CVS Coupons

Maybe, for once, I will be able to take advantage of the long list of coupons that in the past has printed with my receipt - I am so glad they did this!

I'm Predictable [and OK with that]

Two different people made the same post on my facebook page, just days apart from each other and without knowing the other had done it! This has never happened to me before in this specific way and so close together, I was laughing a good bit about it. I guess I am just that predictable!

It is aqua french bulldog art, and they are right, I DO love them! But what is not to love? Maybe the price tag... my friend is pointing out that in the bottom pic the price is listed as $169 EACH... for a print!

Come on, I am no artist but even I could buy a french bulldog vinyl decal ($5), stick it on a canvas ($10), brush my favorite color all over it ($2), peel off the vinyl, and voila! You just saved $150! :) Now, if they were the original works actually signed by David Bromstad, then that may be a different story.

Moscow Mule

I was first introduced to a Moscow Mule at Tristan restaurant in Charleston, SC about 7 years ago. It was SO good, but I thought it was just a thing that they made only, because it was on their menu of other specialty cocktails. The base of the cocktail, and any good mixed drink in my opinion, is vodka served with other flavors.

Recently, I was re-introduced to the Mosow Mule again at a new restaurant in town called The Rarebit and they served it in a copper mug! After this, I had to look up the drink and found that it is a staple all over Russia.

Recipe:
2 oz. vodka
1/2 oz. simple syrup
4 oz. ginger beer
1/2 lime - juiced
Find more recipes here.


All served over ice in a copper mug. Now that I've had it in the copper mug, I can't help but want a few of my own! They are kind of expensive, so imagine my surprise when I see them on a website I love on clearance!

But then my sadness when I see this:

Sold out. For now. I will own you some day, copper mugs!

Do the Rich Rebate?

As I am sitting here filling out my rebate form for the $45 dollars I will get back from buying my contacts, I start to wonder why in the heck they don't just give you the money off when you order them? Why do I still have to fill out and send in a stupid form?

I think I know why... because it is a pain. Lazy people and rich people probably don't bother with the rebate shenanigans, especially since it takes 6-8 weeks to get your check back and costs you a stamp, not to mention your time. Can you imagine Donald Trump downloading and filling out a rebate form? I would also venture to guess that 75% of rebate users are women, maybe even more.

So, thus, the companies don't automatically give you the money because...

"41% of people forget to send in their rebates." - techdirt.com

This is not surprising, but I am not included in that percentage. I will not buy something ONLY because it has a rebate, but I will likely be persuaded to buy that particular brand, try a new brand, or even buy more to meet the rebate's requirements.

I don't have a ton of money to burn and I try to look at it as a little surprise for down the road. Most likely I will have forgotten that I have sent in said rebate and then one unsuspecting day, bam, a check is in the mail. I like free money!

Bargain Bedding for a Guest Room

I LOVE finding a bargain. To me, it feels like winning a small lottery or a big game or something. I am not big on coupons because I honestly just don't have the time, but taking bits and pieces from all over the city, found on clearance, and bringing them together to create an amazing design is one of my most favorite things to do, ever.

I found this duvet cover at Bed, Bath, and Beyond and it immediately caught my eye. Not just because it was one the clearance cart, but because I really like the colors and the pattern isn't too froo froo. As I checked it out I realized it was the right size that I needed! (I already have the down comforter that is going inside this cover).

Since I didn't really need it, I just held it in my hand for a while. This is part of my whole process.

As I held it I realized that it was pretty quality and soft and a brand I knew. The design is by Amy Butler and she is well-regarded for her modern fabrics.

Well, now I need to see how much it is since there wasn't a sticker... It was marked to $40.00! Plus I of course had my 20% off coupon with me - this made the duvet $32 and I could only find it online for $100 more than that... essentially like $100 off, like $100 in your pocket - or so I told my husband who was being quite agreeable this particular day. :)

But it was just a duvet and there were no coordinating pieces to be found in the store. Thank God for smart phones because I was immediately able to find the matching shams on amazon.

They were actually more costly than the dang duvet, but the longer I held it in my hand, the more I knew it was going to go home with me, so it did. :)

 

I can't wait to get my guest room all put together! I don't need a bedskirt because of the type of bed we have. I am going to buy some coordinating sheets and also sew some new coordinating bed pillows and there you have it, bargain bedding for the guest room.

Pillow Talk

I about died when I saw the price tag of the pillow I was laying on at the mattress store. I just fell in LOVE with it! But not the $129.99 price tag. So, we left with our new mattress purchased, but still thinking about the Coconut Bliss Pillow by YuMe.

