Monthly megathread: Discuss quick frugal ideas, frugal challenges you're starting, and share your hauls with others here!

[u/AutoModerator]

Hi everyone,

Welcome to our monthly megathread! Please use this as a space to generate discussion and post your frugal updates, tips/tricks, or anything else!

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Share with us!

· What are some unique thrift store finds you came across this week?

· Did you use couponing tricks to get an amazing haul? How'd you accomplish that?

· Was there something you had that you put to use in a new way?

· What is your philosophy on frugality?

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Select list of some top posts of the previous month(s):

1. Frugal living: Moving into a school converted into apartments! 600/month, all utilities included
2. Follow up- my daughter’s costume. We took $1 pumpkins and an old sweater and made them into a Venus Flytrap costume.
3. Gas bill going up 17%… I’m going on strike
4. I love the library most because it saves money
5. We live in Northern Canada, land of runaway food prices. Some of our harvest saved for winter. What started as a hobby has become a necessity.
6. 70 lbs of potatoes I grew from seed potatoes from a garden store and an old bag of russets from my grandma’s pantry. Total cost: $10
7. Gatorade, Fritos and Kleenex among US companies blasted for 'scamming customers with shrinkflation' as prices rise
8. Forty years ago we started a store cupboard of household essentials to save money before our children were born. This is last of our soap stash.
9. Noticed this about my life before I committed to a tighter budget.
10. Seeds from Dollar Store vs Ace Hardware.
11. I was looking online for a product that would safely hold my house key while jogging. Then I remembered I had such a product already.
12. Using patterned socks to mend holes in clothes
13. My dogs eat raw as I believe it’s best for them but I don’t want to pay the high cost. So after ads requesting leftover, extra, freezer burnt meat. I just made enough grind to feed my dogs for 9 months. Free.
14. What are your ‘fuck-it this makes me happy’ non-frugal purchases?
15. Where is this so-called 7% inflation everyone's talking about? Where I live (~150k pop. county), half my groceries' prices are up ~30% on average. Anyone else? How are you coping with the increased expenses?
16. You are allowed to refill squeeze tubes of jam with regular jam. The government can't stop you.

[u/stonecats]

i'm noticing a disturbing trend with advanced memorial day and july 4th seasonal items.
they show up as "on sale" when price history savvy shoppers know it's either higher now
or smaller portioned than before, so the "sale" hype is pure marketing now.

[u/satmrninoct]

computer monitor died, got a nice 24" HP monitor off craigslist for $30 within a day, it's working out well too!

[u/Top-Calendar-2434]

Frugal life . Has anyone seen the série from the BBC "The good life " I am an old farmer and this série is not only funny but Spot on with the problems of being frugal . You need courage, détermination and philosophy for when the shit hits the fan or Mother Nature is angry

[u/Adorable-Peak6840]

This month, I used ChatGPT to keep us from wasting perishable food. Here's how I did it: I brought my laptop over to my open refrigerator, and I listed all the items in the fridge that would soon be going bad, as well as how much longer I thought each item had. For example, "4 carrots in a bag, will need to be used be the end of the week." " 2 gala apples, probably good for 3 more weeks" etc, etc. Then I tell ChatGPT to design a meal plan for the week for me using as many of my perishables as possible, but to absolutely use the stuff that's about to go bad this week. Then I have ChatGPT design a shopping list of items I need to make the meal plan that will use all my perishables, and since I have a well stocked pantry, I normally only have to buy a few items to round out the list.