Gettin' In On the Coupon Craze!

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I've been a casual couponer for a while now.


You know, one of those people who clips a coupon here and there.


But then the tv show "Extreme Couponing" came along.


And then I took a coupon class.


And then I got bitten by the "you-can-save-lots-if-you'd-just-work-the-coupon-system" bug.


I like to save $$, but I'm not by any means "extreme" like this gal:




She'd buy a bigger house to hold her stockpile if she won the lottery???? Hrrrmmmm. . .I think she should use her winnings to invest in some new shelving. Check out 00:58 to see what I mean. . . That shelf ain't long for this world. May it rest in peace.

I will now take a brief moment to discuss my frustrations with the extreme couponing craziness that has swept the Nation. I think it's rather rude to completely wipe out the shelves of the grocery store. Do you really need 55 boxes of cheerios? Seriously. Save some for others. Pre-order the stuff if you really do NEED it. Mmmmkay? I recently encountered an elderly woman during my shopping adventures who was just plain devastated that the shelf had been wiped clean of the original Pam cooking spray. The remaining butter flavor would not do. Nope. I thought she was gonna cry for a minute. She kept staring at the shelf and saying "no original, no original" in a high-pitched, quivering voice. Tragic.

If you're not careful, this extreme couponing tv show can really make you feel overwhelmed and inferior when it comes to the couponing process. But these crazies are doing like 50 transactions at the register and tying up the poor cashier for an hour or more! Come on. There are much more realistic ways to save. I don't want the cashiers at Publix to run the other way when they see me comin' with my tricked-out coupon binder.


That is all about that (stepping down from my soapbox).


I did my grocery shopping yesterday.

And I didn't even pay attention to my savings at the register due to an in-depth conversation with the bag boy regarding the load of Christmas trees being delivered outside and how his family will be having steak for Christmas dinner this year. I told him I'd be joining them.


And the convo with the cashier about Thanksgiving being just one week away. Yowzers!


So when I got home it occurred to me that I didn't even look to see how much I saved.


So I pulled out my receipt.


And I was happy.


I busted a move. You know. . . I did a happy dance.


When I saw a three-digit #:

I'm sure many "extreme couponers" would consider this number to be a drop in the bucket, but it made this couponing novice quite proud! Holla!

There are some really great websites out there to help you save some cash. My personal favorite is Southern Savers. This site is chock-full of info regarding how to get started with couponing. It also lets you choose your favorite stores, shows you sales and coupon matchups for the stores, and lets you print an accompanying shopping list. It makes finding deals super easy. I like easy. Me and easy, we're like BFFs.


Here are some more great links to help you keep cash in your pocket:

Coupon Mom
Coupons.com
Redplum.com
Smartsource.com
Couponsuzy.com
Couponing101.com
Myfrugaladventures.com


Also, my friend Peter has an informative post on his blog regarding more ways to save. Check it out here.


So, what's the most that you've ever saved?? I'd love to hear your comments about your epic savings and money-saving tips that have worked for you guys! Give me a holla!

I Now Bring You Another Depends Moment. . .

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Crazy things can happen on Halloween.


The crazies come out.


And they all showed up at Goodwill this Halloween.


Which doesn't say much for me since I was among them. . .


For months now I've been looking for a busted-up china cabinet or hutch to redo. It had to be shabby & it had to be cheap. So on this particular day I strongly regretted leaving home without my depends when I laid eyes on the piece I'd been dreaming of: a broken-down, grimy china cabinet.


Yep, I peed a little.



Here's a before pic in my junked-up garage. Don't judge:

Like the reflection of the yellow-handled broom in the glass door? Photography at its best.

I gave this beast some TLC, paint, and glaze. Here's the glorious "after" shot:

And then came the funnest (yeppers, I just said "funnest") part of all--packing it full of stuff.

Found these vintage S & P shakers @ a yard sale for 2 buckeroos. Holla!

I used lots of my Great-Grandmother's china to fill the shelves. I love the vintage look it gives my kitchen!

A mason jar full of vintage buttons and the cake topper from my great-grandparents' 50th anniversary cake finishes off the look.

It makes me smile every time I walk in my kitchen. : )

Doggone Cute!

Did you know my husband and I adopted a child?

We had talked about adoption over the years, so when the opportunity arose to take in a sweet little one we took it.

And we're in love.

Without a doubt.

For real.

Seriously.

This is Taz.

He melts my heart and digs belly rubs. Pun totally intended.

He helps me clip coupons.

And he doesn't mind that I shamelessly exploit the "weiner dog thing."

Sweet little Taz inspired part of my latest crafty project.

