Being Frugal...

[Cookiebaker]

How do you spend less/save more money? With the bad economic outlook lately, I have been trying really hard to cut down on expenses. We are in the middle of yet another house construction project, so it is good incentive for me to be extra careful with spending right now.

One way is at the grocery store...I have cut out buying individual yogurts (we were going through 3/day, one for each of us, and instead getting the large size container. Right there, that is saving me close to $8/week. The same thing with individual fruit cups, and getting the larger sized cans and dividing them up myself. And I am also buying ALOT more store brands, and 95% of the time they taste the same.


Another area is clothes buying...lately, Lydia has been outgrowing her 2T outfits so fast, so I decided to try a local thrift store near us. I normally HATE thrift store shopping because usually they are filthy nasty, and you have to dig through piles of clothes to find the sizes that you want.

However, my BFF has been recommending this one store to me....they wash every single thing (they have a room with 2 washers/ 2 dryers) before they put it out. Not only that, but they have it all organized out by size and boy/girl. And when you walk into their building it smells so clean in there. I was SO impressed!

Anyway, this is what I got for $27 yesterday:

Five shirts:



Two dresses (the denim one is brand new):



Three skirts:



Four pairs of pants:


Everything:


I will definitely go back there!

So please share ways to be frugal...I'm all ears!

[moosmom]

What a great deal you got!! I've been cutting back alot as well. I called around for car insurance. Looks like I'm staying with Travelers. I spoke with Amica and thought I'd died and gone to heaven till I read her my stats on my previous policy. I have alot more coverage with Travelers ($92/month) than Amica could've given me ($103/month).

Oh well. I tried.

I love going to consignment shops. Why pay full price when you can get a deal on "gently used" items.

[Nomilynn]

Since I haven't been working, I have really made an effort to not drive and/or combine my trips. When I have a job interview on a particular day, I do what I can to also run my errands at the same time, and go in a circle. My car gets good mileage, but I'm spending half as much on gas as I did before - approx only $80/month insead of every 2wks. It also helps that I'm not driving to work.

We also have recently got a WalMart Super Store in my area, and I'm buying more groceries there. Where I might spend over $200 at a Safeway, I can get at the WalMart for $130.

I also almost never buy anything at full price. I'm going to wait to use my Christmas money and gift certificates and buy my clothes on the winter blow-out sales.

[kuhio98]

We've been buying lots of clothes from the Human Society thriftshop. My husband swims 3 mornings a week and the chlorine in the pool ruins his swimsuits. So, he buys all his trunks from the thrift store for $1 each. Maybe we've just been lucky, but we've never been to a thriftshop where the clothes/items were dirty.

Saving money items that come to mind:

quit smoking -- my sister estimates she would save over $3000 a year IF she quit smoking.

get rid of cell phones -- we don't have any and the world keeps turning....

get rid of cable/satellite TV -- again, not as important as food in the fridge

I use coupons for everything -- especially pet food/supplies

Our local video store has a 2'fer Tuesday program. We rent 2 movies for the price of 1 every Tuesday.

Turn down the heat 1 degree. Turn down the hot water heater. Why heat 50 gallons of water all day?

Our internet would go before we'd go without utilities or health insurance.

Sell CDs/DVDs you don't want anymore on Craigslist.

Turn off the lights! I'm always amazed when I drive by a house that has every light on.

Unscrew some light bulbs. We have 4 overhead light fixtures in this house. Each one has SIX light bulbs in it. When we turn on the lights, it feels like you need to wear sunglasses! We removed 3 bulbs from each fixture and it's much better.

To save gas, I put the clutch in/put the car in neutral and coast down hills.

[Taz_Zoee]

I do not shop for clothes. The clothes I have are so worn out. That's what I asked for for Christmas, gift cards so I can buy some clothes. And I'll go to Target and look for clearance items.

When we grocery shop we always buy store brand or what's on sale for the best value. We shop at Safeway so we "feel" like we save with the club card thingy.

