Festival of Frugality #125 – Save Some Money If You Are Rich Edition

Welcome to the 125th Festival of Frugality!

We have lots of good posts for you today and we’ll also learn how to save money on some higher-end items – because rich people like to save money too! Make sure you submit another post for next week because my friend Mike, The Financial Blogger is hosting.

photo by ArchanaRCars can be very expensive, especially this Lamborghini. I keep seeing a nice black Ferrari that looks like the batmobile driving down my street which is very odd considering it’s probably worth more than most the homes in the area. If I owned a car like that I would save money by washing it myself. I would use the $500/year or so savings and apply it to about two weeks worth of insurance.

Best car washers (editor’s picks)

• Brip Blap says that American kids maybe aren’t so stupid about personal finance. Best line of the post “some people can’t wrap their minds around simple facts”.
• Pinyo came up with a great frugal or cheap test.
• Saving To Invest has come up with frugal ways to keep your home safe.
• SquawkFox has some frugal dessert recipes.
• Mr. Cheap has some very practical ways to decrease your costs.
• Free From Broke uncovers deceptive gas pricing.
• Rather Be Shopping has a good post on brand names. Kyle, I’m with you on the beer! Nothing but the best for ol’ Four Pillars.
• Prime Time Money has frugal ideas for a wedding.
• Paid Twice compares Craig’s list to Ebay.
• Remodel This Life discusses why she likes being frugal.
• Mrs. Micah had a very good post where she looks at what are your real savings.
• Being Frugal lists some things to do for a frugal wedding.
• Cash Money Life has 15 frugal ideas for Mother’s Day.

photo by Lost ConnectionOne of the trappings of the extremely wealthy is that they are not restricted to living in one measly house and maybe a crap shack in the country. No, the mega-rich can buy whatever they want, wherever they want. My suggestion for them however is that they try to buy a cottage that is not too far from where they live in order to save gas. Sure it’s nice to have a cottage in France or on the opposite coast, but gas isn’t getting any cheaper!

Best gas jockeys

• Dough Roller shows how to find the lowest gas prices online.
• Debt Free Revolution challenges you to cut down your gasoline consumption.
• Frugal Dad talks about the 5 craziest things he’s done to save money.
• Master Your Card explains how getting rid of debt can improve your life.
• Mrs. Nespy’s World has a bunch of suggestions for what to do when the electricity goes out. These are all quite frugal – and family oriented!
• My Daily Dollars had some good suggestions for her frugal wedding.
• The Personal Financier discusses some problems with tracking cash expenses.
• Money Ning says that not buying something on sale is not a bad thing at all.
• Nickel calculates the savings from CFLs. Please note he’s not talking about the Canadian Football League.
• Lazy Man and Money analyzes Chrysler’s cheap gas promotion.
• Save and Conquer advises that if you are going out drinking then don’t run a bar tab.
• My Investing Blog wants you to jump start your frugality.
• A Dollar A Day loves coupons!
• Veteran Military Wife talks about tires.
• Feed The Fam says salads are a frugal lunch.
• Home Life Weekly shows how to make your own thank you cards.
• Sound Money Matters says you need renter’s insurance.

Hired help – we all know how expensive it is to have a full complement of hired help these days, gardener, nanny, cook, butler etc. My suggestion here is to try to hire people who can do more than one job. A cook doesn’t need to be cooking all day so maybe he can cook part time and work in the garden or clean the house for the remainder of the work day.

Best French maids

• Budgets Are Sexy can fill up his fish tank cheap.
• Chief Family Officer figures out if the drugstore game is worth it.
• Practical Nourishment talks about her wine making skills.
• Daily Money Hack says pay in cash!
• Festival of Frugality bought a new furnace because it was cheaper in the long run.
• Pro Bargain Hunter is thinking of buying an electric bike.
• Uncommon cents looks for bargains when eating out.
• Living The Cheap Life says to turn off you’re a/c if you really want to save money.
• Saving Advice uses voluntary poverty as an extreme example of learning to live with less.
• Fabulous Finances explains how to get to a financial peak.
• Be This Way has cheapo Mother’s Day gifts.
• The Happy Rock says that the library isn’t so cheap if you have to pay fines.
• Money Smart life has some money tips for new graduates.
• Can I Get Rich says you can get a good deal on a car now.
• Good Money Blog decided that paying for yard waste removal was not a waste.

photo by ulterior epicureIf you are entertaining guests on a regular basis then you have probably noticed how the costs of caviar has gone through the roof. For your next get-together, try doing a quick estimate of how many guests you will have, multiply by a reasonable serving per person and only order enough so that you won’t have to throw out thousands of dollars of fish eggs like your last several parties.

Tastiest appetizers

• My Small Cents has some frugal French foods for kids.
• Not The Jet Set saves money by eating frozen pizzas.
• Cheap Healthy Good shows how to have a frugal bbq.
• Finally Frugal keeps her grocery bill small.
• Free Money Finance saves money by stocking up food.
• Cincinnati Locavore has some tips for shopping at a farmer’s market.
• Fire Finance has five ways to trim your grocery bill.
• Financial Zip has 6 ways to keep your food bill down.
• Harvesting Dollars tells how to save money at Kroger.
• The Money Kings has some ez ways to save on food costs.
• Lazy Man and Health says that Taco Bell’s Fresco menu is cheap and healthy.
• Monroe On A Budget suggests a pantry swap.
• Enginero says stretch out your food budget.
• KCLau says to keep paying your insurance premiums.
• Living the Frugal Life has three sarcastic tips to spend more money.
• Personal Money Tips has 10 ways to save money.
• Dollar Frugal has only $10k in their emergency fund!
• The Q Family Adventure describes their frugal adventure at the Home Depot Kids Work Shop.
• Goal of Financial Freedom says save money with Skype.
• Student Scrooge teaches us to save money by avoiding movie theatres.
• The Sojourner pick their own blackberries.