Author Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money? (Read 7443797 times)

RainyDay · « **Reply #14300 on:** January 14, 2021, 08:26:04 AM »

Quote from: Roadrunner53 on January 14, 2021, 08:20:15 AM

Quote from: RainyDay on January 14, 2021, 07:38:01 AM
Discovered the grocery store Aldi!! I had not previously shopped there because it was further away than our regular grocery store, but that one closed down so I drove to Aldi instead. SO MUCH CHEAPER! I swear, their prices are even lower than Costco's!

Just curious what you bought at Aldi to save money. I have been there a few times and just can't get into it. The veggies are usually picked over and very little to choose from. The meat area is kind of a turn off and I don't buy all that much boxed items and they do have tons of that. Maybe the frozen items are worthwhile. My Aldi renovated about a year ago but I have never been back to see what they offer.

Maybe it depends what area you're in? I'm in northern Virginia and so far the veggies and everything else has been fully stocked. We've been really happy with the cheeses in particular. In a lot of cases, you won't find name brand items, but I've never been obsessed with name brands anyway. Their baked goods are very tasty as well.

For meats, we got a turkey from them for Christmas (ShadyBrook brand) and it was delish. Just yesterday we cooked a 7 lb ham we got for $6.23! It wasn't pre-sliced and I had to make the glaze myself, but the same ham from Wegman's would have been around $25. Have not tried their chicken breasts or seafood yet.

Roadrunner53 · « **Reply #14301 on:** January 14, 2021, 09:07:56 AM »

Quote from: RainyDay on January 14, 2021, 08:26:04 AM

Quote from: Roadrunner53 on January 14, 2021, 08:20:15 AM
Quote from: RainyDay on January 14, 2021, 07:38:01 AM
Discovered the grocery store Aldi!! I had not previously shopped there because it was further away than our regular grocery store, but that one closed down so I drove to Aldi instead. SO MUCH CHEAPER! I swear, their prices are even lower than Costco's!

Just curious what you bought at Aldi to save money. I have been there a few times and just can't get into it. The veggies are usually picked over and very little to choose from. The meat area is kind of a turn off and I don't buy all that much boxed items and they do have tons of that. Maybe the frozen items are worthwhile. My Aldi renovated about a year ago but I have never been back to see what they offer.

Maybe it depends what area you're in? I'm in northern Virginia and so far the veggies and everything else has been fully stocked. We've been really happy with the cheeses in particular. In a lot of cases, you won't find name brand items, but I've never been obsessed with name brands anyway. Their baked goods are very tasty as well.

For meats, we got a turkey from them for Christmas (ShadyBrook brand) and it was delish. Just yesterday we cooked a 7 lb ham we got for $6.23! It wasn't pre-sliced and I had to make the glaze myself, but the same ham from Wegman's would have been around $25. Have not tried their chicken breasts or seafood yet.

Thanks for sharing. It is strange how my Aldi, last time I was there, was such a turn off. After seeing your list of goods, I might give it a shot again. I have 2 other large grocery stores in my area that have beautiful choices of produce and I love to load up on that stuff. Aldi, looked like they were going out of business the day I was there. Glad you had such good luck!

ZsaZsa · « **Reply #14302 on:** January 14, 2021, 04:06:39 PM »

Got boneless ribs on clearance at the grocery store (sell by date...tomorrow) Mr. Z grilled out today. Made homemade apple dumplings, used the peelings and cores to make a pint of apple scrap jelly.

Dutch Comfort · « **Reply #14303 on:** January 15, 2021, 03:28:58 AM »

Feeding my kids leftovers for lunch (again........ fortunately they absolutely LOVE leftovers). Going to make soup for dinner tomorrow from all veggies I have left in the fridge.
Try to extend shopping till Sunday/Monday with all I still have in the fridge.

Kids are still munching on leftover Christmas candy. I try to keep far away from those!

Making tea from our Chinese tea inventory (friends moved and gave us all their original Chinese tea (which they received as gifts in China), since they do not use it. With 3 tea drinking people in the house, we absolutely love this!)

