Living Frugal . . . A Way of Life
72Starving Artist Learns to Use Crock Pot!
As a young naive man in the early 80's my dream was to become a successful professional artist, which in reality usually means finding work to support your dream. Living frugally a way of life takes the desire to do so and a little faith, but can be done if you are willing to commit to a lifestyle of less.
Having never given up on my dream at age 49, I have learned to live on annual salaries that are equal to or less than what most people in this day and age spend on rent alone.
Which brings me to my first step, a good budget.
In this day and age this maybe difficult for many to do, however spending the least amount of money on the house, apartment or condo that you live in is essential. When I was growing up the rule of thumb was to spend 25% or less of your monthly income on rent or mortgage.
This can still be done, however it may require that you live in a less than desirable neighborhood or live in the country. For instance I currently pay 300 dollars a month for a two bedroom apartment in the top floor of a house.
Another consideration is diet and this is where most people spend two to three times what they should. My best advice in this department is buy a Crock Pot and learn to use it. By using the crock pot method of cooking you always have something to eat and are not always going somewhere to get food. The cost of one fast food meal today can fill up a big crock pot and provide 3 or 4 meals. Not too mention if you ever visit a site on how they prepare fast food, such as Super Size Me or Food Inc., I doubt if you will ever eat fast food again.
Crock pots are great ways to prepare a meal, especially if you are a beginner and just learning how to cook. Learn to buy your food in bulk, but remember to buy fresh produce and meat that is either going to be used within a week or frozen for later. Beginners often buy too much fresh produce and end up wasting it by forgetting that it's in the frig and it is easy to do.
Another consideration is transportation, now in a perfect world public transportation would be your best bet, however in this day an age a car is necessary. Find a Honda or Subaru from the early nineties that gets awesome gas milage and put the excess money you save in buying a twenty year old car into getting everything fixed. I have a '91 Honda Civic 4-speed and I drive it all over the South umpiring softball games and I get 35 to 40 miles to the gallon. The car is bought and paid for and runs forever, put oil and gas in it and go.
Owning an older model car that gets good gas milage saves in so many ways, no car payments, fill your car up twice a month, low maintenance costs and if you take care of it reliability. Living frugal a way of life is a way to conserve energy and reduce living expenses.
Awesome Gas Milage . . . Low Maintenance
Crock Pots
 | Crock Pots come in many sizes and sophistication but most are relatively inexpensive Amazon Price: $30.88 List Price: $34.99 |
 | Since they all work pretty much the same the only variables being the heat and controls, find the most inexpensive. Amazon Price: $10.23 List Price: $24.99 |
Garden Fresh
For anyone with a yard, start a garden and you can do this in the off season also by beginning a compost heap. Of course finding a suitable spot for your compost is the key. I have a big yard and so I put mine right next to my garden for easy access. I have a very large wooden crate with a lid to keep the critters out and the smell in. Buy a couple large bags of top soil to begin your compost heap and then add to it by saving all of the stuff you cut off vegetables before you put them in the crock pot. I usually use a coffee container with a lid and when I fill it up, I just empty it into my heap.
Remember never to put meat or its by products (grease, fat, etc.), into your compost clippings as it ruins the compost, plants aren't meat eaters so don't treat them as they are. By doing this and using the compost not only are you recycling and fertilizing at the same time, but you also cut down on garbage.
By learning to eat healthier you actually save money and feel better and have more energy to pull weeds in your garden. The benefits to having a garden are to numerous to name here and is really worthy of it's own hub page, but suffice to say it can be a very spiritual experience and all it really takes is a little time, love and care, but these are not requirements. Plus you save money in groceries and get to eat very fresh vegetables. There is nothing quite like the fresh taste of snow peas right off the vine.
Garden Fresh
Way of Life
So in conclusion if you can lower your monthly living expenses by finding a cheaper place to live, learning to eat healthier foods by cooking for yourself and starting a garden and cut down on transportation costs one can learn to save money and reduce life's big problems to smaller problems, you may soon find that you enjoy simple frugal life . . . of course it is not for everyone!
