Happy New Year! As the new year begins, I thought this blog would be a great opportunity to explore creative ways to save money. I want to share some things I learned last year, throughout this journey of becoming financially free.
After I started this blog, I became more vocal about finances. Asking financially successful people about their habits led to small but meaningful insights into wise spending.
Below, I share creative ways to save money in hopes that this will inspire you to save in unexpected ways as well.
I want to share insights beyond common advice, such as negotiating cable bills, cell phone plans, or credit card APRs. Tips that go deeper than what most financial books already cover.
Need recommendations on financial books? Click here.
Make It A Day Out of Your Birthday
What I want to offer are more creative ways to save. In my last post (linked here), I shared how my girlfriend makes a day out of a birthday freebie run, from Dunkin’ Donuts to Sephora.
When she was telling me this, I thought to myself, “Wow, what a great way to get out of the house and not spend much for your birthday.” If you like shopping, this is a great way to be out and about, but also not spend anything.
Here’s a list of places you can go for freebies on your birthday:
Starbucks
Dunkin’s Donut
Chipotle
iHop
Jersey Mike’s
Auntie Anne’s
Nothing Bundt Cake
Baskin Robbin’s
Panera
Ulta
Sephora
Target Circle
These are just a few. As always, check each merchant to see how to benefit from their birthday treats or discounts.
Ask, and You Will Receive
Other creative ways to save money, I recently thought about was just asking those around you if they have whatever it is that you need. For instance, I have a girlfriend who loves buying skincare. Sometimes, she buys so much that she’ll have unopened ones about to expire. Every time I tell her I’m running out of something, she’ll tell me not to buy it, and she’ll give me what she has.
I’ll also ask my daughter since I know she works in the beauty industry and has an abundance of something she can give to me.
I tell my daughters all the time to ask me first before buying whatever it is they may need. It’s nice having daughters because there’s usually an abundance of items we can all share. If you don’t have kids, create that community with your friends. My friends and I are constantly giving each other free things. The other day, my girlfriends gave me some sweet potatoes.
And if you can’t keep it, you could at least ask to borrow something instead of buying it.
You can do the same for traveling. If you have friends or family in different places, you can ask them to house/pet sit. This will help change up your environment without spending too much.
What I’ve recently started doing is telling people what I want for my birthday or the holidays. You can use apps like Elfster if you’re not comfortable with letting people know verbally. Asking for what I want has been so helpful because instead of receiving things I most likely won’t use, I can now start enjoying the things that I do receive.
Be Intentional With Your Clothing Purchase
Another creative way to save money is by being intentional with what you spend your money on. Now, I love shopping. This was part of my negligent spending habits. It didn’t hit me that a hundred here and a hundred there throughout the course of a year would greatly add up. Obvious for some, yes, I know. But for me, I didn’t think that buying $50 worth of makeup one week would add to my purchase of $75 for the jacket two weeks later.
One of my goals this year is to make more intentional clothing purchases. This means, no shoes, no shirts, no sales! I have more than enough. The reason I can never find anything to wear is that I get so overwhelmed with my plethora of choices.
The other day I was trying to figure out what to wear out for dinner, and while I was going through my closet to look for shoes, I realized I had so many options that it made it so overwhelming. The thing is, I tend to reach for the same items the majority of the time because I know that piece works for me.
Sometimes my closet is so jammed packed, I miss a shirt that got shoved into the depths of my closet. That alone should be a sign to stop purchasing until I declutter my closet.
Also, if you really want or need to purchase clothes, look for them online first on a reseller platform like ThredUp, Poshmark, or Mercari. I wrote a whole blog post on what to look for, so it’s less overwhelming when perusing those sites. Click here if you want to read 8 Top Tips On How to Buy On Poshmark.
Stop buying things because they go on sale. It’s better to get what you want at full price than to buy something on sale just because. I have a running list on my phone of items I thought about and want to purchase. This way, it’s clearer what I want, and I can save towards it instead of mindlessly purchasing.
Plus, when people ask what I want for the holidays or my birthday, I can share the links with them. Sometimes, I’ll revisit this running list and delete things that no longer appeal to me.
Fast fashion and influencers have made it seem so normal and easy to consistently stay on trend. It’s not, and it’s okay if you’re not wearing the color of the season or the shoe of the month.
I love fashion just as much as others, but I wear what makes me feel confident, whether it’s in fashion or not. The majority of the time, the trend will resurface back around again.
