July went by so quickly for us! There were so many fun and frugal activities and events for us to explore, from a science camp to free movies and sand sculpting. I hope your July was equally fun and frugal. Summer is a busy time, I know. Did you miss any frugal articles last month? If so, here is an opportunity to catch up on what you missed. There are new ways to save money on food, clothing, kids, gas and more. Feel free to leave a comment on any frugal post. I read all of the comments myself, no matter whether the article was posted today or posted last year.
Thanks for reading!
July 1st
Frugal School Supplies in July 3
School supplies can add up, so if you want to spend between $1.75 and $5.50 instead of between $25 and $28 for all of those pencils, notebooks and more (one friend told me she spends about $45 for back to school supplies), keep reading. There are two previous articles in this series: Frugal School Supplies in July and Frugal School Supplies in July 2.
MyGallons.com Promises to Save You Money on Gas
Across the nation, gas prices continue to rise causing people everywhere to cut back on traveling or cut back on other expenses to afford the gas. There is a new service out there that promises to save you money on gas by allowing you to lock in the price. This means that no matter how much gas prices rise, you will still only pay the same rate for gas.
July 2nd
Eating out can be very expensive, which is why I always talk about making meals at home to save money. There are some ways that you can eat out and enjoy your meal for free! Not too many people know about most of these secrets, but I’ll share them with you today. Try them out and post about your experiences.
July 3rd
Frugal Living Month in Review: June 2008
What a happy month is June, filled with the renewal of spring and the promise of summer. In the last month, we have shared so many ideas for frugal living and saving money. This past month has seen some pretty big increases in food, gas and other items (look for an upcoming post about strawberries increasing more than 100 percent). Now more than ever, it is important to save money where we can. This is why I decided to do a month in review.
July 5th
The Astronomical Price of Strawberries
Okay, by now I am getting used to the cost of food rising everywhere, but when thing rise more than 100 percent in a single week, it can be a bit intimidating. Such is the case of strawberries here in my local town.
July 7th
Frugal Living Week in Review: June 30th Through July 6th
Are you enjoying your summer? If you are like me, you might already be thinking of September and school. I find that thinking ahead to necessary purchases really helps save money. You can check out some of the recent blogs for frugal school supplies that you can get now. Or, if you still want to enjoy summer, review the articles on saving money on gas (for travel plans), the price of strawberries and more.
Making Your Freezer and Crock Pot Work Together
Two great appliances in your kitchen arsenal are your crock pot and your freezer. These two things can do a lot to save you money on your food budget. The crock pot can cost less to operate than a conventional oven. And having a full freezer reduces the chances that you will be buying expensive restaurant meals. But when you combine both the crock pot and the freezer, you’ll make the most of your savings. Here are some guidelines to using these appliances together to reduce your food budget and live frugally.
Who doesn’t love getting things for free? Eating out for free is especially nice, since it combines the necessity of eating (everyone has to eat) with the entertainment of getting out and trying something new. And with the price of gas being so high, you may be able to justify a trip out if the meal is free.
July 8th
The stores are finally catching up with my thinking. Did you know that the first back to school sales have started. I checked out the Deals blog to find some great ones. I’ve been talking about how important it is to start getting your school supplies together early for the best way of saving money on them. I’ve already covered shopping the store sales, now let us take a look at some other places for cheap or free school supplies. Some of these sources may surprise you!
July 9th
Saving Money on Household Beverages
With summer here, your family is probably downing more beverages than ever to keep hydrated. And with an increase of beverages can come an increase in your budget. Here are some ways that you can curb the expense without curbing the drinks.
July 10th
Dealing with Unexpected Expenses
Dealing with unexpected expenses isn’t often an easy thing to do, but with rising prices on everything these day, unexpected expenses can really put you in a crisis mode. How can you come up with more money when you are already stretched tightly? Here are some ideas.
