Thursday, September 13, 2012

DIY Paper Bunting




This is a great project for using up those extra scraps of paper!



Adjust your size based on how big or small you want your bunting to be. I made my triangles 4 1/2" by 6".

After measuring, use your ruler as a guide and cut with a Craft Knife.

Repeat until you have the desired number of triangles.
Use a hole punch to make holes in the top corners of your triangles.
Weave ribbon through your holes. continue, until your strand is sufficiently glorious( or you run out of paper). 

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Darling Deals 9/8

Right now you can head to Bath and Body works for a free 2.5 oz size bottle of their new scent, Cashmere Glow lotion. Just head to their Facebook Page and click "Get Offer" and they will send you an email with a printable coupon. This is redeemable through Sunday, September 9th!

Right now if you sign up for a My Lowe's account, you can score a $10 off $10 or more coupon! Go here to sign up!

Short and sweet today -try as I might this is all I could come up with for the weekend. But that's where you come in! What deals do you have to share?

Friday, September 7, 2012

The Shop is Up!

There is now a link to my shop under the "shop" tab. Go on over and take a look! There's some clothing and and a few handmade items.
 


                    

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

DIY Budget Porch *Mini* Makeover

Before

After
Voila!
 I really wanted to make our outdoor space more comfortable and pretty this year. But I had a $20 budget. This isn't half of what I'd like to do, but it sure did brighten the space up!
Target-$3.99

These pillows are actually made out of placemats. Pillows can be pretty expensive considering they are just two pieces of cloth and some stuffing. But I stumbled upon a tutorial for making placemats into pillows! All you need is a double layer placemat and some stuffing. The sewing involved is very minimal,if any. 





These old plastic chairs just needed a little spray paint and they looked good as new. Be careful, spray painting is so fun, you might not be able to stop. I think that's the real reason you have to be 18 to buy it.

So here's the rundown:

Have any home improvement projects to share? How do you save money when you DIY?

Monday, August 20, 2012

Free Shipping + 10% off at Urban Outfitters= Great Deals







 For the nexy 3 days only(until August 23rd), Urban Outfitters is offering free shipping with no minimum, plus 10% off with the code NEWSKOOL. There are lots of bargains in their sale section, so be sure to check it out!
Above are some things I totally wouldn't mind having if I hadn't already blown that darn clothing budget this month.

CAUTION: Urban Outfitters sells clothing and other merchandise that displays profane language and crude references. Its not everywhere, but I have come across it when browsing their site. Please use your own discretion:)

Monday, August 13, 2012

Darling Deals 8/13

  It's been quite some time since the last darling deals-what a slacker I've been. So I cooked up an extra big medium really yummy one this time!
 
It just doesn't get any better than fresh produce from the Farmers Market! Chipotle (Makers of the freshest,bestest most awesomest burritos.....ever) are hosting a farmers market tour and giving away a limited number of $10 in Farmers Market Tokens and tote bags at Farmers Markets all around the country! Go here for a schedule to see if there is one near you! 

Before you throw out that Sunday paper, be sure and check the coupon inserts for a coupon for a free Good n' Natural bar! That's right- totally free! I love these. Super clean, and super yummy. On a similar note, If you have a GNC nearby, go here for a coupon for a free Eat Smart bar. I've never tried these, but I'm always looking for a new healthy, yummy bar to try! All stores may not have these, so know that before you make a special trip.

                
     Headed to the movies this week? If you're like me you hate paying for that over-priced-really-bad-for-you-but-really-good-tasting popcorn and soda. So here's a nice little coupon that will lower the cost(if not the calories), so you can maybe forgo smuggling in your own(other people have done this too,right?).  Go here to print! Offer expires August 16th!
                If you're looking for a sweet movie that the family can enjoy, I recommend the Odd Life of Timothy Green! Got to see a special preview showing of it a few weeks ago and it was so sweet and beautifully filmed! Took me back to the days of simple movies that don't need special effects.It comes out Augus 15th! And no, I didn't get paid to say that:)

                Have any food deals we need to know about? What do you like to smuggle into the movies?



