I used to wonder why my colleagues’ blogs became strangely silent when they were working on their books. Haha. I don’t wonder anymore. Writing a book is an all-consuming process that’s difficult to describe. I’m thankful I recruited April and Baker as staff writers before I began working on my own book.
Progress on Your Money: The Missing Manual actually ground to a halt this week. Well, that’s not strictly true. I did miss my deadline on Monday, but it’s not for lack of trying. I’ve already written as much (~12,000 words) for the frugality chapter as for two normal chapters combined. The problem is that there are too many ways to save money! So, I’m producing a ton — I just didn’t finish the chapter on time.
The topic I’ll be tackling this morning is frugal fun. As I plotted the section last night, I realized we haven’t discussed this subject much at Get Rich Slowly. Why not? There are lots of cheap ways to have a good time.
While I finish pulling this section together, I thought it would be fun to poll you for suggestions. How do you have fun without spending a lot of money? Better yet, do you have hobbies or pastimes that actually make you money? I’ll go first.
Here are some of the ways I’ve learned to find maximum fun with minimum cost (and yes, some of these will be in the book):
- Take a class. Community ed classes usually cost about $50. Classes at the community college might run up to $200. While this may not seem frugal, remember that you’re not only having fun while you take your course, you’re (theoretically) picking up a skill that you can use to improve your life.
- Read a book. Boring, I know, but this is still one of my favorite ways to relax. For the past few years, I haven’t had much reading time. That’s changed in recent months. (Well, until I started the book, anyhow.) Now I remember how much I love Dickens and Twain and, yes, even Proust. If you use the public library or a used bookstore, this can be a frugal hobby, indeed.
- Exercise. I love activities that do double duty. When you find an exercise you love to do, you’ll not only enjoy yourself, you’ll also enjoy improved fitness, which in turn will save you money.
- Volunteer. I admit that this isn’t something I’ve done yet, but I’ve heard of other who have. The idea appeals to me. Find a way to do something that you love while also helping others.
- Make use of what you already have. Ah, this is a big one for me. I’ve shared before how much Stuff I have. At one time, I owned over 3,000 books. I still have about a thousand volumes, many of which I haven’t read. Plus tons of comics and music and movies. If I started using the stuff I already own, I’d probably never run out of things to do.
Last week, I interviewed Trent from The Simple Dollar to get his suggestions for simple pleasures. He had some great ideas. My favorite thing he said was this:
The mistake most people make is looking for the free stuff first. Look at the things you really enjoy doing. Once you know what you like to do, there’s almost always ways to do these cheap.
This is very true. If you know what it is you like to do, there are always people doing the same thing for very low cost. (Well, maybe not if you’re into boating. I’m not sure how you make boating a frugal hobby.) If you’re patient and clever, you can find out how others are doing what you want to do without going broke.
So, how about it? What sorts of frugal things do you do for fun? What info should I pass on to the readers of my book?
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Thanks to someone who mentions geocaching…it’s really fun!.
As for other things to do with kids, frugal fun abounds! Of course walks in the local parks are free. Our family has taken advantage of several of the annual pass opportunities for both museums and zoos. In our area, for example, we belong to both the Akron Zoo (family membership $55) and the William McKinley Presidential Library and museum (family membership $45). Between the 2 memberships, we can get into virtually any museum or zoo in the country for free or greatly reduced entry…a great wayto stretch vacation dollars and those days when you want to do something close to home. We can choose from about 7-8 different places locally that accept these memberships.
Also, National Parks are a great, fun, and frugal way to keep kids busy in the summer. Our local National Park, as well as all others, I understand, have Junior Ranger Programs that are either free or around $2-3. My kids took part in our close by National Park’s program, and also, nearly every vacation destination had a Park to participate in. They have a bunch of cool Ranger badges to prove it!
Also, fun like bowling, roller skating and ice skating are all inexpensive.
One other point about kids and frugal fun…if you get them in the habit of free fun, they will be less likely to equate fun with going to the mall to spend money…give them other ways to have fun.
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1) Have a lasagna party! (it’s cheaper than eating out!)