I haven't been actively search for a pillow, but I really haven't been happy with my pillow for a long time now. I even tried to replace it recently, but that pillow ended up in our guest room, and although nice, it just wasn't for me, and that is why I was so excited to find one I loved! It is just so expensive so I had to think about it...

Well, guess what?!? I found a Groupon in my email this morning giving you $80 to spend on accessories at Mattress Firm (where I found the pillow) for a $20 purchase from Groupon! I bought it. Almost immediately. I can't wait to head there tonight for my new pillow! When all is said and done it will cost me $70 instead of $130. Happy Day! :)

My Top 10 Ways to Save Money...

... and get out of debt.

I am in no way a professional financier, but I feel like I am pretty good at saving money and I always know where I've spent it... whether I've knowingly overspent or not... ;) Here are a few tips if you are feeling light in the cash area these days.

I've taken my own advice and have been able to save up a nice little nest egg and am looking forward to maybe going on a trip or getting a new iPad here soon, you never know when that rainy day will come!

1. Figure out the amount that you can take right off the top of your check that you will not miss. For me, this amount has been anywhere from $25.00 to $100.00 a paycheck. Then take that amount and put it into a savings account that you DO NOT TOUCH, every pay period. You can adjust the amount for a couple months until you find the right # that you don't miss, but don't skip this part as it is the most crucial.
2. If you need help knowing how much money that you have to spend, but do not have a good banking system, you can start by just taking out cash from every paycheck to spend. Make sure it is an amount you can afford and once that is gone, stop! :)
3. Don't buy clothes that need to be dry-cleaned. I have been able to avoid this cost pretty much my whole life, with the exception of a nice party dress or two, and only stop at the cleaners 2-3 times a year, if that.
4. Get your "start to the summer" pedicure and then a couple more for the year, but that is it. A random pedicure before a beach vacation is amazing, but they are not necessary in the winter time, etc. Buy a ped-egg, cuticle trimmer, some Sally Hansen Complete polish, and you are good. This is an extravagance that can really add up if you are not careful. This goes for manicures and gel/acrylic nails as well. If someone asks you what you want for your birthday, consider asking for a spa gift certificate!
5. When shopping for clothes, hit the sales racks first. With the exception of a nice pair of pants, jeans, jackets, and shoes, almost all of my clothes are from TJ Maxx, Steinmart, and even Target. Especially if the items are really trendy, they will only last you a season or two anyways. Get your timeless pieces from an Ann Taylor or Banana Republic type of store and save even more money by creating a versatile wardrobe so those pieces can be worn multiple ways. Buy your dresses, shirts, and fun accessories from more affordable places.
6. Be knowledgeable about things like APR rates and compound interest. I ended up getting a new car (instead of a used car) last year because of this. For example, a new car that costs $20,000 will only end up costing about $21,000 after paying on it for 4 years at 1% interest. A used car costing $17,000 at 4% interest will cost you about $20,000... so for only 1,000 more dollars, you will have a brand new car and most likely it will be under warranty for at least 4 years. Well worth it!
7. Don't worry about brands on the stuff that doesn't matter. No, I am not going to buy a watch or a purse from Walmart (I am just being honest), but I will get a pair of silver earrings from there, or my workout shorts, socks, and maybe even a bathing suit. If you save enough money enough times, you will be able to afford that Coach bag you've had your eye on.
8. Pay off your smallest loans first. If two loans are about the same amount, pay off the one with the higher interest rate. As you pay off #1 loan, take the money that you were spending on that one and add it to the #2 loan payment, and so on. This will increase your payment amount and decrease the amount of time you spend paying off each loan.
9. Color your own hair. People may disagree with me, but coloring from home is pretty easy if you are only trying to cover gray. I use a semi-permanent color on my own hair and it looks very natural. Highlighting is a little trickier, but find a friend to do it! I have highlighted my sister's hair for 7 years using a cap kit and she gets compliments all the time. The kit is 10 bucks at Walmart versus what can be $150 at some salons. Products are improving and there is no reason you shouldn't at least give it a try. Hair grows back! Right?
10. But don't get cheap haircuts. Find a stylist you love and close your eyes when the bill comes. Just go every 10-12 weeks, instead of 4-6, if they are super expensive. 

 Regarding Tip #5, using one dress three different ways... From left to right I see baby shower, dinner date, and girls night.

Wedding Entry #7 | "No, this is NOT for a Wedding."

Don’t tell anyone that the item you need, no matter the item, is for a wedding. As I learned in the whole cake fiasco [Entry #6], people feel the need to double their prices for no apparent reason just because the particular item will be used on, above, for, or in a wedding. This brings me to hair.

