Five Frugal Things

by Katy on March 19, 2017 · 86 comments

  1. My mother and I spent an afternoon going to Goodwills, including one that was selling this large-for-a-toy-but-small-for-a-human Clone Trooper. Needless to say, I couldn’t resist having a bit of fun with it before putting it back on the shelf. We also stopped into a pay-by-the-pound Goodwill Outlet where I bought a hand embroidered pillow, a nice thick potholder, a Led Zeppelin T-shirt, a laser cut Star Wars clock up-cycled from an old record and some greeting card and vintage paper napkins for my mother. Total cost? $4.97. Guess which items are for my son’s upcoming 19th birthday?
  2. I wrote five Clark Howard articles this week, I worked two hospital shifts, I helped my mother clean one of her guest cottages and I gave away multiple items through my Buy Nothing Group.
  3. I binge watched The Kindness Diaries on Netflix. A great project from Leon Logothetis chronicling his around the world journey to rely solely on the kindness of strangers. Very much a message about non-consumerism, and I highly recommend for readers of this blog.
  4. I drove my mother through a Wendy’s restaurant, and treated her to a free Frosty Jr. using my $1 Frosty key tag that supports the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. (You buy the key tag once for $1 and then get a year of Frosty Jr.’s for free.)
  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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Nordstrom is Selling $95 “Clear Knee Mom Jeans” and The Internet is Losing its Mind!

by Katy on March 16, 2017 · 26 comments

This blog post first appeared over at ClarkHoward.com.

You’re a fan of Clark Howard, which means that you’re thoughtful and deliberate with your spending. In short, you’re “Clark Smart.” You think twice before spending your hard earned money, and when your social media feed suddenly fills up with people posting about how Nordstrom is selling a pair of $95 TopShop “Clear Knee Mom Jeans,” you think “that must be a joke!”

But they’re no joke.

Here’s the description: “Slick plastic panels bare your knees for a futuristic feel in tapered and cropped high-waist jeans.” Yes, you read that right. The future now includes plastic encased knees, plus a high waist to create the perfect “mom jeans” aesthetic.

Of course, the internet exploded with incredulous responses. Buzzfeed, quickly termed them “jindows,” (jeans + windows) and reported that they were “dividing the nation.” And Buffy The Vampire Slayer’s Tommy Lenk, (famous for recreating celebrity looks from household detritus) added this photo to his Instagram feed. and shared that his “knees were dripping with sweat after two minutes.”

Those of us old enough to remember the 1981 Ryan O’Neal film So Fine recognize the look. Of course, that film is described as a “satirical romp,” and should in no way be inspiring any real life fashion trends.

Perhaps the look is prompted by people complaining of shiveringly wet knees after wearing TopShops’s “Hayden Ripped Boyfriend Jeans.” After all, they’re a British fashion house, and what is England known for besides rain?

Look, brr . . .

Luckily, you’re too smart to be tempted by this bizarre (and hopefully brief) style trend. You follow Will Roger’s famous quote that “The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it in your back pocket”

That is, if your jeans still include a back pocket.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

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

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Five Frugal Things

by Katy on March 15, 2017 · 61 comments

  1. I went for a walk with my friend Lise yesterday. We dropped off plastics recycling, deposited checks at our credit union, returned library materials and then stopped into Fred Meyer, where I bought bananas and two loaves of 79¢ clearance-priced bread. I didn’t use Pi Day (3/14) as an excuse to buy a $3.14 apple pie, as 1) I don’t understand what “Pi” really is, and 2) I’m better off without a gross but delicious grocery store pie.
  2. I ran my hand under the coin counting machine at the credit union and was rewarded with four quarters, one nickel and a single penny. I added this money to my Found Change Challenge jar.
  3. I put together two quick offers for my Buy Nothing Group. I now have people in a hippity-hoppity mood to come over to pick up boxes of leftover sparklers and four packets of matcha green tea powder that I received as gifts. Slightly less clutter in my kitchen and I put already manufactured goods into the hands of people who will use them, I call that a win!
  4. I wrote and submitted two new articles for Clark Howard yesterday. The next tuition/room/board payment is looming large, (April 1st) so I’m taking full advantage of any and all income opportunities. I’m puttering around the house today to get ready for house guests, but hope to put together at least one more article.
  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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Lexie House, The End of an Era

by Katy on March 14, 2017 · 18 comments

If you’ve been reading The Non-Consumer Advocate for any length of time, you’ve heard me refer to my mother’s “guest cottages.” Although these two small houses predate the current tiny house movement by a century or so, they’re 100% on trend with the current less is more mentality.

My mother rents them out through VRBO.com and HomeAway.com, and I help out in various ways, but mostly by helping clean between tenants and other miscellaneous chores. It’s a bit of work for me, and a tremendous amount of work for my mother.

Here’s Lexie House, my favorite:

And from the other direction:

So cute, right?

