How To Be Frugal.

As a broke Graduate Student, there is a lot of things I do to try and save money..
I thought maybe I would list some of them for you today to try and help anyone else who needs to save money for ridiculous expensive such as college textbooks.

 1. I took defensive driving.
This takes 10% off my car insurance bill every month and only cost me 30 dollars to take. I also get a reduction for being a good student- Meaning as long as I get above a 3.0 I get money taken off of my bill!
Now I currently pay about $50 a month. 


 2. I do not buy bottled water.
Not only is this a huge waste of money, but it is horrible for the environment. Tap water is typically just as good [depending on where you live]. It was worth it for me to just buy a 5 dollar water bottle and bring that everywhere!

3. I buy less expensive makeup.
I am in loooveee with Sephora and MAC and although I love going to splurge there this is not something I can do all the time. E.L.F Cosmetics can usually be found in target or you can visit their site online. Their cosmetics are pretty high quality and really cheap. I got a concealer and a facial whip for one $1 dollar a piece. They also have tweezers, and brushes for really cheap too.


4. I make Lists.

When I need to grocery shop, I find planning out my meals for the week and making lists really helps me cut down the amount of impulse buys I make.

5. I Unplug appliances.
This may seem like a bother but you would be surpised by how much you will save on your electric bill if you just unplug the tv or dvd player when you are not using it!


6. I walk/ride a bike.
Although my bike was recently stolen, if I can avoid driving my car I do. Walking and riding a bike is healthy and saves me money on gas!


7. I do not pay for the gym.
I am training for a 1/2 marathon, so most of the things I do is run. I spent a little extra money and bought a treadmill a couple years back and looking at the cost of gym memberships I would say it did me good. For example the yearly cost to go to the Y is around 500 dollars- my treadmill cost me around 300 dollars... So yeah I save a lot of money by investing at home.


8. I rent my textbooks.
Although for some courses I do have to keep my textbooks for courses that I don't intend on keeping I rent my textbooks from Chegg.com. It is super cheap and you mail the books back for free at the end of the semester. Also if you look up discount codes you can usually get 10% off!!


9. I bring my own bags.
When I chose not to shop at walmart [which I try to do often because I hate that walmart is taking over everything] I found the some stores will actually take off money if you bring your own bags. Its only a few cents but it can add up in the long run!


10. I look for cheap fun activities
Redbox is only a dollar to rent movies and if you put your e-mail down they give you coupons. 
The beach I live near allows students to go in for free.
I go to maitnee movies which are 2 dollars cheaper than regular hour movies.
I look at bowling alleys for days that they have deals.
I go to the library and borrow books instead of always buying them!

So these are just some of the thinks that I do to save money!!
What do you do?
  xoxo.