What is worth a higher price tag?

Get Rich Slowly  made a post Spend on the Things You Do Every Day  yesterday on a topic I've been thinking a lot about. The topic being, what should you spend your money on? It is unrealistic (and maybe not even smart) to say that everyone should just spend as little as possible on everything. Some exceptions I make are healthy food, quality shoes, beds/mattresses, and tools of all sorts. Both of these articles did a great job of explaining this principle, and are definitely worth a read.

Lifehacker also recently did a post on this The Comfort Principle: Spend Money Where You Spend Your Time. I was particularly pleased with the mention of the desk chair (I know I spend 8+ hours a day in mine!)

What items do you think are worth spending more money on?

2 Frugal recipes

Tried 2 new frugal recipes this weekend.

Split-pea soup in the crockpot: It was SO GOOD, and really easy. Served with corn muffins.

Photo by Paula G

Purchased ingredients:
16 oz bag of dried split peas - $0.99 (regular price at Hy-Vee)
Smoked ham - $2.00/lb, used 2 lbs. (sale price at Hy-Vee)
The rest of the ingredients (onions, carrots, salt, etc. I already had on hand).

Betty Crocker corn bread mix - $0.33 (on sale 3/$1 at Walgreens)

Recipe here: http://www.food.com/recipe/slow-cooker-split-pea-soup-83008 (I omitted the celery, because I don't like celery. Ha.)

Easy fudge: also SO GOOD and SO EASY. I'm thinking this might be a good one to make and give to people for the holidays.

Purchased ingredients:
2 lbs powdered sugar (used 1 lb for the recipe)- $1.50 (on sale 2/$3 at Dillons)
The rest of the things I already had (cocoa powder, milk, butter, etc.)

Recipe here: http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1729,150161-231201,00.html (I used powdered milk, made following the directions on the package. I also did not use nuts.)

Weekend update: great deals!

Had a great weekend hunting down some awesome deals. Went to a rummage sale that was a fundraiser for the LHS marching band, and also to an estate auction. Got a lot of things for Christmas gifts, and a few other fun things too.

Rummage sale:
-Overhead projector - $1.00 - my friend Alena had been looking for one of these for a long time so I picked it up for her.
-Magna-doodle- $1.00 - looks brand new, going to give it to my little cousin.
-White ceramic picture frame - $0.75 - new with tags on it, going to put a wedding picture in it for a grandparent's Christmas gift.

Estate auction-
-Large bulletin board- $2.00 - going to paint & decorate it for a little cousin's Christmas gift.
-Box of 20 or so picture frames - $1.00 - going to use these for more wedding pictures for gifts.
-Old red wagon - $6.00 - thought this was too cute to pass up. Maybe I'll put plants in it.

-Wooden duck- $2.00. I don't know. I just love it.











-A thing that I think is an old-fashioned popcorn popper. $1.00. Can anyone verify this? I plan to give it to my Dad to use in his fireplace.

-Antique wall thermometer. $1.00 Already put it up in my kitchen.

- Two awesome granny-style crocheted blankets- $2.50 To use in my house.
- One other thing that I can't mention because its a gift for someone who reads this!

Did you hit up any garage sales or estate sales this weekend? What did you find?

What is your best ever treasure found at a garage sale or auction?

Save money on Christmas gifts by making your own-

This year I’m making most of the Christmas gifts I’m giving. I’m doing this for two reasons: to spend less money, and because I think homemade gifts can be better than store-bought (if done right).

For example, I think that Ugly Dolls are really cute, and I wanted to get one for my 2 year old cousin. Then I realized that even the “Little” dolls were $10 each. I did some searching and found this pattern for a DIY Monster Doll, and I am happy to report that the materials were less than $1, and I spent less than  4 hours on the project. (I am an abnormally slow sewer.)  For the body material I used part of a neon green sweatshirt from my fabric scrap box (free), and for the features I bought felt pieces at Michael’s for 5/$1, and I used only about ¼ of two of the sheets (about $0.05 worth). I also already had white thread, and the other sewing supplies I needed. For the stuffing I bought a (new with tags on it) ugly throw pillow at a Lawrence thrift store for $0.25 and cut it open and used maybe ¼ of the poly-fill. 

