Hey hey! Another day, another package of books to give away!
This time around – the ones that can save you money and bring out your inner minimalist/ frugalist :) Two of which come from blogger friends!
But first – yesterday’s winner of the investing books… bum bum bum dee bum bum bum… Ellie Falls! Enjoy!!! Don’t forget about us little people when you hit the millions!
Now onto today’s package for sale free:
Lot of Frugality Books!
Got some famous ones up in here like The Gazette and Frugalwoods‘ new book, along with some other oldies but goodies for your money saving pleasure… More info and details below!
The Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn — “Having discovered that frugality is good for the bank account and the environment, Amy Dacyczyn started a newsletter for skinflints in 1989. Within a year, 50,000 cheapskates had subscribed to The Tightwad Gazette. Now Amy has collected all her wisdom into a book, and it’s as good a deal as you’ll find in these inflationary times.”
Meet The Frugalwoods by Elizabeth Willard Thames — “Meet the Frugalwoods is the intriguing story of how Elizabeth and Nate realized that the mainstream path wasn’t for them, crafted a lifestyle of sustainable frugality, and reached financial independence at age thirty-two. While not everyone wants to live in the woods, or quit their jobs, many of us want to have more control over our time and money and lead more meaningful, simplified lives. Following their advice, you too can live your best life.”
50 Simple Steps You Can Take To Improve Your Personal Finances by Ilyce R. Glink — “The hardest part of attaining personal financial freedom is getting started. Ilyce R. Glink makes it a snap. The smart, simple strategies presented in 50 Simple Things You Can Do to Improve Your Personal Finances let you take immediate control of your money. With her trademark wit, friendly style, and crystal-clear examples, Ilyce Glink helps you set financial goals and reach them.”
The More of Less by Joshua Becker — “After a casual conversation with his neighbor on Memorial Day 2008, Joshua Becker realized he needed a change. He was spending far too much time organizing possessions, cleaning up messes, and looking for more to buy. So Joshua and his wife decided to remove the nonessential possessions from their home and life. Eventually, they sold, donated, or discarded over 60 percent of what they owned. In exchange, they found a life of more freedom, more contentment, more generosity, and more opportunity to pursue the things that mattered most.”
[EDITOR’S NOTE: You might recognize this one from an article we ran last year ;) –> “Maybe the life you’ve always wanted is buried under everything you own!”]
Penny Pinching by Lee and Barbara Simmons — From back cover [1993] — “Penny Pinching is back — revised and updated with dozens of all-new cost-cutting strategies you can use to lower expenses in just about every spending category, without lowering your standard of living. Whether you are at the supermarket, buying a new car, or planning a vacation, here are hundreds of easy-to-follow practical tips that will help you save money without sacrificing the good things in life.”
***Links and bios above are from Amazon, and point to the latest updated books – not necessarily the exact editions being given away today which you can see in the pics. Also – links are affiliate links.***
Want these? Make sure you’re subscribed to our newsletter,
and then answer the following question:
What’s one thing you did to save money this month?? How much?
Drop your answers below, and we’ll announce the winner tomorrow morning as we do our next giveaway… Just make sure they’re in by 5pm EST today! And that you have a U.S. address so it doesn’t cost me $50 to ship! :)
Bundle #4 coming up tomorrow… For you hustlers out there.
<< UPDATE: Giveaway now over! Winner of these awesome books announced here. >>
[Gif by Jesse Luo]
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Cancelled a two week road trip through California (flying over from England) and bought a baby whippet instead! Savings about £3K and also gained £1 million in puppy happiness!
that’s quite the swap, haha…
The Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn is a frugal classic. This month I saved a whopping $5.60 by making my own bubble milk tea at home instead of falling prey to the Asian latte factor. It’s not much shaved money wise but I was able to control the sugar content of that drink to something less diabetes inducing. I used real honey vs their corn syrup stuff :) that’s enough win for me!
This month I switched wireless carriers to a prepaid service took my phone with me, uses the same network and I got the exact same plan for 40 dollars a month cheaper. Having a cell phone bill for 35 dollars a month is awesome. But I save a lot by Making all my own cleaning products and the house smells really nice instead of chemically and hospital like. I am pretty frugal.
curious if it’s a smart phone? I have this dream of going back to a flip phone, but pictures! And waze! and email! and downloading songs on the fly at work! But smart phones are such a money and time suck.
Hi Norah, I’ve used Republic Wireless for four years now with a smart phone. I pay $29.35 a month and have never run out of data.
Same as Libby here! Been saving $100/mo since switching to Republic Wireless three years ago.
I don’t know when it happened but my credit card bills were exceeding 1100 every month. Discover Card had a credit analyzer feature and I saw that multiple late night retail app purchasss were the culprit. I deleted some apps, and made a point not to reach for my credit card at every moment. I was able to get my bill down to 551.52 this month.
