It’s been way too long since our last Save It post (like this one, this one, this one, this one, this one, and this one to name a few), so the other night I was thinking about a few things that we just don’t buy, and how going without those things probably adds up to saving a decent amount of cash-money.
And it doesn’t feel particularly martyr-ish of us – it’s normal and easy after years of living this way. So it feels less like “going without” and more like “streamlining and simplifying.” We’ve mentioned a few of these things over the years, but I realized there were others that I never really thought about (or blogged about) so here’s a big ol’ brain dump of all the things that we typically skip.
- Meat three or four nights a week: Some nights we just opt for spaghetti, bean burritos, vegetable stir fry, homemade pizza, nachos, sweet potatoes and salad, etc.
- Fabric softener: We use vinegar sometimes, but most times it’s just nothing. We don’t notice a difference!
- Dusting spray: We both grew up with Pledge, but now we just use microfiber cloths and water.
- Regular dry cleaning: All of our clothes are machine or hand washable so we only do one trip per year for a few coats/blazers instead of monthly trips.
- Dog grooming: Burger’s short haired, so we just bathe him at home and cut his nails ourselves and we’re good.
- Newspaper: We get our news online (almost every newspaper has an online format now) and on the radio (NPR).
- Bottled water: We have a water filter and use Klean Kanteens that we refill ourselves.
- Starbucks: In the past year or so I’ve become a chai lover – and it’s $3.99 to make seven cups from this grocery store box, as opposed to that price for one cup at Starbucks. So I save that for special occasions and make a cup at home every morning instead.
- Bag-checking fees: Even when we’ve flown with a dog or a kid, we’ve actually never paid to check a single bag (we’re nerds for the challenge of packing light).
- Gel, hairspray, mousse, or serum: I haven’t bought that stuff since college. I’m just a wash and wear girl – plus I tend to break out a lot from hair stuff, so this is for vanity as well as saving money.
- Lipstick: It’s not my bag baby, so I use what’s in this makeup tote and nothing more (not buying 20 shades of eye shadow definitely keeps money in my pocket too).
- Creams and self tanners: I’m pale and totally cool with it – plus my mom looks awesome for her age and doesn’t use any fancy potions or creams, so I’m hoping to follow in her glamorous grandma footsteps.
- Perfume: I like the smell of my shampoo (John doesn’t wear cologne either).
- Haircuts & colors: Maybe once every two years I get a $35 cut, but other than that I just trim it myself. And of course cutting John’s hair saves us money too.
- Regular manicures and pedicures: I go about once a year with a friend (and usually hit up Starbucks while I’m splurging) but other than that I do my own toes at home and usually leave my fingers bare.
- Gym membership for me: It’s just not my thing, but John loves his.
- Alcohol: John has just never been a drinker and I might drink a bottle of wine a year at home (although most years it’s a gift from some sweet house guest) so it’s not a monthly expense for us.
- Disposable diapers: More on that here.
- Diaper bag: I never got one, just used a purse and kept extra stuff in the car.
- Incandescent bulbs: Using CFLs and LEDs in the bulk of our fixtures adds up to a lot of money saved. We’d love to eventually go all LED in our house, but it’s not exactly a cheap switch, so we’re trying to chip away at different rooms over time.
- A second car: This one definitely doesn’t works for everyone, but since I’ve been freelancing from home for the past seven years it’s no big deal to have one car (and it saves us the cost of a car, the gas, the maintenance, and the insurance).
Best of all, saving in some areas allows us to more easily afford other things that are more important to our family, like project materials, organic produce, cable TV, and ceramic animals. Guess it’s all one big balancing act right? I’d love to hear your “skip it” list! And this is a no judgement zone. You might LOVE to get your hair dyed but can resist giant dangly earrings when I can’t (I may or may not have over a dozen of those in my night table).
Psst- You can peruse over 30 money-saving posts of yore here.
Amy says
The only things we have on this list are a 2nd car- necessary since I’m a horn player and have to run out to gigs. I understand John used to be? And disposable diapers, which hopefully we’ll be done with soon. And we STILL can’t save any money. Of course we have 3 young kids, but we’re pretty much out of ideas to save.
YoungHouseLove says
No way! Yes, I was a super cool french horn player in high school. So great to hear from someone who still does it!