2) Video games (i know it’s kinda geeky)
3) Sit at Barnes & Noble and sample as many books/magazines as you like
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There’s a great $1.50 theatre in our city with 14 screens. A lot of the movies, and those that stay there longer, tend to be kids movies but they also get all of the blockbusters and the occasional independent/little known film as well. Hoping to see District 9 (again) or The Time Traveler’s Wife this weekend.
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Little House mentioned bicycling. You don’t even have to know the best trails in your area, just join the local bike club. Mine is $15/year and they have rides every weekend at 3 different levels (slow, moderate or fast). It’s fun and keeps you fit! Plus, the club routinely offers bicycle maintenance seminars for free and you can learn to fix most bike problems on your own. Cheap hobby.
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I love all sorts of crafts – knitting, crochet, patchworks etc. I’m a great believer in not buying “new” material to use for this – I unravel old clothes that don’t fit or are scruffy, or buy at junk or charity shops. At the moment, I’m making the loveliest, softest quilt out of discarded (washed!) socks, backed in old T-shirts.
I use the library for books – it’s great for trying out new authors and genres that I wouldn’t want to risk buying, although I do occasionally treat myself to a bought book if I know that I’ll reread it for years.
My main think is volunteering though. I help out at my college chapel (one morning service a week and sunday evenings in term time), as well as my local church (every sunday morning). I am also a helper for a local children’s hospice, as my family got a lot of help from childrens’ hospices when I was a child. I help out as a steward and general dogsbody at their fundraising events, and also go out and do talks for them. I am also a member of St John Ambulance, which takes up about one evening a week plus going to cover events. It’s a fantastic way to meet people, and most of the time you get to enjoy the event you’re covering if no-one gets hurt (which is usually the case).
Gosh – it sounds like I have no free time! But seriously, volunteering is a great way to meet people and learn new skills for FREE, while giving something back to a cause you believe in. You can choose exactly how much time you can afford to give, and adjust it to suit changes in your lifestyle. Most people I know who try it really get a lot out of it.
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My friends and I have had “stitch ‘n bitch” parties, where we get together to knit or sew while enjoying each others’ company.
My library offers passes for free or reduced fee admission to many local museums. I take my kids as often as I can.
In my city, there are also often free movie screenings, lectures or musical performances at the library or elsewhere which are lots of fun.
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I love to cook, and come up with dishes using leftover food or whatever groceries are available at home. Gives me immense joy and peace and calm as well.
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I like to watch the shopping channel in constant amazement and shake my head in sadness and figure out how much I earned and switch off. Then I continue reading where I left off in the house, in the garden, at my work (library) in the public library and in my lunch break …in the nearby bookstore.
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We blow bubbles with our boys, the soap is just regular dish washing soap, so it’s fairly inexpensive fun.
We also bake with them, kids love to mix the ingredients and “help” measure. It’s messy, but teaches them a few life skills at the same time.
We also found this list: http://www.fun-date-ideas.com/cheap-date-ideas.html
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Picnic. Alone, with a pet, with family, with friends.
Outdoor festivals.
Summer music concerts. Chicago used to have the most amazing selection, and free live-band dancing 4 nights/week in the summer.
My city has some nice free museums. Many have a free day/month. If you go on other days, don’t forget to ask what discounts they offer then see if you qualify for any of them. Also ask if they reciprocate with other museums; many do but don’t advertise so.
Library events. Book store events. Neither require a purchase.
If you live near a university, get on their mailing list(s). Most have ten thousand lectures a year. You can pick a department or grad school in a subject that interests you, or the undergrad for a wide selection. To get on mailing list(s) try the campus newspaper, alumni office (even if you’re not an alum), outreach office, dean’s office, library, department admin office. Even if they can’t help you directly then can get to someone who can; it may take a couple iterations of this, btw. If you talk with a student s/he may share his/her own lists and email sources. It’s random but it works.
And watch those crafts! They seem innocuous when you first start but then you find a neat project, and another, and another. Soon you have a wall full of costly stash. Not that I would know anything about that, ahem.
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1. Browse public library catalogs and request books. It’s like a shopping spree without any negative consequences.