I get a discount on pet food and supplies for being a volunteer at ARF. And our heat is on a timer so it's down at certain times of the day. Unfortunately, Bruce works at home so that doesn't help. One good thing is he doesn't drive TOO much. He has a SUV.

[Twisterdog]

I always buy store brands when I can. It's such a long-term habit for me now, that I don't even think about it.

I am also really good at using left-overs the next night, so we don't waste food. Porkchops on Monday become pork fajitas on Tuesday.

I only buy clothes on clearance, and it has to be a deep clearance at that.

I am quitting smoking on the first, that should save a bundle.

But, I'm not the one with outrageous spending habits, never have been. I just don't care. If I won the lottery tomorrow, I still would hate to shop. But DH, OTOH, thinks every dime needs to be spent. If he were in control of the family budget, we would be in debt over our heads and buying more every month. It's a constant battle, though, let me tell you.

[RICHARD]

I do not shop for clothes. The clothes I have are so worn out. That's what I asked for for Christmas, gift cards so I can buy some clothes. And I'll go to Target and look for clearance items.
.

I have a 'wonderful' story about close outs at Target.

I bought a pair of cotton shorts for three dollars at a clearance.

They had an elastic waistband that drove me nuts-pun intended!

I was always shifting them to get them comfy and one day, I inadvertantly exposed myself to a child!

I figured out why, one day when I they were ready to be tossed into the rag pile.

One leg was two inches shorter than the other. Being a 'guy' I never paid attention to my laundry until one day when I was folding my stuff CAREFULLY!

I had a great laugh and promised myself to pay attention to what I buy on sale and when to where it.

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Frugal?

I walk to all my shopping expeditions. I could KISS my dad! If I need something I have every available store, market, supplier within walking distance!

I just have to be careful of what I buy....I even have a THAI food store 4 blocks away!!!

[catnapper]

We're also in the middle of house repairs. Right now, we're painting the livingroom and dining room. I bought a 5 gallon bucket of NICE paint from the local paint store for $5. It was a mis-tint from a locAL contractor. I often get 1 gallon cans for $1. You can get them from Lowe's and Home Depot too, but its more expensive from them. Only problem... I ran out of the tan trim color and now I have to actually have them MAKE MORE for me

I do everything myself and take my time. Nothing is better and more cost-effective than doing somethign right hte first time 'round.

[Daisy and Delilah]

There are some great tips here. Thanks to everybody.

I just wanted to say that alot of people don't realize how helpful it is to save on every little thing you can. Five or ten cents may not seem like alot but it adds up. I've learned not to waste anything over the years. It really pays off in the long run.

I forgot about not always flushing the toilet. Great tip!! When we had the floods in my area, earlier this year, I wasn't able to flush very much for days. That was pretty bad, but, it really isn't that bad to only flush when really needed. I don't get to the gross point but I stretch it to the limit. It saves alot of money.

[DJFyrewolf36]

Whenever I get change, I put it in a pocket on my cars visor. I find at the end of the month I usually have about $10...in my car thats half a tank!

I only fill up twice a month as is, only spending about $40 a month in gas makes a huge difference.

[catmandu]

If I see something the Found Ctas can use I grab it and take it home.
And My Angels lead me to where I ca find things that have been disposed of like the Pittsurgh Steelers jacket worth about 60 dollars hair bed, and the two storage end tables!!!
And the sectional thats on the Cat Porch , and the bookshelf as well.
2008 was a great year for Free Stuff!
And I keep my eyes on the Pet Store Flyers they had 20 pound bags of Pro Plan for 20 dollars!!
And 44 pounds of litter 5.93!
It pays to save!!!

[aki]

another thing i do at christmas is save and reuse all the boxes, tissue paper and gift bags. i use the fronts from the christmas cards i get to use for gift tags the following year. sometimes you can get more then one from each card. i either tape them on packages and write on them, or punch a hole in the corner and tie them on with ribbon. scrapbooking scissors are fun to use if you want a funky edge.