The gub'ment gives away so much stuff. You pay taxes, so get some of it!
The Office of Women's Health is taking orders for a 2008 women's health calendar.
Sign up to receive one here: http://www.womenshealth.gov/pub/2008calendar/order/index.cfm
DH
I found a couple of great Web sites for tips on making your life easier in the kitchen with substitutes and tips for saving food.
Here's cookingvillage.com and the "Tiptionary."
Pancakes. I love making all kinds of funky pancakes (oatmeal, blueberry, cinnamon orange), but since it's just me, I wind up throwing out the batter I don't use. But I read a tip on the site about freezing pancakes (I've tried freezing the batter, but the pancakes never turn out right). Freeze the pancakes in a freezer bag with pieces of wax paper between them. Later, I can warm them in the oven or stick 'em in the toaster.
I wouldn't mess with ingredient substitutions too much in baked goods, but some things like lemon juice just add tang. No lemon juice? Use white vinegar.
Ehow.com also has an awesome list of ingredient substitutions when you're trying to work with what you got at home.
Also, here's a great recipe for veggie fajitas I found on allrecipes.com this lasted me for about seven days. Great lunch!
DH
I was lying in bed last night flipping channels and found this cute, cheesy, little show on PBS called Haley's Hints. It's this guy doing all these amazing cleaning jobs with vinegar and cream of tartar and whatnot.
My favorite trick, that many frugal folks probably know about very well, was getting ink out of clothes. I'm always getting little pen streaks on khakis or white shirts and then just smudging them everywhere trying to get them out.
Haley said, spray the ink stain with copious amounts of hairspray (the cheaper the better). Then take an ordinary bar of soap (no dye, no perfume) and rub it into the stain. Then hand rinse it in cold water. Voila, no more ink stain.
Another one that I really could have used back at my old apartment was about getting melted candle wax out carpets. All he did was put a folded paper towel over the wax and then press down on it with a warm iron (no steam). After about 10 seconds, he'd lift it up, put it turn the paper towel to a clean spot and repeat, over and over until the wax was absorbed. If the wax was colored and left a stain, pour rubbing alcohol on it (make sure the carpet is colorfast) and scrub it out with a toothbrush.
Amazing!
The last one -- and I plan to try it -- was getting those ugly yellow water stains out of the bathtub. Hydrogen peroxide and cream of tartar. Mix them together into a thin paste, then pour it onto the stain and rub it in with a sponge or cloth. All gone.
But the thing that irked me about all these wonderfully frugal tips, was that if I wanted any more from Haley's fount of knowledge, the book would have cost $60. Yes, part of that was to help out wonderful PBS, but dang! The irony!
It also made me wonder how well some of this stuff works. But, since it essentially costs nothing, you know I'd try it.
I think it's funny that it's so easy to take care of so many household needs with cheap things you've already got int the house, but people buy expensive, poisonous cleaning products that can only do one thing, and even then might not do the job.
Be easy. Be green. Be cheap!
DH
So you see I've been complaining about how I need new clothes for a couple of posts now.
I came across this article in the local newspaper from columnist Ms. Cheap, who writes about good deals in the area.
In this article she talked to a woman about shopping smarter, but not necessarily cheaper.
Have you ever heard of the 20/80 rule? That we only wear about 20 percent of the clothes we own. That's a sad ratio. Unfortunately, I think it's true. There are several things in my closet right now that I pass over every day for work, don't wear on the weekends, but hold onto because I think I'm actually going to wear it to something, then never do.
Women tend to do this more than men because we're more likely to buy on impulse or to buy something because it's on sale or a great deal. Men, the stereotype goes, will buy four of the same thing in different colors for whatever they cost if they need that thing.
Men have it right.
According to the article, it's better to plan out what you need and get it, even if each piece costs more than you usually spend. The idea is that you'll save more money in the long run because you'll actually wear the clothes and they'll last longer than the cheap stuff.
I knew that.
But I still wander through cheapie stores looking for "staples," like white button down shirts. They suck, never fit quite right and, frankly, they're cheap! Say what you want, but I can tell the difference.
So,here are the tips:
Define your style. Mine is kinda preppie with a retro vibe. I like well-fitting, wide leg trouser with crisp creases, argyle sweaters, but also flared jeans and boho chic tops.
Edit your wardrobe. Try on everything and separate into love it or leave it. If you haven't worn it in 3 months, toss it (that one's mine, not the article's). You can sell nice stuff on consignment, give it to friends and relatives or just donate it all.
Fill in the gaps. Only buy pieces that fit your style, filling in the gaps left by things you tossed.
It's kinda elementary, but it helps to be reminded.
Happy shopping!
DH
To me, it has nothing to do with my own money.
It has everything to do with other people's money and watching their mindsets about spending, saving and delaying gratification change.
And knowing that I had a small part in that...
Continue reading "One of the Most Gratifying Things About Being a PF Blogger" »
I was listening to NPR early Sunday morning (it's usually a bad idea because instead of getting up, I lie there listening to the news).
Commentator Bonny Wolf talked about potato chip cookies, sauerkraut cake and in her segment. Read part of the transcript or take a listen here.
