TheTightwad Gazette And My Frugal Perspective
Reflecting back upon past years of living economically, I couldn't help but consider how I developed my present frugal perspective. All my lifetime memories include needing to approach finances with care. However the book by Amy Dacyczin, The Tightwad Gazette, changed my perspective and attitude towards living the frugal life.
I still recall reading The Tightwad Gazette for the first time. This book opened my mind to the benefit of seeking to approach my financial struggles purposefully. Mrs. Dacyczin lent a certain dignity to careful consideration of expenditures both large and small. She artfully described how practicing the art of delayed gratification provides ways to meet goals and perhaps to even make dreams come true. I realized that I could find a way to make even challenging cirumstances work.
As I not only put to use some of the many ideas suggested in the book on how to live a frugal life, I also developed a better understanding on how being financially challenged can give one a penchant toward wise resourcefulness and stewardship. I must admit I probably do not live as extreme a frugal life as those whose ideas are shared in this book, but the challenge, perspective and examples were really life changing for me.
Today, after taking some time to review my budget and needing to find someway to add a little extra to Husband's FSA account, I decided to spend some time again with my aging copy of The Tightwad Gazette. Alas, as I searched my bookshelves, I was reminded that this was one of my books shared that never came back. Guess I will be making a trip to the library soon!
The beginning of a new year always give me more zest to continue to develop and practice my frugal living skills. What books help you to renew your frugal vision?
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21 Responses to “TheTightwad Gazette And My Frugal Perspective”
January 3rd, 2012 at 6:27 am
I have never read nor brought any of the Tightwad Gazette books. I did however get each and everyone of the newsletters when they were being published. Loved getting the mail the day the new newsletter came. I always read it cover to cover and then put it in a binder. I have each and everyone. I too read and reread them about once a year. It always sets the year off on the right foot for me.
I also like the cook books by Tawra Kellam and Jill Cooper. The Dining on a Dime books have really helped me get a meal on the table that does not cost a lot of money.
January 3rd, 2012 at 6:53 am
I got the three-in-one book of the tightwad gazette for Christmas (‘complete’, that’s the word I was looking for there!)
and I can’t wait to start reading it properly. I’ve dipped in a bit and enjoyed what I’ve read so far
January 3rd, 2012 at 7:01 am
My husband’s grandmother gave me a copy of the Complete Tightwad Gazette as a wedding present… and to this day I think it was probably the gift with the biggest long term value to our marriage. It completely opened my eyes to how little you really needed to live on. We spent the first few years of our marriage putting my husband through seminary (where my salary barely put us above the national ‘poverty’ line) and we were still able to pay down many of the debts of our previous unmarried financial stupidity. Even though some of the info is obsolete, the book’s value is really in helping the reader find that creative mindset that can just make do.
Another book I recently discovered of the same spirit was Gene Logsdon’s “Moneysaving Secrets.” It was almost like a man’s Tightwad Gazette. I highly recommend it, if you haven’t read it yet.
January 3rd, 2012 at 7:36 am
I, too, have the Complete Tightwad Gazette and have read it over and over so many times! I love gaining new ideas in the area of finances. We can never be too careful in how we spend our $$. I also love Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey and America’s Cheapest Family. I actually created my own version of financial planning/frugality by combining all three books:)
January 3rd, 2012 at 7:39 am
I love my Tightwad Gazette, although I think it’s been at least 2 years since I cracked it open. Maybe I should brush it off and have a new look at it, myself! The thing that made the biggest impression on me about it was the fact that Amy didn’t use coupons. I hate the stupid things, and it seems like the only frugal bloggers out there are all about them. Nice to know I’m not the only one who is unshakeable in the belief that they’re not a good use of time. (Not that I won’t use one if it’s right there and obviously useful!)
January 3rd, 2012 at 7:42 am
I love The Treasure Principle, by Randy Alcorn. It focuses on giving, but in the process describes how we should not view our money as our own, but as God’s (and we are simply His money managers). I’ve read it several times, and it always gives my worldliness and selfishness a Bible-based check-up.