In terms of fashion, I am pretty simple. I had a simple gown, plain shoes, and knew exactly what I wanted to do with my hair, which was also a pretty easy side bun. 

Here goes my conversation related to THAT topic…

Lady: “Generic Salon, how can I help you?”

Me: “Yes, I am looking to get pricing for my hair for a wedding.”

Lady:  “Are you the bride?”

Me: “Yes.”

Lady: “Well that will be $119 with a mandatory $30 practice run and a waiver signed and we will need 3 hours for hair and this needs to be 2 hours before your wedding and blah blah blah… and we also do makeup and...”

Me: “Thanks, I’ll get back to you.”

The next conversation went something like this:

Lady: “Generic Salon, how can I help you?”

Me: “Yes, I am looking to get pricing for my hair for a wedding.”

Lady:  “Are you the bride?”

Me: “No, I’m a bridesmaid.”

Lady: “Well our standard up-dos start at about $46 depending on difficulty.”

Me: “Does 1:30pm work?”

Lady: “See you then.”

Me: “Thanks, good bye.”

And my hair turned out great. I will admit, there were a few people, including my mother, that thought I was a little too easy going about this whole thing since I had never even met this stylist before (I just had recommendations for her and read more online), but sometimes I just want to let the professional do their thing. Everyone will be more relaxed in the end and I think it turned out great!

Wedding Entry #6 | Cake? What cake?

Cakes are expensive! And let’s face it, I have never had a good tasting cake that also looked good (don’t hate me for this, I am not really a cake person). So when my friend Kasey had these delicious cupcakes at her wedding a light bulb went off! I changed my mind on the cake and wanted to go with cupcakes. They are fresher, more modern, and sort of unique, plus you don’t have to rent plates (or forks for that matter) and no one has to be paid to cut and serve it either.

This was all a great idea until I got a quote from the cupcake store (which did not give discounts for large orders) and they were $4.00 a piece! My money saving idea had been a bust since the cakes I was looking at weren’t even $500.00 (125 people x 4, you get the idea).

So, back to square one and the wheels are spinning, some time allotment budgeted + my friend Katie will be there to help = I will MAKE the cupcakes myself! I was already making the centerpieces anyways so what is one more hour? 

I immediately hopped online and found a Paula Dean recipe with real butter and cream and all the really yummy good stuff to make them from scratch. A few tries with the icing and they were perfect! After perfecting the recipe I only had about 250 more days to go, so that was just one more thing off the checklist. Did I mention I over plan?

Oh, I also saved $430 (total spent was about $70) but the time spent was actually about 3 total hours on the cupcakes, and that included making custom chocolate monograms to go on top as well. The result for the bottom two tiers, 125 red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese icing and a chocolate monogram!

You will notice the top tier is a cake. I went to Publix grocery store for this and they custom made exactly what I drew out on paper for them as a “go by.” They asked me if this was for a wedding, when I asked why, they told me that it would be about $54, but if it was for a shower it would be $22… When I asked them what the difference was since it was all the same ingredients, they said that even inch cakes were “wedding” cakes and odd inch cakes were for all other occasions. 

Needless to say, the top tier of my cake was 7” and that saved me another $32.

Southwest Airlines Coming to Charleston!

This billboard makes me happy every time I see it... which is pretty much every day! I am very happy to have a more affordable direct flight to see family and friends. It has been too long my loves!

Wedding Entry #5 | Ask the Experts

While on my quest for flowers I got quite a large quote on the bouquets for the big day. I asked for red calla lilies for my bridesmaids, and calla lilies, roses, and ranunculus (all red) for mine. For the 6 bouquets the cost came up over $400. 

When I asked how to get them all for under $200 my florist, Beth LeonGuerrero of Wildflowers, being the savvy woman that she is, said that if I replaced the calla lilies with tulips, all my bouquets would be $180.00. DONE! 

Tulips don’t last as long as the lilies, but what did I care? I was headed on a cruise to the Bahamas the day after the wedding!

Wedding Entry #3 | Don't Get Married on a Saturday

Getting married on a Friday was hands down the best way to save money, right off the top. My husband and I were super budget conscious and this was one of the first decisions that we made that affected our bottom line the most. Well, this and winning our photographer [Wedding Entry #2].

Not only was our popular venue available and over $3,000 cheaper (rental price ended up being $2,750), but our photographer was available, and cruises only embark on Saturdays so that worked itself out too and we could leave the very next day on our Honeymoon! 

I also read online and in magazines that deals could be made with vendors if they weren’t already booked for the non-traditional Friday date, but since Charleston is a very popular wedding destination, I didn’t risk it and booked the vendors I wanted right away.