-John
Anne G. says
I love all of your money saving tips! Here are some things that we do: We grow our own lettuce and kale and basil in the summer, and make pesto and soups with it, which we freeze for later. We live in a small apartment so we can only grow what fits in planters. We hope to find a house with a big yard so we can grow more things, like vegetables, someday. I also love to pick wild berries and make jam for gifts. And, we go camping and fishing every summer and freeze our catch, which saves us some money on meat. I am starting to learn about other wild foods, like dandelion leaves that can be eaten in salads, and mushrooms. This saves a little money in the summer — we gather our food instead of buying it! Another thing we do is trade and borrow with our friends. For example, one friend keeps chickens, so we sometimes trade our fish for their eggs. And, we share or borrow certain tools from our friends and neighbors. We also try to ride our bikes or ski or walk to work, which saves on gas. I just go a new job that is only 1.5 miles from home, and I am excited that it will be even easier to walk to work every day!! Finally, we have always made the choice to live close enough to the grocery store that we can walk there. We could live in a house with a big yard, but chose our apartment instead because we like being within walking distance of everything. We still hope to have a house of our own, but are only looking at houses that are in our current neighborhood. That means we might have to wait a few more years to have a house, but we are okay with that because we know we are saving money and burning less fossil fuels this way. We don’t have a TV and only watch movies, or sometimes stream TV online. I’m not sure if this actually saves money since we do pay a lot for our internet service. I will have to do the math!! Thanks for your inspiring post. I got a few more ideas for ways to save money and simplify my life!
Julie says
To save money…
– I skip on buying new clothes and books for our son and instead buy them secondhand. I also hit up the thrift store when I want to get him some new toys. I’ve found a play kitchen for $5, got an awesome desk/piano toy on freecycle that helped teach our three-year-old to read and write, etc.
– I go to the library instead of buying new books
– For gifts, I use points that I earn on my Amazon credit card.
– I get my hair cut once or twice a year
– I make my own coffee
I could cut down on how much I drive and our car isn’t super efficient.
bridget says
These posts are so motivating! We have been a one car family for eight years! we paid cash for our car 10k, paid all student loans 124k total, paid cash for our condo 180k….we carry zero debt on our credit cards, we actually use them to work for use with cash back rewards! We are just smart our expense we could like in 750k house with our income but we would rather be debt free and have money to go to Europe every years for three weeks and go away every long weekend to Canada or new England. We believe in spending money on experiences which create memories rather than material things. We buy nice clothes at the outlets. We buy clearance or open box appliance during tax free weekend ($238 dryer normally 600+ and 226 dishwasher). We nicely bargain! We sell things that we do not need on craigslist or community boards. We buy or receive used toys and books for our kids. I use old navy cash to get clothes for my kids at $1 or $2, I Christmas shop starting in September with very small budgets. We stream Netflix, we have no land line and only basic cable just so we can have the internet. We use T-Mobile because they have the lowest plan. We return gifts that we do not need. We DIY everything we can. We eats Vegan three full days a week. We love food but in order to save where we can we divide groceries between three stores. It might seem like a lot but we live in a great town with a nationally rank school district, we eat out and go on vacations all the time. We are just smart about it. Oh and our whole family drinks mostly water…kills me when I hear someone is hungry but yet they buy soda or juice when they have money. Every year we make a big donation to an African charity as a holiday gift, we believe in teaching our kids about kindness and giving back to the community through local charities or random acts of kindness.
leila says
I’m with you on the daily Starbucks, although lately I have been spending a bit more on better coffee to brew at home.
I get my hair cut and colored maybe twice or three times a year but the stylist I’ve gone to for eight years is very understanding about giving me something that grows out nicely. Hubs always cute his own (usually decent results!). But we’re on the same page with makeup! I use the same few products and also totally appreciate it saving me time most mornings.
Vacations – we just can’t afford it so we don’t go! lol (sort of) We did treat ourselves with a camping trip earlier this summer, which by buying things on sale and borrowing the rest was a relatively inexpensive, totally fun and relaxing 3-night break (and $28 site fee beats hotel rooms any time!).
I wish we could get by with one care but with two of us working acorss town from each other (and San Diego being a very freeway-oriented city), there’s just no way right now…jealous!
Joseph says
No cable for us. We even got rid of our Netflix account. We’ll hit up the redbox maybe once or twice a month but that’s about it. Did you know libraries have lots of movies now? I was surprised at the things they have there. I also cut my own hair, we got rid of our gym membership, we cut meat back, etc. Oh! And I’m a scrounger. So many projects for free because I’ve found wood or other supplies and didn’t have to buy them.
Paige @ Little Nostalgia says
$herdog, you’re a girl after my own heart! I don’t wear a lot of makeup, either, and only get my nails done in a salon if I’m with a friend.
Here’s a great tip for my fellow too-cheap-for-a-haircut people: see if a local beauty school offers hair services to the public. The students do the work, but everything is checked by an instructor as they go. The one by me (Chicago ‘burbs) has haircuts for $9. Holler! I still only go twice a year, though…
Paige @ Little Nostalgia says
And I forgot to say: we’re a one car family, too. We don’t miss the second one at all. I work from home and my husband takes the train into the city, so there was really no need.
verucaamish says
As a guy, my big skip (if that counts) is new clothes. Because I am not the most adventurous shopper (button down shirts and khakis!) and don’t need to dress up for my work, all of the work clothes that I’ve bought in the last three years has come from the thrift store. I live in Northern California, and if you go to the thrift store in the more fancy neighborhoods, boy do you get some awesome stuff. I regularly refresh my wardrobe from Goodwill and usually spend about $15 for three dress shirts and khakis. On the flip side of skip it is the “use the hell out of it.” I have an unlimited bus pass so I use that for commuting and weekend “driving” that doesn’t require carrying large bags. I also go to the gym four times a week and it has shaving cream, shampoo, bath gel so my partner and I only need to buy those toiletries once a year.
