Browse by Tags

Sort by: Date | Rating | Most viewed | Most commented

• Frugal eating tips from America's family -- the Simpsons

  Posted Aug 06 2008, 06:00 PM by Karen Datko
  Rating:
  Filed under: spending, dining, Karen Datko, groceries
  Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money

  How do we know there's such a thing as too much frugality in the kitchen? Because Marge Simpson once said to her daughter: "Lisa, I made you some homemade Pepsi for the dance; it's a little thick but the price is right."

  That's from the excellent post "Cutting calories and saving d'oh: 25 lessons 'The Simpsons' taught me about cheap, healthy eating" at Cheap Healthy Good. The author, Kris, is the most entertaining food-and-frugality blogger out there, but we think she's outdone herself with this one.   Read More...

  Discuss ( 184 comments) 147,648 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• Sales of 20-ounce soft drinks are worse than flat

  Posted May 28 2008, 12:17 PM by Karen Datko
  Rating:
  Filed under: spending, dining, Karen Datko, groceries
  Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money

  Maybe the preaching of frugalists has finally been heard, or people have found their common sense or have less money -- but fewer are buying those overpriced 20-ounce bottles of Coca-Cola and other Coke-brand drinks dispensed by vending machines and convenience stores.

  The Wall Street Journal reported today that bottler Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. reduced its second-quarter earnings outlook based on weaker-than-expected sales of that size. The WSJ says:

  Sold in corner groceries, vending machines and other outlets since the early 1990s, soft drinks in 20-ounce plastic bottles revitalized U.S. sales for Coca-Cola and PepsiCo Inc. by getting Americans to drink larger servings. Because they are often sold at prices similar to a two-liter bottle, they have also been highly profitable for the companies' bottlers.   Read More...

  Discuss ( 39 comments) 11,437 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• 5 sleek marketing ploys aimed at your grocery money

  Posted Apr 24 2008, 07:07 AM by Karen Datko
  Rating:
  Filed under: spending, dining, Wise Bread, groceries
  Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money

  This post comes from Linsey Knerl at partner blog Wise Bread.

  The cost of food isn't going down, and for some, it's making the task of feeding a family more painful than ever. It doesn't help that ad agencies and PR companies are getting better at creating snazzy gimmicks to get you to buy.   Read More...

  Discuss ( 15 comments) 17,694 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• Higher food prices are busting her budget

  Posted Mar 20 2008, 02:30 PM by Karen Datko
  Rating:
  Filed under: spending, dining, Karen Datko, groceries
  Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money

  Melissa at A Penny Closer used to be skeptical about all of the gloom-and-doom talk about the economy. No longer. Now she's having a very difficult time staying within her $75-a-week food budget, even though she's buying less meat.

  "In the past I could shrug off the pessimism," she writes, "but now it's hit home in a new way and I'm a little nervous." Even pet food costs more. The sale price for the same can of cat food at her local store went from 33 cents to 44 cents in two weeks.

  What is her plan to cope? No more monthly $50 donations to the "fun money" savings account, even fewer meat-based meals, and more soup-and-sandwich dinners are among her strategies.   Read More...

  Discuss ( 18 comments) 4,212 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• Kimkins diet rolls on despite founder's excess poundage

  Posted Feb 25 2008, 04:20 PM by Karen Datko
  Rating:
  Filed under: spending, dining, Consumer Affairs, groceries
  Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money

  This post comes from David Wood at partner blog ConsumerAffairs.com.

  Waiting in line at the grocery store is a guaranteed way to see the covers of magazines targeting women. It's a real challenge to find a checkout tabloid that doesn't have blaring headlines about weight loss or the most recent diet sensation.

  "Better than gastric bypass!" "Kim lost 200 lbs in 11 months!" "Christin lost 100 lbs in 5 months!"

  Those very comments appeared on the cover of the June 12, 2007, issue of Woman's World magazine. The story was a fascinating look at a weight-loss diet known as Kimkins, created by Kim Drake, also known as "Kimmer."

  The Woman's World story begins by saying the magazine sent out spies to gather intelligence about Kimkins. The Kimkins Web site included numerous before-and-after pictures of not only Kimmer, but also happy members who had shed massive amounts of weight.

  Woman's World describes Kim as "smiling" when responding to questions. This implies that the Woman's World interviewer was personally watching the response of Drake. So, you would think that Woman's World would have noticed that "Kim" was in fact a 300-pound woman.   Read More...

  Discuss ( 4 comments) 2,498 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this

• On Super Bowl Sunday, pass me the 'one-dip chips'

  Posted Jan 31 2008, 12:05 PM by Karen Datko
  Filed under: spending, dining, Karen Datko, groceries
  Money Blog: Smart Spending Blog - MSN Money

  George Costanza was wrong. A new study by Clemson University students, inspired by a famous "Seinfeld" episode, shows that double-dipped chips leave bacteria in the dip bowl, ripe for subsequent snackers to ingest. This information comes from the same professor, Paul Dawson, who last year published a study of the well-known five-second rule -- food  that's on the floor for less than five seconds is safe to eat. The results: Don't eat it.

  So, what's a smart shopper to do? Get little individual dipping bowls for every person at your Super Bowl party? If you're serving four or five dips, the cost will really add up. Harold McGee, who wrote a wonderful column about the new study in The New York Times, suggested using "one-dip chips, too small for two." So much for buying bargain basement-priced potato chips.   Read More...

  Discuss (no comments) 547 Views Digg this | Email this | Link to this