Maybe the Answer is Consignment

This is not the consignment store I was in, just a handy visual

A friend texted me the other day to ask if I wanted to go thrift store shopping with her.  As much as I love a bargain, I really, really hate thrift store shopping.  I envy The Frugal Girl, when she shows off the great deals she found at the thrift store, but for me, it just has never worked.

1. I hate shopping.  Mostly I hate the work of shopping: the deciding the hemming and hawing.  I often get a bit knee-jerk in a crowded store and just want to get out so I don't think through my purchases like I should.
2. I often feel weird leaving a store without buying something.  This is something I'm working on and getting over, but when I start getting the shopping headache, I think If I just grab this, I can go.
3. Less than perfect.  Notice how the second in my series on mending hasn't happened yet?  Yeah, I've been planning to write it for about a week now, that's how much I dread mending.  Likewise, when I find something at a thrift store that needs a minor bit of work, I often don't actually ever wear it because I don't get around to fixing it.
4. Paranoia.  I have this fear that I will buy back things I donated to the thrift store because I will convince myself that it's a slightly better version of what I gave away.  I mean, it's logical, right?  I donated stuff I liked, so naturally my eye will be drawn back to the familiar...

But I decided to go with my friend to keep her company, and quickly found out that she was even more interested in going to consignment stores than she was thrift stores.  Again, because of my shopping malaise, I've barely been to any consignment stores even though I have very well-dressed friends who swear by them. I have been a fool--it was lovely!  I got two really cute dresses and a belt, and my friend got three dresses for about $45.  Three dresses for $45!  That's just a ridiculously good deal, and we didn't have to go rooting through piles and piles of stuff to find the gems, everything looked like a real store!

One of my purchases may need a new zipper, but it is one-of-a-kind cute and I'm itching to wear it, so hopefully that will motivate me.  Triumph!

Quick and Easy

Normally I don't post things sent to me via email from random folk, but this chart is actually rather interesting.  Plus, let's face it, I have to write 31 blog posts in 31 days, there was bound to be some filler :)


Via: OnlineMBA.com

Blogathon Haiku

One thing that goes along with those whole blogathon is that there are a couple theme days.  I skipped the first one--it was waaaaaaaaaay off topic, and I promised you guys that I would stick to my topic (see the About page).  The second prompt is to write a haiku, which I haven't done since high school.  I can write a haiku on the topic of frugality, right?

For those who can't remember the rules off the top of their heads a haiku is three lines, seventeen syllables, usually 5/7/5 (mine are not) and as I was taught, it's usually about nature (mine will not be about nature).

saving is key
spend less than you make
you don't need that extra latte

Student Loans suck
but I'll do my best
the education was worth it

I spend too much on clothes
this I know
but dresses make me so happy!

I love my savings account
compound interest is fab
watch it grow

So I'm not going to win any awards, but this was a rather fun exercise.  Anyone else want to take it on?  Leave me some haiku in the comments!

Basic Mending

I'm not going to lie, mending is tedious and I kind of hate it BUT mending is a great way to extend the life of your clothes, keep them looking good, and avoid paying other people to do what you can with just a bit of patience. Also, you can do your mending in front of the tv, or while listening to music, audio books, podcasts, etc., and I suggest you do.

I love sewing, I honestly do. I'm not very good at it, but I can whip out a wrap skirt or a pillow in no time flat. I'm not talking about learning a while new skill or creating something from scratch when I say mending, which is exactly why anyone can do this. It's easy, you usually don't need a sewing machine, and like I said, you won't have to pay someone else to do it or replace your clothes.

Everyone, I'm sure, has bought something once upon a time and said "If this just had this, or didn't have that, it would be perfect" "Or, these pants are just a little too long, but I can't pass them up." Then you wear your imperfect garment and realize that it's not as great as you thought, or your too-long pants drag in puddles and look disgusting after a few short months. All of this can be avoided, and it's not even that hard. The fact is that people are shaped drastically differently, and clothing manufacturers cannot design for every body shape/size. If they did, our clothes would cost a lot more. Thankfully, I don't have any crazy unique body issues, just a few quirks, so I've figured out how to fix my own clothes to fit me better.