I am really pleased with how it came out, and I think it will be extra-special because I made it just for her (using colors she likes, etc.)

Obviously, a Monster Doll may not be the right gift for everyone on your list. I’m making some other gifts this year as well, but I’m hesitant to write about them here, lest I ruin the surprises! What I can offer is this list of my hand-picked favorite DIY gift ideas. 

A DIY Christmas: 34 Great Homemade Gifts You Can Make - from Get Rich Slowly (I like the Secret Hollow Book, Stationary Sets, and Teacup Candles. Also my family has done the Family Cookbook before and it was a lot of fun! These can all be made from things you already have, or cheap thrift-store treasures.)

16 Cheap Homemade Christmas Gift Giving [To-Make] from Tip Junkie (I like the Make Up Roll Up Bag, Hot/Cold Therapy Sacks, and the various Etched Glass items.)

DIY Christmas Gifts that Don't Suck from yes and yes (I like the Finger Puppets, Cat & Dog Treats, Silhouette Portraits, and Wool Mittens.)

And don't forget there are lots of books with DIY gift ideas at the Lawrence Public Library! For inexpensive materials, check out my list of Lawrence, KS thrift and bargain stores. And don't forget your frugal wrapping- ideas here. 

Remember the library!

The value of checking prices- Here is my real life example.

For some reason, I have had a very strong urge to watch Cool Runnings. Don't ask me why. John Candy? Reggae music? 

 It is not on Netflix On Demand, but I still want to see it, so I started checking around. This took me about 10 minutes.

To buy online:

Best price was Amazon: $8.17 with shipping, used.

To buy locally (my preference):

Walmart - not in stock locally (checked online)

Best Buy- $12.99 in stock (checked online)

Half Price Books - not in stock (called local store)

Game Nutt - not in stock (called local store)

Hastings- $10.40 in stock (checked online)

To borrow:

Asked friends on facebook, no one has it.

Miracle Video (rental) - don't have it (called local store)

Lawrence Public Library -  HAVE IT, for FREE. 

(It feels pretty silly calling places and asking for Cool Runnings, by the way.) The point here is, when you have a whim to buy something, think about it a few minutes before you do. Think about how quickly you need it, can you borrow it, can you buy it used?

P.S. I also posted a "Want to Buy" ad on cragislist a few days ago, but no bites. I can't believe no one wants to sell their copy of Cool Runnings, which I would just bet they haven't watched recently. 

Save with holiday crafts

A great way to save money around the holidays is to make your own decorations. Be careful and do some math, though, because homemade decor is not always cheaper than store-bought. The trick is to make decorations that you already have most of the materials for, or that you can get materials for very cheaply.

I've been really into wreaths this year, so I'm planning to make one or two next week with my girlfriends. I found a lot of cute ideas for wreaths, but the ones I'm planning to make need mostly materials that I already have. (see link below!)  I'm going to do a paper wreath, because I already have a lot of odds-and-ends colored papers left over from other projects, and I also have a circle-cutter that came with a button making machine I bought years ago. If you don't already have colored paper and a circle cutter, this project would not be very frugal for you. Perhaps you have a lot of fabric scraps- there is also a cute wreath shown that uses those. I also have a lot of old vintage tinsel that one of my grandmothers gave me a few years ago, that I hadn't figured out how to use. Then I came across a great wreath idea that uses a lot of tinsel on the Creature Comforts blog! So in that case, the only thing I will need to buy is a foam wreath base, which are really cheap, PLUS I will use a coupon at Michael's (see link- thanks to Alena L. for the tip!). The wreaths are usually about $5, but with a 50% off coupon, my total cost for the wreath will be about $2.50. Much cheaper than buying a ready-made wreath! See all the how-to links below the picture.

