frugal hacks

Found money 2019: Not a banner year.

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As found-money totals go, it was pretty dismal. The take was two $1 bills, seven quarters, 20 dimes, 7 nickels and 75 pennies, for a total of 6.85.

Last year’s total wasn’t much better: just $8.80.

Maybe it’s because people are using credit or debit to pay for their purchases. We’re not a cashless society just yet, but more and more people are opting for plastic. (Some people no longer carry any cash at all, which astounds me.)

Could be that people are experiencing personal economic downturns and thus picking up anything they drop – and anything that other people drop, too.

Or maybe I’m just not going out as much. In the past year I rarely walked to the post office due to weather (read: icy paths), busy-ness (not wanting to give up 40 minutes of a work day) or the fact that DF is now retired and makes a trip to the P.O. one of his daily chores.

I’ve found a lot less in Coinstar machines, too. Perhaps folks have wised up and are checking the coin slots when they run their change through – or perhaps other people have caught on and are checking the machine as they walk by.

 

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The REAL way to save on Black Friday.

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Having a gift closet is a great frugal hack, as it saves you money all year long. A stash of “evergreen” presents means you’re ready for any occasion.

(Especially those that sound like this: “Hey, I forgot to tell you, I’m invited to Jack’s birthday party on Saturday.”)

If you pick your spots, the first few shopping days of the holiday season are a great way to put some oomph into your gift closet. They’re also a good chance to hit some specific gift milestones, and maybe even to get something your own household needs (or wants).

Gifts for people who are pregnant, getting married, and or heading off to/graduating from college abound in sales flyers for Black Friday et al. Maybe it’s time to check a few gifts off your own upcoming events?

You’ll see towels, sheets, blankets and the like starting at just a few bucks. Last year, I spent just $5.99 for a luxuriously warm blanket in a rich mulberry color. It’s on our bed, and between it and the comforter we’ve been a little too warm lately.

Then again, poking an arm or leg out of a cozy bed is one of the great joys of a winter night. In “Dandelion Wine,” Ray Bradbury described it thusly:

“…sticking your feet out of the hot covers in wintertime to let the cold wind from the open window blow on them suddenly and you let them stay out a long time until you pull them back in under the covers again to feel them, like packed snow.”

Someone who’s setting up a first apartment might really appreciate something like that, especially if you could afford to pair it with a set of sheets. Maybe a half-dozen bath towels and washcloths would be a big help for that new apartment-dweller.

Small appliances like coffeemakers, electric fry pans and slow cookers are typical loss leaders. The Kohl’s flyer I got in the mail offers these for $2.14 after coupon and rebate.

Why didn’t they save that price for Valentine’s Day, I wonder? Maybe it’s because none of these are romantic enough. But they’d be a big help for someone setting up housekeeping – and that includes getting married.

 

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Extreme Frugality: Holiday shopping edition.

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Surviving and Thriving has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Surviving and Thriving and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Opinions, reviews, analyses and recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.

(This is the first in an occasional series of articles focusing on saving serious dough. A little background can be read here.)

Black Friday? How about Black November?

Not long ago, Black Friday – the day after Thanksgiving – was considered the kick-off for the holiday shopping season. The timetable has been moved up, though.

This year, some retailers offered “Black Friday in April” or “Black Friday in July” deals, and recently the National Retail Federation reported a phenomenon called “Black November” – big deals offered on Nov. 1, with more to come before Nov. 29.

Some of the busiest shopping days of the year, however, are the days between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday. In 2018, an estimated 165 consumers spent an average of just over $313 during that five-day period.

“People plan their attack, and where they’re going to go. It’s a sport,” says shopping expert Trae Bodge, a senior editor at Retail Me Not.

 

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Extreme frugality: An occasional series.

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During the last recession, people went to surprising lengths to make ends meet. Hypermiling. Navy showers. Dumpster-diving for food (aka “freeganism”).

Some practiced extreme frugality to keep from sinking further into the red; others did it to survive. (Some still do.)

Hailed at the time as examples of savvy consumerism, these sorts of activities don’t get a whole lot of press today. Some would say that’s a good thing, i.e., fewer people are living on the edge.

