may spending freeze: a recap
yesterday marked the last day of our may spending freeze & today i thought i’d share a little recap of our experience in saying no to most purchases, regulating needs versus wants & finding contentment in what we already have.
before the month started, i shared what the spending freeze looked like for our family & part way through the month, i shared an update.
overall, the spending freeze was a huge success.
we cut way back & saved over $1k toward unexpected expenses & debt accrued from earlier in the year. our regular monthly budget is not extravagant (we don’t have cable & we rarely eat out), but we realized that even the slightest spending toward a red box movie & to-go coffee really adds up.
we maximized the use of what we already owned, parted ways with excess & felt the slightly uncomfortable pull to say no to those extra purchases.
surprisingly, i also saved a lot of time not spending money. instead of purchasing things i thought we needed, i spent my time cleaning out our closets & organizing our spaces to accommodate our lighter living.
i did mess up a few times.
i purchased a few pieces of clothing for our upcoming europe trip & my summer capsule wardrobe. we also spent a few bucks over our date night budget celebrating a friend’s birthday.
despite a few hang ups along the way, we learned a lot about our spending habits:
– like i said before, i gained a lot more time not spending money. i used that extra time to organize, purge, enjoy hobbies (reading, practicing calligraphy) & simply rest.
– gifts are a necessity to our budget. i am a giver by nature & love gifting even the simplest of gifts to friends & family. the void of that extra $30 each month to spend on others really left me feeling down. that giving category is no longer a non-negotiable in our budget; it’s a necessity.
– date nights are key to our marriage sanity. although we kept our date night budget & just trimmed it back slightly, we really wished we had kept the $60 instead of $40 for the month. date nights are a way for us to connect outside of the home & celebrate over good food. every date night is sacred & a necessity to the health of our marriage.
– the garden is an amazing way to cut down on the grocery budget. we spent far less this month than during the winter months eating fresh salads & vegetables from the garden. we love harvesting baskets full garden goodies & it’s a great way for us to connect after a long day.
– we will do this again. it was an effective way for us to get back on track financially & a fun experiment for our family.
i’d love for you to share what you learned during your spending freeze!
love,
natalie
Katie @ Stress and Stars | 1st Jun 15
I didn't end up doing one for May – a little bit too much came up and it never happened. I'm definitely going to work harder at this for this month We really do need to start saving towards a vacation, stuff for the house, and just generally having a little more padding in our bank account than we do now. I KNOW the money is there – I just have to stop spending those bits here and there. It doesn't help that I have a ten-month-old rapidly outgrowing all the clothing I buy her, haha – it seems she needs two or three new items of clothing each month!
Debbie Fisher (debbiedee) | 1st Jun 15
I read your blog faithfully, but rarely comment and this post prompted me to do so. It's been awhile since we've done a spending freeze and I'm hoping we can do one in August. This year has been absolutely crazy in the amount of weddings and baby and bridal showers. 16 so far!
I did want to comment on your comment about the $30 no longer being an option in the giving category. You make such lovely things in food and craft, why not gift those? You could use what you have and create a lovely basket. I'm always picking up baskets (and now others do so for me as well) for 50¢ or less and keep them on hand to fill with my own food and crafty goodies. It's a way for me to be able to give (something I love to do as well) and not break the budget.
Anonymous | 1st Jun 15
My husband and I recently went to a more "strict" budget and did a spending freeze for the month of May similar to yours (date night is a MUST for us as well to feel connected to each other and to friends). We saved a great amount of money and relized how much "waste" we spend every month. I do not feel like we missed out of any joy because we were on a spending freeze. Gifts are a major thing for me and it was tough. My best friend's birthday was this month and I made her a birthday funfetti candle inspired by pintrest that mostly used stuff I already had. Only had to buy candle wax. We are going to try to keep up a spending freeze for the summer and see what happens. Thanks for helping me not feel alone in worrying about giving gifts and such.
Martha
erin | 1st Jun 15
Nat, I love how you covered the entire scope of this "experiment"…from beginning, to middle, to end.
I'm inspired by you daily!
xo
Ali | 1st Jun 15
Thanks for sharing this recap! Could you share more about how you budget and/or what your budget looks like? I'm very curious about how you managed to save $1,000 extra in one month (congrats!) and also how having a garden/farm impacts your budget. Thanks!
Cutie and the Geek | 2nd Jun 15
This is a good idea and I think I may try to do this to see how it works out for us. Thanks for sharing!
Blissful & Domestic | 2nd Jun 15
We didn't do one in May, but I am starting one for June and am feeling great already. We just came back from vacation and are feeling the need to restock our savings. Thanks for the inspiration lady:)
Danielle @ Blissful & Domestic
Unknown | 15th Jul 15
Hey Natalie!
Just wondering….what kind of pens do you use to practice calligraphy? Thanks!