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Posted
May 22 2008, 10:12 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Ron at The Wisdom Journal has recently written some in-depth posts about weighty topics, like often-overlooked disability insurance and the oft-ignored benefits of higher gas prices. So we were caught off guard by his equally thorough post (including photos) about how to iron a shirt. "Yikes! Did he say ironing?" Ron writes, anticipating readers' reaction. But when taking shirts to the cleaners costs more than $3 each, you can save $65 or more a month by doing it yourself.
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Posted
May 08 2008, 04:40 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Pinyo's wife thinks he's cheap. In his mind, he's frugal. Who's right? He scored a 20 on the cheap vs. frugal test he devised and posted at Moolanomy. That score indicates that he's neither, but that he "appears to be reasonable" with his spending. Take the test. It's fun. For example, here's Question No. 6. You have some old clothes. Do you ...? - What are you talking about? I don't have old clothes.
- I donate them when they get a little older.
- I turn them into rags.
- I am still wearing them.
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Posted
Apr 10 2008, 10:51 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
Want to aggravate your significant other with your frugal ways? "Hide your spouse's car around the block, and tell him or her you sold it to avoid high gas prices. Present them with a bicycle," blogger "RC" says. Lots has been written about how to get along with a spouse who spends more than you do. RC at Think Your Way to Wealth takes the opposite approach with his David Letterman-style top 10 tips. In the process, RC skewers the sacred cows of frugal-living bloggers. You know how personal-finance bloggers are always writing about preparing huge amounts of food on the weekend to serve later in the week or freeze. RC's version is: "Serve the same meal every day for dinner until your spouse complains. Serve something different the next day, then go back to the same meal you were serving every day."
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Posted
Mar 24 2008, 09:33 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Tired of putting quarters into the dryer? Save two bits and do your bit for the environment by getting a drying rack.
According to a group called Project Laundry List, electric dryers amount for 5% to 10% of residential electricity usage in the United States. Racks are the green/frugal solution for apartment dwellers who don't have access to outdoor drying.
They're also useful to homeowners in places where housing covenants ban clotheslines. Apparently the sight of damp clothing flapping in the breeze brings down property values. A Boston Globe article quoted Frank Rathbun, a spokesman for the Community Associations Institute: "If you imagine driving into a community where the yards have clothes hanging all over the place, I think the aesthetics, the curb appeal, and probably the home values would be affected by that."
I wonder if he means all clothes, or just boxers and briefs?
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Posted
Jan 09 2008, 03:37 PM
by
Karen Datko
The best part of Baby Cheapskate's excellent post for mothers-to-be is get stuff for free. If you didn't know, that's synonymous with "baby shower." Don't hesitate to tell guests to bring things you can use. "A case of diapers (or five) may not be as cute as a tiny pink dress, buy you'll be glad later to have the diapers," Angie writes. She provides seven money-saving tips for getting baby necessities at the lowest cost, and lots of links to help you do that.
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Posted
Jan 07 2008, 01:34 PM
by
Karen Datko
Just think of the waste: All these years you've been throwing away dryer lint when you could have been putting it to perfectly good use. Who woulda thunk it? In a post that ranks right up there with Leah Ingram's about things you didn't know you could compost (human hair is among them), Stephanie at Stop the Ride offers "13 ways to use dryer lint." Make that lint work for you as a fire starter in the fireplace, as lint paper and lint papier-mâché. Give it to critters for nesting material.
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Posted
Dec 27 2007, 03:46 PM
by
Karen Datko
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We'd file this under the tag "good grief" if we had one. Did you know that some people aren't allowed to hang their wash outside on a clothesline? That's right. Many condo associations and other property value-preoccupied folks have banned this energy-saving practice. Apparently some people think it's a little "too Beverly Hillbillyish," says Betsy Teutsch at Money Changes Things. She lets us know that Project Laundry List is there to help.
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Posted
Dec 14 2007, 12:08 PM
by
Karen Datko
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If CC Christiansen has picked through your trash, chances are she knows your dirty little secrets: that you threw away the holiday cookies a friend lovingly baked because you're watching your waistline (expand), or that you were too lazy to return or donate the jacket you bought and decided you didn't like. It's in your trash, with the tags still on. CC writes about lessons she's learned about human behavior from Dumpster-diving at a post at The Dollar Stretcher.
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Posted
Nov 28 2007, 09:01 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Last summer, I had to sit down abruptly while descending a slope and wound up with blackberry stains on my backside. Yesterday, I spattered my blue cotton blouse with turkey gravy. I'll admit it: I'm a mess. But then and now, Spray 'n Wash saved me. I've also had great success with Shout . And for whites, I use what my mom used: a cotton swab dipped in bleach. Some of you may be more interested in green laundry products . In addition, many stains can be removed with ordinary household items like vinegar or cornstarch. If you don't have a stain-removal product, get one. It'll pay for itself the first time you use it because you won't have to replace the sullied garment. Out, out, darned spot I thought everyone knew about stain removal. To me, it's basic Laundry 101: pre-treat the spots and you won't have the replace the clothes. But several university students I talked to seemed mystified by the idea. You're probably wondering how the subject came up. While eating my brown-bag lunch on campus
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