Frugal Fashion Feature

You may be wondering: Captain Cheap, how do you get, and stay, so stylish? 

But wonder no longer, because the answer is: On the cheap! Or, even better, for free!

This is my favorite T-shirt. The front of the shirt features the logo of my local library, and the back has the library's website on it. How much did I pay for this shirt? $0! 

I actually "earned" this shirt by participating in my library's adult summer reading program. You could score a certain amount of points for checking out materials and going to library events, and then cash them in for prizes. I cashed in mine for this awesome shirt! 

Last year, I got a free sweatshirt for opening a checking account. Last week, my summer job just passed out t-shirts to folks to reward us for working the summer. 

I like these free shirts because, first of all, they're free. But secondly,  because when I wear them, people can see that I belong to a community. People can see that I'm a proud library patron, or that I worked with an academic support program over the summer. Pretend vintage shirts that they mass-market (and that cost money) only say: Look, here's a shirt I spent money on. Which is not nearly so cool. 

So how can you get ahold of free shirts, hats, and other fashionable gear? Here are some tips that have worked for me and for other readers who wrote in with their advice!: 

Free "parrothead" hats
passed out at a Detroit
Tigers baseball game. 

* Drew, a Captain Cheap reader, recommends volunteering. He got some free shirts from helping out a concession stand at a local high school. (Captain Cheap hint: Volunteering also often involves free food, too!) 

* Jen, another reader, reminds us that there are often free hats and shirts to be had with the price of a ticket to sporting events. If you're thinking about going to a football, baseball, hockey, basketball, or any other sporting game, check to see what nights are giveaway nights, and get more for your money!

...Here's to another frugal, and fashionable, week, friends!

Blast From the Past: Depression-Era Penny-Pinching Tips!

Especially when it comes to saving money, our elders are/were in the know! Here are some suggestions from the Depression that helped our ancestors get through the tough times. I've scrabbled them together from across the World Wide Web and adapted them for the modern solo-apartment renter. They can all be put to use today to help stretch your dollar!

Also: Attention readers!! Next week's post will be dedicated to reader tips and wisdom -- all about cheap house cleaning! Do YOU have a tip about keeping things clean (while keeping things cheap) to share? Be sure to let me know, so that your advice can be included in next week's post!

Some Depression-era tips (for a modern apartment dweller):

•  If you drink tea, use your teabag more than once before tossing it out.
•  Use cloth napkins instead of always buying paper ones.
• Instead of using expensive store-bought household cleaners, use vinegar and a baking soda/water mixture for floors, countertops, and windows.
•  If heat is not included in your rent (an extra expense for you), put on a sweater instead of turning up your heater.
•  Also, if heat is an extra expense for you,  be sure to block any drafts under your doors and windows with towels or another homemade "draft blocker" to save energy and money.
•  If your heat IS included in your rent, hang your clothes to dry around your apartment rather than pay to run a dryer.
• Before giving away old clothes to the thrift store, think about what you might be able to do with them. Could a pair of pants with a hole in the knee be made into shorts? Could part of an old sheet be made into a tablecloth?

Special thanks to mommysavers.com and caring.com!