Search Results for: blog why live frugally

Why Live Frugally?

A question that often comes up is why should anyone live so frugally? This is usually followed up by, “Don’t you have a life?” Once and a while someone might say, “I could never live like that. I’d rather work than wash out baggies.” Those questions are important, even the abrasive one about baggies. They prove that many people don’t really understand a frugal lifestyle. I live frugally, and yes, I do have a life; a very good one. I do work for an income, although it is only part time. I seldom wash out baggies because, well I don’t … Continue reading →

Living Frugally Is The Latest Trend

Living more frugally seems to be the latest trend these days. Perhaps its just my own perception, but if you look around you, newspapers and magazines seem to be publishing more and more feature articles on ways to save and live a more frugal life. The more we expose people to these trends, the more they will take off and become the latest “thing to do” and perhaps the more retailers, shops and others will begin to listen. Saving money is finally cool. What I never understood before is that apparently it is an embarrassment to admit you’re a cheapskate. … Continue reading →

Pledging To Live a More Frugal Lifestyle

New Year’s resolutions are being made all over the world tonight, as we vow to make changes in our lives and goals to set for the year. Last year I made a few resolutions or goals and I stuck to them for most of the year. This made a huge difference in my decision to make new ones this year. I pledge to live a more frugal life. I pledge this exact same thing every single year. Most of my friends think it is a strange goal, since I already appear to be living a very frugal lifestyle. I pinch … Continue reading →

Tips for Driving Safely Through the Snow

Winter weather often includes snow. Driving in snow is not the same as driving down the street on a nice, sunny, day. Here are some safety tips that can help you to safely drive through the snow and to avoid an accident, (and the auto insurance claim that would accompany it). Right now, I live in a part of California that doesn’t actually get any snow. This is a great relief to me after growing up and spending my young adult life in the midwest. I’ll be quite happy if I never have to drive through a snowstorm during a … Continue reading →

Being Frugal Is Genetically Influenced

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Do you come from a long line of “cheapskates”? Some people have a tendency be frugal, while other people tend to enjoy spending a lot of money. Why is this? Is frugality something that a person learns from their relatives, or is there a genetic influence? Studies show that it is due to both, with an emphasis on genetics. Many of my relatives are quite frugal. Not only is outgrown clothing handed down from one sibling to another, it was also handed down from older cousins to younger cousins. My grandmother loved going to garage sales and yard sales and … Continue reading →

Juggling Time, Money, and Family

It’s said that there are people with a lot of time, but who don’t have a lot of money, and there are those who have a lot of money, but not a lot of time. Ain’t that the truth? On days when I feel more free to kick back and relax, I’m not as financially productive, and vice versa. There are a few ways to take a day off and still make money—if you’re the boss and have employees working for you, your company can still be productive if you step away from your desk. But for most of us, … Continue reading →

Frugal Flower Arrangements

Don’t you just love walking into one of those model homes (or maybe visiting through a design show on television) and seeing how elegantly everything is put together? One thing that I usually notice is all of the fresh cut flowers. They do really make a difference in the home, and yet how many of us actually have fresh cut flowers in our own home on a regular basis? There are a couple of reasons why having fresh flowers at home is important. Studies have shown that looking at attractive or bright colored flowers can boost your mood. So think … Continue reading →

You Get What You Pay For

This is my father in law’s justification to never buy cheap items. It took years to convince him that inexpensive does not always mean cheap. Some things have reduced prices because a new model has just been made. Other items have low prices because because they don’t come with alot of bells and whistles. Cheapism.com is a new website that proves that you can buy things for less money, and get the true value of your money. There’s nothing worse than buying a less expensive item trying to be frugal only to have to replace it in a few months. … Continue reading →

Get Fingerprinted to Sell Your Home

If you live in Cook County, Illinois, you might feel like a criminal when you go to sell your home. That is because a law quietly passed that requires anyone notarizing documents for selling a home in that area to provide a thumbprint. Lawmakers say that the legislation was put into affect to dissuade people from committing real estate fraud. Criminals may think twice about selling a home illegally if their thumbprint is on record, I suppose. The law, which was passed last October and goes into affect this June has residents of the county concerned about privacy issues. The … Continue reading →

3 Self-Reliant Ways to Be Frugal

Doing things for yourself often means that you will also save money. There are so many ways that you can be a bit more self-reliant that will naturally make you frugal as well. I’m just going to cover three of them here today, but the next time you are confronted with an area of your budget that you want to tighten up, see if there is a way that you can be more self-reliant. Heating Heating is a big concern this winter. Prices are very high on oil, natural gas and even electricity. You can become more self-reliant by heating … Continue reading →