My wife didn’t buy a $350 dress she tried on for her sister’s wedding. She is now looking at options from Ali Express for under $70 :)
I took some of our cable boxes back in favor of a ruku. And we can watch our cable channels through the cable app. So we will save a few dollars every month.
My husband and I are expecting our first baby by the end of the year so we have started to ask around friends and family if there’s any hand me downs we could borrow’
go on your town or neighborhoods garage sale and free sites, EVERYONE wants that stuff out of their house, you could legit never have to buy a single thing! congrats!
I planned the entire week of meals for my family so we don’t have to spend money on take out and restaurants. We are trying to practice frugality as we are thinking about baby #2 and the cost of daycare, new Apartment, etc. Would love insight from these books!
We moved!
This month is the culmination of a 4-year plan to 1) get rid of big-house debt, as well as big house utilities and insurance expense, 2) downsize and minimize clutter, 3) free up cash for 2 kids to go to college, and 4) free up cash to work for us in the stock market!
We’re moving close to work so we can walk, and we’re still going to have a pretty and spacious-enough place. Once this is all in place, I’ll be downsizing my job, too!
Thanks for your encouraging stories along the way!
Love every bit of this! Congrats!
Hey J$, I’m a avid “Cash Collector” and a golf enthusiast, and as anyone who plays the game knows it can be kind of pricey based on where you live and the type of golf course you play. So on an average week I play Friday afternoon and (2) rounds on Saturday. Total cost for the month is $600.00. So I have a side hustle now of working part time at my favorite course. I work 2-3 shifts a week for a total of 12-15 hours. The benefits are twofold, I get free golf and free driving range, plus they pay me $10 and hour. So I have a cost avoidance of $600 a month, plus extra cash of $120-$150 a week. So total savings averages over $1000.00 per month for 6-7 months a year. Paycheck goes straight to Vanguard. Side note when you work at a golf course you also find lots of misplaced golf balls… So the savings keep on growing.
Keep on collecting that Cash!!
You’ve found a nice little system there, my friend!
Opted not to pack my lunch everyday. Saved $9 a day!
We receive free beef bones and the occasional roast from our raw milk dairy’s manager. I don’t know, maybe something about us pulling up with lots of kids makes him want to give to us! With the bones we make delicious stock, which is turned into chilis and soups.
I read a LOT. This month (and every month) I get my books from the local library.
I moved some money that I’ve been saving from a low interest bearing savings account to my Vanguard account, distributed over three index funds. I do this every couple of months when I save a few thousand dollars from my paycheck.
I love frugality books! I’m always looking at ways to save money but also time. This week I have made simple lunches for me and my kids using food from Aldi that was discounted $2 since the exp date was soon. Since it is the first week of summer we are doing a no spend week since we have vacations this summer. I’m starting my financial coaching business and teaching my clients these tips. It is so awesome to help others.
Today I’m taking the bus to a conference rather than driving saving our family about 12 bucks and helping the environment too! Also packing a lunch so I won’t be spending money on that either. A little planning = big savings!
Used coupons and purchased things while on sale.
Spending money on food is essential. I think its wise to have a plan when it comes to food. My parents do not live far away from me, and they also live on a tiny retirement budget as well. We’ve teamed up to help save money on food items. Since I only graze at morning and noon eating times, I buy for these things myself, however we share supper together. Once every two weeks, my mother and I plan our menu for the next 14 days, then we shop for the items we need to realize that said menu. I drop in after work on my way home and eat with the fam. If I’m late she puts it in a container and I take it to go. I’ve managed to save $150 a month using this method and they reduce costs by sharing the more expensive meal with me. We all win!
I cannot WAIT to be living back near my parents, haha… Such great family time too!
I used my FSA account to pay for some medical bills that were around $500…..saved about $150….or 30%.
I’ve never really paid attention to all the “subscriptions” I have, and am charged for each month on my debit card. Recently went through my statements getting rid of most of them saving me $170 a month. It’s amazing how much crap I signed up for a “trail” and completely forgot to cancel….. makes me not want to know how much I’ve wasted over the years.
Cancelled Sirius for both my wife and I’s vehicles,which earned me a $170 “Refund”.
I decided against traveling out of town for our upcoming anniversary and decided to do something nice right in our own city.
My husband travels a great deal for business and earns points through loyalty programs such as Delta Sky Miles, Hilton Honors, and Marriott Rewards and others. We used these points over Memorial Day to buy 2 round trip tickets from Florida to California, 5 nights of hotel rooms, and a rental car which brought our cost to $63.10. I estimate that we saved around $2K.
We made our last mortgage payment which saves us about $1,000 a month in principal payments.
Although we booked it in February, we also booked a two-week beach vacation by splitting the rent with two other families. The trip took place the first two weeks in June. Including lodging, gas, and food (only went out to eat twice), we paid $1,500 total!
