You will often hear frugal people say that they feel like they were “born frugal.” I can understand that mindset because you naturally gravitate toward seeking an alternative, less expensive (if not FREE) option to nearly everything presented to you. Frugal people tend not to settle for the first price, the most convenient option, or the thoughtless, quick solution. Frugal people tend to weigh their options more heavily on the idea that if they spend a little more time discerning options now, they can save more later.

I’ll give you an example that is VERY frugal-minded. My husband and I have an ongoing debate: do we purchase TOP RAMEN noodles or MARUCHAN? (When you know, you know). My husband swears that there is a difference in taste. My thought process is that MSG is MSG. But I tend to “win” because I can’t justify buying only four packs of crap noodles instead of five. That’s a frugal mindset. Because if I make the decision to do the math now, it might seem like I wasted twenty minutes arguing in the noodle aisle, fighting over 29 cent noodles versus 39 cent noodles. But if we decide we are a MARUCHAN family after that day, think about the money we will save taking the guess-work out of it for years to come (assuming that we will continue to eat these noodles forever).

Let me break it down for you:

Let’s pretend that Maruchan noodles will stay at 29 cents per packet for the next ten years and Top Ramen will stay at 39 cents per packet.

Let’s imagine that we purchase 5 of these every single week.

Maruchan: $0.29 x 5 = $1.45 per week; $1.45 x 52 weeks per year = $75.40; $75.40 x 10 years of eating Maruchan noodles = $754.00

Top Ramen: $0.39 x 5 = $1.95 per week; $1.95 x 52 weeks per year = $101.40; $101.40 x 10 years of eating Top Ramen noodles = $1,014.00

difference between the two over the course of ten years: $260.00

Now, I know that seems miniscule and nit-picky over the course of ten years. To the non-frugal readers out there, it seems crazy. But to the naturally frugal readers out there, it makes complete sense.

Because it isn’t limited to Ramen noodles. It comes down to laundry soap. and dish detergent. And the shoes you wear. And the cars you drive. It all adds up when it comes to mindset.

I’m not preaching that being frugal means you have to overthink every single decision you make. But if you are not naturally frugal and want to grow to become more frugal, I am trying to paint a picture for you and provide you with not only how we think but why we think what we think.

Because to one person, $260 is not much of a difference in ten years. But to me, it’s an overnight hotel stay with my husband for a surprise getaway. It’s the cost of baseball equipment for one of my sons. It’s a month of piano lessons for my daughters. It’s four weeks of gasoline in my car. Again, these dollars and cents add up over time.

So back to my article: if you are new to this journey, what are some things I would recommend to start? What do I avoid buying in order to save hundreds?

1. SODA. To be frank, we mostly drink water and don’t even buy juice. My husband and I enjoy a coffee date every morning and I enjoy a cold beer at the end of a workday, but we don’t have beverages that “quench our thirst” other than water. It can be a hard habit to break, but it’s healthier and cheaper!
   
2. PAPER TOWELS. I have always loved the way cloth napkins look. They look cozier, they’re softer, and they save me from feeling paralyzed when we “run out of paper towels” and it feels like everyone has suddenly forgotten how to solve problem of drying their hands. Paper towels are quite expensive and it feels good to save at least $20 each month. It might not seem like a lot, but when your grocery bill goes from $119 to $99, it can feel gratifying to say, “I spent under $100 at the grocery store!”
   
3. FAST FOOD. As a family of six, we broke up with fast food a long time ago. Gone are the days of frustratingly waiting in a long line, receiving sub-par customer service from staff who wish they were anywhere else but working, and then suffering what should be unsurprising disappointment in the poor quality of food. It helps that we have an air fryer, which I will reference quite frequently on this blog. But all that to say, I refuse to spend $40-$60 every time I get food through a drive-thru. If I’m going to eat cheap, quick, hot junk, I can spend much less than I would at a fast food restaurant.
   
4. PRODUCE THAT IS NOT IN SEASON. Who doesn’t love a good strawberry? But frugal people know that December is not the time to buy them. Even if you live in Southern California, they don’t taste as good as they do in July. We try to stick to fruits and vegetables that are in season, which are very apparent by their sale price. You can always depend on produce and perishables to tell you about true, natural supply and demand. We do, however, love to get our produce frozen since we add it to soups and stews all year long. But when it comes to fresh fruit and vegetables, my frugal mindset still stands.
   
