Thrifty tricks for saving some dolla bills!

[Trilt]

I wish I could cut my own hair, but I have relatively short hair and I'm pretty sure that idea would end in utmost disaster... though I do kind of want an excuse to cut it even shorter...

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[OwlandPussycat]

Learn how to cut your own hair & pluck your own eyebrows too if you're brave.

I've heard that it helps to splurge on one nice haircut or eyebrow plucking, and then just "follow the lines" to maintain the same look at home.
I confess that I totally splurge on my haircuts. I have really hard-to-manage hair, and I only get it cut two or three times a year, so I feel like it's worth it to spend the extra money.

So I ask: In addition to your frugal tips, what items or services do you never cheap out on? And yes, I'm assuming we'll all say veterinary care.

 

[Emiloo4]

Good pens.

 

[DVMDream]

I only get my hair cut maybe 3 times a year as it is, so I will not be cutting my own hair. I can't even cut paper straight, an attempt to cut my own hair straight would end in disaster.

I can agree on the saving change though. When I was little, my grandparents had this huge bear shaped piggy bank that they would allow my sisters and I to fill up with all of the change that they had. About a year or two ago, the piggy bank was finally full so they opened it up and counted out all of the money. They then split the amount between my 3 sisters and I, we each received around $100. Mind you this piggy bank took around 18-20 years to fill up.

 

[orcagirl]

I only get my hair cut maybe 3 times a year as it is, so I will not be cutting my own hair. I can't even cut paper straight, an attempt to cut my own hair straight would end in disaster.

I can agree on the saving change though. When I was little, my grandparents had this huge bear shaped piggy bank that they would allow my sisters and I to fill up with all of the change that they had. About a year or two ago, the piggy bank was finally full so they opened it up and counted out all of the money. They then split the amount between my 3 sisters and I, we each received around $100. Mind you this piggy bank took around 18-20 years to fill up.

One way to get a cheap haircut is to find a beauty school. They usually do a decent job and you get your hair cut for less than $10. Also I wanted to dye my tips purple, but with stick straight hair I can't do it myself because any unevenness would be really noticeable. Haven't done it yet though.

 

[Whyevernot55]

I've heard that it helps to splurge on one nice haircut or eyebrow plucking, and then just "follow the lines" to maintain the same look at home.
I confess that I totally splurge on my haircuts. I have really hard-to-manage hair, and I only get it cut two or three times a year, so I feel like it's worth it to spend the extra money.

So I ask: In addition to your frugal tips, what items or services do you never cheap out on? And yes, I'm assuming we'll all say veterinary care.

I mean, obviously vet care, and stuff for my horse.

Otherwise, pedicures. I usually get it done twice in the summer because dammit, I want to have pretty toes.

Also, good scotch, organic fruit and veggies, and high-quality chocolate. I am VERY spoiled because my mother is friends with the guy who owns the local chocolate shop and I get boxes from there regularly. It's the wicked expensive, fancy kind - think wine truffles, chocolate covered oreos, dark chocolate sea salt caramels, and the best stuff on earth: chocolate covered almond crunch. I don't know what's in that s**t, but I think it's crack. I do NOT recommend getting addicted to good chocolate. Or scotch. Expensive!

 

[DVMDream]

One way to get a cheap haircut is to find a beauty school. They usually do a decent job and you get your hair cut for less than $10. Also I wanted to dye my tips purple, but with stick straight hair I can't do it myself because any unevenness would be really noticeable. Haven't done it yet though.

Can I trade you hair? I have super curly, wavy hair and I can't get it to stay straight here in Edinburgh. It is really thick too so I have to either do something with it and try to get the curls to cooperate or I have to just throw it up in a ponytail and let the frizz fly out from everywhere.

 

[Lupin21]

I mean, obviously vet care, and stuff for my horse.

Otherwise, pedicures. I usually get it done twice in the summer because dammit, I want to have pretty toes.

Also, good scotch, organic fruit and veggies, and high-quality chocolate. I am VERY spoiled because my mother is friends with the guy who owns the local chocolate shop and I get boxes from there regularly. It's the wicked expensive, fancy kind - think wine truffles, chocolate covered oreos, dark chocolate sea salt caramels, and the best stuff on earth: chocolate covered almond crunch. I don't know what's in that s**t, but I think it's crack. I do NOT recommend getting addicted to good chocolate. Or scotch. Expensive!

These!!