You do not need a sewing machine to do basic mending, just a few cheap supplies.

Supplies:

Neutral colored thread--I recommend a spool of black, navy, and tan. These are colors that will blend in with most clothes, but if you need different thread, just buy some. A spool of the high-quality stuff only costs $1.50 and it will last forever. I've been sewing since 7th grade and now have a sewing kit I inherited from my grandma, and I've never used up a whole spool of thread.

Good scissors-- If you're just cutting thread, don't buy good scissors; if you want to start hemming clothes, taking things in, etc., buy good scissors. Yes, they can be expensive, but not nearly as expensive as replacing a pair of pants you ruined by hacking at them with your 3-for-$10 scissors from Target. Buy good scissors, and dedicate them to sewing.

Fabric Glue-- Fabric glue is the greatest thing ever. It works perfectly for tiny fixes and tears, you can use it to seal fraying ends, it helps your cuffs sag less--basically it's just the greatest thing ever. Because it's designed for fabric, you can expect it to last through many washings and it's cheap.

Pins--Essential to make your cuffs straight when hemming pants or skirts.

Iron--Essential to make hems look professional and not like something you did while watching Gilmore Girls (even if you totally did). The point of hemming your pants is to tell the world "Hey, my pants/skirt are just the right length for me, I must be magical." Not, "I hemmed my pants--check it out!" I hate ironing too, but you have to do it.

Seam Rippers Rule!

Needles-- Buy a packet of needles, and put them back when you're done using them, or buy a pincushion to keep your needles in. Whatever you do, keep track of those things because you will lose them--I promise, and then you will find them later with either your butt or your foot.

Seam Ripper--This little guy will quickly become your best friend.  Seam rippers cost between $.84 and $2, I suggest you go for the higher end one, but maybe get a little one too.  Seam rippers do exactly what their name says--the rip out seams.  If you try to rip out a seam without a seam ripper, you run the risk of tearing, or of cutting a hole in your own clothes (I've done it).

Up next: Hemming!

Top Ten Reasons Not to Menu Plan

When my friend Elizabeth posted this: Top Ten Reasons you Shouldn't Plan a Weekly Menu, I thought finally, I'm not the only one!  Then I read it, and quickly realized that the writer was not actually on the non-menu planning side.  Grumble, I guess I just have to do it myself. My list is a little repetitive, but so's theirs.

10.  I work nights, therefore, I don't really eat a lot of meals.  There's really nothing worse than tucking into a huge plate of pasta right before you have to be at the top of your game.

9. Since I work nights, I eat alone.  My bf cooks for himself and I cook for myself so there's no need to make scads of food that will go bad before I can consume it all.

8. The grocery store is right next to work--both of my jobs, if I think of something I want to eat afterward, I can swing by and pick it up no problem.

7. I don't really eat that much.  I make one "meal" a week, and then eat it for three days.  I don't really need to write that down.

6. My mood changes.  I may feel like one thing on the day I'm menu planning, but then later want something completely different.  I don't want to be married to a schedule on my downtime, I get enough of that at work. What next?  You have a meal plan, a wardrobe plan, structured leisure time--blech!  Maybe it makes it easier, but it seems a lot less satisfying than seeing what you can come up with.

5. I have a menu plan in that I plan to eat all of my produce and perishables before they go bad.  I don't need to take it any further than that.  You don't need a written down plan to know how much food you will consume in a given week.

4.  Writing a menu plan takes far more time than looking at your pantry and coming up with something to cook.  Also, to me, it sounds like homework and I would not enjoy it.  As much as I love saving money, I refuse to take on money-saving tasks (especially on a weekly basis) that sound so arduous.  If you're always on the lookout for recipes, and you look at the store circular each week for sale items, you can shop and cook far more quickly than if you agonized about which meal to have when.

