LadyPens » Frugal Living Tips

7 Tips For Creating A Frugal Meal Plan That Works For You And Your Family

Susanne Myers — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:26:44 +0000

Groceries are one area in your family budget where you can easily save quite a bit each way. A perfect way to do that is to create a frugal meal plan each week that will help you spend less at the grocery store. But for this to work (especially in the long run), you have to come up with a menu plan that will work for both you and your family. Here are some tips for accomplishing just that. Full Article

Frugally Dressing for Success

Tammy Paquin — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:04:38 +0000

You’ve just landed that job you wanted! Congratulations are in order but so is a more professional wardrobe. You don’t want to use up your first three paychecks creating that wardrobe (or three or four paychecks every year thereafter) so I’ll show you how to create a stylish and frugal wardrobe. Full Article

7 Tips For Living in a Frugal Way

Susanne Myers — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 17:16:08 +0000

There are a lot of reasons why more and more of us are embracing a more frugal lifestyle. Sure, some of it is due to the economy and we are becoming more frugal by either necessity or fear. But for many of us it is a lifestyle choice. It’s a way to get back to the basics and spend more time on things that are truly important instead of chasing that new house, car or exotic vacation. If you’re ready to embrace living in a frugal way, I have seven tips that I’d like to share with you today. Full Article

Ten Ways to Slash your Grocery Bill

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 15:37:47 +0000

With the rising cost of food, everyone is looking for ways to save on their grocery bills without sacrificing nutrition. Here are ten money saving tips. Full Article

Tips for Cutting Down on Heating Expenses

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 15:27:17 +0000

The cost of heating our homes has risen considerably in the past few years. Here are some tips to help you cut down on your home fuel expenses. Full Article

Using Cash to Stay in a Budget

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:47:38 +0000

It’s a well established fact that when people purchase things using any payment form OTHER THAN cash, they tend to spend more money. I always figured that this fact didn’t apply to me because I was a careful shopper. BUT, can I just say that is NOT true!!! Full Article

Changing your Frugal Attitude

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:21:37 +0000

Let’s face it, almost all of us go through some tight financial times through our lives, but how we look at and face those times can set you apart from the crowd. It’s kind of that, the glass can be half-full OR half-empty situation. Some people who are in a tight financial situation will let it take them down and they’ll use it as a crutch and blame all their woes on it, whereas another person in the same situation will say that money is tight, but that’s finances are not the end all and be all of their lives. Full Article

Feeling Rich when the Savings Account Says Otherwise

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:04:40 +0000

If your first thought to the title was, “Hey, I’m rich with family, friends, good health and faith!” then you’ve already hit upon my first point. Good for you! Being rich doesn’t just imply having lots of cash. It’s also recognizing that there are things that money can’t buy and you need to learn to celebrate that above the actual idea that being rich is about the cold, hard cash. Full Article

Take a Bite out of Breakfast Costs

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:49:32 +0000

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day (so the experts tell us) as we fuel our bodies after a long night and prepare for a busy day ahead. That said, it’s also become a very pricey meal of the day! There are a slew of manufacturers out there that have bundled breakfast items in convenient, high fat, high sugar, and high COST ways and convinced YOU, the consumer that you NEED their products and you can’t live without them. I’m here to tell you otherwise. I’m going to help you take a bite out the rising costs of breakfast. Full Article

Pasta: From Simple to Fancy Fare

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:42:34 +0000

Prices continue to rise at the grocery store. I’ve seen my own grocery budget rise by almost $100 per month (although three growing boys might be contributing to that increase). Gone are the days of four boxes of spaghetti for a buck but overall, pasta is still an inexpensive and filling beginning to many meals. I also love that pasta is one of those dishes that can go easily from the family dinner to the guest table when paired with my good china and a bottle of wine. Full Article

Understanding Supermarkets Tricks to save you Money

Angela Wenke — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 12:39:45 +0000

Have you ever just stopped the grocery store on your way home from work because you just need four items for your family’s meal that night? And what usually happens when you get to the checkout? You know what I am talking about. Your cart is now half way full of junk you really didn’t need or even wanted. What happened to just running into the store to only purchase what you really needed? Full Article

Couponing 101-Organizing Your Coupons

Angela Wenke — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 14:30:06 +0000

