My Old School Savings Method

ImageRemember this old thing?

This Christmas I spent 1$ on this piggy bank, that doesn`t at all look like a piggy bank, but I have no idea what else you call it in English, in Norwegian it`s just called a “sparebøsse”, which doesn`t make much sense either, just that it`s something you save money in. Anyway, back to topic. I bought this in order to save some cash for my summer vacation, and I guess you`re all thinking, “why aren`t you saving the money in a real bank?” Well, here`s my answer. This “piggy” bank doesn`t have an easy way of taking out money whenever I need (i.e. want) it. I have to physically destroy by using a can opener to get to the money.

As for me, who is used to a 24/7 accessability to my online bank, having money on a savings account with literally no interest at all, can be too tempting. I don`t really earn anything by having the money in the bank, which makes it so much more “acceptable” in my mind to dip into. I do have a special savings account for holidays and vacations, and well, let`s just say it`s too easy to access them. That´s why I decided to save cash. Now do keep in mind, this is only for a short-period and for a limited amount of money. I do of course have more serious savings account that I never dip into, like my saving for-a-house account, or my emergency savings.

And before you ask, I`ve already paid for my airline tickets, and the accommodation is free, as it`s my parents apartment I`ll be living in. The money I`m saving up now is just for food, entertainment and shopping. So until June I`ll keep on saving cash. So far I`ve saved about 150$! And by adding some cash now and then the next three months, it`ll probably be a nice surprise when I eventually have to use that dreaded can-opener!

Do you ever go old school like me when it comes to smaller saving goals?


25 thoughts on “My Old School Savings Method

  1. So I’m pretty sure that we still call that a “piggy bank” in English. I’m not sure what else we’d call it. I’ve seen several “piggy banks” that don’t actually look like pigs, haha! Anyway, I think this is a great idea! 🙂

    • haha, thanks! I was pretty sure it was only one name for it, but then I started thinking too much over it and well. anyway. I think so too, as long as it`s only for small amounts of money, it won`t hurt me financially.

  2. It is amazing how a little bit at a time saves up to a lot! One of the coolest Christmas presents I received as a kid was an old Jack Daniels bottle that was full of loose coins. It added up to over $300! My dad had saved up his pocket change for me and it really did add up.

    Keep it up! It will be so rewarding to crack that piggy bank open!

    • I know! this was how I used to save as a child, and I actually saved enough to buy a dog at 13!
      Sounds like a pretty cool gift! a little bit here, a little bit there, and suddenly it got a whole lot more! 😀
      Can`t wait to open it in June, hoping for some good shopping money!

    • It is! I won`t be missing coins from my wallet anyway, so why not put it somewhere safe?:-) just checked out your link, and I love the idea! We have kroners in Norway, 1$ is about 5,60kr, so if I start with 10kr I guess it`ll add up!

    • I agree! the best moment is when you count up all the money, and realize there was more money than you thought! No worries, this will only be until June, and I will be putting bigger amounts money into my savings account as well. It`s only supposed to be a motivational thing, that whenever I have some extra cash, I put it in the piggy bank, instead of using it for something useless, and in the end I get some extra cash to spend on my summer vacation:-)

  3. I have something like that that I drop my change into and when it gets full I take it to the grocery store where they have a machine called coinstar where you can get a voucher and so i use it to buy groceries. But other than that I don’t use if for a significant amount of savings. But hey, it’s good to use multiple methods of savings that work for you!

    • ooh, that sounds interesting! Never heard about it before! I think so too. I mean, I would never have saved big amounts of money this way, it`s only a way to save some cash every now and then. so that when June arrives, I`ll have some extra money that I can use on more fun stuff than just food and rent.

  4. my husband leaves spare change ALL over the house. I’ve gotten used to picking it up and dumping it in an empty coffee can. I have no idea what we’ll do with it. But if this helps you save, do whatever works for you! I know that we keep our savings account in an online bank so it’s harder to transfer money out of it. I also direct deposit a portion of my check directly into the savings account, so it’s like we don’t even see that money and are less likely to touch it.

    • for me having an online bank is the most easiest way to transfer money. By having access anytime I want, I can transfer money between accounts in seconds ( I don`t use credit cards very often, in Norway we mostly use debit cards).
      You should definetely figure out something to use the money with when it gets to a certain amount, perhaps going out to dinner with your husband, or something else fun you could do together!!

  5. I find it is really an amazing method for small savings, too! ^^ I have a “golden pig” *that sounded awkward* at home, and the reason I bought it is because I always use to take the money when I can. (no patience at all…) And I won’t let my little piggy die for nothing, so it is pretty useful, hehe))

    • well,everybody has their own ways when it comes to saving though, so then there really isn`t a need for a piggy bank for you is there? this is a way of saving for those small amounts of cash that usually lay around the house, but if you ain`t got the cash, you ain`t got it. As long as you save in some kind of way, that`s the most important thing:-)

  6. I don’t have a physical piggy but enjoy the idea of making money difficult to access. At the moment, most of my blogging income is going to a Paypal account that I don’t want to touch because Paypal can’t link it to the account I need the money on. Apart from buying the occasional stuff online, I don’t touch it and let it grow.

  7. I tried this method couple of times before for vacation as well. I didn’t save a whole lot of money in short period of time, but eventually I reached my goals and took both trips with cash.

  8. Pingback: Good Old Fashioned Piggy Bank | Michelle's Finance Journal

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