Acting frugally can be a drag for some. For me, it’s fun. Every once and awhile something reminds me how much I enjoy finding ways to earn more money, save some money, or eke more value out of something I already own. Here are a few of my favorite (frugal) things from the past few weeks.
- The thrill of rolling change. About twice a year I’ll do a loose-change scavenger hunt around my house, and scrape together enough coins to make the coin-collecting worth my time. I’ll usually roll those coins and bring them to the bank to either make a deposit or get some crisp greenbacks in return. I just discovered that there is a Coinstar machine at my local grocery store, which can benefit me in two ways. One, if I want to convert my loose change to a store gift card, I’ll save myself the Coinstar fee. And, two, I’ll save myself time by not having to roll my coins.
- Turning t-shirts into paper towels. I have to admit it–like my coffee addiction, I’ve been having a hard time giving up my paper towel addiction. I’ve started slowly, by changing which paper towels we buy. We prefer the Marcal Small Steps, which are made from recycled paper and cost the same as “regular” paper towels, so that at least we’re using a greener choice. But to be totally frugal, we should really give up paper towels all together (sorry, Marcal!). Which is why I spent an hour or so this past weekend cutting up old t-shirts into paper towel-sized rags. I hope that the next time I need to wipe something up, I’ll reach for the rag instead of the paper towel.
- Making money on something I would normally give away. I’ve become a HUGE fan of PaperBackSwap and BookMooch for giving away books my kids no longer want–and getting books, for free, that I want to read. However, recently I decided to sell some of my daughter’s books on eBay–mostly because we had an entire set and that set new was selling on Amazon.com for over $100. Well, the eBay sale was a huge success, netting me $57 in my PayPal account, money I almost didn’t earn because I was going to give the books away for free.
- Using elbow grease to save some money. One of the ways that we’re keeping our home renovation project affordable is doing some of the demoing ourselves. This way the contractors don’t have to do the work–and don’t have to charge us for it. This past weekend my husband and I demoed the upstairs bathroom, including taking out a cast-iron tub (we had to smash it to bits with a sledgehammer first to get it out the door), removing the vanity and toilet, and pulling up the floor. We also took out all of the Sheetrock/wallboard, and now the room is down to the studs. When construction is finished, that bathroom will have a new toilet, two sinks, and a shower stall–along with a new floor and new wallboard, natch. But by doing our DIY demo, we saved the contractor’s a day of work and ourselves a couple thousand dollars in labor, I’ll bet.
In a future post I’m sure I can list a few of my other favorite frugal things. But what about you? What are some of your favorite frugal things?
READ LEAH ON HOME GOES STRONG
One of the frugal things I do is use a lot of my containers that I get store products in. Some of my best stackable fridge or cupboard storage containers come from the deli. I also get a certain salad dressing in a glass bottle and then use the bottle for cinnamon sugar to keep on the counter (I get the cinnamon in bulk), and wine bottles make wonderful olive – or other oil bottles (which I also buy in a large container) with just a pourable spout added. These are handy and also look nice on the counter.
A few weeks ago, I cleaned out my linen closet and turned sheets I didn’t use anymore into paper-towel sized cloths, too. I store them in an old pillow case, which makes them easy to find and use.
Diana, I also keep the plastic containers that commercial deli products come in and then reuse as storage containers!
Speaking of cutting t-shirts up to replace paper towels, I use pinking shears, cut around the neck to make the hole bigger and remove the sleeves to make handles. Then sew the bottom together for a sturdy and stretchy grocery bag. A great way to re-use your favorite t-shirt that’s sligtly stained or faded.
Impressive sewing skills, Mom!
Jen:
I’ve thought about doing this with sheets but I wasn’t sure they would be as absorbent as old towels or t-shirts. How have you found them to be?
Leah
Here are a few things we do that stretch our budget:
*make our own salad dressing – cheaper (and tastier) than bottled
*pick-your-own fruits in season – also cheaper (and fresher) than store-bought
*save ribbon & tissue for wrapping gifts- haven’t bought it in years
*make gift tags from old greeting cards
*sell random older clothing through a local retailer-this shop has an eclectic collection of merchandise. While most of our older clothes are donated to a charity thrift shop, I give the more “interesting” things to Mishelle and she gives me half of what-ever she makes on them. So far, she’s handed me a total of about $75! Fun.
Dee Dee:
Is this Greene Street consignment in Lambertville? If so, I’ve been meaning to bring some of my clothes there. Does she have a consigning protocol I need to know about?
Leah
Save yourself the coinstar fee and the trouble of wrapping your coins by taking them to your bank. If you have an account with them, most banks have a coinstar-like machine and will put your change through it for free.
Really? I didn’t think that banks accepted loose change. Also, if you take your Coinstar “results” in the form of a store gift card, my understanding is that there is not any fee associated with using the machine. But I’ll have to check into this bank option. Thanks.
Hi Leah,
I found this article about websites of the ‘reusable hook-up’ variety, and it included a few more than I had seen on yours. You should check it out, especially since it includes one for building materials–you’re remodeling right?
http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/index.cfm/go/news.feature/id/1689/page/1
Just trying to get the word around.
Thanks,
Kelli
I am curious about the t-shirt rags subbing for paper towels. I finally gave up on the full size Bounty Costco pack because I didn’t always need a full paper towel for the job. Now I use a different brand with the select-a-size option. So now I feel a little less twinges of guilt about using paper towels. Leah, what sort of system do you have in the kitchen for the rags– clean and dirty/wet? My husband’s closet is overflowing with old t-shirts, so I could have some stock on hand.
Thanks!
Karen