264th Edition of the Festival of Frugality

Welcome to the 264th edition of the Festival of Frugality. Being frugal does not necessarily mean being cheap, it just means that a person is trying to find the most economical way of spending money. There are some people that are fanatically living a frugal life. But sometimes people can go to the extreme and just become plain cheap. Which one are you? Below are the collection of articles about frugality and personal finance.

Editor’s Pick

• Leave Debt Behind.com presents Frugal Living Tips For A Debt Free Life posted at Leave Debt Behind saying “If you are in debt or just wanting to stay out of it, living a frugal simple life just may be the answer. Sometimes we forget that there was a time without cell phones and cable television. Here are ten great tips for those looking to live a frugal debt free lifestyle.”
• Linda@NHE presents What to do with a Lump Sum of Money posted at Christian Personal Finance. People with no knowledge of what to do with a new found wealth can easily blow their money away. I’ve watched documentaries of those people who lost their lottery winnings s in just a few short years or athletes and celebrities who became instant millionaires but filed for bankruptcy.
• Sun presents Resolve to Plan Meals to $ave posted at Earn More Invest Wisely at The Sun’s Financial Diary. My wife would love this article as she does this a lot: planning meals to save money and it does work!!
• Roshawn Watson presents What Are Your Financial Regrets? posted at Watson Inc. This is the one that I can relate to. I, too, have a lot of financial regrets and have wished that I can turn back time and reverse those decisions.

Frugal Shopping

Photo Credit: TShein

• PF presents How to contact a company and how to write or file a complaint posted at Life and Times Living with In-Laws saying “Though the overall theme of this is contacting a company to complain – it fits the overall theme as a method to get value from what you buy, and sampling/coupons.”
• FMF presents Free Money Finance: Buyer Beware—Are You Really Getting a Good Deal? posted at Free Money Finance saying “Are you really saving money or do you just think you are?”
• Missy Diaz presents Top 5 Mens Valentine Boxer Shorts posted at Hot Costumes Blog saying “Looking for low cost gift ideas for men this Valentines Day? Have a look at our top picks.”
• June Tree presents How Do Groupon Daily Deals Work? Where To Find One Day Deals posted at The Digerati Life saying “Save money while you shop? Check out social coupon sites like Groupon.”
• Barbara Jones presents Change of Address: 10 Reasons People Flock to the Flea Market posted at Change of Address.
• Fanny presents Get Free Stuff from Freecycle posted at Living Richly on a Budget saying “Some people still don’t know about Freecycle, which is a great way to pass on stuff you no longer use or pick up something you need without spending a dime! It’s also a great way to keep useable stuff out of landfills.”

Frugal Meals

• Sustainable PF presents Sustainability Tip#16: Frozen Produce (Not Fresh) in Winter posted at Sustainable Personal Finance saying “In many climates it is impossible to get truly fresh produce in the winter as most produce is shipped from warmer climates and is days old by the time it arrives to your grocer. Consider freezing fresh fruits and vegetables in the summer to retain nutrients and flavour!”
• Squirrelers presents Squirreling Gone Wild #20: Icing on the Birthday Cake posted at Squirrelers saying “It’s always nice to score a free restaurant meal for your birthday, and even better to get two!”
• Kay Lynn Akers presents My Top 10 Freezer Essentials posted at Bucksome Boomer saying “Stocking your freezer with the makings of dinner makes it easier to eat at home on those days you don’t plan.”
• Andy presents Eating out is for broke people posted at moneywalks.
• pfblogger presents Eating Out on a Budget posted at Personal Cents.
• Tim presents Make Starbucks Quality Lattes at Home – A Detailed How-To posted at Grow Rich Simply.
• Keith Howard presents 10 Advantages to Going to a Farmer’s Market posted at Lawn Care Services.

