Comments on: Walking The Line Between Frugality and Pack Rattery

By: Want New Stuff? Look to the Curb. « Take the Dollar Back

Want New Stuff? Look to the Curb. « Take the Dollar Back — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 00:47:46 +0000

[...] does this fit? Where’s this going in your home? In your life? Is there good space

By: Mary Murphy

Mary Murphy — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 16:10:54 +0000

To get rid of all or any items you don’t want or need, join your local freecycle.com group online. You’d be amazed at the things that other folks will take off your hands, and give to you if you ask. There is no money involved in the exchanges. It isn’t for everyone, but it’s worth checking out.

By: MaryAnn

MaryAnn — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 13:24:24 +0000

Excellent post. A few ideas for what to do with the stuff that you cull from your stash:
* If you have toiletries above and beyond what you will use in the next 3-6 months, homeless shelters and domestic violence shelters welcome these items.
* If you have butter tubs, cardboard tubes, fabric scraps, baby food jars, etc, ask local preschools, elementary schools, or religious education programs if the teachers can use these items. In my county, there is actually a clearing house for these kinds of items, and local businesses and nursing homes donate everything from wallpaper sample books to florist foam to pickle jars. My husband and I are both teachers, and we love to visit the Wishing Well and discover treasure!

By: Anne

Anne — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:00:46 +0000

One way to avoid becoming a pack rat and keep only what you truly need/use is to live in a small house!

My apartment is only 390 square feet in size and I live in it with two other people…lol. There is no room for what we don’t absolutely need.

By: Lisa W.

Lisa W. — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 14:36:58 +0000

Two things I try to keep in mind:
1.) Is it useful, beautiful, or do you love it? If not, out it goes.
2.) On “Clean House”, the host refers to clutter as “mayhem and foolishness.” Who wants that in their home?

By: Hilary

Hilary — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 01:22:00 +0000

I was so happy that my apartment has a built-in shelf in my closet that is literally 8 inches from the ceiling (and sticks out about a foot from the wall). It’s perfect for stashing away toothpaste, contact solution, etc. so I can buy it up when it’s on sale. My kitchen is less fortunate… I have an entire shelf of chick peas. There’s definitely a trade-off.

By: Diane

Diane — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:15:43 +0000

I agree that some people get carried away in stockpiling readily available items in the name of ‘frugality’.

My feeling is that my living space has VALUE, and it is not necessary to hoard things in case of future need. We keep a few butter dishes & sherbet containers and recycle the rest. When we get low, we keep a few more. I keep a 4″ stack of old newspaper on hand and get rid of the rest.

I know there’s always more coming, whether it’s magazines, newspaper or plastic containers.

By: JC

JC — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 04:00:39 +0000

Perhaps one thing you can do with the junk you’ve been saving that you don’t need is to start a garage sale and sell some of them. For example, if you upgraded your RAM or video cards, somebody else might find an use for your old RAM sticks or cards.

By: ~Dawn

~Dawn — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 19:39:44 +0000

The questions I ask:
Will I be using this right away?
Can this replace one that is being worn out?

By: Tracey McBride

Tracey McBride — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 14:51:30 +0000

This is a good look at an important aspect of frugality that rarely is examined. Your guidelines for keeping on the frugal side of frugality (as opposed to pack-rattery are very helpful and quite sound! Thank you so much for this post.
Warmly,
Tracey