Friday, December 24, 2010

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Homemade Thanksgiving Decorations

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of year here in the United States. I hope you will have the opportunity to enjoy a nice homemade Thanksgiving dinner with your family and friends.

If Thanksgiving dinner will be held at your home this year, why not try some of these tips and learn How to Make Homemade Thanksgiving Decorations. These are a fun, easy and inexpensive way to decorate your home.

Enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday!

Sunday, October 31, 2010

How to Find Free Stuff on the Internet

Finding free stuff on the internet used to be one of my favorite past times. It's fun to look for coupons from your favorite vendor or for your favorite product.

I have put together a set of tips for anyone who may be interested titled How to find Free Stuff on the Internet.

Take a look. Hope you find this information trully helpful!

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Make Your Halloween Costume

In order to save money this Halloween, why not make your own Halloween Costume from things that you can find around your own home.

You could be a crayon or an oreo cookie from an old cardboard box. You could also use cardboard and aluminum foil to make your own Tin Man costume.

Try using black paint or chalk on a tire and rolling it over a Sweatshirt. You would be "Tired"....Someone else could put on a housecoat, an ice pack and put a thermometer in their mouth and be "Sick". Together you could be "Sick and Tired".

How about taping or glueing some old wrappers onto a white trash bag for a "White Trash" costume.

Here's another easy article on How to Make a Headless Halloween Costume.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Add Value to Your Home

I think a lot of times when we are trying to be frugal, we forget how important that it is to take care of our biggest asset. It may not be the most valuable for all folks, but for most, our most valueable asset is out home.

Take time to learn how to do minor home improvements that will keep your home in tip top shape. You will be surprised how inexpensive it is to maintain some of the smaller items if you do it yourself.

Here is an article titled How to Replace a Broken Ceramic Tile. If you have a single tile, or just a few that are broken, you will be surprised how inexpensive it is when you do the repairs yourself. And how simple do it yourself repair can be.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

How to Relieve Stress

Well, I guess this isn't necessarily how to relieve stress but moreso, ways of dealing with the burdens of life:

1 Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some days you're the statue!

2 Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.

3 Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.

4 Drive carefully... It's not only cars that can be recalled by their Maker.

5 If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

6 If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

7 It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.

8 Never buy a car you can't push.

9 Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

10 Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.

11 Since it's the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.

12 The second mouse gets the cheese.


13 When everything's coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.

14 Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.

15 You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.

16 Some mistakes are too much fun to make only once.

17 We could learn a lot from crayons. Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names and

all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.

18 A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

19 Have an awesome day and know that someone has thought about you today.

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Halloween Costume

It's October, and Halloween will be here soon. In order to save a little cash this Halloween, why not make your own costumes instead of buying or renting a costume. Even the most extravagent of Halloween costumes can be made with simple things from around the home.

Here is an article titled How to Make a Headless Woman Costume.

You can use the same concept to make any sort of costume. For a headless man or other outfit, just use an oversized shirt and stick your head out of a few of the button holes.

Good luck to all of you on your Halloween costumes and Happy Halloween!!!

Thursday, September 30, 2010

How to Patch a Small Hole in Drywall

If you have small repairs that need to be done to your drywall, save money by making the repairs yourself.

With just a few materials, some that you may already have around the home, you can avoid hiring an expensive maintenance man and do this work yourself.

Here is How to Patch a Small Hole in Drywall.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Earn Extra Income Working From Home

Just wanted to send out a little reminder for those who are either on a tight budget, or those who just want to earn a little extra money. Let your internet service pay for itself by doing a little here and there to make money working from home.

At first it won't seem like much, but after a while, you will find check after check rolling into to either your email box (paypal account) or into your mailbox at home. Here is a little site to help you Learn to Earn for Free.

Here's a site that pays you to simply click on links in your email Send Earnings is the name of it.

Keep checking back here to find more and more ways to earn money working from home, and ways to save and to help you find An Inexpensive Way of Life!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

How to Buy a Rental Property Using a Credit Card

My most recent financial adventure included purchasing another rental property. Since I had been unemployed for 2 years, and only back to work for a short period of time, I was unable to qualify for a traditional mortgage loan. My next option was to use a credit card.

I shopped around until I found a 3 unit property that I could actually afford to purchase with the available balance on my credit card and one where I would actually live. I finally found a foreclosure that met my needs. Plus, I lucked out, because one of the units was already rented to a great tenant.

Here's the article I wrote to tell exactly how I did it. How to Buy a Rental Property Using a Credit Card.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Pay for your trip Gradually

I decided to pull one of my old tricks and pay for my vacation gradually. I'll explain. In April, I found a couple of tickets to a Cubs and Cardinals baseball game at a decent price. Then my search began.

I started looking for a hotel room in a good location at a decent price. If you have ever been to St. Louis, you know it is hard to find a nice hotel for under $150. However, I was bound and determined I was going to look until I found the best deal. I finally found a luxury hotel at a price cheaper than your average 3 star hotel. Plus, I received $25 Visa gift cards for each night just for booking the two nights on my Visa. I paid for hotel in May.

Finally, I wanted to do a little more than just see the game. Since I hadn't been to an amusement park in years, I decided to see what kind of discount tickets that I could find. In June, I received an email that Coldstone was offering tickets for only $31, that was about $15 off the regular price.

