What do you do to save money?

So... I was asked, "What do you do to save money?"

Oh, my. Let me count the ways... no, I don't think I can. There are so many ways to save money that I don't think anyone could list them. Books and books have been written about them, web sites are filled with ideas, and now even "mainstream" media is touting their own advice, as generic and ho-hum as it might seem to those of us who have been doing this for awhile.

Where would you start to tell someone how you save money? I haven't figured it out yet, except to say something like, "Don't waste anything. Don't use more than you need. Turn it off, turn it down, turn it into something else."

Ideas, anyone?

Frugal storage

I don't know who discovered or named the law, but there is one that says however much stuff you own, it expands to fit the space you have, and then some. You can get rid of things, dump things, give away things, throw away things... and it just comes back.

The biggest problem is storing what we're not using at the moment, and that means anything from a yacht to a needle and thread.

Well... I don't have any solutions for yacht storage, sorry. But the needle and thread can be stored in a film canister.

Cardboard boxes are the common solution for storage, but where do you put the box after it's filled? You could cover it with contact paper, or paint it or wallpaper it or decoupage it and then you leave it out in plain sight. You can use it as a lamp table, a coffee table, a nightstand, or a footstool.

Besides boxes, cans - the kind we throw away - can store things. Many things don't need to be contained with a lid, so a plain steel ("tin") food can can be used. Before putting anything in it that you need to reach in for, use a pair of pliers to bend down any sharp edges and cover them with tape.

I was desperate for storage for my long knitting needles so I could find the size I wanted when I wanted it, so I covered a large oatmeal box with yarn wound around and around it and taped down at each end. It looks pretty good filled with those long knitting needles and I can easily see the sizes.

A large tub that cookies came in holds an assortment of hankies on my desk. Small glass jars with lids work as candy dishes, a large plastic spice container with holes in the lid holds baking soda for cleaning purposes, empty tissue boxes hold my hoard of plastic grocery bags.

And still there seems to be clutter...

Spring and Garage Sales

Are you looking forward to spring? I know... some of you already are in the midst of it, but not here! Not yet, anyway. I'm really ready to start the garden, spend a Saturday morning at the farmer's market or garage saling, or both!

I get a craving to go bargain shopping around this time of year and begin to haunt the second hand stores and dream of good garage sales. Classified ads and Craig's List are fair game, too, just for fun.

I found a site called "Tagsellit" that's pretty cool. It's a sort of online garage sale, where you can sell or buy things locally or anywhere you like, and find tag sales and events wherever you are.

To be honest, I was amazed. Yard sales in Alaska in March? California, I can see (oh, my, the listings for that state!)

The site is a boon for those who can't have a sale from their garage or yard for various reasons. If you live in an apartment, don't have time to run a garage sale or local laws make it difficult, here's your chance to do it anyway.

I got my bargain hunt fix here yesterday and I've bookmarked it for the next time, AND... I found a garage sale in my home town. It's not often that a site that covers the entire nation has anything relevant for a small town.

Guest Post: Do It Yourself to Save Money

by Raine Parker

I do what I can to save money, and one of the best ways I've come up with is to cut out paying for services I can do myself. I might not be able to generate my own electricity or cable programming, but there are a lot of monthly expenses I can save by doing it myself.

Take a haircut, for instance. Even at a discount-friendly chain store, a haircut can be $20 or more with shampoo and a tip. Why pay it? I've started cutting my own hair, and aside from a few minor mistakes at the very beginning, it's been a fun process. It's a frugal, smart way to eliminate a regular cost.

Another great idea is gardening, since you'll be able to raise some fruits and vegetables on your own and not have to pay the grocer's prices for them. Check with your local plant shop or garden center to see what kind of vegetables grow best in your location.

I've also boned up on minor repair procedures for things like leaky faucets or faulty fuses. Paying a plumber or electrician to come out and fix a problem can be costly, and there are many things that you can fix on your own with some basic tools and rudimentary knowledge. DoItYourself.com has an array of helpful articles to guide you through such repairs.

A lot of consumers want to save money but aren't sure how to start doing it. Eliminating certain expenditures by performing the services yourself is a great way to start, and you'll see the savings add up right away.

This guest post is contributed by Raine Parker, who writes on the topics of online accounting degree. She welcomes your comments at raine.parker6@gmail.com

Work at home and/or make money without a job

It's historically proven that new jobs and industries are created during an economic lull, as in this recession. People become more creative in finding ways to make money and in creating jobs for themselves. All is not lost because an employer doesn't hand you a regular check.

After doing quite a bit of research, I wrote two articles: one about finding valid work at home jobs and the other about making money without a job.

I have done some of the work in each article and I know they work. Not everything will work for everyone, of course, but if you're out of work, or need a part time or second job, take a look and see what you can come up with.

Top 10 Valid Work at Home Jobs

How to Make Money Without a Job

Frugalizing the government

I don't often get into politics. Even less often do I get into polarizing comments about politics, but frugal is my game and it irritates me - no, it infuriates me - to see blind, uncaring waste in our government.