Colleen says
Over the last few years I’ve started canning. While stocking up on the proper jars for the task can be a small set back to start, they are still only about $1 each the first time and free after that. Then I stop by local farm stands to pick up the produce that isn’t perfect (slightly bruised, almost overripe, under sized) and usually sold for cheaper in large quantities. Then I spend a few hours canning it. Things like applesauce, pickled veggies (cucumbers, dilly beans, carrots), and creative jams (strawberry lavender). The extra jars of produce make nice gifts and you know exactly what you’re putting in your food. Which also allows you to control the sugar too! I think it tastes better and in the dead middle of winter when the store has 6 month old produce, you have something that was packed when it was fresh and in season. My favorite thing I’ve made so far was refrigerator bread and butter pickles. I used about 3lbs of cucumbers to make two quart sized jars that taste almost like Vlasic pickles and have no corn syrup products or food coloring (I’m actually allergic to yellow #6!). There are so many good canning websites, no need for a book (although I’m sure the library has a plethora).
Jillian@TheHumbleGourmet says
We aren’t drinkers, so that’s out for us (unless we’re having company). We always get whatever cable package is the cheapest (my husband is an excellent haggler, so he can usually get us something cool for inexpensive), and neither of us eat out for lunch at work (HUGE savings by making lunch at home).
Kate F. says
For us, the biggest cost savings decision we’ve made was not to have children. I realize this may sound cold-hearted, but for us it was the right choice. Also, I use cloth napkins :)
Kate says
Great list, and those savings really do add up!
My house practices a lot of the same money-saving techniques – which you’re right, just feel effortless after awhile – as well as avoiding packaged/processed foods (good for health and wallet!), unless there is a particularly irresistable bucket of cookies at Trader Joe’s.. we’ve all been there.
This is more on the coupon/points side of the savings equation, but we use one credit card for absolutely everything we can (pay it off on time), and when buying things online use airline mile “malls” if the store is in there to get credit card + FF points. Just took a week long vacation across the country for almost nothing, all thanks to obsessive point hoarding!
Irene says
Hey guys, I have kind of a random question if you don’t mind!
I am wondering how the decorating tasks fall between you, John and Sherry. Does John come up with ideas and visions for a room himself? Or is that mostly Sherry, who then convinces John?
YoungHouseLove says
I think there are things I like to do and things John likes to do. He loves building things (fireplace, pergola, etc) and I like making curtains and hanging art and moving furniture around (more “decor” stuff). So we usually do those things independently. Then we come together for some jobs, like demoing (fun!!) or tiling (also a good time) or painting (we both like to paint, except for ceilings, which we loathe – haha!).
xo
s
Irene says
Thanks. I guess I am wondering more how do you come together on a “vision” for a room and how much input John offers as a dude. For instance, since your living room has some plans set out, is it mostly you, Sherry, who thinks up/pins/tears out of magazines the ideas you’ve planned to implement and then gotten John on board? Or the other way around? (like whitewash/paint brick, paint wood white, light walls, colorful accent pillows etc)
In my household, usually it’s me that has to go to my hubby with ideas for how a room should look and then he’ll give input, but not usually the other way around! Just wondering how you two are! :)
YoungHouseLove says
I usually run to John with photos of some things (ex: whitewashing, a certain art idea, a curtain fabric I like) and in other scenarios John will say to me “let’s paint the room this color” or “I want to build this for the mantel” or “I will never be cool with a sofa that doesn’t face the TV” – haha! I think in general we both look at HGTV or magazines and say “I want that” and then we have to check with the other person to be sure we’re on the same page (sometimes there’s some convincing or bartering that goes on…)
xo
s
Donna D. says
I’m a huge fan of these money saving posts! My honey calls me Suze Orman because I’m constantly “denying” things like cleaning supplies [learned the vinegar and water trick from you all so thank you] and paper towels [total money saver since rewashable rags are so much more cost effective and better on the environment]. Here are some more ways we save
Seltzer Water Machine – I’m a seltzer water addict and used to spend a ton of money on cans. Soda Stream machine changed my life!