Going to check coupons/sale items and make a grocery list for when I need to go shopping to avoid unnecessary purchases (and to be able to run through the supermarket and avoid contact with as many people as possible).

Freedomin5 · « **Reply #14304 on:** January 16, 2021, 04:05:27 AM »

Had a friend help me use a local Chinese secondhand app to find a used digital piano. She found one for $350 (currently selling for $800 new). Took the subway to the seller’s place for $1. Then ordered a Huolala (moving van taxi service) and instead of paying extra for the driver to come up and move the piano downstairs, my friend, the seller, and I carried the piano downstairs. The trip back home cost $16.

It turns out that the piano was an aspirational purchase in 2019 and was Never Played. The seller included a whole bunch of extras including several sets of headphones and a piano bench.

Total cost: $367.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14305 on:** January 16, 2021, 02:33:50 PM »

In truly tiny money savings, stocked up on groceries at Target & noticed I had a $.29 reward to use in the app. The definition of small. :-) I was at Target (vs the grocery store) as I somehow have accumulated a bunch of gift cards. Bought ~$60 worth of groceries for $3.

Loretta · « **Reply #14306 on:** January 16, 2021, 02:49:48 PM »

I went to the high falutin' thrift store in the fanciest neighborhood around and bought a sweater, scarf and dress instead of placing an order online. It's been hard to find this thrift shop open as they have reduced their days open and their hours due to the pandemic.

Today I googled how to clean the sweatbands inside my favorite hats...unfortunately my skin has gotten more sensitive with age and my forehead gets bumpy and clogged up when it's winter hat season. I keep my hair short, detest rain or snow to touch my glasses lenses, and need to keep my head warm, so hats with brims are my go to. Ladies who are hesitant to wear hats, hats can be great! Try a hat! :)

okisok · « **Reply #14307 on:** January 16, 2021, 06:40:18 PM »

I've been decluttering books by posting them on PaperBackSwap. I packaged them in reused mailers and cut up shopping bags. The stamps were gifted so it was completely free to mail out ten books.

I used rewards & sales at CVS to get three items for $0.29. That's at least an annual supply of cotton balls, so (a little bit of) money well spent!

Renewed my auto insurance after reviewing my options. When I got the actual bill, it was $100 less than I had planned because of the quarantine discount the company auto-matically applied.

One of owners of the business I work for gave everyone in my office a cash bonus for a new year gift. I took it straight to the bank after work, because it neatly covered a little home improvement project I had started with saved money.

Freedomin5 · « **Reply #14308 on:** January 16, 2021, 10:52:28 PM »

We usually eat out after church. I ate at home today and got a head start making a fresh loaf of bread, carrot ginger soup, and energy bites for DD’s school snack this week.

ZsaZsa · « **Reply #14309 on:** January 18, 2021, 07:22:20 AM »

Mr. Z made a big pot of his infernal chili on the woodstove...what is it about guys and cooking with fire? No complaint... and no cooking for a day or two!
Going to the Amish butcher a couple towns over today with daughter in law. Really good stuff, fair prices, will stock small freezer so less trips to grocery store.

Roadrunner53 · « **Reply #14310 on:** January 18, 2021, 07:34:01 AM »

I went to a website to buy some items and when I went to check out this is what I see: COVID-19 Surcharge:$1.95
Est. Shipping & Handling:$0.00, Priority Replacement Charge $1.50

Even though they offered free shipping it was something like 8-10 days to receive items, if I wanted expedited shipping it was more money.

It really irked me with these stupid fees so I went to another website that had none of these fees, free shipping and my order should be here in a few days!

I also wrote the website to complain about the charges. Should be interesting to see if they respond back.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14311 on:** January 18, 2021, 02:51:58 PM »

A neighbor gave us lemons, so I made five jars of lemon curd (gave some away, as well) & I'm starting a batch of limoncello.

I also made protein balls to feed hungry teens, and pickled two jars of jalapenos (from the garden). The weather is confusing our plants, and they are continuing to produce.

