August Spending Hiatus - Weeks 3 & 4 and the Wrap- up

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It's been a blur these couple of weeks.  Plus with the hurricane, we stocked up on a lot of things we didn't have, so it's a strange week to wrap up a spending hiatus.  Overall, the month went really well.  I feel lighter (maybe because I worried less) and accomplished.  I'm finally in the habit of bringing breakfast and lunch to work every day.  Lesson learned - keep doing something for a month and it'll become your routine and much easier to continue to do. 
Michael and I also started using the slow cooker we bought and it's fabulous.  He gets the pork shoulder or butt, which is relatively inexpensive compared to other cuts, and pops it into the slow cooker for a few hours. A five pound cut can easily feed six people and we still had leftovers.  Last week I had pulled pork four meals in a row.  Try it, you'll love it.

Stuff sold at Crossroads Trading

This month, I didn't make any non-essential purchases either. No clothes, no shoes, no home goods.  That made a big difference too.



So what does this all mean...

GOALS: 
1.  Spend less (which also means save more)
2.  Eat healthier
3.  Conserve by reusing and recycling more.  (I didn't really talk about this during the month but it ended up being a nice by-product of the whole process)

RESULTS:
1.  The amount I saved equalled one student loan payment, about $300. Breakfast $3 per day + Lunch avg $8.50 per day = $230
Resold clothes and cellphone: $80
2.  I definitely have been eating better.  By bringing and preparing food from home, you can control the amount of sugar and processed foods you eat.  I've been having lots of oatmeal and whole grains.  Lots of veggies and fruits. 
3.  I actually don't know how conservation is connected to spending less money but somehow I've been really good about recycling and reusing stuff around the house this month.  I'll figure it out...

Not bad...

Spending Hiatus - Week 2

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Another week successfully bringing breakfast and lunch from home (for the most part).  Em bought me a can of Financier coffee (people actually read my blog!) which comes in the cutest tin can.  This baby will be properly reused after the coffee is all gone.  I've also been having Trader Joe's frozen pasta for lunch.  Affordable and delicious.  You can usually get two servings from each bag but lately I've been having the entire bag in one sitting.

My "bad" day was Tuesday. I was lazy in the morning and didn't prepare lunch.  Luckily, Cafe Metro had a 25% off discount if you ordered online (use the code 25OFF).  I had to buy but I bought it on sale.  Tuesday night I also went out with my neighbor Annie to trivia night at the Brooklyn Winery.  No discount on the wine or food but I did get the fig crostini that was to die for.  Roasted figs with honey, cheese and a balsamic reduction. 

M and I had to buy some toiletries and took advantage of CVS' coupons and sales, although one of the allergy medicine boxes we bought BOGO 50% off only had half the packs inside.  Not worth the sale!  This weekend we had a family BBQ so again we did big bags of food shopping, but for the most part, we cooked meals at home the rest of the weekend.  Otherwise, I'm feeling good.  I realized that even if I didn't freeze all spending, I'm taking baby steps with bringing breakfast and lunch to work, which will make that much of a difference.  On to the next week.... 

Spending Hiatus - Week 1

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I think I did pretty well for week 1.  This week was all about decreasing the number of times I went out to eat, and for the most part I was on track.

I brought breakfast and lunch from home every day during the work week.  I even got treated to lunch at Sushiden last Thursday.  Michael and I (to be completely correct, just Michael) cooked dinner during the week except for Thursday when Alysse and I grabbed dinner at Hummus Place before our (free) INXS concert.  I also had AMC coupons I bought ages ago through work that discounts movies at any AMC theater and I used them for movie night with the girls last week.

Unfortunately for this spending hiatus, this weekend made it difficult to stay on track since we had our anniversary dinner and had to prep for the birthday BBQ.  It's only once a year though so we went all out, and it was worth it!  Otherwise, no other shopping last week.  Back on course and will delete back next week.

August Spending Hiatus

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Ok, it's been awhile but I'm back.  Let's just say that life had to settle a bit in the last few weeks before I could be back on track. Yes, I'm totally being vague on purpose....

Anyway...

Spending hiatus - I haven't done one of these in awhile.  I think I've been doing ok with generally spending less although last month money seemed to be flowing out without any regard.  So to tighten the belt a little and to get into shape fiscally before the end of the summer, I'm putting myself on a one month spending hiatus.  Like the other ones I've done, it's not technically a complete freeze on spending, just a month of being mindful and trying to spend less - a lot less.  It's hard with birthdays, anniversaries and summer outings, but this can be a good test of living frugally.  Plus, I fit a few big ticket items in last week - haircut, baby shower gift, and new cellphone - so this month might be easier on the wallet.

Day 1 ($0):  I've been making coffee at home for the last few weeks and it's been working out really well.  Since I'm already preparing coffee, it makes it easier to also prepare breakfast and lunch for the day.  Quaker oatmeal and Daniva vanilla yogurt with granola have been my staples for the last few weeks. I also supermarket shopped this weekend for different lunch options so I'm trying to brown bag it for the rest if the week.  As for dinner, no big plans during the week do turkey burgers and sweet potatoes will do just fine.  I packed a lot of snacks for work too so foodwise, I'm good so far.

