Festival of Frugality

This week’s Festival will have to be minimalist, given the workload in these parts. Despite having to do this project under a bit of time pressure, I very much enjoyed reading each post presented here, and I hope you will, too!

♥ Editor’s Picks ♥

Suba
Wealth Informatics
Should You Buy or Rent?
Whoa! This is a tour de force! Suba has built a rent-vs.-own calculator, created a video tutorial to explain how to use it, and built a nifty infographic describing not only the issues involved in making the big decision but also matters buyers and renters each tend to overlook. Even if you’re not in the market for real estate, you should read this cool post.

Darwin
Darwin’s Money
My Kid Flooded Our Home. What’s the Worst (Most Expensive) Mistake Your Kids Have Made?
{gasp!} What can one say? About the best I can come up with is ooooohhh…m…g…!

 Budgeting and Managing Money

Crystal
Budgeting in the Fun Stuff
Balancing My Checkbook—Too Loaded to Care?
Crystal finds herself keeping looser tabs on the checkbook now that she’s successfully self-employed, and worries that she’s getting complacent.

Pat S
Compounding Returns
Frugality vs. Conscious Spending
On spending sensibly without depriving yourself

Mama Squirrel
Dewey’s Tree House
On Not Throwing Out Food, or Let’s Rustle Up Some Grub
Mama S reflects on buying and using food, and in the process comes up with some thoughtful ruminations.

Caroline Hanna
FUN and Finance
Why Do Couples Fight About Money
Caroline ruminates about the money lessons that she learned from her mother and discovers that marriages are business relationships.

Larry Russell
Personal Investment Management and Financial Planning
Identity Theft Protection and Prevention
Larry details the many facets of identity theft and the precautions we can take to avoid being targeted.

The Debit Card Debâcle, and Other Tales of the Banking Industry

Dough Roller
Five Ways to Avoid Bank of America’s $5 Debit Card Fee
Dough Roller jumps into the latest bank customer disservice flap with several good strategies to keep your money in your own pocket.

Flexo
Consumerism Commentary
Citibank to Charge $20 a Month for Checking Account
If Dough Roller didn’t convince  you to move your cash out of Big Banking, Flexo will! Interesting reports and commentary on their implications.

Vacations, Fun, and Traveling

MD
Studenomics
How I Had a Blast in Europe without Going Poor
MD has a great time in the grand tradition of student traveling.

Peter
Bible Money Matters
10 Frugal Dates You Will Never Forget
Great ways to have fun with that special person!

D.J.
The Family Wallet
How to Throw a Hallowe’en Party on a Budget
Mwa ha ha! Celebrate without spending yourself into the grave.

Jason
Live Real, Now
Financial Blogger Conference
Jason shares his road trip budget for the financial blogger conference while also revealing that experiences don’t have a monetary value.

Building Wealth

The Wealthy Canadian
Getting Serious about Saving
TWC gets a great conversation going on the ins and outs of day-to-day saving.

Glen Craig
Free from Broke
Three Lessons I learned from High School Economics Class
An interesting reminiscence with some valuable insights.

Boomer
Boomer & Echo
Rules of Thumb for Money
A fun list of old (and newer) chestnuts about money, investing, and retirement…plus a very funny (and maybe even true) insight on something altogether different.

Mike Holman
Money Smarts
How to Invest in Canadian Dividend Stocks
Mike explains what a dividend can tell you about a company and even gives examples from Canadian companies.

Working

FMF
Free Money Finance
Five Ways Your Job Costs You Money
FMF considers some of the expenses associated with working, and his insights elicit some fairly lively comments from readers.

David Leonhardt
Bar Whiz Blog
To Buy, or Not to Buy…A Bar or Restaurant Franchise
An interesting series of pro’s and cons about operating a franchise restaurant or bar. Much of this rumination could apply to just about anyone who’s thinking about taking up a franchise business.

Funny
Funny about Money
Second-Hand Rose: A Thrift-Shop Score
Shopping upscale thrifts for business attire.

Frugal Household

Kelsey
Money Mum
Lemon Juice: The Around the House Do-It-All 
Ten handy hints, plus a recipe for lemonade!

Jo Robinson
Totally Money
How to Make Big Savings at the Supermarket and at Home
Practical advice for keeping a grip on your wallet.

Mike
Jammer(six)
Repair or Replace Cracked Windshield?
Who knew you can do a DIY fix on a cracked windshield?

Elle, Guest Author
Sustainable Personal Finance
Baby on Board: Our Budget with a Baby
Elle shares before-and-after costs of a new baby…kinda surprising, actually.

Beating Broke
Have a No-Spend Month This Fall to Save for Holiday Gifts
The BBs calculate ways to afford the holidays while staying out of debt.

Matt Wegner
Living in Financial Excellence
Saving Money on DIY Projects: Find Skilled Friends to Help
Matt questions whether DIY projects are worth the time or the savings.

Miss T.
Prairie EcoThrifter
Make Your Own Beauty Products
Miss T. shares the kitchen ingredients that can be used as beauty products and a couple recipes.

Merlene Paynter
Frugal Family Life
Keep the Cold Out and the Warm In this Winter
As we prepare for colder weather, Merlene provides helpful hints for both the long-term and short-term care of your home during winter months.

Corey
20’s Finances
Can You Be Too Frugal?
Corey wonders if some of us, given the economic conditions, take frugal too far.

Next week’s host will be Penniless Parenting! Please go to the Festival of Frugality’s website for details on how and when to submit your posts. And be sure to recommend the Festival and all these excellent bloggers on all your social media sites.

Many thanks to fellow editor Tina Minchella for helping to compile this 301st edition of the Festival of Frugality.

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