2. Browse books and magazines at B&N and Borders.
3. Playing puzzles.
4. Walking. I enjoy walking as much as any dog does.
5. Instead of keeping a pet at home, I offer to walk neighbors’dogs when I feel like it.
6. Learning house maintenance skills from free classes at Home Depot and from helping friends.
7. Vacation in cities that have nice youth hostels and a good public transportation system.
8. Hang out at coffee houses that have microwaves for customers and make my drinks last longer by reheating them.
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another vote for hand work — knitting is great because you can do it for hours or for a few minutes, it can be truly creative (I design my own patterns), and in the end you have something you or someone else can use! I also have a very inexpensive collecting hobby — postcards — and find that looking through the collection and corresponding with other collectors etc is a wonderful and relaxing, low-cost activity.
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Living a mile outside of Washington Dc, there are incredible free things to do- besides the Smithsonian museums and the Botanical Garden exhibits-the museums have free movies and other activities), you can go to hearings on Capitol Hill(they can be interesting to tedious), Library of Congress has free films as does the Archives(and they have great exhibits too) One of the museums off the mall even has free coffee and tea 4 afternoons a week(this is not paid for by the government- so don’t call Congress). I guess the rest of you are paying for me to do these things- so thanks!
As a senior, certain exercise facilities and exercise classes are free to me in my county(I pay for those with local taxes so you aren’t on the hook for me there). I love my library for books and DVDS. I do crochet for charity- I look for coupons to get yarn discounts. I am interested in SF-UK’s idea about unraveling thrift items for yarn- esp. as I embarking on a charity project which can only use 100% wool(I like to go to thrift shops to look around- even when I don’t buy anything)
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Baking from scratch. It’s really easy, inexpensive, fun, and yummy, especially at this time of year. Lots of pumpkin and apple recipes. I also love going to orchards.
Genealogy research. Very addicting, educational, and fun.
A really fun game we love to play is Balderdash. We got it for about $1 at Goodwill and we play it all the time with my stepsons. Always a hilarious time had by all. My husband and I enjoy Scrabble too. Got that free too.
My husband and I like driving to the coast, exploring, and taking pictures of lighthouses. Fun to do if you are on or close to the coast.
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JD,
Playing Guitar – There was an initial up front investment on purchasing a guitar and an amplifier, but this is now something I can do at home whenever I can and it doesn’t cost me any more money to do so. I can supplement with lessons, pedals, books, other equipment when my wife and I decide that it fits into our budget.
Reading Books – These days I mainly get everything I read from the library, unless there is a particular book I need that they do not have.
Playing Poker – The major online poker sites like Full Tilt Poker and Pokerstars have a free site version where you can play for fake money without any cost.
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We love to just go outside and play in the front yard with our son – hockey on the driveway, tossing a ball around, raking leaves, whatever.
We also take our dogs for walks around our neighborhood almost every night.
This time of year we usually do pumpkin patches, take a drive to see the leaves changing, go to the park (or the mall if it’s bad weather) to let our son run around. He also likes going to Cabela’s to see the fish tanks and animal displays.
When he’s older I really want to try geocaching and hiking/camping.
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Take $10 and go to Albertsons and see how much stuff you can walk out with from their 10 for $10 specials. (These trips don’t really work well unless you don’t need to buy anything else.)
I’m also a big fan of free computer classes at the Apple Store, as well as yoga, personal enrichment classes at the local rec center.
On the boating topic – my boyfriend and I have a boat on San Diego bay. In the summer, you can always “go” to the concerts by the Embarcero for free on your boat. This works equally well with a small dinghy or kyak near Sheler Island. We saw Chicago, The Beach Boys, Crfosby Stills and Nash, Joe Cocker, Gladys Knight, and many other Symphony Concerts for free this summer.
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Reading, listening to music, being active with sports are all hobbies I love to take part in that are fun. Especially sports which is social as well, it really makes a different. There are so many things to do for fun that don’t cost much.
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I live in a university town, so there are tons of things to do for free – concerts, lectures, movies. Slightly more expensive – local theater, coffeeshop concerts. Play an instrument or join a local choir. Call friends. Write letters BY HAND. Knit. Garden. Cook dinner with friends.
