Written by Adele Camper, July 21, 2010

Movies, especially going to movies with kids costs a small fortune. We signed up for Netflix and wait for movies to go to DVD.

Written by Amy K, July 21, 2010

We pick our priorities. With a young child food and education are a large expense. Most of our food is organic, but I discovered a local delivery that beats the prices of Whole Foods (yes we get less options, but we are eating foods that we normally overlook). I also use sites such as Ebates, and other coupon sites to save on everything I buy. With diapers, I get cash back with Ebates. My husband laughs at me, but we have received $30-50 quarterly, which is a case of diapers!
We also do not eat out a lot, we never have, so this is easy for us. We have memberships for the places that we know we will go to, thus the case is spent. We also pay for a lot of our expenses once a year (insurance) or every month (credit cards in full, etc). This allows us to see our real budget/ spending habits.
Oh and yes, we have a year saved up as well, with a hidden slush fund in case that money needs to be

Written by Kat Bretcher, July 21, 2010

I became a master of guerilla grocery shopping. I don't buy anything anymore unless it's on sale. I've gotten so good at it that I can now feed my family of four on about $200 a month, which includes putting both kids into diapers, feeding my cat and buying toiletries.

Written by Sunny, July 21, 2010

I run a website all about saving money so I'm privy to lots of deals, and I don't understand why people would pay more! I live in Charleston, SC, and I have tons of local deals listed as well. You don't even have to live in a big city to find awesome freebies or cheapies (we have free yoga classes too), tons of kids eat free, free music & art events, and awesome happy hours. You CAN live well on less without feeling frugal!

Written by mina, July 21, 2010

Caitlin, thank you so much for sharing Brokelyn.

Well the best lesson I learned was from you guys. "Save what you save". Now when a colleague offers to buy lunch, I put the money I save aside, when I use a coupon for online shopping, I put the exact amount that the coupon saved in my saving account. :D

Written by Katrina, July 21, 2010

Bring yur lunch to work. Cafeteria food is boring- going out to lunch usually means fast foods.
Declutter and consign - what cannot be taken in consignment should be donated with a slip for tracking for income tax purposes. For me, decluttering reminds me of what I have bought - but really can live without.
Plan ahead when running errands for the day. Eat before you leave so that you do not end up buying a meal out.
When eating out- avoid soft drings- water is fine and much better for you.
Remember to enjoy life. Always thinking about saving and your spending can be a downer. Decide what is important to you and act accordingly.

Written by Amanda (DailyWorth Founder), July 21, 2010

Mina - A+ for you! We love hearing stories about how readers are implementing our tips. Thanks for sharing.

Written by Kenda, July 21, 2010

I gave up the Tennis Channel. My story: http://www.associatedcontent.c...tml?cat=14

Written by Sharee, July 21, 2010

My family has been struggling to get by and it definitely seemed to be draining the life out of each of us. I hated always saying "no, we don't have enough money" I've recently found there are so many free things to do. Our local library has wonderful programs for children at no cost, free kids movie at the theater once a week, wonderful parks to explore, etc. We are having so much fun getting out and it doesn't cost us anything. It has brought a new energy into our home that has helped us to keep positive as my husband searches for better employment.

Written by MPD, July 21, 2010

Great tips, everyone! I'm a big "save the savings" kind of saver myself.

Written by Kenda, July 21, 2010

One big way to save is on car insurance. Compare plans and you could save a bundle right now as the companies are in heavy competition. Also consider what you can cut from your cable/internet bill.

Written by Jennifer, July 21, 2010

My family and I just had a great trip to the zoo last weekend for free. Our libraries have museum/park passes and you just have to check them out to attend many local places for free. We even took our own lunch and skipped all the gift stores. The whole day cost $9.00, and that was for parking.

Written by Elle Shapiro, July 21, 2010

Starting my day by making coffee or tea at home and taking it on the go has both saved me upwards of $500 a year but it is also more environmentally friendly than chronically using and tossing paper cups.

