What small things did you do TODAY to save money?

[FrugalAussie]

Calling tomato canning season at: 37 pints red salsa and 18 pints diced tomatoes.

WOW! Can I have your recipe for red salsa please? We are just coming into tomato season in the southern hemisphere.  Ta.

[Bracken_Joy]

Calling tomato canning season at: 37 pints red salsa and 18 pints diced tomatoes.

WOW! Can I have your recipe for red salsa please? We are just coming into tomato season in the southern hemisphere.  Ta.

Gladly! I've been using one of Oregon's extension service canning recipes =)
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/fch/sites/default/files/documents/pnw_395_salsarecipesforcanning.pdf

The first ~9 pints were slicer tomatoes, so I used the slicer tomato recipe. The rest have been paste, and I've used the paste tomato recipe =)

For tomatillos, I use this recipe: https://www.freshpreserving.com/tomatillo-salsa---ball-fresh-preserving-br1032.html

[twistedfirestarter]

Pleased I finally have something to share on here.

Taking a flight, made sandwiches to avoid buying food at the airport.
Before I left I ran down the items in the fridge to avoid waste.
Made 14 portions of carrot and coriander soup and 8 jars of tomato sauce from veg in the garden.

[Linea_Norway]

I had to travel to the main city today for an exam. I combined that with a trip to the embassy to order a new passport. I set one stop on the tram without ticket (not well done, but buying a whole ticket for one stop is so expensive), walked the rest of the route to the embassy and later walked back to the train station, where I bought a new ticket home. I walked through a long, fancy shopping street, full of temptations for other people: nice clothes, handbags, bakery stores, coffee shops and café-s. I didn't buy anything, but a box of C-vitamins that I needed. Not even a cake to celebrate that I passed the exam.

What am I glad for that I don't work in the city anymore and see these temptations on a daily basis. In the past I have many times been addicted to buying candies on my way home, at the train station. That is of course not good for my health and body weight. Today I was not tempted.

[peppermint]

Packed lunch, took the bus to work, made my own coffee and tea.

[Thinkum]

Walked a couple of miles to run errands rather than to use the car.

Ate lunch at home before we left so we would not be tempted to eat while out and about.

[Sun Hat]

I installed a few pieces of baseboard molding that had been missing since a reno over a year ago. It would have been difficult/$$ to get a carpenter to come out for a job that would have taken them 10 minutes, so I did it myself. Two hours, many scrapped pieces and a bloody thumb later, I have complete trim!

[Teachstache]

Invited my dad over for a birthday dinner tonight instead of taking him out to eat. Made chicken jambalaya using previously purchased ingredients and the Crock-Pot. Had a gifted bottle of red along with it. Ate outside on our patio.

[marielle]

Technically hasn't saved me money yet, but will in the future. I just got back my oil analysis for my car, and they suggested I could do an interval of 8k miles. I had being already doing 5k despite the manual suggesting 3k (I knew this was bullshit but didn't want to push it too much).

Also today I brought extra food to work so I wouldn't order food at league tonight (pool) which can go pretty late. This was a very bad spend month thanks to moving earlier than I planned because of my asshole landlord and a vet visit.

[4alpacas]

Free breakfast from the food giveaway table at work (fruit this morning!)

[MaybeBabyMustache]

-Price matched flights and noticed they had dropped. Requested & received a credit of $52 for future travel.
-Remembered to use a Groupon for a restaurant before it expired. Sidenote - remembered why the four of us (2 adults, 2 kids) never go out to eat. Crazy expensive. Curbed my appetite for future dining out.

[Bracken_Joy]

-Used up a tea I got over 2 years ago. Slowly but surely, getting through our tea collection! Set myself a goal over a year ago that I wouldn't buy any more herbal teas until I used everything we already had. Well on my way!

-Husband needs a headset since he's been on so. many. work. calls. We had a $20 one in our amazon cart, but searching around the house yielded an old headphone set with a speaker that came with his phone last year. Sounds great. $20 saved!

-Sticking to a meal plan this week and using food we already had or came from the garden.

