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Extreme (Maybe Even Dumb) Ways to Save Money
By JLP | August 13, 2008
Kimberly Palmer over at U.S. News & World Report has written an article titled 9 Extreme Ways to Save. I’m sorry but some of these ideas I would never do. For instance:
Bake cookies in my car. I would rather not bake cookies or wait until winter and the oven’s heat could help heat the house.
Turn your car off while it’s still moving. Keep in mind that you’ll lose your power steering when you do this little trick. I just don’t see how saving “a couple of dollars a month” is worth it. But, as the title of Kimberly’s article suggests, these are “extreme ways to save.”
Here’s my extreme way to save:
Don’t buy shaving cream! I use IVORY Bar soap as my shaving cream. I used to buy shaving cream all the time and then one day I was completely out and still needed to shave. So, I grabbed a bar of IVORY and made a nice lather, wiped in on my face, and shaved. IT WORKED! I haven’t bought shaving cream in over a year! Best of all, I can buy a 12 pack of big IVORY bars for about $3.79, which works out to about $.34 per bar (a bottle of shaving cream can cost as much as $4 and only lasts about a month).
I have also stopped buying shower gel. It’s just a waste of money! I get out of the shower and put on Eternity anyway so the shower gel perfume is useless to me. In place of shower gel, I use IVORY.
Between these two things, I estimate I can save $70 per year, per person (I doubt my wife will go this extreme with me).
Topics: Budgeting | 14 Comments »
August 13th, 2008 at 11:18 am
If you waste time on these shenanigans, you’re confusing actions with results. Saving $50 per year is not worth these absurd actions. If you’re already focused on saving money (a great thing!), why not focus on earning more and cutting costs on unnecessary stuff?
And when it comes to cutting costs, focus on the important and ignore the inane. I pick 1-2 problem areas (e.g., eating out) and focus on cutting them down by 10%, then 20%, and so on. If I can cut $100/month off my eating-out bill, that’s better than eeking out $20/year doing 10 assorted crazy things.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:34 am
I can never understand the stories I hear about people doing crazy things to save like baking cookies in a car, making your own cleaning supplies, and so on.
People will go to all sorts of trouble to save a couple dollars, when they could apply themselves to try and make a few extra dollars even easier.
If most of these people put half as much energy into earning money as they did in trying to shave a few pennies, they would be much better off.
But that’s just me.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:58 am
$4 for shaving cream? Last time I bought shaving cream it was $1. Now that same bottle is less then $1.50.
But it’s been about two years since I bought shaving cream…as I shave much of the time without cream or soap.
August 13th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Prince,
I was going off my memory when I said $4 for shaving cream. Keep in mind, I haven’t bought shaving cream in over a year so I realy don’t know how much it is. I just was taking a stab in the dark. Regardless, I’m still saving money.
August 13th, 2008 at 12:09 pm
I like liquid handsoap that you put in a dispenser. The refills are pretty expensive, so I buy Crystal White Octagon dish soap – the cheap stuff that isn’t very good for washing dishes – and find that it’s just fine for handsoap and a lot cheaper.
August 13th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
I shave 3-4 times a week…I use Geo F Trumper shaving cream. It’s about $25-30 a tub, but they last a super long time if you use a shaving brush. I bought my first tub about 2 years ago and am just about to run out now…but I can probably still get 10-15 shaves with what’s left. I really like their scents. I started with Coconut and then recently bought Lavender when I saw the Coconut running low.
August 13th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
I reuse bags, make some of my own cleaning supplies (white vinegar, Mrs. Meyers’ scrub and concentrated liquid, and castile soap clean just about every surface), and don’t drink soda, but I’m not going to bake cookies in the car or turn the car off in operation.
Here’s my silly idea for extreme frugal entertainment: Sit in the dark in the nude (to save energy on lighting and air conditioning), read a library book by candlelight, using candles homemade with recycled crayons and my own ear wax!
August 13th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
what? Shaving cream only lasting a month? I have 3-4 times a week and I recently had to buy a single can of shaving cream for the first time in 2 years 9 months (I keep the receipts because I was amazed at how long it lasts to prove to my wife she didn’t need to buy the 2 pack).
August 13th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Preston -
I have to agree with you. The Barbasol (and the personal care) brand(s) lasted me longer then a month, when I used the cans more regularly.
I have seen brands that charge upwards of 2,3 or 4 dollars, but I always avoided them like the plaque.
August 13th, 2008 at 10:38 pm
You could always play The Drugstore Game and get shaving cream for free – and toothpaste, toothbrushes, body wash, shampoo, conditioner, etc. Today I got Diet Coke, sunscreen, and baby wipes for free
The thing about baking cookies in the car – I might try it as a fun science experiment when my kids are a little older. The original article I read about this featured a woman who baked the cookies while she was at work – the whole office then got to enjoy them. I thought it was kinda nice, actually.
August 14th, 2008 at 9:42 pm
I don’t even use shaving cream. I shave in the shower and still use the razor about a month. You just get used to it.
August 14th, 2008 at 10:27 pm
getting four wives would probably save most ….
August 15th, 2008 at 12:54 am
JLP- you could save the most money by axing the Eternity and just using the ivory soap on your pits. Even if you use the shower gel it’s cheaper.
August 15th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
I prefer to skip the baking cookies in the car, but have to admit that might be a fun science experiment with my kids. (ok, I’m a science geek)
I do like liquid soap though. It can be expensive at $5 a bottle. I make my own with 1 bar of Dove that I grate, 3 cups very hot water and mix it in the mixer. It thickens as it cools and I pour it in the old bottle.