Written by Alma, July 21, 2010

I had just moved back from overseas with no job and no car. Two years later--still no job and no car, and saving a fortune, not to mention doing a bit for the planet. The exercise I get is great, and by far the greatest benefit to me is not immediately obvious to someone who drives: I know a lot about people and environment of the place I live in. I see the litter cluttering the storm drains, I know homeless people and even talk sometimes with them, I can see up close the condition of the infrastructure of the place I live in, I have 5 or so "street acquaintances" such as retirees, mothers with young kids, walkers, with whom I have interesting and valued conversations. Thus, I have a genuine sense of being connected to this place. Additionally, I've learned that I can survive walking 5 miles in driving rain, that I can do without that can of tomato paste if it means a 3 mile walk in sub-zero temps, that I meditate quite nicely while walking at an even pace. Bottom line: I feel more alive and aware.

Written by Sara, July 21, 2010

I LOVED this article! I live in NY and there are tons of free things to do, especially in the summer. I really enjoyed her ideas and intend to use quite a few for my own--especially the cash only option. Thank you!

Written by Erin, July 21, 2010

I went "vegetarian" at least 3 days a week. Not including meat in every meal not only saved me money, but is healthy! If I do go out to eat, I order a appetizer or split an entree and water.

Written by suellen roley, July 21, 2010

am starting to cook more at home rather than go for fast food, helps stretch that $200.00 a month in food stamps a little farther.

Also I belong to a lot of incentive programs such as Reward Port or My Points, and if I can't get cash for my points I get a food gift card (I got 75.00 worth gift cards from Papa Johns Pizza which bought 6 large pizzas, 2 cinnapies, an order of breadsticks, and a root beer-- that really helped stretch the food budget) or a drink gift card (received a 25.00 Starbucks card in the mail yesterday)

I use my debit card or cash only. I know to the penny what is in my checking account, and I earn reward points from my bank when using the debit card which I exchange for cash into my checking account.

I have no credit cards, don't want any.

Written by DYB, July 21, 2010

what has been working for me is alloting myself some money the same way I do for rent, car payment, insurance, cell phone bill, etc. I get paid twice a month and the first thing I do is pay the bills that are due. I usually have at least half of my paycheck left, I keep 2/3 of that as my spending money (includes gas for car and food, misc shopping) and I save the other 1/3. This has been working very well and I have saved up a considerable sum in just 6 months.

Written by Jen, July 21, 2010

I plan on wearing out/using up all that I own. I do allow myself to buy something a little nicer becuase I am going to be using it for years. I then really enjoy all that I have and save time by not shopping all the time. Decent clothes actually last longer than a year (my LL Bean clothes are many many years old!), dishes last a long time, etc.

Written by JerseyMomof2, July 21, 2010

I read on an earlier blog about No Spending Days and this summer I'd begun implementing them. I started out thinking I'd have one a week, but I'm up to five every week. It's really helping out. I can see the difference because I'm not stopping at the bank as frequently as I was to get more cash. It also allows me time to think about purchases I will make in the future. I can't tell you how many times I'd get a sales alert from Banana Republic or Gap and there would go $100. Now I have to wait until a spending day and by then, I've lost interest! I may up it to six no spending days a week....who's with me!?!

Written by Nancy, July 21, 2010

Since my husband and I both lost our jobs, we are prisoners in our home. We don't go to movies, eat out, etc. We spend only for the essentials - utilities, mortgage, food, gas, insurance. I am skilled at being frugal and cutting food costs with coupons, etc. Luckily we have no children at home, had money saved, and no debt other than our home. We live in a rural area - we need to drive everywhere and there's no free entertainment or amenities of a city. We have no family members closer than a day's drive away. We have a large house and a lot of stuff that we are trying to sell. I would like to downsize. If we could sell our house and have money left after paying the mortgage, I would do it without hesitation, but we're stuck until the real estate market turns around. I'm hoping that one of us finds a job with benefits before our unemployment runs out. Unfortunately, we are on the older end of the workforce. My husband has several degrees, speaks multiple languages and has had many telephone interviews and several in-person meetings, but has had no offers. He is willing to work for a much lower salary. Most of the time he has been told he is overqualified. In today's market, I guess that means too old! I'm glad that we saved money in the past and did not live beyond our means; however, the mental toll of the job loss, constant rejection, uncertainty and isolation is beyond the scope of planning.

