Posts Tagged ‘saving money’
DIY Haircolor w/ Professional Colors
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009
Sorry to have been behind on my posting–believe it or not, tax work has kept me busy in August! But I am back, with my newest find…
At the end of July, I had to go to my hair stylist to fix my hair color. Why? Because I tried to short-cut the hair coloring rules and paid the price. What happened was that because of the sun, pool water, etc., my hair was really fading out and I decided that I wanted to return to my natural color (minus the grey!). So I tried to put a darker permanent color on my roots AS WELL AS the rest of my hair so I wouldn’t get stuck doing permanent on the roots and semi-permanent on the rest to get everything to match. BIG MISTAKE. Even after doing test strands, I ended up red. Rather red indeed. After trying to fix it and testing swatches of hair with semi-permanent color and not getting very far, I gave up and called my stylist.
Tiffany @ Cosmopolitan in Brewster, NY is excellent and I highly recommend her. She is a great stylist and manages to cut my stick-straight boring hair in such a way to give it some body. And she also fixed my hair mishap with a Redken semi-permanent color. She was also kind enough to write down exactly the color combination she used, because we often chat about my home-haircoloring adventures.
So I went online and purchased the Redken hair coloring products myself and voila–this time it worked! So don’t be shy about asking your stylist to give you your color formula–good stylists understand that the economy is tough right now and that they would rather keep you as a haircut client and have you rave about them to your friends than try to keep your color a secret.
Have a great week!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: asking for a discount, beauty, haircolor, hairstyling, make-up, makeup, saving money
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Rebates: Was I Supposed to Mail That In?
Monday, July 27th, 2009
Rebates are great at luring us to buy products. But getting around to mailing them in can be another story, particularly in the busy lives that we lead. Here are my “rebate tricks” to getting the most for my money:
- Make a rebate tracker. Yes, Excel is used for more important things like quarterly reporting and tracking all sorts of official data, but it works just as well for household items like rebates. I built a spreadsheet to track my own rebates which includes: date of purchase, where purchased, amount of the rebate, date submitted, amount, and if I received it. If you want a copy of it, drop me a comment or email and I will be happy to send it to you.
I built my “rebate tracker” so that I could have a reference point to make sure that all of my rebates were being paid out to me. And if there is something that seems to be taking a bit too long, I contact them. I have saved a couple of hundred dollars this way because there have been times that my rebate was “lost” and I had to help the company “find” it.
- Use online rebate submission whenever you can. At least with an online submission you can have a tracking number attached to your rebate as a point of reference. It tends to be a lot easier as well, particularly with companies like Staples and Rite-Aid helping the process along with their “Easy Rebates” programs. They aren’t stupid; they know it goes a long way in building customer loyalty if the rebate process isn’t painful.
- Skip the small rebates. If you have a rebate that you have to mail in and will give you only 50 cents or $1 back, why bother? The stamp will cost you 44 cents + the cost of the envelope and your time. Your time alone is worth more than a couple of cents!
Have a great week!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: discounts, rebates, saving money, saving online
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Tired of Outlook? There is a better way
Monday, July 13th, 2009
So I was once again wrestling with Microsoft Outlook. Tried to send the same email 5 TIMES and my system kept crashing! The error message from Microsoft was essentially “You have an old version of Outlook, so your system is crashing. How about going to our website to buy a new version?”
So I looked into buying a new version of Outlook. I went to Amazon to get some honest opinions…and learned that many of the same problems I was having in Outlook 2002 had not been resolved for the 2007 version (the newest available). So instead of plunking down $100 for a new version of the same problem, I thought, There has got to be a better way.
And there was. Enter Mozilla Thunderbird. Great functionality. Easy to use. Doesn’t crash. And FREE, because it is Open Source software. It was easy to import all of my folders and addresses into Mozilla from Outlook (when Outlook wasn’t busy crashing in the middle of the process).
So if you are exasperated with Outlook, know that there is a better way. You can download it here: http://download.cnet.com/Mozilla-Thunderbird/3000-2367_4-10213643.html?tag=mncol
Have a great week!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: computers, open source, saving money, saving online, top 10
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What to do with the kids now?
Monday, June 29th, 2009
Now that the kids are out of school, and the weather is finally turning warm, trying to come up with new ways to entertain them becomes a challenge! And on top of it, since the “spending money” has shrunk for most of us, it becomes really tricky!
What do you do once you’ve hit all of the playgrounds and all of the parks? Try http://www.free-attractions.com! It is a site that gives you the heads up on free events taking place across the U.S.! So if you are bored this weekend or are going on vacation and need some cheap activities to keep the kids busy, give it a try.
Even if there are no events going on in your area, you may discover another park or museum in your area that might be fun!