However Living Frugal . . . A Way of Life can be very rewarding and helps one to learn what is truly important.
Illustrator Extraordinaire
- website portfolio
This links you to the author's website and more illustrations like the tomato. If anyone wants some graphics or illustrations for their hub pages let me know as my rates are very reasonable and am always willing to make a trade.
Fast Food Preparation and Facts In General
Books on Gardening/Producing Food
 | Taking gardening to the next level. For those whom may live in less than hospitable conditions for outdoor gardening. Amazon Price: $29.95 |
 | For those of us serious about creating a continuos food supply Amazon Price: $18.52 List Price: $29.95 |
 | Extending growing seasons and creating portable green houses. Amazon Price: $0.99 |
 | Amazon Price: $16.06 List Price: $24.95 |
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I agree with your sentiments and we live very frugally as well. We've embraced it though as not a life of "doing without" - but of making the most of what we have and learning to want what we have etc. I think when frugality is approached with the right mindset it is extremely liberating! I enjoyed this hub and I love your tomato illustration great use of texture and color.
Thanks I appreciate your comments as I'm still teaching myself to write and create hub pages. It's kind of cool that I get to show some of my illustrations too, hopefully folks like them.
Excellent advice, somethingblue! Ultimately, living frugally is simple and fun... perhaps people fail at doing it because it seems TOO easy!!
Thanks for inspiring me to make more positive changes in my life.
Thanks Simone Smith
Perhaps I will follow this hub up with more ways to enjoy the frugal lifestyle as more and more people adjust to this way of living.
Great hub! We too live a frugal life and it is liberating. Thanks for sharing. I love my crock pot too!
Thanks
Very good Hub! lots of great tips and well deserving of your nomination! Congrats and welcome to HUbpages.
I'd like to know what you think about editing or updating hubs as opposed to starting new ones on related topics or same topic?
As I've gotten better writing and linking information, I see the importance to link related material and resources.
I mean once it is nominated for something should it be changed or updated or left in its original form?
You can always change errors no matter what. Updates are allowed too if there is new information. However, you might want to wait until after Wednesday to make any additions to this hub. If the additions are of a completely separate nature, start a new hub. For example, if you thought of other tips related to cooking, add them to this hub. If you want to talk about something like reducing your utilities bill, write a separate hub. These are great tips. My Mom is a well-known artist in Canada, but she still doesn't have any money.
I didn't become an artist to get rich, but because I love to create and share my creations with the world.
Thanks for the advice!
It can be done! :)
Congratulations on your Hubnuggets nomination. To all who would like to read and vote, this way please: http://ladyjane1.hubpages.com/_hubnuggets6/hub/Roo
Thank you and thanx for the link
Some good tips here. I especially like the tip about using the crock pot. Easy to use and typically leaves plenty of left overs to save even more money.
Thank you, the crock pot get some serious use, as a matter of fact I must confess I have two!
great hub
Living Frugal has been a lifelong challenge for me too !!! Nice hub... crock pots rock ! Love your illustration of the tomatoes....
Congrats on this being the "Hub of the Day"! Woohoo!
You make some very valid points. For almost 10 years I lived in what many considered a "luxury" 1 BR apartment. However it was all electric, and trash, sewer and water were included in the rent, thereby saving me about $300 a month had I been in a place that had gas heat and I had to pay for the water and trash separately.
As for driving an older model car, I drove a '77 Toyota for years that I paid $700 for from its original owner, who kept it in immaculate condition, and each year I'd hand a mechanic $500 to "fix whatever needed fixin'"... never anything major, just a lot of little stuff. Gas mileage was incredible. After it finally coughed its last breath, I bought a used '87 Honda (again from its original owner) for $800 that only need a new clutch. It too ran "forever", cost very little in the way of maintenance, and used very little gas. So it didn't have all the bells and whistles of a new car, it was paid for and not a drain on the budget. In fact, there were several incidents where the driver of brand-new cars tried to stage an accident with the Honda, so they could have theirs declared "totaled" and get out from under car payments that were more than their rent or mortgage!