 

[Trematode]

Things I don't skimp on:

- Haircuts. I had a chain that offered $10 cuts butcher my hair three times in a row. Then I went to a professional stylist and she made faces at how uneven my hair is. Because of that, I spend the $25-35 to get it done at a professional chain I like. Every single person I have had since then has given me a good cut, good advice and were friendly to boot. Because of the cost, I go a little less often than I should.

- Fresh local produce. I am willing to pay a bit more to support the local farmers.

- Eating out/entertainment. I only get to see the boyfriend on weekends. If he wants to go to a sit-down restaurant and go bowling afterwards, I'm not going to gripe at the cost and be a downer. I don't eat out during the week and I don't get the opportunity to shop or do anything entertaining. The way I see it, the money that I used to spend on clothing, bars, the gym and transportation is being re-routed to food and fun with the boyfriend.

- Fancy coffees. It's so rare that I get the opportunity to visit a Starbucks or other fancy cafe. So heck, I'm going to get my medium caramel soy latte when I do go!

- Underwear. No stretched out fruit of the looms for this girl. I go to Lasenza and take advantage of their panty sales

Things I do skimp on:

- I try not to buy unhealthy foods at grocery stores or corner stores.

- I shop the sales racks. I still have the mindset that over $10 for a shirt and over $25 for jeans is expensive. So I look for sales or shop at second hand stores.

- Jewelry supplies. I only have access to a Michael's here. It is crazy expensive. Why pay $2.99 for 3 charms when I can get them for $0.15 a piece AND support a local business? So I wait until I go home to purchase majority of my charms, beads and clasps. Also, Walmart has stuff for less. Embroidery floss is 10 cents cheaper there.

- Textbooks. Whenever I bought them, I checked amazon first for deals. Now that I have an ereader, you can find some pretty sweet deals on ebooks. I paid $4.06 for the first Hunger Games book. Can't complain.

- I don't smoke or do drugs. Since I started dating someone who never drinks, my alcohol consumption has been very low. I heard all three of those evils are quite hard on the wallet. It drives me insane to hear people complain about money when they do spend money on this stuff.

- Lunch box foods. I always get the granola bars, crackers, trail mix, etc. that is on sale at the grocery store. This week, Kashi granola bars and Special K fruit crisps were on sale. Yay. Two weeks ago, it was Fibre One bars. Before that, Quaker and flavored almonds. You always get some variety when you by what is on sale.

 

[orca2011]

I don't really skimp on hair cuts either. I definitely don't trust myself and probably pay like $30 for mine and then another $30 if I want high lights. I called to schedule an appointment but she's book, so I don't think I'm getting my high lights redone before school. Haven't had them done since January but it's really not that noticeable. She does a really good job of getting them to look natural and blend nicely, so I'm afraid of going to anyone else. And this isn't like a top of the line place or anything either. My mom goes to a more expensive place and I feel like she's always complaining about how her hair is cut so what's the point.


I also tend to splurge on technology related things. I don't know why because it's not like I'm a tech whizz (although, I know enough to get by on many things). Maybe because it's like an interest of mine I never really pursued.

I also save my change. Too bad I cashed it in earlier this year, so I don't have much.


And I just tried to buy a bunch of my toiletries today and it still cost me a fortune. Probably cause I had to buy a lot of make up related things since all of mine is running out/old. I did remember that I can get laundry detergent at the dollar store though!

 

[Minnerbelle]

I unashamedly mooch off of boyfriend and siblings that have jobs...

 

[dyachei]

I unashamedly mooch off of boyfriend and siblings that have jobs...

 

[psilovethomas]

I unashamedly mooch off of boyfriend and siblings that have jobs...

2

 

[pooter]

Has anyone else had trouble with staying in shape without breaking the bank? I had to give up riding lessons pretty early on last year--I'd scraped by in undergrad by mucking lots of stalls, but once I no longer had the time for that, it was hard to find a sympathetic stable. Trouble is, I'm one of those people who has to exercise somehow, or my brain goes kind of haywire. I looked into a membership at the school's gym, but found the facility fees a bit . . . ridiculous. I eventually solved my problem by getting back into martial arts; I found a club working out of a different nearby college that could sneak me in as an "assistant instructor." So, now I get a decent facility plus buddies that I can hit, all for the low price of club dues.

I miss the ponies, though . . .

A lot of riders in my class who were more dedicated than me managed to keep it up by befriending the horse owners in the class. I guess my tip is just to keep your eyes open for alternative activities.

 

[Poetic Silence]

How is sitting on a pony exercise?

