It’s always great to find ways to save money. But is there a point where you can be too frugal? Here are some things that people are doing that some people may say cross the line between saving and being too frugal.
1. Use a Bidet and No Toilet Paper
For many, using a bidet is a great way to feel cleaner and fresher after using the toilet. But does using a bidet warrant completely ditching toilet paper?
“I just got it this year and to say it’s life changing is an understatement. It sprays and is adjustable and has that little wand that moves.”
“We use a bidet. So zero paper or cloth needed.”
2. Don’t Use a Dryer
Is avoiding dryers worth the time it takes to hang up each article of clothing? Many people love it, and it’s common practice in many countries. Is ditching the dryer for hanging clothes worth the savings to you?
“Hanging clothes to dry FTW(for the win)! I find that clothes keep their colors better, don’t fade, and have less wear and tear.”
“100% agree I have stuff that I purchased like 10 years ago that i still wear, due to washing in cold water and not using the dryer.”
“It takes me like 15 minutes to hang everything up. When the weather is cool, I hang my stuff up on racks in my spare room and have the ceiling fan running. My clothes dry in a day. In summer, I put my racks under the covered part of my porch, and the clothes are dry within a few hours.”
“I hang all of my clothes and most of the time they don’t need ironing too.”
3. Buy Meat That’s About to Expire
Is it worth it to make regular trips to the grocery store to find meat close to the expiration date on sale? Many believe it’s a fantastic life hack for saving money and getting good food.
“Every single day, I wake up to go to the grocery store because they do meat on clearance in the morning. Only 1 time out of 15 do I get something interesting. But imo (in my opinion) it’s worth it. I won’t pay 6€ for a fancy beef cut if I can have it for 1€ just because I was willing to wake up early. Income is low but time is valuable, and I have a lot of it.”
“Groceries stores by me have meat on super-sale on the “sell-by” date. I plan my meals based around whatever I find there.”
“I’ve bought meat near the “sell-by” date and immediately put it in my freezer and ate it months later. Having a chest freezer is awesome for variety.”
4. Wash and Reuse Plastic Baggies
Is washing out ziplock bags and reusing them repeatedly worth the cost of buying more? Some people have a complete system down with how they clean and store their bags for reuse.
“I re-use (ziplock) plastic baggies. Squirt a little watered-down dish washing soap in the baggie, add warm water and “massage” open end up and then down. Rinse thoroughly and sort of fill the baggy with water while holding it up by opposite sides. Any leaky ones will be used later for stuff; not food. To dry, turn the open end a bit out: That will keep the baggy open and then dry it, open end down, on the dish rack. The dried baggies (laid out flat) are stored in 2 shallow cardboard boxes; 1 for leakies and 1 for foodie ones. After 25 years of practice, it takes me about 25 seconds/baggy. Am I going overboard on frugalness?”
“We always did this in my house growing up. I had no idea until I moved in with roommates that this wasn’t typical!”
“I reuse all of my grocery store baggies for both produce and leftover bags and all dog poop bags.”
“I put leftovers in supermarket bags too!”
5. Use an Old Flip Phone
Would you be willing to sacrifice having a smartphone for an old-fashioned flip phone to save money?
“I also have a flip phone that costs me 10 bucks a month, that’s another massive savings over a new smartphone every year with a data plan.”
6. Furnish Home with Second Hand Stuff
Would you forgo buying something new for the completely vintage, second-hand lifestyle?
“I furnished apartment with almost all hand me downs, free stuff, furniture for $15 or less. There are some really nice things that people don’t want out there because they are going to go buy an overpriced particle board piece of crap that will break in a couple of years. Re-wiring a lamp is pretty easy, so is refinishing furniture.”
7. Stock Up on Sale Items
When an item is deeply discounted, how far would you go to stock up?
“One time Staples was clearing out their brand of Scott 1000 style TP (toilet paper)for something like $3 for 20 rolls. I bought the maximum that would fit in my car. We used that haul for well over a year.”
8. Only Shop Thrift
Would you only buy thrift even though you could afford unused merchandise?
“I buy all clothes, shoes, and accessories from the thrift shop. Even underwear – its easy to find brand new but donated for whatever reason.”
9. Always Save Gift Wrap and Tissue Paper
Would you ever wrap a gift in a newspaper? Do you find it tacky or environmentally conscious?
“I never buy gift wrap or tissue paper. I picked up the habit from my mom, who saved every bag, box, and piece of tissue paper she received with gifts, so she could regift them to others. I even found a lady on Facebook Marketplace giving away a bunch of gift bags she had for free. I think I’ve only bought one bag (with cats on it), and it was for my best friend who adores cats (it was on clearance for $2).”
“I do this too! It’s not eco-friendly to buy wrapping paper, I cringe at Christmas time. I use papers given to me in gifts or newspaper as wrappings.”
“I’ve seen people put cute stamp patterns on basic brown bags too. I’ve started saving plain bags I get from grocery stores that can be decorated. I’m determined to not pay a penny more for more gift wrap lol! There’s so many ways you can wrap a gift completely free.”
10. Sharpen Razor Blades on Jeans
Would you be willing to try this hack to save money on razors?
“The fibers in cotton jeans will sharpen a shaving razor if you run the razor vertically up the strands. I just cut up some jeans i was never going to wear again years ago and am still using the same box of blades I bought back then and I can grow a beard in like 5 days so if it works for me it’ll probably work for you. No face burn or anything.”
“Totally going to try this those damn blades are crazy expensive!”
10. DIY Cleaners
Do DIY cleaners do the job of disinfecting as well as name-brand cleaners? Is it worth the cost of saving to make your cleaners?
“Make my own laundry detergent. I have been doing it for a long time now, and I have the money to easily afford for the $0.05-.10 more a load to buy pre-made detergent, but I have been doing it so long and just plain prefer it that way now. Also, generally not buying cleaners. Steam cleaner for the floors (every so often I’ll use some hardwood stuff to keep the wood hydrated, but that’s probably going to last me the next 7+ years at this rate), dawn dish soap + water for most things, and bleach solutions in an old spray bottle for disinfecting. This is 90% of my cleaning needs, I cannot imagine going back to ‘running out’ for cleaners. A bottle of bleach lasts me multiple years, dawn dish soap I buy in bulk at the beginning of the year too.
11. Cut Your Own Hair
Should women start trying to cut their hair now, with haircuts becoming so expensive?
“Just started doing this. I like to fade my hair on the sides and back of my head. So my wife has to help with that and the edges. It bugs me that I can’t do it 100% by myself. Still, it saves me about $15-20 a month and the time spent driving and waiting at a barber shop.”
“My wife cut my hair with a #3 from 2005 until 2017. Saved about $200 a year not having to get haircuts.”
12. Make More Deodorant Out Of Old Bits
Is this frugal to the extreme?
“I save up the unusable bits of deodorant in a zip lock until I have enough, then melt them down when I have enough to fill a tube.”
13. Do Spa Treatment at Home
Would you say goodbye to manis and spa treatments to save money?
“I do all my beauty treatments and cut and color my hair at home. Facials, nails, pedicures, waxing and such. I know it’s not a necessity but it makes me feel good and put together. I couldn’t believe how much money I was wasting to get all that stuff done by someone else before I really started to pay attention to my finances.”
This post came from the following thread.
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