When cash is low, barter is better. 

More people are turning to online barter exchange these days in lieu of purchasing items with cash. 

When you barter, if you have something laying around you can get rid of (or perhaps a service you can perform), you simply do that in exchange for items you need. 

Here are the best bartering sites and a little about the basics of bartering for newbies...

Have you ever taken advantage of free resources only to discover that you are stuck with a bill or a major inconvenience? 

Now, I am not one to knock getting free stuff.  I love free stuff... to a certain degree. 

But I also think you should be aware of what those free things will really cost you.

Times are tough these days. Many people are jumping at the chance to bring in a few extra bucks.

You've seen the cash for gold commercials on TV, right? They say that you can mail in your old damaged and out-of-date gold jewelry, and they'll send you cash. It looks like quick easy cash, that's for sure.

With promises of big checks and no risk on your part, they even go so far as to say if the offer isn't what you expected, they'll gladly return your jewelry! 

With gold prices escalating toward the $1,000 per ounce mark (see Live Market Prices), it doesn't take a very large pile of scrap jewelry to amount to enough cash to mean something -- especially when you're having a hard time meeting your day-to-day living expenses.

The big question is:

Is it worth it to send away your gold in exchange for cash? Are the cash for gold companies you see online and in TV commercials likely to pay you what your gold is really worth? 

Forever stamps are U.S. postage stamps that have no price printed on them.

The value of a Forever Stamp is whatever it costs at the moment to send a letter first class, regardless of when you bought that Forever Stamp.

Thus, a Forever Stamp never declines in value. In fact, it actually increases in value as the cost of postage increases. It's kind of like "rent control for stamps". 

Good News & Bad News

The bad news...

There's another postage rate hike around the corner: May 11, 2009!

The Governors of the U.S. Postal Service have approved new prices for mailing services, including a 2-cent increase in the price of a First-Class Mail stamp to 44 cents. Prices for mailing services are reviewed annually and adjusted each May. The new prices will go into effect Monday, May 11. -- Postal News Blog

The good news...

If you already have some Forever Stamps on hand, they will be worth more on May 11th when the newest postage rate hike goes into effect. Yep, the value of a Forever Stamp automatically increases from 42-cents apiece to 44-cents apiece -- the new first-class postage rate.

If you haven't already invested in a good supply of Forever Stamps, you might want to now... before the rate hike takes place!

Customers can continue to mail letters at today’s prices by purchasing the Forever Stamp before May 11. Forever Stamps were developed to help consumers ease the transition during price changes. Forever Stamps do not have a denomination and will be honored whenever they are used with no need for additional postage for a one-ounce letter mailing. On May 11 the price of the Forever Stamp will be 44 cents. -- Postal News Blog 

Many of our grandparents were alive during the great depression.  Therefore, they have a great deal of knowledge about how to cut corners and save money. 

Here are some money savings tips from Grandma...

Living a frugal life can teach you ways to live simply and give you new ideas about how to have fun. 

Still, nothing says fun like inviting over your family and friends for a party. 

A good party can cost anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a thousand or so, but there is no reason to put off your fun. 

Here are some ideas for frugal party planning, no matter what the occasion...

The rising price of home heating gas and oil in an already tight economy has people scrambling to cut costs this winter. 

Most people are aware of basic home winterizing tips that will keep your house safe and airtight throughout the winter months. 

Check out this Guide To Winterizing Your Home for tips that range from having your furnace and fireplace serviced to winterizing windows and doors, to making sure your plumbing doesn't freeze.  

Beyond typical winterizing, here are some things you can do to boost your energy and money savings during the winter...

Can you get through a month with only $250?

I could not.  I know for a fact that my family spends at the least $100 a week on food and non necessities.  At worst, we might spend $200 a week.  This does not include housing expenses, savings, and insurance payments. 

Monthly Budget Experiment #1

I just read an article at Small Notebook where they spent the month of July (both this year and last) with a budget of only $250.

Of course, that $250 did not include money spent on tithes and other gifts, rent, insurance, bills, health expenses, work expenses, savings, and investments. 

The items that were being limited were food, gas, clothing, coffee, household necessities, and entertainment. 

The goal of the experiment turned yearly tradition was “to stretch ourselves to become more mindful and disciplined about the money we spend, and to save some extra money in the process.”

In the end, the bulk of the money was spent on food and gasoline.  They managed to splurge a bit at the end of the month on coffee.  So basically, they were able to do without buying new items for the home and clothing for a month.  They also forced themselves to eat foods they already had in the pantry and freezer.  Writing about their progress has inspired many others to do the same. 

This group was not alone...

The teen years often set the course for a person’s adult spending habits.  For that reason, it is wise to attempt to influence a teenager's spending habits as early as possible.  

Perhaps the easiest place to begin is with your teen's clothing & accessories, gadgets, and electronics.

Money guru, Jean Chatzky offers 4 tips for taking a vacation that won't break the bank.  One of the tips is to vacation at home, a new trend that is affectionately referred to as a “Staycation”. 

It means you take a week off from work and stay home. 

