Your penny pinching ways?

csuave · January 2015

Hello, lurker here but doing my first post since I thought of MM yesterday. I was writing thank you notes to my family for Christmas presents and for my parent's TY, I reused a stamp that came on a card but wasn't cancelled. I actually cut it from the old envelope and glued it onto the new one. My mom did this/does this and that is where I learned it (and also why I did it on their card, they don't think it is weird).

DH was all like, that is SO thrifty. As if I would be eligible for a talk show about penny pinching types of people. I guess it is a funny little thing I do that saves a couple of cents.

Anyone else do this? Anyone else do something that is kind of a funny little thing to save a few cents?

brij2006 · January 2015

Nope, don't do it because it's illegal.

hoffse · January 2015

I tend to wear clothes past their usable date. For example, I use clear fingernail polish on snags and runs in panty hose so I can keep wearing them after they've been "ruined" (as long as you can't see it with what I'm wearing), etc. Spending $8 to buy a new pair irks me. I also have a "sweater shaver" that gets the fuzz balls off of them. That usually lets me wear sweaters for a couple more years past the date that most people would throw them out.

H has also gotten pretty good at using unconventional things to fix stuff around the house or build stuff for cheaper than the supplies would normally cost. He also scopes out the 70% off lumber bin at Home Depot every time we visit. Sometimes they even give those scraps away.

H and I both hoard things like ketchup packets and napkins from fast food restaurants. It's kind of bad, but whatever...

We also time our costco visits around lunch so that we can eat samples and not have to pay for food for lunch.

We live on a shoe-string most of the year so we can travel. It's worth it to us.

Xstatic3333 · January 2015

I turn off the water between each dish I wash to keep our water and sewer bills down. I'm also planning to stick a brick in the toilet tank so it uses less water. Just waiting on a free brick! Our August sewer bill was $75 so getting it down is my new fun game.

lifeonthehill · January 2015

We use store brand PAM on squeaky hinges because it is already in the house and cheaper than wd40. Also it is safe for the cats who insist on licking the crap off.

We live on a crazy hilly road in nowhere land Maine. If I am the only one on the road I try to coast up hills instead of pushing on the gas pedal. Not sure how much this actually saves. Haha

Sneak food candy and drinks into the movies. We buy popcorn though.

I only wash my hair once or twice a week. Not for MM reasons it is just better for my hair but it does help MM wise.

H plays hockey with a team that isn't as competitive because it is free v.s. a better league that is $10 a game.

JoanE2012 · January 2015

hoffse said:

I tend to wear clothes past their usable date. For example, I use clear fingernail polish on snags and runs in panty hose so I can keep wearing them after they've been "ruined" (as long as you can't see it with what I'm wearing), etc. Spending $8 to buy a new pair irks me. I also have a "sweater shaver" that gets the fuzz balls off of them. That usually lets me wear sweaters for a couple more years past the date that most people would throw them out.

H has also gotten pretty good at using unconventional things to fix stuff around the house or build stuff for cheaper than the supplies would normally cost. He also scopes out the 70% off lumber bin at Home Depot every time we visit. Sometimes they even give those scraps away.

H and I both hoard things like ketchup packets and napkins from fast food restaurants. It's kind of bad, but whatever...

We also time our costco visits around lunch so that we can eat samples and not have to pay for food for lunch.

We live on a shoe-string most of the year so we can travel. It's worth it to us.

OMG, I just got one of these....life changing! My couches look great, my cardigans which I was going to ditch are wearable again. Love it!

hoffse · January 2015

JoanE2012 said:

hoffse said:

I tend to wear clothes past their usable date. For example, I use clear fingernail polish on snags and runs in panty hose so I can keep wearing them after they've been "ruined" (as long as you can't see it with what I'm wearing), etc. Spending $8 to buy a new pair irks me. I also have a "sweater shaver" that gets the fuzz balls off of them. That usually lets me wear sweaters for a couple more years past the date that most people would throw them out.

H has also gotten pretty good at using unconventional things to fix stuff around the house or build stuff for cheaper than the supplies would normally cost. He also scopes out the 70% off lumber bin at Home Depot every time we visit. Sometimes they even give those scraps away.

H and I both hoard things like ketchup packets and napkins from fast food restaurants. It's kind of bad, but whatever...

We also time our costco visits around lunch so that we can eat samples and not have to pay for food for lunch.

We live on a shoe-string most of the year so we can travel. It's worth it to us.

OMG, I just got one of these....life changing! My couches look great, my cardigans which I was going to ditch are wearable again. Love it!

I love it too! Mine does occasionally snag and tear fabric so I really only use it on stuff I'm about to toss anyway. I figure if I can save it, I'm coming out ahead. If it snags, I was going to toss it anyway. But yeah my mom gave me one in my stocking years ago, and I have been happily surprised by how often I use it.

blondie42107 · January 2015

hoffse said:

JoanE2012 said:

hoffse said:

I tend to wear clothes past their usable date. For example, I use clear fingernail polish on snags and runs in panty hose so I can keep wearing them after they've been "ruined" (as long as you can't see it with what I'm wearing), etc. Spending $8 to buy a new pair irks me. I also have a "sweater shaver" that gets the fuzz balls off of them. That usually lets me wear sweaters for a couple more years past the date that most people would throw them out.

