problem.)

2. I sold some Jonathan Adler bookends through eBay, I sold a vintage suitcase and board game through Craigslist, I listed a couple of newly thrifted items on eBay and then I renewed all my random online listings. I also attended a paid four hour meeting at work.

3. We celebrated my mother’s 75th birthday on Saturday, which was marked by a luxurious restaurant meal courtesy of my stepfather. Instead of a physical gift, I’ll be treating my mother to a birthday day of adventures to create memories instead of clutter.

4. My son was too sick to attend a soccer game, so my husband sold his ticket for $27, I bought a new tea kettle at the Goodwill Outlet as our old one had a broken whistle, and then I listed our old one in my buy nothing group, I then gave away a sleeve of disposable cups through the same buy nothing group, I arranged a USPS porch pickup to avoid a post office errand and I’m wearing the same thrifted sweater and jeans that’s pretty much my dull mom uniform. Whether you call it the elevated term of “capsule wardrobe” or simply just own hardly any clothing, it’s still a frugal choice. (By the way, I do not have a “capsule wardrobe,” I simply have zero interest in fashion.)

5. I didn’t buy a Lear Jet or a vulgar gold-plated apartment in the sky.

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. I was on my way to a work meeting, when I came to the realization that traffic was peak crappy and I should just turn my car back around. (There’s a repeat of this meeting on Monday.) I took this as an opportunity to make a Costco run to gas up the car, return a $45 item and pick up coffee, honey and the dog food that I buy for my father’s dog. I then dropped off the dog food and popped in one of my favorite Goodwills. I bought a couple of mugs to resell on eBay and nothing else.

2. I worked yesterday and brought some leftover split pea soup that needed to get eaten up. I somehow avoided all the candy and cookies that populate break rooms this time of year, which should earn me some kind of medal. Nothing frugal about eating a gut-ton of unhealthy food, even when it’s free.

3. I’m arranging to sell three items through Craigslist, NextDoor.com and Facebook Marketplace tomorrow. I sold some Discovery toys marble roll pieces through eBay and I’m thisclose to being ready to put a finish on my Broyhill credenza buffet sideboard cupboard thingy, which should bring in a couple hundred dollars. I also have two new paid writing assignments. I know it’s a ridiculous goal, but I’d like to bring in an extra $1000 per week with all my side hustles.

4. My husband brought me a big box of free bubble wrap from his work.

5. I didn’t buy a Lear Jet or a vulgar gold-plated apartment in the sky.

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. I remembered that I had a free trial voucher for the Chinook Book app. This was perfect timing as my plans for today included a movie theater with 2-for-1 Chinook Book coupons. This translated into my friend Nancy and I being able to pay $2 apiece for our theater admission! Again, yes, I am a unapologetic cheap date.

2. I spent hours scraping paint from the midcentury buffet that’s been my summer project that somehow snuck in the fall season. I pretty much have all the paint stripped off, and should have the piece completed by the end of the week. I’ve toyed with the idea of keeping it, but I’m trying to increase my side gig income so I won’t have to work so many hours at the hospital. I figure I should be able to get $200-$300 for it when all is done, which will be a nice reward for all my hard work.

3. I was leafing through a magazine when I realized that I miraculously had almost all the ingredients for a Quinoa and Roasted Pepper Chili recipe. Not only did it use up the 1/4-cup of quinoa that’s been slowly aging in my pantry, but I’d just picked up super cheap peppers and zucchini from The Grocery Outlet. Sure it called for kidney beans, but I substituted black beans, and sure it called for “fire roasted diced tomatoes,” but regular diced tomatoes did the trick. The end result was incredibly delicious and will most certainly be added to our rotation. I love soups this time of year, and am happy to welcome a new recipe into my somewhat tired repertoire.

4. I have buyers who are interested in a cast iron pan and a vintage suitcase, both recently picked up at the Goodwill Outlet. I just got an email from someone who wants to buy a board game that I nabbed while visiting my son last week. I sold one eBay item and am working two days this week.

5. I didn’t buy a Lear Jet or a vulgar gold-plated apartment in the sky.

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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This post first appeared over at ClarkHoward.com. Enjoy!

It seems that the internet is crowded with every category of life hack, you know the type. “Seven life changing hacks, you won’t believe number four!” Unfortunately, 9 times out of ten there’s not even a single piece of new or useful information within those dratted listicles.

Lucky for you, I’ve tested out the following four beauty hacks, which should hopefully steer you in the right direction.

Re-solidify powdered makeup

I must be a closet klutz, as it’s pretty common for my pressed makeup (such as eye shadow and blusher) to transform into a powdery mess, tempting me to just toss it into the trash.

But I recently came across a tip of how to bring accidentally powdered makeup back to a solid state, requiring nothing more than a few drops of isopropyl alcohol, commonly known as “rubbing alcohol.”

• Step one: Gently break up the makeup until it’s a uniform powdery consistency. (I used the back of my makeup brush.)

• Step two: Drip in the isopropyl alcohol until it’s uniformly wet, but not watery.

• Step three: Smooth the mixture so there’s an even top surface. Make sure to leave the lid open so it dries in a timely manner.

• Step four: Enjoy your refreshed product!

Grade: A+ 

Scrape out every last bit

Another frustrating makeup experience is when a tube or bottle of liquid makeup has an inaccessible amount of product that stubbornly clings to the side. Of course you can spend $5.78 for a “beauty spatula” to address this issue, but there’s a free option for those of us who prefer to hold onto our money, which is the Starbucks green plastic stick, officially called a “splash stick.” (See? You learned something new right there!)

Did it work as well as a spatula? Probably not, but it was certainly able to get into nooks and crannies that my applicator sponge couldn’t access. Just make sure to not use this hack as an justification for an expensive coffee purchase!

Grade: B+

Shave with conditioner

I recently had an opportunity to try out this beauty hack as I was staying in a hotel and staring down one of those tiny bottles of conditioner.

Although the conditioner was a thinner consistency than a traditional shaving cream, it still did a serviceable job of providing a smooth shaving experience. This is a perfect use for hotel conditioners, which are already a travel friendly size. (Actually smaller than official travel-size shaving cream.) Plus most of us have a few of these already floating around in our homes.

Will I replace my traditional shaving cream with conditioner? No. But I can certainly add this into my travel routine.

Grade: A

Powdered cocoa as eyebrow filler

I should preface this hack by admitting that I normally don’t give even a moment’s thought to my eyebrows, so it’s hard to compare this product to its traditional counterpart. However, in the name of research I dove right in.

This hack was a bust, as I ended up smelling like a Hershey bar, but looking like Groucho Marx.

Perhaps someone with superior eyebrow grooming skills would have better luck with this hack, but for me, this one was a hard “no.”

Grade: D-

The best frugal hack when it comes to makeup and general beauty products is to buy from a store with a liberal return policy. This includes Rite Aid, who promises that “Any opened or used beauty product of any brand name can be returned for a full refund when accompanied by a receipt.” Although think twice before buying from Walgreen’s whose “Returns and exchanges for specific items, particularly cosmetics and electronics, are handled on an individual basis by individual store managers.”

Hopefully you’ve learned something that will help you to simplify your beauty routine while keeping your hard earned dollars in your wallet.

Your pal,

Groucho Marx

Katy Wolk-Stanley

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

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