Ebay & Craigslist – I don’t buy any clothes “new” anymore and now only shop on ebay. This is only after I sell my old clothes. Many of the times I end up making money. I basically don’t allow myself to buy something “new to me” unless I’ve already sold something I don’t wear any more. I actually wish I had learned this trick earlier on because I would drag my honey all around NYC to consignment shops trying to resell my clothes [this never worked because I guess my clothes weren’t hip enough but on ebay I usually make back the amount I initially paid if not more on the item]
Cable TV – I honestly hate do this because I love TV so much but save so much money by keeping an Amazon Prime account instead of cable.
One Household Income – Even though we have two incomes we work on living off of only one and always pay our credit cards in full. I try to make my honey always think we are constantly poor.
Toilet Paper – I know this may sound crazy but anytime I stay at a hotel I hoard the toilet paper along with the toiletries that they give you. Just be fore warned that you can’t be shameful if airport security makes you open your bag and they see 8 rolls of toilet paper crammed inside.
One area that I wish I could do better at is food. Living in NYC I haven’t been able to find anyway of saving money on groceries. I feel like I’ve done it all without much luck – coupons seem to be impossible to fine/use, typically prepared food is the same cost and less time than the ingredients to make them, joined a CSA which took more time to pick up the food and “prep” than it was really worth [many times we got produce that we didn’t actually enjoy and there is only so much you can do with a lb of garlic scapes every week].
Sherry – you guys use to live in NYC. Any suggestions of way you saved?
YoungHouseLove says
Oh man, in NYC our savings were our Metrocard! It was such a shock to move somewhere and have to buy a car and gas and insurance! Other than that, I ate cheaply (split a sub for lunch with my coworker, shopped with coupons, ate leftovers for days, etc) and had a tiny studio- so there wasn’t much room for anything, which seemed to save me money!
xo
s
Maria@TheBrooklynFig says
Thanks for the tips! Never knew about vinegar as fabric softener. Some I could never do though- like the hair cutting. I envy you. You go once every two years, I go once every two months! That’s just one of those things I don’t think I could do myself!
Emily says
I feel like lately (we just moved) it’s been more splurge than skip. *sigh* We only have basic cable ($10/month) and it’s cheaper to keep it for the discount on our internet, we rarely eat out too.
We did just get a 2nd car, because with the move, transit isn’t as reliable. BUT moving across the state means we pretty much cut our rent in half…and added 150 sq ft.
Jerrika says
As a fellow Chai lover, I love buying Oregon Chai and making it at home. In my opinion, it’s even better than Starbucks Chai! They sell it over here on the West Coast in a similar container as the Tazo one you buy. It’s usually a bit cheaper than Tazo as well. If you see it somewhere, you have to try it!
YoungHouseLove says
Others have said that too! Will have to check it out!
xo
s
BeccaK says
When we lived in NYC, they sold the Tazo Chai (my favorite, too!) at Target in their little grocery section (our store wasn’t one of the really deluxe ones), in case that helps.
BeccaK says
Oops – that should have said that they sold the Oregon Chai at Target (it’s one of those days)…
YoungHouseLove says
Thank Becca!
xo
s
LMG says
I wish I did a lot of these things. I’ve tried several of them over the years, with various degrees of success.
Good timing, though–I’ve just been thinking about a lot of these.
COUPONS/SALES I coupon and shop sales–I stock up and freeze what I can. This has been the biggest change and biggest source of savings this year.
LESS INTEREST I paid off my student and car loans a long time ago and only buy cars in cash. We refinanced our house to a higher payment but that will be better in interest saved long-term (but ugh right now…).
USE CREDIT CARDS(wwwhhhatttt?!?!?) I use my airline miles credit card for major purchases (paying off in cash immediately) and have traveled on vacation FREE twice (and have a third set of tickets waiting).
CONSIGN & CLEARANCE I consign clothes and baby stuff and recently starting shopping consignment for me (thrift stores suck in my city). For baby clothes, for some reason consignment is more expensive, so I shop 50% off clearance off-season at Carter’s. I have to plan far ahead, but save a ton (example: bodysuit at consignment is $5, bodysuit in off-season double clearance is $2).
HOME FOOD I still have eating out in my DNA but am working to change that. I bring my lunch to work now and eat lightly for dinner–I’ll make food ahead for the next day’s lunch/dinner for us. I make my own baby food for the most part.
I’d like to end this year with doing a lot more–thanks for the ideas (and to everyone–thanks for the ideas in your comments!)
Stephanie says
Sherry and John, you guys are becoming such a tease! I look forward to your 10 am posts every weekday but lately I feel like you are hiding all the behind the scenes stuff going on in that gorgeous house of yours! Please start posting more about the projects you are working on or at least let us know what you’re working on when you post about non-project stuff. Are you working on the deck right now? The family room? Inquiring minds need to know! ;)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, we thought mentioning what we were working on would be teasing! So we just share pics and posts as we write them up. We’re working on the sunroom (framing things out) today, and we’ll have that post for you tomorrow. Yesterday we posted about whitewashing and the day before that was the sunroom door removal – I feel like you guys know a lot about what’s going on at our house most days :)
xo,
s
Allen says
I skipped the Skip-It and just used a hula hoop on my ankle!