3. I used to plan a lot more, of everything.  I would wake up in the morning with a rough structured plan for the day and I would not deviate from it.  Problem was, I was in grad school, and things among my peers were a lot more casual.  I turned down a lot of last-minute plans because I didn't want to deviate from my schedule, and then I noticed that everyone else knew each other a lot better than I knew them.  I was constantly playing catch-up because actually making friends with my peers was more important than sticking to my precious schedule, but I didn't realize that until too late.  I still have a rough plan for my days off, but if something that I want to do comes up last-minute, I go for it.

2. Some meals are unexpected. I feel like if you have a menu plan, and then an old friend comes into town and you go out to eat, which results in two days' worth of leftovers, then your whole scheme for the week is thrown into chaos.  See #3, sometimes it's just better to go with the flow.

1. Not having a plan fosters creativity i.e. that pasta sauce I invented.  I would never have planned for that, cause I didn't know about it!  Most of the recipes I post on here are things I've made up that have turned out well.  Sometimes I use a recipe as a guideline and sub in other ingredients, but if I were to menu plan, I'd shop strictly for the ingredients I'd need for the recipes I picked, and miss out on the happy accidents.  I like the happy accident the best.

I get it, you have a family, it probably makes more sense to menu plan, but for me, it just doesn't and I'm tired of feeling bad about it.  For all the singletons out there--don't let them make you feel bad!  Just find a system that works for you, and make sure to eat your leftovers.

Gas: Tank Two

This tank cost $44 as well, at 3.72/gallon.

Tuesday: Bought gas en route to work, drove to work and back home for a total of 20 miles. Average speed, 65 MPH

Wednesday: Drove to work and back 20 miles, average speed 65 MPH. It's hard to remember to slow down sometimes, but I'm doing pretty well.

Thursday: Drove to work and back 20 miles, then bf took the car across town and back 5miles. Average speed 40 MPH--there was a really bad accident on the interstate, so I did a lot of sitting.

Friday: Friday was a bad driving day.  I ended up having to go down south for a library instruction session, which was awesome, but resulted in some road rage-y driving from me as I had to cram in an errand before going to work at the other end of the state (thankfully, it's a small state).  Total miles 88, average speed was 65 MPH on the way there (I set the cruise control!), 75 MPH on the way back.

Saturday: Drove to work and back, 20 miles. Average speed 65 MPH

Sunday: Drove to work and back 30 miles. Average speed 65 MPH--this is getting a bit tedious to record...

Gas Gauge Monday before work

Monday: Drove to work and back 30 miles. Average speed 65 MPH.  Gas is definitely lasting longer, but that may be because I've done less driving.

Tuesday: I stacked all my errands so I could just make one circuit except I failed to print a correct return label and my trip to the UPS store was a waste.  No matter!  I finally dropped off DVD donations at the library, and all those clothes for the Salvation Army that have been in the trunk of my car for about a month.  I felt like such a slacker driving to the library because I run past it almost every day, but I also can't/don't want to carry 20 DVDs while on a run, so I drove.  Total: 7 miles, lots of stops and turns, but I coasted down every hill.

Drove almost to work, and had to fill up the tank--I was at about the same level as last time 1/8 tank. 12 miles total.  252 miles total, where I got 302 miles to the tank while driving like a crazy speeder.  We can say there's about a 20 mile margin of error for the times bf took the car, but even then...  Either I made a mistake somewhere, or this driving slower did me no favors at all.  Gah!  Ok, One more week of driving slowly and I will diligently record every move I make--in the car.

Weekend Reading: Hot (broke) Messes

Hot (broke) Messes: How to Have Your Latte and Drink it too.  By Nancy Trejos. Business Plus, May 2010.

This is more of a tale of financial mishap than a personal finance book, but that's a rather nice change of pace, actually.  Author Nancy Trejos is a personal finance writer at the Washington Post, and is currently crawling her way out of debts racking up by poor decision-making, ignorance and trying to keep up with the Joneses (I hate that expression).  She turns her mistakes into our lessons, and supplements those with accounts of other people's woes and triumphs.