Thursday, August 9, 2012

Pinspired....Nails! + a sweet deal on my favorite polish!

Before Pinterest, I wasn't even aware of all the creative things you could do with nails! I thought I was advanced because I did my own French Manicure- then I realised people were recreating Van Gogh's Starry Night on their fingertips(okay, I've yet to see this, but I wouldn't be surprised).    
       I spied this sweet idea whilst lost in pinterestland and it seemed doable for a nail novice like myself. My version is on the right(if you didn't guess) I forgot to look before I did it and later realised my heart was in a different place. I was very proud of it- until my mom asked "what happened to that nail with the white
splotch?" Ah, it's a work in progress.
                            Have you heard of Zoya polish? It's one of my favorites- they have just about every color you could want in varying levels of shimmer, pigment and shade!  They have a fun referral program called "Share The Love".  All you'll need to do is sign up for an account here. Once you do, you'll get a coupon code for a FREE bottle of polish! You'll still need to pay shipping, unless you add 2 more to your cart in which case shipping will be free! This makes for a great deal on high quality polish. Also if you scroll down to the bottom of the page, you can find a button that says "create a share the love link". You can then share that link with friends, they'll also get a free bottle of polish, and you'll get points towards even better coupons like $10 or $15 off your order!!

Whats you're favorite polish brand and how do you save money on it?

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Green Again...

Denim Button up ($4)-Plato's Closet, Dress ($1)-Plato's Closet,Skirt (layered underneath) $2-thrifted, Shoes($7)-Target     

 
                                   I really need to find a different background, all these green plants are getting real boring. My dress is from the Plato's Bag Sale I mentioned awhile ago. It was a little short so I layered another skirt underneath-my favorite trick!
                                Notice those little do-dads lost in the hair there? Yup, those are from my tutorial. I basically follow this formula about 90% of the time: bobby pins + day-old-messy-hair = sort of not so messy hair.
                             I thought I'd try the layered bracelet thing,so i put on every bracelet i have. All four of them! It looked pretty cool but I felt 5 pounds heavier and jingled all day.

                                Have any recent thriftiness (or nonthrifty indulgence??) to share? I want to know!

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Earning Some Extra with "Twice"

        Have you heard of Twice? If not you are in for a treat! They not only sell some really adorable gently used clothing at discounted prices, but they will buy YOUR clothing as well! Right now if you sign up you'll get a $10 credit towards anything $25 and up on the site.And when a friend signs up and makes a purchase you'll receive another $10 credit!
             But my favorite thing about Twice is how simple they make selling your old clothes! Just sign up here, tell them the brand and type of clothing you have and you will be able to print out a free shipping label-you won't have to pay anything to ship them! Once you send in your clothing they'll look it over and send you an offer. This only took a week for me. I received an offer of $24 for 8 items. Not bad for things I was just going to give away anyway! You can choose to have the items they don't want shipped back to you,or donated for free.
                    It's like the fun of a yard sale but you don't have to drag stuff outside and sit in the hot sun- you just get money. Win-Win!

                                  Have any money making sites or tips to share?
                                          

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

It's A Tutorial! DIY Button Bobby Pins

                        Cute hair stuff is like icing on the cupcake to an already adorable outfit! And its so easy to make some yourself. You can attatch all kinds of thing to bobby pins. My favorite place for inexpensive do-dads? You guessed it: the Thrift Store! Sometime I'll browse clothing looking just for cute buttons. It can be worth it to buy a piece just for the buttons and find some other use for the material. The above were all taken from old tops or coats found at a thrift store.
                     After you find your cool buttons. You'll need some bobby pins and a good glue. You can use hot glue, but I prefer E-6000 as it is waterproof and will last longer. You can also use bobby pins with glue pads(found at a craft store, like Micheal's), but I've yet to find any that are as good quality as the professional ones.
                       Place a dot of glue on the end of your bobby. You'll want the side with the glue to face down when you slide it through the hole in your button. Make sure the bumpy side is facing up.
                  If you're using E-6000, your bobbies will need to dry for 24 hours.
                           Voila! You have your very own embellished bobbies!