Written by Deborah L. Jacobs, July 21, 2010

I spent money to save money -- by purchasing an iPad. Then canceled home delivery of a great metropolitan newspaper -- now read it with a great free app. Note: Data plans for the iPad cost less than those for many smart phones. See “A Financial Advice Wonk Falls For The iPad” http://bit.ly/auApyQ

Written by Rneya, July 21, 2010

Lots of good ideas already but here is my contribution- My friend and I pool our foodstamp money. I am in process of trying to stop smoking after 40+ years, so all positive thoughts are welcome on that one. I also have high LDL (the bad one for those who aren't sure) so I have to keep a very close eye on things like salt and sugar. We have both basically quit drinking Coke (I am limited to 5 per week) and I've already lost about 5 pounds of the 25 I need to.
We also did some basic things like switch to brown rice, whole wheat bread and english muffins. When we cook we do so figuring for at least 2 meals per time.
We are both coupon fiends and belong to several different websites where we get them.. as well as being on both of the local grocery stores' email preferred customer lists, so our coupons are tailored to what we have bought in the past. Being that it is now summer I've cut my coffee back to 2 small cups in the morning then I switch to tea, flavored waters, plain water, or a delightful combination a friend taught me of mixing fruit juice 50/50 with sparkling water. You can also use a few juices in the same mix to create your own soft drinks. Starbucks is now a "once in a while" instead of a daily "got to have"... At the end of the month we'll be getting a blender to facilitate making our own smoothies and for that matter slushies, milkshakes and the like.
We load up on the meat when it's on sale and usually still have some in the freezer at the end of the month. We both also belong to things like MyPoints and both do online surveys that pay out either in cash or points that can be traded in for food or drink or restaurant cards. My bank also offers the points per dollars spent option, which I put to use recently when I went on my long awaited vaction to Canada. We don't go out to movies, we wait until they come on cable, which both of us are going to reduce to just what we need as soon as we can. We also borrow movies from our friend who has a vast collection. I've eliminated both of my book clubs and not gotten suckered in to any "come back, we miss you" book, CD or DVD clubs. We also buy paper goods in bulk, as well as the staple items. Most of what we spend during the month is the "fill in stuff" tea bags, cheese, eggs, bread..things of that nature. I sat and figured out today that for the $4.50 I spend on a box of mint tea bags, I get over 6 gallons of tea.. not bad.
One other thing we have taken to doing is using the smaller salad plates, both of us need to shed a little weight and I'm finding in my case, drinking lots of water and tea throughout the day keeps me feeling full so I don't tend to snack late at night.

Written by Rneya, July 21, 2010

oh and I forgot.. we are doing this with both of us just getting SSDI and foodstamps as we are both medically disabled.

Written by Steph, July 21, 2010

Fortunately my husband and I haven't had to deal with any full-blown unemployment, but he's looking for a full-time teaching job and subbing during the school year, which means he doesn't have a paycheck during the summer. We're pretty frugal all year round, so worst case scenerio this summer is that we just don't save as much money as usual for a couple of months. We rarely go out to eat, do most of our cooking at home, make our own coffee in the morning, pack our lunches almost all the time, and never charge more than what we can afford to pay off in full at the end of the month, so that helps us keeps our costs down. And automatic transfers to savings help a lot when it comes to building up savings. I schedule them for the same day I get my paycheck, so the money is gone from checking before I even have a chance to miss it.

