Saving Money

what are your tips for saving money?

 

Cook from scratch.
Don't buy brand name food.
Don't buy pop or fast food.

Most of our expenses are fixed, but food costs can vary a lot.

 

thanks for getting rid of those nasty replies...

thanks for the new ones!

 

yeah the anti semite! what an ass!
anyhoo, we're feeding a family of 2 for like $20 a month. no shit. actually i'm super frugal but like to get other ideas and become even MORE of a cheapskate! bwaaaaaaa!

 

You probably do all the stuff I suggest then. Before you buy something, stop and ask yourself do you really need it. Thats a good one. God only knows how many books and crap I would have bought if I didn't do that.

Also it helps if your vegan and stuff. I wouldn't spend money eating out or buy soft drinks, sweets or stuff. Plus isn't meat realy expensive.

 

If frugal is what you are looking for, aslo check out the Tightwad Gazette books....they are full of tips.

 

oh yeah tightwad gazette is great!
it definately made a difference in our $$ by going veg and quitting drinking!

 

Good thread. As a stay-at-home mama I'm always on the look-out for money-saving tips. I'll have to check out some of those books.

 

The method - Introducing the frugal life style

Without changing jobs, and without investing anything but a little effort, you can have more money in your pocket and more in your bank account. If you want a new car, you can get one. You can buy the house you need. You can get out of debt.



It's a simple matter of frugal living. Pinch a few pennies that don't matter; live frugally in ways that no one will ever notice; or make an all out effort to be the world's greatest tightwad! All you need is some self-discipline, a little perseverance and lot of adventurous spirit!



Now, begin to add up the money you would save if you:

1. cooked a special meal instead of eating out.
2. went to a thrift shop for your next clothing purchase.
3. watched a movie on tv instead of going to a movie theater, or renting a video.
4. quit buying paper napkins and made your own cloth ones.

Estimate how much you would save if you continued these practices for a month, then for a year. Each time you actually use a method, put the money into savings...whether its a quarter for the cookie jar or a dollar for the bank account. Put it away and tell yourself your new car is that much closer!

 

You know, we rarely ever use paper napkins, it just doesn't seem right to me, but I've always bought cloth ones from the store. I think I want to try making my own though, that would be awesome!

And I really need to check out the thrift stores more often. I used to go quite a bit and then got out of the habit, but man, you could find some great things sometimes for dirt cheap! Like dancerannie's awesome dress she has on in some of her outdoor pictures. *jealous*

 

I had a friend in AZ, who whould buy cheap sheets instead of sewing material. She used them to make curtains & nursing scrub tops

 

Wow, that's awesome! I'm all about doing things like that. Just recently I took a bunch of my kids' fleece baby blankets that they don't use anymore (finally, a use for all of those blankets that aren't big enough for them anymore!) and made them into pillows. The no sew kind where you just knot them together. They turned out fantastic, and they're so nice and soft! The kids love them. I was pretty darn proud of myself.

My husband sometimes teases me because I refuse to get rid of anything. But, I can always find another use for it, you know?

 

I'm living off a 100 Euros a month, minus 35 Euros on monthly bills, leaving 65 Euros, but I usually survive for a week (well, 5 days) with about 5 Euros (6 dollars I guess). Hey, I also need to visit concerts and stuff and do nice things! If I weren't such a scrooge I couldn't do anything fun!

These are my tips:

- Eat with a group of friends and split the costs.
- Resist buying treats for yourself.
- Pick the cheapest shop per needed product. Yes, take the extra walk, it won't hurt.
- Tap water is juuust fine.
- Leftovers are juuust fine.
- Bread for dinner is juuust fine. Make toast! I like it with mozzarella, salt, pepper and tomato. It's been my dinner for two weeks on end one time.
- Second-hand stuff is nothing to be embarrassed about.
- Meat and fruit will have to be left out sometimes.
- It's amazing how much skimmed milk is cheaper than high-fat milk. It doesn't need to be fresh, either, those with a far away best-before date are just as nutritious.
- Get for free what you can get for free.
- Brands are useless when you're in need.
- Canned corn, fresh lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, and barbecue sausages!
- If possible, keep good relations with a 'home base' where you can not only eat for free but fill up the needed nutrition levels as well.
- Dare to ask for stuff other people aren't keen on having anymore.
- Maybe one of the more important things: Plan your dinners at the start of the week and buy what you need in one go, so you don't go running back to the store all the time, this way you won't have a lot of temptation to buy stuff you don't need.

I'll get back to you if I can think of more! Good luck!

 

awesome tips!!
here are some of the things we do:
use cloth napkins
thrift store clothes
walk and bicycle to work / errands
make meals at home
dumpster dive; check out your local college campus at semester's end!

 

sheesh, everywhere! i'm such a cheapo...

 

How on earth do you eat for $20 a month? That is only like 35 cents per person per day. That is amazing. Do you do it just to save money or do you not have the money?

 

every sunday a group of us dumpsters a certain supermarket that has great veggies.
there is a thriftshop here that, once a week, gets an amazing haul of day-old panera bread, not-yet expired sliced bread, english muffins, and boboli pizza crusts (we use the free veggies to make pizzas).
all that's left to buy: soy milk, margarine, sauce for the pizzas.
we eat really well; probably better than ever. veggie stir fry, pasta dishes, you name it!