As far as personal finance books go, this one is certainly the most readable.  Trejos is an excellent writer, so I forgave what seemed to be a bit self-indulgent at times.  She also steps a toe into other areas that fall under the umbrella of personal finance, but rarely get mentioned i.e. health insurance.

Best Takeaways:

• I now have a better understanding of health insurance and what some of the previously daunting terms mean.  I'm not going to have health insurance any time soon, but it's nice to have a bit of information.
• The importance of honesty.  Since this is more of a narrative than a personal finance book, you actually get to see her character develop as she goes along her personal finance journey.  She includes excerpts from her diary about her financial hits and misses, and you witness a person going from not looking at price tags to buying wheat crackers for $1 less. She comes clean with her friends about her budget and finds that many of them are in the same boat.  It's so important to just be honest with your friends about where you are moneywise, but it's also really hard to do.  In the long run, we all know that saving and paying off debt will serve us better than having friends who spend recklessly, but everyone gets caught up sometimes.
• An example.  She's very honest and warts-and-all about her personal finance trials and lessons, and that's something you rarely get.  It's really nice to experience a book of this type and not feel a bit like you're being lectured.  Certainly Suze Orman talks about her own financial wobbles, but this is much more confessional, and you can see how you two would get sucked into buying a condo for love or buying a car because you're sick of feeling deprived.  I certainly get petulant when deprived (see clothes shopping), and even though I know I'm not alone in that, it's still nice to have a reminder.

Overall, I highly recommend this book.  Whether you're starting out budgeting or are a seasoned couponer, there's something in here for everyone, and it's entertaining.

Grad School on a Budget Part 2

In part one I covered every conceivable way to get free or cheap food, now in part two, we'll tackle the rest of the grad school equation.

Student Discounts
You're paying damn good money for that ID--use it to get discounts.  You can get student discounts at museums, stores, restaurants, movies and any number of other establishments as well as public transportation.  If you haven't been a student for a while, you've probably forgotten how handy that little card is.  If you don't know if a place offers a discount for students, ask.  When I was a sheepish undergrad trying to be cool, I never asked for discounts.  Once I was a frazzled grad student,  I asked for discounts from every person I gave money to (practically), and found discounts in unexpected places.  The worst that can happen is that they say no.  I found out that my local movie theatre has a student discount as does J. Crew (not that I can afford J. Crew even with a discount, but a friend just bought her first interview suit there and got 15% off). Always always always ask.

If you have a large cultural venue in your town, you may also be able to get last minute student rush tickets. Right before a big concert/performance, you go up to the ticket booth and ask to purchase student rush tickets for half price.  Since it's right before the show, the venue is happy to sell them for less rather than not at all.  The downside is that if the event sells out, you're out of luck.  I saw The Nutcracker two years ago for $12, and it was awesome.  Make sure the venue offers this option before trying it out, and they may not do it for all performances.

It's gotten to the point that now, two years after grad school, I'm still breaking myself of the 'asking for a student discount' habit.  I was at a museum recently, and the man asked if I was a student.  I say "no." and then couldn't think of what a non-student is called, so I finished with "I am a regular."  He gave me a funny look, so I just said, "I'm a grown-up."

Stick with Students

The hardest thing about staying frugal in grad school is when you're socializing with people who have real jobs and incomes.  Some of your friends may not have to budget as strictly as you, and therefore don't understand your financial limitations, or even the demands that grad school makes on your time.  I'm not saying jettison your friends, but it's important to come to terms right away with the fact that some of your relationships may change.  See my earlier post about socializing on the cheap, and keep in mind that it's ok to say no when your fancy friends want to go out for a fancy meal.  To keep the friendships up, make sure to be honest about your circumstances, and suggest other, more frugal social options like pot-lucks, museums, picnics, etc.

Carpooling and Public Transit
College and University campuses are always on a bus line--why not take advantage of that? Your student ID probably gets you cheap or free bus fare and you can study while you ride.  With gas prices these days, it just makes sense to use public transit every chance you get, and I find that the somewhat erratic bus/class scheduling can actually be conducive to getting work done.  Rather than rush home right after class, you can strand yourself in a quiet work space free from distraction.  If public transit doesn't work, try to arrange carpooling with classmates, sharing driving duties will certainly save on gas, and you may also be able to split the cost of a parking permit.

