Penny Pinching!

In these tight economic times, we-just like everyone else, have found our incomes drastically cut and searching for ways to cut costs.

I noticed that Oprah was having a show on the 'thriftiest family in America' so I DVRed the episode to see if I could get some great cost cutting tips.

Some of the things were as simple as unplugging things when you aren't using them. Apparently 10% of all energy costs go to things that are plugged in but not even turned on! How crazy is that?! So now I go around unplugging anything and everything I can. It's a little tedious...but the woman on there that did it went from a $260 power bill down to a $62 power bill. I like that kind of savings :)

Then there was another woman that was 'the queen of coupons'. Her story was shocking! She had a grocery bill of over $120 and after all her coupons were taking off, it was $37-WOW!!! I have never been a coupon clipper. I figured the effort to save $0.55 was not worth my time. After seeing how her savings added up I rescued the Sunday paper and all it's ads from the recycle bin and started clipping. We picked up some of our Thanksgiving fixin's and after my coupons and special prices, I saved $55.47! While our bill was no where as low as $37 I was happy with my efforts and will be anxiously awaiting this week's Sunday paper. :) Now, if I can just figure out those double coupon days and where that happens at...I will make a killing on my savings!!!!

Well, gotta go. Got some lamps to go unplug!!!!

Holiday Knitting Ideas: iPod Cozy

Last month I started posting some holiday knitting ideas. This is one of my favorites - it's a super simple pattern, a quick knit, and perfect for so many people on my list. I mean, who doesn't have an iPod these days?

I got this particular pattern from http://www.grumperina.com/ but there are lots more out there.

The best part is that with a quick change in gauge, you can knit this up with Duet Yarn leftovers or even some of the new holiday colorways or semi solids!

It certainly beats the Ferarri Cozy as far as time-invested goes ;)

Going Green: How to Save $100 Without Really Trying

I'm so happy that last time I blogged about going green, I had such a positive response! I thought I'd share a list of some of the tiny changes that DH and I have made around the house. At first it was just an effort to reduce our impact on the environment, but we were very happy to see that just these little changes saved us about $100 on our utility bills!!

Easy tips for going green (and saving money):

1. Only run full loads in the laundry and dishwasher
2. Run the laundry and dish cycles after 7pm when water consumption is down and costs are lower
3. Turn lights off when you aren't in the room, or try putting lights on a timer
4. Turn off the computer and other big electronics before bed (power strips are a big help here)
5. Keep heat at 60 degrees, especially when you're sleeping or away from home (a programmable thermostat is a big help here)

Can you believe just those little changes had such a big impact? What's been working well for you?