Kinda Broke and Semi-Banned !

[Stormy Heart]

Inspired by ToniJ
WOW HH is totally cool.....

I don't have the discipline to go ALL BAN
I am a woos
BUT
other than selling off bags, do you have other ways to save or stash $$ ?

[leothelnss]

I'm in..
As far as raising money for new purchases, selling old ones and getting calls from the temp agency are all I've got.

[swolfcg]

-Returning old Jewlery to Sundance you never liked. They actually took some old stuff back recently that I bought in 2006!

-Throwing change in a bucket, and exchanging for cash at the end of 6months.

-Stop Driving (if you can) I stopped when I moved from Ma to CA. Now I take the train everywhere, and work reimburses me for it.

-Don't use coupons as an excuse to buy (always have a list when you go shopping, and stick to it)

-Recycle Copper (you make bank 4 sho')

[Stormy Heart]

When I get a new 20 or 50 with an 11,22,33,44,or88 I save it in an used wallet. I have saved a dollar for every tPF post already
(my own, not total tPF posts !)

[tonij2000]

I'm in too! (what am I joining?)

I don't have any ways to raise cash, selling off bags is good but there isn't really a lot of demand for the one or two that I want to get rid of. I think it's just plain foolish for me to buy anything else...

[gingeybear]

Originally Posted by Stormy Heart

Inspired by ToniJ WOW HH is totally cool..... I don't have the discipline to go ALL BAN I am a woos BUT other than selling off bags, do you have other ways to save or stash $$ ?

Thanks for starting this stormy. I too am a wuss of major proportions..and I can't resist sample sales especially..never could..never will if I am going to be totally honest and not lie to myself.


I am trying to do more tutoring for pay not just pro-bono work. I'm also going to start custom hand painting clothing by special order again and scouring thrift stores for items I can remake and restyle. These are not easy times for so many of us. So I am going to see what service I can provide such as cooking lessons or in-home meal preparation for people with special diets such as vegetarian, lactose intolerant, celiac, and macrobiotic.

I will try to use the talents that I have to make something that people might want to buy at a reasonable price or teach.

Stormy, I am in awe of your talent and you are such a font of information..surely there must be so much that you can do? Forgive me please if I am totally out of bounds.

[cciele]

I'm into selling off stuff (I just sold off 5 bags in the last week!) and am always on the lookout for stuff around the house to sell.

Get a credit card with a reward program -- mine has cash back, so I use my credit card to pay for everything (I pay it off every month).

Buy food in bulk! I bought a standalone freezer (cheap but great investment) so that I could buy sides of beef and store perishables that are on sale.

[Sybaryte]

Originally Posted by cciele

Get a credit card with a reward program

Great one! I use my Rewards AMEX for everything I can...just cashed in points for Pottery Barn certificates that I'll combine with Christmas gift cards to buy a 5 x 8 rug for my living room.

[Stormy Heart]

Gingey, I borrowed ToniJ's expression for the title.
I'm more on the semi banned side because there is only one bag on my radar.
We have a lot of ways to save money and have fun doing it. Between the International Market for veggies, and meat sales in bulk (the 3+# pkgs), We trim & cut our stew and fajita meats from a big steak and freeze a meal or stewpot's worth with spices. Same with boneless ch breasts. Trim and cut medallions from pork center loins. I roast chickens and turkey breasts for a few meals and sandwich meat. 10 or 20 lb bags of brown basmati rice. H's a heart patient, so it's really good home cooking which is cost effective because we make our own stocks and yogurt dressing and yogurt cheese from my starter. I love to keep sprouts going too but have to fight the cats for them. Bread baking is a hobby, and I love to mix whole grains. Splurge on Salmon and Snapper. Bulk spices- make my own blends.
I miss my big freezer but we seem to do as well as my old freezer and Butcher 1/2 price Saturdays.
We share one car so upkeep and insurance is not bad. Train would be better but not an option.
Right ! no coupons, they are for things we don't use anyhow.
Ummmm where does one find copper to recycle, wolf?
" make bank"

Personal weaknesses are Louisiana, Peruvian and Bolivian coffee...
and leather !
and rocks
and books
shoes
boots
essential oils
antique silk


OK, this is the semi-commitment thread !
(and another dollar for the per-post savings)






that rug is gorgeous Syb !

[novella]

I'm in. I'm always around temptation especially since HH always has sales! Besides the other tips that were mentioned, creating and trying to stick to a budget helps me. I also try to take a minute and think about needs, wants and use before I make a purchase these days. (Do I need another bag? How often will I use it? Do I really want it?)

An SA once told me that it's not a deal if it's not 100% what I want. It really gave me a perspective on things. I don't buy substitutes anymore since it's really not the same as what I was looking for. I'll leave you all with a great quote from one of my favorite writers:

Do you really think it is weakness that yields to temptation?
I tell you that there are terrible temptations which it requires
strength, strength and courage to yield to.

- Oscar Wilde -

[mlinky]

Finally, a banned thread that I might be able to live up to. That's me, kind of broke and semi-banned. It has to be something really extraordinary.

