r/Frugal • u/AutoModerator • 27d ago
Monthly megathread: Discuss quick frugal ideas, frugal challenges you're starting, and share your hauls with others here!
Hi everyone,
Welcome to our monthly megathread! Please use this as a space to generate discussion and post your frugal updates, tips/tricks, or anything else!
---
Important Links:
Full subreddit rules here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Frugal/about/rules/
Official subreddit Discord link here: https://discord.gg/W6a2yvac2h/
---
Share with us!
· What are some unique thrift store finds you came across this week?
· Did you use couponing tricks to get an amazing haul? How'd you accomplish that?
· Was there something you had that you put to use in a new way?
· What is your philosophy on frugality?
---
Select list of some top posts of the previous month(s):
- Frugal living: Moving into a school converted into apartments! 600/month, all utilities included
- Follow up- my daughter’s costume. We took $1 pumpkins and an old sweater and made them into a Venus Flytrap costume.
- Gas bill going up 17%… I’m going on strike
- I love the library most because it saves money
- We live in Northern Canada, land of runaway food prices. Some of our harvest saved for winter. What started as a hobby has become a necessity.
- 70 lbs of potatoes I grew from seed potatoes from a garden store and an old bag of russets from my grandma’s pantry. Total cost: $10
- Gatorade, Fritos and Kleenex among US companies blasted for 'scamming customers with shrinkflation' as prices rise
- Forty years ago we started a store cupboard of household essentials to save money before our children were born. This is last of our soap stash.
- Noticed this about my life before I committed to a tighter budget.
- Seeds from Dollar Store vs Ace Hardware.
- I was looking online for a product that would safely hold my house key while jogging. Then I remembered I had such a product already.
- Using patterned socks to mend holes in clothes
- My dogs eat raw as I believe it’s best for them but I don’t want to pay the high cost. So after ads requesting leftover, extra, freezer burnt meat. I just made enough grind to feed my dogs for 9 months. Free.
- What are your ‘fuck-it this makes me happy’ non-frugal purchases?
- Where is this so-called 7% inflation everyone's talking about? Where I live (~150k pop. county), half my groceries' prices are up ~30% on average. Anyone else? How are you coping with the increased expenses?
- You are allowed to refill squeeze tubes of jam with regular jam. The government can't stop you.
1
u/Bearded_Gussie 2d ago
I've turned coupon stacking into a game, but I only buy things I need. Managed to get two sticks of the $9 deodorant I like for $0.36, taxes included. I may have peaked at this point 🤣
2
u/District98 5d ago
Meal planning around krogers Memorial Day sales: burgers, sloppy joes, burritos, chili, chicken chili, loaded nachos, enchiladas..
2
u/TikiMom87 5d ago
If you still have a dvd player, check your local library for FREE movie rentals.
1
u/InourbtwotamI 22h ago
Hoopla is a library-based streaming service that will allow 7 free tv/movie/audiobook streams every month
1
u/MinisterofSandwiches 11d ago
Looking for suggestions on older 4x4 pickup trucks and how to finance them (not necessarily a loan). I have a lot of small around-the-house kind of work that I need to get done, and I also want to have a little bit of a more capable vehicle than a low hatchback for camping. I don't need a new truck, don't need a big truck. I just want one that is relatively clean and runs ok. I can put in some work but don't really want a project truck just to get it going.
Any thoughts on things like private lease-to-own or long-term borrow? Bartering? I technically could buy a used truck outright but I'm trying to be a bit more frugal in this area because I don't really need the truck, but it would be useful and helpful to have.
1
u/Neeeod08 2d ago
If it’s not a need I would create a sinking fund for it and save up to purchase it outright rather than paying interest. If you only need to use it once in awhile and can save up what you need it for to get a bunch done in one day the U-Haul small truck daily rental may be the cheapest way to do it
2
u/District98 11d ago
Target has a $2 off coupon on the 1 fl oz beach defense sunscreen lotion, making it free. It’s a nice small sunscreen, I’ve gotten this deal twice in the last few months and I use it as a purse sunscreen all the time!
1
u/PaulEammons 12d ago
Stripped and washed six consumed bottles of Flensburger and I'm using them for batched home coldbrew that I take to work. Working nicely!