-Switched for a heavier blanket on the bed. No climate control either direction for the last week =)

[marielle]

-Used up a tea I got over 2 years ago. Slowly but surely, getting through our tea collection! Set myself a goal over a year ago that I wouldn't buy any more herbal teas until I used everything we already had. Well on my way!

I need to do this. Any tips? The only thing I can think of is making a bunch at once and just having iced tea in the fridge. But my roommate is moving in soon so that might be valuable fridge space I need. I don't have a kettle so right now it's a matter of getting up at work and microwaving a cup at a time. Doesn't make sense to buy an electric kettle when I technically have a viable alternative but I guess I could add it to the christmas list when the future in-laws demand to buy me something.

[4alpacas]

-Used up a tea I got over 2 years ago. Slowly but surely, getting through our tea collection! Set myself a goal over a year ago that I wouldn't buy any more herbal teas until I used everything we already had. Well on my way!

I need to do this. Any tips? The only thing I can think of is making a bunch at once and just having iced tea in the fridge. But my roommate is moving in soon so that might be valuable fridge space I need. I don't have a kettle so right now it's a matter of getting up at work and microwaving a cup at a time. Doesn't make sense to buy an electric kettle when I technically have a viable alternative but I guess I could add it to the christmas list when the future in-laws demand to buy me something.

I like to make big batches of tea in a pot on the stove.  Boil water, add tea (bags or loose), then empty into tea receptacles (I like to use mason jars to have individual servings).  I also make my own tea blends when I do big batches.  I'll toss in a pomegranate sample tea bag with a bunch of Earl Grey. 

[marion10]

You don't need a kettle to make tea- boil water in a saucepan.

[marielle]

You don't need a kettle to make tea- boil water in a saucepan.

Of course, but since I spend most of my waking hours at work an electric kettle would be nice! The tiny microwaves do the job, but it's not convenient so I make tea less often.

[Bracken_Joy]

You don't need a kettle to make tea- boil water in a saucepan.

Of course, but since I spend most of my waking hours at work an electric kettle would be nice! The tiny microwaves do the job, but it's not convenient so I make tea less often.

I have no tips on that front- when I'm at work, tea isn't happening generally (nurse). At home, I use our kettle.

For black and green tea, we do iced tea pretty often, and go through those quickly. (No coffee after noon, but tea is okay). Herbal tea I tend to do hot, in the evenings. Part of why I go through it so slowly. It's for when I'm wanting to feel indulgent but non alcoholic in the evening =)

[marion10]

Ahh...that makes sense. Tea in a microwave never tastes as good to me- tough call.

[marcela]

There are some pretty decent kettles you can get for around $20 on amazon. I turned my entire office into them when I started here and my coworkers got some cheap ones that work great. I've found it a great investment to get me to drink more water during the day.

[marielle]

There are some pretty decent kettles you can get for around $20 on amazon. I turned my entire office into them when I started here and my coworkers got some cheap ones that work great. I've found it a great investment to get me to drink more water during the day.

Yeah, there's even one for $13, but I'm just being cheap. September was a very bad spend month. I think I'll put it on my christmas list.

Does drinking tea count as drinking water? I guess if it's herbal tea...

[marcela]

There are some pretty decent kettles you can get for around $20 on amazon. I turned my entire office into them when I started here and my coworkers got some cheap ones that work great. I've found it a great investment to get me to drink more water during the day.

Yeah, there's even one for $13, but I'm just being cheap. September was a very bad spend month. I think I'll put it on my christmas list.

Does drinking tea count as drinking water? I guess if it's herbal tea...

I mostly drink herbal, but my doctor said that the whole "coffee, tea and soda" not counting towards your hydration thing has been recently debunked. It's still a net gain overall. Not as good as drinking plain water, but still hydrating.

[MaybeBabyMustache]

-Moved money from a very, very low interest account to a municipal bond, which is now tax advantaged.
-Found a dime on the ground
-Favorite thing I've done lately . . . at soccer this weekend, saw something buried in the dirt, behind where the parents sit. It was a really dirty sweater that had fallen off of someone's chair quite a while ago, gotten left behind, & then walked over until it was ground in the dirt. I felt bad that it would go to the trash, so decided to take it home, throw it in the wash, & donate it to Goodwill. Ran it through the wash 2x, and it's perfect! It's a Banana Republic cardigan in my size, and I'm wearing it today.