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I’m surprised no one has mentioned surfing! Where I live in California, it’s easy to find a used board on Craigslist, and then a cheap or used wetsuit at any number of sports stores. After the initial investment, all you need is a $1 bar of wax every 30+ sessions.
Tired of your bored? Try swapping it at a board-swap event or via craigslist or rerip.com. Wetsuit tear? Many suit makers offer free repairs for life (O’Neill, Boz, etc.). Too far from the beach? Find a friend who surfs and do carpools to save on gas.
There’s a reason they call them “surf bums”. It’s an easy way to have a blast for a couple hours a day, even if you aren’t very good. I enjoy just being out in the water.
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Historical tours. I picked up a copy of Forgotten New York last year (at half price!) and at least once a month, I pick an area, walk around and study up on architecture and local history. As I’ve done this, particularly in the Bronx and Brooklyn, I’ve had some of the best street food ever and all on the cheap.
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My favorite is two-hour walks with my wife.
This one worked out better in the days before kids.
Rob
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J.D., you said you aren’t sure how you make boating a frugal hobby. Here in Washington DC there is a sailing club that will give you free sailing lessons and/or use of their boats in exchange for a few hours of washing boats each week.
Sounds pretty frugal to me!
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Great question!
1. Call a long-lost friend. Or try to call and catch up with friends on a regular basis.
2. Invite friends over for movie or game night (just did a post on this!).
3. Go to Barnes & Noble (or any bookstore) and read magazines/books/people watch. (ha ha, it really is fun & free!)
4. E-mail a long-lost friend.
5. Lay out in the sun.
6. Go for a walk or go to the park (frisbee, dog-walking, playing catch)
7. Have a picnic!
8. Take a free class at Whole Foods.
9. Babysit a niece/nephew/brother/sister/cousin.
10. Go camping in your own backyard!
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I love how many people have mentioned libraries! I’m a librarian, and it’s wonderful that so many people are rediscovering libraries while the economy is crumby. Public libraries often host events, group meetings, and classes for adults and kids – great for more than just books. Just remember libraries are serving more people with fewer resources (our endowments are suffering, too). Helping out with your volunteer time or donations can make a huge difference.
38 Virginia: Be careful with your yoga club; yoga instructors are certified to help their students learn the poses correctly. You/your friends could hurt yourselves if you’re not doing it right.
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“Read a book. Boring, I know,” I hope you meant that it’s not an exciting suggestion and did not meant to imply that reading is boring, because it most certainly is not. Your readers read your blog, after all.
For frugal fun I enjoy geocaching and letterboxing and fencing. The initial equipment for fencing was a bit expensive, but every hour provides me with much more emjoyment. Plus, most community centres that offer classes usually have community equipment you can use during the class if you don’t want to purchase your own.
Board games and tabletop RPGs are also pretty cheap and provide hours of fun with good friends.
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I echo the appreciation for events on college campuses. I live near some high profile major universities and there are always events going on that are usually free and open to the public. I’ve attended seminars and conferences on various topics (military-civilian relations, Russia and its allies, doing business in Europe), panel discussions, receptions, art gallery openings, plays, improv performances. Even when they do charge, it’s not usually that much.
If you love films, especially foreign and documentaries, campuses are the place. Last week, I saw a Greek film (with Greek dinner provided), a Brazilian film, a Khazak film, a recently released studio film and missed several others. This weekend, I can see Chinese, Iranian and Mozambiqian films, all for free and probably with a very small audience.
Most schools make their calendars available online and will tell you the details (who’s invited, cost).
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Dragonboat racing, snowshoeing, playing with my dogs; attending art openings; volunteering for theater shows; dinner parties with friends.
My dragonboat team membership is cheaper than any gym, for as-good a workout twice a week; plus it’s so much fun I never want to skip it. There was a little initial outlay for gear, but the cost per use has gone down to nothing by now.
Same with snowshoeing. After renting a few times I bought my own, and the cost per use should go down pretty fast. $5 per time for a snow pass is not bad, plus there are places we can go that don’t require the pass.