It was about lessons learned from frugal housewives of a generation ago. Rather than throw away food, they whipped up excruciating sounding concoctions, but, apparently, that's where some best-loved desserts come from.
7-Up or Coca-Cola cake anyone?
Continue reading "Squeezing every last dime out of the pantry" »
I love cooking and baking. I don't always feels like cooking, especially after long days at work, but I don't mind eating leftovers of some wonderful meal I tossed together.
Back before I had a budget, I would go through my cookbooks looking for funky fresh dishes or desserts to make. I'd write down the ingredients and go to the store to pick them up.
I only bought name brand spices, sugars and nuts.
I would make 3 - 5 trips to the grocery store a week.
I was blowing wads of cash on my delusions of culinary grandeur.
Once I became wiser about saving without sparing flavor, I developed some neat tricks for saving a few bucks in the kitchen.
Allow me to share...
Okay, this is really weird, but I think it's a useful tip.
Have you ever been at the gym about to open your lock and put it on the locker when you realize you don't remember the combination?
I had two combo locks sitting on my closet floor locked and useless. I was about to buy another one, but got ticked that I'd have to shell out more cash for a lock when I just bought the second one two months ago. I found this nifty site online: http://www.fusor.us/lockpick.html
It tells you how to figure out the combination on a Master Lock. It actually worked! I got the combinations of both locks in about an hour.
Now, maybe if I stopped being lazy and went to the gym more often I wouldn't forget the combinations so quickly. But if I do again, I know how to figure them out.
DH
I’ve got some tips for trimming your expenses that also trim your waistline.
You may have read some of these before, but if you’ve ever wondered if they work, I’ll tell you they do. I’ve lost 10 pounds in the last six months because I was being cheap, not because I was trying to lose weight. (Although, honestly, I hope I don’t lose anymore! I don’t want to lose any padding where it counts!)
Skip the soda, sweet tea, smoothies, gigantor sweet cocktails, appetizers and dessert when eating out.
You could easily save $13 on a single meal this way. Eat dessert at home where it’s cheaper or skip it altogether.
Eat half your meal at the restaurant and save the rest for lunch or dinner the next day.
Doggie bags save time and money. Not to mention calories – the average restaurant entree is 1000 calories, half the calories you need all day long.
Drink more water.
I know people say water fills you up so you eat less, but I don’t think that’s true… not for me anyway. But water is free and with a squeeze of lemon, it’s quite refreshing.
Don’t drink with dinner at home or with lunch at work.
Individual bottles or cans of soda or drinks are expensive. Bottles of juice (or juice drink, more appropriately) are expensive too. When I was a kid, My brother and I could polish off 64 ounces of fruit drink in a single meal. When I grew up and started shopping for myself, my jaw dropped at how expensive that stuff is! Now I drink 6 to 8 ounces after I’ve had dinner as kind of a treat. Saves money, and about 300 calories.
Swap out meat for beans or veggies.
Beans are cheap, dried, in a can, whatever. Cheap. And cooked up right you won't miss the meat. Beans have protein, like meat, but with fiber and without the cholesterol and fat. I try to make vegetarian lunches and save the meat for dinners at home (or eating out).
If you need some suggestions, email me, I've got great suggestions for veggie cous cous, veggie burritos, avocado and white bean tortillas, veggie chili with cornbread, yummy!
Spread out the snacks.
I’m a cookie fiend. I’m the Cookie Monster. For a long time, I wouldn’t let my fridge be devoid of those cookies you break off and bake. But, those things aren’t cheap. So, I only buy them on sale and I’ll make a package last for weeks. I stopped eating cookies and milk every night to save the money. That alone probably accounts for half the weight I lost!
Bring your snacks to work.
Don't bother with those pre-packed, 100 calories deals. They cost more than just buying a regular bag and portioning it out in smaller sandwich bags yourself. There's also the healthy options like apples and bananas. I also like snacking on pomegranate seeds.
A richer indulgence is Newman’s Own Organic dark chocolate bar, eating just one or two squares a day. It’s just 50 to 100 calories and if you eat it slow enough, it soothes the choco-monster inside. Trust me, if I can eat just one square, you can too!
Give them a try for fiscal and physical health! If you have any more suggestions, please share them.
DH
Jim at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity recently began a series of posts called "Devil's Advocate" where he takes the opposite side of common personal finance advice and argues why you shouldn't do it.
The latest is about the typical advice about maxing deductions on your W-4 to make sure you get as much money as possible in your paycheck and much less in your income tax return. Read it here. The conventional wisdom (and it's advice that comes from financial professionals as well) is that having the government hold onto that money is like giving Uncle Sam an interest free loan. The feds make money off that, but you don't and you may not get it all back in your tax refund.
Most people would advise you to up your payroll deductions to make sure your refund is as close to $0 as possible (meaning you don't owe the government any money at the end of the year and you got all that money in your paycheck all year). You're supposed to use that money to save or pay down debt.
But Jim says, maybe not. It's a thoughtful post and so is the first one, about why it's better to rent than buy a home.
I like this series because it's important to consider every side when it comes to maximizing your financial success (it's important in anything you do in life, really). So, while you gather all kinds of advice while trying to improve your finances this year, be sure to pay attention to the other side. It might apply to you more than the conventional wisdom.
Check it out.
DH
