Finance: Dollar Stretcher Tips
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Reader's Money Saving Tips
Blow By
If you open a window at each end of the house and place a window box fan backwards in one of the windows so that it blows outside of the house, it pulls the air through the house (especially in the early morning hours) and cools your home.
M.
Expiration Unlimited
Be wary of renewal notices! I used to receive several renewal notices for a magazine subscription. They were months apart and I didn't notice so I paid them. Finally, after receiving a notice close to a recent renewal (which I paid for!), I checked my subscription. I was paid up through 2012! So check your renewals with your subscription departments. You may not need to renew.
Bill in Rockford, MI
Just Dry and Reuse
Our community has a pool, and if you have a little one, the cost of swim diapers quickly escalates a "free" trip to the pool. Last summer, I started washing and re-using our swim diapers. Generally, they are just wet when we get home so I just rinse them in the sink with a little soap and water and hang to dry with the swimsuit. If the diaper was more than wet, I disposed of it. I don't think I bought more than one package of swim diapers for the whole season.
Marquita H.
Calorie Packs
You can easily make your own 100-calorie packs. I used a calorie book and nutrition information to make a list of the size of various servings of my favorite snacks and the calorie counts. I posted it in my pantry and use it as inspiration to keep my low calorie snack basket full. I keep hard boiled eggs, fresh fruit and clean yogurt containers with pretzels, carrot or celery sticks in a small basket in my fridge. I replenish it every few days. It makes finding a healthy snack easy and even makes finding filler for lunches a breeze.
Kimberly M. in Alta Loma, CA
Natural Facial
The best facial to remove oil is one egg yolk and a teaspoon of mayonnaise. I know it sounds funny, but it makes your skin feel so soft and look new. Just rub it on, wait thirty minutes, and then remove with warm water.
KI
Odor Fighters
A lit match will take away bathroom odor. Strike a match (I use the wooden kitchen kind for easy handling) and the odor disappears. This is much better for us than the air sprays and much cheaper, too. I sometimes light the match and then light a candle, but the match alone eliminates the odor.
Also, after cutting onions, if you run your fingers over the knife under running water, the onion odor disappears.
I don't know the scientific reason for either of these but I have a very sensitive nose and these both work great.
Pat in St. Louis, MO
Buy the Bucket
I'm an avid gardener and go through a lot of potting soil to plant my container gardens. It can end up costing a lot of money to plant those flowers! Thankfully, I discovered that our local business that sells landscaping products sells dirt, pea gravel, bark, and an assortment of different soils by the bucket full. You just take your bucket and fill it yourself. This is so much cheaper than buying it by the bag.
HW
Love Those Fake Credit Cards
If you've seen the new bladeless cream hair removers and thought about giving them a try, try this trick instead. Buy the generic or cheapest brand of cream hair remover, and instead of using a washcloth (very messy!) to remove the product, use one of those fake credit cards that keep showing up in the mail. This works just as well as the expensive, premium product for about half the cost. For soothing softness, smooth on a light film of Vaseline or baby oil afterwards. No need for expensive specialty products to soften your legs, since Vaseline works just as well or better for just pennies.
Victoria in Watertown, NY
Home Sharing
My mom is currently sharing her home with my sister and me in New York City. My mother is retired and has very limited income. She has to supplement her retirement income by working for minimum wage for a few hours per day.
Even though my sister and I are grown, there are advantages we all enjoy such as being able to contribute to the mortgage according to our income and sharing expenses which enables us to keep our housing cost to approximately 30% and lower. My single mom gets to enjoy her family and not being left alone and we get to save more.
I would recommend kids sharing a home with their parent(s), providing they act responsible in every way and respect their parents while living there. This advice is especially good for expensive cities, such as New York City.
Abigail
Veggie Packs
When you chop up those almost done vegetables to put in the freezer, measure them into 1/4, 1/2, 1 cup portions in little sandwich bags and put these bags into a larger bag. This works great!
Leah D.
For
more than 25 years, Gary Foreman has worked to manage money
effectively. He's been a financial planner and purchasing
manager. He currently edits The Dollar Stretcher website www.TheDollarStretcher.com and several newsletters. His mission is to help people "Live Better for Less."
While helping clients manage their hard earned money, he applied commonsense, time-tested techniques during the turbulent 1980's. The experience convinced him that you didn't need to hit the lottery to accumulate significant wealth.
Following that, Gary had an opportunity to learn more about how to get the best value for a dollar spent. As the Purchasing Manager for a computer manufacturer, he was responsible for supervising over $10 million in purchases each year.
Today, Gary spends his time editing The Dollar Stretcher newsletters and website. He enjoys the give and take of the internet and likes nothing better than to help people achieve their financial goals.