January 3rd, 2012 at 8:02 am
I wonder if the Gazette is available on Kindle? That’s a book I’ve bought several times — each time having to painstakingly find it in used book stores. I’ve got two volumes right now.
January 3rd, 2012 at 9:31 am
I first heard of Amy Dacyczin and The Tightwad Gazette when she was a guest on the Phil Donahue show in the early 1990s. I was a young mother at the time and Amy reminded me of my own mother, who was born during the Depression and grew up during WWII. It brought back to me the ideas of re-using things (Mom always saved string, foil, paper, bags, jars, etc. for other uses), getting the most out of things (repairing shoes, sewing rips, squeezing the very last out of the toothpaste) and doing with out the unnecessary items (wants vs. needs).
January 3rd, 2012 at 9:43 am
I have them and they’re in my to-donate box. Email me and I’ll send them to you!
January 3rd, 2012 at 10:50 am
i read the tightwad gazette three in one book cover to cover…then i passed it on to a niece who when finished with it will pass it on as well.it is a really good common sense book for those who are struggling with hard times and looking for ways to get through them.
January 3rd, 2012 at 12:45 pm
I LOVE The Tightwad Gazette!
Just starting out learning to be frugal and how to make something from nothing…AND! finding out that ‘curbshopping’ or dumpster diving…was perfectly ok and didn’t make me seem crazy… I learned all these things from Amy D.
Oh cool and it looks like you’re getting a new copy… Emily is so kindly giving you her copy!
So cool. Way to go Emily.
HAVE A GREAT DAY!
PAT
January 3rd, 2012 at 9:07 pm
Great Book, I recently bought a new copy on Half.com for $4.75, that pretty frugal.
January 4th, 2012 at 12:24 pm
I’m also a huge fan of The Tightwad Gazette. I was a young wife and mother when I started to get the newsletter. Completely changed the way I look at money. Just started re-reading the Complete Tightwad book just to refresh my thinking!
I also second Tawra’s cookbook, Not Just Beans. I won a copy of her first printing on her website which I use almost daily for the french bread recipe.
I have given both these books as gifts to many friends and family.
January 4th, 2012 at 12:53 pm
Those were the first books I read on frugality and still my favorite! Just so much common sense wisdom and real-life examples.
January 6th, 2012 at 12:39 am
Those were the first books on frugality I saw that didn’t have tips that I was already using.
January 6th, 2012 at 11:10 am
I have the complete set in one. I pull it out and reread it once every year or so. As a young single mommy, I didn’t know how I was going to make it. Thanks to reading her book and understanding that I had choices where to spend my money and how to be frugal, I have been able to make it. I don’t get any child support or assistance, so it has really helped me through the years.
January 7th, 2012 at 9:54 am
Big fan here! I’ve incorporated many ideas from this book into my life.
January 8th, 2012 at 7:02 pm
I have a Complete Tightwad Gazette giveaway on my blog right now, and I’d be pleased to have FH readers enter! I absolutely loved the book, too, and while I was already quite thrifty, it brought it to a new level, and gave me a better handle on stewardship in general, not just on getting the next “good deal.”
http://adventuresinthriftland.blogspot.com/2012/01/complete-tightwad-gazette-giveaway.html
January 10th, 2012 at 8:44 pm
I still love my Tightwad Gazette books after all these years. I think it’s because it’s not just little tips. It’s more about the mindset you need to cultivate to live a frugal lifestyle.
January 16th, 2012 at 9:41 pm
I recently re-read “The Complete Tightwad Gazette” for the first time in over a decade, and was amazed at how well Ms. Dacycyzn’s advice has held up through the years. I really wish she had continued her career through the 2000s, as I’m sure she would have made an amazing blogger.
I have further thoughts about The Tightwad Gazette here: http://www.frugalskills.com/book-review-the-complete-tightwad-gazette
It really is a book that anyone interested in saving money should read.
February 17th, 2012 at 3:51 pm
Two I haven’t seen mentioned started us on our frugal life: Your Money or Your Life by Joe Rodriguez (Great title, yes?) and Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey, putting money and debt in perspective with Christian values. Both excellent.
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