[Kwill]

Put the cheesecake back (on sale for Ł2.50) and bought a slice of walnut cake (Ł1.30) instead. I was sad to let go of the cheesecake, but I know the walnut cake will last me just as long because the pieces are more filling. Cholesterol is also a factor. Sitting here now drinking some decaf tea with milk, having just finished a piece of cake, and I am almost convinced I am as happy as if I'd had the cheesecake.

Other than that, just doing the bike thing. I've now been without a car for almost 20 months.

[Alfred J Quack]

Picked up a nearly new washer because my SIL is moving in with her BF. Then posted an ad with the old one for free on the condition that they take the new one upstairs and the old one downstairs themselves.
Free movers who get payed with something they needed :)

[FrugalAussie]

Gladly! I've been using one of Oregon's extension service canning recipes =)
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/fch/sites/default/files/documents/pnw_395_salsarecipesforcanning.pdf

Thanks Braken_Joy, AWESOME resource!

[Bracken_Joy]

-Woo! I noticed my traditional IRA had juuuuuuuuust inched above the $10k mark, so I converted to admiral funds! From a 0.15 expense ratio to 0.04. I didn't think that would happen until next year with more contributions, I was seriously over by like $2!

-Jumped through the hoops of submitting paperwork to get paid for a long drive for work. They make it SO ANNOYING, I imagine so people don't submit the bonus form >.< Anyway, a frustrating 5-10 minutes for $25. (Well, okay, 2 hours driving for $25 also I suppose)

-Helping relatives save money =) Guest room will host people the next few nights. Although this will mean I'll turn on the heat, sigh. I had planned on going the rest of the month without! Flex my 'frugal badass' muscles when it's still sunny a little bit most days.

Gladly! I've been using one of Oregon's extension service canning recipes =)
http://extension.oregonstate.edu/fch/sites/default/files/documents/pnw_395_salsarecipesforcanning.pdf

Thanks Braken_Joy, AWESOME resource!

You're welcome! I'll be curious how it turns out for you. Their recipes are always spot on for me, but then, I'm using very similar produce to them! Same soils and probably same varieties and all =) I'll be interested to see if it turns out well with non-Oregon use.

[horsepoor]

-Helping relatives save money =) Guest room will host people the next few nights. Although this will mean I'll turn on the heat, sigh. I had planned on going the rest of the month without! Flex my 'frugal badass' muscles when it's still sunny a little bit most days.

I'm afraid I'll have to turn on the heat today too. DH and I don't care when it's 60 in the house, but my dad's visiting this weekend and he's skinny and prefers Florida weather.  This is about the shortest period I can remember between turning off the AC and turning on the heat. :(

Savings - scrounged up some random bits for lunch instead of choosing to go out for lunch.  Almonds, 1/2 cup of chili and a jar of peaches is sort of a weird lunch, but I'll appreciate the fancy seared ahi we're having for dinner that much more.

Returning a soft side cooler I ordered from Amazon that was bigger than I expected. 

Made peace with not enrolling in an equine anatomy course.  Will do it another year since I already traveled to World Cup and also attended a biomechanics class this year.

[Bracken_Joy]

-Helping relatives save money =) Guest room will host people the next few nights. Although this will mean I'll turn on the heat, sigh. I had planned on going the rest of the month without! Flex my 'frugal badass' muscles when it's still sunny a little bit most days.

I'm afraid I'll have to turn on the heat today too. DH and I don't care when it's 60 in the house, but my dad's visiting this weekend and he's skinny and prefers Florida weather.  This is about the shortest period I can remember between turning off the AC and turning on the heat. :(

I swear we keep identical climate control schedules! Windows opened vs not included, haha. And yep, I've got californians coming! I don't think my current habit of opening up overnight and waking up to a 62F house would make them happy ;) haha.

I'll try to minimize the use though, by closing up now, using the oven for lunch, doing some laundry, etc, and see where I can get the house from that before I turn it on.