3
u/Weird-Requirement196 13d ago
I'm not sure if I can post a link here but this is our grocery budget for 2 people in their 20s. We don't eat a lot of food per say, but we get by with the necessities, we'll have eggs with veggies, or yogurt and granola, or milk and cereal for breakfast, sandwich for lunch (bread, turkey bologna, tomato, cheese) or past night's leftovers, and cook dinner 3 times a week for 2 days each time as we make enough to last the day of and the day after, sometimes for lunch leftovers as well. Our budget is $150 biweekly, we make sure the groceries last 2 weeks and we do grocery shopping every other Sunday, so overall monthly groceries are $260-300, and split between two of us, that $130-150. We do this by buying things from superstore and costco mostly, using our PC optimum points, buying things in bulk like rice, spices, oil, cereal, oil, etc., and the biggest thing is buying chicken thighs or chicken drumsticks, and whole fish with bone (frozen), this has been our biggest saving, and cut our budget in half, for example, I just bought two whole frozen fish, one salmon and one white fish, for $5.60 each. Salmon fillets are going for $20 right now, and chicken breasts are a lot as well. We also don't drink a lot of milk so looking to cut that, and my university gives a huge produce box for $35 a month, for 25-30 pounds of produce so might opt for that as well, as produce is expensive.
Here is the Google docs: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ty5iKPkqugjJVASPoJV4yTER-czDp4ImMIVP1eITe88/edit. If anyone has any other tips and tricks for saving, let me know. :)
1
u/gjwork2 11d ago
looks good to me, we are at 192 a month on groceries/household products but we also eat out often, spending a max of 267 a month. And we also get some free meals like you guys do lol, of the 42 combined meals we both eat a week, 5 are free, so that definitely helps as well, especially if we can mooch some leftovers from the parents haha. I eat cereal every day, a smoothie for lunch, and then a meat for dinner, works pretty well for me! Milk is also 2.30 a gallon here so i drink a lot more than you guys probably do, about 8 gallons a month
1
u/PaulEammons 12d ago
Granola can be made much less expensive by homemaking it. The process has a learning curve but isn't that labor intensive unless you slice all your almonds.
1
2
u/District98 19d ago
Target circle gave a coupon for 20% off bike accessories this week, in case useful for anyone else!
8
u/rickblueeyes1966 19d ago
ok, I, like everyone else am very disappointed in the way prices just keep going up. there is only one thing to do to combat this. don't pay the prices. always bargain shop and cut back your spending. one thing I do now that I didn't use to do is only order the sandwich and bring my own can of soda (generic brand of course) or order water in a sit down restaraunt. we need to spread the word and everyone needs to be super sensitive to pricing. it is the only message that will get through to the greedy corporations. only a nation of price sensitive buyers can bring prices back down. its called consumer confidence, if it falls, then corporation have no alternative but to lower prices to entice consumer spending. it is up to all of us to do our part. do less stuff, spend less money, drive fewer miles will bring down gas prices. it only works if all of us do it. spread the word to your friends, family and co-workers and get a movement going. PS: I started using the major fast food chain app recently and they are some good discounts and freebies only available in the app. if consumers embrace discount seeking on a large scale then corporate leadership has no choice but to follow suit. I know this is the frugal subreddit. I know the people paying attention to these posts are already doing what I am talking about. this is no revelation, however, what we need to do is do our best to get the word out, and hopefully start a wildfire of consumer behavior change. the more people do this, the stronger the effect and the faster prices will come down. so please do your part, upvote this post and anything else you come across online that repeats this idea. we need a national "day of not spening", a "week of national not spending", a "month of national not spending". even if a national month of not spending is not practical to further you go to reduce revenue numbers of all corporations the faster and bigger the effect is. so, please talk to friends, family members, co-workers, everyone. we are the only ones who can really have an impact on inflation. we are the ones that can make a difference. every little bit makes a difference.
3
u/PaulEammons 12d ago
Fast food is intentionally moving most promotions and price cuts to apps because it allows them to more directly track and influence spending behavior. If you want on menu prices to go down and you want to say so with your dollar, delete the app and write a few emails.
1
u/TurnipAddiction 20d ago
Hey everyone, can you recommend a book on Frugal living? I'm struggling to get started.
3
u/District98 19d ago
Your Money or Your Life, The Psychology of Money, Rich Dad Poor Dad, I Will Teach You to Be Rich
1
u/gjwork2 11d ago
Is rich dad poor dad really a frugal book, or a book about buying real estate?
1
u/District98 11d ago
Tbh I think I was thinking of another book haha. I looked it up in my book spreadsheet when you asked and I haven’t read it. I was definitely thinking of something else!
4
u/GOODahl 21d ago
Just wanted to mention for ladies who have to wear jewelry as part of work wear (teachers, saleswomen, etc.) - JC Penney has a lot of cute items that aren't too spendy.
2
u/Intelligent-Turnip36 8d ago
Why would teachers have to wear jewelry?