Rewearing your outfits is not a crime; it’s actually a flex.
Get Outside More
I know some people feel like when they step outside, they automatically spend $100+. And that can be true and easy for a lot of people. If you step outside and get a cup of coffee, you started your day spending at least $6. You walk around and find a cute little gift shop. That cute card doesn’t seem like much of an expense, and you reason that you can use it for your friend’s upcoming birthday.
Then you see some delicious dark chocolates when you make the card purchase and think to yourself, “Ohh, I am getting a little hungry. Maybe I can get this to hold me over until lunch.” The chocolates and the card come out to almost $15 with tax. So far, you spent a little over $20, and your day just started.
My point is, yes, getting outside, it can add up. But have you ever thought about when you were a kid? A teenager? I don’t know if it’s just me, but I always wanted to be outside as a kid. I remember anytime I didn’t have homework or chores, I’d take my bike and ride for hours. Or I’d take the bus, train, and or walk for hours. I never had any money. Just enough for transportation and maybe a bite to eat, and that was it.
I’m slowly realizing that just because I can afford something doesn’t mean I have to indulge in it, like snacks or food, when I’m out. I’m trying to eat before I leave the house and bring water with me wherever I go now. This ways its harder for me to get tempted by those dark chocolates at the register.
Now, I try to find creative ways to be out and about. I look up hiking trails, walking paths, and parks I can enjoy with my friends and family. If no one can make it out with me, I’ll grab my earphones and take a nice leisurely walk. I also plan on walking to the grocery store this year instead of driving, just so I can be more mindful in my grocery purchases.
The grocery store is a mile from my house. Walking there will help me stay mindful in my purchase because I don’t want to carry too many heavy groceries, and it will help me add to my goal of 10k steps a day.
For my birthday, my kids asked me what I wanted to do. I didn’t want them to spend money, nor did I want to either. Instead, we played boardgames and later, I opted for a solo bike ride in between the rain. I had no agenda, no location of where to ride, and no jacket (which cut my ride short). I just wanted fresh. With that being said, I was able to still get in a 30-minute bike ride, all for free. My bike was even a birthday gift years ago from my mom!
The Gift That Keeps On Gifting
Since we’re on the topic of gifts, this is also another creative way to save money. Now, this one, you do need to be careful not to hurt anyone’s feelings. Because sometimes, someone who gifted you something could’ve put a lot of thought into it. But regifting can be done tastefully and mindfully.
Over the holidays, I tend to get a lot of chocolates and cookies. Instead of indulging in all of them, I will regift a lot of unopened treats. The other day, the UPS driver knocked on our door, and I had an abundance of cookies. I decided to spread the holiday cheer and gift him with a couple of packages of unopened cookies.
Also, if I buy things that I haven’t used, I will wrap them up and gift them if I think the person I’m gifting will enjoy them. For instance, I’ve had cashmere gloves I never used with the tags on them, I’ll wrap them up and give them as a gift. Instead of them wasting away in my drawer, they are now gifted to someone else who may need and love them.
During the holidays, I also keep all of the gift bags I receive that are still in nice condition to use for the next year. I was able to collect so much in 2025 that I didn’t need to buy any gift bags.
Whenever I gift someone something in a gift bag, I also try to keep it nice so they can reuse it, too, if they choose. This means I will usually leave the name tag blank, tie a name tag on that they can remove easily, or add a card inside the bag.
Free Samples Anyone?
What do you usually do with your free samples? I, for one, have a drawer of free samples. Whenever I travel, I’m always going through my small drawer of samples first when packing. It kind of feels like when you were a kid and got to pick a free toy from the treasure chest at the dentist.
Having a home for all of my free samples has helped me so much when packing because I don’t have to dig and search for what I need. I know where to go, and if it’s not in the drawer, then I can purchase a travel size of whatever it is I need. This is another creative way to save money.
I have every free sample I receive in there, from the dentist (floss and toothpaste) to soap bars and body lotions I get from hotels. On my birthday, I will usually have an idea of what I’m running out of in my sample drawer, like face wash, and if Sephora has that as an option as a birthday gift, I will usually request what I need.
Normal for me is not buying clothes or toiletries for every trip; Normal for me is repeating outfits; Normal for me is eating first before going out. What’s your norm? This year, please join me in becoming more organized, more mindful, and more intentional, especially in creative ways to save money.
As always, thank you for reading!
Love, Sutivi