[fluffmuffin]

Two things I'm proud of today:
1. I walked to work! It's not feasible to do every day, but I'd like to be better about doing it when I can.
2. Cracked a full month without having the AC on. It's mostly due to an unseasonably cool August (August in VA is not usually bearable without AC, no matter how much of a badass you are) but my BF has sucked it up a few hotter days to help make this happen.

[Imma]

-Helping relatives save money =) Guest room will host people the next few nights. Although this will mean I'll turn on the heat, sigh. I had planned on going the rest of the month without! Flex my 'frugal badass' muscles when it's still sunny a little bit most days.

I'm afraid I'll have to turn on the heat today too. DH and I don't care when it's 60 in the house, but my dad's visiting this weekend and he's skinny and prefers Florida weather.  This is about the shortest period I can remember between turning off the AC and turning on the heat. :(

I swear we keep identical climate control schedules! Windows opened vs not included, haha. And yep, I've got californians coming! I don't think my current habit of opening up overnight and waking up to a 62F house would make them happy ;) haha.

I'll try to minimize the use though, by closing up now, using the oven for lunch, doing some laundry, etc, and see where I can get the house from that before I turn it on.

Haha, that's about my normal winter indoor temperature ;-) . But I'm in a cool climate so we're used to it, and both my s/o grew up in badly heated homes. We also find dressing for the cold is much more effective than turning the heat up. We keep moving during the day, when we sit down at night we put on a sweater and use a blanket if necessary.

[Bracken_Joy]

-Helping relatives save money =) Guest room will host people the next few nights. Although this will mean I'll turn on the heat, sigh. I had planned on going the rest of the month without! Flex my 'frugal badass' muscles when it's still sunny a little bit most days.

I'm afraid I'll have to turn on the heat today too. DH and I don't care when it's 60 in the house, but my dad's visiting this weekend and he's skinny and prefers Florida weather.  This is about the shortest period I can remember between turning off the AC and turning on the heat. :(

I swear we keep identical climate control schedules! Windows opened vs not included, haha. And yep, I've got californians coming! I don't think my current habit of opening up overnight and waking up to a 62F house would make them happy ;) haha.

I'll try to minimize the use though, by closing up now, using the oven for lunch, doing some laundry, etc, and see where I can get the house from that before I turn it on.

Haha, that's about my normal winter indoor temperature ;-) . But I'm in a cool climate so we're used to it, and both my s/o grew up in badly heated homes. We also find dressing for the cold is much more effective than turning the heat up. We keep moving during the day, when we sit down at night we put on a sweater and use a blanket if necessary.

I'm not going to tell my guests just to get up and walk around though. For me, that crosses from frugal to cheap. Keeping the house cold for me and my husband? Frugal. Making my guests miserable to save $0.15? Cheap.

[horsepoor]

I'm not going to tell my guests just to get up and walk around though. For me, that crosses from frugal to cheap. Keeping the house cold for me and my husband? Frugal. Making my guests miserable to save $0.15? Cheap.

Agreed.  It was 59 indoors when I got home at noon, and I'm not sure it's going to break 50 outside.  I cranked the thermostat to 65 for my dear old dad; it's the least I can do considering he you know, helped put me on this earth and get through college and whatnot.  I suppose instead of ahi tuna steaks and fancy beer, I should feed him ramen and PBR too.

Usually 62 is where we keep the thermostat in the winter, and find it pretty comfortable.  DH l was keeping it in the high 50's while I was on detail last winter. 

[jordanread]

I'm not going to tell my guests just to get up and walk around though. For me, that crosses from frugal to cheap. Keeping the house cold for me and my husband? Frugal. Making my guests miserable to save $0.15? Cheap.

Agreed.  It was 59 indoors when I got home at noon, and I'm not sure it's going to break 50 outside.  I cranked the thermostat to 65 for my dear old dad; it's the least I can do considering he you know, helped put me on this earth and get through college and whatnot.  I suppose instead of ahi tuna steaks and fancy beer, I should feed him ramen and PBR too.

Usually 62 is where we keep the thermostat in the winter, and find it pretty comfortable.  DH l was keeping it in the high 50's while I was on detail last winter.

