Frugal is straightforward in meaning to the twenty-first century globalized society. Summarized though your actions and behaviors, frugality simply means; ones mental perspectives of being thrifty and saving money that can be used better in other areas of one’s budget. Fitting into the category myself, I join thousands of women who implore various areas as to where I can save money. True frugality exists on a scale of various levels, while one may clip coupons for grocery and household savings another may restrain themselves from depleting their economical resources; if you are extreme in your frugality you may also purchase goods and service using caution. Those who know me often jokingly exclaim that I have a gift to save money as I save on everything I buy, however, I purchase quality items that may traditionally be thought of as far from frugal -- the objective in quality is that I purchase knowing that such expenses will last, fulfilling my goals to save money. My desire in this blog is to bequeath you my tips as to how you can also become a thrifty shopper and penny pincher; sharing my tactics will also assist you in saving the economy, your energy, and vital money -- protecting the budget you have created for yourself or your household.
To start, you must understand that frugality is not a onetime event but it is much more a delicate lifelong process; this requires a change in shopping, spending habits, and enacting self restraint which will not occur overnight. You will need a month or two to get yourself into a money saving regime as your main goal will be to strive for efficiency. To save money one avoids traps that come with hidden fees, cut down and eventually cut out shopping on impulse; with proper utilization of passing by expensive unneeded but much desired items, clipping coupons, seeking savings, buying in bulk, purchasing only when the item of desire is on sale, climbing the clearance wracks, exploring second hand boutiques and shops, and even bartering for goods/services. To be frugal you must stay informed, I cannot emphasis to you how much knowledge has helped me to save hundreds per month; you must know what items are on sale in your retail flyers but also know what items are being discounted the subsequent week -- do not stick with a single store but explore product prices at a variety of store, so to get a better deal which is easily done through means of the Internet.
While I could converse on the items that one should never purchase outright or on an impulse, the list would be far too long so instead I am taking an efficient approach -- sharing with you friends what I do [please note that you may edit the information to fit your household and your personal budget]. Passing forth such methodology with a simple explanation of why you should pass up a variety of items that are purchased each and every day.
To start, you must understand that frugality is not a onetime event but it is much more a delicate lifelong process; this requires a change in shopping, spending habits, and enacting self restraint which will not occur overnight. You will need a month or two to get yourself into a money saving regime as your main goal will be to strive for efficiency. To save money one avoids traps that come with hidden fees, cut down and eventually cut out shopping on impulse; with proper utilization of passing by expensive unneeded but much desired items, clipping coupons, seeking savings, buying in bulk, purchasing only when the item of desire is on sale, climbing the clearance wracks, exploring second hand boutiques and shops, and even bartering for goods/services. To be frugal you must stay informed, I cannot emphasis to you how much knowledge has helped me to save hundreds per month; you must know what items are on sale in your retail flyers but also know what items are being discounted the subsequent week -- do not stick with a single store but explore product prices at a variety of store, so to get a better deal which is easily done through means of the Internet.
While I could converse on the items that one should never purchase outright or on an impulse, the list would be far too long so instead I am taking an efficient approach -- sharing with you friends what I do [please note that you may edit the information to fit your household and your personal budget]. Passing forth such methodology with a simple explanation of why you should pass up a variety of items that are purchased each and every day.
[1] Ladies, many of you enjoy delightful books, assisting in the winding down of one’s day in a tried and true relaxing way. You should never purchase books at full price. Used books often come with significant discounts, you just need to seek such discounts; be it locally or from an online retailer. Typically, at a 75%+ discount used books range from good condition to like-new and read once. Online platforms such as BookMooch allows you to trade your books for free with others who are looking, giving one to gain one you desire at no cost. I use this medium and have been for years at current, I have never encountered a problem and highly recommend it to all who enjoy books and also wish to clear clutter while saving the budget.
[2] As an avid music lover, I have a music library of over 75,000 songs showing my passion for a great deal of musical classification categories; I never purchase compact disks. In fact, I highly advise you to never purchase CDs/DVDs/audio books. I look to these disks as an innovation that is slowly moving toward to its death, as in the current day century we have other means of obtaining quality music in high-definition audio sound. Legally, you can purchase Apple iTunes or a subscription to a wonderful music/video downloading platform for little cost; in the end this will save you money as compact disks and DVDs only become scratched – a scratched disk skips or fails to play which in return means spending another $20 on a second and repeating the cycle. I personally have invested in an external hard drive, which I caught at a price I could not pass up; saving fifty percent! I store all my music on that external hard drive, dedicated to music only; easily I can attach this to my computer, fill my Mp3 player, radio, and most importantly create my own compact disks with just what I desire to hear – psst, the superb technology of disk burners come standard on all computers at present as well as DVD burners! Also, you are free to visit a second hand music store that recycles and resells music at prices 75%+ off regular store bought price; taking an eco-conscious approach to keep these disks out of landfills.
[3]. Parents, never pay full price for video gaming tools or the games themselves. While I am not much of a gamer, I know a ton of fellow gamers who utilize game shops to purchase video games at a discounted rate; also they purchase games on eBay and even a bulk of quality second-hand games on Craigslist. Children love their video games and so do geeks that are self professed as I am, however, you can only play a specific video game for so long before you beat the game and tire of it. Children especially grow trite of the “new must have” video game release very quickly, this leads to a child wishing to have another and repeating the cycle game after game. Cut cost by buying these games only if they are discounted or second hand. Recycling an ‘tired of game’ also helps to save our landfills and in return our environment while putting funds in your checking/savings account.
[4] Ah! Getting into my area of expertise I would recommend never purchasing clothes or jewelry at full price ever! As a Hollywood fashionistai, I take great pride in my appearance and I am with interior gratitude that I have a 24x20 custom walk-in-closet for all the things that I find to increase beauty; apparel, accessories, shoes, jewelry, purses/bags, and so forth. My dirty little secret is that there are a slim limited number of items in that walk-in heaven that I paid full price for. I highly recommend shopping at discount outlet malls for immense savings on brand name apparel or stores such as Rugged Warehouse that offers all brands for at least a 75% savings. Garage and yard sales can yield some great buys on infant, baby, toddler, and children items and allow you to walk away knowing you have recycled a product that may have been threw away -- for all infant to children items I recommend passing them on and/or donating these items to a location that will not resell them, you can also try consignment stores to shop and also to sell gently worn brand named apparel which are always looking for top-quality infant to 6T sizes. The same perspective goes when buying shoes and dolled up posh purses and attractive accessories; you can never go wrong with a knock off ladies! Jewelry is a bit more tedious; always purchase this on sale, keep an attentive eye on yard sales and even local thrift stores or pawn shops -- many tried and true jewelry boutiques can be discover on Etsy and buying here means you will support those who create unique items by hand.
[5] The second that you drive them off the dealership lot, an automobile declines in value; seconds after paying the price listed in the window. Recently purchasing on impulse a dream car, I did so knowing that such was a reward for my business success working from home and also my health battles; I paid a little less then list price with satisfactory detailing and an extended two years of dealer warranty -- plus a full tank of gas and a year of service changes at no cost, due to my negotiations (yes ladies, even you can beat the unbeatable salesman who thinks you know nothing about a car of any type). However, to maintain total frugalness do not opt to buy a new car as you can always ascertain a great deal on a quality used one, making sure the car has a Car Fax report and doing full research by getting it checked by a mechanic prior to purchase. Remember, a car is actually a heap of costs from gas to up-keep to keep quality that of quality.
Find even more ways to save through Yahoo! Finance.
Best wishes my frugal sisters and best of luck.
XoXo