Oh, I could rant about "pork" in bills, and I could scream about wasteful practices in government projects, but why not tackle something we might even have a chance (?) of changing?

Why not demand a few things from our government "servants"?

How about....

Cut the pension of every one who has ever been a senator, representative or president, to 20% of what their income was.

Say NO to career politicians by demanding that no one serve more than two terms. No more life long Senators or Representatives.

Put a cap on what candidates for any office can spend on campaigning. Let's say a half million dollars. That would create a level playing field and no one would win just because they had more or could raise more money than anyone else. Good fund raisers do not necessarily make good leaders.

Just those three things could change the face of politics and the overall efficiency of the government in the US but of course they're just the tip of the iceberg.

Can you imagine what a nation we'd live in if we would really frugalize the government??

Is your indoor air polluted?

I can answer that. Yes, it is.

All indoor air is polluted to a certain degree, and if you're on the tail end of winter when the house has been closed up for heating purposes for a few months, it's very polluted right now.

It still may be too cold to open the windows and doors and let the house air out, which is the best and most frugal way to clean the air, but there is another way to clean it up and make your home fresh again. No, you don't need to use an electric air cleaner that contributes its own pollution and costs you to operate.


Check out the article "A Simple Solution to Indoor Pollution" and you'll see what I mean.

This solution will outlast any air cleaner and it's a lot more pleasant to look at.

Survival seeds

You may have noticed the "Hometown Seeds" link on the side bar. The story goes that they emailed me and asked me to put put up the link. I went to their site and looked around. They have a good variety of seeds at a good price, and besides that, I like their attitude, so I put up the link.

A couple of days ago, Saturday to be exact, I received a package of "Survival Seeds" from them, with a very nice hand written note thanking me for linking to their site.

The seeds were totally enclosed in a mylar looking package, so of course, I had to open it. We're not even close to planting time for even the early crops here... but I opened it anyway. Oh, my.

It felt like Christmas.

An exciting (gardeners, you know what I mean!) pile of seed packages slid out onto the table. Beans and radishes, corn and tomatoes, squash and lettuce and more. And more. There are enough to plant well over half an acre!

If I had paid for the package (which I did not, by way of disclaimer), I would have been very pleased. (Since I didn't pay for it, I was even more pleased, but that's the frugal in me!)

These survival packets, according to the label, will keep 5 years in a cool place. No hybrids so you can save seeds from the plants and expect perfect results the year after, and no GMO's so you can be sure you're eating healthy, real food.

So I'm happy today. :)

People helping people

With so many people out of work or having to make do with part time or low paying jobs, there are a lot of needs out there.

I was reminded of the site Modest Needs and took a closer look than I had before.

Part of living frugally is being able to help others who need it. Sometimes all it takes is a few dollars tossed into the pile along with a few others' dollars and that's how this site works. You can give a one time donation or set it up to give a donation each month, then you can choose where the money is used.

People who need help apply for it and are screened and checked out by Modest Needs, then their pleas are listed on the site and you can choose which one to help. If you can't decide, your "points" (dollars) go into a fund and the organization uses it wherever it's needed.

The organization is legitimate and your donations are tax deductible.

If you have an extra $5 or $10 a month or just once in awhile, consider donating to them. It's a lot more personal and you'll feel better than just writing a check to a charity and hoping that someone, somewhere, will get the help they need from it.

Hungry for spring!

I dragged out some wild food books over the weekend and spent some time looking through them, finding a few recipes to try this spring and summer, as well as deciding to try a couple of "weeds" that I've not eaten before. It was a good way to spend an otherwise boring winter afternoon, but it really got me fired up for spring!

Dandelions will be in grave danger this year, I can tell you. I'm so looking forward to fresh greens and more. One of the books I rediscovered is "Dandelion Celebration" by Peter Gail. Curious, I tried to track him down and actually found a blog he wrote, but the last entry was in April of last year. I'm hoping that he just got busy with other things and will return soon.

That little book was what really got me started on dandelions and I'm still learning about them. Not only can you eat the leaves as cooked greens, you can eat them raw in a salad or sandwich. You can steam the buds and eat them with butter, fritter the flower heads or add the flowers to cookie dough... make dandelion coffee and, of course, dandelion wine. All for free (how frugal is that??)

Then you can sprout the seeds for a midwinter green, or you can bring in a plant or two and have greens year 'round. Dig the roots for a cooked vegetable, too.

And so my weekend went... and so I'm hungry for all those good, free, wild foods that won't grow here just yet.

If you haven't tried wild foods, do yourself and your food budget a favor and try dandelions this spring. You might be able to find a copy of Peter Gail's book at a library, but if you can't, there are many dandelion recipes on the internet. Just remember to not gather them from lawns or fields that have been sprayed with herbicides or pesticides or that are close to highways or busy streets.

Have you had any experience with dandelions or other wild foods? I'd love to learn more!