NO MORE MORTGAGES – AWESOME!!!! Congrats man!
I forgot to send money with my in-laws when they took my kids on a 3 day trip. Saved myself about $100! Lol!
Whoa if love to have Meet the truckloads and penny pinching!
We went on a road trip to Raleigh and brought snacks and dinner leftovers from home to avoid spending money on the trip. We also ate dinner leftovers in the morning before we hit the road. Water from home too! It saved us close to $70!
I’m doing a pantry challenge and trying to use up food we already have. Only going to the store for fresh produce and dairy, as needed and no more than once a week. So far so good!
My wife and I both began applying for jobs in a significantly lower cost of living area. This has the potential to shave 5+ years off our FI target date.
I prepped lunches for the family on Sunday so we didn’t spend money going out!
I credit card hacked my way to a free $800. My daughter is getting braces on this month so I opened a credit card that offers $500 back if you spend $3k in the first 3 months. So we put the braces on the card, paid it off and scored an extra $500. Plus, we got an extra $300 off by paying the orthodontist in full.
Here in the HOT and HUMID South, I was tempted to crank up the AC up but, instead, I used fans.
I’ve quit buying coffee at the local coffee shop and made my own instead. That’s about $2/day for this month, so about $40.
Garden was planted from seeds and is now starting to produce food so less $$ at grocery stores.
This is something I deeply admire about people… I’ve never had the patience or inclination to start a garden, but love every time I hear others doing it :)
This month, I saved money by staying with my parents while I look for a new place. It took a little bit of a hit to my pride, but I save about $1800. And don’t worry; I’m paying them in yardwork and food!
We’ve upped our investment contributions, now putting away over 40% of our income every month!!
Currently reading “your money or your life”. I’ve passed on a lunch out, a cute dress, etc by asking “will this add fulfillmen and value in proportion to life energy spent?” The answer was no.
Opened a newly offered 401k with my company! Contributing enough to get full company match! We also cancelled our trash service of $20 per month… We honestly don’t generate that much trash, we own a truck, and the dump site is literally 5min. away from our house… No reason we can’t take the trash ourselves once or twice a month!
Oh wow – I didn’t even know that was an option?!
You might like this blog – super inspiring :)
https://zerowastehome.com/
Moved about 10,000 pounds of topsoil to fill alongside our new driveway and to slope our new patio. Probably saved a grand doing it ourselves. Upside we got some good exercise and outdoor time…downside we had to pay for a driveway and patio!
I had a credit card balance more than I could pay off this month, so I purchased an item greater than the difference and returned it. Now I will not have to pay any credit card interest next month!!
What? Really? I don’t think it works that way?
I started making my own herbal tinctures and salves by collecting wild elderflowers and other wild growing trees, instead of buying them ready-made. Each homemade bottle of tincture saves me about $13 in expenses. Over the course of a year, that adds up to several hundred dollars, and it connects me with my place and my medicine and food.
Shopped around for cash pay discounts on medical care.
DIY plumbing! Not sure exactly how much I saved but between snaking the bathroom sink drain and replacing the guts of a leaky kitchen faucet, I’d like to think I saved $100.
My Son attends a year round private school and in the Summer they review everything that was taught during the the other three sessions, which means I have to pay tuition for lessons that he’s already been taught. I decided to reinforce with a summer packet this year. I’m a single mom so he’s taking a break to visit relatives and family. I’ve saved almost $400 in 2 1/2 weeks thus far by making this decision.
I changed my regular Wendy’s lunch (the only meal I eat out–still working on that) that cost $6 to a Taco Bell meal that costs $2.60. I’ve saved $47.60 so far this month! :)
1. I’ve taken lunch almost every day.
2. I used my shopyourway points to replenish my toiletries for $0 out of pocket! So I’m stocked up for almost 6 months!
Not sure how much it’s going to save but we upped our theromstat by 3 degrees, installed blinds and thermal curtains.
I shopped my auto insurance recently and this month paid for 12 months up-front with another carrier that offered the same coverage at a lower rate! Saving $58/month! Sooo excited.
I looked at my amortization table for my mortgage and decided to put an extra $200 a month towards principal. This month, it technically cost us an extra $200. But over the next 30 years, we are saving $54,699.05 in interest and shaving off 8.5 years of our loan!!!!! Love my amortization tables!!
Booked a cheaper hotel room for vacation – saving over $300!
I work 1 day a week and I was paying $40 dollars in babysitting, almost half of what i was making. But this month my husband and I decided I’d just go to work at night when he got home. There’s a lot of flexability since it’s bookkeeping and I work by myself. I’ve saved $160
Would love to win – been hoping the library would pick up the FrugalWoods! I called XM Radio last week and got our bill cut by more than 1/2 just by asking!!
