Are you looking to add some wow to your walls on a budget? Well the good news is, there are plenty of ways to add a pop of color, texture, and fun to your walls without spending a lot of cash. Take a peek below at 7 ways to decorate your walls on a budget so you can get the look you want while still keeping some cash on hand!
7 Ways to Decorate Your Walls on a Budget
1. Peel and stick decals.
Peel and stick decals won’t harm your walls or paint and are easy to apply. You can find them at dollar stores, and even discount and craft stores. Choose a pattern you like, quote, or bold graphic and simply peel and stick for some instant décor.
2. Pretty plates.
Head to the thrift store and find a collection of pretty plates you like. Look for different sizes and colors. Find some plate hangers (sold at most discount stores) and attach to each plate. Then simply arrange in a collage pattern on your wall.
3. Frame collage.
Gather some picture frames from garage sales and thrift stores. Remove the inserts. Spray paint the frames in a variety of colors and hang on the wall in a collage fashion. It is like instant wall art that anyone can afford!
4. Old architecture.
If you love a vintage flare, try hanging an old window, old piece of fencing, old lattice work, or other vintage architecture pieces from your wall. It offers a rustic, vintage look and these are pieces you can find at most yard sales or even on the side of the road.
5. Hang a chair.
Find a colorful, lightweight chair and hang it from your wall. You can then use it as a shelf and it also doubles as an excellent conversation piece!
6. Stamps and stencils.
Craft stores offer a variety of stamps and stencilsperfect for making walls pop. Kids especially might like the fun designs, so give these a try on an accent wall or small bathroom. Even if you aren’t artsy, they are easy to use and you can get some excellent results.
7. Clotheslines.
Run a piece of twine from one end of the wall to the other. Secure with a screw. You can then hang your child’s artwork from the twine, securing it with rustic clothespins or even painted ones. This way, the décor is always changing!
Don’t live with drab walls; instead, give these tips for decorating your walls for less a try!
Every Monday in 2015, I’ll be sharing a different idea to help you save money! Add all of these tips to your frugal repertoire and you’ll be able to save a lot of money this year! I hope you’ll gather a few new ideas or at least some inspiration from this series.
Today's post is coming at you because I scored a couple of great baby items this weekend. They were great deals because they were FREE! Mostly because I was online at the right time.
I'm a part of a few Facebook buy & sell groups (I love, love buying and selling this way) and I happened to be browsing one group at the right time. (I tend to browse when I'm selling stuff.) Anyways, someone was offering a baby swing and a bouncy/vibrating chair for free to the first person to come by her garage sale. I happened to be on my way out the door anyways so I just changed my direction. I was first to the loot so I loaded up the car. Score!
While many of you may not be a part of these buy & sell groups, you can still nab free stuff if you look, and ask.
One of my favorite ways to get "free" things is by borrowing something I need. I particularly like this technique because I always give the item back once I'm finished, and it doesn't take up any precious storage space! I always accept hand-me-downs, unless I really don't need the items.
Another way to grab free stuff is by watching the curbs! My Mom snapped up a baby chair and a playpen in good condition one day while she was driving past a storage centre. She's also found free walnuts because of a sign by a tree.
So, that's my tip for the week! Always be on the look out for free stuff. You'll save big!
Have you scored any freebies? How and what did you get? Let us know!
Every Monday in 2015, I’ll be sharing a different idea to help you save money! Add all of these tips to your frugal repertoire and you’ll be able to save a lot of money this year! I hope you’ll gather a few new ideas or at least some inspiration from this series.
Become a One Car Family
I feel a bit like a hypocrite writing today's post, because I would find it very challenging to become a one car family, but I think if you can do it, you'd save a ton of cash!
Since having my daughter, I have found I have to get out of the house at least once a day. For both of our sanities. 🙂 We don't always hop in the car, but quite often we do. I also don't like the idea of being stranded at home in the event of an emergency. However, my husband usually doesn't work full time in the winter, so we sell his car. (and earn a bit of extra money because we bought a cheap car that we can fix up a bit.) Then once he's back to work full time, we buy another cheap car that we can sell once more. That really works for us. Once in a while we do need two cars in the winter, but we have amazing family members who will lend their vehicle or pick us up if need be.
