what do you do with your spare change?
We all know there are many differences between men and women, especially when it comes to the domestic front. But without getting into sticky topics like wondering socks or unrinsed dishes, isn’t it amazing how men collect coins? Obviously this comes from the need to empty pockets when they get too heavy, and not being able to carry around cute coin purses like we do. But all those coins can really add up to serious cash; many grocery stores now have machines (like Coinstar) that will sort them for you and give you an instant payout. We’ve been noticing a lot of inventive piggy banks out there, and will be posting them soon. But until then, tell us, what do you do with your spare change? What do you put it in? Do you save it up for big vacation, give it to charity, spend it once on ice-cream? We want to know! Click through to the next page to share.
Allison R. says:
Here is where I keep my change!
i keep my change in a big, funky skull-shaped mug. when it’s full, i offload it into a strong ziploc bag. i do this until the bag is just about to break (around the 14-pound mark). then i triple-bag it, lug it to my commerce bank penny arcade (free!) and end up with about $130-$150. this year i put it toward a plane ticket.
we have coin containers all over the house, we use it to pay the kids for odd jobs, (they are young and coins still do the trick) and then we offload them into a large water cooler thing. When it is full we plan on going to disney.
JWW
Yes! I have a little china bowl for my change (see above). I keep it on my desk. I mostly dig for quarters on laundry day. I never seem to have enough to take to Commerce. I did once! I have another one just like it and I stack them. My desk is a bit messy.
I found (after much hunting) a piggy bank (actually shaped like a pig) that can only be opened by smashing it open. When I find spare change etc I put it in the pig. I have had the pig for almost 4 years. I am finally going to bust it open (it is getting so full it is hard to get coins in) on my birthday and roll the coins and use the money to buy myself something frivilous.
My fiance has a wooden bowl we got from IKEA, he keeps his change in there and we use it when we are going someplace and will need to feed the meter. When his bowl is getting too full he puts it in a rubbermaid jug thing. And the last time it got full he rolled the coins and took them to the bank.
I fill old, empty wine bottles with my coins. Makes for a pretty (& fairly unique!) container. Once it’s filled — I splurge on a new blend.
I use spare glass jars (peanut butter, jelly jars) and toss my spare change in there. When I do laundry, I sort through for quarters; when I drive on toll roads, I snag everything but pennies before I go. I have yet to get a full jar in New York, but back home in Seattle, I’d fill jars fairly regularly and then take them to a CoinStar and use them for fun beauty products.
When we got married, we really wanted to go to Europe of our honeymoon, but we were broke. So we vowed that we would save all of our change for as long as it took to get to Europe (we would match what ever we saved from our savings account), and in addition, I vowed I would not get pregnant until we went to Europe. For 4 years, we saved every coin we could in one of those blue plastic water cooler things. We finally saved up enough change for the plane tickets, bought them, then 1 week later, I found out that I was unexpectedly pregnant. Oops! We spent two weeks in the UK at the tail end of my first trimester. All that change can add up. (But its a filthy job to roll it all.) We’re using the same water cooler to save for our next trip to Europe.
Ha! My husband converted a 500ml beer can into his coin jar and when it’s full he buys more beer…..
I spend it! Quarters go into the laundry jar and the rest gets spent on a regular basis.
If you have a lot of change, there are various low-tech options to help you roll it… autosorting banks, little stackers that hold only as many coins as it takes to make a roll, etc. I like the stackers, but you do have to separate the coins out by type before you use them. Take your extras that didn’t fit into the stackers with you to wherever you cash them in; they will often weigh the rolls and tell you if they’re short, and then you have to contribute the missing coin.
If you’re rolling coins on your own, it’s really helpful to have a self-inking address stamp (which you can mailorder for under $10). Stamp the rolls before you fill them with coins. The only problem is that when you’re getting the coins into the rolls, it’s easier to have the kinds of rolls that have a preformed stiff circular end, but when you’re getting them prepped with your info, it’s easier to have the flat coin wrappers.
To me, if I have a lot of change, it’s not worth the money CoinStar charges to have them sort it. To some people, it is. I have a relative who used to work for CoinStar and he found an astounding array of unintentional machine insertions. The most common was jewelry. There are ways to keep CoinStar from taking such a huge percentage, but I can’t recall what they are (one of them might be the iTunes credit option).
I have a cute little bank from Korea where I put small change, mostly pennies. Generally silver change stays in my purse and gets used. My fiance only saves quarters, which he uses for the laundry machines in his building.
firstly, I have a cute “Wash Away Your Sins” coinpurse. however, I’ve found that few cashiers or fellow customers have the patience to wait for me to dig for exact change, so I use it rarely.
after that, we have a couple of cute banks about the house that we save change in. I usually take it to coinstar when we’re in a pinch and need whatever there is to spare. this is also when I deposit all the bottles…
I did find that it was easiest to carry my coins in a large plastic yogurt container, as most other things would strain under the weight of the coins. also reminded me of being in vegas…
We keep it in a big cobolt blue glass salad bowl, known as the shit bowl, because it not only holds coins but any other shit you take out of your pockets, handbag, etc at the end of the day.