July 11th
One sure way to reduce the amount of money you spend on food is to avoid wasting any of it. The average American wastes up to 50 percent of the food that they buy. From half-eaten sandwiches and chicken nuggets left by the kids to lettuce that wilts and leftovers that turn into science experiments, chances are that you throw some food away every day.
July 12th
Frugal At Home: Lancaster Trip
I have to say that I am enjoying a frugal day today after last week’s shopping spree. Yes, we do spend money just like everyone else, even though we try to be careful.
July 13th
What Is Your Frugal Roadblock?
One thing that I have learned while practicing frugal living is that you just can’t do everything. I am a big advocate of choice in frugality. You do what makes sense to you. Of course, that all goes out the window when you are in the middle of a crisis. Then you must do everything that you can to get out of it.
Frugal Weekend Report: Sunday, July 13th
Have you done anything frugal this weekend? I find weekends the hardest time to be frugal. There is all of this running around, the grocery shopping, the events, etc., that make spending a temptation. Are weekends harder for you to be frugal or easier?
July 14th
Frugal Living Week in Review: July 7th Through July 13th
Do you find it easier or harder to save money in the summer? On one hand, there is the air conditioning, the expensive vacations, and the many different activities. One the other hand, there is the opportunity to be outdoors and less of a need for lights, heat or electronic entertainment. We have been taking advantage of playing outside and going to free concerts, events and classes. What have you been doing?
New Milk Containers Save Money
Saving money on milk has been a mission of mine. With three kids aged seven and younger and a personal need to keep up my calcium, milk is a steady purchase in our home. As mentioned in previous blogs, I do what I can to save money on milk, from baking with powdered milk to finding the best prices of hormone-free milk. But still, I have witnessed the steady climb of milk from $2.30 a gallon to $4.00 a gallon in a very short time. And, there doesn’t seem an end to the price inflation anytime soon.
July 15th
Unclaimed Funds: You Might Be Rich!
Sure being frugal means saving money. But what if you already have money that you aren’t using and don’t know about? It would be nice to get your hands on some of it, wouldn’t it? Here is how.
July 16th
Cutting back on your expenses can mean buying your clothing used or reusing what you already have. One of the issues with previously owned clothing is that it can sometimes be dated and old fashioned, or reflect a trend that has past. Whether you have outdated children’s clothing or adult clothing, you can turn it around and spare the expense. Here is how you can update those old styles.
Frugal Night (or Day) at the Movies
How much does it cost to go out to the movies these days? I don’t even know anymore. That is because I haven’t paid full price for a night at the movies in years. Here is a round up of how you can save on a night at the movies.
July 17th
For a little fun in the tub for your little ones, consider making your own soap crayons. They are fun to use, easy to clean up, and they won’t break the bank. I made mine out of extra ingredients that I wasn’t using. Read below to find out how you can make your own.
July 21st
Frugal Living Week in Review: July 14th Through July 20th
What is your biggest frugal pet peeve? Is it other people who waste things? Is it the price of food? I’d love to hear from you for a future blog post. Meanwhile, in the words of Ricky Ricardo, I have some “splainin” to do. I am so sorry to have missed posting on Friday or anytime over the weekend. My Internet connection decided to go poof, and it couldn’t be addressed until today. Frugally, it was all repaired free of charge. I am back now with the Frugal Living Week in Review!
July 22nd
Six Reasons to Grocery Shop in the Morning
If you are a morning person, take advantage of this to save some money. Just the act of shopping as an early bird can reduce your food budget at the grocery store. Here are six reasons why this works.
Six Reasons to Grocery Shop in the Morning 2
The next time you get ready for your grocery shopping, also plan on getting up early, throwing on some clothes, grab a quick bite to eat and head out. Getting to the grocery store early can really save you some money on your food. We’ve already covered two ways this is true, now let’s explore some more. The early bird gets the best deals!
Six Reasons to Grocery Shop in the Morning 3
Just as the early bird catches the worm, the early grocery shopper can catch the best value for her money. We are in the home stretch now with this series that talks about the very real benefit of doing your grocery shopping in the morning. If you missed those earlier two posts, you can click here to catch up: Six Reasons to Grocery Shop in the Morning and Six Reasons to Grocery Shop in the Morning 2.