Coupon Organizer Creation Full Article

How to Save Money on Raising Children

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 20:00:39 +0000

Having children doesnâ€™t have to be as expensive as it seems. The expression, â€œHindsight is 20/20â€ definitely applies to having children. We have learned a lot since having our first child (of three) and these tips come from practical experience as parents, NOT from the overpriced expectations placed upon us by manufacturers. Had I known THEN, what I know NOW, we would have saved a considerable sum of money beginning with our first, NOT our third! Full Article

Using Cash to Stay in a Budget

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 20:00:10 +0000

Itâ€™s a well established fact that when people purchase things using any payment form OTHER THAN cash, they tend to spend more money. I always figured that this fact didn’t apply to me because I was a careful shopper. BUT, can I just say that is NOT true!!! Full Article

Changing your Financial Attitude

Tammy Paquin — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 19:58:55 +0000

Letâ€™s face it, almost all of us go through some tight financial times through our lives, but how we look at and face those times can set you apart from the crowd. Itâ€™s kind of that, the glass can be half-full OR half-empty situation. Some people who are in a tight financial situation will let it take them down and theyâ€™ll use it as a crutch and blame all their woes on it, whereas another person in the same situation will say that money is tight, but thatâ€™s finances are not the end all and be all of their lives. Full Article

How to Save Money At the Grocery Store

Audrey Okaneko — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 02:48:39 +0000

I love going to the grocery store and looking at my receipt to see how much I saved. The best I’ve personally done is 70% and I’ve only been able to do that once. I really try to save between 30% and 40% when I visit the grocery store, if possible. Full Article

Saving Money Year Round

Audrey Okaneko — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 02:48:06 +0000

As moms, many of us want to stretch our incomes as far as we can. I’d like to offer some ideas that have worked for me in saving money year round. Full Article

Slashing Grocery Bills

Rachel Paxton — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 21:49:02 +0000

Even the thought of spending a lot of time tracking grocery prices from store to store gives me a headache. I know a lot of people who keep detailed notes of every grocery item they regularly purchase and routinely note the price fluctuations at the grocery stores they frequent. Full Article

Cutting Food Costs: Saving Time vs. Money

Rachel Paxton — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 21:48:19 +0000

When I first started consciously cutting back on my household expenses, reducing my grocery bill was one of my highest priorities. After I got married and started juggling my career, my marriage, and the responsibilities of being a parent, however, I had to rethink some of my ways of doing things. Full Article

Re-Using Old Picture Frames

Rachel Paxton — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 21:47:13 +0000

It’s fun taking something apart and putting it back together again in a new creative way. I work in an office where we had a lot of old promotional type posters that were very expensively matted and framed. Now that we’re moving to a new office we wanted something new, but didn’t want to spend a lot of money decorating. We decided to disassemble the old frames and re-use the mats to frame new prints. Full Article

Liquidation Bargains

Rachel Paxton — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 21:46:47 +0000

Bargains are all around you. You just have to know where to look for them. It’s easy to get stuck in a rut, going to the same stores all the time, not taking the time to seek out new opportunities to save money. Full Article

Second-Hand Clothes, First-Class Style

Rachel Paxton — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 21:46:22 +0000

Consignment shopping can be fun as well as rewarding. I was first introduced to consignment shopping when I was pregnant with my daughter, about 12 years ago. The trend of buying second-hand items was just beginning. I started shopping at a store that consigns women’s and children’s clothes, toys, and baby furniture. At first I just bought some baby clothes there and marveled at how inexpensive they were (1/3 or less of retail prices). As my daughter got older I didn’t have any little girls to give her clothes to, so I started consigning her clothes. The consignment store decided how much the clothes should sell for, and after the clothes had sold, they gave me 30 to 50% of the purchase price. For just a few items that might only add up to a couple of dollars, but if you make a practice of taking in all of your children’s outgrown clothes, it can add up quickly. Where I shop, they will either give you the cash when the item sells, or they will hold your money “on account” so that when you buy something there in the future, your purchase is subtracted from your account. Full Article

Mom, Do You Need to Save Money?

Nicole Dean — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 23:43:01 +0000

I need to learn how to save more of our income. I’m not interested in starting a business or making money, but I do believe that a penny saved is a penny earned, so I’d like to hold onto more of my pennies. Thanks so much for any help you can offer! – Signed, Penny Full Article