We still have a lot of cobblers here in New York/northern NJ. In the neighborhood I work in there’s one on every corner almost.There is, unfortunately, no such thing as a cobbler/shoe repair place here any more (and I used to take good shoes to be re-heeled/soled). Now i’m on my own.
Funny!We bought some deluxe paper napkins for a party, thick and quadruple folded. There are leftovers, never used. I’ve been unfolding them and cutting them along each fold to get four napkins out of one.
And now I’m ready to scream. This hack ain’t worth it.
YES. They don’t have all of them, but they do have common staples and others seasonally.
Kids. Lessons, teams, book fees, sports equipment, memberships (zoo/parks/etc), eat out treats, school supplies (latest is school requiring us to buy each one their own chromebook/laptop next year along with the expensive graphing calculator and book fees), and the ever ongoing “extra persons” charge for everything we do
(By extra person I refer to the fact that’s what affordable for a family of 3 or even 4, doesn’t work so well for families of 5 or 6 or more - ex. went canoeing - other families were able to do 1 canoe (3 people). We had to get 2 canoes and splurged for an extra kayak so we wouldn’t be too cramped. We’ve often had to take 2 vehicles to fit everyone when going somewhere. Stuff like that.) So I keep up my frugality in other things like using a prepaid flip-phone, going without cable, and picking the events that will give us the most “bang” for our buck when it comes to entertainment. ($50 year long pass to the state parks is my favorite - still have to pay the $18 to $30 to swim if we use the pool, but some have free beaches 
)Yes.
You’re right–they don’t have them all, but they do have a good supply of your common ones.
That’s a big frugality hack right there.This is perhaps a bit less of a frugality hack and more of a bang-for-your-buck hack, in that steak isn’t frugal.
DH and I love steak. **(The kids aren’t interested yet.) **We’ve recently been doing a thing where I’ll buy an economy-size pack of, say, T-bone steaks (nice flavor), and then freeze each one in a separate Ziploc bag. For a weekly “date night,” I’ll pull one steak out, defrost it, grill it, and then split it between us with accompanying fruit and veggies. Much, MUCH cheaper than eating out, of course, and also healthier in that the portions are far smaller than restaurant ones. Just do be sure to use them up fairly quickly, since as others have pointed out, it’s easy for food to get freezer-burned in a standard freezer.
(Before the true frugalistas here have heart attacks, I point out once again that I do know that this isn’t frugal per se, but on the other hand, paying about $3.50/serving for a steak dinner for two ain’t half bad as splurges go.)
This is perhaps a bit less of a frugality hack and more of a bang-for-your-buck hack, in that steak isn’t frugal.
DH and I love steak. (The kids aren’t interested yet.) We’ve recently been doing a thing where I’ll buy an economy-size pack of, say, T-bone steaks (nice flavor), and then freeze each one in a separate Ziploc bag. For a weekly “date night,” I’ll pull one steak out, defrost it, grill it, and then split it between us with accompanying fruit and veggies. Much, MUCH cheaper than eating out, of course, and also healthier in that the portions are far smaller than restaurant ones. Just do be sure to use them up fairly quickly, since as others have pointed out, it’s easy for food to get freezer-burned in a standard freezer.
(Before the true frugalistas here have heart attacks, I point out once again that I do know that this isn’t frugal per se, but on the other hand, paying about $3.50/serving for a steak dinner for two ain’t half bad as splurges go.)
I think it’s frugal! Like you say, it’s cheaper than eating out. I’m not a fan of steak, except for ribeye. I LOVE ribeye. So when it’s on sale - usually about half the regular price - I buy what I can afford & put them in the freezer. I think we all need treats once in a while, and ribeye is a lot more healthful than the carby things that tempt me.
Ha! True, that.
Speaking of freezing steak, I am a Cooks Illustrated subscriber and while most of their on-line offerings are only available to subscribers, I did find this YouTube video of how to cook a steak from frozen, you will get better results from that than defrosting the steak first.
I’ve had generic success with other non-perishable food items such as pasta as well.
If my maternal Gramma got tired of a face cream or a hand lotion or didn’t care for the scent of a hand lotion or a body lotion for the body, she would then use it as a foot cream.
I do that with lip balm. (Then it gets the skull and crossbones, ‘cause I ain’t never usin’ it on my mouth again).If my maternal Gramma got tired of a face cream or a hand lotion or didn’t care for the scent of a hand lotion or a body lotion for the body, she would then use it as a foot cream.
I’m not able to view the youtube - cheap isp - would it be ethical to copy & paste the text?
What a great idea! I don’t use lip balm very often so end up with dust-covered tubes. Instead of throwing it out, I’ll try it on my feet. They need all the help they can get!I do that with lip balm. (Then it gets the skull and crossbones, ‘cause I ain’t never usin’ it on my mouth again).