I am also a library lover; I can pick up almost any book or movie people recommend, and only buy it if I love it and will read/watch it again and again.
Once you commit to being frugal it’s really amazing how many opportunities are out there for free or inexpensive fun. It makes me wonder why anyone would spend the money; they clearly don’t have to.
eta I am also fortunate to have a number of low-cost movie theaters nearby, so I can see almost anything first or second run for way cheaper than the chains.
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1. The library. Especially when I order books and go pick them up -its like free shopping!
2. Park picnics
3. Board games
4. Hanging out with my cats or other people’s dogs
5. Walking -esp in a new nabe in NYC – just seeing everything is SO fun and no buying required. The further out in the boroughs, the more interesting.
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I like to read and listen to music. I’m okay with spending money on books and CDs. It’s easy to find used books and CDs cheap here in San Francisco, and I really enjoy searching through the shelves and racks for weird treasures. The problem is if I start feeling like I’m buying compulsively, especially if I do a lot of mail order, which doesn’t feel like spending real money to me. My goal is to give up mail order completely by December 1. Wish me luck!
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1. My husband and I love to shoot but ammunition for the guns can get expensive. He reloads his own ammunition which means it costs pennies compared to purchasing. Plus he and the kids can sit at the bench for hours talking and making bullets. Then we go out as a family to the range and spend a morning shooting. The range is free and we take our own snacks and water.
2. Sunday night dinner with friends. Always potluck and we rotate who brings main dish, sides, dessert. I have figured out that the cost of what I take to the potluck for 8 plus some kids, doesn’t cost any more than a full dinner for the 4 of us, plus we get to enjoy hours of great conversation.
3. High school sports. It costs $16 for the four of us to get in. We can eat hot dogs, sodas and snacks for $20 or take in our own snacks if we eat dinner at home. And some less popular sports are free to go watch. My kids aren’t in high school yet but they love to go watch their friends who are.
4. College sports. We have a Division 1 college here who is far from nationally ranked. We can get tickets to Women’s volleyball, women’s soccer, men’s baseball, women’s basketball, men’s rugby for $5 each and the kids are free. We can often take in our own snacks.
5. Camping. We spend most summer weekends camping with friends. Camping spots are free. I’ve noticed no change in my grocery budget to cook food over the fire vs. cooking it on the stove. Despite what many think, you don’t need all the fancy, new lightweight equipment. We cook on old cast iron from when my father-in-law was a kid, our tent is my husband’s from when he was a kid, and our sleeping bags are from an army surplus store. Nothing new and fancy but it all works.
6. Netflix movie night. We always have Netflix movies coming in and out of the house. But on some Fridays we will make it family night with homemade pizza and popcorn and the kids get to stay up past bedtime.
7. Dinner out. We take advantage of the franchise restaurant’s 2 for $20 deals or other advertised specials. Or local clubs have discount cards. I spent a $15 donation to the middle school athletic fund and have paid for it 10 times over in deals at local restaurants. Our favorite is half off turkey subs at the corner deli. Bring them home to eat with beer and chips (root beer for the kids) in front of the TV instead of the dining room. Even more fun when we do it in the middle of the week instead of a weekend.
8. Farmer’s Market. Often times we don’t buy anything, but just love to go took at the vendors and listen to the musicians that play throughout the market. Of course buying stuff from our local farmers always feels and tastes good too.
9. Matinee and early movies. Even in the middle of the week you can hit the 5:00p movie for several dollars cheaper than the 7;00p show. There aren’t as many people to deal with either. And sneaking in your own candy keeps it cheap.
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Sorry to ask an unrelated question, but I was reading the post on “Money and Marriage: Tackle Trouble BEFORE it Begins” from Oct. 29. This comment got my attention:
Anne KD Says:
October 29th, 2009 at 7:04 am
We use free open source software for this purpose. We have weekly discussions about our money situation. He’ll call me to see the latest projections or line items on the software, we can talk about them, and make very short term goals from there. … The software shows that our net worth will be trending downward into debt territory unless we make changes now.
Does anyone know the software she’s referring to? It sounds like something I would be interested in. Any help is appreciated, thanks.
