Frugal Friday: What I’m Willing to Give Up
Peer pressure can work for you in some cases. I’m using the positive influence of my frugal peers to trim the fat in these lean economic times, and I’ll tell you why.
The recession is hitting many of us hard, some of us medium, and some of us not at all. My family falls between the hard and medium categories, and the only reason we’re not in the “hard-hit” category is because we’re so frugal already!
I realized just how many people are in the “hard-hit” category as I scrolled through my RSS feeds a few days ago. I saw headline after headline about giving things up: one blogger said goodbye to her newspaper subscription, one gave up her gym membership, a few even gave up their home phones. People are giving up small luxuries right and left, and many more won’t tell you about the sacrifices they’ve made in the wake of this economic downturn.
Is it really such a bad thing to do with less? “Maybe this could be a good habit,” I thought to myself. “Maybe I should see where I can still cut things out before I really HAVE TO, just to see what I can do without.”
My challenge was to find some small luxury to give up, something that is nice and convenient to have that I really CAN live without. Until further notice, I have given up my crockpot liners for my slow cooker. Yes, they make cleanup more convenient and boy do I love them, but I can save the $3 a box and just put my crockpot in the dishwasher after dinner. I’ll ration the few boxes of crockpot liners I have left in my stockpile, then I won’t buy any more. Who knows, maybe I’ll get so used to going without them that I won’t start using them again later! We’ll just have to wait and see.
There you have it: my small contribution to our family’s ever-evolving frugality. Tell me, what are you willing to give up right now?
9 Comments
April
I cut paper plates out completely last month. I’m trying to reduce our paper towels, but the kids seem to use them when I’m not looking. Once my current dryer sheets get used, I found a recipe to make homemade ones. Small things don’t see like much, but when you figure up the cost monthly and then see how much you spend for a year, it can make you rethink some things.
Extraordinary Ordinary Life
I just started a list on my blog of things to live without. I am currently living MOSTLY without paper towels and disposable diapers. I also just did a post on making your own Swiffer duster refills.
Anonymous
I’m willing to give up the big cable package with movie channels. There never seems to be anything good on anyway. LOL I could definitely make do with basic cable.
Niki
Products- Wipes, paper plates, paper towels, plastic baggies, wax paper
Services- eyebrow waxing, salon hair coloring, pedicures
Entertainment- Netflix, eating out, bookstore purchases, magazines that aren’t free
BarbaraLee
I have also cut out paper products.
We gave up dish t.v. over a yr. ago. 60 channels and we only watched 10 of them. But even regular t.v. has trash on it.
Eating out. Dh is the big one for this. And he always gets me when I am tired. Who wants to cook when your tired. Sandwiches are always good but he isn’t a big sandwich guy:( or salads. I know this makes life hard.
But know that we have a steady income b/c he works out now I will be making a budget. Any work that comes into the shop is extra for savings & paying off loans.
Danelle Ice
Good for you all! It’s great to see how good we can get at making things work with less. I noticed a lot of paper plates/products on all of your lists… Are you using them normally for quick meals or for kids to eat outside, or something else? I’m curious.
Homemaker Barbi
Lisa Knight
I posted here.
My big give up recently was TV, I had already given up travel, extensive shopping trips, salon visits, basically anything luxury.
Erin
I was able to completely cut out paper towels, I wont buy them anymore. I replaced the paper towel holder with a basket of small kitchen towels and I have a drawer to keep the rest as well as some rags. It works wonderfully. I keep a small basket in the pantry to throw the dirty ones. If we dont have paper towels in the house they dont get used! Try it!
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