Buy clearance calendars for easy tracking

photo by roguesunmedia

Tracking your spending is a good way to see weaknesses in your budget. Tracking is useful for weight loss, too. The first tip shares one way to do your tracking.

How do you track your spending?

TRACKING: I picked up a journal-type calendar for 75 percent off on clearance. It cost me $4, and it’s the Polestar Family Calendar, with a spiral lie-flat binding. It’s got the dates and HUGE spaces to write about food intake, weight, exercise, spending and any other thing a person might want to track. I wanted to start tracking my food and weight again. I always do better when I keep a journal. I’m using it to track spending, too. It’s already preprinted with the dates. One advantage is that I can shut the thing when people are over and hide it in the drawer of my desk. When I’m alone, it’s out with a pen beside it ready to record things on my way through the day. The reason I mention it is that most places clear out calendars in February, and that includes those page-per-day or two-page-per-week types that have tons of room for executives to write in appointments and their schedules. — Margery, Canada

MAKE PANTS LAST: Buy pants an inch too long. Once they get “grubby” or “ratty” on the bottom, turn the hem under and rehem. You can re-dye older or just lighter-colored blue jeans in loads with navy-blue RIT Dye for that attractive, slimming, “dark wash” effect. — Vail, Washington

WITHIN REACH: I use a pantry for most of my dishes. I got tired of two kids using the “I can’t reach” excuse not to help put away the dishes, etc. So I fixed their red wagon, moved their treats out of the reach, and put the plates, lunch containers, bowls, saucers and mixing bowls in those cabinets. I don’t ever hear I can’t reach when they are looking for something to eat, and they can no longer use that excuse not to help in the kitchen. — Noella, Canada

TRY MICROFIBER: I bought a bundle of microfiber cloths in the automotive department and divided the package for a number of uses, including cleaning. They carry several sizes — up to bath-towel size. If you have small children, microfiber towels would save you a lot of towels in the laundry. The small towels will dry quickly between uses, and since they are so absorbent, a small towel may be all you need.
If you aren’t aware of the care of microfiber towels, there are some things you may want to be aware of so they last a long time.
– Don’t use bleach.
– Don’t wash them with other fabrics that are “fuzzy” because they will embed the fuzz in the fibers.
– Don’t use fabric softener (liquid or sheets) with microfiber towels. It causes the towels to be less effective. — Karen, Kansas

ORGANIZE UNFINISHED PROJECTS: Last year, when I cleaned out my closet, I took all my unfinished projects and put them each into a gift-type bag (any bag with handles that could stand on its own), put everything related to the project in the bag with it, and lined them up in the order I wanted to complete them. It was convenient because I could just grab the bag and go when I wanted to work on something. — Carla, Canada

Posted by Sara Noel on December 12 2009. Filed under Frugal Tips.
Sara Noel owns Frugal Village, LLC and is a nationally syndicated columnist with Universal Uclick. Bio, Follow me on Twitter, Join us on Facebook