I estimate by being a one car family for even only the winter months, we're saving at least $500. That could be significant savings if we were to do it year round!
Becoming a one car family means there will most likely be some sacrifices and changes that have to take place. More thought and effort will have to be put into organizing how everyone will get to where they need to be. In my mind, I think it would be easier to be a one car family in a big city because I imagine public transportation would be quite efficient. Meaning, you can most likely catch a bus or train to anywhere you need to be. (We live in a smaller city so it's harder to grab a bus to the more rural places.)
Here are some transportation ideas aside from a second car:
Walk
Ride a Bike
Use Public Transportation
Carpool
Buy a Moped
Are you a one car family? If so, tell us your tips and secrets for making it work!
Every Monday in 2015, I’ll be sharing a different idea to help you save money! Add all of these tips to your frugal repertoire and you’ll be able to save a lot of money this year! I hope you’ll gather a few new ideas or at least some inspiration from this series.
Sorry for the late post once again! We've had a whirlwind week with family in town! We've been having so much fun playing with cousins that we don't see often!
While this tip isn't for everyone, it is perfect for those that are headed back to university!
Skip the university or college bookstore this year! The best place to buy (or rent!) your textbooks is online. Here are a few places that you can buy used or rent textbooks:
Textbook Rental
Simply type in the title, author or ISBN number of the books you need into Textbook Rental and they'll send you a copy at a huge discount! Textbookrental.ca is the leading website for Canadian students looking to rent or buy their textbooks at a huge discount. Students can also sell their textbooks to Textbookrental.ca and earn cash.
Amazon.ca or Amazon.com
If you live near the US border, Amazon.com might be a better option for you, but Amazon in general is a great place to buy used textbooks! All you need is the ISBN number from the list of books your instructor tells you to get, and then you just enter that into Amazon.ca or Amazon.com. I think it's even possible to resell your books to Amazon and then get a gift card for the value of your used books.
Kijiji or Craigslist
Kijiji and Craigslist could also be a good place to look for used textbooks. You could simply do a search for the books you're looking for or even make an ad listing the books that you're in search of.
Of course, there are probably a lot of other places to buy or rent your text books. If you have experience with getting textbooks cheaper, I'd love to see your tips in the comments!
With back to school time around the corner, it's time to start thinking about ways to save on everyday necessities. Packing your child’s lunch instead of buying it at school may be a great way to save money already, but wouldn’t it be great to save a little more? Take a peek below at these 7 smart ways to save money on school lunches so you can pack your child a great lunch for less.
1. Skip the baggies.
Yes plastic sandwich baggies are convenient, but you will buy box after box as the year goes on. Instead, buy reusable containers for sandwiches, chips, fruit, etc. You can simply wash and reuse them over and over. I quite like these ones from Amazon.
2. Skip individual servings/packaging.
Yes the individual applesauce, yogurts, and fruit cups are convenient, but you are paying more for the extra packaging. Instead, buy these items in bulk and then divide them up yourself. It takes a little extra time but the savings are worth it.
3. Know what to buy in bulk.
If your child has favorites that need to be included in each lunch, you can buy them in bulk. Nuts, chips, granola bars, etc. can all be purchased in bulk for less. Buying these items in bulk also saves you from having to run out for last minute shopping trips.
4. Skip the sandwich.
You don’t always have to pack sandwiches in lunches. Get creative with a peanut butter alternative like Wowbutterby letting your child put it on a banana with toppings such as coconut. Or wrap lunch meat in a piece of lettuce for a cool and easy wrap.
5. Invest in a thermos.
A thermosis great for packing warm foods such as soups and stews. Soup can be purchased inexpensively as well (about $1 a can) and is great paired with a sandwich, fruit, or crackers.
6. Meal plan.
Just as you plan your nightly dinners, planning your weekly lunches can help you save cash. This way, you can plan your lunch menus based on weekly sales and specials and stock up on essentials for less. Plus, you could possibly use up those dinner leftovers! You might find my Back to School Action Plan useful.
