Five minutes with Serina Bird, The Joyful Frugalista

Posted on 1 February, 2019

With ABC’s women-focused money podcast The Pineapple Project making a big splash last year, is now finally the time we start talking more openly about money?

Serina Bird, Canberra-based blogger and author of upcoming book The Joyful Frugalista, hopes so.

Her blog of the same name has been serving up bite-sized inspiration for living a frugal-yet-full life for four years now, and Serina’s debut book promises to inspire and educate in equal measure.

We caught up with Serina ahead of The Joyful Frugalista‘s release on 4 February to chat savings, shoes and the sharing economy.

What inspired you to create The Joyful Frugalista?

I’ve always been a bit on the frugal spectrum. Even at an early age, I hated seeing things go to waste. I used to work at the discount supermarket, Franklins, as a teenager and then later at a cashier at a Harris Farm Markets fruit and vegetable grocer. Through these experiences, I became really fascinated with how much food cost – and how to eat cheaply and to reduce waste.

For years my ex-husband and I enjoyed a seemingly normal life in Western Belco – the only difference being that while my other friends went out for TGIF drinks or dinners, I would go home to cook for homestay students. We hosted students from around the world for six years, and this enabled us to buy a house in the suburbs while it was still relatively affordable to do so.

At that time, it definitely wasn’t cool to be a frugalista so I kept my frugal habits a secret. I remember being new to a team, and the ladies comparing their shoes – which had all been purchased in Italy. They were very stylish! Meanwhile, most of my clothing was from an op shop or free. But I had the security of knowing that we were paying down our mortgage – while also gradually buying other investment properties.

But I really had to delve into my frugal nature when I became suddenly single in 2014. Within six months, we went from living overseas on a posting to struggling to find money to pay for mortgages, child care, legal bills and living expenses. It was a tough time, but I knew I was creating a better future for my two boys, and I knew that because I was frugal, that I could tough it out until the property consent orders were sorted out. And I did.

As I was going through separation, it occurred to me that not all women have the financial ability to get out of bad relationships – or to pursue their dreams. I started my frugal blog (then called Ms Frugal Ears) to celebrate financial resilience and frugal living. I won a competition the year before with YWCA Canberra to create a meal that cost $5 or less and I started blogging about low-cost food recipes on my blog. With time, it also grew to include my views on other financial issues as well.

Back in 2015, there weren’t many savings or personal finance bloggers in Australia – especially when compared with the US and the UK.  Now there are more on the scene, mainly younger people chasing FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early).  I’m enjoying seeing different views and learning different strategies. Most of all, it’s great to feel validated about my lifestyle choices. I’ve felt for a long time that reducing consumption was key to confronting many of the environmental challenges we face, and it is great to see other people now recognising this. Everyone from Marie Kondo to David Attenborough are now encouraging a less unwanted stuff = more fulfilment strategy.

What was your journey in writing and publishing the book?

The vague idea of wanting to be a writer started to form around a decade ago. My first ‘book’ was a 21-day seasonal cookbook that sort to reduce food waste by menu planning. I look at it now that I have kids and realise how ambitious it is!  While it was never published, it marked a decision to embark on a path of being a writer.

In 2010, while on posting to Taiwan, I started my first blog. It was essentially a food and travel blog, but it also aimed to be a cross-cultural bridge. I included cultural observations and history – and I also documented my experience, after giving birth to my second child, of undergoing traditional Chinese ‘confinement’. I remember being at a kid’s playdate, and someone describing me as a writer, and it was a strange feeling. I was both flattered yet felt like an imposter.

When I returned to Canberra in 2014, I applied for and joined Visit Canberra’s 101 Local Humans campaign. It was amazing to learn more about Canberra, and I also enjoyed meeting other bloggers, writers and social media influencers. I absorbed all that I could.

I was writing a book about my confinement experiences, and I submitted it an application for the ACT Writers Centre’s 2015 HARDCOPY program for developing non-fiction writers – and I was accepted!  This was a big leap for me, taking a hobby to the next level and mixing with real writers, publishers and literary agents. Many of my classmates have had books published and gone on to win awards – they were the best of the best from throughout Australia and being part of their cohort was a little daunting. Yes, right here in Canberra the ACT Writers Centre has one of the best professional development courses for writers in Australia.

The HARDCOPY program inspired me to reach in and discover my own writing voice, and I began to focus instead on writing about frugal living. While I remain interested in women’s health issues, I knew that I had to write about saving money as I felt that financial empowerment was so vital for women.

I wanted to write something fun and inspiring, that was practical but not preachy (because let’s face it, we all want to own fabulous shoes and not feel guilty about spending on ourselves). In 2017, my friend Marg Wade (author of Canberra Secrets) suggested I write a book that included a set of frugal challenges. This time, that book manuscript was accepted by Murdoch Books. The Joyful Frugalista is being released on 4 February.

What are your top three tips for women trying to put more money into savings?

BYO lunches. Taking your own lunches to work, or university, might sound a bit boring but the savings add up. You could save around $50 a week doing this. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but it adds up to $1,300 a year just by changing a few habits. I have a stylish round plastic lunch bowl made by Buddhist humanitarian NGO Tzu Chi, which I take to work most days. Leftovers have never looked so good – almost zen – when packed in a cool container.

Say no to water in bottles. I’m shocked that sometimes water in bottles costs more to buy than soft drink! It’s not just your purse that suffers from buying bottled water – there are huge environmental costs from all those discarded plastic bottles. Invest in a good quality water bottle and carry it with you. Canberra has some of the best quality tap water in the world – you don’t need to buy it.

Join the sharing economy. Transform your unwanted clutter into a gift for someone else – and receive things for free as well. Canberra has a fantastic community culture, and there are many groups such as the Buy Nothing Project or Freecycle where you can give and get stuff – for free. Or join Facebook groups like Canberra Freebies, Pay it Forward or search for ‘free’ in Gumtree.

It’s not so much about getting something for nothing, as connecting with like-minded people in your community. I’ve made some great friends who treasure my unwanted ‘trash’. Giving and getting for free is a great strategy for uni students and grads who are new to Canberra – get connected and save heaps.

WHAT ARE SOME FINAL TIPS?

It is so important for women to talk about money. We don’t talk enough about money in Australia – we see it sometimes as almost impolite to do so. Women in particular don’t feel empowered to talk about money – despite many studies showing that women tend to make more informed and rational decisions about saving and investment than men.

I am part of a group of women (we call ourselves the Savvy Sistas) who get together at a low-cost venue once a month to talk about money. We talk about everything from property and share investing, money in relationships to negotiating salary increases and saving on insurance, mortgages or utility deals. Basically, we have a space for sharing information about issues that many women don’t usually feel confident to talk about.

You can find out more about The Joyful Frugalista here. 

Feature image: Erna Glasford