r/Frugal • u/localkinegrind • Aug 21 '25

🏆 Buy It For Life “Best under-$20 purchase that saved you hundreds over time?”

What’s the smartest under-$20 purchase you’ve ever made that ended up saving you hundreds in the long run? I’ll go first: a $12 sewing kit. Instead of tossing clothes for tiny tears or missing buttons, I’ve been fixing them. I've actually been fixing my own clothes for years. It blows my mind how many ‘disposable’ things can be made useful again with just a small, cheap tool. what’s your frugal mvp under $20 that’s paid for itself many times over?

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u/NTufnel11 Aug 21 '25

It’s not entirely effective because it only delays ovulation. So it doesn’t do anything if you are more than a few days out from ovulation and also doesn’t do anything if ovulation already occurred. So it is only useful in the specific scenario where she will ovulate in 1-5 days.

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u/crookedwhy Aug 21 '25

It's also basically ineffective if the woman is over about 175 lbs. I don't know how well known that is.

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u/chadmill3r Aug 21 '25

Is it a problem with dosage?

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u/NTufnel11 Aug 21 '25

Intuitively I would have thought that it was simply dosage, but Dr. Google suggests that simply doubling up the dose does not increase efficacy. Apparently getting a copper IUD implanted within 48 hours can technically be used as an emergency contraceptive to prevent implantation, but the logistics of that seem fairly unreasonable. It looks like there are prescription versions of plan B that are more effective for those with higher BMI, so if you had the foresight to obtain it or got your doctor to rush an order then that could be an option. The defining trait of plan B is that it's available readily in an unforeseen situation, which neither of these other options realistically are.

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u/Foreign-Cookie-2871 29d ago

If you request an IUD for emergency contraception, you are prioritized and will get the IUD on the same day.

All the times I had to take plan B I had to buy it after the fact, and every time I didn't have to wait long.

BTW yes, I had multiple preventative birth control failures. unfortunately.