I sold my house! It’s a nice immediate payoff as real estate prices here are crazy, and I can invest the profits to boost my tiny retirement account. Plus I am ‘saving’ myself the extra stress of owning it. I am obsessing over cutting costs and being more frugal lately.
You know I’m a fan of that :)
I haven’t done much (besides just following my budget) to save money, but I did something 2 months ago that saved me some money in the long run. I had to insulate the attic in my home (standard, blow-in fiberglass insulation). I got in touch with my power company and they told me they offer a 50% rebate (up to $500 in expenses) for insulating your attic. My fiance and I insulated the attic ourselves, turned in our expenses to the utility company, and I got a $203 check in the mail last week for doing something I already had to do. SCORE!
I also got $100 off a Nest thermostat using the same rebate program. Don’t sleep on rebates for home improvements, you guys.
YES! electric company was recently offering an extra $20 off the usual $100 off of Nest as a memorial day sale. I slept on it because I thought I could get the same deal at Home Depot, but I couldn’t. Counting the days til 4th of July, hoping they will do it again!
Saved OVER $222.56/month By not buying my coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts (sometimes over 3x’s per day) PLUS I might have bought two donuts (to get the “special” pricing). I Bought a coffee pot for work and make my own and I always make my own at home. Yearly savings MINIMUM: $2,670.72.
I’m horrible about returning things. We replaced the flooring in one room and had flooring left over. We were debating keeping them to start in another room but we got busy with summer vacations, etc., so they sat unopened in the foyer for a while. Until I realized there is usually a time limit on returns and dug out the receipt. I was happy to see we were within the window, so I quit procrastinating and returned them. And got $747 back.
We cut out cable and went with a fire stick saving 200 a month, I called my insurance company and we talked about how my insurance a year is half of what my car is worth I have been with them since 1994 kind of scared to go any where else, My insurance is now only $600 a year which is another 800 savings. Changed my 401k option to 15%, and finally realized I don’t have to work a second job anymore. I finally fill secure in my own skin.
Single moms always need this reassurance
Awww, I’m so glad to hear that :) Finding tons of savings over there too!
This month I found that we had overcontributed for our 6 month emergency fund by a month by mistake. I’m perfectly comfortable with 6 months, so I used that extra month to pay off a student loan. Now saving $80 every month from that payoff!
Had dh use a vacation day on Monday. Used the money that would have been spent on the sitter that day for the four kids for a trip to a community pool with a packed lunch ($30), bought a couple pairs of goggles ($6), bought sandwiches ($24) on the way home. Fun day and still came out $20 ahead for the day.
I took care of my garden! The harvest is small because it is still early but in a few weeks we will be chowing down on (free-ish) tomatoes and squash!
Saved $6 by not using a coupon. Went out for Taco Tuesday and had a coupon for a free Taco ($1 savings) with the combo meal ($8.50) – two tacos, rice and beans. I don’t usually eat all of the rice beans. Told the waitress this and she suggested just ordering the tacos as side items on Tuesdays. Only $2 each (not shown on the menu). Paid only $12 for three tacos each instead of $18 for meal combos (could only use the coupon once). And we didn’t have rice and beans thrown away.
I decided to do a restaurant ban in May and cooked food at home instead. Then, I looked at all the other months since January last year to this year to see how much i was really spending on restaurants. J, I was spending $800/month on average, NOT INCLUDING GROCERIES! So, that May alone, I essentially saved $800. I’m a foodie and I love trying new restaurants. So I decided to incorporate a restaurant challenge every other month from now on. :)
GOOD FOR YOU!! I know it’s not easy, but hopefully that epiphany stays with you!
I’ve made most dinners at home this month saving approximately $200 in eating out costs.
This month I used some extra money we had coming in to pay off debt, thus saving interest!
Opened a newly offered 401k through my company and am making contributions to maximize company match!
I did not buy a beer at a boring event after work the other day. Also, my husband and I paid off credit card this past weekend. No more interest payments on that puppy!
Now keep it that way for as long as you can! :)
Now as part of a gym challenge, I gave up drinking for the month. (Unfortunately) I feel great, and have saved some serious dough. Still trying to decide what to do when it’s over…
I paid my homeowners insurance, auto insurance and property taxes with a new credit card to earn 60,000 points ($600). Of course I have the money and will pay the card off as well, and paid no extra fee to use my card.
We had a heat wave this weekend, but I left the A/C off and instead retreated to my basement. In the cool(er) air, my time was spent going through old paperwork and sorting out what needs to be kept from what can be taken to the community shred day in two months. Then I went sorted through usual piles of basement “stuff” and found working/usable items that I can donate to my church’s collection drive in two weeks. Since Savers will pay based on weight collected, my basement was cleaned and my church will benefit. The cold shower after the work also saved on the hot water bill. I can only estimate how much money was saved – surge pricing from ComEd is a mystery – but I’d say $15 in electricity for the 3-day period, perhaps $20 in weight-based donations to the church, but the prevention of dumping things into a landfill: priceless.
