In my case, "did".

Lived frugally in my late teens and most of my 20s (college, dental school and residency) while most of my friends were out drinking, having fun and buying new cars. I did that so I wouldn't have to wash out Ziplocs later on.

I grew up in a frugal household(parents grew up during the depression). I still do the same things(not all of them) that my parents did. Many of the things listed here, I can relate to. I like to "fix" things rather than toss them and buy it new.....a feeling of accomplishment.

I have been repairing my cars and motorcycle for years, but the newer FI models are a different ballgame.....I can't work on them.

I have a pile of "clean" ziplock bags for future use, and I keep the plastic microwave trays that frozen foods come in, and use them in my shop and the reloading room.

I am o.k. with the habits that I was taught and still use. God only knows how much money I have saved over the years. I owe no one a dime except for monthly utilities.....I like it that way!!

A local grocery store has a points system for money spent there and applies a percentage of that as a discount at their gas station (with a 35 gallon limit.) When it builds up to 20-30 cents off a gallon I take the truck over and bring 2 5 gallon gas cans. I'll fill 25 in the truck and the rest of the 35 gallon limit in to the gas cans. Once you use the discount, it goes away no matter how much gas you get. Sometimes we'll bring over two cars, but most of the time it is easier to just go with the gas cans. I don't like to just fill up the truck and leave 10-15 gallons of potential discounted gas. Then in a week or two I'll use whats in the gas cans.

Two tools that help with frugality are a vacuum sealer and a slicer.
Roast beef at the deli is like nine bucks a pound; I can make my own for a fraction of that and vac seal it in portions, making it last for months.
I use a lot of green onions. Putting the root ends in a glass of water on the window sill will let you "regrow" them for a week or so and harvest more from them.

And of course, I mill almost all my own flour and do all my own baking. I purchase almost nothing that's "ready to eat". This also cuts down on packaging and trash.

quote:

Originally posted by Sigmund:

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Huffman:
I've been known to wash Solo cups and re-use them.

I'll reuse ziploc storage bags unless the mayo has leaked out of the sandwich.

I have some old Ziplocs still in service. My wife uses them like they are free. Drives me nuts.

I also squeeze the old soap to the new bar - no wasted soap.

I drive a car until it is dead. That saves a ton.

I wear work shirts two times between cleaning/washing. I work indoors and always wear an undershirt.

Not necessarily frugal like a lot of ideas in this thread, but I have an office job and it surprises people to see me up under a car fixing it, doing my own boat repairs/maintenance, or home repairs.

I guess I got it from my dad, who many times had no choice but to do it himself.

My limit is if the tool costs as much as the repair or if I am 20 ft off the ground - then I will think about hiring it out.

quote:

Originally posted by zoom6zoom:
I use a lot of green onions. Putting the root ends in a glass of water on the window sill will let you "regrow" them for a week or so and harvest more from them.

No shit?

I'm going to have to try that.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:

quote:

Originally posted by zoom6zoom:
I use a lot of green onions. Putting the root ends in a glass of water on the window sill will let you "regrow" them for a week or so and harvest more from them.

No shit?

I'm going to have to try that.

Me too!!! I use a lot of green onions throughout the year.

quote:

Originally posted by Aeteocles:
I'll start: when I buy a Costco roasted chicken, I'll carve the meat off the chicken to serve but then use the bones to make chicken stock. I'll put the chicken stock in a plastic container and freeze it for future use. Probably end up saving like $1 in chicken stock from what started as $5 chicken.

I turn off all of the lights my wife leaves on (apparently she has a phobia about turning lights off, and it drives me nuts).

I am tryingto talk the famoly into getting rid of cable.

My grandparents grew up during the depression. My grandmother would make open gifts so that the wrapping paper could be saved and re used. They only used powdered milk. Saved every piece of string, no matter how small. No leftovers ever got thrown out. Funny thing is though, they always had money for beer (alcoholic grandfather) and cigarettes. My grandfather also smoked cigars, factory seconds.

We waste nearly no food. Leftovers get packed for for lunch, and excess ingredients get turned into stir fry or soup.

I bring my oil (synthetic) to the dealer for oil changes. I pay $22 in labor, filter, and the small parts for the oil change. They wipe out my engine bay, grease the chassis and door hinges, and fill up my washer fluid.

I am both thrifty and hideously wasteful, but in different areas. I am at a point in life where there are many instances where I would rather spend money than time, and I have the resources to make that choice. My time is valuable to me, and I will absolutely spend money to save time far more than I used to.

However, there are still areas where I am thrifty. For example, I bought an electric hair trimmer about 18 or 19 years ago, and haven't paid for a haircut since. I wear boxers until the holes in the crotch are big enough to put a fist through, and my shitty ikea-style, particle-board desk has been moved across three states, been reinforced with random Home Depot hardware repeatedly, and is still my primary desk at home after 20+ years.

So, will I use use a 10-year-old bar of hotel soap I found in a drawer even though it is hard and sharp enough to shave with? Absolutely. Will I also spend $300 on a Lego version of Voltron that you actually assemble from the five Lego mini lions? You bet.

I guess, like most folks, there are places I'm willing to spend money and places I'm not. Overall, I would not say I am thrifty, but I have certainly done some pretty thrifty shit!

- Bret

I super glue a piece of fishing line to a quarter so when I go to peep shows I can use the same quarter over and over.

I installed bidets on our toilets without realizing how much I'd save on toilet paper...which is a rather considerable amount of money.

quote:

We're not tight wads, mind you. We spend money on nice things, travel a fair bit, and go out with friends--but sometimes we have a good chuckle at the lengths we go to not waste money.

Same with us, we buy some pricey items, firearms for one . We do some of the same stuff posted (zip lok freezer bags). Some of the other things I do- I travel a bit for my work, I collect shampoo, soap bars, conditioner from the various hotels I stay in to throw into a basket in our guest bathroom. We also buy only Toyotas and Hondas/Acuras and drive them until they die.

I maintain my own swimming pool instead of paying someone, something my neighbors and friends are puzzled by, since hey all have a service. I also reload 9mm, had gun friends accuse me of being chinzy

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
Cheapest thing I do is make custom recipes with cheap Ramen.
Anyone ever washed a paper plate and reused it?
Asking for a friend....

Tell your friend that I have a friend that also does that.

quote:

Originally posted by Sigmund:

quote:

Originally posted by Todd Huffman:
I've been known to wash Solo cups and re-use them.

I'll reuse ziploc storage bags unless the mayo has leaked out of the sandwich.

I wash and re-use my Ziplocs, but only the heavy duty/ freezer ones. The sammich ones are one-use.

I'd wash Solo cups if I used them. I have a couple of "stadium cups" (basically thicker white cups the size of Solo cups) I use constantly.

quote:

Originally posted by doublesharp:
I super glue a piece of fishing line to a quarter so when I go to peep shows I can use the same quarter over and over.

I tried something like that at the topless joint, but the girls caught on and started tearing that corner off my dollar bills.

Where to start....