 

[Abnerrs]

You can save some serious bucks using street hookers instead of high class escorts.

True story.

What in the crap?



They really are all cruising over into pre-vet

 

[wldlfstdnt]

What in the crap?



They really are all cruising over into pre-vet

They really are

 

[wolfspeaker]

No worries. They won't stay here long

 

[Poetic Silence]

*Gets bored and leaves*

Bye, Abney. Come over to my neck of the woods some time.

 

[wolfspeaker]

*Gets bored and leaves*

Bye, Abney. Come over to my neck of the woods some time.

Told ya!!

 

[Trematode]

Has anyone else had trouble with staying in shape without breaking the bank? I had to give up riding lessons pretty early on last year--I'd scraped by in undergrad by mucking lots of stalls, but once I no longer had the time for that, it was hard to find a sympathetic stable. Trouble is, I'm one of those people who has to exercise somehow, or my brain goes kind of haywire. I looked into a membership at the school's gym, but found the facility fees a bit . . . ridiculous. I eventually solved my problem by getting back into martial arts; I found a club working out of a different nearby college that could sneak me in as an "assistant instructor." So, now I get a decent facility plus buddies that I can hit, all for the low price of club dues..

Yup.
Luckily, gym memberships were included in my tuition.
But now that I'm not in school, I find it a little difficult.

My job is quite physically demanding. Before it got this way, I was going to yoga 2x week with work (which work paid for). They have since discouraged us from going because they mismanaged their money. I tried running and brought my bike up from home.

If I wasn't so sore from work, I'd still be running or biking. I also hike a lot with the boyfriend when he comes down to visit.

 

[wildcatj]

Has anyone else had trouble with staying in shape without breaking the bank? I had to give up riding lessons pretty early on last year--I'd scraped by in undergrad by mucking lots of stalls, but once I no longer had the time for that, it was hard to find a sympathetic stable. Trouble is, I'm one of those people who has to exercise somehow, or my brain goes kind of haywire. I looked into a membership at the school's gym, but found the facility fees a bit . . . ridiculous. I eventually solved my problem by getting back into martial arts; I found a club working out of a different nearby college that could sneak me in as an "assistant instructor." So, now I get a decent facility plus buddies that I can hit, all for the low price of club dues.

I miss the ponies, though . . .

A lot of riders in my class who were more dedicated than me managed to keep it up by befriending the horse owners in the class. I guess my tip is just to keep your eyes open for alternative activities.

I figure I'll try to keep a look out for free leases. Occasionally you can find one for free or super cheap (like you have to pay for shoes or something). But it definitely varies with the area you're in. Sometimes people really just need someone to exercise their horses.

 

[Whyevernot55]

Has anyone else had trouble with staying in shape without breaking the bank? I had to give up riding lessons pretty early on last year--I'd scraped by in undergrad by mucking lots of stalls, but once I no longer had the time for that, it was hard to find a sympathetic stable. Trouble is, I'm one of those people who has to exercise somehow, or my brain goes kind of haywire. I looked into a membership at the school's gym, but found the facility fees a bit . . . ridiculous. I eventually solved my problem by getting back into martial arts; I found a club working out of a different nearby college that could sneak me in as an "assistant instructor." So, now I get a decent facility plus buddies that I can hit, all for the low price of club dues.

I miss the ponies, though . . .

A lot of riders in my class who were more dedicated than me managed to keep it up by befriending the horse owners in the class. I guess my tip is just to keep your eyes open for alternative activities.

This is a HUGE part of why I picked my apartment - there's a fitness center! That being said, I've never had a problem. If I can't have a gym, I run outside, do pilates in my living room, and find workouts that I can do with bodyweight or resistance bands. I'm surprised that people are having to pay for membership at the school's gym if you're an attending student, most places are free or ridiculously cheap for students!

Also, I do have a horse. He goes everywhere with me and is a huge money suck and I would absolutely lose my mind without him. Anyone who says horseback riding isn't exercise is welcome to come sit on mine like a sack of potatoes and let me know how that goes.

 

[equineconstant]

Also, I do have a horse. He goes everywhere with me and is a huge money suck and I would absolutely lose my mind without him. Anyone who says horseback riding isn't exercise is welcome to come sit on mine like a sack of potatoes and let me know how that goes.

