Personal Finance Advice

The more I embrace frugality, the more I wonder if a frugal life equals a life detached from society. And then I ask myself: Is that a bad thing? I find myself less and less interested in “mainstream” society as the years go by. I don’t watch TV much, so I couldn’t tell you anything [...]

One of the biggest enemies of a debt free life is complacency. Not only is it an enemy, it’s a very sneaky enemy. When you become complacent (apathetic is another good word for this problem) you relax too much. You stop worrying about where your money is going. You start spending more and more, thinking [...]

One of the things that makes it hard when you’re trying to save money is the feeling that you’re not getting anywhere. You make some changes in your lifestyle or you stop spending on unnecessary things and you know you’re saving money, but you just don’t feel like it’s adding up. When people start feeling [...]

When the talk turns to weekend plans, usually ideas that involve spending come to mind. Dinner out. A movie. A night out at the clubs. A sports event. These things are fun and fine to do in moderation. However, they can get expensive if you do them every weekend or if you are on a [...]

One of the best ways to save money and be frugal is to find ways to reuse things that can no longer be used for their intended purpose. I’ve gotten pretty good at this over the years, finding uses for jars, spare parts, newspaper, old clothes and many more items that most people just throw [...]

When I discuss frugality and money saving strategies with those who are just starting down the frugal road, one of the things they always want to know is, “What can I buy that will help me become more frugal?” I always have to swallow a chuckle because buying things to become frugal is oxymoronic. You [...]

I need to buy new sneakers today. I know this because when I took my dog for a walk this morning, the plastic heel guard in my right sneaker tore through the fabric cover and scratched my heel. More specifically, the abrasion continued for the full mile that I walked so that I [...]

While I’ve never been one to keep up with the Jones’, I’ve noticed a palpable sense of relief amongst many friends, acquaintances, and message board posters that the pressure to keep up, show off, and compete is off. At least for the moment.
In the heyday of the 1990’s and early 2000’s, everything was about [...]

I like to sip iced coffee when I drive. I am not sure that I like the coffee as much as I like crunching on the coffee-flavored ice, but for whatever reason, I like to have an iced coffee in the car. Of course, as a responsible frugalista, I would never admit to [...]

If you spend any time in the frugal/budget world, you’re likely to come away with the idea that you should reject all fees. If it means switching banks, changing how you pay for things, switching airlines, or dumping credit cards, we’re taught to shun all fees. We’re taught to dodge anything that reeks of nickel-and-diming [...]

One of the things I’ve learned along my own frugal journey and through helping others with their financial problems is that the reasons behind living frugally/saving money often dictate just how far a person is willing to go in order to cut spending. I’ve learned that in order to have the greatest chance of success, [...]

By Rebecka O.
Six years, 3 months and 13 days ago my mother died and changed the way that I look at money. She had always been frugal and a constant saver. When she passed away, she had an estate worth more than $1.5 million which had been accumulated on the small wages of being a [...]

Most of us who like to save money will, at some point, find ourselves faced with a chance to save money that is ethically questionable. Especially in a down economy when people are trying to save on everything, it is easy to fall into frugal ideas that stretch the bounds of legality. I see this [...]

By Maureen K.
If you had asked me a year ago if I would like being poor, I would have called you crazy. Both my husband and I had just lost our jobs and we were just coming to the realization that we were no longer going to be able to live the life of luxury [...]

When was the last time you were invited to a swap meet? How many of us actually remember them? For those of you who are new to the ways of the frugalista, a swap meet is “An informal gathering for the barter or sale of used articles or handicrafts.” The last swap meet [...]

In the midst of a recession, it’s easy to feel like things will never get better. The news is filled with reports of layoffs and stock market declines, the atmosphere at work is somber, and talk about the economy even makes its way into the TV shows you watch to get away from it all. [...]

I got a rude surprise when I recently asked for some CorningWare as a gift. You probably know the bakeware that I’m talking about. CorningWare was famous for their bakeware with the blue cornflowers on it. It came in other patterns, but that blue cornflower was an icon. My grandmother had it, my mother and [...]

I hear many people complain that they aren’t creative. “I can’t paint or write,” they say. They assume that creativity is only relevant if you are creating some piece of art, music, or design. But creativity isn’t limited only to the arts. Plenty of creativity is required in everything from manufacturing to accounting to the [...]

The other day I went to lunch with a friend who is working on becoming debt free and simplifying her life overall. I asked her how it was going.
“Ugh,” she said. “Well, I told you that Herman took a sabbatical so he could teach for six months, right?” Teaching was, her husband believed, his [...]

We are DINK’s (Dual Income No Kids). Many years ago we made the decision not to have kids. That decision didn’t have anything to do with money. On the contrary, we could have afforded kids quite easily. We just didn’t want kids. I’m the sort of person who likes to visit with my nieces and [...]