The Complete Tightwad Gazette | 
| Author: Amy Dacyczyn
Publisher: Villard
Category: Book
List Price: $22.95
Buy New: $13.35
You Save: $9.60 (42%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  216 reviews
Sales Rank: 3024
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 959
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.5
Dimensions (in): 9 x 7.2 x 1.7
ISBN: 0375752250
Dewey Decimal Number: 640.42
EAN: 9780375752254
ASIN: 0375752250
Publication Date: December 15, 1998
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com Review
Though tightwad seems like a derogatory term, author Amy Dacyczyn wants to assure you that it's okay to be a penny-pincher. This self-styled "Frugal Zealot" wrote and published The Tightwad Gazette for over six years to spread the frugal gospel. Each issue contained tips from her personal experience and from her many readers. The wealth of information contained in all these issues has been compiled into one volume for the first time. You'll find literally thousands of ideas for saving money, from the simple or practical to the difficult or bizarre. On the simple, practical side, Dacyczyn advises would-be tightwads to keep track of price trends at several stores in a "price book" and to buy in bulk when prices are low. Other, stranger offerings include tips for turning margarine-tub lids into playing-card holders, old credit cards into guitar picks, and six-pack rings into a hammock or volleyball net. More helpful are inexpensive recipes for making homemade versions of pricey, well-known products and ingenious ways to fix broken or damaged items. The book's disorganization encourages browsing, but the detailed index will point you to the exact page for specific items. Dacyczyn's occasional "thriftier than thou" tone is balanced by the friendly support for frugality that infuses every page. She even reminds her readers that it's okay to "sweat the small stuff"--because this small stuff is the essence of frugality. --C.B. Delaney
Product Description
At last--the long-awaited complete compendium of tightwad tips for fabulous frugal living!
In a newsletter published from May 1990 to December 1996 as well as in three enormously successful books, Amy Dacyczyn established herself as the expert of economy. Now The Complete Tightwad Gazette brings together all of her best ideas and thriftiest thinking into one volume, along with new articles never published before in book format. Dacyczyn describes this collection as "the book I wish I'd had when I began my adult life." Packed with humor, creativity, and insight, The Complete Tightwad Gazette includes hundreds of tips and topics, such as:
Travel for tightwads How to transform old blue jeans into potholders and quilts Ten painless ways to save $100 this year Picture-framing for pennies A comparison of painting versus re-siding your house Halloween costumes from scrounged materials Thrifty window treatments Ways to dry up dry-cleaning costs Inexpensive gifts Creative fundraisers for kids Slashing your electric bill Frugal fix-its Cutting the cost of college Moving for less Saving on groceries Gift-wrapping for tightwads Furniture-fusion fundamentals Cheap breakfast cereals Avoiding credit card debt Using items you were about to throw away (milk jugs, plastic meat trays, and more!) Recipes galore, from penny-pinching pizza to toaster pastries And much much more . . .
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| Customer Reviews: Read 211 more reviews...
 Inspiring Book! October 14, 2008
This book is a collection of articles from Amy's 1990-96 newsletter by the same name. It is written in short, easy to read sections with a sense of humor. A lot of great suggestions to save money - not at all preachy! You decide how far you want to go to save money and how hard you want work at it. Amy's point is it's your money and it's your decision how to make it work for you. Whether you want a farmhouse in Maine with six kids or a Lexus in your garage - why spend money on things that aren't fulfilling to you?
I think a lot of the negative reviews of this book have more to do with guilt over their unwillingness to put in the effort required than any advice in the book. I haven't heard of a child yet who turned into a sociopath because he/she didn't get a $200 pair of sneakers, $100 jeans and a happy meal everyday. Haven't heard of one that died from being made to try a vegetable either. I have seen too many children, who after following their parents examples of excess, have no idea of how to live within their means. If you're serious about getting your life and your spending under control there's no better guide to doing it than this book and Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover.
THE money-saving idea series September 27, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I've had the original series since they came out, and I still go back to these books for information. Not only does she give advice, she shows how she came up with it and how to modify it to your life.
I use her recipes all the time (have the granola one memorized, we use it so much). It's worth having this just for the recipes. These books are how I was able to stay home with my kids, even though I made twice what my husband did.
Although I gave this five stars, there are a few things you might want to know (if it matters). The index in the originals was not that great. I don't know if they've improved that in this combination or not. Since the books were set up from a magazine, there are many very short articles, so it doesn't read like a book. But I found it very entertaining. Even though the pricing is from the 80's in many cases, you can make up your own price lists using her principles.
If you like being told what to do, this probably isn't the book for you. If you like having the information to figure it out yourself to suit your life, you'll love these.
I've read about twenty 'save money' books and this series is the best.
best money saving book ever!! September 10, 2008
This book has SO much information on how to save money. I don't think I could ever apply all the tips, but the ones I have applied have really helped! I like to open the book and find one tip to do for the week rather than trying to apply everything at once. You can save money with a bit of time and creativity.
Love This Book! September 3, 2008
Brilliant ideas that anyone can use to save money. More than just a how-to, it teaches a whole new mentality, and a creative viewpoint that spills over into every area of life. Once bit by the Tightwad bug, you will never go back to wasting your money. Amy Daczyczyn also has a wonderfully whimsical sense of humor that makes me wish she lived next door. Good reading.
 Well worth it... August 13, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I am leading a frugal life these days after getting out of the rat race and finding that I have a great desire to not be a working stiff. Working part-time means an iron fisted budget. "Your Money or Your Life" is what got me started on this path, and "The Tightwad Gazette" was published with people like me in mind. I had heard about the newsletter for years, and finally thought to read this book.
As other reviewers have noted, frugality isn't a religion. You can pick or choose how involved you want to be. For me, the crucial discovery has been that there are many things I can abstain from without noticing a huge difference in the quality of my life. I will never give up travel... it is an essential part of my life. But there are other day-to-day things I don't miss at all. Since reading this book a few months ago, I have started making my own pizza and bread (VERY good suggestion; it cuts the price in half and is surprisingly easy to make, even without a food processor), I'm more conscious of turning off lights, and I've assembled a price book. None of this was difficult and it was fun. In the first two months, I managed to save $300 from an already meager budget.
What is difficult about this? Like any habit, it is a discipline. I have lost hours making bread dough, bargain hunting, and making my own tomato sauce. But I find that I enjoy the feeling of taking care of myself and not wasting money. I had great fun assembling the price book. I now know the lowest prices to expect for a lot of items, and it's fun to be on top of things.
As a single person, a lot of "The Complete Tightwad Gazette" did not apply to me. I skimmed over sections on kids' craft projects and clothes issues, of which there are a lot. I would say I picked up only a few ideas I'll implement over the long term, but it was still fun reading about others' habits. This is a fun book, well worth the price.
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