Melissa says
We do many of the same things you guys do like cloth diapers, no fabric softener, we make our own laundry detergent, we use vinegar to clean everything, back our own bread, we also gave up paper towels as coffee this year. Those 2 were probably the hardest. We have about 30 micro fiber towels that I wash on sanitize, we started drinking green tea but don’t even do that anymore. Our friends call us hippies. Haha
Jessica says
I’m sure there are tons of recipes out there but having followed this blogger, I thought hers might be a reliable recommendation to start with-
http://beautythatmoves.typepad.com/beauty_that_moves/2013/01/homemade-chai.html
Not sure how the dollars and cents work out but it seems like it might be worth a try.
Alyssa says
I got super excited (flailing arms were involved) about the chai mention because I love it too but it kills me paying so much for just one (& they just increased the prices!). I have the one from Trader Joe’s but it tastes nothing like the one from Starbucks :/ I’ve been debating between Oregon Chai & Tazo. Do you like the Tazo/have you tried other ones? I like a milder chai like the ones at Starbucks. Thanks! Ps I love these kinds of posts; I’ve re-read your other posts like these many times for inspiration :)
YoungHouseLove says
We have heard that the Oregon Chai one is awesome, we just don’t find that as easily – but I love my Tazo!
xo
s
Heidi says
Love this post!
As a family we skip: paper towels & paper napkins (we use dish towels & cloth napkins from Ikea—I think we’re going on over 3 years now), facial tissue (use burp cloths instead), plastic grocery bags (we bring our own bags and buy from the bulk section with our own bags/containers), soda (my kids prefer milk or water), bottled water (our refrigerator has a filter—I recently threw away an expired filter and no one in our family has noticed a taste difference since I haven’t replaced the filter).
Sherry, I stopped using shaving cream after reading your Simple Life post & have never looked back. :)
Kate says
I agree with a bunch of those skips including haircuts for me, and actually I got the nerve to start cutting my husband’s hair after your post about cutting John’s.
But I have to ask, how on earth do you guys get away not checking a bag when you travel with Clara? My husband and I can’t seem to take our kids (2yrs & 6wks) anywhere without a pack elephant (ok, so it’s a minivan, but still).
YoungHouseLove says
I know it sounds over-simplified but we just bring clothes (they’re small because she’s small) and her sound machine and favorite blanket. Most places we’re staying have a pack & play or some other child sleeping thing (rentals and hotels both seem to have free kids beds these days) and most places even have strollers to borrow or rent instead of bringing one (often times we plan to rent one and don’t even end up needing it).
xo,
s
Heather says
Our biggest money saver is to commute by bicycle – no gas, no parking, and free exercise. The cost of the bicycle, gear, and bike maintenance pale in comparison to the costs of driving, so we save thousands per year.
Also, pack lunch for workdays & pack food on road trips so we don’t eat expensive junk out.
Jen says
I’m curious to know if you guys shop at Costco at all and if you do, do you find you save money in the long run? Im just a few months into my first membership and Im not quite convinced I am actually ‘saving’ all that much.
YoungHouseLove says
We don’t – we couldn’t figure out if the membership would be worth it for the specific stuff we buy.
xo
s
CG says
Jen- we ask for our Costco membership each year as a Christmas gift from family. Goes along with trying to avoid more “stuff” lying around the house. I definitely think it saves us money since the membership is “free” to us. I especially like to make multiple meals after a shopping trip and then freeze them for a future day.
Dawn S says
We skip cable… and thus our old TiVO DVR. They make a new one, but we haven’t splurged on it yet to work with our antenna-only channels. I can live without cable (though I enjoy it when we stay with family or in a hotel), but I miss DVR the most. Streaming shows online just isn’t the same….
That said, we also skip internet. It was costing so much that we just upped our data plan on our iPhones and launch hot-spots to use our iPad or laptop at home. It was at least break-even if not a few bucks cheaper than paying for undependable internet on its own.
We also cloth diaper and skip sposies… usually. Though my youngest sleeps in sposies because he breaks out down there due to amonia build up that we can’t seem to prevent/clean/stop in cloth dipes overnight.
We also skip on babysitters. I think we have paid a babysitter 3 times in the past 4 years since my oldest was born. Thankfully we have family who visit regularly and babysit so the Hubbster and I can get at least a once-a-month date night out together.
We skip delivery pizza. Though I miss the delicious crust of Papa Johns, I prefer the increased frequency of emergency-pizza-nights we can afford with $5 Hot N Ready pick-up at Little Caesars or frozen pizzas baked in the oven. Heck, we’ve even gotten into making our own with some store-bought crusts that are big hits since we can personalize toppings for adults and kiddos. We do splurge on a locally-owned pizza parlor a few times a year (they do fundraisers for my son’s preschool).