Sorry this post is so short–finally it stopped raining so Nicolas and I are going to go play outside before the next thunderstorm rolls in!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: kid-tivities, saving money, travel
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“Summer Brains” Out; Saving Money In
Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009
Today I thought I would talk about some fun ways to get kids to use their heads in the summer by helping the family save money without wasting time!
Throughout my book I have “Kid-tivities” that help get kids involved and making it easy and fun at the same time.
I thought I would share a couple with you:
The “Getting Rid of Debt” Game: If you are one of the many American families with problem debt, don’t try to hide the situation from your children, because they are smart enough to realize that something is wrong. Instead, sit down with them and explain that in the past you have spent more than you made but you are trying to fix it, and if the whole family works together to make it better, everyone will be happy. Then brainstorm with your children what you can do as a family to bring in extra money and pay down that debt. Whether it is through a yard sale or two (or seven!), or having them help you sell items on eBay or whatever, include them in the process and make it a game, rather than a drag!
Playing “House Detective”: This is a game that can work on those rainy days (like the Northeast has been having for the past 2 months!) when your kids are bored and stuck in the house. If your circuit breaker box has never been labeled, you have your kids run around the house every time you shut off a breaker so you know which room(s) corresponds to what fuse. Then you can show your kids how to shut down the breaker box in the event of an emergency. You can also play house detective to find the source of leaky pipes, since kids are particularly good at crawling in places (such as under sinks) that are hard for us adults to reach!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: debt, home improvement, kidtivities, saving money
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Date Night on the Cheap
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009
Hi all, Sorry for the delayed posting. I was in a car accident last week (fortunately everyone was okay) and so my schedule was a bit perturbed. Back on track now!
If you married and are like us, you enjoy having a date night maybe once in a while, or maybe more regularly. It is a time when you and your spouse can be adults together and have some time away from everything, at least for a couple of hours. But in this economy, it’s often hard to do. We start to think, dinner at a decent restaurant in our area = $100 and then babysitting = $30 and boom, it is $130 for a couple of hours for dinner around the corner!
Instead, if your kids are younger, perhaps what we do will work for you as well:
Instead of going out and getting a sitter, we simply put our son to bed at his regular bed time and then we “eat out at home” afterwards. We get dressed up, we open a good bottle of wine, and make a easy, but tasty dinner that we wouldn’t usually do unless it was a special occasion and we were having guests.
We buy filet mignon, for example, and do a simple side dish or two and have simple but tasty desserts that we normally wouldn’t purchase. (Sometimes, when we reallydon’t want to cook, we get take out from one of the better restaurants in town, so at least we are saving the upcharge on the wine and the tip!)
We set the table with our “good” silverware, use the “good” glasses, and relax in our own dining room or out on the deck. By making a simple dinner, there is minimal clean-up. And by staying home, there’s not the worry of driving after a glass or two of wine. No worrying about checking the clock, rushing out the door, getting home in time for the sitter…because we are already there. And all at a great savings, which is even more relaxing!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: date night, dining out, saving money
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Life Insurance Savings
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009
Saving money comes in all shapes and sizes; this week, I thought I’d touch upon saving money in the life insurance arena.
Now I hate those TV ads as much as the next mom–all of the fine print and the lines like, “Life insurance for just $10 per month!” The question is, for who? A 70-year old with heart problems? A 21-year old firefighter? I mean, really. Life insurance is such a personalized thing that you can’t make these statements reasonably.
However, term insurance can be pretty inexpensive, compared to the benefits you receive. And whether you shop it through a website or use an agent, you are going to pay the same amount. So if you can find an agent that you trust, I would definitely do it that way. Agents can find out how different life insurance companies treat different health situations, and save you a lot of money in the process.
Here’s a recent example as to why:
A client of mine had been told that due to certain family history, she had no chance of getting a term policy on her own. So she went through her employer, where the cost increases each year. I didn’t believe that she was un-insurable, so I asked around. As a result, she has a new policy, costing her less than the employer’s policy, at a fixed rate. And they gave her the healthiest rating possible! This is going to result in a $6600 savings over the life of the policy!
So if someone tells you “no”, you can’t get a better policy, seek a second opinion from an experienced insurance agent. It could literally save you thousands of dollars.
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: big stuff, life insurance, saving money
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When AAA is more than just towing your car
Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
Hello from a toasty day in Connecticut! Since we had visitors last week (or was it the week before? I am losing track), I thought I would share with you some AAA savings that we’ve used while they were visiting…
Our friends came to visit us from overseas and they have a particular affection for Six Flags New England. So instead of paying face value for the tickets, we go to our local AAA office and buy them there–for almost 40% off! Usually, the day pass is $41, but at AAA, they are $26. And they have a discount on parking as well. All told, our group of 6 (Nicolas is free because he is under 2) saved $97 on park entrance and parking fees!
