3 Paws Saloon Attic

valkricry · Guru

Economy Cents

GZ · Veteran Member

Almost all of the good ideas involve sharing. One I've seen is to order the two cheeseburger combo meal and one extra drink (or water) at Burger King and split that. MacDonalds has a Breakfast Burrito combo that you could add a second drink to and split. The real trick is to watch for specials and coupons to make these a much better deal. Some places have those "99 cent menu" items too.

Another idea that might work better for solo dining is to find one of those Chinese food places that has both seating and take-out. Often the hour before closing means they want to clean out the steam tables and you can get bulk takeout items (in a quart container) half price. Around here 9 PM is the witching hour for a local chain. You might not want it that night, but many of the items warm up well over the next day or two. You could probably divide it up for freezing too, with a product much fresher tasting than the regular store frozen equivalent.

Check restaurant Web sites for coupons too. Sometimes you can even get those buy one, get one free deals online. I just looked at the local Chinese place I mentioned and they have a coupon online for Chicken Fried Rice $3.99/quart. Pretty good - until I checked the expiration date: 2/15/04!!!

The Ponderosa Web site says "Bring the kids. And don't forget them when you leave." The have a seniors menu ("No, not High School seniors!") for... well it doesn't mention an age. These days probably 70 and up hmm? But this is one more place that has a takeout menu now. Clever shopping means you might save money like at those Chinese places by buying a party tray and dividing it up adding your own extras at home.

Cheap and free events. Ok, maybe the Middle School Jazz Band's concerts in the park might not be your thing. The county park system here offers things like canoe rental at $4/hour though, as well as peddle-boat and rowboat rentals at about the same price in some parks. They also offer free swimming beaches here and there. Universities often offer public events for free or cheap. Locally the Entomology Dept. has a "Bug House" tour open to the public different times of the year. The Physics and Astronomy Dept. opens their observatory to public access two nights a month if the nights are clear.

Grocery in-store deli items can be another thing to watch for. One store here has been running a special with two whole roasted chickens for $7 between 4 PM and 7 PM.

valkricry · Guru

Coupon clipping has always been real big. Of course, cooking at home rather then eating out is also a big saver.
Ever notice that 'family pacs' of meat are generally cheaper then that single chop? (Pound-wise) I'll buy the bigger package and divide it into portions before freezing.

You can also save money by doing some research. Take hair products. "Lather, rinse, repeat". That hasn't been updated since they started bottling shampoo, and the only benefit of it is for the company as you use the product up quicker. Although I do recommend rinsing thouroughly. Unless you've had a particularly 'sweaty/dirty' day, it's unhealthy for your locks to be washed daily. It strips your hair of its natural oils, promoting breakage. However if you are using gels,pomade, or hairspray, hairwashing daily is almost a must. Most of these products attract and trap things like dust and odors in your hair.

Do you have bath bubbles AND body soap sitting on the shelf? They're essentially the same thing. Cut costs buy buying one or the other. A capful of body soap under running water will produce as many bubbles as the bath bubbles. So will a capful of shampoo.

Totally-Tempting-Trish · Guru

Shop at Sams. There you can buy in bulk, and then you can share that with family and friends. We do this and we all chip in, and only buy in bulk what we need, and it last for a while and it actually cost us less.

valkricry · Guru

I learned this from our power and gas companies : don't turn it off, turn it down. It costs more for you to reheat or cool off your home, if you turn it off. Rather turn the heat or air down if leaving for the day, or going to bed.

If you run an air conditioner, consider leaving any plastic wrap you placed on drafty windows during the winter up. This will help keep the cool air in, and cut down on running costs.

GZ · Veteran Member

Instead of coughing up anywhere from $1.00 to $2.00 a pint for bottled water use refillables instead.

Not only are these perhaps more healthy for you, there is a lot less waste. I tend to reuse these myself, being cheap. This isn't the best idea though.

Ideally you'd want steel or lined aluminum. The downside is these can go anywhere from $10 to $20, but they should last a good long time. A "thermo" bottle costs closer to $30 but may stay cool longer and even handle hot liquids for Winter.

Lots of colors, designs, and cap styles to choose from. Most easily fit into cupholders too. They tend to seal better than a "car cup" style container which may leak when tipped or tumbled on a car seat or in a backpack.

Another plus though: these ought to make great inexpensive gifts!

How To Choose A Safe Reusable Water Bottle

-- Edited by GZ on Sunday 21st of June 2009 02:19:27 PM

Totally-Tempting-Trish · Guru

Go online and find a site that has coupons, I googled coupons and SEVERAL sites popped up. There you can look and print only coupons for products you actually use.

REMINDER.......NEVER BUY ANYTHING ON "SELL" UNLESS YOU ACTUALLY USE IT, BECAUSE IT DOESN'T ACTUALLY SAVE YOU MONEY UNLESS YOU DO USE IT.

valkricry · Guru

Another cost saving idea - if you're paying seperately for cable, internet, and phone, check into the bundle offers from your local phone or cable company. Some of these can actually bring your cost down to under the cost of just one of these utilities.

If you're thinking of buying a freezer - go for the chest model. These actually keep food colder longer in case of power outages as opposed to the uprights.

Many of us use our bank cards instead of a traditional Visa/Mastercard when making purchases. Did you know that using it as 'credit' instead of debit will save you banking fees?

Totally-Tempting-Trish · Guru

I have one simple cost cutting idea, and it is very simple. It is mostly for people who live in the city. If you want to save gas, go online to look up any place you want to eat, shop, get gas, etc........it tells you who has specials, lowest gas price, best place to eat for less etc.........I do this on everything and I have kept a log and I have said over 75 dollars since January. I don't have to go and look and ride around looking of cheaper anything because most places have a website and you can look it up.

valkricry · Guru

In today's economy it's harder then ever to put something away for a rainy day, and many folks live paycheck to paycheck making a savings account nearly impossible. So how can you actually keep 'extra' money?
A) the piggy bank. Ok it doesn't have to be anything fancy, an empty coffee can or jar will do. The idea behind this is to toss any loose change you have at the end of the day into it.   Ladies, if you clean out your purse once a week, odds are you'll find a handful of change at the bottom.   It won't be anything much, and you won't miss it.
I have a friend who actually gets a roll of coins at the bank and adds it to his jar, every pay day.   You'll be surprized on how this can add up.  If you've recently quit a money costing habit, say smoking, put the money you would have spent into the jar too. I'm told the 'visual aid' can really help you stay quit.
B) write yourself a check. This works on the same idea. Every pay period, write yourself out a check for one hours pay. In the US the current federal minimum wage is $7.25, so we'll use that for an example. At the end of a year, you'll have 'put away'  $377. If you're paid every other week ( which seems to be the trend) $188.50.    Looking at the lesser amount in 5 years that would be: $942.50.   Of course, once you've 'saved' a decent amount, you can transfer it to a savings account that offers interest.
c) round up the deductions in your check book ledger to the nearest dollar. Again this won't be a large amount, but that 'loose change' will add up over the course of time.