I began reading The Complete Tightwad Gazette last week. 
“This is pretty good,” I told Kris. “It’s like a frugality weblog from before there were weblogs.”
The Tightwad Gazette was a newsletter published during the early 1990s by Amy Dacyczyn (pronounced “decision”). Eventually the back issues were collected into a series of books, which were in turn collected as The Complete Tightwad Gazette. Dacyczyn wrote articles like:
- Used Shoes: Are they Good or Bad?
- Budget Bug-Busting
- Tightwad Toys
- Saving Money on Your Mortgage
- Etc.
Sounds just like a personal finance blog, doesn’t it? This book has thousands of tips, many of which were contributed by readers of the newsletter. I bought a copy of The Complete Tightwad Gazette for $11.95 at a local used book store. I’ll bet a used book store near you has a copy. (Your library almost certainly does.)
After I told Kris about the book, she stole it from me. She’s been reading it for the past few days (“It’s entertaining,” she says), dogearing corners when she finds articles that she thinks I should share with you folks. I want to contact Dacyczyn for permission to reprint some articles, but her web site has been in hibernation since 2001. (If any of you know how to reach her, please contact me.)
I know that some of you frown upon frugality, consider it beneath your dignity. You equate it with being “cheap”, and would rather focus on increasing income instead. That’s one approach. But an early essay in The Complete Tightwad Gazette does a wonderful job explaining why frugality is a crucial element to the personal finances of so many people. This piece is long but important.
Everything You Already Know
Telling you how to save money is like telling you how to lose weight. Everybody knows how to lose weight. You need to eat fewer calories than your body uses. To save money you need to spend fewer dollars than you earn. In both cases you need to adjust your rate of consumption to your rate of work.
The “Don’t save more, earn more” philosophy is a very one-sided approach. And it has one big flaw. Nearly everyone that earns more automatically spends more. For this reason, regardless of their incomes, many families seem to have exactly enough to get by.
Telling you to earn more instead of saving more is like saying “Don’t eat less, exercise more.”
When I learned that walking a mile burned up the same amount of calories as an apple I wondered how many miles I would have to run to burn the calories in a candy bar. It made more sense to give up the candy bar.
Most Americans are running to burn up candy bars. They are running out of the house, running to the daycare center, running on the job…so they can afford candy bars and Nintendo games, meals at McDonald’s, and designer sneakers.
There is no doubt that the minimum wage earner does need to earn more to afford apples — the basics of life.
But for most of us whether we choose to earn more or to save more depends on how easy, accessible, and enjoyable more work is.
[...]
There is a point at which the quality of life and the standard of living depart…where earning more results in a personal cost that erodes the quality of life.
The solution is to find the right balance of earning more and saving more. You need to couple your earning effort and your saving effort to achieve the highest quality of life.
When you do earn more, resist the temptation to spend more. Discipline yourself to saving whatever possible of what you do earn and reinvest in ways to either earn more or save more.
Sometimes I feel like I am telling you everything you already know. It is much like when I joined Weight Watchers years ago. At the time I joined I already knew how to lose weight, yet I continued to attend long after I had reached my goal. Weight Watchers’ success is in their structure as a support network.
The purpose of The Tightwad Gazette is much the same. You will learn learn some new nitty-gritty strategies and it will bring into focus what you already know. But I hope you will also come to regard it as a national tightwad network, providing support as you work toward reaching your goal.
I hope that Get Rich Slowly can fill much the same role for you as The Tightwad Gazette once filled for its readers.
[from The Complete Tightwad Gazette, pp. 13-14]
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Those of you who miss The Tightwad Gazette might like The Friendship Letter, a “sporadical” published by folksinger Michael Cooney, who like Amy Dacyczyn lives in Maine. He describes it as “a neighborhood newsletter for people who don’t live near each other.” I’ve been a subscriber for many years; while it’s not devoted to frugality per se, each issue includes tips and ideas that can save you money. And it’s a fun read; Michael’s a character. And given that he’s been making his living as a fulltime folksinger for more than 30 years, he has to be an expert at being frugal!
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Saving without restricting spending is like exercising without watching your diet. It may work for a while but eventually(as you age) it will fail you!!!!!
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Ah, the elusive Amy D. If you are able to find her – I’d love to hear what has happened to her. No one has really heard about her in years.
The difference between being cheap and being frugal to me is that if you are cheap you save money for the sake of saving money, but if you are frugal you are saving money with a larger goal in mind. You are just saving on things that aren’t really important to you now in order to have something you really want more later. It always amazes me that everyone isn’t frugal. Why settle for less than what you really want?