 

[SnowyRox]

Has anyone else had trouble with staying in shape without breaking the bank? I had to give up riding lessons pretty early on last year--I'd scraped by in undergrad by mucking lots of stalls, but once I no longer had the time for that, it was hard to find a sympathetic stable. Trouble is, I'm one of those people who has to exercise somehow, or my brain goes kind of haywire. I looked into a membership at the school's gym, but found the facility fees a bit . . . ridiculous. I eventually solved my problem by getting back into martial arts; I found a club working out of a different nearby college that could sneak me in as an "assistant instructor." So, now I get a decent facility plus buddies that I can hit, all for the low price of club dues.

I miss the ponies, though . . .

A lot of riders in my class who were more dedicated than me managed to keep it up by befriending the horse owners in the class. I guess my tip is just to keep your eyes open for alternative activities.

I have the same problem with riding .
A. I can't justify the time that horses take when I'm in vet school. I don't like weekly riding lessons, and prefer to just lease and ride on my own.
B. I can't justify the money spent on horses when vet school is so expensive AND I don't have a well-paying job.

I ended up just running instead. Free and an awesome endorphins rush .

I joined a swim team but then my gut decided to not let me swim .

 

[Lissarae06]

This is a HUGE part of why I picked my apartment - there's a fitness center! That being said, I've never had a problem. If I can't have a gym, I run outside, do pilates in my living room, and find workouts that I can do with bodyweight or resistance bands. I'm surprised that people are having to pay for membership at the school's gym if you're an attending student, most places are free or ridiculously cheap for students!

Also, I do have a horse. He goes everywhere with me and is a huge money suck and I would absolutely lose my mind without him. Anyone who says horseback riding isn't exercise is welcome to come sit on mine like a sack of potatoes and let me know how that goes.

You should check out the Colvin Center. It is just down the street from the vet school and is free for students. It will be pretty crowded at the beginning of the semester but it will thin out. They have every kind of workout equipment, free classes like zumba, yoga, etc, indoor track, basketball courts, swimming pools. It is a really nice facility.

 

[nyanko]

I ended up just running instead. Free and an awesome endorphins rush .

I'm not wired to "get" the whole runner's high thing, I think. I tried, I ran for a long time very regularly and my friends who were runners kept telling me "oh you'll start to love it eventually, you'll feel so good!" and never. It just got more and more banal and boring for me.

But luckily people who start playing ice hockey at a young age tend to scrape together the money to afford it through whatever means possible, so that's my drug of choice. I pay to play through refereeing hockey games.

 

[kakurubird]

Has anyone else had trouble with staying in shape without breaking the bank? I looked into a membership at the school's gym, but found the facility fees a bit . . . ridiculous.

Is it typical that school fees don't include gym use? Because that makes me kind of sad.

I don't miss having a gym membership now, but used it a lot in undergrad (despite the limited hours). When the cardio room opened at noon on Sundays, I would get a lot of reading for humanities/social sciences classes done on the elliptical since it was always pretty quiet in there at that time.

 

[Foxhunter]

On the credit card rewards note- if you have discover you can use ShopDiscover through their website and get some really good cashback rates 5-30%. Right now there's a back to school special and things like Nike and Lenovo have increased their cashback rates for the month. I try to do a lot of my Christmas shopping and such this way. I just consider it a 5-10% discount. Every time I accumulate.

 

[zanydogz]

I'm not wired to "get" the whole runner's high thing, I think. I tried, I ran for a long time very regularly and my friends who were runners kept telling me "oh you'll start to love it eventually, you'll feel so good!" and never. It just got more and more banal and boring for me.

But luckily people who start playing ice hockey at a young age tend to scrape together the money to afford it through whatever means possible, so that's my drug of choice. I pay to play through refereeing hockey games.

I think I'm kinda with you on running. I can never seem to get that runner's high and at this point, I just hate it. I was a competitive swimmer for some time before I started fencing so I swim when I can and still love it.

And fencing has become my "endorphin drug" of choice so to speak. I just can't get over the rush you get when you land the touch, get the point, and you know it's definitely your point (hint: watch the Olympic replays of fencing sometime and when a fencer screams you'll see what I mean ). And if it means I have to referee super extra long tournaments and bouts/coach annoying 8yr old kids during their bouts to get a free practice session with the local clubs, then so be it.

 

[cowgirla]

I'm not wired to "get" the whole runner's high thing, I think. I tried, I ran for a long time very regularly and my friends who were runners kept telling me "oh you'll start to love it eventually, you'll feel so good!" and never. It just got more and more banal and boring for me.