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@Samantha (#82)
I’ve e-mailed Anne to ask her what she uses. I’ll let you know what I find out. If it’s interesting, I’ll even make a post out of it.
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LIBRARIES. For books, magazines, CDs, DVDs, as well as events.
USED VIDEO GAMES. We go to GameStop to get used video games and equipment instead of buying new – costs about half as much as new, and you can resell the items back when you don’t want them anymore.
HIKES and walking local neighborhoods and parks.
MEMBERSHIP in local botanical gardens or museums. Once you invest the up-front membership cost, you go and get to enjoy it much more often, including special events.
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E, thank you for crewing dragonboats – we sure like to watch them!
We use the public library extensively, always have. Card games, potlucks, the $3 movie theater, art & science museums (our library even has a “check out a museum pass” program). Neighborhood festivals.
And I can’t say enough good thing about our city, state, & federal parks – we went to the beach every week this summer, for free. Soon we’ll be ice skating & sledding. They have a big Halloween party, and evening indoor playtime for preschoolers, and a foozball table. We stop at the park for about an hour every evening if the weather permits. Camping, canoeing, hiking. We aren’t quite hardy enough, with the kid & all our gear, but there are a number of beautiful state parks within 10-20 miles that friends of ours bike to for camping.
And I know this is going to get me on another of those “extreme frugality” lists, but about 2 or 3 times a month my son asks if we can walk around the neighborhood & pick up trash. We usually get a little-red-wagonload, mostly recyclable – I wish our state had a bottle & can deposit, we’d make $10/week.
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Wow, lots of great ideas!
I have two jobs and love them both.
I am a labor and delivery nurse at a high risk hospital where I have worked for almost 15 years. Not only is this job rewarding and endlessly interesting, but constitutes a large part of my social life. Not only is it “frugal,” but is also fun.
I’m also a blogger, which I love. Also frugal and fun!
Work can be fun.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”
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My honey and I really enjoy working out together. We have 2 gym memberships–at one near his home and at one near mine. We each pay $35/mo total for our memberships. One day a week we work out at “his” gym and one day we work out at “mine”. We get a MUCH better workout when we train together and we get our weights AND our cardio in. Then we come home and make a nice breakfast for ourselves. Well worth it! It’s quality time and a lot of fun!
We also like perusing the latest books and magazines at Barnes & Noble. Plus, movie matinees! Aside from saving money, it’s a smaller audience/no lines. Much more enjoyable!
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Now that I am unemployed, I have tons of time on my hands. My kind of fun is searching for ways to be frugal, like making my own laundry detergent, hand soaps, and cleaning products for a fraction of the cost of buying them in the stores. I was really surprised at how much money I could save. I’ve been having sooooo much fun learning all the “old fashioned” ways of doing things that I have been hosting get-togethers at my house for all my friends so I can teach them how to make these low cost, all-natural products. My friends are having a blast learning new things and we have fun getting together and just seeing each other
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Thanks JD!
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Fun for me is anything art or nature related: plays, museums, concerts, galleries, movies, the beach, the redwoods, the mountains, the foothills, etc. And as others have mentioned, even those cultural activities can be inexpensive, especially if you buy a membership or go for the last minute, cheap seats. But here’s what I’ve noticed: I value great performances so much that I’m willing to pay for a really good seat. I balance it by being frugal in other areas of life so when I do sit down in that third row seat I do feel it’s part of an overall frugal plan. Plus, I have a monthly budget for fun and entertainment, and I pretty much stick to it.
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Game night with friends. It’s loads of fun and costs only a few drinks and snacks since we host we don’t need babysitting.
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@Rosa: my kids like to do the same thing. When the weather was nicer, we used to go out for a walk once or twice a week and we would always have to remember to bring a bag. The point was the walk, the trash pick-up was incidental… I’m not sure why my kids like it so much, other than that one of my older daughter’s friends told her that it helps “save the Earth!”
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As others have said, Games with friends (Good cards are $5, and there are at least 20 games I enjoy playing).
Disc golf is $10 for a disc, and there are a ton of free courses. Search google. I also recommend adding a six pack of beer per four people.