This is not a new phenomenon.  Coming from a very meager background, I always thought a week’s vacation meant dad got the week off from work while the kids had to tip toe around and try not to make any noise.  I am sure that this is not what Jean Chatzky had in mind when she wrote the article. 
 
If you want to have a Staycation that is a lot more fun than playing “who can make the least noise,” I have some ideas that will take up a full week, save a ton of money, and make you feel like you had a real vacation. 

Cutting back on expenses and saving a little money here & there doesn't mean sucking all of the enjoyment from your life. 

You can still get ice cream treats with your family.  You can still have the occasional shopping spree. 

On those days when I feel that I will burst if I cannot spend some money, here's what I do...

Your car is a few years old and you are dreaming about a new vehicle... 

If you're considering its trade in value and trying to decide how much the monthly payment on your new car should be, chances are you're moving a bit too fast. 

Why? Because you really should be thinking about hanging onto the car you have -- just long enough to save your money and pay for your next car with cash. 

If you're in the midst of planning your wedding and your wedding budget is falling short, you basically have 2 choices:

Cut back on some of your wedding plans

Do some last-minute saving for your wedding 

Here are some fun and unique things you can do to find more money for your wedding... 

Being frugal has caused a bit of a side effect for me.  I seem to have developed a standard uniform for everyday dress. 

I am sure other frugal people can attest to this. 

For me, the frugal uniform consists of dressing primarily in comfortable black slacks and black or white shirts.  For others, it may mean wearing jeans and t-shirts.  I know a few frugal men who stick to gray and navy slacks with white shirts. 

As I've become more and more frugal, I've also become more prone to collect clutter. 

My family members, however, are not crazy about the idea of holding on to items that they see as garbage.  They throw away glass jars when I'm not looking.  My husband puts furniture on the curb and hopes that I don’t notice.  My son throws away anything with a rip or stain on it (…and he rips and stains a lot of items). 
 
So, to combat my family’s nonchalant attitude about tossing out useful items, I have become a garbage snoop.  Here are just a few of the things my family has forced me to do to save money...

While I find I am truly gifted at squeezing blood from a proverbial stone, I have one major weakness.  I love magazines. 

I have a couple of subscriptions, usually purchased through neighborhood kids at a discount.  I also hear Woman's World and First calling my name whenever I am in the grocery aisle.  I have no self-control over my magazine habit.  That is, until now. 

A brand new website will help you get your money back if it goes on sale after you purchased it.  The site is called PriceProtectr (funny spelling and all).

Here's how it works...

One would think that hand-washing dishes is more economical than using the dishwasher.  That is far from true. 

Now, if you hand wash dishes and then put them in the dishwasher, then you reduce your costs by using the dishwasher.  However, measuring one method of doing dishes against another, dishwashers cost less and get your dishes cleaner. 

Here are some other things you can do to save money while using the dishwasher...

Subtitled: "How To Serve 35 Guests Party Food On A Budget"

I tend to be a bit more generous with my food budget when I am entertaining or serving others.  I go to the best supermarket in the area to make sure I am serving the freshest foods.  I purchase the best cuts of meat, even asking for the butcher’s advice.  I splurge on restaurant-brand condiments instead of store-brand.  Presenting the best foods to friends and family doesn't necessarily mean being wasteful. 

But, one thing I don't do is buy store-bought food platters anymore. Here's why...

No, not influenza... affluenza.

Af-flu-en-za n. 1. The bloated, sluggish and unfulfilled feeling that results from efforts to keep up with the Joneses. 2. An epidemic of stress, overwork, waste and indebtedness caused by dogged pursuit of the American Dream. 3. An unsustainable addiction to economic growth. 4. A television program that could change your life. Source

A recent PBS program, Escape from Affluenza gave some interesting solutions to relieve stress, waste, over consumption, and environmental decay. 

The accompanying website gives 100 ways to escape from Affluenza, including a crash course.   Fortunately, these tips on simple living also have a side effect of cutting costs. 

Here are a few of my favorite tips from the website...

Should I buy this?  Do I really need that?  Why can't I purchase anything just for fun? 

For many people, shopping for themselves can bring on feelings of guilt, anxiety, and doubt.  However, the process of deciding what to buy this month, and what can wait until next month does not have to be so hard. 

What follows are some helpful tactics for when times are hard and money is tight. (Bonus: They will also help when money is flowing, as it will allow you to make purchases guilt-free!)

Just because you don't have a lot of money to spend on home decorations doesn't mean your walls have to be plain and boring. 

There are many fun and easy ways to decorate on the cheap. 

Here are some things ideas...

The article I wrote about Freegans who dumpster dive for food, brought to mind my habit of purchasing day old groceries.   

You see, I regularly purchase day old groceries. 

I realize that it might seem strange to put "impulse purchase" and "good" in the same sentence, but this statement is true. 

Just today, an impulse purchase I made about 2 years ago paid off. 

A huge part of being thrifty for me is being natural. 

I find that when I focus on avoiding products that are toxic to either the environment or myself that I save a great deal of money. For example, if you take a visit to The Fun Times Guide to Living Green, you will find many ways to save money.

Here are some of the natural ways I use to save money...