I also put a few things up on eBay that were worth selling.  My old cellphone and a few new, never-been-worn work items that have been sitting in my closet for way too long.  They'll only bring a few bucks in but it's nice to clean out my closet and earn a few $$. 

I'll keep you updated on my progress this month...

Spending Hiatus....Week Three

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Week three isn't going as well as the other two.  I went out for drinks with June last Saturday night at Press Lounge (the rooftop bar in the Ink48 Hotel) and my white sangria, although totally delicious with elderflower liqueur, was a hefty $16.  Oops!  Then I went shopping at Banana Republic.  To be fair though, I went during the 40% off pre-sale, got a price adjustment on Sunday when all the clothes when on an additional sale, and all the clothes were for work.  I know excuses, excuses.  The way i justify it...if i look better at work, they'll promote me and pay me more.  So far, I'm looking fabulous, still working on the second part. 

Then there were things that we had to spend...graduation gifts, Father's Day and Dad's birthday gift (gift certificate from Oriental Art Supply), cousin's daughter's birthday gift from Gap...

What I have been doing well on:  Cooking dinner and being great at bringing lunch to work.  No drycleaning.  No Starbucks.  Going to the gym and taking advantage of the extra classes (pilates, kickboxing and core conditioning).  As hubby always says, staying healthy is as good as gold.

My review on Press Lounge...LOVED IT!  Besides being all the way on 11th Ave and charging ridiculous expensive drinks, the place itself it beautiful.  There's an outside patio that wraps around the side of the hotel and it's loungey without being too crowded (although we were there early-ish at 8:30pm).  There's also an indoor bar area with fabulously tall ceilings to make the place feel even more open and loft-like.  If you go early it's great, but after 10pm, it'll get velvet-rope NYC on you...there was a line out the door when we left around 10:30, which is strange to see on 11th Avenue!

{photo by Ink48 on Zagat blog}

Spending Hiatus - Week Two

Pin It now! week two is going spendidly.  unfortunately i have nothing exciting to report except that i think i'm doing pretty well.  no new clothing purchases and no desire to buy.  you know, i sound like an shopaholic addict writing this.  weird!  maybe because i watched confessions of a shopaholic the other night.  very cute movie.

anyway, i'm hoping that my behavior changes and i get into the groove of spending less.  studies say that you have to do something repeatedly for three months in order for it to stick.  almost there...

Spending Hiatus - Week One

Pin It now! the first few days were difficult, but it's gotten much better. i think that changing my reasons for spending money and having to come up with a legitimate reason has helped get through the first week. rather than rationalizing "i really need it!" like i normally do, i've been trying to find alternatives. for example, i love starbucks (i know, i'm a boring broken record), but instead of buying $4 lattes, i bought a $2 box of swiss miss hot chocolate to get my sugary hot drink fix. i've also been drinking (free) flavia coffee at work instead of getting one in the morning from the aforementioned starbucks. for lunch, i've bought a big bag of spinach and lots of veggies to make my own salad, i've made extra portions for dinner so i can bring leftovers, and i've only eaten what i bought from the supermarket (chips, snacks, etc.). no extra purchases at work! i also rumaged through my parents' house to find stuff they didn't need anymore. i bought these gorgeous magazine binders from west elm a couple of weeks ago, but my dad had just as nice ones (although definitely not west elm) hidden in his basement office that still had tags on. the west elm ones have been returned and i'm saving some moolah by returning stuff too.

i went to target while i was home in nj this past weekend. you would be proud...all i bought was $2 box of cereal (i love nj - in the city it would have been $6!), birthday cards my mom asked for, and a big bottle of tide (again so much cheaper than in nyc).

being home this weekend also reminded me how fabulously frugal my mother is or rather, had to be. growing up i never knew most men drycleaned their work shirts. my mom always washed my dad's work shirts and every sunday night ironed each one. she really is amazing. so...i'm not drycleaning my stuff for awhile and i'm going to be ironing a lot more. convenience really does cost more, but working hard is still pretty amazing.

Spending Hiatus

Pin It now! joslyn at simply lovely has been going on a three month spending hiatus for the last two years. how smart and frugal! i love saving money and this is a great inspiration. it'll force me for a short period of time to really focus on what expenses are important (i'm guessing food!) and what are not (new bag!). joslyn did it on a much longer period and she has kids. i'm going to start with one month...and for me, this isn't a complete freeze on spending. it's just a spending freeze on non-essential things. my big thing is coffee so not going to go to starbucks is going to be fantastic on the wallet. i also have to say that hubby is not joining me on this month-long adventure.

it's going to be great though! i love how joslyn wanted a "consumption reset". she elegantly states that sometimes new things are unneccessary and we should appreciate what we already have. i sometimes feel by living in nyc, things are exaggerated and "unnecessary" things become "necessary". i really don't need a $4 cup of coffee every morning. i really don't need another $100 bag. it'll be nice to "reset" and maybe cook more.

day 1 begins now!