I approve 100% :)
This month I changed my mortgage payment from $3,000 a month to $1,900 a month (down to the actual payment; I was paying $1,100 a month in extra principle). I am investing that $1,100 into index funds, which should preform better than my low interest rate of 3.375%. By December I’ll have $6,600 plus any growth and dividends that money earns between now & then.
I ditched my doctor’s appointment for a minor checkup, and went to hospital’s emergency room one night. A few weeks later I had a bill of 12K that my insurance covered 80% for. So, I was left with 2K to pay for unexpected expenses. Who would of thought?
I called the hospital and negotiated my bill to be cut in half! While I ended up spending money in the end, I’m hysterically happy that saved 1K.
It’s summer, so all entertainment is free: Art crawls, biking to the river, and even the symphony outside at a park. Zero spent on entertainment.
We recruited some friends to attend a weekend event & will save $500 on the tickets for this event.
This month I changed the payment method on my cellular bill to electronic checking instead of credit card, resulting in a Bill reduction of $5 each per 4 lines or $20/month $240/year.
Gave up drinking soda; good for the wallet and the health.
I bought a coupon on eBay for a new washer I needed to buy
I have kept the AC above 80 the past week. Not sure how much I am saving yet but its something considering I live in the Phoenix metro area!
We have started planning our dinners for the week on sundays so that when we go to the grocery store each week we don’t buy nonessential items. Has saved us at least $50 per week at the grocery store!!!!
I tried a recipe this week that called for cauliflower, and rather than just going to the supermarket, I checked some local ads and found a store close by that had a sale for 50% off, so what would have cost around $4 only cost $2. Not a big savings in and of itself, but it’s the habit that counts.
I have hung up my laundry to dry! May only be a few dollars saved but I have always felt hanging laundry to encompass ours frugla lifestyle in its entirety.
I took out a debt consolidation loan for credit cards. Interest savings from ~20% to 8% should be significant, especially when factoring in that pesky aggressive compounding that credit cards use.
Started looking for coupons on the Kroger website that I was going to buy anyways and maxing out using their fuel points. Ended up saving about $75 in June so far!
We ventured into DIY dog grooming. Lots of good videos on UTube. Our little Terrier, Finnegan, was not as pleased as we were. Long term this should save us quite a lot.
I have been looking carefully for free entertainment in my area (music etc). Turns out there is a lot! It saves a lot of money!
Sigh, shipping excludes me from the draw although not from sharing how I saved. The husband is quitting his job next month. Therefore the budget was reworked and savings found -easily. This week I saved by meal planning ($55.00) and entertainment (21.00) and phones ($42.50). Nice things is this will be on-going savings.
Thanks for chiming in and sharing! :)
I have a son entering college in the Fall. I contacted the school regarding incorrect info on some paperwork. In the end, it saved over $5000 on tuition.
I needed some dental work done and my insurance only pays for cleanings. So, I went online and purchased a yearly dental discount plan and saved $100 on my bill.
Every month is like Christmas at our house (btw, my tree is still up!) because our solar panels save us a lot of cash. We only pay $29 for electric every month and at the end of the year, we usually get a check from the utility company due to the amount of power we generate. Double bonus.
On Monday afternoon, my guy and I went on a frugal date. We hiked at a free nature preserve and then walked a couple laps around our local mall for more exercise (we didn’t buy anything there). If you compare that to going out to eat or seeing a movie, we saved ourselves about $40.
Well, unfortunately this month I’ve been spending more than I would like to. Something came up and I needed to help someone with their bills. To answer your question, when it was all said and done, the one thing I saved money on this month was having peace of mind knowing that all the bills were taken care of. Peace of mind didn’t cost me anything. It was priceless because I knew that everyone was taken care of and I don’t have to spend any more money for the rest of the month.
I have set up spend down accounts at my local credit union to save for things like car expenses, car insurance, etc. Every week, I transfer a set amount into each of these accounts. When my next car insurance premium is due in September, I will have enough in there to pay the 6-month premium!! Have probably saved about $500 this month already.
I made homemade yogurt twice, which saved me a whopping $4.
My wife and I have started the habit of meal prepping our lunches and dinners for the week on Sundays. It’s a little more work on Sunday for a payoff in time-saved throughout the week, and we are now saving on average 200-300 hundred dollars a month in eating out expenses and wasted food costs. So far, it’s been one of the most impactful decisions on relieving financial stress.
I prepared several meals for the week so i dont have to go out.
I picked up 2 different books at the library that I requested they add to their catalog so I don’t have to purchase them myself. I’m still waiting on another one. I also spent Father’s Day at the pool with the kids and got a free lunch and free beer.
Well on track this month to save at least $26.8 on coffee by waking up earlier and making my own at home. Next month I will try to prepare my lunches which would save me at least $100/month compared to eating out.