July 23rd
Using up your leftovers or having planned leftovers for meals is a great way to save money. You can use up all of the food you have through leftovers, especailly getting free meals. Also, cooking in bulk can save money and time. But not everyone is big on leftovers. Before I became frugal, I wouldn’t touch a leftover for my life.
July 24th
Five Reasons to Stockpile Food
Among frugal living people, there is sometimes the debate about stockpiling food. Critics of stockpiling food point out that the money used on stockpiled food could be put in a bank to earn interest instead of invested in food that might go stale or bad. They may say that with a general income that keeps pace with inflation, there is no sense in stockpiling. Or they say that the stockpile takes up too much room in the home, costing you livable space.
July 25th
The cost per serving of cereal is absolutely outrageous right now. It can cost you $4 or even $5 for a box of cereal that may last you a single day. And the boxes are shrinking as the price goes up. Ouch. Here are some ways to save on cereal.
July 27th
According to the Brita company, which makes water filters, you can save $1,700 a year on water if you use a Brita water filter. They have ads on television emphasizing where all of those bottles of water that we purchase end up in a landfill practically forever. Their website, filerforgood.com also talks about the value in using a filter instead of buying bottles of water.
July 28th
Frugal Living Week in Review: July 21st Through July 27th
We have a lot of articles on food this week, from saving money on cereal to the best time to grocery shop. Please check them out and let me know if there are any particular topics or knowledge that you would like to read about.
Do you want an easy way to reduce your food budget by half? Stop wasting food. Believe or not, the average American household throws away half of all of the food that they purchase. It is easier to do than you might think. In a previous blog, Ways to Avoid Food Waste, I shared some ideas for reducing the amount of food that gets thrown out in your household. Now, let’s explore even more ways. Pretty soon, you can have an efficiently run food budget that will naturally reduce the amount of money you are spending on food.
July 29th
Whether you pack lunches to take to work or are gearing up for the back to school crush, you’ll want to take a look at this blog. In it, I offer some tried and true cheap eats for the lunchbox. Not all snacks are created equal when it come to the monetary cost of them. And, you can have anything from standard to gourmet on a budget when you pack it yourself.
Tips for Slicing Homemade Bread
You know that I am a big advocate of making your own bread to save money (and eat healthier. Well, the other day, a reader of our blogs mentioned to me that she would love to have home made bread but thought that it was too much trouble. I suggested that she get a bread machine to make things easier. “Oh, it isn’t making the bread!” she said. “It is slicing the bread. The slices are always uneven or the bread gets squished or the slices are too big to use for sandwiches.”
Music soothes the savage beast, and the overworked human, too. Getting your groove on with some tunes is a sure way to relax and unwind or pump up to get the job done. In this age of iPods, it is easy to rack up a good amount of debt just by downloading music, going to concerts, buying CDs, etc. But music doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, it can be frugal. Here is how.
July 30th
Recession Giving Birth to More Frugals
With all of the changes in personal economic outlook do to high gas prices, high food prices and high everything-related-to-food-or-fuel prices, the majority of consumers are changing their spending habits and becoming more frugal. According to a news report by AP news, many of those new”frugals” are planning to remain frugal, even if their financial outlook improves.
Even though you are frugal, you want to look your best. Who doesn’t want a bright, white smile? But cosmetic dentistry can cost an average of $15,000 to $20,000 that is not covered by insurance, and even those home whitening kits can get expensive at $30 to $35 a pop, to be repeated every three months or more.
July 31st
If you want to attack your dirt, you’ll need an arsenal of supplies. But forget the fancy cleaners, battery powered mops, and expensive robots. You can have a sparkling clean house without spending a lot of money.
Isn’t it amazing how little ones can cost so much. Toys, food, clothing, equipment and entertainment can all add up at the end of the year. Here are some ways to save when you have a toddler.