On a side note, I am completely in love with your blog. Keep up the amazing work!
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Good old-fashioned snail mail might be the way to go: send a letter to her care of her publisher (there should be an address on the copyright page). Looks like her book is still in print, which is a good indicator she’s still receiving royalty checks from the publisher. Therefore, they should know how to get a hold of her.
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I really love the tone of her writing. Friendly and persuasive. Truth has a way of sounding that way. When she points out that we usually spend what we make, I immediately think of those poor lotto winners who go broke in a year. But then I think of our current disaster in the real estate market. Thousands of people who bought into the idea of spending their equity now forced to find financial relief. So how did we reach this point where we thought that it was okay to spend what we hadn’t yet made? And has anyone begun to look at the serious fallout that is occuring now in the real estate related economy and how that will affect our personal finance?
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Ahhh, the Tightwad Gazette! The book that turned me into a fruglite
I loved how that book started me thinking “outside the box” when it came to lifestyle and saving money. There are some bizarre and unusual tips in there, but there is also lots of stuff that applies to everyone.
I too had noticed that although frugality is a subsection of PF, many PF folks don’t seem to take much interest in it. Maybe it’s the name. . . .
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This is a great post. There’s nothing wrong with watching the pennies go out as closely as we watch them come in. But I struggle with clutter on a daily basis, and from what I’ve read here and there, a lot of Ms. Dacyczyn’s advice seems to condone hoarding just in case you may need it later. Not for me. Once something is consumed for it’s original purpose, out it goes.
To me, frugality requires a lot more work on my part, which may be why some people would rather concentrate on upping their income. But I can make probably 200 or so oatmeal cookies from scratch (not all at once!) for the price of about 2 dozen. I can knit an afghan from $20 of yarn, or I can pay $50-$60 in a store. It’s a lot more work to plant and tend a garden than to drive down to the grocery store, but you don’t have to buy veggies all summer long. It’s all about the tradeoff of money for convenience.
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I have The Tightwad Gazette books I II III.
LOOOOVE them!
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Love the Complete Tightwad Gazette and Amy D’s philosophy. Saw her years ago on Oprah and was impressed enough to buy the book. I sprinkle in with her tips some of Mary Hunt’s ideas..like the Freedom Account to catch all those irregular or unexpected expenses. Great book…recommend it for your library if you are serious about reducing your lifestyle to fit your income.
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I love her books. The irony is that she has disappeared from view, and my hunch is it because the books sold so well, she probably doesn’t need to work much anymore. Like you, I googled her extensively and could find no trace.
I gave my copy to my mother-in-law, the GENUINE ARTICLE when it comes to frugality. When they moved out of their house, I got it back. I’m sure Amy would approve of giving a parent a gift, with the likelihood you will eventually inherit it.
I don’t follow the principles to save money anymore, now I do it because I have become an eco-maniac! more on that at
http://moneychangesthings.blogspot.com/search?q=tightwad+gazette
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I wonder if GRS readers have heard about Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar? This couple has 16 biological children, w/ a 17th due in July. And this is a beautiful, debt-free family that has thrived and prospered largely through frugal living — they cut their own hair, cook for themselves, do their own small car and home repairs, shop for clothing at thrift stores, etc. Check out this article on this amazing family, as there is a lot to be learned from parents of 16 children who can build a 7,000 square-foot home debt-free.
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m.g.-In the books Amy D several times addresses the fact that she is able to “hoard” things because she has a large barn in which to store thing, but that other folks are frugal in different ways depending on their circumstances. And as JD said in the original post, many of the tips, tricks and articles are letters that are written in by her various readers in the 80′s, so there is a diversity of situations and opinions shown. If the “hoarding” thing has kept you from picking up and reading a copy, I would suggest giving it a try-it may not be quite what you are thinking.
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I did my own googling and found the following:
“These days, Amy and Jim consider themselves truly retired, with no plans to follow up on “The Tightwad Gazette” successes. While the newsletter and books have brought in enough income to send all the Dacyczyn children through college and beyond, Amy still practices tightwaddery for the principle of it. The day she talked to me, she was in the process of canning 80-quart jars of green beans. Amy and Jim’s main priority in life is still their kids, the same priority that put them on their frugal journey to begin with.”
From here (circa 2002):
http://www.simpleliving.net/news/archives_article.asp?id=298
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Vincent googled up Dacyczan’s snail mail address for me, so I’ll write her a letter. Meanwhile, I found a Washington Post profile of her from 1992 that some of you might enjoy reading.
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I also have a copy of the Complete Tightwad Gazette — it’s great! I love her comparison tests, like where she will figure out which way of popping corn comes cheapest and fastest.