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

The Invisible Shoes



Dress, Thrifted Lands End, $3,Shoes(invisible)Target($5?) Belt Thrifted($1)Necklace H&M ($1.50)


                Here they are! For some reason you can't see my shoes in either of the photos. Oh yeah, its that cheap camera. I know what I'm asking for this Christmas!








     



     This necklace was one of the things I picked up on H&M's 4th of July sale. I only got a $10 off $20 coupon, but it still made for some nice deals!






                                      Have you thrifted, or found any great deals this week?

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Have a Free Birthday

                     This past weekend was my birthday. Since 19 is so adultish, I pretended like it was no big deal. But I was still secretly checking my email each day in anticipation of my birthday "freebies"!!  By signing up to receive emails, many restaurants and stores will send you a little surprise around your birthday(its nice to have a separate email just for this, so you don't load up your inbox with tons of newsletters!). Here are a few of my favorites:
Sephora will send you a postcard for a free gift on you birthday when you sign up to be a beauty insider. The gift changes yearly, but this year it's a sugar lip duo! I'm lovin' these babies-they smell amazing and make my lips so soft!
Sign up for the Aveda Birthday Program and you'll receive a complimentary custom blended perfume! Just walking into an Aveda store is relaxing-their products are all natural and so soothing.

Ben and Jerry's will send you a FREE Scoop of ice cream on your birthday! Plus a BOGO scoop on your 1/2 birthday( this is a highly underrated occasion!). Go here to sign up! I'm really regretting the fact that there is NO Ben and Jerry's anywhere remotely close to me.
   Have you been ot Bonefish? If not you are missing out! The bang bang shrimp is amazing and you get a free order on you birthday! Go here to sign up and see if there is one in your area!

Brio offers a very generous birthday meal when you sign up for their newsletter! I have yet to try this but it look delicioso!
And if you didn't know already, if you register your starbucks card you get a free drink on your birthday! What, no starbucks card? Just get a gift card before you purchase something next time and register it here.

         This is only a very small sampling of all the birthday freebies out there. Check out the Frugal Girls for a complete list of birthday freebies from your favorite retailers and restaurants!!
What do you like to do on your birthday? Have any special traditions?


                             

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Darling Deals 7/11


This Friday you can score a free 12 oz Refresher at Starbucks from 12-3 pm! Apparently these are a mild energy drink made from green coffee extract, and have just a little caffeine to give you a nice little afternoon boost. Go here to find out more!



   Free Chick-fil-A On Cow Appreciation Day


   How far are you willing to go for free food? I'm not talking distance here. All day this Friday, July 13th, Chick-fil-A is giving away a free meal to everyone who dresses like a cow! If you dress partially like a cow (think mask or cow printed scarf etc) you get a free entree.If you go all the way, you get a full meal! Go here to find out more and print a free "Cow Starter Kit". I may or may not be working on my "Eat Mor Chikin" sign.

    Plato's Closet Grab Bag Event 


                         Ready for the most epic sale ever? If you have a Platos Closet near you, you'll want to check out this sale. However many clearance items you can stuff into a bag (regular plastic grocery size) are just $15! Whenever I've done this in the past I've been able to get at least 20 items in, so its a great deal! Dates and times vary by location, so call or check your location's website first. Find a location near you here.


    Free $2 Amazon MP3 Music Credit


 Right now you can score a free $2 amazon mp3 credit by entering the code HEARTMP3 here.
If you don't already have an Amazon.com account, you can sign up for one here.
You have until tonight, July 11th at 11:59 pm to enter your code!

Have any deals to share?