Guest post!

I guest posted at SomethingSwanky over the weekend. Pop on over and I'll let you in on how I made these beauties - S'mores Cupcakes! 

Also, stay tuned for tomorrow's post on this weekend's fantastically awesome and fun swap party and how we threw it for (basically) free!! 

Get it for free: Movie night

It's November 10th. Which means I have gone 10 days without spending any money (sans gas, bill and groceries.) All in all, I'm not ready to kill go crazy yet, (although my dinner on December 1st is going to be obtained from Buffalo Wild Wings as I revel in the fact that someone else cooked it,) but a few nights ago Boyfriend and I were feeling a little... stir crazy. I mean, we can spend only so much QT together. (That is a lie: We weren't having QT at all... I had just run out of episodes of The Big Bang theory on my DVR.) Sssssanyways, I decided to whip up a little date night for us - No Spend November Style

MOVIE NIGHT! 

After dinner, (omgiamsotiredofcooking!!) I surprised Boyfriend with a much needed evening of popcorn, movies and snuggles.

I don't know about you, but I have a propensity to not return rental items, so a $1 rental from Redbox turns into a $36 cost because I lost the copy of "The Hangover" and didn't find it (lost in the abyss that is the back of my Jeep) until like a month later. (True story.) 

So, where does one go to get movies for free? Oh, that's right... I can mooch off of my family!

Earlier in the week, I had popped over to my sister's house to check out her movie collection. Her husband? Movie addict. He has TONS of DVDs, just waiting to be borrowed by his cheap frugal sister-in-law. 

Srsly. This isn't even like half of them.

There were some movies that Boyfriend and I wanted to see in the theater, but we didn't get that far. So I grabbed a few DVDs that I knew both wanted to see. (But, mostly me.) 

Then on our date night, I made some of this.

Yeah. It's basically amazing.

This is the BEST snack, basically, ever. Katy KILLED it with her Popcorn Laced with Crack.

It's popcorn. It's chocolate. It's bacon. 

It's amaze-balls. 

So, there is our super-cute, super-cheap date night. 

What's that you say? You don't have a brother-in-law who hoards DVDs? (At least not ones were everyone is completely clothed.) Worry not! If none of your friends have movies you'd like to borrow, you can visit your local library. Did you know libraries rented movies? I sure didn't! (I have another post coming on the fantastical adventure I had at the library. Keep your eyes peeled for that one.) 

No Spend November: Easy Money Saving Tips

Happy Friday, friends! I am so looking forward to this weekend. I don't have many special plans, but work has kicked my butt this week. I'm excited to relaaaaaaaax.

I thought I would give you some things to think about over the weekend, so here are my Top Money Saving Tips

1. When you go out to eat, tell the server it is your birthday. That's usually good for a free appetizer or dessert, if you can tolerate the annoying and embarrassing birthday serenade from the entire restaurant staff. (Note: Keep track of where and how often you do this - there's nothing more humiliating than being confronted by the acne covered, garlic scented 22-year-old manager at the Olive Garden about the plausibility that is is your birthday for the third time this month.)

2. Have your toddler tested for super-high intelligence. If you can get your two-year-old into first grade, you've got yourself free childcare for nine months out of the year. (Note: Put a pair of thick, black framed glasses on the kid to make him look smarter. Everyone looks like a genius in nerdy glasses.)

Via http://makebabysmile.com/?p=576

3. Don't pay for reading materials. There are only so many times I can play "Make Me a Princess" on my phone while waiting for a doctor's appointment, so I will occasionally pick up some of the magazines there for additional entertainment. I figure for every 15 minutes I wait past my scheduled appointment time, I am entitled to one of those magazines for keepies. If your physician is really running behind, you can walk out of that office with a month's worth of reading! (Note: Bring Lysol with you to spray the pages... people in the waiting room are usually sick! You want to pick up a Cosmo, not the plague.)

4. Take a penny. Ever see those dishes full of change at the register at the gas station? They usually have a little sign that says something like "take a penny, leave a penny." I interpret that sign to mean, "Hell yeah! Free pennies!!" (Note: If possible, distract the clerk before swiping the pennies. After a few times of emptying out the dish, they catch on and start hiding the penny bowl when they see your car pull up. That's when I lay low and start hitting the Sheetz across the street instead. The last thing I need is my picture hanging up in the 7-11.)

Via http://www.wbez.org/blog/mission-amy-kr/2011-09-19/

5. Regift. Let's face it - everyone gets crappy gifts sometimes. I know that it's the thought that counts, but sometimes I'm pretty sure that the gift giver put a lot of thought into how to give me a shatty present, because NO ONE thinks that orthopedic shoes (that fasten with Velcro straps) are a good gift for a 12-year-old. Other awesome gifts I've gotten are a lamp in the shape of a (topless) mermaid, a book with 1001 Fart Jokes, and a membership in the "Egg of the Month" club. Every year I go to a few holiday parties that ask to you to bring a wrapped gift for a secret gift exchange. That's when I dip into my hoard of bleech gifts and select one to bestow on its next helpless victim. (Note: Use indistinguishable wrapping paper. A few years ago I regifted a Weird Al CD and a few cans of Holiday Spam (I know, right? WTH is wrong with my family??) and since I had wrapped it in awesomely cheap ugly unique paper, someone remembered that I had walked in with that monstrosity and I was identified as the shizzy gift giver and immediately pelted with chunks of fruitcake. I do not recall being invited back to any more of that person's holiday parties.)

(Disclaimer: I am totally joking about all of these things, except the regifting, which I actually do. {Can a person be proud and ashamed at the same time?} The above are all intended for comedic purposes only. I do not actually endorse or recommend any of the above, especially since most are considered stealing. I hope these humorous ideas gave you a chuckle to start your weekend.)

