Frugal … for Now

The recession gave rise to a trend of thriftiness and reuse, according to Lauren Weber, author of In Cheap We Trust — but trends do run in cycles.

“Suddenly it was cool to be cheap, to get all your material needs met by Freecycle, to make your own laundry detergent and downsize from two cars to one,” Weber said. “But if history tells us anything, it’s that these frugal interludes tend to be short lived. They’re driven by temporary political or economic conditions and they never seem to last, much to the sorrow of dyed-in-the-wool cheap adherents.”

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How Are You Teaching Your Kid About Money?

Willow says her mom is a big influence on her. What ways are you teaching your kids about money? Do you have regular conversations with them about it?
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I also go to auctions and Goodwill to buy things and resell to people online. The website Freecycle [which allows people to advertise and donate items they no longer need to other people] is also a really good source to get free stuff to resell—there’s just a whole bunch of ways that people can make money.

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Furniture (advantage: mixed). With the possible exception of upholstered furniture — which can have hard-to-detect damage and possible sanitation issues — used furniture can be an incredible bargain. It might even be free. Keep an eye on the “Free” category on Craigslist.com and Freecycle.org for unwanted furniture, particularly when local colleges let out for the summer and many students give away their dorm furniture. Of course, the best used-furniture buys of all can be antiques or other pieces that will likely increase in value over time.

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Pawn off unwanted gifts online. Craigslist and Freecycle.org are two great places to unload junk. As Freecycle’s site says, “it’s all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills.” If it’s a heap of stupid gift cards you’re looking to ditch, learn how to turn them into cash so you can buy things people actually want.

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