Leah says
It’s so refreshing to see other people who “do without”! Our list includes gym membership (you can run outdoors in VA year round, and a weight set found on Craigslist fits in the basement), cable tv (amazon instant video is great), smart phones (although I do want one…)– we also only use AC in our upstairs and our downstairs stays plenty cool (we have a house similar to yours, in Cville). I finally had to perfect my iced coffee recipe this summer after I realized I was spending way too much on starbucks!! Also I totally had a skip it. That’s a good workout!
xoxo
Shauna says
I make my own toiletries: face wash (which doubles as eye makeup remover), day and night moisturizer, and deodorant. My skin has never looked better (I’m in my mid-30s); I don’t even need to wear foundation anymore. I also skip mani-pedis and get my hair done about twice a year.
I used to be a latte-a-day girl and loved the seasonal vanilla spice from Starbucks. Then I learned how to make the syrup myself and bought a $30 manual frother. Now I have heaven in a cup for pennies every day!
Carrie says
Great post!!!
We cut out the cable when we moved into our new home last spring. We find we didn’t watch that many shows on tv anyway. We have instant streaming on Netflix (straight to our TV), we plugged our TV into the cable and got basic cable channels (ABC, NBC, CBS, and PBS) and my husband found a way to plug his laptop into the TV, so he goes to the ESPN website, connects it to the TV, and we watch sporting events through the laptop. No cable was one of the best decisions we made!
Alison says
Great topic. One that we could all revisit from time to time. Especially in this economy.
We skip eating out. We pack our lunches. We do have lots of meat as we are Low-Carb. We skip bad carbs and junk food. Whole foods only. We skip Cable and Netflix. Yes we still use an antenna. We skip haircuts and colors. We skip perfumes, hair spray, gels and makeup. We skip fabric softener. We use vinegar for cleaning and skip all the commercial sprays. And use cloth paper towels purchased from Etsy. Very limited paper towels are used. We use newspaper for the windows. We skip the newspaper, and go to the library for reading and movies. We skip pets, so no expense there. We skipped children, so no expense there. I have never had my nails done. We don’t have a gym membership. I don’t even have a cell phone. We definitely skip Starbucks. I skip alcohol. We skip car washes. We use our well water for car washing and plants. Not the city water we have. We have the cheapest internet service (slower). We skip expensive vacations, and travel in our motorhome (that’s expensive enough). Most importantly to me. We skip buying anything on credit, if we can’t pay cash we don’t buy it. Including our vehicles. We never skip paying ourselves first, first thing payday, put money in savings. I don’t resist earrings, I own way too many pairs.
Anne says
Things I skip:
1) Cable television. If I can’t watch it online or check it out from the library, I don’t need to see it.
2) Cell phone.
3) Fabric softener. I use white vinegar.
4) Soda and caffeinated beverages.
5) We go meatless 1-2 nights a week, but no more because I don’t like my kids having a carb-heavy diet. My focus at meal time is proteins, vegetables and fruits with a minimal amount of carbs (most of their snacks are carbs, anyways).
Lauren says
After years without cable we got it again last year (for sports) but we hate the bill. We at least got rid of our second cable box. We save a ton of dough in the hair department – I color my own (with color purchased w/ coupons), get a salon cut twice a year (crazy thick curly hair needs an expert) and get trims at Great Clips for $7 (with a coupon) in between. We can’t go “Crazy Coupon Lady” at the store very much because we eat a Paleo diet and majority of food coupons are for processed foods but we do save on household items and makeup/hair products. Farmers markets are our best friends. We don’t subscribe to magazines but we get the newspaper twice a week for free with our online subscription. We saved $12 a month just by calling the paper and telling them it was too expensive- works every time.
Pam says
We do almost all of these too, although getting my husband to eat just 1 vegetarian meal a week is difficult!
Here’s my favorite tip that I haven’t seen mentioed yet: We buy unlocked smartphones and have a value plan from T-Mobile. We used to spend $160/month for two iPhones on AT&T. We recently switched and got unlocked Nexus 4’s online ($100+ savings per phone over buying it in the T-Mobile store), and now our T-Mobile service only costs $85/month! I loved cutting that monthly bill in half, as we try very hard to keep our monthly bills as small as possible.
