How did your waspy old money ancestors show their thriftiness?

[Anonymous]

I’ll start.

Only used card - Volvos
Layers of clothing needed to be worn because the heat couldn’t come on til November. I think this is how the preppy layers look started.

At home car washes, hair cuts, yard work.

Never use coupons but learn when things go on sale or befriend the store owner to get that info.

[Anonymous]

My grandparents had a strict one drink per family member rule at their $$$ country club.

[Anonymous]

At our family summer home my grandmother hawkishly watched how much laundry was being done. God forbid you didn’t put in a full load. And even if you did, she’d likely throw in some of her stuff. Nothing like getting those granny panties in your laundry basket! And the drier was not to be used! That would be a waste of electricity.

[Anonymous]

Mine mostly didn’t use the dryer. They hung everything: better for the enviro, the clothes & the electric bill. I still do this as much as I can.

One Aunt always reused wrapping paper & cards. Seems ok now given what we know about waste.

My mother used to go through the cupboards and take anything that was close to expiration and cook with it asap.

Def drove cars until they sputtered.

So much uncomfortable inherited furniture! DH and I laugh about this. All of our furniture is VERY comfortable b/c everythinG we grew up with was 200 years old and not comfortable

[Anonymous]

Even Queen Elizabeth has the holes in the sheets mended. It was in Harry’s book.

My grandparents are parents were very focused on minimizing waste. Don’t take helpings you aren’t going to finish. Leftovers are eaten.

Cars were nice but well cared for and kept a very long time. Same with clothes, shoes, furniture, etc. Trendiness was/is eschewed. “Waste not, want not” was a commonly used phrase.

[Anonymous]

This isn't in America so they're not wasps but our money is hundreds of years old. No AC because stone walls are naturally cooling. A donkey can pull a carriage better than a carriage horse when it's not ceremonial. Get the local craftsman to make something instead of ordering on Amazon. They like to barter things with cut flowers, fruit, honey and eggs from their lands instead of use cash/credit.

[Anonymous]

Ancient cars and furniture, inexpensive clothes that were worn until they fell apart, nothing “frivolous” like landscaping. Weird rules limiting use of AC/heat and laundry.

[Anonymous]

driving to the next town to save 10 cents on 2-liter store brand soda.

[Anonymous]

Cheap towels and daily use dishes. Literally 4 sets of Lennox China and two sets of silver but the daily use was made-in-China junk dishes.

I felt like the biggest spendthrift when I registered for Crate-and-Barrel daily silverware for our wedding. 20 years later, they still look brand new.

[Anonymous]

Wearing the same clothing for generations.

[Anonymous]

Also not in the U.S. so not waspy, but a lot of things already mentioned. My grandmother, raised in a very wealthy household, didn't believe in running hot water because cold water "builds character." What?! She was as cheap as can be. My aunt, gone now, had the family acumen, creating big wealth when she was a bored housewife. She was so cheap when I had a baby shower she gave me a little outfit that was so used it was limp. I wasn't sure what to make of that - early sign of dementia or pure cheapness. Frankly, it was a toss up on her mental state.

[Anonymous]

They manage their own money. Heaven forbid they pay anyone else to do it.

[Anonymous]

Never eating at restaurants unless it was a special occasion. And often the special occasion restaurant meal was at the CC because they made you pay for a certain amount of food whether you ate it or not.

Thermostat at 66 or so during the winter. And we were to "put on a sweater" if cold. Which I always was. There was a fire going in winter in the den, so that room was warm at least. This was very much about controlling the electric bill.

My grandfather saved all jars and bottles and used them. A spaghetti sauce jar would be rinsed out and saved. This is more old-money-that-went-through-the-great-depression than just old money, I guess. My grandfather's family had plenty of money during the 30s, but the cultural ramifications of the depression -- including not wasting anything -- were strong. Also rubber bands, plastic bags, stuff like that. He did find uses for them.

No food was to go to waste. The tiniest bit of leftover cheese would be wrapped up for use later. They were very strict about "clean your plate." You should never take food onto your plate and then not eat it. That was not only a problematic waste of money, it was rude.

Clothing built to last was purchased, especially things like outerwear. My grandfather was from Maine, and he hunted, so lots of LLBean stuff.

The home they built after their kids were grown was relatively small. It was gorgeous; they worked with a well-known architect to build the perfect home that would blend into a beautiful landscape. It really was perfect. But it only had two bedrooms. Two bedrooms, two and half bathrooms, a small den, a large sunken living room, and dining room separated from a kitchen by sliding screens (design influenced by Japanese shoji) and a laundry room. Oh, and a small greenhouse -- they were big gardeners and had four large gardens, as well as fruit trees, berry patches, and even grapes. But by today's standards, the actual house was very small. They would not like the DMV McMansions at all.

Stuff like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ll start.

Only used card - Volvos
Layers of clothing needed to be worn because the heat couldn’t come on til November. I think this is how the preppy layers look started.

At home car washes, hair cuts, yard work.

Never use coupons but learn when things go on sale or befriend the store owner to get that info.

Minus the Volvo, you just described my life. lol today I cut my kids hair, paid one $20 to weed and mow (better to pay family than strangers), detailed my car and bought the weekly sashimi tuna vector goes on sale on Tuesdays.

I’m the current owner of the modest Maine lake house that still has a lot of its 1930s wooden furniture. Why throw away perfectly good wooden furniture? That’s my contribution to the thread.

[Anonymous]

Kept furniture forever.

For gifts, used boxes with gift-wrapped lids so they could be used over and over.

Drove cars until they died.

Did not turn heat on until November.