Weddings are expensive. We can pay upwards of thousands of dollars for our wedding dresses, which we wear once (okay, maybe a few times, if we do bridal pictures and have multiple receptions) and then they hang in our closets or sit in storage. Then financial trials come along, and we wonder how to pay off the new bills. Have you ever considered selling your wedding dress? Other brides are in need of beautiful dresses, and they’d be more than happy to save some money and purchase a gently used gown. You can do this in a number of different … Continue reading →

So, you’ve already filled inexpensive glass vases with lemons, limes and oranges to add pops of color to your holiday dinner table. And you’ve used the trick of arranging peppermints in a silver dish to save on costly Christmas decorations, but now you need more ideas to preserve your budget this holiday season. Here are a few money-saving ideas to help you keep more green in your pocket as we countdown to Christmas: Paper Rules: Instead of investing in high-priced seasonal decor, cover frames with Christmas-themed wrapping paper and add some bows to complete the look. Or, use patterned scrapbook … Continue reading →

Right now my email inbox is full of coupons for free food at various national chain restaurants. The offers for free appetizers and desserts are extremely enticing, but I need to purchase an adult entree to get the gratis grub. Whereas I would love to chow down on my favorite spinach/artichoke dip or cap-off a meal with free bread pudding, I wouldn’t even consider eating out, if it weren’t for the coupons. What’s the sense of saving five bucks on chips and dip or chocolate cake when I have to shell out $10 to do so? With the holidays fast … Continue reading →

According to the American Consumer Credit Council, the average American spends nearly $1,000 at Christmas. Even during tough economic times that total doesn’t waver much. For some reason, people feel the need to show their love for family and friends by spending money on them during the holidays. Financial experts frown upon this practice and are encouraging cash strapped Americans to reduce their holiday spending by 30 to 50 percent this year. In addition, the money gurus are imploring people to set a budget for holiday gifts and entertainment and stick with it. Have you created a holiday budget? Some … Continue reading →

It is official, holiday shopping season has begun. In my house, tis the season of scouting for deals and trying to give meaningful gifts that our friends and family will appreciate while spending as little as possible. Both my husband and I are active players in the holiday shopping game, he finances the venture and often hits the stores after he gets out of work in the hopes that he can snag some great gifts on clearance and I scour store ads and online ads for great prices on things that we were thinking of buying as gifts. Black Friday … Continue reading →

Remember how I suggested that buying store brand instead of name brand food items would be a great way to save money? Well, here’s another tip: Don’t buy generic ketchup. Live, learn, and modify, right? So, the ketchup idea was not a good one, but I wouldn’t have known unless I gave it a try. And no, I don’t plan to waste it and the money I spent on it. Rather, I plan to use it in recipes that call for ketchup instead of eating it straight up on fries. It doesn’t taste that bad, though I prefer Heinz. Now, … Continue reading →

Today I took my couponing skills for a test drive to my local Shaws supermarket. When we arrived at the store, Dylan and I went to pick out his bagel. He likes to chew on a bagel or a piece of fruit while we shop, so I always ask him when we get to the store which one he wants. He had just finished an apple before we left for the store, so I was not surprised that he wanted the bagel. Bagel in hand, we went about picking up the items on my list. As I had mentioned yesterday, … Continue reading →

Today, I took all of the coupons that I clipped and sorted yesterday and compared them to the store sale flyers for the grocery stores that are close enough to my house to shop at. I also browsed through the Dollar General flyer because there is a Dollar General right next to Shaws in my town. Since I am easing into couponing, I did not look for every single item on every coupon that I have, I pulled out a few coupons for items that we could use right now and searched for those items. Anyways, I did not find … Continue reading →

Today is a Sunday, and all of you coupon clippers know what that means. It’s time to get the Sunday paper and see what kinds of coupons you can cut out this week. I went to get the paper, and was careful to make sure that the coupon inserts were in there as well as the store flyers for two of the grocery stores that I shop at. There was also a Rite Aid flyer in there, which is good because we have one in town. After I bought the paper, I went next door to Dollar General to grab … Continue reading →

I still can’t get over the results of the TODAY show’s latest experiment featuring name brand versus generic dishwashing detergent. Who knew that a low-cost store brand could go head-to-head with a powerhouse like Cascade and come out on top? I buy Cascade. Religiously. Looks like I will be re-evaluating my brand loyalty. TODAY’s consumer correspondent Janice Lieberman gave great tips on ppurchasing generic items instead of name brands whenever possible. This is advice I’ve heard before, but typically I reserve my generic buys for common staples such as sugar, flour, and bleach. I don’t usually experiment with generic brands … Continue reading →