As for saving on food, I used to be guilty of over-buying fresh vegetables and then forgetting they were in the fridge! Don't do that anymore, but don't have a place for a garden either, so I have to shop like the French for fresh stuff - when the mood strikes!
I do buy meat in bulk, then re-wrap each piece individually and freeze. For hamburger, I shape quarter-pound portions into patties, then wrap and freeze. Makes thawing out time much shorter, even if I get a hankering for meat loaf. It was too hot all summer for a crock pot, but now that it's cooled off, I'll be using it a lot.
btw, as you remove items from the freezer, fill the space with water-filled discarded soda bottles or milk jugs to save on electricity. Another energy saver I use is unplugging anything not in use at the moment - coffee pot, toaster, TV, computer, even the kitchen stove (gas but has electronic ignition).
Great hub! ;D
I realize that living frugal suits me. I knew about frugal living from zenhabits.com. Thank you for the beautiful hub and I hope you can live your life happily.
Nice. frugal is an efficiency. It will maximize all your effort. Thanks.
Frugal is the way to go - why spend ages in a job you don't care for, only to spend the money on things you don't need.
Good luck on your deam. Frugal living is a good start towards all our dreams. Working for a living and keeping none of your money is not what any of us dream of.
Joemill
What could you have written that possible have needed deleting forever, hmmm!
Medor
Crock Pots Rock
Shoulda used that as the title, thanks for the comment!
These are great ideas. Congrats on being the bub of the day. I enjoy living frugally as well.
Hey Bub,
I'm a Hub bub, I like that, permission to use that?
thanks for the comment!
There are some really great money-saving tips in this hub! We have a car that is paid off, but has some maintenance costs associated with it. We have had so many friends tell us to buy a new car, but the monthly car payment for a new vehicle would be a LOT more than what we are paying for maintenance on the old vehicle. And crock pots really do rock (we just had pulled pork sandwiches last night, thanks to ours)!
Car payments are absurd, America must enjoy living in debt is the only thing I can surmise. The whole logic of creating a whole society around a finite fuel source escapes me. Henry Ford invented a infinite fuel source from Hemp in the late twenties and the next decade Hemp was made illegal.
We can send a man to the Moon but can't create a car that gets better than 40 miles to the gallon . . . they must think we are really stupid.
Good tips here--congrats on Hub of the Day!
This is an awesome hub. I voted such and up. We love our crockpot. We don't own a car. We ride public transportation and rely on friends for where or when the public transit won't run. Cooking at home is a great way to save money. We rarely eat out. Maybe a handful of times a year. I appreciated your picture of the tomatoes, it looked like I could pick one. Yummy. Thanks.
Too bad we have been preconditioned by the media and adveritsements to want to have it all. In times like these you do realize the way of our ancestors and frugal living are a great alternative to the rat race. Great hub, congratulations on the hub of the day.
Thank you so much for your spirit and your advice: I am thinking about growing a few items in a pot as I live in the city in a building, I already changed the way I use so many things and definitely spend less and enjoy more!
Love and peace to you and all
Great topic for a hub! So many people are looking for ways to live more frugally. Congrats on getting Hub of the Day!
~ a way of life and an adventure of truly being! I live sustainably on the Big Island of Hawaii. Frugal isn't the word we use, its Living Well. I am on Solar power and water catchment living by grace of the sun and the rain. There are a few things I cannot use on the system, one of them is a Crock Pot and the other is a Dehydrator. They require too much power. :( I got used to the crockpot on the mainland, but have switched my diet to accomodate for the steps of LivingWell ~ bliss&bless!
It really helps to be frugal. I follow all of your tips. The crock pot is my best friend! Congrats on hub of the day. Good job.