But we still have plans for saving even more money. We're probably getting rid of satellite tv when our contract is up next year. We're going to convert part of the hall closet into a pantry, so when non-perishables go on sale we can really stock up (we're limited in cabinet space, so we can only buy so much pasta, beans, rice, etc. at one time). Next summer we're going to try to grow a lot of our own produce as well.

Written by making it work, July 21, 2010

This "cutting back" process has been quite the creative process for me. I try to accept as many invitations to openings and save some of the gift bag goodies for xmas presents. I've joined a few survey sites and I already have $100 worth of Traget gift cards (or any other retailer of my choice) for holidays/bday gifts). I recycle the ink at work and take advantage of any rebate that comes my way. And laways look for the weekly grocery deals!

Written by Faith Cummings, July 21, 2010

I cook enough food at night to bring my lunch to work the next day. I freeze whatever I can't eat right away when I make a large amount of food.
I ditched the gym membership and ride my bike to work instead: a savings double whammy when you include the transportation I don't pay for anymore.
Oh, and forget NetFlix. I'm cancelling my account this month. I noticed I pass I library home on my daily bike ride! I love savings :)

Written by Faith Cummings, July 21, 2010

Also: I agree with what some of these people are saying above: sometimes you have to spend to save. If it's something I am supposed to have for years I research it, and then buy the best quality I can afford. For example, when I needed a sweater last year instead of going to H & M and buying many things I will probably get rid of, I bought 1 simple cashmere one and wore it almost everyday. I do something like this every year, and have beautiful clothes that I turn to year after year, and I tend to spend less on my yearly clothing budget than many of my friends. Wise investments, coupled with thrifting, and buying better quality 2nd hand, save me a ton and ensure I have products that do what they are supposed to and LAST!!!

Written by Thisiseasycash, July 21, 2010

Wow a year's worth that's great. I will get there one day. I've been working tons of overtime and that's helping me to pay down my debt a little faster.

As far as saving money I just don't spend it. I've pretty much stopped shopping and buying things that aren't necessities. I have too many clothes as it is so I think this year I may have bought three pieces of clothing. Not counting shoes or underwear because I needed those. So trying to wear all my clothes have helped not buying more.

Written by Nichole, July 21, 2010

I have saved money because I mystery shop. Sure I have to spend money upfront but I get reimbursed the following month and just keep rolling it. I am saving because I do not use as much electricity (cooking) and water (washing dishes). For the month of June I did $562 worth of shops and received all of my payments last week and this week.

Written by Terry, July 21, 2010

I was laid off for about a year, so since I had the time, I doubled my community garden plot and grew extra food to put by. I bartered for my movement studio membership and percussion lessons (bartering involved some creative projects so it was enjoyable), got my landlord to not raise my rent because I fixed things around the apartment and was conservative about using the heat. I shopped at the Open Door Mission and Salvation Army and only bought new things when they were on sale and I absolutely needed it (I've always done that anyway). Most of my furnishings are used - great deals can be found on Craigslist. I don't watch much tv, so only have the very basic package because it was included in my internet at a cheap trial rate. Rarely went out to dinner. Washed clothes by hand and hung to dry. Did not get new pets when my cats died of old age. Actually, I've always lived fairly simply and been happy with what I have and do. I work in a profession that is underpaid, but my state is beautiful and socially progressive so my quality of life is much more important than how much I can buy.

Written by Amy O'Brien, July 22, 2010

I've been a single mother of two for ten years. I've made it by living within my means. It sounds so basic, but it's true. I had basic cable--no premium channels and no pay-per-view. I brought my lunch to work all but one day a week, when I "treated" myself. I made my coffee at home. I rarely went out (I was home with the kids anyway). Instead, I'd invite friends over. The boys and I had fun gathering up all our returnable bottles and we'd use the money to buy candy for the movies, saving on all the over-priced movie snacks. I had a vacation savings where I direct deposited only $15 a week, but after doing that for three years, we had enough to go to Disney and stay in a 4-Star resort. I invested in my own education, which resulted in promotions and some side work that yielded more income. I actually like finding ways to save.