I started making my own coffee at home. No more Sbucks. Saved about $75 so far!
I cancelled HBO after 36 hours when I realized Game of Thrones was NOT starting 6/17/18. I still don’t know where I got that idea. Saved $240 for an unnecessary year. PS It was my present to my husband for Father’s Day. Then I made homemade brownies for dessert for Father’s Day and my daughter brought a gorgeous decorated chocolate cake from a local yummy bakery that said “Papa” on it. I burned the brownies a bit, but he graciously had a small one. They were Special Brownies (which made the adults look at me funny) until I told them the “special” was spicy brownies (this is what happens when you live in Humboldt….no they were not that “special” kind of brownie!)
Got free dinner at a local restaurant (Pluckers) last Wednesday on my birthday! I even got an extra side thrown in!
Either that or finally opened a Vanguard Roth IRA last week and saved $6-$8 by investing in VTSMX and not having to pay a trade fee, ha!
Also, must say that I loved reading Frugalwoods. Came across that book here on your site. I read it over the course of 2 sittings, one of the quickest books I’ve ever read. If I win, I’ll def be gifting Frugalwoods to a buddy of mine instead of lending him my copy lol
Oh, awesome! Thanks for letting me know!
-Cancelled Amazon prime!
-just started my busy season at work and am putting 25% into my 401k (not sure how sustainable this is as I have to start saving up for my non-busy season at work)
-successfully haggled the price of getting a tree removed from my front yard.
-actually tended to my garden so things are actually growing (this might not actually save me any money)
I pack my lunch every day instead of going out as is the custom in my office. I save about $10 a day doing this and I eat better!
These books speak my love language! And I only own/have read one of them in this give-away.
I participate in The Prudent Homemaker’s weekly post of “Frugal Accomplishments” and so I keep a word document listing what I’ve done each day for frugality’s sake. These range from the less-than-exciting washing Ziplock bags in order to reuse them, cooking dried chickpeas in my slow cooker overnight, and making all meals from scratch to some big and exciting things like trips.
So my recent biggie is I cashed in frequent flyer miles, hotel points, rental car rewards, and airport parking points and I went on a bucket list trip to visit the places Laura Ingalls Wilder lived in MN and SD the end of May into early June. My first stop was to a grocery store in order to stock up on portable snacks, lunch, dinner and water and put into the soft-sided cooler I had packed in my luggage!
I like that idea of weekly frugal accomplishments! Never heard of before!
Used Ebates.com for several purchases we made (hotel, movie tickets), got 5% cash back. In addition booked the hotel through priceline.com – got 50% off the hotel!
Would love the frugality books
Cut down my food intake by focusing on eating more healthy fats (avocados, olive/coconut oil, cheese, butter, eggs), veggies, and lean proteins. Much more satiated this way throughout the day, as opposed to loading up on carbs and being hungry again an hour later. Saved me $150 this month.
I fasted for 42 hours (only water and coffee.) Since I usually spend $10-12 a day on groceries, I estimated I saved about $10.00.
As a fellow budgeter, I commend you. But as a doctor I have to tell you how dangerous that is. Please don’t skip meals as it is very hard on your metabolism and can cause serious problems, the least of which is weight gain.
I switched my ISP from Comcast to At&t was pay $70 for basic cable with HBO and internet, but I never watched the cable. I tried to negotiate for internet only, but Comcast said that I was getting such a good deal that if I dropped the cable my price wouldn’t change.
So, I went with At&t and got their internet only plan for $30 a month. My speed went from 100 Mbps to 50 Mbps, but it was worth it.
This month I worked extra hours and paid off my furnace loan! To the tune of 75$ a month in savings from here on out! As a teacher, this meant taking on teaching two summer classes and bringing my 3 kiddos with me, so no small feat!
Oh wow, I bet! Haha…
I’ve skipped the coffee shop at $5-8 dollars a day. Adds up for sure.
Getting real here – I’m getting fat and lazy during my debt free journey and decided I needed to check myself this month. I couldn’t seem to get my sh*t together and work out on my own at home, so I thought I’d perhaps sign up for Orange Theory Fitness or re-sign back up to my old gym, Lifetime Fitness, to force me to go and do something. After truly considering spending $160(+) a month for “classes/workout appointments”, I decided to save those funds and motivate myself to just move (for free) around my neighborhood with daily walks and get my mind right with daily Yoga With Adriene (free on You Tube, but I love her and want to support her so I pay $9.99 per month do be a patron of her membership app). My new strategy is saving me $150 per month! I’m 3 days into my walking/yoga program and so happy that I didn’t splurge on a fancy gym membership.
I stopped eating out as much :)
I have stopped Starbucks every morning which saved me $40.00 per week.