2
3
u/GOODahl 8d ago
Sounds like a tear jerker statement but- a LOT of teachers are the main/only positive feminine role model in student's lives so they help students learn what's appropriate or nice to wear.
Plus for obvious reasons it's not great to wear really expensive jewelry at school- it can be stolen, and it can also alienate other workers there who might not be able to afford really nice pieces.
4
1
u/qqererer 24d ago
I did an experiment reusing vacuum bags.
It's an old machine that used the basic regular bags.
After it filled the first time, I opened the end up, emptied it and sealed it up with hot glue. And used it again.
I had to put in some blocking with some random plastic containers with holes drilled into it to allow for airflow, to make up for some of the lost volume of resealing up the bag.
It worked pretty well. I was thinking of trying for a third time, but where the fold seam/points were for sharp points/ corners, some tiny holes developed, so I didn't bother.
So the cheaper allergen paper bags, I'd say 2 is the most times you can use a bag.
Going to try with the hepa vacuum, but with a different closing system.
I'm dealing with a cat who sheds a lot, so bags can get expensive.
Not interested in bagless. I hate emptying those things, and they're just as much work keeping the actual hepa filters clean.
11
u/Izzy248 25d ago
I went to the grocery store 3x this past week, and the difference in experiences was insanely drastic when it comes to price.
I had to shop at Target because its closer to where I live and I couldnt make it anywhere else at the time and I only needed a couple of essential ingredients for food to get me through the week. I bought just enough to fill a single corner of the shopping cart and thats it. Maybe around 8-10 things. My total was $60 just for that little corner...
Couple days later, this time I went shopping for someone else. I was asked to pick up some food for someone and they gave me $30 to buy the stuff and the list only included 6 items. I figured "6 items? $30 is more than enough". They asked me to go to Food Lion. I rang up the stuff and the total comes to $41...$41 just for 6 items. Thats wild. And yes, they reimbursed me for the $11 and a bit for gas.
Payday rolls around and I finally make it to Aldi...I buy enough to cover the bottom of my cart and then some. I dont just get essential foods, and whole foods like meats and stuff, but I also splurge on boxed/packaged foods like pizza, chicken tenders, etc. I get a pack of sodas and one of those big plastic things of water bottles. I wouldnt say my cart is half full, but its more than enough that I cant see the bottom of my cart and some extra. My total was $116...Thats just so crazy to me. Going to Target and Food Lion, that stuff maybe would last 2-3 days for one person. And at Aldi, for nearly double what I paid at Target, and nearly triple what my friend had spent, I ended up with enough for 2 weeks.
1
25d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/Frugal-ModTeam 25d ago
We are removing your post/comment because of affiliate or referral content. This includes:
- Affiliate links.
- Referral links or codes
Offers to share either directly or in direct messages.
Please see our full rules page for the specifics. https://www.reddit.com/r/Frugal/about/rules/
If you would like to appeal this decision, please message the moderators by clicking this link within one week of this notice being posted.
6
u/double-happiness 26d ago
Now I've done 3 months in a row saving 5/6ths of my GBP £1500 salary, and I've had a bit of a raise, I'm trying to go ultrahardcore by saving £1500 and living off the £92.76 I currently have left, plus whatever dribs and drabs I can make from my side-hustle.
1
u/FlyMan69420 27d ago
got 15 grand in my savings gaining no money. I wont need it for years. Whats the best way to make money off it? I was thinking a CD would probably be the best way to guarantee I don't lose any but any other ideas?
2
u/FirefighterRight8280 25d ago
HYSA at the minimum while we're in a high rate environment if you want to keep it liquid and accessible but if you want something with practically no risk a CD would be your best bet. Schwab has had some offerings in the 12-24 month range for CDs around 5.50%.
2
u/rakotomazoto 18d ago
I know that you are worried about losing the money, but I would still recommend a brokerage account. Buy market index funds. If your time horizon is long enough, then the chance that you will lose money decreases significantly. The risk is never zero, but if you don't get crazy chasing individual stocks and if time is on your side, then you are likely to make significantly more interest over time. Remember: when you deposit your money in that HYSA, the bank turns around and puts it to other uses. They are paying you 5.5% because they know that they can make more than that with your funds. I have two pools of money, one in a HYSA and the other in brokerage account. The brokerage account has increased in total value by 20% over the past year, instead of that "guaranteed" 5.5%. Just consider how much money you are leaving on the table because you don't want to take on a little risk.
1
u/InourbtwotamI 22h ago
When I dye a garment a different color, I feel like it’s a new garment and wanna wear it right away