Browse by Tags
-
Posted
Jun 23 2008, 08:55 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
As yard sale experiences go, Saturday was just about perfect. The weather was beautiful and I not only found exactly what I was looking for, I scored a killer deal on it. While the low prices I saw all day were thrilling, they were also an object lesson as to why yard sales can be as dangerous as dollar stores: Things are so cheap that it's easy to overbuy.
Prime example: the foot-tall statue of a bull terrier, priced at a quarter, that reminded me of the classic "His master's voice" ads for RCA-Victor. There was something very appealing about the pup, yet I had no real need for such a thing and also no place to put it. Why in the world would I consider buying it? Because it was only 25 cents.
Read More...
-
Posted
Apr 09 2008, 09:03 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Here's a scary thought: only 233 shopping days until Christmas.
Don't blame me for bringing it up. Some readers of the Smart Spending message board are already buying -- frugally, of course. A reader who posts as "SS18612" started a thread called "Never too early to think Christmas," and shared a couple of fun, practical and cheap ideas.
The "winter car kit" was inspired by a clearance sale at CVS: gloves, hat, folding trunk snow shovel, retractable snow broom and ice scraper for just $3.45. "I will add a fleece blanket, some kitty litter and a gallon of de-icer," writes SS, whose grown kids will each get a kit.
Each year they also get "grocery-store boxes," computer-paper boxes filled with favorite foods and toiletries that SS gets free or almost free thanks to sales and coupons. "It's amazing what you can get together for a little money," SS says.
Read More...
-
Posted
Mar 24 2008, 12:28 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
A letter to Dear Prudence at Slate so outraged "Feminist Finance" that she morphed into advice-columnist mode and wrote her own response. The letter went something like this: The writer, who called herself "Not Made of Money," generously buys clothes and toys for her niece and nephew with the caveat that she'll get them back to give to her own children, whenever she gets around to having some. Surprise of surprises, she's hardly gotten back a thing. In fact, she found out that her sister-in-law actually sells outgrown kids' clothes and uses the money to buy new ones. "How do I remind her that I want things returned, other than writing 'Aunty wants this' on each piece?" Not Made of Money asked. Prudence, in her own response, wrote: "Regifting is a useful and economical practice, but you've taken it to a new level: ungifting."
Read More...
-
Posted
Dec 19 2007, 08:35 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
This post comes from Abby Freedman, a freelance writer and daughter of Smart Spending blogger Donna Freedman.
The holidays mean joy and giving -- and garbage.
This isn't social commentary on commercialism -- I literally mean garbage. Think about the post-Christmas morning battlefield that was once your living-room floor: ripped, shredded wrapping paper and ribbon and toy boxes, waiting to be thrown in the trash.
Add to that all those "they meant well" gifts, and you have, well, waste. Household garbage levels increase 25 percent in the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, according to an MSN article.
Read More...
-
Posted
Dec 17 2007, 09:53 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
How much should a stocking stuffer cost? Not $25, I hope.
Recently MSN ran an article touting "small treasures for under $25." It freaked out a Smart Spending message board reader named "surfacing."
Surfacing, who has three kids, leans toward practical stuffers like new toothbrushes and cartoon character bandages. (Come on, who doesn't want a Dora the Explorer Band-Aid covering up his latest owie?) The reader wanted more ideas -- frugal ones.
I'd be willing to bet plenty of us don't spend $25 total on stuffers for the whole family. Readers seemed to agree, and jumped in with suggestions.
Read More...
-
Posted
Dec 14 2007, 12:08 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
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.
Read More...
-
Posted
Dec 04 2007, 02:23 PM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
 Do you think e-mailed holiday "cards" indicate a lack of effort by the sender? David at My Two Dollars has an inexpensive and green alternative to traditional pricey cards. He and his wife made holiday postcards from scratch. They bought recycled card stock for $14 and spent another few bucks on rubber stamps and ink pads with red and green ink. They also saved 15 cents on postage for each card.
Read More...
-
Posted
Nov 26 2007, 09:37 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
Yesterday I bought a pound of Starbucks coffee for just 99 cents. You, too, can get super-cheap brew, either for gift-giving or for your own frugal morning buzz. All you need is some empty inkjet print cartridges and proximity to a Staples or Office Max. Both businesses give $3 in store credit for each ink cartridge; certain brands are not accepted, so check each company's rules. The stores where I live let me use up to three credits, or $9 worth, per transaction. Both sell a number of holiday gift items: hoity-toity chocolates, fancy cookies, and specialty coffees, teas and flavored cocoas. Over the weekend I shopped for art supplies for a community gift program. At Staples, I noticed the coffee cost $9.99. I handed over three cartridges and a buck, and walked out with a penny in change and a pound of java. Had I been at Office Max, the brew would have been from another hometown brand, Seattle's Best Coffee . Jitter bells This is a frugalist's dream: nearly free gifts, or nearly free morning
Read More...
-
Posted
Oct 30 2007, 05:12 AM
by
Karen Datko
Rating:
We love a fun quiz, so we decided to go along when Lynnae at beingfrugal asked readers to play " Frugal or cheap? How would you rate each of the following situations? " Some of the 11 are easy, like reusing margarine containers to store food in the fridge. (We picked frugal.) How about these: "Leaving no tip for a waitress, because you can’t afford to tip." (Tacky. We picked cheap.) Or "serving leftovers when you have people over for dinner." (Tasty? It's frugal.) Is it frugal or cheap to regift a wedding present (it depends), or to ask "family members to chip in for Thanksgiving Dinner"? ( They're bordering on cheap if they haven't already asked.) Join the fun and play along with Lynnae, who writes, "The bottom line is, when your 'frugality' begins to impact other people in a negative way , it becomes cheap."
-
Posted
Oct 11 2007, 08:47 AM
by
Donna Freedman
The less you earn, the more you’re likely to give away. People who earn $20,000 or less per year donate more (relative to their income) than higher earners.
Or so Arthur Brooks reports in his new book about American benevolence, ”Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism.”
Charity appears to benefit the givers as well. A recent article from the Christian Science Monitor noted that “greater charity tends to push up income.”
That might be because the act of giving makes for “better or happier people,” which in turn might make for greater success in the working world.
Read More...
|