Gary lives in South Florida along with his wife of thirty years and their two children. When he has a free moment you'll find him restoring a Checker station wagon nicknamed "Two Ton" or cruising a '65 Impala convertible with doo-wops playing in the background
Blow By
Reader's Money Saving Tips
Blow By
If you open a window at each end of the house and place a window box fan backwards in one of the windows so that it blows outside of the house, it pulls the air through the house (especially in the early morning hours) and cools your home.
M.
Expiration Unlimited
Be wary of renewal notices! I used to receive several renewal notices for a magazine subscription. They were months apart and I didn't notice so I paid them. Finally, after receiving a notice close to a recent renewal (which I paid for!), I checked my subscription. I was paid up through 2012! So check your renewals with your subscription departments. You may not need to renew.
Bill in Rockford, MI
Just Dry and Reuse
Our community has a pool, and if you have a little one, the cost of swim diapers quickly escalates a "free" trip to the pool. Last summer, I started washing and re-using our swim diapers. Generally, they are just wet when we get home so I just rinse them in the sink with a little soap and water and hang to dry with the swimsuit. If the diaper was more than wet, I disposed of it. I don't think I bought more than one package of swim diapers for the whole season.
Marquita H.
Calorie Packs
You can easily make your own 100-calorie packs. I used a calorie book and nutrition information to make a list of the size of various servings of my favorite snacks and the calorie counts. I posted it in my pantry and use it as inspiration to keep my low calorie snack basket full. I keep hard boiled eggs, fresh fruit and clean yogurt containers with pretzels, carrot or celery sticks in a small basket in my fridge. I replenish it every few days. It makes finding a healthy snack easy and even makes finding filler for lunches a breeze.
Kimberly M. in Alta Loma, CA
Natural Facial
The best facial to remove oil is one egg yolk and a teaspoon of mayonnaise. I know it sounds funny, but it makes your skin feel so soft and look new. Just rub it on, wait thirty minutes, and then remove with warm water.
KI
Odor Fighters
A lit match will take away bathroom odor. Strike a match (I use the wooden kitchen kind for easy handling) and the odor disappears. This is much better for us than the air sprays and much cheaper, too. I sometimes light the match and then light a candle, but the match alone eliminates the odor.
Also, after cutting onions, if you run your fingers over the knife under running water, the onion odor disappears.
I don't know the scientific reason for either of these but I have a very sensitive nose and these both work great.
Pat in St. Louis, MO
Buy the Bucket
I'm an avid gardener and go through a lot of potting soil to plant my container gardens. It can end up costing a lot of money to plant those flowers! Thankfully, I discovered that our local business that sells landscaping products sells dirt, pea gravel, bark, and an assortment of different soils by the bucket full. You just take your bucket and fill it yourself. This is so much cheaper than buying it by the bag.
HW
Love Those Fake Credit Cards
If you've seen the new bladeless cream hair removers and thought about giving them a try, try this trick instead. Buy the generic or cheapest brand of cream hair remover, and instead of using a washcloth (very messy!) to remove the product, use one of those fake credit cards that keep showing up in the mail. This works just as well as the expensive, premium product for about half the cost. For soothing softness, smooth on a light film of Vaseline or baby oil afterwards. No need for expensive specialty products to soften your legs, since Vaseline works just as well or better for just pennies.
Victoria in Watertown, NY
Home Sharing
My mom is currently sharing her home with my sister and me in New York City. My mother is retired and has very limited income. She has to supplement her retirement income by working for minimum wage for a few hours per day.
Even though my sister and I are grown, there are advantages we all enjoy such as being able to contribute to the mortgage according to our income and sharing expenses which enables us to keep our housing cost to approximately 30% and lower. My single mom gets to enjoy her family and not being left alone and we get to save more.
I would recommend kids sharing a home with their parent(s), providing they act responsible in every way and respect their parents while living there. This advice is especially good for expensive cities, such as New York City.
Abigail
Veggie Packs
When you chop up those almost done vegetables to put in the freezer, measure them into 1/4, 1/2, 1 cup portions in little sandwich bags and put these bags into a larger bag. This works great!
Leah D.
For
more than 25 years, Gary Foreman has worked to manage money
effectively. He's been a financial planner and purchasing
manager. He currently edits The Dollar Stretcher website www.TheDollarStretcher.com and several newsletters. His mission is to help people "Live Better for Less."While helping clients manage their hard earned money, he applied commonsense, time-tested techniques during the turbulent 1980's. The experience convinced him that you didn't need to hit the lottery to accumulate significant wealth.
Following that, Gary had an opportunity to learn more about how to get the best value for a dollar spent. As the Purchasing Manager for a computer manufacturer, he was responsible for supervising over $10 million in purchases each year.
Today, Gary spends his time editing The Dollar Stretcher newsletters and website. He enjoys the give and take of the internet and likes nothing better than to help people achieve their financial goals.
Gary lives in South Florida along with his wife of thirty years and their two children. When he has a free moment you'll find him restoring a Checker station wagon nicknamed "Two Ton" or cruising a '65 Impala convertible with doo-wops playing in the background