[gingeybear]

Stormy and the rest of my amigas..yes..this is a banned thread that I can stick with..I walk if it's a mile..unless I have to schlep stuff...we haven't gone out to a restaurant in years except for Sushi but we get it for cost because the owner is a close friend..we bartered a certain amount of dollar for dollar value for SAT tutoring ...or else we wouldn't go

..I do a lot of bartering for services (I know it sounds nasty...) one friend who's a contracter sent his boiler repair guy and plasterer and in turn I helped him, his wife and his son by ghostwriting speeches for the Bar Mitzvah and his speech at his father's funeral..I'm on retainer and he's going to help me finally put in my kitchen with the help of DH..DS..and his frat buddies...(I'll be feeding them, of course).

I do a lot of very healthy and frugal cooking too..I have a 20 year old son who eats like he has a tapeworm..who brings home his frat buddies for a homecooked meal at least once a week..my cooking isn't not vegetarian per se..but I stretch the protein with brown rice, roasted Yukon gold potatoes, salads, stir fry veggies (I shop a lot in my nabe's Chinatown..or maybe Asiatown is better? Great fresh produce, fish and veggie proteins like seitan and tempeh).

I do have a humungous freezer that I use to stock up on meat and whole poultry and sale stuff (I am addicted to Morningstar Farm Grillers and Griller Crumbles)..and my kids joke that I use every bit of everything except for the bags they come in (but I even use those and the twistem's and plastic clips..LOL). I don't freeze fish or chicken cutlets..I splurge on wild salmon once in a while..and Red snapper...and Tilapia..no seafood though. We all brown bag it..and now that I am getting back to my old self I will start baking again..

I've been thrifting for years, waaaaay before it became trendy and "vintage"..I've managed to clothe us for a great deal less than many of my friends do..and I've decided to part ways with some of my designer finds that I never use but couldn't resist snapping up because I couldn't bear to have them fall into someone else's hands.

Oh..I dumpster dive..yes I do..been doing that for years too..slim pickings now..but back in the day..you had to see what I found in Manhattan and tony Long Island nabes...and what used to be left for the sanitation men on the street...and either used the items to furnish my home or sold for a pretty penny.

I'm not going to be buying just because something is on sale no matter how reduced it is. I've made a list of what I want shoe wise, boot wise and bag wise, after going though what I own. I'm a sucker for shoes and boots and quirky bags...but I dont want to hoard anymore..I feel like a crow attracted to bright shiny bits that takes everything home to incorporate into its nest..and I've delisted my CCs from sites...and unsubscribed from sites like Hautel**k and G*ltgr**pe..too distracting and too tempting..especially for someone like me who is often confined to the house.

Ohh...I also roll my pennies and nickels and take them to the bank for paper...and keep a jar near my bed where DH and I dump our loose change...and I take all my singles and put them in another jar...and for every bag or item over $100 that I pass up I have started to put a $5 bill into an envelope..as a reminder of how much I would have spent on something that was nothing more than an impulse buy for whatever reason.

Making shopping lists also helps me avoid temptation, especially in big box stores or discount stores...and I have to avoid going to Century 21 unless I am looking for something specific because it's hard to resist...I never know what amazingly discounted things I will encounter..that's the toughest for me.

... for now..the fact that I got an amazing Yam Shine Lorca with a tassel that I used today for the first time...and will use and get great pleasure from while using...has slaked my thirst for anything one of a kind during this auction insanity.

and stormy..thanks for the idea about putting a dollar in for every post..I've only been a member of TPF and I would have amassed over $2,000 in a very easy way..so that's what I'm going to do..XOXO

swolfy..do tell..

things I love:

antique jewelry especially art deco, art nouveau, Elsa Peretti and Georg Jensen sterling (can only afford "finds"...I was lucky to get some GJ during the time when his stuff was unpopular)...
shoes, boots, handbags...vintage especially
hats all vintages all types
porcelain..art deco and art nouveau and modern scandinavian
William Morris tiles
books..books...books...
records...
bakelite

Thanks for letting me rant once again..and thanks for starting this..because I know I can stick to this!!!

[balena]

What helps me the most is to not use a credit card. I have one with a stupid credit limit (as in, I would be in big doo-doo if I maxed it). That credit card stays at home in a drawer and it will only be used in the case of a medical emergency for a family member or for the dog. If I want to buy something, I must have the cash in my account – if not, I have to walk away no matter how good of a deal or how badly I think I want it. It's funny the times when I don't have money and I pine after stuff and then a month or two later, when I can afford it, I go back and look at the item and I'm over it by then – I pick it up, try it on and leave without buying.

We eat out maybe 4 times a month – cooking at home is so much healthier and cheaper. Now that it's warming up, we're gearing up the garden to plant tomatoes and lettuce again and probably a few other veggies.

[chodessa]

I too have the "change bucket", but I also include all one dollar bills as change... everyday, clean out your wallet/bag of all coins and singles... it really adds up..
My Mom forced me to do this years ago to allocate money for a small mutual fund.. It really added up over the years! (Mom's a banker!)
Thanks Mom!

[chodessa]

Also.. my sister's been giving her crappy gold pieces to a jeweler and she's been getting money for the gold... made a few hundred bucks on things she will never ever miss...