The only "runner's high" I get is from the painkillers I have to take the next day Poor old knee just cant handle the impact.

 

[orca2011]

I'm not wired to "get" the whole runner's high thing, I think. I tried, I ran for a long time very regularly and my friends who were runners kept telling me "oh you'll start to love it eventually, you'll feel so good!" and never. It just got more and more banal and boring for me.

But luckily people who start playing ice hockey at a young age tend to scrape together the money to afford it through whatever means possible, so that's my drug of choice. I pay to play through refereeing hockey games.

I don't think I really get a "runner's high" but I do no longer feel like I want to kill myself when I run. I would never run the miles I was supposed to for field hockey pre-season and hated running even a mile up until probably like my sophomore year of college. Now running anything under like 3.5 miles isn't worth it to me. I kind of just get in a zone and go. It takes a lot of encouragement to get myself to do it. I'd rather go to CrossFit and get yelled at for an hour and do weights.


And about trying not to break the bank to stay in shape, I guess that's one of the things I"ll spend money on. Unfortunately, I can't afford the $150 a month to do CrossFit in a gym, so I'm going to shell out the $350 a year (might be a little less) for Penn's gym and do WODs on my own. Plus, then I have access to the elliptical and can "study" while doing that.


I found a really great workout on Stumble Upon that is entirely body weight based. I don't have the order of when the activities were done but here's the total number of sets/reps: 10 sets of 30 jumping jacks, 20 sets of 5 push ups, 10 sets of 25 high knees, 5 sets of 7 burpees, 10 sets of 10 crunches (any style), 10 sets of 7 air squats, and 5 rounds of 1 minute wall sits. I'm pretty sure it was for a total of 5 rounds, divide all the sets up equally and there's your workout! You can then do it for however many rounds you want. I was pretty sore the next day.

 

[pooter]

Is it typical that school fees don't include gym use? Because that makes me kind of sad.

I don't think it's typical, but Penn seems to enjoy making us pay through the nose. Oh, well.

 

[Poetic Silence]

I don't think it's typical, but Penn seems to enjoy making us pay through the nose. Oh, well.

Are you aware that your username is a common slang term for vagina?

 

[Abnerrs]

Are you aware that your username is a common slang term for vagina?

PS!! That does not belong in this forum!!!!

 

[Poetic Silence]

I meant no offense, I just feel weird seeing that word popping up.

My apologies.

 

[Abnerrs]

I meant no offense, I just feel weird seeing that word popping up.

My apologies.

It's ok. I forgive you. Pre-vet is sacred

 

[Poetic Silence]

The angels really do post in here!

 

[pooter]

Are you aware that your username is a common slang term for vagina?

You pre-allo kids really do have one-track minds.

 

[ORvetgirl]

Ohhh, making your own bread sounds like a great idea. I feel like I'm going to be eating a lot of sandwiches for lunch. Just not sure I'll have the freezer space to make a million loaves at a time.

Look up Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a day...they have a couple cookbooks, and here is a link to the master recipe on their site: http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/2...ues-to-create-a-great-loaf-in-5-minutes-a-day

I'm cutting down on the carbs, but when I make bread this is what I make. The dough keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge and you can just pull out however much you need whenever you want fresh bread. There are tons of variations on the master recipe, like challah and brioche, and using the master recipe you can make larger loaves, rolls, breadsticks, pizza, cinnamon rolls, etc. It also halves or doubles easily; I normally halve it and make it in one of those big tubs with a lid that you can buy cheap ice cream in.

 

[hopefulinva]

I did remember that I can get laundry detergent at the dollar store though!

Yay!

I unashamedly mooch off of boyfriend and siblings that have jobs...

Oh definitely. That's why hubby's coming with me.

Has anyone else had trouble with staying in shape without breaking the bank?

My apartment complex has a 24 hour facility associated with it. But beside that, running outside is free. =) Also, sparkpeople.com has free fitness videos that you can follow along with in your livingroom.

I'm not wired to "get" the whole runner's high thing, I think.

Ditto, and I think it's cus we both come from a competitive sports background. What's the use of running if there's no goal at the end?

 

[twelvetigers]

Bumping an ancient thread for someone that might like some money saving tips. I’m sure there’s another thread besides this one, but damnit, the search function on the app is sad.

 

[ziggyandjazzy]

This may be controversial and might not work for some people, but consider applying for SNAP. I found myself with $15 in my bank account and no source of income. If you aren't currently in classes and have low or no income or money, you could be eligible.