Written by Meriann, July 22, 2010

Wow! I am new to this site, and this info is great! I'm a WIR addict, as I am trying to eliminate nearly $50K in consumer debt while putting daughters thru college. I've had a big reality check in the last year and learned how to squeeze a dime like crazy. Perseverance has been my biggest applied skill. Every day I work my money to my benefit. Every day I find a new way to earn or save. From utilities, to groceries, to home improvement, to lifestyle - every single area has been trimmed and I keep finding new ways to trim more. I have become stubborn about spending and highly protective of savings. My latest example - my dishwasher started smoking last week. The electrical shorted out. I refused to pull out my cc to solve this (I refuse to use them at all anymore) I found a free dishwasher at work and installed it myself. I found out the used-new one is a $1200 dishwasher! I came out ahead on this one!

Written by Cynthia, July 22, 2010

I've been being as frugal as possible for years, unfortunately, it wasn't very possible to be very frugal very often. I divorced last year, positive in one way because my now ex didn't keep a steady job for most of our marriage, but bad because I had a significant amount of debt from college due to him not working that I otherwise would not have had (I had a full ride scholarship), but since the loans were for my "education" it didn't matter what the money was used for, I got stuck with the bill.
Things turned around a few months after, when I was recruited to a job with comparable pay, but fewer hours and additional benefits. This allowed me to work on the side for my mom's part-time photography studio. I paid every dime I could on my debts and made some real headway, but now I'm facing another possible set back. The company got too big too fast and I went down to part time a month ago, and now will be let go next week. I've been looking for another job for 2 months, but I'm "overqualified" in my geographic area (or so I've been told) and I can't move due to family commitments...so I know all about cutting back, I just fear I've reached a point where there's nothing left to cut. SO, the plan is to keep job hunting, work more hours at the studio in hopes of things growing there (currently doesn't make enough to support me working full time) and maybe go back to school...frugality be damned! ;)

Written by Kara, July 22, 2010

I gave up cable and satellite services. I still have access to 9 channels with a regular converter box. I save on a monthly bill and my whole family is now more likely to turn off the TV and pick up a book, game, or seek outdoor activities.

Written by Are Forever, July 22, 2010

Lots of great ideas and experiences that people have shared here. It's heartening to know that many of the changes people have made have actually led (or are leading) to better physical and mental health. We've been coping with economic uncertainty by cooking at home a great deal more and trying to develop other sources of income.

Written by mona, July 22, 2010

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07...?ref=style

This "diet" helps save $ that isn't as ascetic as some of the suggestions posted in this comments section. Basically, invest in accessories and don't bother yourself with the clothes. Its also a big confidence boost to not overthink what you wear.

Written by Liz, July 26, 2010

Ahh, unemployment. Today, I ended 13 months of that nasty period in my life. I learned to love Mint. I started cooking more and eating out less. I sold my expensive car--and got rid of my expensive loan. I deferred my student loan payments. I canceled my participation in girls nights which required pricey drinks. I watched a lot of DVDs. I sold books to the used book store. I started asking for stuff on Freecycle. I started a garden for tomatoes and herbs. When I just had to shop for clothes, I went to the thrift stores--which often made me realize that I didn't really need clothes. I picked up freelance and contract work, including painting faces at a company picnic . . . and I have a master's degree.

Of course, having the ARRA subsidy for health insurance helped greatly and the extra $25 stipend a week on unemployment helped, too. As did the two unemployment extensions, which kept me going.

In reality, unemployment made me learn how to live within my means. I was able to pay down my debt and actually save some money . . . which is coming in handy, since my first real paycheck won't be here until September and unemployment in NC pays every week. I'll be managing an income gap, even though I'm finally employed.

Written by Jonha @ Happiness, August 05, 2010

I was totally telling myself that I kind of reading my story! I'm like Caitlyn except for the smoking part because I don't. I love just how practically could pay off!