I keep mine in a clear bowl that I found thrifting. I use it when I am in need of spare change so the bowl is never empty or full. :*)
I dump my change (and tips from indy coffee shop barista gig) in “the gnome” — a hollow plastic garden gnome with a hole cut in the back of his head. It takes about a year to fill the gnome and encourage house guests to “feed the gnome” in order to promote good will. Once he’s full (it took a year last time), I haul it to the bank in 2 sacks (heavy stuff!) and deposit the proceeds into the “gnome fund”. Last haul was $526 in January!
I’ll be using the gnome fund for a fantastic surf school adventure next year — or possible the purchase of a fantastic surf board.
I don’t ever sift through for quarters. The money is a pain to get out so it’s safe when tucked away in the gnome. I’ve also resolved to take it to the bank at the half full mark instead of waiting for stuffed to the gills as the weight is deadly and the gnome’s nose crushed last year during the big money dump.
While not a physical penny jar, my bank has a “Keep the Change” plan which automatically rounds transactions to the nearest dollar and dumps the change difference into savings. I add up this amount and move it to the gnome fund as well.
The gnome lives in the kitchen, sometimes under wallmount sink, sometimes on the window ledge.
We collect John’s change in several places: a really old Fossil tin from a watch I don’t even own any more, glass trays by the bed, and a glass pink vase in the kitchen.
We bring the change to the store for the Coinstar exchange and either buy groceries with it or use it for take out dinners. We actually have a can where we keep paper money just for that purpose.
Fun entry! Keep up the good work. I really enjoy this blog and visit often.
I keep my change in a ceramic dish my cousin painted for my grandmother when she was in a nursing home. After she passed away, my mom offered it to me. I loved the colors as well as the connection to my little cousin and my granny. It sits on my desk right by the computer so I see it every day. When it gets full I dump the contents into a ziploc and head for Coinstar (it’s worth it to me to pay the fee) and use the proceeds for lunch, Starbucks and a copy of the Sunday New York Times.
I always use Coin Star.
Holly
I have a small tin from Burger King that used to hold a watch. When it’s full (usually about monthly), I drop it at the CoinStar and get an Amazon GC.
If you are near a Commerce Bank (somewhat obscure, east coast I think), they have a coin machine that does NOT take a fee called the Penny Arcade. Free for general use (account holders and non-account holders), it saves you the $.08/dollar Coinstar charges. Worth looking into.
back in the days before I had (gasp!) my own washer & dryer and (double gasp!) a digital camera, I used to fill old film canisters with quarters to take the laundromat. I’d put all of my other change in a small bucket near where I hang my keys.
Now, it all goes in the bucket. And I’ve added a second bucket in the laundry room for change that didn’t get emptied out of pockets before going into the wash. I try to wait until they’re full to cash in the buckets, but sometimes I go broke before that happens and need the cash.
Still, laundromat. Film canisters. An idea worth trying.
I put all of my change in a 1L German beer mub I stole from the Haufbrauhaus. When it’s full, I empty it into an old pillowcase. I haven’t taken it to be counted in at least 3 years, so it weighs about 40 pounds. I’ll probably use the $$$ on an upcoming vacation.
we went to IKEA a long time ago looking for one- and came home with a planter rectangular box. We call it the money garden! It gets pretty heavy though :)
Instead of a piggy-bank, I use a panda-bank! It was given to me as a gift a few years ago from Japantown and I love it. I sort the coins myself, since I like to save every penny — literally. CoinStar takes a portion of it for itself, and that extra dollar or two could be useful!
Aramis men’s talc containers. No longer made. Each holds 150 quarters — 2 rolls and 70 loose — or $37.50 each. Easy to store until the big undecided spend!
For years, I’ve paid for things with cash and saved the pocket change. The change goes into a dish when I get home. Once it’s in the dish, it doesn’t exist as money any more, in my eyes. Every few months, I sort the coins into ziploc freezer bags (quarters, dimes, etc) and take them down to the coin shop. I then buy as much gold as I can (although lately with gold prices being as high as they are, that’s been none) and then use anything left over to buy as much silver as I can. Lately, it’s been all silver. I don’t try to buy fancy coins or rare coins, just coins for the metal value. Last month, I sold off all my gold (since prices had gone up so much) and more than doubled my money. Several years ago, I cashed some gold in to buy a wedding ring set. It’s proved to be a good investment for me.
Another ‘found-money’ tactic I’ve used is to round up all withdrawals and round down all deposits in my checking account. This slowly builds up a buffer against bounced checks. Eventually, I got to the point that I had an extra several hundred dollars sitting there if an emergency or unexpected expense.
I have a machine like coinstar for sale. If anyone is interested please contact me by visiting my site or emailing me. http://www.estatesale4u.com or waltersdavid@bellsouth.net.
Thanks
I use one of those absolutely adorable “Coinks” by Mint. They look wonderful anywhere and they’re so easy to use! If you google with the terms Coink and Mint you’ll find some shops that carry them. I only wish they made a “kitty” version too!
[...] may recall that we have a thing about coin jars. This little gadget that Happy Mundane found at Target could help us save [...]