The Sunday Sip: Fill Up Your Cup with Brynne at Femme Frugality

It is that time of the week again. One of my favorite posts of the week: Welcome back to The Sunday Sip where we introduce you to a fabulous blogger and fellow "more than" mommy. Kick back, grab your favorite beverage, and take a break from the ordinary for minute or two with us! We are happy to have you and happy to introduce you to Brynne from Femme Frugality.  Click over to here to check out our other awesome featured bloggers (and find out more about how YOU can be featured) when you are through and let's make a morning (or afternoon, or evening) of it together!

I stumbled across Brynne at Femme Frugality shortly after we started More Than Mommies. She caught my eye with a post about a college giving away free tuition to its students and I was hooked on her eye for a good deal and her frugal tips and tricks. I feel like Brynne is a gal after my own money saving heart! So let's say Hello!




Thanks for Joining us, Brynne...tell us a little bit about yourself:

Hi! I'm the voice behind Femme Frugality. I wear many hats, but I guess either full-time student or mother would be the most fitting for my job title. My days are filled with dirty diapers and English papers, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

What have you got in your cup this morning?

Water.  I'm always drinking water.  When I was pregnant the nurses would always ask me how much I drank a day.  I'd tell them and their jaws would hit the floor.  That was one food/drink I didn't have to adjust for nine months!

Why did you choose "Femme Frugality" for your blog? You know we love to hear the story behind blog names:

I knew I wanted something with "Frugal" in the title.  I wanted something about femininity in there, too.  "Girl" sounded too young.  "Woman" sounded too matronly.  So I decided on the French "femme."  Originally I was blogging with WordPress, and the URL for Frugal Femme was already taken.  So I shifted things around and came up with Femme Frugality.  A blog was born.  Sometimes I regret the decision.  While some of my content's utility is geared explicitly towards women, most of my information can be used by anyone, regardless of gender.  I find the "Femme" is chasing men away! 


You provide a lot of information that would be beneficial to men, women, families, singletons--anyone who wants to save a little dough, I agree. What is one post that you want everyone who comes to your blog to read and what was your inspiration for the post?

It's actually an older one:  one of my first posts.  It's a short one, too!  There are no pictures, so at first glance it's pretty boring.  But my post about unclaimed money is one of my favorites.  I found out that state treasuries hold onto money owed to people from a slew of sources:  old bank accounts, insurance settlements, employers who never got their paychecks to their employees, and so many more.  I looked up my name.  Nothing.  Then I looked up every family member's name until, sure enough, I found an ancient paycheck for a relative!  That led me to writing this post about how everyone and anyone can find out if there's money owed to them.

I really enjoy your blog, Brynne. I am quite frugal (some would say cheap--ahem, a lot of people would say cheap) I see your blog as a nice place to feed my frugal side. I love that you post great deals, good ideas, and all things frugal--and I also love that you are a proud Pittsburgher! We live outside of Pittsburgh too! What was the approach you had in mind at the start and where do you see your blog going and growing to in the future?

Aw, thanks!  I found you guys on BloggyMoms in one of the Pittsburgh forums, I believe!  I border on cheap, too.  But when I'm cheap in one area it's usually so I can splurge in another.  (Like travel.  Oh, travel.  How I love you.)  I started blogging because I found myself at a stage in my life where frugality was a necessity.  I wanted to do all these things, like be young, buy my kid cute clothes, and enjoy my city, but I had to figure out a way to do it on a tight budget.  So I figured quite a few things out.  I found myself telling everyone I knew about all these frugal tricks I was learning.  Eventually I decided a blog was a much better outlet to share and be helpful.  I was really surprised by all my friends and readers who excitedly shared their ideas with me to post on the blog.  It's been amazing because it's helped me learn and save in ways that never would have occurred to me.  I'll probably continue on the same route.  I hope to continue to learn as others share with me, and hope I am able to help those out there who want to learn more and do more on less.  It would be kind of cool to have sister blogs.  Femme Frugality Honolulu, anyone?  Or how about Femme Frugality Myrtle Beach?  (I'm so ready for a vacation...)


Final question, what makes you "More than a Mommy"?

I love your blog name and focus.  Absolutely.  Because being a mother is so important.  But it is not the end all and be all of what any of us are.  Like I said before, I'm a student.  I'm in my twenties and like doing things that people in their twenties like to do.  I love sports.  Watching and playing.  I'm a ski enthusiast.  I love reading and learning.  I like to think I'm a pretty good girlfriend, daughter and sister.  I try my best to be a good friend and helpful, friendly acquaintance. Above all, just like the rest of humanity, I am a soul on my own unique spiritual journey.  We're all on a journey.  Some of us are more actively involved while others are more passively involved, but I hope to discover every enriching lesson I can while I'm  here.  Some of those will be learned through motherhood.  And still others will be learned through other venues.

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Believe me when I say that Brynne has lots to show you over at her blog--so head over to Femme Frugality, introduce yourself, and tell her that More Than Mommies sent you!

If you'd like to keep up with all of her frugal finds, follow her blog, and you can "like" her on Facebook!

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If you are new to More than Mommies welcome. Please make sure that you are following our RSS Feed, Facebook page or Twitter profile  so that you don't miss meeting any of the great bloggers that we feature on our Sunday Sip! 

And all you have to do to be featured yourself is send us an e-mail with "The Sunday Sip" in the subject line. We are always looking for new bloggers to introduce to our readers and we would love to meet you--whether you are just getting started or you are a seasoned blogger! Let us--and our readers--get to know you!


Have an amazing Sunday!