Holy crap!! I just figured out a fundamental thing that results in some differences. I read these comments and immediately thought "My guests are way better than yours". Honestly though, I think you are probably more considerate people than I am. I mean, it's no secret I'm a jerk, but the thought of adjusting the thermostat for a guest never even occurred to me. I mean, they are guests...Come winter, if the house is over 55°, I think something is wrong. Come spring, fall, or summer, when the house is over 60°, I wish I had central air. :)

[Thinkum]

More of the same...taking a lunch with us as we walked a few miles RT to run some errands, rather than using the car.

[horsepoor]

I'm not going to tell my guests just to get up and walk around though. For me, that crosses from frugal to cheap. Keeping the house cold for me and my husband? Frugal. Making my guests miserable to save $0.15? Cheap.

Agreed.  It was 59 indoors when I got home at noon, and I'm not sure it's going to break 50 outside.  I cranked the thermostat to 65 for my dear old dad; it's the least I can do considering he you know, helped put me on this earth and get through college and whatnot.  I suppose instead of ahi tuna steaks and fancy beer, I should feed him ramen and PBR too.

Usually 62 is where we keep the thermostat in the winter, and find it pretty comfortable.  DH l was keeping it in the high 50's while I was on detail last winter.

Holy crap!! I just figured out a fundamental thing that results in some differences. I read these comments and immediately thought "My guests are way better than yours". Honestly though, I think you are probably more considerate people than I am. I mean, it's no secret I'm a jerk, but the thought of adjusting the thermostat for a guest never even occurred to me. I mean, they are guests...Come winter, if the house is over 55°, I think something is wrong. Come spring, fall, or summer, when the house is over 60°, I wish I had central air. :)

When my SIL came to visit from California during a January cold snap, she was huddled in front of the fire, freezing her ass off the entire time while wearing a coat and scarf inside.  I'm guessing you've never had a guest like that.  She apparently does not possess a functional circulatory system, or perhaps has reptilian DNA, IDK. 

I guess it depends on why someone is at my house though - if they're going out of their way, using vacation days and so on to spend time with me, I'll go out of my way to make them comfortable, whether with food, temperature, whatever (within reasonable limits).  If they're just staying here to save on a hotel room, well, they can deal with my normal thermostat setting. :P

[La Bibliotecaria Feroz]

I'm not going to tell my guests just to get up and walk around though. For me, that crosses from frugal to cheap. Keeping the house cold for me and my husband? Frugal. Making my guests miserable to save $0.15? Cheap.

Agreed.  It was 59 indoors when I got home at noon, and I'm not sure it's going to break 50 outside.  I cranked the thermostat to 65 for my dear old dad; it's the least I can do considering he you know, helped put me on this earth and get through college and whatnot.  I suppose instead of ahi tuna steaks and fancy beer, I should feed him ramen and PBR too.

Usually 62 is where we keep the thermostat in the winter, and find it pretty comfortable.  DH l was keeping it in the high 50's while I was on detail last winter.

I felt bad when the XFP and I were visiting our frugal-est friends and they asked if we had been warm enough at night, and we had to stay no. We had twin beds with quilts and fleece blankets and whatever they had turned down the thermostat to, it was too cold for our comfort. If we had been in one bed, maybe, or with a bit more blanketage.

[HappierAtHome]

Attempting to make my own blackberry liqueur. If it turns out well it will save $$$ when we make our favourite cocktails for parties.

[Meesh]

Just looked around for renter's insurance since our policy that the apt had recommended (read: did not research for ourselves) was up for renewal. Turns out I can get one with a 250$ deductible for 5$ a month versus our 12.25$. That's 87$ in annual savings from switching, for essentially the same policy but with the super low deductible, on something I only have because my apt requires it. Woo!

[MaybeBabyMustache]

-Took the kids to a soccer tournament today, & avoided all of the yummy lunch options. Said no to all of the hungry faces after the game, and came home & threw together a fast lunch.
-Made rolls in the bread machine, & currently baking them
-Made a lentil soup with a bunch of things from the fridge/freezer: an onion, a can of tomato paste I found lingering in the pantry, cleared out my homemade chicken broth from the freezer, and found a random small bag of ham in the freezer as well. I'm turning this into dinner for everyone. Both kids tried lentil soup at a restaurant this week, and one loved it, the other one was "okay" with it. In his world, that's pretty big praise. :-) Getting a new, super frugal kid friendly dinner option would be awesome!
-Also, the soccer tournament charges entrance, so figured out the most cost effective way to get everyone there, even though we have conflicting game schedules.
-Offered my friend & her son a ride to the tournament. They are often frequent volunteers to bring my son with them, so it's nice to be able to reciprocate.

