As a senior citizen, I been through the gadget-buying stage of life many years ago and now just appreciate sticking to the basics to accomplish most jobs.
The gadgets are stuck in a closet or long-ago donated.
That said, I’ve got some gadgets that do pay for themselves (in either time or money or both) and I’m very happy with: 1.food saver vacuum system 2. slow cooker 3.food dehydrator 4. computer 5. pressure washer
Would you share some of your gadgets that you feel save you time or money (“time is money”)
Keurig (even though I got grief for it being expensive- saves me from going to DD every day!), slow cooker, bullet blender, spiralizer, tablet, photosensitive light bulbs…
I save more money by not buying gadgets Actually, I got an Instant Pot and I love it. I use it at least once a week. It saves me time, so I guess that saves me money
Otherwise, I have hardly any gadgets that I bought myself, most were gifts.
Jeremy, I think that is great! I’ve not been convinced I need an Instant Pot yet, but I think I’m the only person in my family and amongst my friends who does not own one.
Jeremy, I think that is great! I’ve not been convinced I need an Instant Pot yet, but I think I’m the only person in my family and amongst my friends who does not own one.
Ok KellyfromKeene, what is a spiralizer?!
Well, there are options on it that I haven’t used yet, but the pressure cooker option on it cooks meat 3x faster and makes it really really tender. So between that and the slow cooker option, I really get my money’s worth. Also, I paid $15.00 for it. It was on sale for $60.00 and I had a $45.00 reward from Best Buy. So, I guess I saved money there too LOL
I bought a relatively inexpensive food dehydrator that was much more than worth the cost because I have a large vegetable garden. Every summer I dehydrate spices, veggies, and even fruit from my apple and plum trees. Easy, fun and very economical. Another gadget that I use frequently is my pressure canner. It’s not difficult to can fruits, veggies from my garden. I also buy dried beans that get cooked during the canning process. It’s always nice to have canned beans - garbanzos for hummus, pintos for refried beans, navy beans in tomato sauce or molasses sauce. Just about anything can be pickled too. I really like these gadgets and my pantry looks pretty with all of the different colors in the mason jars. Sorry I bought a slow cooker though. I almost never use it and wouldn’t miss it at all.
@gretchen.mann Gosh, I envy your garden! I have the old stove top canning supplies left from mucho years ago when I lived in the Midwest and also had a decent garden along with some fruit trees.
Florida is not garden friendly for me. I’ve had some success with tomatoes and peppers in pots on my back screened patio, but not enough to can.
We use our food dehydrator for jerky and drying selected vegetables and fruits purchased in bulk at our local farmer’s market. I started with a very inexpensive one (I think it was $15 at Big Lots) but just a couple of years ago stepped up to a mid-grade one; it was a good investment for us. It dries in just hours instead of a couple of days! (for jerky and really moist produce) and also has mini screens so things like blueberries don’t fall through to the bottom. I think one has to do a lot of food dehydrating to justify stepping up, our Big Lots dehydrator served us well for many years and was still working fine when I passed it on to a family member!
ninja - make fruit smoothies which eliminates want to buy ice cream. Sadly, it’s motor is dying/died. I’m hoping newer food processor is just as good at making smoothies but I’m missing the individual size container.
Actually, I got an Instant Pot and I love it. I use it at least once a week. It saves me time, so I guess that saves me money 