Kaylin Morrissey says
Wow!! I am so happy to meet a fellow low maintenance hair chic! I started keeping my hair super long a few years ago and now only get a cut twice a year. I also stopped coloring many years before that! People often balk at my lack of hair care and I even had a hair dresser become visibly offended by it. Hello, I am clean and noone would ever guess I put so little effort into my hair because it works for me. Anyway, we also go without paper towels. I am a bit of a paper-a-holic so I swore them off a few months back. This motivates me to use our rags. I do keep a small stash of regular lunch style napkins that we use for dinner sometimes. It’s like 250 for $1. We also just cut off the cable and use a combo of Hulu and Netflix. I do miss my shows but the savings is huge. And lastly, I go without girly shaving cream. I use either my husbands or conditioner. I once bought a new conditioner that was awful in my hair and started using it as shaving cream with awesome results! It can also be way cheaper that buying female shaving cream. Happy savings!
JennP says
We were going through all of our 2012 expenses earlier this year, and I realized that I had spent A THOUSAND dollars on hair appointments (6 appointments at $ 160 apiece). I decided to let my highlights grow out and just get a simple trim every 3-4 months. I’ll probably change my mind one day, but it’s just not an expense I can justify right now – especially as a stay at home mom who spends 90% of my life in a ponytail.
Oriah says
The power company’s tree crew outside is reminding me of another way to save on gardening. Ask the nice guys on the tree crew to dump their wood chips in your driveway for FREE!!! I haven’t bought mulch in years. I know their are gardening purist out there who will say you shouldn’t mix hard and soft woods but i’ve been taking the free chips for years and suffered no ill effects. My yard eats organic matter. I’ve gotten literally TONS of chips added to my yard for free. Usually the guys are happy to be rid of them.
YoungHouseLove says
Really smart! You guys all have the best tips! Thanks again so much for sharing, everyone!
xo
s
janet @ ordinary mom says
We skip the fabric softener too. Since we have never used it, we don’t find any problems with softness or static in our laundry. Of course we all tend to wear more cotton then anything else, so that may help as well.
I gave up caffeine and sugar recently so skipping all drinks in our groceries, besides milk and now herbal tea, I realize that is a nice savings every month.
We also skip our satellite tv in the summer months. Not sure what we will sign back up for at the end of summer, we haven’t missed it much at all.
We also skip having a home phone. When we moved to a rural area, the only choice for us was a company we didn’t want to deal with AND there wasn’t a TV or internet option with that company for this area (no cables) so we would have to use satellite for everything else. We skipped it and just use cell phones now. I LOVE it! With two small kids in school, I never have to worry about the school being able to reach me when I am out doing errands. They only have one number and it is always with me.
And lastly, I skip makeup. But that is just because I feel silly with makeup on. Always have. ;)
DawnSC says
I would love love love to hear how you pack for Clara when you travel. I skimmed comments, but apologies if I missed it. Even though we try to pack light, now that we have an almost 2 year old, it just never seems to work out. It’s not so much clothes as all of the other STUFF. We’ve been checking our car seat (usually need a rental car at the other end), so have that in addition to our luggage, stroller, and wrangling a sprinter through the airport. Plus, we typically need a connection because our parents live near a teeny airport. It’s a lot of stuff to manage while we’re in the airport, so we generally get it into one suitcase and check it. On the other hand, I suppose the $25 fee is worth it for ease while we’re IN the airport but I would rather spend it on something else if I can! :)
I don’t have anything new that hasn’t already been mentioned as far as practices. But I think the biggest thing is simply identifying where you can reasonably cut back and where you’re willing to spend money to save yourself time (which also should be assigned a dollar value!). I had a hard time with the second part as I always just focus on the money not my time. As an example, my husband finally convinced me to pay someone to clean our house on a semi-regular basis so that we could manage working full time while still having time with our adorable little son. It is hard for to agree to, but it was a decision that worked for us – I certainly don’t miss not cleaning our bathrooms and the extra time with my son makes it money well spent.
Nikki says
Love the tips! Our public library has a bookmobile that comes to our neighborhood once a month. I request the latest movies and books and they bring them to me! Gotta love that! Bonus-it’s free!
Kate HM says
This is a great post. We used cloth diapers and wipes and that led me to Country Save laundry detergent which I use on all of the clothes now. I buy one case of 4 boxes a year from amazon.com and it lasts an entire year. That’s $60 for an entire year of laundry. I also use white vinegar instead of fabric softener. We have felted wool balls in the dryer too to cut down on dryer time for items that don’t get put on the rack.
We eat at home almost exclusively too. We moved to Connecticut last year and there aren’t that many places nearby that are worth the effort with a preschooler in tow. We do have a family pizza or take out Chinese food night once a week and we can stretch the leftovers to a second and third meal most times.
We do have cable, internet, and home phone service because our cell phones don’t work at home and my husband needs the cable television for his job (he works in broadcasting). We save that money in other places though. We have amazing thrift stores and consignment stores nearby and I purchase most of our clothes there. The same goes with toys for my almost kindergardener. He doesn’t care that they aren’t “perfect” and I like that they are always less than $4.00.
We cook at home with basic ingredients (items from the grocery store perimeter) and stock up at Costco on as much as possible on our once a month visit. We visit local farm stands all summer and we are joining a CSA for fall vegetables.