I was in a crafting mood the other day. Glue gun in hand, I couldn't be stopped. I was like Mario with the star. . . except I wasn't pouncing on mushroom men, but on projects I had been putting off.

Remember the creepy kid picture I scooped up at a yard sale for a buck a while back? If not, reminisce with me here.

Time to put the creepy kid to rest with a little paint.

Back to the Taz.

Inspired by his amazing cuteness (not a proud parent at all, eh?) and this Ballard Designs art. . . 

 I whipped up this puppy. Yep, another pun.

Then I made the mistake of visiting Anthropologie's website. My head almost exploded.

I was inspired by this:

And this:

And this:

All of which manifested in the form of this:

FYI, all of the frames were purchased from yard sales or thrift stores. The "tree art" frame is also mentioned in the "Goodwill Hunting" post linked above.

I love this gossip bench because it belonged to my great-grandmother. The large green glass hobnail vase and the small light green dish were purchased from a thrift store. The small dark green vase was given to my grandmother when she graduated high school in the 50's. Lots of history tucked in this little nook!

A Depends Moment. . .

I went thrift shopping yesterday.

And I had one of those moments.

You know, one of those moments when you wish you would've put on your depends that morning.

I was walking through the store, casually looking for a bargain or two when I found these:

Shut the front door.

Four bucks and they were mine. A good day. A good day, indeed!

Anthro Lamp Shade Knockoff

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I'm completely obsessed with everything Anthropologie.

I love to walk through Anthro stores and wipe my chin as I gawk at their awesomeness.

Oh, and then there's the part when I pass out after peeking at their price tags.


I'm especially drawn to their nifty home decor--specifically, their lighting. So I thought I'd attempt to replicate one of their lamp shades.

So, let's shed some light on the subject, shall we?

Here's Anthro's version:

Yep, for $88.00 this lovely shade can be yours. . . or you can follow my tutorial and make one for next to nothin'. I thought you'd be interested. Read on, friends. Read on.



Oh, before we get started, here's how the lamp looked before its "Anthrozation." I think I paid about $3 for it (lamp and shade) at a thrift store. Not too shabby, eh?

 

Now, find some awesome fabric that you want to use to cover the shade. Almost any fabric will do. Just keep in mind that the color of the shade will likely show through your fabric. I actually used a sheer curtain panel from a thrift store. Price? $1. Holla. Cut the fabric into strips. I cut as many bad boys as I could get out of my curtain panel. 

Now get out your handy dandy glue gun . . .

. . . and glue one end of the fabric strip down on the inside of the shade as pictured above. Get it? Got it? Good. Movin' on.

Bunch your fabric and glue down in a random ruffle pattern. The beauty in this project is that you really can't mess it up! Ruffle away, peeps!

Keep moving vertically with this pattern until you cover the entire shade. 

And your finished product should look something like this:

Booyah, Anthro!

Goodwill Hunting

The craziest thing happened to me yesterday. It was like any other day. I was driving to the pharmacy to pick up some prescriptions, when suddenly; my car automatically turned on its blinker, turned into a strangely familiar parking lot, and parked itself. When I looked up, this is what I saw:

 

Okay, okay, this isn’t exactly what I saw. However, this IS how Goodwill looks in my dreams—all bright and glowing, with angels floating around singing Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus.” So, has YOUR car ever driven you to your favorite thrift shop, restaurant, or store? I thought so. Alright, back to reality. The Goodwill in my neck of the woods is nice, but it’s definitely not this swanky. But, hey, it’s what’s on the inside that counts! Yesterday wasn’t a pee-in-your-pants-because-I-found-the-coolest-thing-ever kind of day, but I did find this little jewel:

I just love this quilt! It looks so “vintagey.” It was $1.99. Can I get a holla? By the way, I picked up that nifty chair a few months ago at the GW for $2.50! Booyah!

Today I went perusing some yard sales with the Momster (not to be confused with monster). Again, I didn’t find anything earth-shattering, but I got some cool things that I’m going to make over, and some I’ll use as they are. Here are a few of my treasures:

I really like this frame, but I love the mat because of its unique circular cut-out. Yep, gonna jazz this baby right up!

I love this frame, but the picture of the creepy kid’s gotta go. Nothing a little paint can’t fix!

Ah, the twin bird bookends. No, it’s not an optical illusion—the bird on the right is missing his beak. Ouch.

I just love old books. These will probably go under a lamp or on my mantle. Decisions, decisions. . .

This cute teacup is actually the Momster's, but it accidentally ended up in my bag. Oops. (Insert evil laugh here).

There you have it, folks. Pretty soon my thrifty finds will have brand new looks. I’ll keep you posted.