5. NEW CLOTHES. I have always loved thrift stores, even as a child. I loved finding treasures with my mother when we visited our local Salvation Army or Goodwill. Now that I have four children to clothe and they grow so quickly, it feels even more important to make wise decisions when it comes to clothing. I have noticed that some clothing is cuter and higher in quality than others. But hand-me-downs and thrift store clothing is just as good. And as long as my children look clean and show good manners, everyone thinks they look great. I noticed that even when I buy a 50 cent tie and a $1.00 collared shirt, my boys look sharp. Friends have given me their daughters’ Christmas and Easter dresses that were only worn once, and my girls wear them everywhere, from Sunday Mass in the middle of September to a muddy playdate in the middle of the woods.
   
   I also enjoy buying thrifted clothing for myself because I enjoy the challenge of looking chic while wearing something that wasn’t “chosen” for me on a mannequin at Target. From wild floral polyester dresses from the 80s to 100% silk blouses from the 70s, I have found pieces at thrift stores that dull in comparison to anything new I have found today.
   
6. TOYS. I have felt strongly about what kind of “toy mom” I was going to be, even before I became a mother. And I have known that the fewer toys my children have, the more creatively they play. I also feel more sane when they have fewer toys because I am not drowning in them. Instead, I like to “let go” a little and I don’t express any opinions when the grandparents purchase my children toys for birthdays and holidays. My husband and I decided that these would be the two times each year when we would let new toys come into the house. Sure, we have a few exceptions, like family board games and LEGO sets that we geeked over. But as a rule, we don’t buy toys.
   
7. BOOKS. I love books. ABSOLUTELY LOVE THEM. I have always been a reader. And I always will be. And all four of my children love books. But I should tell you that if you don’t already know, I am a librarian. So I advocate for borrowing books from the local library and returning them once they have been enjoyed. I can’t say that I never buy books because there are some books that I purchase for homeschool, board books that are chewed on by my babies, and cookbooks that will inevitably get food splatter on them. But again, as a rule, I don’t buy books. I don’t search a title on Amazon and “one-click” the item. I check my local library’s catalog to see if it’s available.
   
8. HOLIDAY DECOR. While I love to celebrate with my family, I try to find natural decor that fits the season instead of buying holiday-specific decorations. For instance, I am more likely to buy pumpkins and gourds in autumn or bring in pinecones from outside instead of purchasing a plastic sign with a vampire and goblin that says, “Happy Halloween!” When I do this, I don’t have to store a bunch of decorations. I can simply compost or cook the natural items when the season passes.
   
9. ALL NAME-BRAND ITEMS. Yes, I have bought the generic Dawn dish soap and everything turned out okay. No, I don’t always buy Tide laundry detergent. Yes, I can sometimes taste and tell the difference. No, sometimes I can’t taste or tell the difference. But I try to be open-minded to see how much I liked or disliked the store-brand version. As you might have heard, it is often the case that the store-brand version of items have the exact same ingredients as its name-brand counterpart (and sometimes, the two are manufactured in the exact same place!). I like to pretend that this is always the case, which motivates me to frequently purchase the store-brand or off-brand option. I know that there are some products that truly outshine any competitor, but I am mostly here to say that it is okay to not be loyal to any and every brand. Our great-great-great-great grandmothers didn’t have nearly as many “options” as we do today, and they did just fine.
   
10. NEW FURNITURE. I love antique and thrifted furniture. I have not only loved the look, but the quality. I enjoy most styles that fall under this umbrella: antique, shabby chic, industrial, hand-carved, handmade, etc. In the past ten years, I have found new furniture to be unremarkable because, at risk of sounding cliche, they just don’t make things like they used to. I will always try Facebook marketplace, a thrift store, or a curb before I check any online store.

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I can imagine that this either intrigued, inspired, or triggered readers. My intention was not to pass judgment on anyone who purchases these items. But if you are racking your brain trying to figure out how to make your dollars stretch further, it can be helpful to feel like a friend is telling you what you probably don’t want to hear, but you know you needed to hear.

Even if it is a hard adjustment, it is a worthwhile adjustment. Some of these changes will be harder than others, like breaking a habit or shifting your mindset to think that “used” clothing isn’t gross. But some of them will be no-brainers, like purchasing a high-quality wooden dining table for a tenth of the cost you would have purchased brand new.

What are some items you don’t buy to save money?