Our lives now are so much different than they were six to seven years ago. We were both working full time in Los Angeles with new flashy cars, long commutes, frequent trips to Nordstrom’s, nail salons, and a pricey double process blonde hair do to maintain with a fancy address, and a very poor quality of life. Now we live in a small town in Connecticut with one income, older cars, no commute, and a lovely condo where we know our neighbors, our son is happy, fresh food is in the kitchen, and the schools are amazing. It’s heavenly and I would never go back to the old way.
LT says
While I appreciate not being wasteful, I guess I’m in the minority here when I say that so many of these “skip its” are, to me, what *makes* a fulfilling life. I’m moreso referring to the comments than the actual post, but I can’t imagine sitting on the couch every night watching netflix and calling it a day. To us, going to dinner, or bowling, or seeing a movie, or having a glass of wine at a nice wine bar are life experiences we just don’t want to give up. When we’re not able to travel, that IS life, to us. Just me??
Rachel says
I think it just totally depends on the individual! We’re the same way (although we like free activities like hiking too) and instead live below our means in other ways, like cheaper housing and not buying a ton of clothes or makeup.
tamara says
oh girl. HOLLA. i thought 100% the same thing, and my earlier comment really echos yours. you only live once! there’s a balance to be struck, of course, between indulging every desire and whim and being responsible, but for me personally (not judging others)it’s not worth saving “even more” each month than we currnetly do if it means not doing the things you mention that we also love & which brings us happiness and a sense of satisfaction at the end of a long day at the office. to each his own, of course :) xoxo
Oriah says
Ack!…i’m on a savings roll.
I forgot to mention that i give my cat his shots myself. You can buy everything except the rabies vaccine at Southern States for about $10.
Kim P. says
Love this post! I can’t live without fabric softener (it smells SO GOOD), and I do enjoy wine on a weekly basis. I do save on a lot of other things though. I am also a no-diaper-bag gal (I just don’t get needing to lug a 40 lb bag everywhere), we are mostly meatless at our house, and I have started making most of our household cleaners with borax, vinegar, baking soda, and other common household staples.
One thing I have been indulging in lately is getting my eyebrows waxed. I never used to do it, but once I tried it has been hard to go back! They just look SO much better! It is worth the $10 to me.
jenn aka the picky girl says
-Paper towels (biggie for me – felt so guilty)
-Cable (haven’t had it in ten years; haven’t missed it)
-Facewash (I oil cleanse with grapeseed oil, and it lasts forever and makes my skin super soft)
-Cleaners (I’ve gone to vinegar/baking soda/other combos that last a long time and clean really well)
-Cheap purses (Years ago, I bought cheap purses. Now I buy one nice one at big discount and use it for ages)
-Light (I’m lucky that I have huge windows all around my house, so I leave lights off until absolutely necessary)
-Any drink other than water
-Bottled water (I have a filter and refill)
Justin says
Showers: Limiting them to once a month saves a ton on the water bill.
Shoes: We just don’t see the purpose in wearing them, so we probably save like $5 a year there.
Food: We’ve learned to just go hungry. It keeps us thin and sexy, plus saves money for more important things like kitchen renovations and silk flowers from the dollar store.
Seriously though, our skip its are pretty similar to yours. Great post! Look at all these comments!
justme says
HAHA, You must SMELL
Rebekah says
Our old skool skip it’s: private education and store bought books. It’s public education and the library all the way! I work for a gov’t public special education program so public education is really important to us. We probably go to our library every other day.
Our new wave skip it’s: GMOs and processed foods.
This allows us to spend more of our money on things that are important to our family like travel, our family gym membership at the Y – the whole family “works out” and I love me some body pump and body combat and worship offerings.
Great ideas – I’ll need to come back and review all of them when I have more time.
Sarah says
This is an awesome list! I always love to hear tips on how people save! We, too, are a one-car family. That has saved us a bundle – money we were able to put towards a higher mortgage on a great house. As a young yoga addict, I learned that if you work for a certain yoga apparel store the company pays for your yoga, so I got a part-time job there and saved myself the $18/per class! ;)
Another way we save is growing our own food in the summer. We don’t pay a penny for veggies from June-September. I haven’t calculated the savings, but it’s huge, plus watering the garden and harvesting is also a fun activity to do with a toddler!
KiTX says
Wow, so impressed by all the great tips and how smart my fellow readers are! Our biggest expense is probably our dogs- if anyone has any tips on durable dog toys of any kind, I’d be VERY open to them. Our 75 lb, almost 2 yr old mutt is VERY active and needs toys to keep himself calm (even with daily exercise and his specialty pheromone collar- I know, I can’t even begin to believe this is where my money goes sometimes) but destroys all toys except natural animal bones within minutes! Ideas?? Great post, Petersiks!