Don't "Starve" to Save!

Saving money can be like dieting. It's easy to become discouraged if you're constantly "doing without." But by using what I call my "80/50" rule, you can have almost all the pleasure of buying what you want, at a price you can still afford.

Let's say you see something you'd like to have, but really can't afford. Don't be like most people and whip out a credit card, paying an extra 18% for instant gratification. (And almost inevitably, subsequent regret!) Instead, ask yourself this question: "How can I obtain at least 80% of the pleasure of owning this, at 50% of the price?"

For example, when I built my house a few years ago, I decided I really wanted a round, glass-topped coffee table for the living room. I checked some stores and perused a few catalogs. The only table close to what I wanted cost $200.

I had a whole house to furnish. I was not going to pay $200 for a coffee table. So how could I get something that would be at least 80% of what I wanted, at 50% of the price?

I kept both my eyes and my mind open. A few weeks later I noticed a really ugly statue standing on a small plaster pedestal in a used furniture store. I had no use for the statue, but the pedestal had possibilities. Though chipped and scratched, it had a classical motif and was about the right size and height for a coffee table base. Could I just buy the pedestal without the statue?

"Sure," said the store owner, "Twenty-five dollars."

I took the pedestal home, sprayed it with a soft gold paint, used a little cinnamon-colored paint to "antique" it and had a very nice, classic base for my coffee table. A week later I found a heavy round piece of glass on sale at Pier One, reduced from $50 to $20. I bought a package of those little gel bubbles to keep the pedestal from scratching the underside of the glass, went home and put everything together and had my glass-topped coffee table.

It looks better than the one in the catalog. It cost less than $50. So I ended up with 110% of the pleasure, at 25% of the price. You think I feel deprived?

Use your brain instead of your checkbook or credit card. Are you going broke buying "convenience" foods, but don't have time to cook Monday through Friday? Don't skip lunch, or settle for endless drive-through burgers. Cook double amounts of your favorite foods on the weekends and freeze individual portions in reusable plastic containers. For almost no extra effort, you can still enjoy microwaveable meals at 50-70% less than the cost of typical, store-bought "convenience" food.

Need a lawn tractor (rototiller, leaf blower, utility trailer) but can't afford it? These are items you don't use every day or even every weekend, so why pay full price for something that will sit in your garage most of the time? Find a neighbor (or two) in the same situation and work out an agreement to buy and share!

Dying to practice your French, but can't afford to fly to Paris? Don't just sit at home. Find out how much a week in Quebec will cost! Love to sail and go water skiing, but can't swing a trip to the coast without going into debt? See if there's a lakefront resort that's closer, more affordable and just as much fun.

Hate the look of your ugly (but still sturdy) couch, but can't afford a new one? Check into the cost of slipcovers, or having the couch reupholstered. Can't afford new cabinets to update your kitchen? See if you can get close to the same effect by refacing your current cabinets and buying new knobs.

Do you have a time or money saving idea that wasn't included in this article? Please send it to tips @stretcher.com. We get the best ideas from our readers!

If you liked this article sign up for our free eNewsletter Surviving Tough Times Do it today and we'll give you our ebook featuring over 200 ways to save on groceries (a $19.95 value).

Follow The Dollar Stretcher on Twitter.

I Would like to:

• Read other articles on this topic
  
• See what else is in this issue
  
• Subscribe to "The Dollar Stretcher" free weekly email newsletter
  
• visit the Problem Solving Center
  
• visit the Reference Library
  
• browse the 'author' index
  
• search 'by date' index
  
• check out Past Issues of Newsletter
  
• go see 'What's New'
  
• "Can You Help This Reader?"
  
• drop by 'Tips, Quips & Quotes'
  
• send email to the Editor of "The Dollar Stretcher"