Leaning Book Shelves

I am decorating my daughter's condo in Fairfax VA ultra modern, a new style for me.

Naturally, if I save money on furnishings, the sooner I can tackle the kitchen renovation which means the sooner I can have you over for dinner:) I already know that I want Ikea to do the kitchen.

So the leaning library shelves I wanted on a "nook" off the living room cost over $1000! No way!

I looked online in every catalog I could think of, Overstock.com and ebay. Finally, I saw exactly what I wanted on ebay. The wall is 36" wide and these shelves are 34" wide. They will fill the space nicely.

My wait paid off. I got them for $99 and free shipping and handling. That's a bargain.

What's not a bargain is that they arrived in a box which means someone will have to assemble them when I bring them to Virginia.

I'll pray that my neighbor's brother, who is handy and very nice, will be around.

Save Money To Do What?

I woke up this morning with a revelation that is BIG.

My motto as Q of B used to be, "Live rich without being rich." The missing piece is why? If Q of B was all about me, my clothes, my house, my bank account, then is was poor indeed.

I woke up with a new motto, one that answers that question and is way better than the first.

             "Earn and spend every dollar as if each had the potential to change the world.

  Inspire and help others to do it too." 

Just yesterday I was lamenting to my husband that it seems to take forever for me to have real clarity of thought, especially on all the important things in life. Well, this one was worth waiting for.

So how would your earning and spending change if that motto were yours? 

Let me know how you answer that one. You have a lifetime to work it out.

Bad Advice from The Washington Post

 June 2, in the Style Section of The Washington Post, there was an article about buying “investment” piece furniture that is classic, will stand the  test of time and wear, and be the best “first” pieces of furniture to get when just starting out.

Baloney.

The prices on that furniture were appalling.

Let me tell you about what I just bought, classic investment pieces of furniture to adorn a condo in Fairfax county. I found a Natuzzi  red leather tufted sofa and arm chair for around $1800 at Hamilton Sofa and Furniture Gallery in Chantilly. I went back and special ordered two ottomans to match for another $600. And a beautiful painting to go with, a modern autumn scene rich in hues of reds, yellows, oranges, browns, greens, some blue and dots of black, stunning.

I bought a clearance dining room table, round glass topped with circular wood base and 4 chairs at Macy’s for $627.

And a platform bed from Ikea with storage drawers underneath was $300. Later a tufted, genuine leather headboard will be bought on eBay for $345.

It my rate I can furnish 3 condos for the prices quoted in the Post for one place.

You need the Queen back, Washington!

Becoming Lower Maintenance

I've done it before and I'm doing it again, giving myself haircuts.

I've given my husband every haircut he's had during the last 21 years. And sometimes I cut my own hair.

Well today, with my husband's help, I cut my hair and it looks fine, a medium length bob.

So I just saved $50 and once every 6 weeks multiplied by 8, let's say, I will save $400. If I lived in an area with a higher cost of living, I would have saved more. How much has my husband saved over 21 years?

Why are we doing this? We are realigning our priorities and our expenses just like everyone else in America because "The times they are a'changing."

Don't laugh. It will happen to you. If you don't do haircuts, you may cut out restaurants, fast food, extra pairs of shoes, driving around just for fun, some things that you used to spend money on that are just not worth it now.

The only way to have more money is to make more or spend less than you make. There is no other magic about it.

When you think of creative ways to save, please share them. We all need to be inspired.

Labels Matter and Then They Don't

Are you a label snob? Sometimes I am and sometimes I'm not.

I am buying an expensive outfit, pants and a jacket from a high end designer because it is timeless, fits well and I'll wear it for years. When I'm 85, it will still look good.

I'm not buying the casual top that goes with it because I don't like the way it fits and it's too expensive. Go figure!

I went to GoodWill Industries and found the perfect coral turtleneck to go with it, brand new and the right color and the right neckline and the fit is great.

My husband thinks I have more chutzpah than anyone else because, having no cash on me, I used a credit card and asked for the senior discount. So the top cost $4.00 and with the discount and tax, I paid $3.65 for it. The cashier said they would process a sale of  20 cents with a credit card!

So I'm inconsistently consistent. That's me, your Queen of Bargains, shopping to tell you all about it.

Sample Sales

This tip is from a stealth "Queen of Bargains" in London.

Go to www.dailycandy.com and register for the city nearest you. You will get notices of real sample sales where you can snag bargains on major designers.

This is an invitation from other stealth queens. Send  me your tips and I'll pass them along.

Thank you, very much! 

Business Cards

I can't keep a good thing to myself. That's why I blog about deals as I find them.

Allergic to overhead, I have resisted getting business cards for my various ventures. Until now.

I have designed, ordered and received new business cards for 2 ventures: my healthy eating blog: http://dontswallowthat.blogspot.com  and my acting. The product is excellent and the cost is more than reasonable, let's say very inexpensive. In both cases, I ordered the slow ship method to save money and received them both in less than a week of ordering.

I found that I could use all their tools on line to design a quality product and I am very happy.

What's the source? You've seen them advertised everywhere: Vista Print. Go to: www.vistaprint.com
and stop procrastinating like I have done for the last 5 years.  I will reuse them for additional products because the quality and service are that good.