I have 20+ green tomatoes ripening away inside.

horsepoor · « **Reply #14312 on:** January 18, 2021, 07:06:57 PM »

I thought I'd lost my sunglasses and would need to buy new ones. I wear expensive ones that stay in place and don't fog while riding. Found them today in the pocket of a jacket I rarely wear.

Sold a riding jacket for around what I paid for it since I found the same thing in a different color for $65 less after Christmas.

Was looking at tabletop shelves for some tea and coffee stuff, but decided I could repurpose a 2 tier fruit basket instead.

Freedomin5 · « **Reply #14313 on:** January 18, 2021, 09:28:41 PM »

Ate the lunch I brought from home instead of buying lunch at work. Also had a cup of free coffee from work.

Sugaree · « **Reply #14314 on:** January 20, 2021, 07:22:52 AM »

Hit a deer this morning on the way to work. Luckily, it doesn't seemed to have done any mechanical damage, but there are a few cracked parts. I found a color match grille at a parts yard that's going to cost less than ordering a new one and having it painted to match, even after having it shipped across the country. Fingers crossed that the parts house keeps their online inventory up to date and it's actually there.

Loretta · « **Reply #14315 on:** January 20, 2021, 01:08:39 PM »

I ordered water with my lunch!

AO1FireTo · « **Reply #14316 on:** January 20, 2021, 06:54:43 PM »

I lowered my mobile phone plan by $45/month. I did it all without even calling in. Used the online chat features, while I was on work calls.

Sugaree · « **Reply #14317 on:** January 21, 2021, 06:23:59 AM »

Quote from: Sugaree on January 20, 2021, 07:22:52 AM

Hit a deer this morning on the way to work. Luckily, it doesn't seemed to have done any mechanical damage, but there are a few cracked parts. I found a color match grille at a parts yard that's going to cost less than ordering a new one and having it painted to match, even after having it shipped across the country. Fingers crossed that the parts house keeps their online inventory up to date and it's actually there.

After further consideration, I think that we're going to be able to fix almost everything instead of replacing parts. The grille cracks were clean breaks and there weren't any pieces missing so we're going to try just gluing it in place and doing a fiberglass patch on the backside. At least until I can find a matching grille nearby. The fender flare has a piece broken off, but we're going to cut it down a bit to clean up the break and then cut the other side to match. The bumper is pretty well dented in, but I've been wanting a different bumper anyway, so this may be my chance to spend some of those xmas gift cards I've been holding onto.

horsepoor · « **Reply #14318 on:** January 21, 2021, 10:20:38 AM »

Quote from: horsepoor on January 18, 2021, 07:06:57 PM

I thought I'd lost my sunglasses and would need to buy new ones. I wear expensive ones that stay in place and don't fog while riding. Found them today in the pocket of a jacket I rarely wear.

Yesterday I found ALL THE SUNGLASSES. One pair could use some new lenses, but that's much cheaper than replacing, and I found a cheap pair I'd forgotten about. Those can live out at the barn.

This morning I used my 10% off a purchase Tractor Supply to order 4 month's worth of feed and the spring dewormer for the horses since the discount was only good for a few more days.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14319 on:** January 21, 2021, 11:30:48 AM »

Sold a folding picnic table on Nextdoor. Applied money directly to my mortgage. (Face punches aside, this is our current goal & motivates me.)

ZsaZsa · « **Reply #14320 on:** January 22, 2021, 08:18:03 PM »

Mr. Z and I cleaned and re-seasoned three cast iron pans that were gathering rust in the basement. Now we have a skillet, griddle and sauce pan that we can use on the woodstove, in addition to our dutch oven.

yakamashii · « **Reply #14321 on:** January 22, 2021, 10:13:40 PM »

Threw away receipts and stuff kept for taxes from 2013, noticed the envelope was still in great shape, crossed out "13" and wrote in "21" . . .

