Leah Ingram - Suddenly Frugal: How to Live Happier and Healthier for Less

suddenly
FRUGAL

HOW TO LIVE HAPPIER & HEALTHIER FOR LESS

LEAH INGRAM

Copyright 2010 by Leah Ingram
All rights reserved.

This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any
form without permission from the publisher; exceptions are
made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

Published by
Adams Media, a division of F+W Media, Inc.
57 Littlefield Street, Avon, MA 02322. U.S.A.
www.adamsmedia.com

ISBN 10: 1-4405-0182-3
ISBN 13: 978-1-4405-0182-1
eISBN: 978-1-4405-1293-3

Printed in the United States of America.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
is available from the publisher.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought.

From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the
American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers and Associations

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their product are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Adams Media was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

All savings listed herein are estimations and will vary depending on many factors including location, lifestyle, and the types of appliances/equipment you own. Before implementing any of the suggestions given in this book, please consult owners manuals, instructions, and warranties for your particular items to ensure that no advice in this book would be contrary to the manufacturers instruction. The author and publisher disclaim any liability of any kind arising directly or indirectly from the use of this book.

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table of
CONTENTS

chapter one
REBOOTING YOUR DAILY ROUTINES

chapter two
SHIFTING HOW YOU SHOP

chapter three
APPLIANCES THAT DONT SUCK...
ENERGY, THAT IS

chapter four
ROOMS FOR IMPROVEMENT

chapter five
MIXING MEDIA WITH FRUGALITY

chapter six
GETTING FROM POINT A TO POINT B

chapter seven
THE WARM AND COLD OF IT

chapter eight
BECOMING A DO-IT-YOURSELFER

chapter nine
RENOVATIONS AND INTERIOR DECORATING

chapter ten
IN THE GARDEN AND AR OUND THE YARD

chapter eleven
GETTING SOMETHING FOR (ALMOST) NOTHING

chapter twelve
HOLIDAYS, CELEBRATIONS, AND ENTERTAINING

chapter thirteen
DONT THROW IT OUTWEAR IT OUT

chapter fourteen
VACATIONS AND GETAWAYS

acknowledgments

Im a believer in karma and fate. And both had a big role in my taking the concept of living a suddenly frugal life from an idea to a blog to a book.

For starters, had I not been raised by a frugal mother, I never would have even considered dedicating my recent writing life to all things frugal. Of course, when I was growing up, I didnt know what to call my mothers shrewd habitsweird, perhaps? But as I grew older and wiser and recognized the wisdom in her money-saving ways, I came to appreciate the thriftiness she taught me. For that, thanks go out to my mother, Judy Watson Ingram, the original Yankee in my book.

Then there is the matter of my husband, Bill Behre, and me deciding to sell our old home and buy our new house some two years agoa move that ended up not being financially prudent, but that helped us to fully embrace frugal living. Because we didnt want to end up as another foreclosure statistic, we knew we had to significantly change how we lived and spent money. My husband and my daughters, Jane and Annie, have been really good sports throughout this whole frugal experiment, and I thank them for their everlasting support of this and my many other professional endeavors.

Because we sold our house and bought a new one, we became even closer with our realtors and friends Michele Natale and Kim Sager at the Coldwell Banker Hearthside office in our town. Not only did these women listen to use as we blabbered on about our newly frugal ways, but they also introduced me to the local CSA farm of which Im now a member. Id also like to thank fellow realtor (and fellow author and frugalista) Dee Dee Bowman. Shes schooled me on all things green and frugal, and I value all of the advice and suggestions shes shared with me in the past few years. So thanks go out to Michele, Kim, and Dee Dee.

Now on to my agent Adam Chromy at Artists and Artisans. Though Ive had a handful of agents with the thirteen other books Ive written, Adam is the first agent who has been more than just the person who sells a book for me. Adam believes in me holistically, as a writer, an expert, and a brand. I have never had someone who wasnt related to me be such a cheerleader for my future success, and had Adam not believed in me so strongly, I know that Suddenly Frugal never would have happened. Plus, had I not filled in for my dear friend (now deceased) Sarah Wernick as a moderator at a writing conference a few years ago, I never would have met Adam, who was a speaker on the panel I was moderating. Thank you, Sarah and fate, for allowing Adam and me to meet. It took more than two years, Adam, but finally weve got a book in our hands, and greater things to come in the near future.

Were it not for Adam, I never would have been able to work with the fine folks at Adams Media again. (I wrote the second edition of The EverythingEtiquette Book for the company a few years back.) Im thrilled to have the opportunity to work closely with editors Meredith OHayre and Laura Daly at Adams.

Finally, thank you to all of the loyal readers of my Suddenly Frugal blog: www.suddenlyfrugal.com. You all have shared great ideas with me, made awesome suggestions about topics I should cover in the future, and given me honest feedback when you felt my blog was slipping a bit off the frugal path. I hope youll all stick around for many years to come, and tell everyone you know about my frugal mission.

introduction
THE MYTH OF
FRUGALITY

Im not shy about telling people why we decided to start living frugally back in 2007. We had gotten in over our heads with debt and then bought more house than we could afford. When I make this confession, most people reply, Well, good for you for nipping the problem in the bud. Im sure that behind our backs, they say, Serves you right, you spendthrift, for buying a house you couldnt afford.

Some people actually called us freaks when we told them we had become a suddenly frugal family. They couldnt fathom that we could change how we live and what we spend in todays world, and how we could still come out ahead financially and socially, and actually be happy about it.

Now, granted, all of this name-calling occurred long before the economy sunk to the bottom of the toilet. It was still a time of freely available credit and conspicuous consumption. But more important, people didnt understand how or even why we would willingly become frugal. Thats because these folks had bought into the myth of frugality. To them, living frugally meant not living much at all. But thats not the point of frugality the not living part. In reality, if you adopt a more frugal lifestyle, suddenly you will find that you are more in control of your spending and you will actually be able to live more on less.