Books
To be honest, I rarely bought books for grad school.  My first masters was a writing program, so we didn't really need books, and my second masters, I learned right quickly that doing the reading was a waste of time.  Everyone already knows to buy used books if possible, check the library for an older edition that may work just as well or share books with a friend.  I'd also advise that you maybe wait a bit to see if you actually need the book at all.  Some professors in some disciplines absolutely require you to get the book, others don't care.  Obviously, doing well in grad school is much more important than saving money, but don't think you're a bad student if you skip spending $50 for something you'll never use.  Of course, if you do buy books, sell them back through Amazon.com or bn.com.

Keep Frugality in Mind
This one sounds like a no-brainer, but it's very, very easy to get caught up in grad school and let your frugal ways slip.  If this happens, don't beat yourself up because academic success is more important than saving a dollar, but just try to keep frugal habits at the back of your mind and keep yourself in check.  Most likely you will be taxing your brain and working harder than you ever thought possible all while seated at a desk, and you will need some kind of release--something to look forward to.  Set up a system of rewards that don't break the bank, and give them to yourself when you feel like you're going to crack, or like you just need a little boost.  My boost was a 32 ounce iced coffee with cream and sugar from Dunkin Donuts that I would drink on my walk to class.  It was a reward for walking instead of driving, and perked me right up so I could learn more.  Plus, it only cost $2.43.

If anyone has any other ideas, tips or tricks, please leave them in the comments--I know I can't possibly have covered everything.

Grad School on a Budget Part 1

A friend who is going to grad school in the fall asked me if I have any tips for living frugally as a grad student.  Since being a grad student was how I spent much of the last few years, all these ideas started percolating to the top of my head.  You can't really control the cost of tuition or books (unless you skip buying books), but there are a few other aspects of your life where you can reign it in.  Here are a few of the most do-able and (hopefully) helpful ideas that I could come up with.


Happy Hours
It's kind of a no-brainer to seek out happy hours whatever age you are, but it's even easier on a student schedule.  Keeping odd hours means that you have more flexibility to attend more happy hours, and it's a good (cheaper) way to keep up with your job-having friends.  Do a bit of sleuthing and see what's out there.  Some places have late-night happy hours as well, if getting blotto at 6pm isn't conducive to studying.  There's no point in paying full price for socializing if you can find a legitimate way to get a discount.  Make and keep a list of your favorite happy hour haunts and float it to your friends.

Scavenging
I'm not talking about dumpster diving, but if you're in a free food situation, find a way to take some of that home with you.  A friend of mine used to carry around tupperware and would load up on any free food she ever came across.  That's the extreme end of the spectrum, but if you are ever in a situation where it's suggested that you take food home--do it.  Just make sure you eat it.  One of my jobs in grad school was at a fancy private library that hosted a lot of functions.  I never had to bring lunch.  Yes, sometimes my lunch would be chips and an ice cream sandwich, but it was free, so who cares.

Snacks
Grad students keep odd hours, and are often traveling from class to work to the library to social events.  I can't even count the number of times when I've realized that I'm going to be out of the house for 12-14 hours and haven't even thought about what/when I'm going to eat.  If you have to eat on the go, you'll probably have to rely on fast or convenience foods which can really get expensive after a while and aren't particularly good for you.  Instead of doing that, spend a little time and effort and plan ahead.

If you have a job stash some healthy snacks there, so you'll always know you have something.  My go-to is instant oatmeal in the single serve packs.  I keep a box at work, and a packet in my purse at all times.  I can't count the number of times I've arrived at work, realized I've forgotten my lunch, and had to rely on that oatmeal.  It's filling, and it's a hell of a lot cheaper than going out to get something.

