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Take the Clutter to Cash Challenge
I live just outside Washington, DC and we have gotten a lot of snow this winter. In a typical year, we get a few inches of snow, but this year, we’ve gotten a few feet! So my ears pricked up over the weekend when I heard the sound of a lawn mower – the unofficial first sound of spring!
Of course, it’s time to start thinking about spring cleaning. According to a new survey by ShopSmart, spring cleaning is an annual ritual for 58 percent of women. Twenty-five percent say they spring clean to get organized. This is definitely me. I feel so much better when I can kick the clutter to the curb, but what’s even better than that is making money from the cast-offs in the house.
So, I’m kicking off a series of posts this month on how to turn your clutter into cash. I’d love for you to join along and post your own tips, tricks and results. Here are a few of the topics that I’ll be addressing:
- Electronics Recycling (cell phones, mp3 players, video games)
- Consignment Stores
- Garage Sales
- Online Classifieds & Auctions
- Donations (tax write-offs!)
Is there anything else you’d like to see covered here? I plan to play along where I can to offer real-life advice as I clear excess clutter from my own home. My husband just got a new cell phone, so his old cell phone is going to be one of the first items to go!
Coming Up on Thursday: Electronics Recycling
Thanks for reading Coupon Cravings! Be sure to follow me on Twitter at @eringifford. You can also now find me on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/CouponCravings. I’d love it if you’d be my fan!
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Arby’s: Free Coupon by Text Message
Text the word SHAKE to 27297 and get a text message coupon to use at Arby’s. I got a coupon on my cell phone for a free Roastburger with the purchase of a soft drink. According to MoJo Savings, the freebie may vary by market since she said some of her readers received coupons for free fries and shakes.
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Top Places to Get Your Grocery Coupons
Are you starting the new year fresh and hoping to spend less on your grocery bills? As many of you already know couponing is a great way to do this. But if you are new to coupons you may not know all the places that you can get them.
Other online coupons include ones that go to your cell phone and ones that are linked to stores rewards card. Some of these are stackable (meaning you can use them together) with printed coupons or the coupons from your Sunday paper.
As for online coupons that you print at home you will need to check with your store’s policy to make sure that they accept them- as, unfortunately, not all do because of fraud issues. Other store policies with coupons may include doubling,(up to a certain amount) and only accepting so many of the same coupon per transaction. Some coupon policies are available directly on their websites and it is a good idea to print it out and bring it with you in case you ever have any issues.
If you really get into couponing there are also several online services in which you can purchase coupons for a reduced amount- some of these include ebay and the Coupon Clippers.
Every week you can check online at Sunday Coupon Preview to see what the upcoming inserts are going to include and you here is a list of the online coupons sites (if you know if any others please let me know and I will add them to list).
::CoolSavings- When register you do not need to complete any special offers to access to the printable coupons.
::Coupons.com One of the best sources.
::Smart Source
::CouponMom.com- CouponMom has printable coupons as well as a coupon directory (very helpful)
::SnackPicks-owned by Cheez-it, Kelloggs, and Keebler
::Simple and Delicious- ConAgra Foods
::AFullCup.com
::RedPlum
::CellFire- Load these coupons directly onto your store rewards card from your computer.
::Organic Valley- Coupons for Organic Groceries
::UPromise -E-coupons linked to your reward card that help you earn money towards your child’s college education.
::Afullcup.com Target Coupon Generator
::Organize with The Couponizer- Coupon Organization
I hope this gets you started on couponing in 2010. Let us know if you are starting a couponing journey and how much you hope to save on your grocery bill. Good luck and Happy Saving!!
jen
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Our Credit Card Journey: Swipers To Shredders
One of the most difficult parts of getting out of debt is transitioning from a spender to a saver. I’ll be honest with you. My wife and I loved to spend money. I loved it so much that I wracked up over $16,000 in credit card debt over a period of a few years. That $16,000 doesn’t even include all of the other things that I bought on my credit card that I paid off at some point. For my wife and me, going from spenders to savers has been a little more difficult than you would think.
