Easy Money-Saving Tips for the New Year

You know the feeling. It may not happen often, but when it does… You’re in the dressing room of your favorite boutique, falling in major lust with a pair of jeans that were made for your body. Despite the shop’s terrible fluorescent lighting and 8-way mirrors, you have been instantly transformed into a sexier, fitter, smarter W-O-M-A-N.

The only thing standing between you and this slice of denim heaven is the hefty price tag, so you make a quick pact with the shopping gods that you’ll be a good girl for the rest of the month. As you make your way to the register and brace yourself for the final total, the associate informs you that– bazinga! – the jeans are actually 50% off the regular price. WAHOO!

I hate to think of myself as a cheapskate (I prefer ‘cost conscious’ thank you very much) but with a little patience, it’s fairly easy to save money and snag discounts on a regular basis.

I’m not a finance guru or expert, but if one of your resolutions is to save $$ in 2011, then here’s hoping that just one of these “everyday” pointers will prove useful to you. And since I’m always open to new ideas, I’d love to hear some of your tips as well.

Sign up for email alerts to free websites like Groupon, Deal On and Half Off Depot. Seriously, I can’t remember the last time I paid full price for a manicure, pizza or oil change.

The great thing about running and walking? OK – two great things. It’s good for you and doesn’t cost a cent. If outdoor cardio isn’t your thing, now is the time to “gym shop” for the best deal around. It’s the New Year, which means every gym, fitness center, personal trainer, and boot camp on the planet is slicing and dicing prices so be sure to take advantage of those waived fees and discounted memberships.

I pay approximately six dollars each month to color my hair. (Yes, from a box. Yes, it looks more than acceptable.) I strategically wait for Walgreens or CVS to advertise my favorite shade of L’Oreal on sale and then piggyback it with a two dollar coupon from the Sunday paper. Bam. Six bucks, ten minutes and zero grays later, I’m happy as a clam.

To save on gas, I avoid any unnecessary ‘single’ trips. Instead of going grocery shopping on Monday, hitting the drugstore on Tuesday, and the dry cleaners on Wednesday, I plan my trips back-to-back in one day if possible.

As a writer, it’s necessary for me to read. A lot. Although my small mailbox fills up quickly with magazines, I save lots of cash each year by subscribing versus paying per issue at the local newsstand. $12 for twelve issues or $4.99 for one. I am so not a numbers person, but even I can do the math on that one.

And speaking of reading… As a self-professed book nerd, 90% of the books I devour are on loan from my local library. The other 10% are purchased from the ‘used’ section of amazon.com for a fraction of the cover price. $24.95 for the latest James Patterson? Never again.

I used to be a full-fledged cosmetics and shampoo junkie. I’d scour the aisles of department stores and beauty supply shops and fill up a cart (or two) with pretty packages promising to fatten my hair, lashes and lips. Years later, I discovered that not all expensive products are created equal and in fact, there are many “under $5” products that work as well as their salon-brand counterparts. Granted, there are a few items that I continue to splurge on (foundation for example), but there are a lot more that I save on. So until Chanel signs me up as their next spokesmodel, I’ll stick with mascara and lipgloss from my local drugstore.

I used to pay $4.95 per movie rental at Blockbuster. I then switched to a $14.97 per month Netflix plan that allowed me to rent an unlimited number of movies. Life got busy and I was lucky if I had time to enjoy one flick a week. Enter Redbox. At $1.00 per rental, I’m spending less than five dollars a month on movies, popcorn not included. And THAT is what I call a bargain.

Happy 2011 – may your year be filled with lots of smiles, laughter, happiness and money in the bank!

Susan Gernhart is a regular contributor to Girls Just Wanna Have Funds. Check back regularly for her fresh perspective on personal finance

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SusanGernhartSusan is a regular contributor to Girls Just Wanna Have Funds. A native New Yorker who has spent most of her career in sports & entertainment marketing, Susan moved to Tampa in mid-2008 and began working for the nonprofit sector. In October 2010, she made one of the best decisions of her life when she transitioned to a very fulfilling full-time freelance writing career.View all posts by SusanGernhart →

Priya

Great tips! but I must say i spent a lot of money on “deals” from groupon and living social in 2011 on things that I probably didn’t need in the first place. it’s addicting. “50% off? No way! let me get three…. “
http://money-saving-ways.blogspot.com/ mike

Walking is also the best free exercise you can get.
ceecee

A couple of ways I've been able to reduce spending is by making my own coffee and espresso drinks. They're easier than you think to make and much cheaper. Also I stopped subscribing to cable television/fios/satellite. I now watch what I want to watch exclusively on the internet, through netflix, or through hulu plus (which by the way has some terrific original programming for only $7.99/month). That alone has saved me more than $150 a month. I miss HBO and Showtime because there is no way to subscribe to them online but it's just not worth the cable fees so I'll wait for the seasons of my favorite shows to come out on DVD or for HBO and Showtime to get with the program and provide a way to subscribe online. Those two things alone have saved me more than $200 a month.
h2ofilters

You can have baby-step savings by simply filtering your own water instead of bottled water. Get a low cost Pur or Brita filter which can stretch your grocery expenses. If you are planning to organize a picnic or a backyard barbeque, use a cooler pitcher filter instead of packs of bottled water. The savings will be huge on the long run.
http://onenewvoice.blogspot.com One New Voice

Go to the dollar store or any place that you can buy four piggy banks. Also buy some labels and mark them 1. Savings 2. Debt 3. Investing 4. Discretionary. Put the labels on the piggy banks and put the piggy banks in a place that you are going to see them every single day. You are going to place as much money equally in each piggy bank that you can each day for the rest of your life. Yes, it is a commitment, but becoming rich is a choice not a chance occurrence.

This is the hard part. You must put money into your piggy banks each day. The amount is not really important. The key is that at the end of every month, you take the money you have put in your piggy banks and use them for the intended purpose on your labels. Is it that easy? Yes it is. You may say "That can't make me rich, how could I ever save enough money each month?" We will talk about what to invest in later in this blog, the key is to begin using your piggy banks now. It is the day after day habit of saving to invest that you want to create. You are also doing some smart things… onenewvoice.blogspot.com
kimberlygomez83

Got an easy one, if you are willing to make a change and do some research – prepaid cell phones. Don't laugh – the deals really do seem and are that good. I'm not talking about Boost or Metro PCS or any other high profile company. I'm referring to lesser known companies who tend to ahve a similair deal, but offer other perks that make them a possibly better choice. I had to do loads of comparisons before I found a Walmart sold brand called Straight Talk and I wasn't really sold on a Walmart company in terms of quality – I did like their Verizon/ATT powered network. I say don't judge a cell phone by its store since ST has been a very big money saver for me versus what I was spending with overages – its $45 for unlimited versus my old $108 to $110 depending for 750 minutes and unlimited texting. I haven't been with ST long enough to really feel the savings, but I know in a few months there will be a much bigger difference to me.
https://www.emigrantdirect.com/EmigrantDirectWeb/index.jsp Derek Holland

While savings money is great, doing something with the money you save is even more important. By opening up a high interest savings account that is FDIC insured and that you can take money out of if you need it (what if those jeans aren't 50% off) can be a great way to increase funds down the line. Try banks like https://www.emigrantdirect.com/
Lisa

Great post. For a quick guide to setting financial goals that are achievable have a look at http://blog.heaps.co.nz/how-to/financial-new-year… i hope you find the information useful.
Ginger

This is great information to have! I feel your pain since I go through the same thing with our vet. For us it is usually $150 after the appt fee and prescriptions ugh