I think my parents bought this income property in 2007, and it’s been fun to have in the family. My family has staycationed here a time or two, most memorably during one horrendous heat wave, as it’s air conditioned and walking distance from a swimming pool. My young adult sons have fond memories of watching cable TV here, as well as rambunctiously throwing stuffed animals through a mysterious open square that’s placed high up between the living room and second bedroom. An odd, yet exciting sport that we invented.

My mother and step father put Lexie House up for sale last year and have been dealing with offers and issues ever since. The property finally sold last week and so my mother and I went over last night for one final cleaning session. It was bittersweet, and we took our time to ready it for the new owners. (Luckily, they want the entire contents of the house, which means no packing and schlepping.)

I’ll miss the extra income, but mostly I’ll miss the camaraderie of the shared work. Luckily, there’s still one other property, which my parents are unlikely to sell.

Although I’m nostalgic about the time my mother and I spent in the shared task of cleaning Lexie, I won’t miss the toilet scrubbing and surprise messes that people would invariably leave behind.

Goodbye, sweet Lexie House. May your new owners have as much fun with you as we did.

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Five Frugal Things

by Katy on March 13, 2017 · 57 comments

  1. I’m utterly exhausted from a grueling day at the hospital yesterday, so I’m mostly just sacked out on the couch and goofing around on Swagbucks. Of course I brought leftovers for my work lunch, drank the free crappy coffee and then drank the free wonderful tea. My cat thinks I should be petting her, but that would require physical effort.
  2. I watched a couple episodes of Outlander last night, as the library DVD’s are due in a couple of days and I don’t want to accrue any fines. (Oops . . . I just checked and the second season of Outlander was actually due yesterday. I guess the only responsible thing to do is to schedule some back-to-back episodes. What can I say? I’m committed to my frugality!)
  3. I made plans to clean one of my mother’s guest cottages this evening as well as meet up for a walk with a friend tomorrow. I rarely spend money to hang out with friends and I’ve always got a side gig or two to bring in extra money. This is key to my financial wellbeing.
  4. I seriously have zero energy today, but I’m going to force myself to cook up a few make ahead meals to make sure already bought food and ingredients won’t go to waste. Future Katy will be happy that today Katy forced her tuchus off the couch. There will be caffeine. Cascading waterfalls of caffeine.
  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.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Twitter.
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{ 57 comments }

How to Make Some Serious Extra Cash With Focus Groups

by Katy on March 12, 2017 · 10 comments

The blog post first appeared over at ClarkHoward.com.

If you’re wanting to bring in extra money without a long term commitment, then you might want to look into participating in a consumer focus group. Focus groups are a great way to earn extra cash while sharing your opinion or knowledge on various topics. Essentially, you get paid to give your honest and focused feedback on consumer products or services that require some extra tweaking before heading to market. And the best part? You get paid, usually in cash, for just a couple hours of your time.

I’ve participated in three different consumer panels over the past few years, one about marinade labeling, another about a thermal cup design and a third about credit union branding. Each panel took approximately two hours of my evening, and I received between $100 – $150 for my valuable opinions. (And don’t tell anyone, but they were actually really fun.)

Let me paint a picture of what the experience is like. A group of 6-8 of us get seated around a conference table with a professional moderator to guide us through the research. There’s a two-way mirror along one wall, where marketing bigwigs hang on our every word. (Or more likely, a video camera.) Most of our feedback is verbal, although a small amount is written. There’s zero preparation required, so all you have to bring is your opinionated self.

Also, there are snacks. Gotta love free food!

How to make money through focus groups:

  • Find a company with an outlet in your area. The company I’ve worked with has offices here in Portland, Oregon, as well as Las Vegas and Seattle. Larger markets such as Los Angeles, New York and Atlanta will offer more than my own mid-size city, but you can find marketing companies almost anywhere through websites such as FocusGroups.org, PaidFocusGroups.com and FocusGroup.com.
  • Click through your area’s focus group website to fill out a profile, then browse through upcoming panels to see if you’re a good fit for any upcoming research. The key is to return to these websites every few weeks to check if any panels match your interests and demographics.
  • Once placed into a focus group, make sure to show up on time and be ready to impart opinions on stuff you might normally not think that much about. Be truthful though, as they’re paying big bucks for your thoughtful feedback.
  • Get paid. It really is this simple.

Here’s a random sample of some focus groups that are currently recruiting:

  • This focus group is “looking for Portland Beer Drinkers! We want to know what you like and don’t like.”
  • This Chicago focus group is scouting for “feedback of people ages 16-24 on the topic of new TV shows.”
  • This San Diego focus group is “looking for male and female science teachers to participate in a new study about Science Teachers.”
  • This New York City focus group is “looking for people, ages 40-64, for an upcoming paid focus group on financial products”

The opportunities are almost endless, and although most focus group require you to come in person, others are online. So really, there’s something for everyone!

Conclusion:

Consumer opinion focus groups are a great way to bring in extra money without the commitment of a traditional job. Perfect for those who need to work from home or choose to limit their commitments. Market researchers need this consumer feedback before rolling out their products and services, so you’re helping to keep half-baked ideas from reaching the market. Plus, it’s a fun way to spend an evening adding money into your wallet instead of draining it.