Our Spending Years
My wife and I have been working since an early age. I started working odd jobs in the neighborhood when I was about 12. I would mow peoples lawns, clean out their garages, etc. It earned me a few bucks to play around with. Sure, I saved some money here and there, but as soon as those savings hit a threshold, I spent it. Due to my spending, things began to pile up in my room. I had new video games, a cell phone, CDs, and all the new electronics. Life was good and I had plenty of things to show for it.
As the years went on, I got real jobs that paid me a little more than the neighbor down the street. That money helped me get a car, pay for gas, and take my future wife out on dates. Then came college and the dreaded first credit card. Man did I love that piece of plastic. I mean, they only gave me a $500 credit limit. What could go wrong? Well, as you can guess, I got more cards and higher credit limits. I was buying new computers, clothes and every new cell phone that came out (can you tell I like electronics?). Oh the days of spending…..
My wife started working at 15. I can still remember picking her up at the local fast food joint smelling like deep fried goodness. She spent her money on clothes and loved doing it in the process. It was her weakness and she knew it. Being the first born child, she didn’t get the hand-me-down clothes like her sister (who made out like a bandit if you ask me). My wife wanted to look good and she spent her money on clothes to do it. She never really racked up any major credit card debt (she mostly used cash). The most credit card debt she had was a few thousand dollars worth and it was all school supplies (she was in a major that required additional things). She loved knowing that her money was hers and she could do what she wanted with it. Oh the days of spending…..
Time to Shred the Cards
Even before we said “I do”, we knew financial trouble was on the horizon if we didn’t do something. We sat down, came up with a game plan, and wrote down our goals. The first thing to go was our credit cards. Let me tell you something, shredding something that has been in your life for almost 7 years is tough. Knowing that we couldn’t buy anything on a whim was even tougher. Here are a few things that we did to help ease the pain:
1. We Wrote Down Our Goals and Came Up With a Game Plan
Like I mentioned above, we sat down and had a deep discussion about our financial future. We talked about what we wanted out of life and how we were going to achieve that while not adding to our debt. It was a difficult night, but we came out of it stronger financially and as a couple.
2. We Set Up a Budget
This was one of the harder things in the process. Before we got married we were free spenders. Sure we made sure we didn’t overdraft our accounts, but we spent our money on what we wanted. In the budget, we spent every dollar on paper and stuck to it. Sure there are times when we veer of the path somewhat, but we correct it and move on.
3. We Didn’t Cut Out Everything
When most people think about budgeting, they think about cutting everything down to the bare minimum. Well, we just couldn’t do that. We would go crazy and knew it would end up hurting us in the long run (by causing us to revert back to our old ways). So in our written plan, we budget for things such as eating out once or twice a month. I mean, sometimes you just need to get out of the house and interact with people or spend some romantic time with your spouse. We also budget about $50 a month to spend on clothes. The budget actually helps my wife think long and hard about what she is buying. Before, she just bought what she wanted when she wanted it. Having the budget changes that.
Well, there you have it. That’s how we transitioned from spenders to savers. Let me just say that it was hard and still continues to be today.
How did you handle your transition? Was it easy, hard?
Post by Frugal Dad
My newest couponing gadget.. a pouch/calculator combination!
Those of you who know (and hopefully love) me, know that I both love gadgets AND organizing items– I found something that combines the two in a fabuLESS little package, oh– and it was on clearance for $.75 at Walgreens (regular price: $3), too! How cool is this? (excuse the cell phone quality picture, please!)
I am in *love*– what a great way to both keep my coupons contained AND myself on budget, as well as have an easy way to figure out unit prices on the fly. Of course, I can always carry a calculator– heck, I even have one in my cell phone– but since I’m often shopping with a kid (or three!) in tow–I’m a big fan of anything that simplifies and streamlines my life.
Happy calculator pouching!
