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Cheri Collins's avatar

I'm boujee brigade, all right! My tax guy asked me this year, "How do you live?" 😂 I replied, "Very frugally." Probably my best hack is re-reading books I haven't read in 20 years or more. I've forgotten most of the plots or details, so it's like reading a whole new book! 😊

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Robin Wilding's avatar

😆😆 Excellent response. I've been asked similar questions and my response is often "carefully" haha.

That re-reading books thing is brilliant. Although I tend to opt for exchanges at the little micro libraries.

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Heidi L's avatar

I've "discovered" ebooks through Libby. Now I can go "new book shopping" anytime I like for free!

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Robin Wilding's avatar

I do that too, although I call it the library 😆😆

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Sam Mertens's avatar

Stationery supplies may be available at work. I once quit my job to become a poor college student, realized I had become a poor college student, and two weeks later I went back. “You’re back?” they asked. “No, I just came to steal office supplies.” They probably thought I was being witty, but I did exactly what I said I would and then left. This is a true story, protected by the statute of limitations.

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Robin Wilding's avatar

😆😆😆 Awesome. And yes, everyone of course knows that the statute of limitations on office supply theft is five years.

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Mcdude's avatar

You have no money. You have raked your shag rug to get enough marijuana to roll a joint and gotten to high. Then the couch chips come into play. Remember to put up No Trespassing signs on your couch for JD Vance.

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Robin Wilding's avatar

😆😆😆 That's McBrilliant.

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Kai Kinzer's avatar

Buy your clothing when it's at its final, final sale. Whatever it is will probably be the color orange, because no one else likes it, either. But all your clothes will match!

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Robin Wilding's avatar

😆😆 Excellent Kai.

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Scherer's avatar

.... and you'll look like a Dutch sports fan.... don't forget the orange wig...

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Robin Wilding's avatar

😆😆

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Heidi L's avatar

Coupons. My husband is amazed with how much I save with coupons at the grocery store. And now you just pick them on an app and it's automatic. And those "$15 off your next $50 order" - squeee!

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Untrickled by Michelle Teheux's avatar

I seldom use coupons. They're generally only available for processed name-brand foods, and I can buy whole foods at Aldi for less.

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Heidi L's avatar

We don't eat many prepared foods, but our store still offers plenty of coupons for products we need. I've heard good things about Aldi, but they aren't in our region.

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Robin Wilding's avatar

Oooh I gotta figure out how that app thing works for coupons. I stopped using them years ago when I continually failed to remember to bring them with me haha.

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Robot Bender's avatar

If you find that guy, I want to meet him too! He looks like a Hell of a lot of fun!

(Given what's happening these days, I suspect you'll have a lot of new boojee company soon.)

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Robin Wilding's avatar

I'll let him know he's got fans here if I ever find him hehe.

(yeah, I'll have new peeps to welcome into the frugal flock).

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Kay-El's avatar

1. “Yes, that’s where I got my end table” Ha! I did as well. Better quality than the plywood shit that qualifies as furniture these days.

2. When I was a poor college student, we went to happy hours for dinner. For the price of one drink, we could eat all the free appetizers we could.

3. My kids use the term “bougie” to make fun of me, as in “Mom, you’re so bougie”. Um, who’s living with who now? 😂

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Robin Wilding's avatar

1. Totally.

2. That...is...BRILLIANT!

3. 😆😆

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Karen Scofield's avatar

I'm of the mind that most of the working class and the working poor, are all hanging on by the seat of their pants. While the rich have become Obesely Richer, the rest of us, have been reduced to living paycheck to paycheck. Thanks for sharing your good advice Robin, you put a Big Grin on my face, and will reStack ASAP 💯👍

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Robin Wilding's avatar

As always, thanks Karen. "Obesely Richer" really nails it haha

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Sandra S. Oitzinger's avatar

Again, cackling all the way to the Spam. Not tech spam, depression era canned meat Spam. But I do think that you should give poverty pauper princesses top billing. The having married poorly crowd pay and pay and pay, but thank goddess they tend to vote with their feet these days and have more options gender-wise. I suppose my literature budget is what will do me in, but I did learn how to turn a cheap kindle book into an audio book on my phone. This works sometimes, but the little bots can’t compete with Nicola Walker as a narrator. Remember though, behind every fortune is a larceny. Stay pure and boujee!

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Robin Wilding's avatar

Well said Sandra 😆

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Sam Mertens's avatar

Estate sales. But only the ones advertised with handmade signs. If you have to go to one where pros were brought in, go near the end when they’ve pretty much given up on moving whatever remains.

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Sam Mertens's avatar

Costco is great for this but membership requires money. Find yourself a slightly less boujee friend who’s willing to take you with them.

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Robin Wilding's avatar

I have one! My neighbour takes me with him sometimes. For some reason my dog really likes Kirkland brand dog cookies, I guess she's blue-collar boujee too.

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Sam Mertens's avatar

Pro-tip: they are specifically trained to let you take as many samples as you want at a time and not stop you.

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Untrickled by Michelle Teheux's avatar

"Good sheets are a priority."

I have never in my life had the good sheets. I always buy the cheap ones. Sometimes Aldi has them for $20, and we sleep on those things for YEARS. Like, until there are rips that cannot be sewn.

I marvel over the feel of fine sheets. But when it comes time to buy a new set, I just cannot make myself fork over the big bucks. I've tried ... Lord knows I've tried. I've stood there in the store, stroking the high-thread count and the low-thread count versions, looking at one price and then the next ... and I just cannot fucking do it.

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Robin Wilding's avatar

Ooph, girl, we really got trick your brain into being able to do it. It's sooo good. Here's how I look at it, we spend what 6-8 hours a night sleeping? That's 50 hours a week. You wouldn't work a 50-hours-a-week job without the right tools like good workboots, or a fast computer. Same for sleeping :)

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Untrickled by Michelle Teheux's avatar

Maybe I should run a Fund My Sheets promo. Pity I’m old; if I were young I could probably do some kind of sexy pic of me sprawled out on my cheap-ass sheets and make some money!

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Rachel C's avatar

I still cook a huge pot of tuna and noodles which we then eat all week. Fills ya up. 👹

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Robin Wilding's avatar

My mom makes that, it's filling and reminds me of childhood. So I'll be right over 😆

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Britannicus's avatar

“It’s Heinz (or French’s if you’re Canadian)” . . . Yes! 👍🏻 🇨🇦

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Robin Wilding's avatar

Elbows up ;)

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Linda Blatnik's avatar

Why don't you get the

BUY ME A CUP OF COFFEE link?

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Robin Wilding's avatar

I have a kofi account, but I make my memberships so cheap that people have options. And if the money goes through Substack, then it encourages the algorithm to show me to more people :)

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Linda Blatnik's avatar

I wasn't thinking of it as a substitute for subscription; I was thinking in addition to the subscription. But I see your point. Thanks for your response.

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Sam Mertens's avatar

If you really like soda but not the price, scoring somebody’s old Sodastream seems like a good deal, until you crunch the numbers and find out it works to be about the same price as the most generic stuff at the store. But if you can get yourself a welding supply CO2 tank to hook up instead, the per bottle costs plummet.

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Robin Wilding's avatar

I did the math on that before and it didn't seem worth it. I'm not sure I'm committed enough for a welding supply CO2 tank, but that is brilliant. 😆😆

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Sam Mertens's avatar

You have to be an addicted fiend like me. Just be sure to get “food-grade” CO2, which means it was never stored in some container which’ll make your soda taste like stale plastic or rubber. (Yes, I really did do the welding tank, but I’ve never risked the non food grade stuff.)

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