So, I paid for my trip that I took in August, from April to June. This really helped and allowed me to have a lot more to spend when I actualy went on the trip. Plus I found a lot of free things to do while I was there.

Here's an article titled How to Travel to St. Louis on a Budget. Hope you enjoy it!

Thursday, July 15, 2010

I must admit....

I must admit, this isn't really a way that I ever thought I would be discussing how to save money. However, if you think about it, it makes a lot of since.

It is always fun to get together, especially this time of year, with a bunch of friends for drinks. Then again, going to the bar and buying those high dollar mixed drinks can get very expensive.

So, this summer, why not take turns visiting friends and having get togethers at your own homes.

Here's a great recipe for a unique, but popular drink. How to Make a Lemoncello Martini. Why not try making a few for yourself, before you invite the friends.

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Patch a Hole in Your Blacktop Drive

When it comes to owning a home, repairs can be expensive. One of the best things you can do, is to start attempting to make those repairs on yourself. Odds are the first time you try something it will not be absolutely perfect, but the more you try the better you will become at making those repairs on your own.

With just a few household materials and a bag of asphalt mix, you can repair that blacktop drive on your own.

Here is a brief article that goes into to detail explaining how it is done How to Patch a Blacktop Drive.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Keeping Your Energy Bills Down in the Summer

There are a number of ways to help keep your energy bills down in the summer.

Did you know that electric companies discount your power bill for usage after 9:00 pm and before 6:00 am. So whether you're an early bird or you like to stay up late, this is a good time to do your laundry and bake those cookies. Why not make meals on the weekend or on your days off at night, so that you can just heat them up during the week. This will also help make your evenings flow a lot faster. And don't forget to throw that wrinkle free laundry into the dryer before you go to bed.

Here is an article titled How to Cool Your Home on a Budget with even more ways to save.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Roma Tomatoes

Kind of an odd thing just popped into my head, so I thought I would share it here with you....Roma Tomatoes. Roma Tomatoes are about a dollar a pound cheaper than regular tomatoes this time of year. If you aren't extremely particular about your tomatoes, they taste just as good as your average tomatoe. A great way to save a few bucks and enjoy the same dinner!

Monday, March 29, 2010

Extra Earnings

In today's world, in order to get ahead, it seems so many families are turning to 2nd jobs or work from home in order to earn an extra few dollars.

While there is nothing wrong with taking on a part-time job, keep in mind it is a good idea to make sure you are doing something you enjoy. Perhaps you like doing makeovers, then maybe you want to see Avon or Mary Kay on the side. If you like spending time alone but are very creative, perhaps you could build something in your craft room or garage and sell it on consignment with someone at your local flea market.

Finally, keep in mind that winnings are earnings too. And, as we all know, the more you enter, the better your chances of winning. So why not spend a few minutes every day entering contests (preferably with cash prizes) on the internet. There's no overhead, and you might even enjoy the sites that you end up visiting to enter the contest.

If you do decide you need to earn a second income, good luck to you in whatever your adventures might be.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

It's a Good Idea...No Matter Who Disagrees

I remember when I had just bought my first home. I was working with people a lot older than me. I mentioned buying things while they were on sale, and stocking them up in my basement. One of my work associates disagreed, and thought the items would end up getting ruined.

I didn't take her advice. I stocked up, while things were on sale. Well, a number of years later, over a decade, I was laid off and didn't work a full time job for 2 years. I lived all of that time on toilet paper, paper towels, laundry detergent, etc. that I had stocked up in my basement.

It was a good feeling, not having to worry about the general items. It's a good idea, no matter who disagrees.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Be Shrewd

I know the title of the article doesn't sound too enthusiastic, but today's market is a time to be shrewd. Take advantage of the real estate market. Right now, you can purchase properties that were selling for $75,000 10 years ago, for only $15,000. Check your market and find out what is reasonable.

Perhaps you could purchase a 3 unit rental property. If so, one unit will probably pay the mortgage, the 2nd will pay more than the taxes and insurance. That leaves you with the 3rd unit for profit or perhaps a place to live!

Once the mortgage is paid in full, the 1st unit translates into more income. This is a great way to finance your retirement! Heaven knows you're going to need more than Social Security, if it's even still around by then.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

How To Find Free Stuff On The Internet

A number of people are saving money by shopping on the internet. Even if it isn't convenient for you to buy what you need on the world wide web, you can still search and find good deals. Looking at your daily sales ads is a good way to save.

However, you can also find coupons for things on your weekly shopping on the web sites for the manufacturer. There are a number of other ways to save. Check out this article titled How to Find Free Stuff on the Internet.

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Make Your Money Work For You

Depending on your age, you may be worried about your income in your later years. It seems there is quite a scare that Social Security may not be around some 30 years from now. And even if it is, with inflation, it probably won't be enough money to survive, especially if you end up alone.

One thing you can do today is invest and make your money work for you in your later years. There are some promising stocks that pay dividends. Check with a local broker and find out if there is a way to buy small shares, one at a time. Then reinvest the dividends to buy more stock. (You may want to do this in several companies so that you are diversified.) Once you are ready to retire, you can keep the stocks, but start taking the income from the dividends. Just one small way to increase your retirement income.