The internet is probably the cheapest $/hour activity…
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I have to recommend the library once again. Also, using what we have – particular board games, craft supplies, and dvds we already own – is a major way for us to have fun. B/c we don’t have cable tv, we tend to watch a tv episode from one of many shows while we hang out, eat dinner, or take a breather between doing work (my partner and I are both grad students). We also love the farmer’s market and local craft fairs, even just for browsing, food tastings at the local grocery stores or nursery, free lectures/ events at colleges around town, pot luck game or movie nights with friends, the occasional round of mini-golf, walking by the Willamette, visiting our friends in their local bookstore, using the free wifi in our favorite coffee shops with buy 1 get 1 drink coupons, visiting the Portland food carts, where you can often find food that is fabulous at a fraction of what it costs in a sit-down restaurant, and using the coupons in the Chinook book, the local Portland eco-friendly “entertainment” book.
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Rent a movie for $1.00: both Redbox and Blockbuster Express now have $1 a night new releases. We just wait for these, pop some popcorn, and settle in for the night. Saves a lot over buying or going to the movie theater.
Get a book you’ve been wanting to read, but get it full-length on CD’s from your library–perfect for that hours-long car trip! If you don’t have a library card–get one….
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Potlucks! When my husband and I realized how much money we were spending meeting friends out for dinner and drinks every week, we initiated weekly potlucks. Everyone takes turns hosting and we all try to spend as little as possible on the dishes and wine we bring. We’ve all saved so much money this way, and haven’t lost any time together.
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Has anyone mentioned gardening? If you do it right, you get both great exercise and stretching, plus tasty produce. Yes, I even consider weeding “fun”, as I am glad to be outdoors and working muscles I don’t usually use…..If nothing else, try your hand at growing tomatoes, your own will taste nothing like the ones from the store!
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I have three boys so a lot of my free frugal fun has to include things with them. It could be something like playing baseball outside, or a board game, to visiting a museum.
One of my sons is a heavy reader so a trip to the library can be a sure fire winner.
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PICNIC!
We have a wonderful little folding table… and a picnic kit which includes a table cloth… and we put in some candles. We pack up some wonderful goodies, and will head out to… usually a local park…or maybe a drive-in movie.
As we sit and enjoy a free concert in the local park, or wait for the movie to start, we get MANY envious looks, as we enjoy good food, with all the trimmings!
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A local group has a monthly free/open swing dancing night at a local bar that my husband and I like to go to. They even have a quickie beginner lesson at the start of the night.
Our friends and family all love boardgame or card game night! Lots of fun, and at most, you are springing for some drinks and popcorn to serve our guests.
The local university has free midnight movies and occasional bands at the Union, and they don’t check for a student ID.
Parks! Sit and read, picnic, play frisbee golf, draw in a sketchbook, play with our dog, or get a good walk in. Or join another dog-owning friend at the dog park to chat while the pooches frisk.
DVDs are free at our local library and $1 for 3 days at the next closest branch. Or Redbox rentals are only $1
Audiobooks are free at the library too, and some even come in PlayAway players – little mp3 players you just plug your own headphones into! They are great if you don’t have an ipod. They can make running errands or cleaning the house more fun.
Our local zoo is free (donations accepted). I love to take a kid if I can find one, or go with my camera and photograph the animals.
You can swap books on sites like BookMooch.com if you are the type that keeps books in hard copy.
Volunteer! I joined the Green Team at the local radio station and do volunteer activities with the group around own. Some are boring (picking up litter after the big fireworks show), but some are a lot of fun and you learn stuff & meet new people (painting the free bikes for around town, collecting seeds at the local botanical gardens to preserve heirloom varieties, building a public playground, etc.) I also volunteer at the local food bank, and that is surprisingly fun. I used to volunteer at the Humane Society as a cat cuddler, and loved doing that when I couldn’t have a cat of my own at home!
Craft! I crochet, sew, make soap & bath products, and paint. I get almost all my sewing supplies and yarn from thrift stores or craigslist. There are a million free patterns and ideas online on ravelry.com or crafster.org Plus, homemade gifts are thrifty too!
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