7 Interesting Frugal Hacks Everyone Should Know in 2024
Written by
Cynthia Measom
Edited by
Carly Brashears
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If you consider yourself a pretty frugal person, you may wonder whether you can save even more. Well, you probably can. All you need are some new ideas.
Thousands of savers looks to Amy at the YouTube channel “Frugal Over Fifty” for tips on stepping up their frugality. Here’s why she says you should ditch the bath mat, as well as a few more top frugal hacks.
Use a Towel Instead of a Bath Mat
Amy said she’s used a towel instead of a bath mat for years because she thinks they smell bad, wear out really fast and are hard to keep clean.
“I have always grabbed a hand towel — one of those short rectangular towels — and just put it next to my shower [or] next to my bathtub wherever I live,” she said.
Amy said some people might think that it’s weird that she doesn’t have a bath mat, but the towel is absorbent and she can easily wash it whenever she wants.
Use a Hand-Me-Downs or Things Left Behind
If you move into a new place and the former tenant left some useful things behind, consider using them. For instance, It’s easy to spend $10 on a shower curtain, and some shower curtains are much more expensive.
Amy didn’t spend any money on her current shower curtain. She said it was a hand-me-down when she moved into her current place. She said the curtain was much too long but she decided she would use it temporarily.
“And then I found a way to have it cuffed so that it looks like a sewn cuff on a pair of pants,” she said. “I love the detailing on it!”
Don’t Discount Cheap Appliances
Sometimes buying cheap appliances means they won’t last as long, but sometimes, you can get a great deal on an appliance that will work great for years to come. “I bought a cheap espresso machine — and I mean for an espresso machine, really cheap,” Amy said. “It might have been $50. It might have been a little cheaper; I can’t remember exactly; I’ve had it for a few months and it works great. It makes a beautiful cup of coffee that gives a nice tip-of-the-hat to espresso.”
Amy said that she had an espresso machine before she moved that was much nicer, but she left it behind. Instead of buying the same or similar machine once she realized she wanted to be able to make coffee at home, she found the cheap Mr. Coffee espresso machine at Target.
Opt for Free and Thrifted Furniture
“One of the free things that I found is the office chair that I sit in in order to edit videos for you folks,” said Amy. “This was available free in my neighborhood, and it didn’t exactly work because one side sank down.”
Amy said she was in the process of trying to find a screw that she could put in to straighten the chair but then came up with an idea. “I ended up grabbing an Allen wrench that I had used to assemble some flat pack furniture and sticking it into the spot where the screw would go,” she shared. “It worked just fine, so I haven’t changed it.”
Amy said she also found a free Shaker-style hope chest that’s 100% wood and has a lot of storage inside. She also said she paid between $50-$100 for a 100% thrifted nightstand that she is absolutely delighted with.
Opt for Thrifted Holiday Decor
Amy said that she just realized that it’s possible to find thrifted holiday decor of really good quality that people donated after using it just a time or two.
“I get it for a quarter of the price of the original, and where I live right now this seems very weird to me, which is why I included it,” she said.
She said she’s found Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday decor, and she doesn’t think she will ever have to buy new holiday decor again.
“Usually, it’s better quality than a lot of things you get at the store because if somebody donates something and it’s in good shape, it means that it was good enough quality for them to use it and then to donate it,” Amy said.
Be Willing To Substitute Items for the Real Thing
Amy shared that someone loaned her an outdoor plastic table with a tablecloth that she uses as a temporary dining table.
“It’s just one of those outdoor plastic tables that people use as a multi-purpose sort of a thing you can put it up and take it down,” she said.
She said she uses the table as a surface to edit videos and use her sewing machine.
“I have to say I really love it because it takes the pressure off of me to just find a dining table that I really like,” she said. “I actually really enjoy having this low-pressure setup that works really well. It’s fully functional for all of the things that I want it to function for, and honestly, it looks just fine in the house.”
Be Willing To Have Non-Matching Towels
“I have always been very much of a coordinated matchy-matchy towel girl … and I would have in one bathroom, towels of a certain color — in another bathroom towels of a different color, and that has all changed since I’ve moved,” said Amy.
Amy said that even though she budgeted to buy new towels when she moved, she received a gift of used towels that are in good shape but none of them match or coordinate. However, she said she’s strangely OK with it and isn’t in a hurry to buy new ones.
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