I’m not so sure.

While I’m glad the recession is technically* over, I remain sad that we seem to have learned nothing from the tough times of previous decades. There’s more things than ever to buy, especially as regards electronics – and quite a few us want these things at all costs.

In fact, a new survey from CreditCards.com suggest that 61 percent of people with credit card balances are willing to add more debt for the holidays.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m really glad I no longer have to wash all my clothes by hand, or live on the most basic of foodstuffs. But I think we could all do with a little bit more strategic frugality.

Some people think “frugal” means “impoverished,” and certainly it’s true that some people live frugally because they have no choice. It’s a way of life that can be terrifying. (Anyone else here ever raided the baby’s piggy bank** for bus fare to get to work on payday?)

In those days, and again during my lengthy divorce and return to college, I was frugal because I had to be. But even when times got better, I was still frugal – because I happen to think it’s a great way to live. To me, it means a life in which every decision is intentional. Every step I take (or don’t take) means something.

 

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How to get free stuff at the dollar store.

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Editor’s note: Some readers ask me to post periodic “read me elsewhere” updates. It’s been a while (errr, three months) so here is some of the stuff* you missed.

What’s better than finding name-brand stuff at the dollar store? Not having to pay for it, that’s what. In an article for Money Talks News called “The secret to getting dollar store items for free,” I show how shopping/coupon bloggers do the legwork for you.

Specifically, they match virtual coupons – plus any available rebates – to items found at Dollar Tree, Family Dollar and Dollar General. While the lineup varies from week to week, you can expect to find free stuff regularly (and almost-free stuff, too).

Some recent examples of completely free items: Excedrin, Purina Dentalife dog treats, Atkins frozen entrees, a three-bar pack of Zest soap, Airborne products, 3M Command Hooks, Splenda sweetener, Bounce or Downy dryer sheets, Keebler crackers, Theraflu, Advil PM, Super Pretzel Bites, Breathe Right strips, CeraVe diaper rash cream, Bic razors, Texas Pete hot sauce, Seeds of Change sauces, Suave Kids hair care products, A&D Ointment, Sucrets, Alka Seltzer Allergy, and Frigo string or shredded cheese.

The bloggers also spell out any rebate deals. Sites like Ibotta, SavingStar and Checkout 51 offer cash back on an ever-changing list of products. With coupons plus rebates you might even earn money on certain purchases.

Dollar store coupon policies vary, of course. For example, Dollar Tree lets you use a coupon with a face value of more than $1, but it will not return the difference to you in change. Family Dollar, on the other hand, will not accept a coupon with a face value greater than the price of the item. Know your store’s policies before you shop.

It’s unlikely you could take care of all your household’s needs this way. Your mileage may vary in other ways, too. Some dollar stores are smallish. Some don’t have frozen or refrigerated items. And if you live in Alaska, you don’t have personal access to dollar stores at all.

In other Money Talks News (see what I did there?):

 

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How much can you borrow in student loans?

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Trick question! As in, wrong question.

What the student in your life ought to be asking is, “How much should I borrow?”

The answer, of course, being “as little as you must – and, if possible, nothing at all.”

That was the topic for a recent piece I did for the Experian blog. Student loans are a personal bugaboo because it’s so easy to sign up for life-hobbling debt when you’re too young to understand the true consequences.

Understand: I don’t think student loans are evil in and of themselves. I just think that too often people borrow without thinking it through. Learn more by clicking the link above.

Some readers have asked me to continue these roundups, aka “where I’ve been lately.” It’s been a while since I did one (thanks a lot, summer messing with my head) so this one will take a while.

 

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Saved Savings Challenge, Week 2: It adds up.

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My BFF has found a way to make money from Caffeine-Free Diet Pepsi. It involves absolutely no work and will earn her more than $1,000 within a year.

You guessed it: She stopped drinking the stuff.

Linda B. had already been inclined to cut down on soft drinks due to various reports of their horribleness. Recently she decided to go cold turkey, both at home and at restaurants – and to put $20 in an envelope every week. That’s how much she figured the habit was costing her.