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As a note on the “hoarding” thing – Amy discusses in the book both the “pantry principle” and the importance of BALANCE. She has LOTS of space (big house in the country with attached barn) so, as she puts it, she can do things like save old sofa cushion covers for the zippers – but if she had less space, she would probably cut the zippers off and just save the zippers. She also notes that saving 6 or 10 twist-ties (or however many you are likely to use) is different from having them spread all over the kitchen.
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Thanks to both Jen’s. I’ve only seen bits here and there, but I guess I saw all the wrong pieces. (Although even a baggie full of zippers might be a bit much for me. I’m a recovering pack-rat) I’m always up for a fun read, though, so I’ll check my library next time I’m there.
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I enjoyed this post and her excerpt as well. Might have to spent my Amazon gift bucks on the Gazette. I’ve been thinking a lot about the balance of spending and earning.
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The Tightwad Gazette is truly the original guide to frugality. I bought it in college and have re-read it periodically in the 10 years since. It always seems fresh and fits the new stages of my life. I think that’s because it’s not about tips–it’s about attitude.
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I was an original subscriber to Amy’s Tightwad Gazette newsletter. I still have them plus her books. I still make pizza dough from scratch as per Amy’s recipe plus follow many of her original ideas. Amy is the Godmother Of Frugality! No one has been able to come close to her.
In her last newsletter, she wrote that she had been able to save one million dollars in cash and with the proper investments, that amount would hold her for the rest of her life. Obviously, it has. Brava, Amy!
Her words echo every day in my life. I did write her a letter when she announced her retirement (and no passing of the baton to anyone else) begging and pleading with her NOT to abandon us. She never responded.
Anyway, Amy, if you are reading this:
THANK YOU!!!!! YOU ROCK THROUGHOUT THE AGES!
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In a previous post, someone equated the large Duggar family to that of Amy D. This could not be further from the truth. The Duggar family has enough members that it was entitled to be set up as a church. They pay no property taxes, their house payments are tax deductible, and they claim that family outings are “prayer meetings” so they too are deductible. Those children are lacking an education. You cannot tell me that a four year old and a sixteen year old should be in the same home schooling classroom with 14 other children of varying ages. Amy D. goes to great pains to make sure her frugality has a postive ethical value. The Duggars are a bunch of weirdos who circumvent the system. They rely on the help of everyone around them, neighbors, the government and TLC. Amy and her husband decided to have a large family, took responsibility for that choice, and worked hard to provide ina way that did not burden society. The Duggars never picked a damn vegetable in their lives. Unless Aldis is now considered a farm.
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Yes, Rosanne, the Duggars are indeed a bunch of weirdos. And as Dave Ramsey says, “Broke is normal … so let’s all get weird!” Actually, Jim Bob, the head of the household, has owned various businesses through the years, including a car lot. Business owners get wealthy. He also attended a financial freedom seminar conducted by Jim Sammons re: frugality and living a debt-free life. Jim Bob actually now conducts the seminars himself out of their home. And by being frugal and getting out of debt and not buying anything unless they have cash, the Duggars have saved enough to make investments in rental and commercial property. Their investments have done so well that Jim Bob doesn’t have to work a full-time job. Did you read the article? They have no house payment, Rosanne. It’s true — they are not vegetable farmers, but they are still frugal — the article I linked to talks about how they buy clothes at thrift stores, cut their own hair, do their own car and home repairs, etc. I suspect your main problem is they are Christian fundies. But don’t throw the baby out w/ the bathwater. I’m a hard-core atheist myself, yet I will learn what I can from this amazing family.
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Dave,
Registering as a church smacks of fraud. If the Duggars have not actually done so (or if they are doing things that a normal church or monastery would do and not just “ministering” to themselves) then I’d be less concerned.
That said, there has been some crossover between intentional community groups and some monastics, which I think would also count as a church. And now that I think of it, I suppose there is nothing preventing the Wiccan intentional community I know near Yelm from also registering as a church, since they DO host retreats and services. (Although it might raise more eyebrows at the IRS than a Christian group.)
I guess what it comes down to, for me, is: Are they avoiding property taxes (etc) because they’re doing good, or is it a tax scam?
-Jen
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So the mother is going to risk her life having 17 babies because she thinks birth control is a sin, and then she’s going to be perfectly willing to pull some kind of tax fraud?! Come on! I don’t buy it. Think about it — the whole reason they have 17 kids to begin w/ is because they are obsessed w/ the laws of the Bible. This is the first I’ve heard of their house being registered as a church, but if it’s true, then I’m 100% inclined to believe it IS A CHURCH, and the Duggars are well within their legal rights to register it as such.
