How do you save that $10

[ToomuchStuff]

While I think it's admirable to save $10 amounts and watch it pile up, I'm wary of saving by the ounce and throwing it away by the pound. Would the time spent DIYing something relatively inexpensive be better spent, say, shopping around one's car insurance or figuring out ways to cut the heating bill? Granted, they're not daily/weekly savings, but they usually are whole bunches of $10 bills at one time.

Isn't part of that kind of the same logic as Dave Ramsey's pay off your lowest amount first? To establish a new mindset so you do look at/for the big things.

[Teacher Terry]

So when my kids were cub scouts one of the badges asked what do you do with a iron? My boys said patch pants because that’s the only thing they ever saw me do with that. My mom said Terry that’s so wrong. We laughed about that for years.

[flowerseverywhere]

You are correct, but people who are beyond this point move down the chain and continue to whittle away. Each year DH gets insurance quotes, our total energy bill is less than $90 per month, it is not going much lower. We drive as little as possible.
But our biggest savings involve food. Going out to eat, buying coffee, prepared food can add a massive amount to your spending.
another big area is buying things you don’t really need. Crafters are potentially really bad in this area but it is not exclusive. Clothes and shoes you really don’t need are wasteful spending. Just so many areas to save a little here and there. Then $10 is a hundred. And so on .

While I think it's admirable to save $10 amounts and watch it pile up, I'm wary of saving by the ounce and throwing it away by the pound. Would the time spent DIYing something relatively inexpensive be better spent, say, shopping around one's car insurance or figuring out ways to cut the heating bill? Granted, they're not daily/weekly savings, but they usually are whole bunches of $10 bills at one time.

[ApatheticNoMore]

$10 - food and not that much else at this point. $7 on fresh figs recently, yea figs! Though I refrained from some coconut almonds today because I point blank couldn't do that, oh it's some boutique healthy enough (no sugar) concoction around here but yea $10.

As for clothes and shoes, I'd kind of question if there are real savings there or merely the illusion of savings. For instance shoes last longer if you alternate them, as would a few more clothes etc.. So it might really all break even in the long run. So long as it's manageable enough that they are getting worn fairly regularly.

[Teacher Terry]

Is there a way you and your boyfriend could live in the same house or is it impossible with job situations?

[ApatheticNoMore]

Is there a way you and your boyfriend could live in the same house or is it impossible with job situations?

Be two hours to an hour and 40 minutes EACH WAY to my present gig with that. I wanted to hang on to my present apartment as it's the nicer one (and nicer isn't luxury, but it's pleasant), but I was resigning myself to moving out because with little unemployment left, I could go for broke paying rent and paying rent (and rent isn't even unreasonable on this place but with out income of course it is ...), and sure I could do it for awhile, but it would be pretty stupid. So I worked on resigning to moving.

But then I got an offer, the present offer. So that's now. And yes my boyfriends job is completely in the opposite direction so it would make no sense for him to move here, then he'd be doing that type of 3+ hour a day commute. I did try to get a job anywhere near there, I also tried to a get a closer job anywhere near here, and in between, and neither so long as it was long term enough to move for, might have been picker at first, but by the end I tried anything almost except out of the area entirely.

[rosarugosa]

Glad to hear you got an offer, ANM!

I get $60 per week allowance. I sock away $20 for some currently undefined longer-term want, $20 goes in my wallet for spending money, and $20 goes to short-term wants, e.g. currently paying for a couple of pants I ordered from LL Bean (I basically borrow from us and pay it back from my allowance). So my allowance is where most of my ten dollars comes from.
I also earn about $5.00 per month from Microsoft doing Bing searches, I get $3 per survey from Pinecone, and I get a small amount from Topcashback for making many of my online purchases through them.
I try to save money in our household budget mostly by shopping carefully for groceries and using Costco wisely.

[Gardnr]

I think needing to find $10 and wanting to find $10 are different. 20 years ago we needed to find every available penny. Now, we don't.

Could we stop eating out? Yes. Could I never go out after work for a cocktail with a girlfriend? Yes. Could I stop buying organic fruit/veg/meats? Yes. Could I buy farmed salmon instead wild caught Pacific? Yes. Could we quit traveling? Yes. No more concerts? Yes.

But we don't need to.

[happystuff]

Lately the savings gained by cutting back on one thing (i.e. just cut the chord on cable) is immediately gobbled up by increases in other things (i.e. last garbage bill was increased). The age old problem exists in that everything seems to be increasing except the salaries. LOL.

[Tybee]

Very true, Happystuff. It's hard to 10 dollar save your way to anything when the bill just went up 15.