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Heartwings Love Notes 766 - Thrifty Living makes Sense

When I was a child a friend of my mother's gave me the dresses that her twins had outgrown. Because they were dressed alike, I had to wear two of whatever came my way. Thrift meant making do with what was available. There was a war on and many things were rationed. Later my mother had to stretch what my father earned to cover the needs of the three more children born after I was eight years old. How excited I was when in my sixteenth year I got a pair of Bermuda shorts. They were newly fashionable and I felt special to have a pair. Although they were wool, I wore them all that summer and for a number of summers after that. For a long time they were my only pair.

Growing up in a thrifty household inclined me toward a thrifty lifestyle as an adult. When I was raising my own family of five children I had to stretch our food dollars to try to nourish as well as please my family. I learned all kinds of tricks to make inexpensive cuts of meat palatable and I baked cookies by the dozen so the children would have treats. Home made was far less expensive than store bought. My sewing machine hummed as I made dresses for my daughters and even some outfits for my sons when they were small.

Judging from the advertisements I see today, thrift is not especially fashionable. Bargains, of course are. However what is considered a bargain by some standards is not by others. When I was growing up the annual church fairs were the best places to find inexpensive, serviceable garments. I do not remember there being any other places one could find good second hand clothing at that time. When we got together I introduced Stephen to consignment and thrift store shopping, and he embraced it happily. I find it more fun to shop that way because you never know what you will find, and the prices are far more reasonable than what regular stores charge.

Over the years I have amassed a wonderful collection of clothing. Much of it has come from consignment or thrift stores, the rest from sales. Certain garments have endured the test of time and I wear them joyfully in the appropriate season. Others get rotated back into the mainstream to be discovered by someone else who enjoys saving money by shopping wisely. What is even nicer is that now I can have a number of pairs of shorts for the price I would pay for one bought new, or a cashmere sweater that someone has passed on, at a fraction of the cost in a regular store. For me this is a kind of payback for the days when I wore the twins' hand me down dresses over and over again.

May you find ways to be thrifty and enjoy the results of your efforts.
 

I love to hear from readers and would be honored if you would comment and let me know any suggestions or thoughts. If a friend sent you this, you can sign up at my web site, www.heartwingslovenotes.com, where more love notes can be found in the archives.

Blessings and Best Regards,
Tasha Halpert
 

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