7. Listen to your child.
Many parents pack items that their child isn’t interested in, so they won’t eat it or it ends up in the trash. Listen to your child and try planning a weekly menu together. This way they are getting foods they enjoy and you can encourage healthy lunch options at the same time.
By following these tips, you can plan weekly lunches that are tasty and budget friendly at the same time. Give them a try!
What are your money saving school lunch ideas? Let me know in the comments below!
Signing up for Swagbucks is a great way to save money! Swagbucks is my internet search engine of choice because I earn points called SB, which I can then redeem for Amazon gift cards, Starbucks gift cards and even PayPal credit! Talk about a great way to purchase gifts or even every day essentials for free! I'm a huge fan of Swagbucks.
It's completely free to sign up. So go sign up now, then I'll tell you my top 9 tips to earn points called SB!
Tip #1 - Refer your Friends
Swagbucks has a great referral program. For each new person that you refer to Swagbucks.com, you will earn 10% of the referrals earnings. You will continue to earn 10% for as long as your referral is active on Swagbucks.com, with no maximum limit.
And while I’m at an advantage because I have a blog, you can still earn referrals if you have a Facebook page, Twitter account, or email address!
Start sending out invites to everyone you know. Here’s how:
Once you have signed up for Swagbucks, go to “Invite Friends” located at the top of Swagbucks.com.
Choose how you want to connect with them – Facebook, Email, Twitter, etc.
Send out a request.
I recommend updating the status of your own Facebook Page with your referral code when you win Swagbucks or when you receive a gift card.
If people see you are earning free stuff, they'll want in on the action too!
Tip #2 - Download the SwagButton
The SwagButton makes it faster to earn points (called SB). The SwagButton is an extension for Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer. With the SwagButton, you will have access to all the earning opportunities Swagbucks has to offer. Earn for searching the web. See the coupons and special offers. And enjoy one-click access to Swagbucks TV, Games, Surveys, Coupons and much more. You will also be alerted when there is a new Swag Code made available.
At the top of the Swagbucks homepage, you will find "More".
Hover over that and a drop down menu will appear.
Click on SwagButton from the list.
You will then be directed to a page to add the button to your browser. I use Chrome so it gave me instructions for adding it to Chrome.
Tip #3 - Follow Swagbucks on Facebook and Twitter
Not only do you earn points for searching online, but there are always swag codes to be found that you can type into your account for extra points. (Log into your account then enter the code into the box that says "Swag Code" at the top of the page)
Swagbucks releases codes on the blog as often as once a day.
Tip #5 - Watch Swagbucks TV
Find the “Earn” section on the left sidebar of the homepage then click “Watch”. You will earn a different amount of points depending on what you watch.
Although this may be tedious, if you're doing something on your computer anyways, you could turn the volume down and still tinker away!
Tip # 6 - Do the Daily Polls
Click on the “Daily Poll” button on the left sidebar of the homepage. Take the Daily Poll and you'll win one point. This isn’t the biggest reward out there. But it takes 10 seconds and every Swagbuck adds up!
Tip # 7 - Use Shop & Earn
Canadians can Shop & Earn! Every time you're doing some online shopping, make sure to head over the Swagbucks homepage and click on the "shop" button on the left sidebar. Depending on the store you're shopping at, you will earn a varying amount of points for every dollar you spend. (Currently you will earn 4 SB for every $1 spent online at Walmart.ca)
Tip # 8 - Join Team Challenges
Quite often, Swagbucks will put together team challenges. When you join a challenge, you will automatically be assigned a team and when you contribute a certain amount of points to your team, you will earn a bonus!
Tip # 9 - Swag Code Extravaganza
Another thing Swagbucks does quite often is they have Swag Code Extravaganzas! They will release about 6 swag codes throughout one day on their various social media and other platforms. The last extravaganza they had, if you collected all the swag codes, you would have had an extra 30 points for your account!
I hope this helps those of you that want to earn more! Swagbucks is a great way to save on the things you need! Happy earning!