Freedomin5 · « **Reply #14322 on:** January 22, 2021, 11:15:30 PM »

I used a coupon that was expiring today to stock up on beans and chickpeas. My COVID cupboard is very well-stocked now.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14323 on:** January 23, 2021, 03:29:25 PM »

-Listed & sold stuff we don't need on eBay & FB.
-Tracked down credit from a damaged order ($22)
-Inventoried my freezer, & rearranged it to make it easier to find prepped meals. As a result, defrosted chicken & dumplings for lunch, as I could easily spot it.

Sun Hat · « **Reply #14324 on:** January 25, 2021, 05:57:25 AM »

I uncoupled my dryer exhaust hose from the vent going through the exterior wall and stuffed a rolled up towel in the vent in it's place. I do this to block the cold from seeping into the house through the vent hole. Before uncoupling it, frost had already formed on the interior face of the vent, and it'll be gone in an hour. I only do laundry about once a week, and have mastered the art of swapping the towel out for the exhaust hose.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14325 on:** January 25, 2021, 07:43:28 AM »

Purchased some items at the drug store, using free rewards. At the end of the transaction, noticed I was $1 away from another $3 reward. Bought a box of cereal to donate for $2, earning $3. Free food for others, and earned a bonus $1.

Roadrunner53 · « **Reply #14326 on:** January 25, 2021, 01:11:20 PM »

The electric toothbrush I bought at Costco a little over a year ago won't charge up. I tried to figure out what to do and cleaned the bottom where it charges and still nothing. Tried another charger, nothing. So, I did some investigation on line and found out it has a two year warranty. I called the company and gave all the particulars to customer service. For some reason I thought they would have me send it for repair but I was told they would send me a new one! I was thrilled! Original price for the two pack was $149.99!

Happy I didn't have to spend any money!

jeromedawg · « **Reply #14327 on:** January 25, 2021, 01:31:45 PM »

Not today but happened back in October - went in for my annual checkup and got gently scolded/lectured by my doctor about my high blood pressure and cholesterol. Was told I really need to focus on my diet and cut out red meats and focus on leafy greens/veggies/etc. Since then we've reduced our overall food/grocery by probably $200~+ month over month. Can't believe we were eating out that facepunchingly much.

jeromedawg · « **Reply #14328 on:** January 25, 2021, 01:32:36 PM »

Quote from: MaybeBabyMustache on January 25, 2021, 07:43:28 AM

Purchased some items at the drug store, using free rewards. At the end of the transaction, noticed I was $1 away from another $3 reward. Bought a box of cereal to donate for $2, earning $3. Free food for others, and earned a bonus $1.

LOL we've had these days too. My mom goes absolutely haywire with these deals too - CVS right?

jeromedawg · « **Reply #14329 on:** January 25, 2021, 01:38:09 PM »

This happened mid-last year. We saved probably a ton of money by DIYing a bunch of fixes prior to selling our condo (and even during the escrow period). One funny one: buyer requested some ridiculous $500 credit for missing closet doors (in a room that was previously a den but not to "code" since it had no closet doors) and for us to remediate a handful of other things. OR just to remediation all items (there was a list of about 7-8 items that weren't terribly difficult), including closet doors with no additional request for credit.
So we hired out a contractor to fix a couple of the issues that we didn't want to do ourselves (replacing PEX with iron pipe going into the furnace and installing an overflow switch) and a handyman for one other minor plumbing item but did everything else ourselves (damper stop clamp, GFCI outlet stickers, closet doors). RE: the closet doors - we bought the cheapest ugliest looking closet doors from Walmart ($60 total for plasticky sliding dividers) and I spent 30-45 mins mounting them up. LOL bet they weren't expecting that

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14330 on:** January 25, 2021, 04:24:55 PM »

Quote from: jeromedawg on January 25, 2021, 01:32:36 PM

Quote from: MaybeBabyMustache on January 25, 2021, 07:43:28 AM
Purchased some items at the drug store, using free rewards. At the end of the transaction, noticed I was $1 away from another $3 reward. Bought a box of cereal to donate for $2, earning $3. Free food for others, and earned a bonus $1.