This wasn’t something I did intentionally, but I heard after the fact from friends and family that had to travel to Charleston that this helped their plans as well. They came into town on Friday, went to the wedding, and still had a whole day to tour around Charleston on Saturday before leaving on Sunday.

I’ll be frank and tell you that I wasn’t thrilled about the Friday date at first, but since I was already off from work for the whole week anyways, it didn’t really end up mattering to me (I didn’t even know what day it was since getting married is such a whirlwind). And let’s be honest, it really is all about the bride, isn’t it?!?

Another option is a Sunday afternoon wedding. This was posed in magazines as the cheapest route since you would most likely serve lunch fare, not a lot of alcohol will be consumed, and most likely locations and vendors will be cheaper. Due to the fact that I am friends with raging alcoholics who love to dance, this was just not an option for me as they we need a day to recover before returning to work. :)

New Car!

Yay! We did it! My husband and I were finally able to get the exact car I wanted. :) I am very happy with my choice and we even got a great deal. Steven is quite the negotiator!

Car Buying Woes

Buying a car is completely awful! In fact, why does the whole car industry make me feel I am getting screwed every time I lease, buy, or fix a car? There should be some sort of test you have to take to be a car salesman - one that includes how to shake a hand, how to not lie, any sort of ethics course would be great!

The best luck I have had with an honest salesman, and lately I have dealt with three… is that the one with the least experience was the most honest – yet not the most knowledgeable. There is a delicate balance between them knowing too much that they can screw you over and not knowing enough to maybe get you a better price.

There is also that whole pesky APR % on your loan. Sure, a used car is cheaper to start, but over the life of your payments, you may end up paying more in the end if you could have gotten a super good rate on buying a new car, not to mention that you have a newer car in the end as well.

I am not claiming to be an expert in this, definitely NOT an expert, but I would say from my recent experience I have learned a few things and have charted my course of action; I will be comparing both a new and used car that I like in terms of payments and total cost, I cannot get out of my lease no matter what they say (without paying for it, literally) until my lease term is up, and I can afford to be picky on my next car because I am buying it and keeping it for a long time (the only true way to get value out of your car)!

Above is a picture of the car that I most have my eye on – the Honda CR-V. I test-drove the Toyota Rav4 and found it to not look as good in my opinion and it seemingly didn’t have the interior room that the CR-V has even though it handled pretty well. I also drove the Nissan Rogue which I thought was quite nice, but I couldn’t get the bad reviews I read online out of my mind (calling it rudimentary design) and the one I drove was top of the line and out of my price range anyways. Plus, I just love me a Honda! I can’t wait to get back into the Honda family after driving a Toyota Camry for 4 years. I drove a Civic for 11 years prior and regret the switch I made. I will not make that mistake again!

Master Bedroom Paintings

We bought a new comforter set for our bedroom about 6 months ago and since it is so different than anything I own, I didn't have any art to hang above it that I was happy with.

I decided to take some design cues from the patterns in the set and make (4) 20x20 acrylic on canvas paintings (the canvases were buy one get one FREE from Michael's!) and after about 4 tries to get the right shade of lime-yellow... or yellow-lime, it still isn't perfect, but I am really happy with the way they turned out!

So, for 40 dollars, I bought 4 canvases, paint, and stencils and created a custom art piece for our bedroom.

The Stars Aligned

So for anyone who knows me, you will know that I have a very hard time finding shoes that fit me correctly. I wear a 9.5 double width shoe and it is very hard to find anything remotely stylish in this beastly size. It gets so frustrating that at times I have thought about going into the wide width shoe business... anyone out there share my pain?

Well, there I was minding my own business yesterday at Shoe Carnival, having JUST gone to three other shoe places looking for walking shoes for my trip to Hawaii, and I find these adorable little shoes by Guppy Love.

I do not care what the brand is if I find shoes that A. fit me and B. look semi-cute. Seriously, I will wear anything from Payless to Dolce & Gabbana, just please let them fit! and these particular cuties were even on Clearance! That's right, $9.00.

I get home and decide to google the brand to see what other shoes they might have out there and when I looked at the size on the right shoe, it was a 10. Thinking that to be strange because I thought they were a 9, I checked the other shoe, and it was a 9.5! OOPS! I bought two different size shoes and not even the size listed on the box... but the funny thing is, my right foot IS bigger than my left so that may be the reason why I have been oh so comfortable all day!

It was the trifecta of shoe shopping, perfect shoe, perfect price, and perfect size (even though I didn't know it). I am in my little red shoe happy place :)