Again, I am not a big membership person (note my lack of Costco member status), but even though AAA can seem expensive, I have found them to be worthwhile. There have been times that my car battery died in our driveway after my husband left for work (thanks to me leaving the interior light on overnight) and AAA had someone out to jump the car within 15 minutes.
Also, I believe I’ve mentioned this before but it bears repeating: if you have lost your prescription coverage at work, lost your health insurance all together, have a medication that isn’t on Walmart’s generic list, etc., get your AAA prescription discount card. It’s free with membership and it just might save you a few bucks. And the prescription card works for pet meds as well–as long as the medication can also be taken by humans. So things like insulin, heart meds, etc. all qualify!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: aaa, discounts, health insurance, prescriptions, saving money
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Traveling on the cheap
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009
hello all! Now that tax season is winding down, my brain will start to function more normally shortly! And with springtime technically in full swing, a lot of folks start thinking about planning summer vacations…so I thought I would talk about 2 of my favorite websites for saving money and headaches!
First off is www.travelzoo.com. Sign up for their Top 20 deals and get an email once a week of excellent deals for domestic hotels, domestic & international flights as well as shows & events all over the country. If you are the kind of family who ends up last minute planning your vacations because of work, school/sports commitments, this is the site for you.
Once you find a deal, but before you book, I encourage you to check out www.tripadvisor.com. This site has saved us from many a headache and disappointment from booking what we thought would be “good” hotels. TripAdvisor is a website where regular people write review about their vacations, hotels, etc. and some even post photos so you can see what places really look like, not what their brochures have to say!
Have to be short since we are having visitors from overseas this week and the house needs a major clean-up. If anyone else can chime in with favorite travel websites, please do so!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: hotels, saving money, travel
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To Refinance…or Not to Refinance
Wednesday, April 1st, 2009
Hi Everyone!
Sorry for delay in getting these posts out on Mondays…tax season is busy and so my schedule gets shifted around a bit! This week, I thought I’d delve into the world of refinancing for those of you who might be curious about whether it is worth it or not, given that interest rates are quite low these days.
DISCLAIMER: I am not a mortgage professional, I do not sell mortgages, and I do not get kickbacks from people or banks financing mortgages.
There has been much word out there about help available for those who are being forclosed upon or who are upside down on their mortgages (i.e. they owe more than the property is currently worth). But what about those who have some equity? Is there any saving grace in this economic situation for those of us who fall in this category?
Considering refinancing right now just might be a good idea. Generally, the rule of thumb is if you can go down 1% on your mortgage interest rate (i.e. from 6% to 5%), it’s worth doing the refinance, particularly if you pay no points to get there. It might even make sense if you can shave .75% off your mortgage, depending on your situation.
If you are planning on going this route, here are a few things to keep in mind when shopping around (because, after all, it is shopping!)
- Bankrate.com and lendingtree.com are not the be-all and end-all of mortgage comparisons. Yes, both sites can be useful as a starting point, but I would really encourage you to also take a look at your local banks to see what they have on offer. In our area, I have found that the local banks are offering better rates, clearer explanation of (and lower) closing costs, and have a more friendly, personable attitude toward the mortgage process. Two local banks in my area that I have found to be great are Webster Bank & Savings Bank of Danbury. Webster Bank has an added incentive for customers who have both their mortgage and a bank account w/ them–they shave an extra 1/4% off your mortgage if you have the payment direct debited! That is a great deal.
- Shop around for attorney fees. If your state requires an attorney at closing for your refinance, get recommendations from your mortgage person and call around. The fees can vary widely for a generally straightforward process. So unless you know a particular attorney is really lousy, spending a lot on an attorney is not really necessary. Also, if you live in a town where attorney fees are high because of your zip code, call up some attorneys a couple of towns over and price shop that way. This approach also works for plumbers and electricians!
- Don’t be afraid to negotiate and play the banks off of each other. If you are uncomfortable with this, read (or re-read) the “Ask Ask Ask” chapter of Turbo-Mom’s Guide to build up your courage. After all, the worst that could happen is that someone tells you “no”. And so what? It wasn’t meant to be.
- Try to shave years off your mortgage in the refi if you can. I have come to a “meeting of the minds” with Dave Ramsey’s approach. Getting rid of your debt sooner rather than later (including your mortgage) is a healthy thing. Yes, if you pay off your mortgage you lose that tax deduction. But on the flip side, you have that much more income in your pocket–and you are saving yourself a boatload of interest!
Any good mortgage (or refi) stories/tips are welcome!
Copyright 2008-2009 Kristin Delfau, author of Turbo-Mom's Guide to Saving Money Without Wasting Time a womens' personal finance book, and Aji Publishing.
Tags: mortgages, refinancing, saving money
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