Since moving on my own, I have found it a necessity to save as much money as possible. Although many may consider it a hassle to cut coupons, bargain shop, and read money saving books, I sometimes find it exciting (lame I know). The BF bought a book on how to be rich by the age of thirty. Since he took some interest in this type of literature, I sometimes surf the net and read articles on related topics. Although I am not sure if we will be rich by the age of thirty, I still think it's necessary to save money as much as possible. I found an interesting article on Yahoo that discusses a few items we shouldn't waste money on. I have found that I am guilty at some, but I was surprised it was only a few. Here is what the article suggests what you shouldn't spend your money on:
1. Air fresheners- it says that they do more harm then anything. They release harmful chemicals into home, so it's better to skip them. It says to open windows and allow the fresh air to clear the odor. I personally think that candles work wonders. You can find great smelling candles at a variety of stores for an affordable price. The best thing about candles is that they last for awhile and always make a room look so elegant!
2. Bottled water- this is what I am guilty of. I find it much easier to grab bottled water rather than go to find a clean water bottle, fill it up with both ice and water, and most of the time we don't even have ice made haha. I just wait for the 24 packs of water to go on sale. I also did buy a cute pink water bottle (at the dollar store) that i do fill up when I am not going to be gone for too long. I feel that both of these work well.
3. Dryer sheets- I just started buying these, so I had no idea that they really are not necessary. This is another item that the article suggestions that causes more harm than anything to us. Instead, the article suggests to find an essential oil and a piece of cloth and spray the oil on the cloth and use that for a fragrance on clothes. I'd rather just not do anything and hope that my laundry detergent is doing its job.
4. DVDs and books- This I am not really guilty of. The article suggests to use the library as much as possible. It also says to use the Internet as much as possible to download music and other sources of entertainment. I find that switching books with people that already have them, or going to the half price book store work as well. This way, you don't have to worry about due dates and what not. However, the library is def. always a handy tool. Also, there are many places that sell used DVDs. I recently have bought a few of my favorite movies (newer releases too) for under ten dollars at these particular store. I was very happy!
5. Trash bags- This is something I do as well. The aricle suggests just to use trashbags when necessary because there is no real way to get rid of them completely. Instead, using bags that you get at the store also can be used as the same purpose. This is what I do for smaller trash cans, but the kitchen trash can, I don't think I can do without one. I do use the garbage despossal as much as possible though. This elminates trash, which in the long run eliminates bags.
6. Wrapping paper- I found this one to be a little difficult. They suggest using children's art, newspapers, paper bags, etc. instead of wrapping paper. I think that I have found a better solution. Call me cheap if you want, but whenever I receive a gift bag (a deccent looking one) I keep it and they always come in handy.
These things are what the article suggests that people can do to save money. I have added some of my own thoughts that I think are benefical as well. I hope this helps, and if it does, I hope I at least enouraged you to find fun in saving money!
