...of Creative
Frugality
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Creatively Frugal Bartering
"How have you creatively used bartering to help make ends meet for
your family needs or the needs of your business? Tell us about your
experiences."
"We have four
children all of whom are taking piano lessons.
I was able to arrange
with our wonderful teacher to get a break on
our tuition in exchange
for bringing her a meal each lesson day. I usually just make extra of what
we have for dinner on Monday to bring her
on Tuesday. For us it has been a win-win
deal!" ~ Danielle
"This is one of my favorite
topics! I make soap, lotions,
frozen meals, yogurt, cheese, and
other stuff which I have bartered for
advertising, rain gutters, water
storage tanks, massages, housesitting,
and so much more! For my family,
barter goes a lot farther than cash.
But it does take some time to get
people accustomed to this system,
especially in our cash and credit card
economy." ~ Robyn, AZ
"I
barter with the gal who owns the local
pet boutique. I bring in my daughter's
slightly used clothing when she outgrows
it (she is 2) and give it to this gal,
who has a new grandbaby a few months
younger than my daughter. I had asked
her a couple of years ago if we could
have this arrangement. Then I get
wonderful items for my beautiful
pomeranian in return. I usually get the
extra things I would not normally want
to pay for (his health food
snacks). It works out well for both of
us. I dress my daughter beautifully so
this gal gets lovely clothing, and my
dog gets the snacks he wants. We have
been doing this on a regular basis for
over a year now. I also spoke to my vet,
and since I have several animals, I
asked for a multi animal discount of l0%
on everything from Frontline
applications to pet visits. I save quite
a bit of money this way, especially when
my pomeranian needed surgery." ~
June
"We have 5 horses. Their upkeep
can be quite expensive. In order for
us to keep and enjoy our beloved
animals, we work for our cattle
ranching neighbors and they repay us
in hay and pasture leases. Evenings
and weekends, often as a family, we
repair fence and help haul hay or work
cattle. My husband works for the feed
mill and so we get a discount on feed
also. He has learned to do a lot
of the veterinary care they require,
like worming and yearly shots, so that
expense is just for the medication.
One of the horses requires special
shoes and he takes the horse to
the farrier and he gives a
discount for not having to travel to
us. My husband has also learned
to make his own repairs to
saddles and bridles and other tack
items. We often trade unused tack
items with other people for the pieces
we need. It all adds up and
enables us to enjoy what could be a
very expensive hobby." ~ Celena
"I
would be LOST without
barter...truly! I have been using
barter for years to get things I
need (and want) but can't afford to
pay cash for. Recently, I 'sold' a
website business I had designed and
built up from scratch for $500 in
Melaleuca products. I won't have to
buy toothpaste, shampoo or
dishwashing detergent for a LONG
time. I've also bartered for
advertising space for my business,
Avon, Tupperware, Christmas gifts
galore (I rarely 'buy' gifts for
anyone outside my immediate family),
home decor, books, movies, food,
even medical services! You name it,
I've probably bartered for it.
A
couple of tips... if you're trading
for physical items (rather than
intangible like ad space), be sure
to discuss and work out shipping, if
applicable. Most times when I trade
with someone we each pay our own
shipping, but that's not always the
case. Also consider whether you'll
trade for retail price (which I
always do), or for wholesale. And
lastly, don't be afraid to ask!
You'll be amazed at the trades you
can work out." ~ Dee
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"Once my pal Sheri
and I decided we'd go together and do a two-family
garage sale. Among
all the items for sale, I was going to sell a set of
dishes and she had a nice lamp. Turns
out my dishes matched the set she was using. Neither
the dishes nor the lamp sold, so we traded. It
was great for her and her kids because they now had
double the number of plates, cups, bowls and etc. so
that she could skip washing the dishes every now and
then. She was a working single mother of two so
she didn't have a lot of time. Her
lamp went well in my living room and if you've ever
seen the cost of lamps....enough said.
Another bartering
incident was after my dad died, leaving me with a 30 year
old gas guzzling utility van I didn't need. But I did
need the interior of the house painted
and the stained 'popcorn' ceiling fixed in order
to sell it. As
luck would have it, the guy down the street was
starting a painting business. He would also 'blow
in' the
ceilings professionally and could fix the stained
ceiling. For
swapping the painter my dad's old van (which
didn't have hardly any Blue Book value at all), I got
the work done with no money out of my pocket. For
the cost of his labor and paints, the neighbor/painter got
himself a vehicle in which to haul his paints,
ladders and supplies around to his other jobs. Not
only was that a win-win situation for us both, but
thanks in part to the sparkling new paint job
and ceiling repair, the older house sold in
record time!" ~ Lynn
"I have a small antiques
business and recently I had two different friends purchase
items from me by making monthly payments. I was in no hurry
for the money but I could see that every time they saw me
they made some reference to paying me soon. I could sense it
was becoming a problem in our friendship. Both of these
friends had things I wanted so I approached them about a
barter. They were more than agreeable. One friend is doing
some artistic painting for me and the other exchanged a
large computer desk for an antique bed-frame. We are all
happy, and even better, our friendships are intact. In
the future I will use bartering more often." ~ Jonanna
"I trade a loaf of oatmeal bread for my daughter's
recorder (music) lesson, weekly. Most people I know don't
bake bread, so a warm loaf of homemade bread is much
appreciated. I also give my bread as thanks for favors
done for me." ~ Sandra in CA
Editor's Note: Thanks to these readers for taking time to share
their ideas!
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