LOL we've had these days too. My mom goes absolutely haywire with these deals too - CVS right?

Rite Aid, although I think CVS & Walgreens have similar systems

jeromedawg · « **Reply #14331 on:** January 25, 2021, 04:48:20 PM »

Quote from: MaybeBabyMustache on January 25, 2021, 04:24:55 PM

Quote from: jeromedawg on January 25, 2021, 01:32:36 PM
Quote from: MaybeBabyMustache on January 25, 2021, 07:43:28 AM
Purchased some items at the drug store, using free rewards. At the end of the transaction, noticed I was $1 away from another $3 reward. Bought a box of cereal to donate for $2, earning $3. Free food for others, and earned a bonus $1.

LOL we've had these days too. My mom goes absolutely haywire with these deals too - CVS right?

Rite Aid, although I think CVS & Walgreens have similar systems

Oh true... they all have those. We go to CVS the most since those seem to be the most prevalent around here (or maybe I'm just not paying attention)

Freedomin5 · « **Reply #14332 on:** January 26, 2021, 05:34:45 AM »

Work's been a bit crazy, and it's making me break out. Instead of going for a facial and a massage, I'm doing a clay mask at home (free sample from one of my favorite skincare companies), and will be following up with a revitalizing mask (also free gift with a present that I purchased for someone else several months ago).

Sugaree · « **Reply #14333 on:** January 26, 2021, 05:36:09 AM »

Quote from: jeromedawg on January 25, 2021, 01:32:36 PM

Quote from: MaybeBabyMustache on January 25, 2021, 07:43:28 AM
Purchased some items at the drug store, using free rewards. At the end of the transaction, noticed I was $1 away from another $3 reward. Bought a box of cereal to donate for $2, earning $3. Free food for others, and earned a bonus $1.

LOL we've had these days too. My mom goes absolutely haywire with these deals too - CVS right?

There was a time in my life where I would use the CVS program to buy milk every week. I had boxes of "free" stuff because if I could roll over enough of their CVS bucks and use a $4 off $20 purchase, I could get milk for like a quarter and have enough CVS bucks to do it again the next week. In some ways it was like a game, but I'm also glad I don't have to do that anymore.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14334 on:** January 26, 2021, 08:07:20 AM »

Quote from: Sugaree on January 26, 2021, 05:36:09 AM

Quote from: jeromedawg on January 25, 2021, 01:32:36 PM
Quote from: MaybeBabyMustache on January 25, 2021, 07:43:28 AM
Purchased some items at the drug store, using free rewards. At the end of the transaction, noticed I was $1 away from another $3 reward. Bought a box of cereal to donate for $2, earning $3. Free food for others, and earned a bonus $1.

LOL we've had these days too. My mom goes absolutely haywire with these deals too - CVS right?

There was a time in my life where I would use the CVS program to buy milk every week. I had boxes of "free" stuff because if I could roll over enough of their CVS bucks and use a $4 off $20 purchase, I could get milk for like a quarter and have enough CVS bucks to do it again the next week. In some ways it was like a game, but I'm also glad I don't have to do that anymore.

Mine started because I ordered some stuff online from Rite Aid & it was a month late & then damaged. They gave me the rewards as an apology. They just keep rolling forward once you start using them! I'm not a regular drug store deal seeker, as I find it too much work, and has the potential to get you to spend way more than you need (clearly the goal). But, I'll spend this amount on donations & a few things we need, which is useful. We have a lot of places asking for donations right now of things like deodorant, soap, toothbrushes, etc for the homeless in our area, so I like being able to help out.

Sugaree · « **Reply #14335 on:** February 01, 2021, 05:29:57 AM »

Made the annual call to Sirius to "cancel" my subscription. Got it at a better price this year than last.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14336 on:** February 01, 2021, 07:56:36 AM »

-Sold a couple of things on eBay
-We've been planning our menu well, and pulling things from the freezer. We do this pretty regularly, but I re-organized our freezer, and it helped tremendously.
-We spent $0 on dining out in January

Linea_Norway · « **Reply #14337 on:** February 01, 2021, 01:58:16 PM »

Not today, but yesterday. DH was looking for his own speed skates and found an ancient pair of mine, heardly ever used. As there is good ice now, he put them out for sale at a low price and got them sold 3 hours later. I still have a newer pair left.

