Your Home and Lifestyle

A Cheaper Cup of Coffee

The best way to save on your morning coffee habit is to downsize it. Start ordering your drink in a smaller size and you’ll save a chunk of change every day. Bring your own mug to snag additional savings—that ten-cents-a-day discount adds up over time. Finally, if you’re a regular at your neighborhood coffee shop, start a punch card or pay for your drink with a preloaded registered gift card. Companies like Starbucks throw in pricey add-ons like soy milk and flavored syrups for free when customers pay with the swipe of a registered gift card.

Discounted Dinners

It’s hard to pass up date night with that special someone. To save on dinners out, consider turning your dinner dates into happy hour get-togethers. You’ll still enjoy good company, food, and drink, and often you’ll spend dollars less on the same menu items you’d order come dinnertime. Another alternative: the prix-fixe dinner. Fine dining restaurants across the nation are wooing diners with these multi-course, fixed-price meals. Yes, you’ll have to trust the chef to make your meal choices, but the meals are generally cheaper than ordering each course off the menu.

A Whittled Wine Budget

If you pour a glass (or two) of wine to unwind after work, you know that a nightly wine habit can quickly drain a bank account. The irony here is that you can save on wine by buying more of it, or at least more of it at one time. When you purchase a case of wine (twelve bottles) instead of individual bottles, most grocery stores, wineries, and bottle shops will give you a discount of fifteen to twenty percent off your purchase.

We’re all trimming our budgets these days, which also means we’re steering clear of any wallet-draining vices like a dieter avoiding a donut shop. And that’s a shame because that daily latte habit and bottle of weeknight wine gives us something to look forward to during tough times.

Fortunately, there’s no need to cut out all of life’s pleasures, large or small. Even if you need to tighten the purse strings this year, you can indulge in your vices by employing tricks to make them cost less. Here’s how.

A Budget-Friendly Blowout

A polished image can come at a high cost if you insist on frequenting upscale salons. The key to saving money and looking good is to put your faith in the students at a local beauty school. These in-training stylists perform salon services such as hair coloring, facials, and pedicures for a fraction of the price big-name salon staffers charge. If you’re worried about putting your looks in the hands of a novice, make an appointment with a senior student.

Films for the Frugal-Minded

Weekly trips to the theater are a big budget buster, but not everyone is willing to save money by watching flicks on their tiny television at home. Find a middle ground by locating a second-run theater in your neighborhood; you’ll have to wait until the buzz about a film dies down for it to show at these locales, but your reduced ticket price will be worth it. And, if you don’t like the second-run theater vibe, we’ve got three words for you: See a matinee.

Wallet-Friendly Reads

If you can’t pass the grocery store checkout without grabbing a glossy, it’s time to order a subscription and get twelve issues for the price you’d normally pay for two. Look for book exchanges and budget-priced book sales in obscure locations like community centers, libraries, and grocery stores. Or get a library card and start checking out magazine back issues and novels from your favorite author for free.