LOCAL LIBRARY LIVING ! with each book rental, local library posts on receipt “you just saved the price of this book by borrowing !” HAHA TRUE !
J money, why don’t we start a book club where everyone involved is giving or receiving a book of the day on money management? I’m sure we all have libraries with financial books..
Making a note of this!!
Love your blog name btw! :)
Made it a priority! Our goal is a 6 month savings fund right now, and I chunked another $2,150 into it, taking us to 64.7% of our goal!
Moved my daughter up to Chicago June 1st to start her first job after college graduation. I have saved almost $500 already this month!
Picked up some items I was intending to buy from my local Buy Nothing Group, for free!
It’s always difficult to do this with a crazy busy schedule, but we made a conscious effort to actually pack our lunches to take to work, this week. I can’t say it has saved us millions, but it’s an important habit to get into for sure, and I hope we can keep it up. At least some of the time.
Oh man would love to get the Frugalwoods book! I am such a fan! This month I have stepped up my dog walking side hustle and have boarded a cute little pup for a weekend earning $100, have a twice a week walk netting $40/week, and am stepping out on more lunch breaks to earn around $15 every walk. I love walking dogs on the Wag app! I have been trying to also take advantage of my referral bonuses for new Wag customers, but no takers so far. My sign up code is ANNIE39266 if anyone needs their dog walked lol.
Cool gig!
Meal planning for the month. Made freezer meals and bought chicken on sale. This reduces our eating out costs and per meal cost is super low.
Love reading all the other ideas out there. Would love to truly cut cable and reduce internet and phone costs but can’t seem to make that leap.
Well babies are not cheap, so I basically refuse to buy diapers without a coupon. I am not a major coupon-er, but, when I have to buy them all the time and it saves me money, why not?!
Ps. I really want the hustler books, but I think my husband could use the Frugality ones if you know what I mean…
We picked up free mulch from the city. We got $20 -30 worth of mulch to help finish out our Xeriscaped lawn, which has been saving us money on watering for 10 years or more.
Little extra things I’ve done to save money this month:
-Get some veggies from the outdoors-not-farmer’s market that stocks veggies past their prime ($5-10 saved)
-Steam some of those veggies to supplement a takeout meal instead of ordering an extra dish ($15)
My family of 5 had a mini-vacation in the Twin Cities and saved $ in the following ways:
*3 nights free hotel, parking, and gas since I was there for a required work conference.
*My meals and a few family meals were covered by the conference–for other meals, we did things like buy a $5 foot-long sub for the 3 little ones to share with other sides/drinks we brought from home.
*Packed lunch from home and snacks to eat on the 4-hour road trip-never stopped for food or drink.
*Received a free day of rides at Nickelodeon Universe as part of the conference and never ventured into the rest of the mall.
*On one of the days I was at meetings, husband took kids to visit family–free meal and farm tour/outdoor play for them.
Yes, we were lucky to have a lot of work perks but it took conscious effort to keep additional spending to a minimum. We did splurge on an MLB game but went on Kid’s Day–free autographs, ran the bases afterwards, and $4 kids meals, plus brought in our own water and snacks as allowed.
I want to be your kid!! :)
This month, I am banning myself from entering home goods / decor shops such as Marshall’s and Homesense (Canadian version of Homegoods). Each time I go in for just “one” item, I leave with a whole lot more unnecessary stuff. I reckon this will save me at least $200-$400 in a month since I am used to going weekly and buying about $50-100 worth of goods each time. If you know just entering somewhere will kill your budget, don’t let it be an option! Cut out all stumbling blocks.
We decided to forgo a family vacation this year, and instead take full advantage of the local zoo membership my parents gifted us. By the end of the summer, we should pretty much be BFFs with every monkey, snake and hippo they have over there!
Hah! Love it!
Starting June 1st, I canceled my satellite tv service and switched to a streaming tv service. Don’t miss the big ugly satellite dish on my house and now I am saving $77 a month!
I changed my phone carrier to GoogleFi from Verizon – saved a BOAT LOAD OF MOOLA! Whoot! Made my day!
I saved $325 on dog x-rays today by going to a surgical vet rather than our regular vet first. Crazy!
Took showers at work lol!
Did you really?? Haha…
My home wifi package went up from $69 to $86/month. I made few attempts calling Spectrum, but they were unwilling to help to lower the price. I found out Verizon is offering $50 to new home wifi customer then I called Spectrum again. This time they forwarded my call to the retention department. I told them I will switch to Verizon, and told them how frustrated I was with their agent not willing to help till I request to cancel the service. In the end, I was able to get a new rate of $36/month (tax included) for 12 months. Yeah….!!! That’s almost $400 in savings for the year. Crybaby gets milk!
I have $472 worth of parts and accessories for my 4Runner in my Amazon shopping cart, but I told myself I couldn’t hit the purchase button until I sold the boat in the backyard to avoid pulling money from my savings account. Wanna buy a boat?
