Frugal Confessions Friday!!

Hello Frugal Confessions Readers! For those of you new to this series, check out the introduction here. Here is my confession of the week: For our wedding registry with Macy’s, Paul and I took the extra time to sign up for a Macy’s card. Why did we do this? It’s because after all was said [...]

Reading the Fine Print—My James Coney Island Experience

Oftentimes coupons for free products do not actually result in a free product (of course that does not mean you can’t score an abundance of free products), a sad fact I experienced just recently. Last Friday I was riding high. Even though I normally do not work on Fridays (I work 4 ten-hour days, Monday [...]

Where to Find Clearance Items, Even in the Grocery Store

Give me your slightly dented, your scratched, or your six-months-until-expiration, and I will gladly give them all a home. When I discussed a few weeks back about saving money without using coupons by shopping clearance items first and not last, I’ll bet you didn’t think I also meant clearance bins in the grocery store. Well, [...]

The Cost of Making Your House a Home: Average Spent in Your First Year of Home Ownership

According to the National Association of Home Builders, the average annual spending on various items (decoration, appliances, painting, repairs, etc.) as of 2007 for single-family detached homes built before 2004 is $8,927. For people who purchase newer homes (built after 2004), the average annual spending is even more in the first year: $12,332. Doesn’t that [...]

Letter from a Spoiled Consumer

May 31, 2010 Author’s Note: It’s Memorial Day Weekend, which is particularly known for its crazy great deals, so I thought it would be fun to publish this letter. Happy Memorial Day! Dear Retailers and Manufacturers,             You have spoiled me beyond belief. So much so, in fact, that I can never envision myself going [...]

Sometimes it is Easier to Preach than to Practice

Have things ever just…fallen into your lap? Call it luck, a perk from reading the book The Secret, the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon (wait…have you just recently heard about this?), or an answer to your prayers, but you think of something—a need, a want, a nice-to-have—and then several weeks, months, or even days later it appears. And [...]

Frugal Confessions Friday!

Hello Frugal Confessions Readers! For those of you new to this series, check out the introduction here. Here is my confession of the week: As you know, Paul and I are setting up our library (how exciting!!! We both love to read). Last weekend, I was able to snag this gorgeous rug, which just so [...]

Saving Money for the Person Who Doesn’t Have Time for Coupons

Author’s Note: This is the second article of a two part series this week on teaching you the skills to become a better shopper, for non-couponers and couponers alike. Check out the first article here. Many of my readers are in the same spot as you; they like the idea of saving money, they think [...]

6 Sneaky Ways Grocery Stores and Retailers Get You to Spend More Money

Author’s Note: This is the first article of a two part series this week on teaching you the skills to become a better shopper, for non-couponers and couponers alike. Tune back in on Wednesday for the second part of this series. It’s happened to us all: we go to a store, or an online store, [...]

Annuals vs. Perennials: Where Would You Like to be One Year from Now?

I am in a greenhouse surrounded by pots of gorgeous blooming flowers stacked tightly against one another such that when I look ahead of me, all I can see is one long burst of color and energy. Spring has announced itself in Pennsylvania, coaxing the growth of plants from barren soil, the opening of blooms [...]

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