Imma · « **Reply #14338 on:** February 01, 2021, 03:27:43 PM »

Got two pairs of jeans, a cardigan and a fleece jacket from a family member who is spending lockdown decluttering! I had to get rid of my last pair of jeans recently because it was so damaged so this was great timing -I wear skirts most of the time so it's not like I didn't have clothes to wear. And cardigans and fleece jackets are always useful. They're all pretty nice as well because my family member has expensive taste.

MudPuppy · « **Reply #14339 on:** February 05, 2021, 04:39:22 PM »

Finally took the MVNO plunge

PMG · « **Reply #14340 on:** February 05, 2021, 05:01:13 PM »

Had a miserable long day of meetings and gave myself permission to buy a vending machine soda only to find that I had $1.20 and the soda cost $1.25 so in spite of myself I have managed to extend my avoidance of vending machine treats another week and keep that money in my packet.

Loretta · « **Reply #14341 on:** February 05, 2021, 05:13:39 PM »

Ate leftovers and cooked from the fridge. Tonight’s dinner was chicken drumsticks with broccoli and a pistachio pudding firming up in the fridge for dessert. I added fancy pants mini marshmallows for real luxury!

Dicey · « **Reply #14342 on:** February 05, 2021, 10:38:26 PM »

Worked my shift at the thrift store after the store had closed, so i wasn't tempted to buy a single thing. That sounds weird, but I have a specific task to complete twice a week and it's easier to do if no one's around.

Freedomin5 · « **Reply #14343 on:** February 06, 2021, 04:46:31 AM »

Walked an extra 5 minutes to the store that’s slightly farther away to get cheese on sale.

SEAK · « **Reply #14344 on:** February 06, 2021, 05:35:12 PM »

My family of four needed sandals for our upcoming Grand Canyon rafting trip. Instead of buying new sandals we bought used Chaco Sandals from REI and saved 50%. Really liking the REI Used Website, some great deals on there!

MudPuppy · « **Reply #14345 on:** February 06, 2021, 05:38:23 PM »

Had all three meals for free at work.

seemsright · « **Reply #14346 on:** February 06, 2021, 07:09:06 PM »

This week I am using up all of the random in my fridge. Tonight we had mushroom miso soup with a side of rice and kimchi. We will also have sourdough pizza using some sourdough starter a friend gave us this last week. I will make a dinner with some cabbage that is in the fridge. Some kimchi fried rice using leftovers.

My goal is to have a empty fridge by the end of the month. We have a ton of pickles and the like that need to be eaten up

Freedomin5 · « **Reply #14347 on:** February 06, 2021, 10:35:56 PM »

DD wanted to have afternoon tea at the cafe. Instead of paying $8 for a pastry, DH found a pack of chocolate wafers in our pantry and DD had “afternoon picnic tea” at the playground.

MyAlterEgoIsTaller · « **Reply #14348 on:** February 08, 2021, 08:57:57 AM »

Fixed the latest crop of tiny cracks and rust spots in the finish on the side of my refrigerator by sealing banana stickers over them with clear nail polish. It's an old, ugly fridge but working fine - I wonder if it will last long enough for me to eat enough bananas to solidly cover that whole side.

MaybeBabyMustache · « **Reply #14349 on:** February 08, 2021, 10:21:35 AM »

Put on an (at home, just our own family) Super Bowl "party" yesterday, using basically everything from our fridge/freezer/pantry. I picked up a frozen (on sale) pizza & a baguette. Everything else we already had on hand. We had quite a feast, for a very reasonable price ($5).

I made my own onion dip, which I've never tried before & it turned out great. Easy, cheap win.

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Author Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money? (Read 7443797 times)