Attempting to enforce a “shopping ban”. Can only buy items that are necessities or if/when I run out of a supply of something. Theoretically, I should be able to “save” $200-300/mo that typically fills in the discretionary line of my budget.
I incorporated my consulting business to take advantage of the new tax laws. Should save me money come tax time and decrease my business insurance premiums.
Ridesharing, walking, and taking public transportation instead of car services.
OMG, I’ve been spending money like crazy this month, trying to get things I need due to the move. Furniture, stocking my pantry/fridge. More furniture.
I had a lump saved of $800 for a sofa, bought one for $549 at IKEA, and so had enough leftover to also get a bookcase and a bedside table plus some housewares.
Had saved $900 for a mattress set, but the one I wanted was $1500. Ouch, no thanks. Wound up taking a chance with a mattress-in-a-box on Amazon for $189 and a gel mattress topper, bed frame, and headboard for $100 each. So about $500 total, which gave me money left over for the dining room table I also didn’t have. And yes, I’m really really happy with the mattress and topper, am sleeping like a baby, and my months-long shoulder pain is gone.
Is this saving money? Not really, but also yes. I would have made those purchases anyway, but over all I didn’t spend nearly as much as I’d anticipated.
I buy almost anything I can at $ Tree. Saves so much money. Also, quit buying coffee out every morning & make it at home. That took me from $10/week to $3/week.
After a long and thoughtful recall of this past month, I’ve come to the conclusion I actually haven’t done anything this month at all to save money
10 more days to change that! :)
My father passed away in February and I am in charge of handling his estate. He has about $50,000 in debt that the estate will need to settle. This month I paid one of his many credit cards and was able to negotiate with them. I was able to pay them now, instead of when estate funds come in (the estate will take a long time to see any funds) and it saved me $890.
Dangg.. so you lose your father AND on the hook for paying off debts?? I’m sorry :(
Didn’t really feel like I was being frugal this month but reading these posts opened my eyes that things I’m doing do count! Like others, I’ve started bringing my lunches to work more routinely and have tried to cut out going out to restaurants this month after looking at what that part of my budget had been over the past couple of months. Budgets are helpful tools and can certainly point out areas for improvement! Thanks everyone for opening my eyes and giving me other idea on how to save some money.
Was wanting to get out of the house (I’m a stay at home mom) and was about to go to the coffee shop but decided on the park instead. More fun and also free!
One thing I did to save money this month was to get a few needed items used for my husbands birthday, including a leather briefcase for his new job.
We cut the cord from Verizon (finally!!!) and switched over to a prepaid plan with a company that *ahem* uses the same freaking equipment for half the price. Goodbye $120 cell phone bill, and hello to $720 extra dollars in our electronic pockets every year!
<< UPDATE: Giveaway now over! Winner will be announced in the morning! >>
I now make sure to take my lunch each day. I work in Boston MA and take out lunch is no less then $10. If I don’t bring my lunch I don’t eat and have to wait till I get home. This gives me the push to make sure my luck is packed each night.
I received a free week trial of a dinner delivery box subscription, which gave three dinners for my husband and I completely free of charge! I cancelled after the trial, so I won’t be charged later. I’m also starting a second batch of quail eggs in the incubator, which we will either sell when they’re older or keep for additional laying hens. They cost less than $0.03 per day to keep, and their eggs sell for upwards of $0.10 each if fertilized or $0.05 each for eating. The quail sell for $4 each, full grown, but cost about $2 to raise. Not a ton of profit margin, but it pays for the upkeep of our personal laying hens and the quail we keep for ourselves to eat. It’s just a small part of our mini farm, but it’s hard to beat nearly free organic food!
Wow – they’re pretty cheap! Would have never guessed! I bet those fresh eggs are soooo tasty too!
RATS I missed this yesterday but I’ll answer anyway. We took our first vacation in 14 years. Road trip to Savannah. Packed the cooler with food/drinks so we paid no $$ for meals the first day. It was National Donut Day (June 1st). We stopped at Dunkin Donuts. They said they never heard of it. But Krispy Kreme down the street gave us 2 free donuts. When I got home I emailed DD Corporate Office asking why they advertised Nat’l Donut Day on the radio/tv but their store knew nothing of it. They apologized & sent me a $5 gift card for a future purchase. Also, we booked an admission online & saved $8 on a bus tour. Today I got 2 tubes of Colgate toothpaste FREE. They were on sale for $1 each at Harris Teeter. I had 2 coupons for 50 cents off each. HT doubles all coupons under $1. I only paid 6 cents tax for the 2 tubes.
You are rockin’ and rolling over there, haha…
I was able to get my car fixed using savings vs trying to find the money in the budget. I spent 2 hours fighting with my cell phone provider to get my bill as low as it’s supposed to be. I severely limited my excess spending to about a third of last months spending!