frugal friday

As usual, here are more ways I've made and saved a dollar.

• For April, my birthday month - I redeemed 5¢ off per gallon at Sheetz, got my free Ulta gift of a travel size cleanser from Peach & Lily, the free Sephora's gift of a Glow Face travel size skincare kit, 25% off an order at Arby's (love those curly fries), had a coupon for a free bag of white cheddar popcorn at Lidl, and a free rice crispy at Noodles and Co. 
• Other freebies lately have been a free carwash from a local place, a free bag of Doritos with coupon from Kroger, a free bag of chips from 7/11 using rewards, and a croissant from Starbucks using rewards.

• I logged in to my Noodles & Company account to check my rewards and discovered a free bowl coupon, so I ordered a Penne Rosa and picked it up for free. In the same trip, I redeemed a buy one get one free coupon at Starbucks and paid for the first drink with a forgotten $5 gift card. I got the second drink with no ice so I could have it the next day.
• I returned a set of curlers that did nothing for my hair, I sold some clothing to Uptown Cheapskate and made $16, and I returned two unopened aquarium items that wouldn't work in my tank.

More things I've decluttered since I moved in:

• A mug, tumbler, three jarred candles, some hot pink tissue paper, a wall hanging, a trinket dish, and a hand food chopper - all to my sister and her family when I visited for Easter
• I sold a full embroidery kit on Facebook Marketplace and shipped it in a recycled bubble mailer
• I started on my borrowed book pile so that I could get them out of here and back to their owners
• Four bags of stale inventory, donated

Since I'm making my own meals again (finally! I've missed cooking!) I've had to be careful about food waste; here's how I've avoided it:

• I regrew some romaine from some cut off ends. They didn't get very big before the tips started browning, but I added them to my big container of lettuce. My regrown leeks and bok choy are coming along nicely, too.

Frugal fails:

• I made my lunch and then accidently left my lunchbox out all night so I had to toss what I'd made (luckily only some pre-frozen cooked sushi, potato salad, and some salad dressing)
• Accidentally parked in a tow zone on the street, but the attendant graciously gave me two parking tickets instead of having my car towed (which would've resulted in work time loss AND a higher fine)
• Tucker, though 14, has his spry moments occasionally. He used one of those moments to break into the pantry and chew open a carton of vegetable stock and a small carton of pasta sauce

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frugal friday

Regrowing romaine hearts. They're already about two inches tall!

Another week (or months with how my blogging is) of how I've made or saved some cash.

• The electric company sent over a refund check for a span of a few years or something and I got back a whopping $1.02
• I picked up a free 40pk of water with coupon at BJ's and a huge bottle of Gain for $16.49. With coupon, BJ's Gain was 11¢ per load (146 loads) compared to Target, where I normally get my detergent, at 14¢ per load (107 loads) for $15.99. Pennies make dollars! 
• I batched errands and all in one day took off my rather accumulated pile of recycling (the facility is only ten minutes away but it's out of the way), utlizied the last few days of my health insurance until the new kicks in to get three more months of my prescription for free, shipped a sold Poshmark item using a recycled polymailer, redeemed a free order of breadsticks with rewards points from Pizza Hut, and then worked my gig job for a bit and made $125 in five hours. While out, I got gas at BJ's and it was significantly cheaper than other stations.
• My first day at my new job was Wednesday and I love it so far. I finally have my nights and weekends back! 💃
• While I no longer have a balcony, I have some huge windows. I planted some basil seeds and I'm hoping they come up. We'll see. 
• My best friend let me redeem her free year of MLB TV from TMobile 😍⚾
• I redeemed a coupon for a free bag of Tostitos tortilla chips at Kroger. I've gotten a free bag each month since I moved to the area in 2018.

Things I've continued to declutter since I moved!

• A piece of art I didn't want, to a coworker who loved it
• I went through a bunch of my plant items and sold three plants stands for $35 total, four small pots for $10, and gave away a few small terracottta pots
• A few more sold items on Poshmark, shipped in recycled bubble mailers

How I avoided food waste!