H has also gotten pretty good at using unconventional things to fix stuff around the house or build stuff for cheaper than the supplies would normally cost. He also scopes out the 70% off lumber bin at Home Depot every time we visit. Sometimes they even give those scraps away.

H and I both hoard things like ketchup packets and napkins from fast food restaurants. It's kind of bad, but whatever...

We also time our costco visits around lunch so that we can eat samples and not have to pay for food for lunch.

We live on a shoe-string most of the year so we can travel. It's worth it to us.

OMG, I just got one of these....life changing! My couches look great, my cardigans which I was going to ditch are wearable again. Love it!

I love it too! Mine does occasionally snag and tear fabric so I really only use it on stuff I'm about to toss anyway. I figure if I can save it, I'm coming out ahead. If it snags, I was going to toss it anyway. But yeah my mom gave me one in my stocking years ago, and I have been happily surprised by how often I use it.

They are pretty amazing! Love the corded one verses the battery.

Knottie37373131 · January 2015

I have large size one with the battery in it, does the corded one work better?

vlagrl29 · January 2015

Just normal ways to save, nothing out of the ordinary. Coupons, checkout 51 , ibotta, sales and clearance racks for clothes. I think what helps me best is only going to Target once a month and limit going to the mall. If I don't see it, I won't buy it.

lifeonthehill · January 2015

vlagrl29 said:

If I don't see it, I won't buy it.

This is me 100%.

Also I avoid getting things besides necessities. If I buy one new frivolous thing it is a little high that I have a hard time not trying to replicate by buying more and more.

Wulfgar · January 2015

What has helped us having children is that we got a lot of hand-me downs and MW and I both had a lot of books from when we were children.

As a matter of fact, our friends that have older children just brought us their wooden Thomas the Train tracks and trains, most of this was given to them by another person.

For clothing, MW and I usually only buy clothes when we really need them, like when we rip pants etc. We both are on the larger size so finding clothes at the mall, Target, etc is really hard. I have tried Wal-Mart clothes and they are way too cheap for me any more.

Erikan73 · January 2015

We joing Amazon Prime. So you're probably wondering why we would pay for the Prime membership to save money. Well a lot of products that we use like vitamins & hair products & carpet cleaner soaps we've found cheaper on Amazon. Also we do a lot of gift shopping for out of town relatives too on Amazon. The amount of money we have saved in Shipping by far outweights what we spent for the membership. Plus it comes with it's own version of online Netflix so no movie memberships required.

als1982 · January 2015

We cut cable about ten months ago, which has been a HUGE money saver for us. Instead we stream Amazon Prime.

I also don't buy anything unless it's on sale, including at the grocery store, and I do stock pile things, particularly toiletries, when I find a good deal (though I usually only have two to three extra of any item on hand at one time). For items not bought at the grocery story, I shop online using a portal and a frequent flyer mile earning credit card to make purchases, to maximize the impact of those dollars spent.

Also, we use everything to the last drop. At first it drove my H crazy that I'd literally drain bottles into each other or cut open the toothpaste to get the very last of it, but he's slowly come to appreciate my thrifty ways.

And after spending the day cleaning, I'd say that our biggest thing is to buy only what we need, make sure what's being purchased is high quality, and then be committed to keeping it nice. Keeping things clean and well-maintained go a long way toward retaining or bringing back that feeling of "new."

Knottie37373131 · January 2015

I love Amazon Prime. I am pretty sure the two-day shipping alone makes it worth it. I think for alot of items, the price is often a buck or two more, but the fact that the shipping is always free, and always two days definitely makes it worth it. Occasionally I watch the shows on Amazon prime, but often times find that there is not much of what I want to watch on there. My Fiance pays for Netflix every month so we always have that. I pay for Hulu Plus off and on. I always purchase a month, and then cancel it until I want to watch a show again. I find that by canceling it, within a few weeks they almost always offer me another free two weeks so it ends up costing me $7.99 for six weeks instead of four.

MommyLiberty5013 · January 2015

1. I cut DH's hair.

2. Amazon Prime YAY!

3. Cut cable.

4. Coupon.

5. Cartwheel at Target program.

6. Cash back rewards on our CCs. Only beneficial if you pay off your balances in full each month, which we do.

SmrBrd2012 · January 2015

I haven't taken advantage of it yet, but I joined a bunch of FB groups for nearby town "yard sales". People post photos of items they're trying to get rid of so they'll either be really cheap or free and sometimes you can barter. I've seen some great stuff up! It seems like it''ll be really helpful when we're looking for cheaper kid things.

Your penny pinching ways?

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