Watching the savings grow is fun, and it couldn’t have come at a better time: She and her oldest friend (think: going on 70 years) are taking a European cruise next year. A thousand bucks will come in handy during shore leave.

It adds up. Some of the Saved Savings Challenge participants would agree.

 

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Civil twilight.

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A little after 2 a.m. yesterday Anchorage entered a 28-day period during which the light never stops. Specifically, we will have 24 hours of either sun or something called “civil twilight.” That’s when the geometric center of the sun is six degrees below the horizon.

Even though we technically have a sunset, the sun is still within those six degrees. It keeps the darkness from taking hold – at least for the next 27 days.

Civil twilight is not to be confused with astronomical twilight or nautical twilight. But it sure confuses the folks on whom it endlessly shines. As I noted in “Breaking up is hard to do,” the increased daylight makes us all a little bit giddy.

Kids ride their bikes until well past 11 p.m., and ice cream trucks ply their wares long after what would be quittin’ time in the Lower 48. People fish all night and then go to work. Or they’ll play softball until they drop from exhaustion (and directly into the cool embrace of a bucket of brews).

 

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Saved Savings Challenge, Week 1: Define “savings.”

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In last week’s introduction to the Saved Savings Challenge, I declined to post specific, hard-and-fast rules. That’s to leave room for each participant to define “savings” in her own way.

As of May 16 I’d set aside $104.09, which I rounded up to $105 and transferred over to Ally Bank on May 31. Since then my savings haven’t been gigantic, but they have occurred – along with some additional questions about the definition of “savings.”

According to the bottom of a recent supermarket receipt, I saved another $107.06 in a single shopping trip. But that’s true only if you think that in a free country a box of Triscuits should cost $4.49 and eggs go for $2.49 per dozen, or that it’s acceptable for a five-pound package of ground beef to retail for $31.15.

This particular grocer generally has higher prices than the one at which we do most of our shopping. Just as department stores mark clothing higher than it should be in order to offer hot deals later on, the store offered a short-term sale and downloadable discounts to bring the Triscuits down to $1.69 a box, the eggs to $1.50 a dozen and the meat to $10.35.

To be clear: Those final prices were pretty darned good for Anchorage. But I don’t see the discounts as savings, because I would never have bought the products at that price. Instead, I’d have waited until they went on sale and then stocked up.

Some people would say, “Hey, point is you wound up paying $1.69 – that’s a pretty skookum deal for Anchorage! If the regular price was $4.49 you really did save $2.80 per box.”

Maybe you would agree. I don’t buy it.

 

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Join me in the “Saved Savings Challenge.”

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A few months back I asked readers to join me in a No-Spend February Challenge. It went so well that I figured we’d do another one at some point.

That point is now. As of June 1, I’d like to invite you all to take part in the Saved Savings Challenge.

That is, any money you don’t spend gets squirreled away (in a jar or in a special savings account) for 30 days.

After all, it’s not savings unless you save it.

Next time someone tells you he saved 20 percent on holiday shopping or $40 on a great pair of boots, ask this question: Where’s the money you saved? Chances are that it, too, got spent because suddenly there was this “extra” cash.

Of course, sometimes people are thrilled to save money on something absolutely necessary. As in, “If I don’t cut the grocery bill by 20 percent, we won’t have enough to eat this month.” Or they’re grateful to have found affordable winter boots, or a coat for the kid who outgrew his previous one sooner than expected.

But for the purposes of this challenge, “saved savings” generally means stuff like:

  • Money you were going to spend before you talked yourself out of it.
  • Money you saved on an essential purchase thanks to sales, traded-in scrip at CVS or Walgreens, discounted gift cards, or coupons/discount codes (CVS, et al.) or the use of store credit or coupons.
  • Refunds you got from a cash-back shopping site like Mr. Rebates, Dollar Dig or Ebates.
  • Money that showed up in some other weird way (more on this later).

I did a dry run for this challenge in May, after my daughter – whose own saved savings example is pretty epic – suggested that the two of us take a trip to London. Although this trip probably won’t happen until spring 2020, I want to start setting aside the funds now. That way I can pay out of pocket, i.e., without incurring debt or interfering with my other financial goals.

 

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