• I've been eating through my freezer and I just thawed a large bowl of chili - it's as good as the day I made it!
• Even though I overbought on produce, I finished all but maybe a cup or two of romaine. 

frugal friday

my $3 thrifted umbrella 

As always, here's ways I've saved and made a buck (here and there in the last six months)!

• My Verizon anniversary came around and they sent me a $10 Amazon giftcard (it's only been 19 years, no big deal *eye roll*)
• I had an absolutely wonderful coworker save me a TON of boxes at work, and between her and my pilfering of boxes that otherwise would've gone on to the landfill or recycling, it saved me pretty penny on moving boxes
• At the end of September I signed up and received my second Covid booster shot for free at Walgreens and today I received my free flu shot from my place of employment
• I received a $50 Visa giftcard from Xfinity and applied it to my credit card balance that was due. I also deposited a $4.89 refund check from my insurance company for overpayment of premium!
• I sold several items on Poshmark and a bunch of furniture and flower pots on FB Marketplace
• I worked on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day and made time and a half along with a few bartending shifts that pay more per hour.
• There was an issue with my cellular data so I called Verizon and we got that straight while upgrading my plan and saving me $14.99 a month as Hulu/Disney+/ESPN+ is now included in my upgraded plan for free
• I redeemed a $10 coupon off a $10 order at Ulta, and redeemed $3 in rewards
• When I moved I changed my renter's policy's coverage and they sent me a $77.80 premium refund check (what! I'll take it)
• Amazon Prime gave me a seven day trial for HBO Max, so I finished the third season of His Dark Materials for free

Things I've decluttered in anticipation for my move/after I moved:

• A bunch of jars and lids I'd been hoarding ("that's a good ass jar!"), recycled
• I've used up a BUNCH of condiments, sauces, and skin care
• Several Poshmark items and recycled polymailers
• A large ceramic pumpkin, a stack of Dollar Tree organizers, sold & given away on FB
• My entryway table, desk, and large plant stand, sold on FB marketplace
• A small space heater, to someone in a free FB group
• A stack of books and cereal bowls, to two friends
• A dozen or so planters, sold on FB

And how I've avoided food waste:

• I had a cooler full of frozen food that I wasn't going to eat (hashbrowns, half bags of vegan chicken nuggets, some spring rolls I didn't like) and my best friend went through it and grabbed what they'd eat
• Even though I get free lunch at work, I don't have a microwave at my new apartment so I take meals in because I'm more inclined to eat leftovers if I can easily heat them vs. using the oven

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lucky bandit is a for profit blog. I use affiliate links and paid advertisements. I may earn compensation for a click or purchase through a link. Paid (whether via product or monetary) reviews will be noted in the actual post. Though compensation may influence the type of posts, all opinions and reviews will be legitimate and honest.

*All affiliate links will be marked with an asterick.*

mini book haul

I recently moved to an apartment downtown and I've been having a lot of fun wandering around my area. I was passing by Fountain Books and noticed they had a box of free books outside. I'm never one to turn down an opportunity to get a new book, so I took a look inside.

Exciting! I first noticed The Prisoner by B.A. Paris, as I'm a fan of Behind Closed Doors. I wasn't familiar with any of the others, but I snagged Raw Deal by Chloe Sorvino. I never really eat meat, but I enjoy non fiction themes like this.

I, once again, am not going to complete my reading challenge, unfortunately. I started reading It by Stephen King and that's kept me pretty occupied (over 1,100 pages!) despite how quickly I can read! Maybe 2023 will be the year I finally, for the first time ever, complete a reading challenge.

my poshmark closet | shop my mercari
lucky bandit is a for profit blog. I use affiliate links and paid advertisements. I may earn compensation for a click or purchase through a link. Paid (whether via product or monetary) reviews will be noted in the actual post. Though compensation may influence the type of posts, all opinions and reviews will be legitimate and honest.

*All affiliate links will be marked with an asterick.*