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Five Frugal Things

by Katy on March 11, 2017 · 72 comments

  1. My husband and I enjoyed a cheap afternoon date yesterday that involved drinking free coffee at Ikea, driving through Wendy’s for a free junior Frosty and then picking up cat litter at Costco. Others might consider our “date” to be less than romantic, but since financial stress is often quoted as being the number one marital stressor, I say that we’re promoting a healthy marriage.
  2. I walked to the mailbox and passed by the above box of CD’s. I was initially excited, until I discovered that the cases were all empty. I wish the owner had taken the time to donate them to Scrap, (and I was tempted to bring them home to save them from littering the landfill) but that way lies madness. And I’ve got enough on my plate as it is.
  3. I vacuumed both the front and back of the carpet remnant that’s been in my son’s room for 19 years, and then replaced it with the $500 Ikea rug that I garbage picked earlier in the week. I immediately listed it on my local Buy Nothing Group. I look around my son’s room and realize that I’ve spent less than $30 for all his furniture. Mind you, there are $10,000 of Legos and Bionicles in the closet, so don’t get too impressed.
  4. Yesterday I dropped off plastics recycling, added some magazines to a Little Free Library, dropped batteries and a CFL lightbulb into Ikea’s recycling bins, found a penny on the ground, watched a couple episodes of  Outlander DVD’s from the library and assembled a dinner using stuff on hand, even though I really didn’t feel like it.
  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.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Twitter.
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{ 72 comments }

One Frugal Mess

by Katy on March 8, 2017 · 42 comments

You know what’s frugal? Cooking dry black beans in your pressure cooker. However, sometimes frugal plans go sideways.

Literally.

As in a sideways spray of liquid beans that coats your kitchen.

Fuuuu . . . . 

Katy Wolk-Stanley

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

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{ 42 comments }

Five Frugal Things

by Katy on March 7, 2017 · 86 comments

  1. I garbage picked a rug, which prompted me to schlep my trusty Craigslist Bissell rug shampooer from the basement. It’s the Ikea Gatten rug, which originally sold for $500 as it’s hand knotted and 100% wool. The now perfect looking rug will live in my older son’s room to replace a scrappy piece of carpet remnant that I put in as a temporary solution 19 years ago! The carpet remnant? I’ll list it in my Buy Nothing Group.
  2. I brought home a large amount of leftover food from one of my mother’s guest cottages. This included an unopened pound of frozen shrimp, carrots, bok choy, red potatoes, eggs, hummus, a jar of pasta sauce and a few other items. I’ll put together a large shrimp stir-fry for tonight’s dinner!
  3. My husband and I picked up our younger son from college to attend the Portland Timbers’ season opening soccer game. He stayed home for two nights and then I drove him the 2-1/2 hours back to school. Although all this driving is far from frugal, we saved money by twice eating dinner in his dorm’s dining hall. He always has extra points as he misses some breakfasts, so we might as well enjoy some of the food we’re already paying for.
  4. I renewed all my library books, I wore a 100% thrifted outfit for a professional appearance, I brought dribs and drabs of leftovers as a work lunch and I continue to not buy anything.
  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.”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Twitter.
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{ 86 comments }

The Lesson of The $300 Sunglasses

by Katy on March 5, 2017 · 29 comments

The following of a reprint of a previously published post. Enjoy!

I may live my life avoiding the mall as if my life depended on it, but my kids are teenagers and make their own choices. Just yesterday, my 15-year-old son and a friend spent a couple hours after school shopping for a birthday gift and enjoying all that our nearby mall has to offer. I picked them up afterwards, (I’m not a fan of nighttime mass transit for my kids) and enjoyed listening to their chatter in the backseat of the car.

“Did you see that $300 pair of sunglasses?”

“No. Were they made from gold?”

“They actually looked really normal.”

At this point I had to interject.

“I like to find sunglasses at Goodwill, that way I don’t freak out if they get lost or scratched up.”

I started to think about how because my thrifted sunglasses are so cheap, that I end up treating them, well . . . less than respectfully. They slosh around in my purse, jostling up against my keys, wallet and assorted detritus, garnering about as much respect as Rodney Dangerfield at a 1970’s feminist convention. And really, why should I care? They’re cheap, cheap, cheap!

But this is not good. Essentially, I am treating my belongings poorly because I know they are easily replaceable and cost less than a drive-thru burger. If I bought the $300 sunglasses, you know I would store them in a sunglasses case, making sure to clean them only with a microfiber cloth with much admiring of myself in the rear view mirror. In  others words, not the Rodney Dangerfield treatment.

The lesson here? I should continue to buy my sunglasses at Goodwill, but treat them as if I didn’t. And really, I should treat all my Stuff in this manner. $15 antique desk? Still need to use a coaster. Bargain of a fixer-upper house? Should still occasionally clean it.

Have you found that you treat your cheap purchases worse than if you’d spent a ton of money? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

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

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