In your backpack, always keep a variety of snacks.  Buy or make granola bars, carry apples or oranges (handy, portable and healthy), buy dried fruit snacks, buy or make trail mix, carry around goldfish crackers--anything you like.  Then, when you realize that you've been holed up in the library for ten hours and haven't eaten, you don't have to go to the vending machine or cafe.  You have to carry a backpack anyway, might as well put food in it.  A couple I went to grad school with always had a snack bag.  It was just a giant freezer bag with a variety of snacks in it, and they never had to go to the vending machine.

This is just good advice for everyone, not just grad students.  Never get caught without food.  Life is unpredictable, and you never know when you're going to need a snack.  Presently, at Job #1 I have a box of single-serving oatmeal, some figs and an odwalla bar.  At Job #2, I have a bag of trader joes peanut-butter filled pretzels, an apple and some goldfish grahams.  In my car, I have granola bars.  In my purse, I have oatmeal and dried fruit snacks.

Of course, carry a water bottle with you as well.

Food in General
Food is the biggest part of most people's budget, but one that can be greatly reduced with a little pre-planning.  Much like making sure you always have a snack, when you're a grad student, make sure you always have something ready to go.  Pick a day in the week when you can do the bulk of your cooking and have plenty of frozen meals on hand.  Even if you've eaten a couple snacks while in the library, you will most likely come home starving (learning takes a lot of energy), and that is a recipe for pizza ordering.  If you take a little time, say on a Sunday, to figure out how many meals you'll be eating at home, and pre-make whatever you can.  This could be anything from making a pot of soup and freezing individual portions, to pre-cutting veggies to making sure you have bread for sandwiches.

If we're being completely honest, while I was in grad school, I ate a lot of frozen pizza and boxed pastas.  They weren't very good for me, but they were quick and easy, and cheaper than going out.  If you want to be healthy, pre-make yourself some pizza and freeze it; make some pasta sauce ahead of time so you just have to heat it up and cook the noodles.  Your shortcuts will be based on what you eat, but always be thinking in terms of planning ahead.  It's a bit tedious at first, but becomes second nature quickly.  Plus, it's nice to focus on something besides school sometimes.

Stay tuned for Grad School on a Budget Part 2...

Home-made pasta sauce

This is something I seriously never considered trying to make, and I have to admit, I have Gwenyth Paltrow to thank for it.  People have no doubt heard about her new cook book: My Father's Daughter.  I would never call myself a fan of Gwenyth, but I don't think she's history's greatest monster the way some do.  I tolerate her, find her antics and snobbery mildly amusing, and the only time I'm really aware of her is when she shows up on my favorite gossip blog for doing something completely inane like making this statement: "One evening when I had my wood-burning stove going I realized I hadn't thought of dessert."

Once I realized that she had written a cookbook full of pretentious statements like that, I had to check it out just for the car crash factor alone.  But wouldn't you just know it? Gwenyth taught me some stuff too.  I mentioned the other day about how  I avoided a Food Waste Friday by oven-roasting my sad, going bad grape tomatoes--well, Gwenyth taught me to do that, I am a better person for it.

I've now taken that a step further and created my own pasta sauce by taking those very same roasted tomatoes, pulsing them in the food processor with a bit of olive oil, sat and pepper, and added them to linguine.  I had this for dinner the other night before my first major race of the season.  I not only ate until I was sated without feeling sick, but I slept fantastically well and earned my best time at that distance.
Magic pasta.

Ingredients:
Sliced full-sized tomatoes, or grape tomatoes whole
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Basil
Other spices/ingredients as desired

Lay out tomato slices or grape tomatoes on a cookie sheet, and drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle with salt.  Roast tomatoes or tomatoes slices on cookie sheet in the oven for 40 minutes at 400 degrees.  While those are cooking, prepare linguine or other pasta according to directions and finely chop fresh basil--set aside.  Once the tomatoes are done, scoop them into the food processor (you could also mash them with a fork or potato masher for a chunkier sauce), add a bit of olive oil and pulse until you reach the desired consistency. Either mix the sauce with the pasta, or dole out the pasta and add sauce and basil to the top--follow your heart.  Add Parmesan if desired, but frankly, I was so happy without it I just forgot.  Why am I neglecting cheese so much lately?

Yummy.