Is that expense really worth it?

There are a lot of ways I’m frugal. For the most part, if I can do something for less money myself, I will quite willingly, refuse to spend money on that thing. This has both pros and cons. At some point, if I insist on doing everything I’ll run out of time; however, other times it can really stop me in my tracks from buying something I don’t need.

For instance, although I’m not a craft blogger, I am an avid crafter and DIYer. I love going to craft fairs, but it is so tempting to buy the fun crafts everyone has come up with! Most of the time I can deconstruct what they did, and I often find myself walking away saying to myself “I can do that”. Of course, I never do, which is just as well. Even though I could have, and I probably would have really enjoyed it, I don’t have the time and I don’t need the thing. At the end of the day, crafts are usually just clutter and stuff.

I’ve also been known to resist hiring professionals for home projects I could and should be able to do myself. Most notably, I really don’t want to pay the labor costs to have someone take out my chimney – it’s hard physical labor but nothing my own body isn’t capable of. Likewise, while I haven’t done the research yet, I firmly don’t believe tiling is so hard I can’t do my own kitchen backsplash.

So naturally, when we got a new couch, this tendency extended to where I was quite bitter about paying the trash company to dispose of my old couch in the landfill. You see, in my town, there is a trash bin and a recycle bin. Anything that doesn’t fit is classified as a bulky item and requires a sticker that costs $15 in order for the trash men to haul it away. We don’t have a dump, either. My couch was a sectional with 2 pieces. The springs were sticking out and all dislodged, and except for scrap material was in no condition to pass on. I was looking at a $30 bill to get rid of my couch.

I came up with the bright idea to dismantle it into pieces, small enough for the trash bin, and get rid of it over time. I started to do this, until I realized how hard and time intensive it was, especially after not even one fifth of the first sectional filled up our trash can. The couch sat, in the garage, for two whole years. Finally, last month we got rid of it. Because of the onset of yet another winter in New England without a garage for my car, and the stress of having it sit on my to-do list forever, I finally gave in and bought the stickers.

Which is also kind of like the time this spring, faced with my daughter’s birth, I broke down and hired landscapers for a one-time yard cleanup job.

Then there was that other time I found these absolutely amazing crocheted wrist warmers at a craft fair. I definitely wouldn’t normally have gotten them. I mean, I can knit and crochet, and wrist warmers are easy, relatively speaking. I was working a friend’s booth at the fair, and towards the end of the day they were still there, calling my name. I decided the reality of the situation was I really liked them, and I would never have the time to make it priority to make some myself, so I purchased them.

Even though I really treasure my frugalness in this nature, I am totally okay with my purchase decision in all these examples. You see, even though the whole dismantling of the couch would have worked, 2 years in, it clearly wasn’t a priority. It was liberating to finally see it gone. And yes, we could have done the landscaping ourselves, but with a newborn to attend to, it just wasn’t worth the energy to us, and they did a way better job than we would have anyways. And while I could have made the wrist warmers, I still absolutely love the ones I got. I get positive comments on them all the time, and I wear them pretty much every day 4-5 months out of the year, several years later.

While its important to be cognizant of spending and recognize if you are putting your money towards something you could do yourself, it’s equally important to not disregard your time and emotions about the situation either. In both cases, the couch and the landscaping, paying the cost meant I was more relaxed and less stressed because I didn’t have to look or think about it every day. While I wouldn’t have been more stressed without the wrist warmers (maybe a bit colder!) they genuinely make me happy when I get the chance to wear them, which is an emotion I enjoy experiencing.

Using these, and many other experiences, I’ve put together a few questions to ask yourself the next time you’re faced with an expense you’re not sure if you’ll need. Hopefully answering these questions will help shed some insight into whether the cost is worth it for you.

• Can I make this product / do this service myself?
• Do I want to make this product / do this service myself?

If its not something you can do, or have the inclination to learn, its probably worth the expense.

• Do I already have something that will serve this purpose?

Many times we already have something that will suffice for the purpose in which we are shopping. Check to make sure you don’t already have something that will do the job before purchasing.

• Is it recurring or one time?

We could have easily justified a full season landscaping service, but we compromised with one single spring clean-up service. If you’re faced with this conflict, try to work within some sort of bounds – a budget is a great example.

• Can / Is my money going towards a business I support?

We chose a landscaper local to our hometown, and the wrist warmers from a craft fair because I like being able to support small businesses in my town.

• How much stress / anxiety can I alleviate if I make this purchase?
• Does it save me any time?

The amount of anxiety and stress and time that was relieved by getting rid of the couch was, in the end, worth the $30 it cost me.

• Do I have a designated spot or idea for this item?

I knew I would wear the wrist warmers daily in the winter. However, a cute and utterly adorable themed basket? That would just create clutter for me. That may not be the case for you. Visualize how you will use it. If you don’t already know where it fits into your home and life, save your pennies.

In the end, for most of us, our goal is to make sure our time and energy is put towards those things in which we enjoy and are purposeful to us. How we spend our money is a huge part of that. Sometimes, the answer is “I’d rather make / do that myself.” Sometimes, peace of mind and not exerting the time and effort is most important, so paying for the good or service makes the most sense. Most of the time, we probably don’t need to spend our time or money on it, and that’s okay too. It’s all about what’s important and meaningful to you, so I encourage you to take a step back every once in awhile and make sure those frugal (or not so frugal) decisions are working for your goals and needs, not against them.