No Spend November: Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.

When I ran my No Spend November idea past my bestie, the incredible and talented Faith, she brought up a good point. “So, if you use up all of your reserve foods because you aren’t buying more groceries, aren’t you going to spend three times as much replacing them in December?” Interesting thought. How am I saving money if I’m going to have to refill my supplies?

Yesterday morning I ripped a hole in my shower curtain liner. My first thought was, "I can't buy a new one!" My second thought was "It's going to start looking very 'You might be a redneck if...' in here if I have to start fixing shower curtains with duct tape." 

So, where is the happy medium between overspending and turning into a Jeff Foxworthy joke?

There is an old Depression-era saying: "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without." While this became a way of life during times when nylons were one of the hottest commodities, I think it can still hold relevance today in a society where no one buys pantyhose except Kate Middleton and bank robbers. The sentiment is about being resourceful and aware.

I think too often the answer to the "it's broken/it’s out of style/it doesn't fit/it smells funny" type of problems in life is to simple discard and replace. Shower curtain is torn? Throw it out, snag another one. NBD. But, what if you didn't have the luxury of replacing things? In the 30s, my grandmother didn’t just toss out a dress she didn’t like anymore. She wore it until it was damaged. And when it was damaged, she repaired it. And when she couldn’t repair it any longer, she used the fabric to make something else. She didn’t spend money because she didn’t have money to spend.  

NSN is about putting yourself in the same type or mindset. When something is damaged – I should exhaust all of my options instead of jumping to the easiest (and most costly) resolution.

Last night I was feeling creative and hungry (two feelings I am likely to be experiencing during every waking moment.) I was feeling sew-ey, and decided to take a stab at a bag I was thinking about making for someone as a gift, but I didn’t have any fabric I super loved that wasn’t already reserved for another project. I thought about my options: I could go out and buy new fabric. Newp – can’t do it this month. So, I could give up and go watch TV. Newp – Boyfriend was watching “Dragonball Z” or something and this girl doesn’t get down with the anime. I got resourceful and snagged the fabric I had saved from the chair I had reupholstered and paired it with the fabric I took off of the chair and – Booya.

Sassy reversible bag say "whaaaaa?"

Well, I was feeling creatively accomplished but still hungry – I was feeling brownie-y, but had no brownie mix. (I know a lot of women who would be like, “Who needs a mix?” but I have NEVER made brownies from scratch.) So, did I want to be resourceful or do without? Well, Mama needed her chocolate fix so I scrounged around and came up with the ingredients for brownies. I didn’t even know I owned cocoa powder! It would have just been one more thing I would have wasted after it expired. Then I whipped up some FAN-FREAKING-TASTIC brownies. (Srsly. Make these.)

Neither of these are huge leaps towards saving money, but NSN forced me outside of my comfort zone. I had to choose between making do and doing without, and I made do with remarkable results (for me.) I’m excited to see what the rest of this month brings!

(Yes, I taped my shower curtain. Worked like a charm and it was free. Sorry, I’m not sorry.)

No Spend November Kickoff

I have a terrible secret - I once killed a spider, just to watch him die. No, just kidding. (Obviously, since I kill spiders because if I don't they will eat me in my sleep.)

My secret?

My name is Lori and I'm a spendaholic.

I love to shop. For reals. I like to shop online, at thrift stores, at the grocery store... I see some Girl Scouts selling cookies in front of Sam's and I walk away with 6 boxes of Thin Mints. I buy things because it's fun, because I'm bored, because they are on sale... Not good reasons! I spend money on groceries we don't eat and I end up throwing things out. I have several kitchen appliances I have never used. And my crest room? (That's what used to be a guest room but has been taken over with my crafts.) Filled to the brim with unfinished and unstarted projects!

And, I buy things at the expense of saving. It would be a different story if I hoarded felt and canned goods while still putting money away for a rainy day - but, I don't. And that is going to bite me in the ass sooner rather than later. So, I've decided to do something about it. I have instituted "No Spend November" in my household, much to Boyfriend's chagrin.

Um, this is the cutest pig ever. 

So, what does this mysterious month-long challenge entail? I'm so glad you asked! Here are the deets:

1. We have allotted money for the things we cannot avoid spending money on. (I tried to explain to Met-Ed that it's "No Spend November" in lieu of paying my bill. They wished me good luck and told me to let them know how it goes in "No Electricity December.") So, we will be paying all bills this month. We will also be spending our usual RIDICULOUS AMOUNT OF MONEY on gasoline. Boyfriend and I both drive cars that are not great on gas and we work over 20 miles from home and there is no public transportation. We don't even work close enough to each other to carpool. So, that's something we just have to live with. I have also drastically reduced our grocery budget for the month in an effort to use up the copious amounts of food we already have.

2. That's it.

Which means: No dining out (thinking about this makes me want to cry,) no going to the movies, no new shoes, no buying yards of fabric because the "pattern reminds me of M&Ms," no Starbucks, no going to the bar, no buying gifts, no... fun. No spending any money.

I'm very interested to see how this goes. I am hoping to get a few things out of this experiment:

1. I want to get a better idea on just how much excess we purchase, and subsequently waste. (I have a hunch I can make a month of dinners from the food we already have.)
2. I want to start using forethought instead of hindsight. Too often I get home and don't have anything thawed for dinner so we grab take-out instead. If I had taken a few moments in the morning to grab something from the freezer, we could avoid spending the extra money.
3. I want to be able to see how much money we could be saving while still living comfortably.

Plus, I love a challenge. :o)

I'll keep you guys posted on our progress. I anticipate a lot of forced creativity to prevent Boyfriend and I from killing each other out of boredom.

If you have any suggestions for free entertainment or other frugal living tips, please send them my way.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to need all the help I can get.