7 Frugal Things I Did and Did Not Do in September

I’m taking my cue from other frugal bloggers and posting a list of the little things I did in September month to save money. Some of these things may be big. Most are small. They all add up.

7 Ways I Saved Money in September

1. Created my first eBay auction. I’m better at buying on eBay than going through with the idea of selling my extra stuff. I finally did it. Please check out my eBay auction here and let me know how I’m doing in this brave new world of selling things on eBay.

2. Unwrapped some bar soap to harden in the linen closet until I need it. I heard this makes it last longer. I’ll be happy if it doesn’t eventually turn to mush in the shower. We’ll see.

3. Bought upholstery remnant fabric at Old Time Pottery to make a Renaissance Festival noble dress. Husband and I are going to perform again at the renaissance festival where we met. My old gown doesn’t fit. Instead of paying $14 a yard and up for upholstery fabric at the fabric store, the skies opened and I found 2 matching and 1 coordinating remnant at $6.00 at OTP. Score!

Once upon a time my husband and I pretended we were the Mayor and Mayoress of a small town in England.

4. Got a deal on roses for my in-law’s 50th anniversary party. My in-laws asked me to decorate for the reception after they renewed their vows. I needed fresh roses for the centerpieces to coordinate with MIL’s bouquet which I used as a cake table decoration. ProFlowers had a deal on a dozen roses and offered a second dozen for $10 more – the amount I needed to order!  The in laws are reimbursing me for my expenses but it doesn’t hurt to save them some coin too.

5. Used a gift card for the anniversary of our first date dinner. Husband and I celebrate the anniversary of our first day by going out to dinner. He got a restaurant gift card from his boss as a thank you for going above and beyond on a project.

6. Started Christmas shopping. Don’t hate me. I keep a gift idea list year round on my phone and computer. I found some of the items on this year’s list for awesome sale on Zulily. I already have them tucked away and ready to be wrapped for the holidays. I am completely smitten with my new best money saving friend!

Learn how I Christmas shop with out going broke or crazy here

7. Made some Christmas gifts early. I had an idea, some down time, and figured I better do it now while I can. I’m handy and crafty but I don’t usually make all of our Christmas gifts. I will if it is something I think the person will like and use.

Learn how I shop for meaningful Christmas gifts here.

 

7 Things I Did Not Do to Save Money in September

For our family, saving and spending money is a series of tradeoffs. We save some to spend some and we spend some to encourage us to save some.

1. Bought Amish pop corn from the restaurant where my in-laws held their anniversary party. We already have an open jar of regular popcorn in the pantry. Red pop corn tastes fantastic and is comfort food. There you go.

2. Went out to dinner for two birthdays at different restaurants. Some of our friends throw a birthday party by reserving a group table and having their guests order and pay for their meals and drinks. It saves them money and the hassle of trying to please a plethora of special diets (like mine.) It is brilliant actually.

3 Tried to fix a leaky faucet with the wrong part and flooded the house.

• We called in a plumber to repair the faucet I couldn’t. It was a simple repair for the plumber because he bought the right part!
• Used a ton of electricity to dry out the house with heater fans and dehumidifiers. See the photo below for proof.
• Our homeowner’s insurance rates are bound to go up because we filed a water damage claim.

We were hot, hot, hot while the dehumidifiers and heater fans did their work.

7. Went to buy more coconut milk at Trader Joe’s and came back with an impulse purchased make me feel  better pumpkin caramel kringle.

Danish pastry as medicine? I wish!

What did you do or did not do this month?

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