It seems that most of us that are trying to live simply are also trying to live frugally, and one method of frugality is stockpiling when somethng you need is a good deal. So my question is, to anybody that is living simply and/or in the process of decluttering, do you also stockpile? And if so, how do you stockpile or what methods do you use to ensure that your stockpiling doesn't become clutter?

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Pain is temporary, quitting is forever....

Funny, this is something that I struggle with in our house. DH is the stockpiler, and I'm the declutterer. So, just as I declutter and make some nice space, he fills it up. Back and forth it goes...

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"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." ~ Dr. Seuss

We don't stockpile. If I find a really good price on something I will occasionally buy two of that item. And I do buy some products at Costco which means buying toilet paper in packs of 24 and soap in packs of 12 but other than that, we keep things pretty simple. We don't have a freezer (other than the one attached to the fridge) or a pantry, or a storage room, so I wouldn't know where to store the stuff if we did.

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To keep my stockpile under control I go through periodically...maybe every two or three months or so...and if things aren't rotating through as fast as I thought I donate them to the church food pantry. I find that a lot of times I underestimate how long it takes to use something up, especially health and beauty items, and donate those items as well as food.

I also let friends and family "shop" my stockpile when they come to visit to keep the clutter down.

I get most of my stockpile for free after coupons so what I paid for it isn't the issue, but the space it takes up is.

Stockpiling definately fits in with the concept of simple living. When our house isn't filled with clutter we have room for the stockpile.

The concept behind stockpiling is we track the price of the basic items that we need then purchase them only when the price is at the lowest. We purchase enough to make sure we have enough to use until the next time the price will get down to that point again. That way we never have to pay full price - or worse, an inflated price - for the things we need.

For instance, I purchase Scott 1000 TP. My price point is less than 50 cents a roll (a decent price for regular TP is 25 cents a roll so TP that last 3 to 4 times as long is a great deal at 50 cents a roll.) Scott 1000 TP goes on sale about twice a year at that price. When I see the price drop, I buy a case lot and that lasts for about a year. At the half way mark, I take an inventory and if we're using more than planned (lots of house guests, etc) I'll purchase a bit more to get us through until the next sale.

Stockpiling simplifies life because we're not constantly running to the store to pick-up an item when we run out. We 'shop' our own pantry and save ourselves the trip. And since we're using our money frugally, we don't feel compelled to work more to earn more money.

The secret to stockpiling is to only store basic necessities that you know you'll use and won't go bad by the time you use it up. I once tried to stockpile toothpaste. Trust me, it does go bad - it gets harder. You also want to stockpile items that have significant price fluctuations. For instance, turkey drops to as low as 16 cents a pound around Thanksgiving but can go as high as nearly $2 a pound the rest of the year. And it freezes fairly well so it is worth the effort to section a few whole turkeys for the freezer to use the rest of the year.

However, I can almost always find bread for $1 a pound so trying to freeze it is a waste of freezer space.

The first step is to maintain a price book so you can find the trends in product pricing. We can start a different thread on price points of common products and when an item is on sale at that price.

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"I've been rich and I've been poor but independently wealthy is where it is at."

LOL..Funny how I was just thinking about this a bit ago.I am always thinking of ways to help us save money weekly and so far I have been doing pretty good.I used to be a majior stockpiler.But then I decided unless I truely have the money to spare and it is a really good deal..esp. on meat..I only buy what we need.I start a grocery list on Wednsday,go threw cabinets and freezers and update my menues.I have only been spending about 50.00 a week while doing that.We have plenty of food and all so I dont worry.I only usually need basics about every week like milk,bread,eggs,cereal,etc.Every other week,I usually get more.But it averages out to be about 50.00 a week.

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~~Sharon~~

I don't stock pile. My free time is so limited that I don't like spending it hunting down every great deal and worrying over where to store things, are we using them, etc. When I need something, I try to find the best price I can. If I find a great bargain, I might buy 2 or 3.

When I used to stockpile, I felt I had to read every ad for every store in Sunday's paper to get the best deal. Then I had to go to the store with the best deal and find the item at the sale price (not always easy) and then sometimes that item would be out of stock. Also, I found I was spending just as much money in the long run by overbuying, gas costs, etc.

Then one day I realized that I just didn't want to spend my time reading ads, calculator in hand, and I admitted to myself that driving to Eckerds just because toothpaste was on sale was also not fun for me.

Maybe I spend a little more in the long run by not having a huge stockpile, but I sure enjoy my time more.

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I don't believe in miracles; I depend on them

I limit myself by having a very small area that is not needed for any other storage that I am now using for minimal stockpiling. But, I resolve to only put my piles in that area, no more hiding tp under the bed to be forgotten about. Even if I get a freebie, if there is no room, something must go- either to immediate use, a friend, or a shelter that can use it.

i have also decided that I do not need to stockpile huge quantities or spend hours running around to get the good deal. I do look for deals and will snatch them up if I come across them, but like jnbythesea, I have found it takes too much to drive arount with 2 kids in tow just to get an extra few bottles of shampoo

additionally, I have noticed that the things we normally use tend to go on sale every few months. So, while I used to try and buy as much as I could that would last until who knows when, now I just aim to buy enough for a few months if it is a great deal. I'm also very lucky in that I have access to case-lot sales held at the commissary 2x per year. While not freebies, the prices are such that it makes it worth getting a sitter and spending a few hours there when they occur. I got 6 months of pasta for about $4 and that price is fine by me considering I didn't have to do any couponing or ad hunting

I am also keeping an inventory of what is in my store closet so I can see if we really need/will use the items rather than buying them just in case. . .

my thought is that if you have the space and the desire than stockpiling can be a part of simple living. but, if you are constantly trying to find a place for your stocks, spending hours in search of s $3freebie, that's when you need to rethink what you are doing.

HTH

I couldn't have said it better than Jenn! I don't stockpile, but we do buy things like TP and Papertowels at costco that come in big bags. When something is on sale I'll buy 2 or maybe 3 of it. For ME it wastes more time than the $ saved is worth.

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A woman is like a teabag. You never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water.-Eleanor Roosevelt

I stockpile necessities and it saves me money. I agree though that you should not drive all over kingdom come to do it as that wastes money. So, I owe a big thank you to WALMART and their policy of price matching! I do that all the time and save myself money and time. I also buy things at Sam's that we use on a regular basis like toilet paper, paper towels, that sort of thing. (But, no more diapers! YEAH!)