Allure’s $564,772.50 Giveaway- Aug.21 Prizes
Every day from Monday August 3 until the 31st Allure will be giving away fashion and beauty products at 12, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 PM EDT (you can check here to see how that time compared to your time zone). This prizes value from around .99 to $35 and then there is one larger ticket item given away daily, as well.
To have a daily reminder sent to your cell phone, text “FREESTUFF” to ALLURE (255873)
12PM Joie Cotton Silk Dress (value of $348)
1PM E.L.F. Mineral Eyeshadow in Mysterious (value of $3) First 250
2PM RickyCare NYC Rubber Min Bobby Pins (value of $4.99) First 500
3PM Patricia Wexler M.D. Dermatology Universal Anti-Aging Cleanser (value of $16.95) First 50
4PM Paul Mitchell Smoothing Gloss Drops (value of $16.95) First 50
5PM Dove White Beauty Bar (value of $2.77) First 100
6PM Marilyn NinYes Brush (value of $21) First 30
Good luck
Allure’s $564,772.50 Giveaway- Aug.19 Prizes
Every day from Monday August 3 until the 31st Allure will be giving away fashion and beauty products at 12, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 PM EDT (you can check here to see how that time compared to your time zone). This prizes value from around .99 to $35 and then there is one larger ticket item given away daily, as well.
To have a daily reminder sent to your cell phone, text “FREESTUFF” to ALLURE (255873)
12PM Dirty Laundry Suede Boots (value of $89)
1PM SoftSheen-Carson Dark and Lovely Fade-Resistant Rich Conditioning Color (value of $10) First 500
2PM Almay Intense I-Color Play Liquid Liner in Purple Amethyst (value of $7.49) First 250
3PM Neutrogena Make-up Remover Cleansing Towelettes (value of $6.49) First 100
4PM DermaDoctor Med e Tate Hyperhidrosis Control Wipes (value of $48) First 100
5PM Herbal Essences Tousle Me Softly Spray Gel (value of $2.99) First 300
6PM Laura Mercier Mineral Eye Powder Eye Shadow in Gemstone - (value of $20) First 250
Good luck
Starbucks: Free Pastry When You Buy a Beverage (Tuesday Only)
Take this printable coupon to any Starbucks on Tuesday (7/21) to get a free pastry of your choice when you buy any beverage before 10:30 a.m. This offer is not valid in Hawaii, nor is it valid in airports and travel plazas, or at Barnes & Noble cafés.
Interestingly, you can either print out this coupon or show this coupon to your Starbucks barista from a mobile device, like a cell phone or iPod Touch. What a great way to save a few trees!
Tuesday: Free Baja Fish Taco at Long John Silver’s
Persistence Pays Off
My husband and I have been using Vonage since early 2005. I didn’t want to depend on a cell phone and my parents’ number was considered long distance so we decided to give Vonage a try. For the first few years everything worked really well and we didn’t experience any problems with sound or latency, but a few months ago we began to experience dropped sound.
I could hear my parents loud and clear, but they could only hear part of what I was saying. At first there was just a dropped word here and there, but as time went on it would take a full five to ten seconds for them to hear me again.
Fed up with poor service I called the technical support hot line and went through a bunch of Vonage agents who were unable to help me. Each time I called I explained that I’ve been a customer since 2005 and that I would like them to ship me out a new router. (I was pretty certain the device was failing after all these years.)
Each time the technicians put me through the same list of steps and procedures. Try this, recycle that, unplug this, unplug that. Sometimes things would work for a day or two, but inevitably the problem would recur.
Believe it or not I was so fed up with them that I went to Best Buy and purchased a new Vonage router outright. Despite buying a new one I called them one last time in the hopes that they would send me a new one for free. I told them that I was disgusted by the fact that I had to pay for new equipment, because they refused to help us, and that I considered cancelling service, which was absolutely true.
Sure enough my last stitch effort paid off and the fifth Vonage technician agreed to ship us a new device. My husband and I installed it that very same night and haven’t had a problem with the phone since. It’s unfortunate that companies make good customers jump through so many hoops, but it’s nice to know that I saved $79,99, (the price of the router), simply by being persistent.