Getting a crock pot!! Haha, great hub. Thanks!
Thanks, somethgblue, simplicity can be so wise. It is better to be doing what you really believe you should be doing with your life, and make and live on less, than to work at a job that pays a lot more because you thought you needed a particular level of living materially and got in over your head with bills and debt. My husband's family grew up frugally: house with six kids and one bathroom, big garden, only bought used cars that they could fix. My husband and I lived with some folks for awhile that baked a lot of bread (without a breadmaker) and made a lot of crockpot dishes, which showed me how to start enjoying a crockpot. If you put in your own bread ingredients, you can even save money using a breadmaker with the cost of bread these days. We've never even thought about owning a new car. We, as others have mentioned, had a Toyota that just kept running, but the body, especially the front seat floor area was falling apart. My husband took the flat scooping part of a snow shovel and attached it over the hole with pop rivets and silicone. We got at least another year out of the car. Good timing on your article, as we all need to think about living frugally.
Congratulations for this hub being chosen, "Hub of the Day" somethgblue! You have shared some great tips on living a simple and frugal lifestyle.
Your tomato illustration is beautiful. Have you done many fruits & vegetables in colored pencil?
Great advice, I wish I could do that. At least I can try to be more frugal!
This is the best hug EVER WRITTEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This should be on everyone's refriderator and a mantra of life! My only suggestion for living frugally is moving to Mexico lol!
I enjoy living parts of my life very frugally and it's still very fun. Congrats on being the hub of the day! Love the beautiful tomato garden work of art too.
If you do buy too much fresh produce, you can avoid waste, save money and enjoy something healthy by using a juicer. I bought mine new about 5 years ago for around $100 at Costco but surely they are available for much less than that used.
When fruits or certain veggies are a little too ripe or dry to eat, they likely still contain lots of juice and the juicer can extract that for no waste and great taste.
you can turn fresh veggies into soup and freeze the soup.
Congratulations for the hub, the illustration and the nomination! All the best going forward!
Very good advice. I am somewhat past that stage of life but still have to live frugally.My garden efforts have not been too successful.
Another tip. Don't waste money on TV and cable connections. I know that entertainment is important but find a way such as http://www.tvchannelsonpc.org to get paid subscription channels for free. Great way to save money
Thank you for an awesome hub and the guts to be proud of your frugal lifestyle. I bet your credit card debt is probably a lot smaller than everybody elses. This totally reflects our lifestyle, which is actually rather fulfilling. The secret is that by living frugally you don't only cut costs but you actually appreciate the small things in life more. You might enjoy my hub (how to find contentment).I hope that many people will get inspired by this article and as a result get out off the destructive Jones Game.
The buying the old car thing intrigues me. Do you use CarFax to find out about its history? Thanks for the info1
Great article and it's the hub of the day! Thanks for sharing.
Good ideas. Thanks for reminding me to get another crock pot too. Congratulations and I hope you do well with your art soon.
Wow! and I was just about to give up on Hub Pages, let me answer in reverse order . . .
Rebeccamealy . . . yes two is essential!
Journey . . . Your Welcome!
Maren Morgan M-T . . .whatever source you use the best bet is to find an older car (I used craig's list) that has only had one owner.
Novascotiamiss . . . I'm down to one Credit Card with a very low balance , but not zero
Alfie . . . I sold my TV and refuse to get cable, I prefer to write or do art!
Dahoglund . . . I'm surprised your Garden's haven't done well, have you tried asking God to help you?
MsDora . . . Thank You!
Kikalina . . .Interesting name and yes freezing is a good alternative, to waste!
Tom Volger . . . Sounds like a Hub article to me!
Apple C. Smith . . . thank you on the compliment, that was B-day present for my sister so it was created w/ lots of LOVE!
J. Daffodils . . . Mexico sounds good to me!
Meadow Kelly . . . like the name, yes I have and one of my favorites is to paint in shades of grey and then go back and add color real cool effect.
thank you for the compliment!