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This got off topic real quick!
When blogging, I too feel like we are just saying the same things over and over. Perhaps that is what it takes?
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I have no problem with their religous beliefs. What is disturbing is that you point out this heavily slanted article and use this family as a beacon of frugality. Their 17 year old son decides he has an interest in audio and video? Here, kid, heres a custom a/v room with $50,000 worth of top end equipment. Very frugal, Dave. Learn the facts about this family and not just what they want portrayed to the public. Shop at thrift stores? How about they enjoy donated clothes. The clothes are all matching outfits which are paid for by local businesses. Find out about the land he purchased while he was a lawmaker and what the going price was against what he actually paid. Look into it Dave
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Oh, and it is perfectly legal that they register as a church. I do not wish to imply that they commited tax fraud. I am saying they did not get where they are today by cutting their kids hair themselves
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I’d also like to call attention to Joe Dominguez, co-author of the book Your Money or Your Life. I’ve been researching his life a little. He devoted a huge chunk of his book YMOYL to frugality, even referencing Amy D. a few times along the way. Anyway, here’s what extreme frugality can allow for a human — “At 31, Joe Dominguez retired from a job as a technical stock analyst on Wall Street. He left with a nest egg of about $70,000 and had lived on the investment income ever since — about $6,000 a year.” Stories like this show what is possible.
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I find it midly ironic that a Blackberry curve ad is displayed on today’s version of this blog post. By the way, I loved all the comments. You guys are terrific.
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I think you’ll have to use ordinary mail to contact Amy D. There is a mailing address (Leeds, Maine) somewhere in the Complete Tightwad Gazette — try looking in the index under homemade sanitary napkins, I think it’s part of that article.
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[...] to the long-term gains, cutting costs is an excellent, quick way to free up cash. There are a million little things you can do to save money [...]
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You could try ZabaSearch.com and see if you can find the right Amy Dacyczyn. She might be listed there…
Maybe I’ll take a drive to Leeds and see if I can find her…
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[...] Why Frugality Is An Important Part of Personal Finance Frugality topics often seem to draw out the negatives from many of my readers, and apparently the same thing happens for J.D. This article really lays it down and explains why knowing how to save money on regular expenses – even just a penny at a time – can be huge. [...]
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During my sociology class, we learned about ‘trash studies’ where social scientists dug thru the trash of random people. They concluded that when the economy is bad, or when people go thru tough financial periods, they are inclined to spend more money. On the other hand, when they are feeling pretty good about their financial situation, they spend less. Doesn’t make sense, but I can see where it would make people feel better to spend a lot when they don’t have the means to do so.
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[...] Why Frugality is an Important Part of Personal Finance [...]
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I hope anyone who plans to drop in on the Dacyczyn family is just joking. They earned the right to exit from the public eye, and that’s clearly what they want. If they use the computer, I’m sure they see all the well-wishing comments from people they helped to teach the ways to get debt free.
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Joe Dominguez may have lived on $6,000 / year (even though it’s not bloody likely), but assuming that it’s true, and for the sake of argument, note that he was just one person. $6,000 x 19 (leaving out prenatal care for the .5 of a baby Michelle’s carrying now) = $114,000. Do you really think the Duggars have that much money lying around? Even if they at one point had enough to support themselves, the fact is that Jim Bob has been a real estate agent and not a business owner for at least a few years now, and they’re adding about 1 child every 15 – 18 months. The fact is, without the money they make pimping out their children to TLC and Discovery Health, the Duggars, at the rate they’re going, would be in debt up to their glassy, unfocused eyeballs.
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[...] much as I believe that frugality is an important part of personal finance, I also believe that starting your own business is an excellent way to boost your income and to [...]
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I googled and found a 2008 interview with her on line (and quite a few relatively recent references, actually):
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/05/14/an-interview-with-amy-dacyczyn-the-author-of-the-tightwad-gazette/
Apparently, she stopped writing the Tightwad Gazette because she felt she said all she had to on the subject. She’s still thrifty, still living in Maine with her husband. She IS getting more calls these days than she’s gotten in years, however.
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Dave: Mostly what I learned from the Duggars is that if people want to work the system, they will, and the best free childcare is by having the older girls take care of the younger children. Those girls have no lives of their own; they’re busy mothering their siblings while their mother spawns.
And this has NOTHING to do with their being Christian; I’d find it abhorrent whatever their religion.
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I was a subscriber to the Tightwad Gazette back in the day… still have a pile of them in the garage.
It was always inspiring what Amy said and did.
She retired. Leave her be.
—Joe
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