Otherwise known as a miscellany post!
$0.50 flowers. Yes, please.
When I was last at Aldi, I noticed that a shelf of plants had been marked down.
Waaaaay down.
As in, $0.50 for each hanging basket.
Now, they were looking unappealingly brown, dry, and neglected, but I figured that 50 cents wasn’t much of a gamble. So I brought two pots home, watered them, and they’re feeling much better now.
Pants, Swagbucks, and Ebates
Mr. FG’s work pants were wearing out recently, so I got him a couple of new pairs from L.L. Bean.
I like these pants because they require almost no ironing (unless you leave them crumpled up in a laundry basket under other clothes for days like I do every now and then. Ahem.) and because they last quite a long time.
Fortunately, I remembered that Swagbucks now offers L.L. Bean gift cards, so I redeemed my points for one of those.
Aaand, once I got my gift card, I remembered to sign into Ebates before making my purchase, so I got a few dollars in cash back rewards. Schweet.
Not Buying Things is my preferred method of saving money, of course, but when I have to part with my moola, I do like me some discounts.
The Freecycle Circle
Want to know something?
Lisey’s first bike came from the trash. I didn’t rescue it-a fellow freecycler did, and then offered it on freecycle, where we snagged it. A perfectly good bike, and someone was going to throw it away. I just don’t understand that!
We’ve used that bike ever since (with three girls in the family, it wasn’t going to collect dust!), and now we’re at the stage where we don’t need it.
The little pink bike clearly still had plenty of miles left before it needed to be retired, though. So, back onto freecycle it went, and now it’s living with another family, where it’ll hopefully be well-used.
Maybe it’s silly to be so happy about this, but I just love that something that was saved from the garbage is still being used.
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Joshua’s 365 post: Shades
jennifer
Sunday 7th of October 2012
I've just found your blog and we are one of the same...I too love to live frugally (and cheerfully) and have my entire life. I've only read a few posts thus far, but plan to read and follow more...freecycle is a wonderful resource. I have a fabulous 'free' resource in my town - the town transfer station. They have what I call the 'freebie barn' - it's a place where residents leave unwanted (but good) items for others to take, for free. When you tire of them, bring them back and allow another to use...recycling at its' best! I've found some incredible things this way - furniture, dishes, cookware, boots, jackets, toys, tools, rugs, glassware, the list goes on and on. I even blog about my finds and the simple things I do to live well on less - I too hope to inspire... Many towns in New England offer such places/areas at their transfer stations, but unfortunately, many do not - if only every town/city could have such a place - how lucky we would all be? Even the planet - all the stuff being 'given' away, is not ending up in the landfills...plus, what a great feeling to not consume. Freecycle is a fabulous option to anyone not lucky enough to have a town 'freebie barn'. All the best to you and your family and I look forward to reading more from you!
Victoria@Snailpacetransformations
Thursday 27th of September 2012
I wish our community had a more active freecycle page. I love this time of year for picking up plants. There was not money in the budget this year but in past years I have gone to our local home improvement center and picked up perennial's for $1 to $2 a piece that were once as much as $20 in the spring. It is a bit of a gamble but I usually get around 80% of them to survive over the winter. What helps is the long warm fall we have where I live, I think it lets them get their roots established a bit before winter.
Michelle H.
Wednesday 26th of September 2012
Love the full-circle tale of the bicycle. We have a "rocking fish" (instead of horse) that was trash-picked from the neighbor's curb a few years ago. One day another neighbor was over for a visit, and her teenage daughter jumped on it and said it was just like the one she had when she was a little girl. Turns out they had given it to the same neighbors we trash picked it from! Hoping to keep it moving thru the neighborhood when my kids outgrow it in a few years.
Economiesofkale
Wednesday 26th of September 2012
Freecycle was amazing when I first moved to this city with very little stuff. Unfortunately now that I live with Mr Omnivore we have way too much stuff, so I unsubscribed to the mailing list, although we should probably list some stuff...
My mum has also had success with giving things away for free on gumtree, and says it's easier to use than freecycle.
Rochelle
Wednesday 26th of September 2012
Pants that don't have to be ironed?! Be still my heart. Could you possibly tell me exactly which pants you get him. Perhaps a link? Please? Thank you so much!
Kristen
Wednesday 26th of September 2012
Sure! These wrinkle-resistant chinos are the ones we normally buy. There are a lot of different styles too, if your guy prefer pleats or a slimmer cut or a bit of elastic in the waist.