Best investment ever. The footstool

I originally bought this stool with a 70s ‘lazy-boy’ design, waaaay back when I came home from Melbourne. Since then I’ve constantly lambasted anyone who’ll listen with the tale of the one that got away, a matching armchair and stool. Now, this is mostly because it is extremely comfy, and only cost $15, an absolute steal.

Since that time, i’m come to regret it more. This is because this stool has become the most oft-used piece of furniture in the apartment. In addition to serving as a footstool, it has been:

• a seat for parents watching a wee man in the bath
• a seat for parents feeding a wee man at his high chair
• a spare chair at the dinner table when people come over

And, most importantly:

• A zimmer frame for a wee man learning to walk about the house.

So why is this on Frugal Me you ask?

Because today I saw a walking-toy for boddlers (babies who aren’t quite toddlers), for a whooping $120!! And I asked myself, why in the hell spend that money when you have the superfootstool hanging about the place?

Again – the best damn investment I ever made.

Briscoes Sale! Get on down there!

As part of the weekend entertainment of the wee tacker I popped out for a walk, and we happened past Briscoes.

They have a Mothers Day sales on that has a few useful things for sale. Some items are pretty much marked down to prices you would find at the Warehouse…

But! Much of the cookware and bakeware is up to 50% off! That you certainly can’t sniff at.

Great deal from local retailer

If you’re in Wellington and trying to clothe some wee tackers, then Second Chef has discovered the deal for you.

Gubbs Shoes on Manners Street is very kindly handing on a deal to us, the consumer. Apparently these wee Ugg boots usually retail at around $60. But, Bobux was shafted by an overseas buyer so is stuck with thousands of units they’re trying to sell.

And Gubbs is offering them at $25 per pair, or $40 for two!!

A great deal on decent shoes for your small person.

Cornucopia

I think the last post like this I did was during the winter.

But guess how much this bowl of fruit and veges cost me, and all from the Waitangi Park markets?

It’s broccoli, a couple of spuds, corn, capsicums, plums, apricots, nectarines, peaches, and a cucmber. I had to leave out the 2kg of Roma tomatoes I found for $2kg (that are currently in the oven being semi-dried).

A modest amount of fruit. I also had to leave a bunch of the stone-fruit out because the bowl was over-flowing.

Making do with what someone else had

My own philosophy of frugality is to not make do with what you can buy in the stores. Purchasing things brand new might give some people a buzz, and good on them, but to me it means paying too much money for stuff that has probably already been manufactured and is sitting on a shelf somewhere. This is wasteful, inefficient, and therefore not green.

I’m therefore happy to buy stuff second-hand, and love snooping about in recycled-object stores for useful junk. It means that old objects are given a lease of life, I get a bargain on a product I would otherwise be paying a premium for, and something doesn’t end up costing ratepayers to go into a landfill.

And here’s a great example.

These cups are great for soup. “Regular” soup bowls are difficult to use if you’re sitting on the floor next to the heater in the winter, they’re difficult to eat out of when you’re in bed with a cold, and they’re broader across the top so the meal cools down too quickly.

These cups also good for cereal, if you’re a cereal kinda guy.

Costing us $2 each at St. Vincents De Paul, these little beauties now take pride of place next to the other 4 we bought in Dargaville a year or two back…

Quick!! A cheese bargain

You’ll want to hurry down to Wellington Central New World ASAP to purchase 900g of cheese. They’re only $8.99 and on special.

You won’t find a bargain like thatr for awhile.

Likewise, Palmolive liquid soap is $4 off.

These are good things.

Even better, you can buy New Zealand oranges at the Waitangi Park Markets for as little as $1.60 per kilo, and tomatoes for $4. They have green apples for less than $2 a kilo.

It’s also a beautiful day outside, so get on down there before it closes (you have half hour…)