And not just any postcard, my friends, but the business postcard. And it comes in the form of a rectangle.Īs I shared last year, the ultimate frugal greeting solution is the postcard. I took to the interwebz to sniff out a more financially tenable option. This, my friends, was not going to pass frugal muster. Pre-extreme frugality, I was easily spending over $120 on our card extravaganza between postage and the cards themselves. Obviously I do spend money, but with this mindset, I’m not tempted to spend up to a certain amount, which is what budgeting encourages. It’s how I avoid budgeting and instead adhere to the philosophy of spending zero dollars. Our frugal autopilot approach means that every expenditure–no matter how small–is scrutinized. You might laugh about the fact that we had an in-depth conversation about mailing Christmas cards, but it’s actually a great illustration of how we manage our money as a team and stay on the same page with our financial goals. FW and I had a serious discussion about whether or not to send cards. Two years ago when Christmas rolled around, we were deep into our extreme frugality regimen. I picked a gorgeous design, customized the card, and even bought sparkly stickers and paint pens to decorate the cards with (yes, I am five years old when it comes to crafting–both in skill and taste level). FW and I spend more money every November and December–on food to cook at home, on gifts, on electricity for our Christmas lights (indoors only though, can’t stomach the cost of outdoor!), and on… Christmas cards! Prior to our self-induction into the extreme frugality camp, I barely paid attention to how much I spent on holiday cards. Hence, my approach to celebrating the holidays echoes this philosophy. My goal is to spend only on the things that matter most to me and to acknowledge that I don’t need rampant consumerism in order to enjoy life. My goal isn’t to forgo spending on things I love in order to save a few more bucks. My goal in living a life of extreme frugality isn’t to scrimp every last penny. As long as we’re able to keep our overarching financial goals in line, I think a bit of celebration makes for a well-rounded, fulfilling existence. ![]() There’s no shame in doing things just because we enjoy them. It’s a beautiful time of year and also a chance to just plain have fun. We love the coziness of fall, the hilarity of Halloween, the gratitude of Thanksgiving, and the divine midwinter festivity of Christmas. Frugalwoods and I are fairly notorious holiday celebrants. ![]() Far from skipping the holidays–or even celebrating them oh, I don’t know, “mildly”–Mr. However, if you’re more like me and qualify somewhere along the spectrum of secretly (or not so secretly) wishing summertime would hurry up so that holiday season can start, then this story is for you. And that is certainly an approach one can take. ![]() To simply pretend they exist not and eat beans out of a can in the dark while muffling the sound of sleigh bells in the snow by wearing a hat indoors because you refuse to turn your heat on. Obviously the ultimate frugal approach is to skip the holidays. Don’t Skip The Holidays… Frugalize Them! Last year’s Christmas postcard I can’t get enough of festive tidings and yuletide trimmings and hall decking. ![]() I could simply say: “don’t send holiday cards because they are expensive and decidedly un-frugal.” But, as those of you who’ve been reading for a few years know, I’m a holiday junkie.
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