Links:

Paper wreath, fabric scrap wreath, other great wreaths: http://www.creaturecomfortsblog.com/home/2010/11/15/diy-holiday-wreath-roundup.html

Tinsel garland wreath:
http://www.creaturecomfortsblog.com/home/2010/11/16/diy-5-minute-tinsel-garland-wreath.html

Michael's coupons!:
http://www.michaels.com/c/110611-IA-US,default,pg.html

Lawrence, KS- Thrift & Bargain Stores

Thrift and Secondhand stores in Lawrence, KS:

(Updated 5/19/14)

Not-for-Profit Thrift Stores:

Social Service League : Donated, used goods, money helps people in need get prescription glasses. Love the people here. Have moved to a new, larger location (temporarily while the original location is remodeled) - so less cluttered and more organized. Very low (think yardsale) prices. My favorite thrift store in Lawrence!

Goodwill : Donated, used goods. I think the prices are a bit high sometimes, but worth checking out occasionally. Good ol' Goody's.

Salvation Army Store: Donated, used goods. Good ol' Sally's.

St. John's Rummage House: Used, donated goods. Money benefits St. Johns School & community programs. Somewhat limited hours, but a goldmine, very low prices. Another one of my favorite places.

Habitat Re-Store: Used, donated goods. Money benefits Habitat for Humanity. Mostly building materials, fixtures, paint, etc. but also some furniture.

Other Bargain and/or Used Goods stores:

Arizona Trading Co. : affectionately called "ATC". Buy/sell/trade used clothes. Primarily young/trendy styles for about 1/2 or 1/4 of what they cost new.
Ditto: Buy/sell  used clothes.  Similar to ATC but I think skews a little older- more young professional than high school/ college age. 

Doodlebugs: Buy/sell secondhand baby and children's items. Lots of clothes/shoes, plus baby gear (strollers, bouncers, etc.), cloth diapering stuff, and pregnancy related items including maternity clothes. I love this shop, because you can get like-new baby/kid stuff for a quarter of retail price. However, it is usually pretty cluttered and somewhat disorganized, so make sure you have time to dig! Good place to sell baby/kid stuff you don't use anymore, too. You won't get a lot of $ but more than you would selling in a garage sale, plus you can get more store credit than cash.
Lasting Impressions Consignment: Consignment store- if you don't know how that works- people bring in items they want to sell, and if it sells the shop gets part of the profit. Their stuff changes all the time, though tends to be mostly apparel. 

Lawrence Flea: Monthly flea market, location varies (check their facebook page for up to date info). Items available vary widely.

Lawrence Antique Mall: If you can see past the expensive antiques, there are lots of flea market-type finds to be had here too. Besides, its fun to look through all the stuff.
Plato's Closet: Buy/sell/trade used clothes. Primarily young/trendy styles for about 1/2 or 1/4 of what they cost new.

Wild Man Vintage: Buy/sell/trade vintage used clothes. Almost didn't put it on here because prices are sometimes high, but sometimes a good deal can be had on cool old clothes.

Tell me what goldmines I missed! I'm always on the lookout for new thrift/bargain stores!

(photo credit)

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To be Frugal.

Being frugal and living within your means sometimes means asking yourself difficult questions about what you really need and what is important to you. But, being frugal can also be a fun challenge, and a way to use your creativity and smarts. It is also a way to buck the system, if you’re into that kind of thing.

Almost everyone I know feels like they don't have enough money. I am here to tell you that even with a very small income, you have enough money to cover your basic needs and live a full, fun life. Being frugal is a way to get the very most out of what little money you have, without feeling deprived.

One of my very favorite writers on the subject of frugality is Amy Dacyczyn, the author/editor of The Tightwad Gazette. I recently re-read the entirety to The Tightwad Gazette and my "frugal fervor" has been restored. The problem is that Amy retired in 1996, and while the ideas in the Gazette stand true, many of the tips and details have become outdated (and were originally somewhat localized to Maine).

My mission is to do what Amy Dacyczyn did for Maine in the 1990's, for Lawrence, Kansas, in the 2010's. A lofty goal to be sure, but it won't cost me any money to try!

-Jessica Gish Bergin