Frugal Budget

Photo credit: Nikkinoguer

• Jeff Rose, CFP presents Steps for Creating a New Budget for the New Year posted at Jeff Rose
• Stephanie Durant presents Can You Have Joy from Frugality? posted at Fru-girl in Chicago.
• Tom @ Canadian Finance Blog presents Money Saving Tips for College Students on a Budget posted at Canadian Finance Blog saying “Most college students try to live on a budget, however many fail to do so. Let’s look at some money saving tips for college students on a budget.”
• Chris Butterworth presents The $1000 challenge. Extreme frugal living ensues. posted at Dealerity saying “For the month of February, I’m challenging myself to only spend $1000! This is mainly a video blog post, but I think it will be of interest to readers of the carnival, since it’s already become my most commented post.”

Frugal Health And Fitness

Photo Credit: Barry Kusuma

• Miss T presents 8 Tips to Help You Stay Healthy and Fight Germs | Prairie EcoThrifter.com posted at Prairie Eco-Thrifter.
• Saymour Hodge presents How To Be Frugal: Fitness on a Budget posted at All Things Frugal saying “It can seem hard to stay physically fit when you don’t have money for gym memberships, in-home workout equipment, yoga classes, or a personal trainer.”
• MD presents Jersey Shore Life: The True Cost of GTL posted at studenomics.com saying ” A look at what a frugal person would have to spend if attempting to GTL.”

Debt Management

Photo credit: Debt Settlement Companies

• BWL presents Tips to Get Out of Christmas Debt posted at Christian Personal Finance.
• Tim Chen presents NerdWallet’s Best Rewards Card Roundup, Winter 2011 Edition posted at NerdWallet Blog – Credit Card Watch saying “At NerdWallet, we don’t believe that credit cards are one-size-fits-all. Even if a credit card advertises big rewards rates, signup bonuses, and bonus categories, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be able to take advantage of them.”
• Odysseas presents Five Ways You Can Turn Your Debt-inspired Frown Upside Down posted at Wallet Blog.
• Debt Free Divas presents Unleashing Your Inner DIVA posted at Debt Free Divas.

Taxes and Accounting

Photo Credit: BrianJMatis

• Flexo presents Tax-Free Distributions From Your IRA: Charitable Rollover posted at Consumerism Commentary.
• freefrombroke presents TurboTax Online Tax Software 2010 Review posted at Free From Broke saying “Using tax preparation software is a frugal way to make sure you are filing correctly. Here’s a review of one of the most popular packages – TurboTax.”
• Matthew Alberto presents Start Ups Need to Sort Out Their Bookkeeping posted at Matthew Alberto .com.
• Madeleine Begun Kane presents Taxing Verse posted at Mad Kane’s Humor Blog.

Others

• Little Miss Moneybags presents Dilemma posted at Little Miss Moneybags.
• Michael presents How To Loan an eBook With Your Amazon Kindle posted at The Dough Roller saying “Why pay for a eBook when you can borrow it from a friend? If you know someone that owns a Kindle, you’re made in the shade.”
• vh presents Darn It! How to repair a hole in your sock posted at Funny about Money saying “An old-fashioned way to squeeze some extra life out of a favorite of socks.”
• PT presents 10 of the Fastest Growing Careers in the U.S. posted at PTMoney saying “Get in on the ground floor with one of these careers, and know that you will be set for the next decade.”
• Save Few Bucks presents 7 Money Saving Tips to Save Money on Disneyland Vacation posted at Save Few Bucks.
• Mike @ jammer(six) presents How to Stop a Cold Draft Around Your Gas Fireplace posted at jammer(six).
• Robert presents 5 Ways Facebook is Costing You Money posted at The College Investor.
• Mama Squirrel presents Tightwad Gazette Revisited: Notebook of Frugal Triumphs…and blessings posted at Dewey’s Treehouse.

That is it for this week’s edition. Be sure to visit the Festival of Frugality home to read the past edition’s articles or if you are interested in submitting articles or hosting the festival in the future.