Gen-Rev . . . if you write it, I'll read it and start making my own bread! I look forward to reading that hub!
GZ braniac . . . thank you!
Esmeowl12 . . . thank you!
galaVision . . . hope you have written a lot of articles on your way of living 'cause I will be visiting your page soon!
randomcreative . . . thanx, I think I may need to expand on some ideas!
NiaLee . . . yes learning to live frugally can exercise your creativity!
Bail Up . . . I've already visited your page and am definitely going back, cause we think alike . . . no I'm not on the run!
Icbenefield . . . public transpo should be a must for every community free of charge!
TO ALL THAT TOOK TIME TO COMMENT I WILL BE VISITING YOUR HUB PAGES AND RETURNING THE FAVOR . . . SO GOTTA GO . . . GOT LOTS OF READING TO DO!
THANK YOU SO MUCH, ALL OF YOU!
I enjoyed your hub ! We are working our way around Australia and do a lot of free camping to save costs . Nev caught a barramundi & a few other fish which help the budget .
Had to look up a barramundi and now I have been enlightened, I envy your journey!
Excellent ideas here, and mostly spot on. I tend to use the crock pot quite a bit, especially during the winter months, and I can surely attest that the meal's per plate cost becomes significantly reduced by using it. It's simple to use and there are actually many recipes out there for making traditional dishes you wouldn't think of using the crock pot for, which is a good idea to look into especially if most crock pot dishes you make seem to be redundant.
The only thing missing here, which I think is vitally important, is the art of saving and investing, which ENHANCES frugality. Granted, markets are a roller coaster these days and I'll not go into the details here, this is certainly not the place for that, but I tend to use a term all the time, and that's "income replacement." The idea is to live below one's means, accumulate savings, and use the PROCEEDS from those savings to offset lower wages and the overall need for income over time. If one's to have a good financial house in order, it can't just be a plan about how you spend, but as well how you save, otherwise you simply have to keep earning contiguously.
As I said, excellent ideas here. Just think that saving is as much a part of being frugal as is spending wisely.
Agreed 100% and am now unsure why I didn't include that as I have learned to save a lot of money, when l learned to live below my means!
Excellent point!
cool, cooking a large pot of food is necassary
The hub was great and your illustration even greater. I think some living frugally articles are needed for the younger generation. I'm sure some of them are struggling in the current economy.
I agree, however I wonder if the younger generation would read these types of articles
An enjoyable read. With so many people struggling these days, I think a lot of them really need to read things like this and understand that frugality is not too difficult to manage and is not a cross to bear.
It is not a X to bear and it is enjoyable, probable need to follow it up with ways of entertaining oneself on a shoestring budget.
thank you DN
So I need to know...is your car still on the road :)
Oh Yeah, just drove it to Umpire a Softball tournament in Nashville. Roundtrip 122 miles, less than a quarter tank. It has 194,500 miles on it and about a year ago gave it a valve job, because it was less expensive than buying a different car that would pass emissions.
I'm thinking about driving it to Montana, cause I really want to live there, but really like my job in TN (Graphic Designer).
Congratulations on getting Hub of the Day! A great accomplishment for a relative newcomer. Way to go!
You have some good tips here--and they are adaptable to each individual's needs.
Beautiful artwork, also, by the way--no question you'll reach your dream.
Voted up and useful.
I don't use a crockpot but I like cooking curries and soups, or anything that can last more than a few meals. Thanks for your advice and congratulations on being Hub of the Day! :D
StellaSee
I recommend that you try using it for curry or soup as it can be a very adaptable kitchen appliance
Somethgblue, You really have given me something to digest on here. You got me with the buying a 20 year old car. It does make sense, why have a car note on a newer car when you can have a reliable car with no car note. Really a thought provoking article for me. Will I start living frugal? I'll try here and there, but I certainly understand people who do alot better. Awesome hub, have voted up!