[BAM]

Went to our town's health fair this morning. Picked up free bike helmets for 5 of the kids plus a year's supply of pens.

[marion10]

Made a strata for brunch tomorrow and got distracted and made too much of the milk and egg mixture you pour over the bread. Rather than toss that out, I added some vegetables and made a crust less quiche we can have for lunches this week.

[10dollarsatatime]

Fixed my furnace!  I've been putting it off because... I just didn't want to. Considered hiring someone.  But today I sucked it up, moved the thermostat to a different wall (that involved a fishtape, a tiny flashlight, a drill, shoelaces, and a straw cleaning brush in order to do it all myself), and found the problem with the furnace itself.  Just a blown fuse.  Probably from when we were dropping bricks all over the thermostat cable when we tore out the chimney.

Anyway. Fixed now!  I heated the house all the way to 65 this evening and it felt great!

[MaybeBabyMustache]

-My husband is currently replacing two windows that will no longer roll all of the way up/down in our 12+ year old car. He also decided to fix an issue with the interior lifting up. Apparently, this is a hot weather issue, due to the fabric expanding & shrinking. We're on the fence of deciding whether to keep or sell this car. Either way, it's a good investment in keeping it working. Cost = $300ish. Savings of doing it ourselves = $600?
-Walked to an event last night.
-Made breakfast for myself at of scraps that the kids didn't eat.
-Packed lunch for the soccer games. We'll be eating between games at a tournament. We'll have to eat at the car, as the tournament facility doesn't allow for outside food or beverages. :-(
-My husband hand washed all of our cars today.

[jengod]

* Roasted my own coffee from green beans, saving ~$4-$10/lb.

* Used a lemon from the tree we planted when we moved in (I think of this as dividends and interest of a sort!)

[mustachepungoeshere]

My mum asked if she could help me out with any sewing, so I gratefully took over four things that needed a stitch, and consulted her on a bag strap that needs new metal fittings.

She sent me home with all my mending done (yay) and a big bag of baby spinach.

[Linea_Norway]

Again I collected a package from China at the post office. I order all small and cheap things in China. We have a very small tollfree quotum, but it is just enough for the small stuff. In Norway you usually pay anywhere between 5-10 times as much for the same thing.

[FrugalAussie]

Phoned my bank today to cancel a credit card, they offered to waive the annual fee so now I'll keep it for another year.  Saved $150! (Hello expensive Australian banking product). The card includes travel insurance, we claimed this year on my SOs due to an unforeseen medical problem causing us to cancel a trip, so a good incentive to keep the card for a bit longer as we'll be heading overseas again this year. 

[I'm a red panda]

Hosted a sushi party with friends.  We spent about $50 in ingredients and fed 11 people. (Someone else brought dumplings, another person brought brownies, and we did BYOB.)

Going out for sushi costs my husband and I about $40- so this was a great time with our neighbors.!

Plus I have leftover sushi for lunch today.

[alewpanda]

A much busier weekend than anticipated left me empty handed for both DH's lunch and my own.  Hubby will either eat on the company's dime if he can find one of his to-do list items to do at another office, or he'll go get a 5.00 sub.   I pulled some vegetables out of the fridge leftover from a dinner at work over the weekend and am eating massive amounts of raw carrot sticks and celery sticks for my lunch...free lunch!  And healthy! 

[MaybeBabyMustache]

I'm traveling for work this week, so nothing special, but I did find soccer cleats for my eldest. My sister has two boys & passes down the like new ones that her boys grow out of. We have about six sizes, sitting around, waiting for someone to need them. Both boys are almost ready for new sizes, so it worked out well. Love not having to go out & buy them (the hassle of shopping!), but also saves money. Soccer cleats are usually around $40-60.