Wonderful tips you've given here! My husband and I have done all three of your strategies and I agree that they are very helpful in living a frugal life! I like your idea of keeping your compost in a coffee mug until it's time to go out to the compost. I've been trying to figure out what I could do to hide the mess and lock the smell in. Wonderful hub! Thank you for sharing this.
Pinkchic18,
And it does get smelly and moldy and generally all around yucky, but it helps your garden the Earth and cuts down on smelly garbage, plus you seal in that gaggy oder!
Coffee containers because of the lids are almost better than tupperware!
adrienne2 . . . I'll never have another car note, it just doesn't make any sense?!
Good Article, and interesting point,Somethgblue, about the younger generation. Most young people don't know what it's like to do without. I hear the stories every year from other parents I know; they max out their credit cards for the latest "must have" gifts that will go untouched 2 days later.
I recently (within last year) paid off two credit cards and closed the accounts, lo and behold months later I got a bill from the closed accounts. So I closed them again this time in writing and lo and behold a few months later got another bill.
I can't force these companies to close the accounts, but my State Attorney Generals office refuses to look into the matter, says it's a federal issue!
America the Greedy!
WeWe had a problem with a credit card company dunning us for "past due" payement on which we had already filed a dispute, and the dispute was never resolved to our satisfaction. By law, they cannot make you pay for any disputed amount until it is resolved, so we simply ignored it, cut up the cards, and mailed them back with their next bill, writing "cancel" on the bill.
Sure enough, we continued to get bills, which only went into the shredder from that point on. After a few months of this, they apparently sold the account to a collection agency, and I wrote and told them to leave me alone, as the amount was disputed, and we did not owe it.
Also by law, if you notify a collection agency in writing to leave you alone, they have to comply. Usually, this results, after about another year, in that agency selling the account to yet another collections outfit, and the process starts again.
What finally stopped it? We wrote "unknown" on the next mailing from the new collection agency, and dropped it right back in the mail, unopened. HA! More than one way out of a broom closet!
Dizzy Miss Lizzy,
Cool name,
Well I'm glad things worked out for you. Having gone through bankruptcy about seven years ago or closing in on it I have a pretty good knowledge of what can and can't be done, but thank you for sharing some of the frustration that goes on in a consumer's life when dealing with big corporations.
We used to have rights, but they are being sucked out of us like everything else!
Voted up again and with all the qualities... let's get free from all this fake needs we have and live a purposeful life. Love and peace to all NiaLee
and we can do it one enlightened human at a time, thank you NiaLee
Black Friday what a joke . . .
Voted up somethgblue, you have very good advice on this hub and also a lot of great additional tips from the comments as well. Truly deserving of its hub of the day distinction. With the way the world economy is headed, this is a lifestyle change most people will need to start making.
moiragallaga,
Agreed, especially the garden, inside or out. We will need to begin becoming more self reliant in terms of energy (windmill, solar, water) and food.
I'd like to know more about your name does it have any significant meaning?
Many people are just unaware of the coming crisis in terms of returning to a more simple life that embraces nature. I believe many people are going to just live in denial right up to the point of looking for others to save them, when some simple easy things everyone can do on a daily basis could make the transition easier.
I hope I'm wrong but since the signs are becoming obvious, I doubt seriously if I am.
Thank you for your comments, Hub Forth and Peace b With you!
I can see why the award and the plethora of comments. Okay that's the word for today...You got me.
I am penny pincher as well, it gives me a weird high to know I made a dollar out of nothing. I am one of those project people, just this year I refuse to buy lights for my prelit tree, which I got for free, I unraveled the beast myself...
Great, great hub, there is much to learn here!
Your on a roll girl, but take time out and watch the link to the video I sent you!
Great hub, sometimes we try to look for happiness in the wrong places, maybe that's why people overindulge in material things. Having the people you love around you and the basic necessity in life is all that we need. For majority of the population its a struggle to maintain.
kschmutzler 8 months ago
Gorgeous picture of the tomato!!! I love the colors!