Category: BUDGET/SPENDING

BUDGET/SPENDING

Frugal-nomics Pay Off Your Debt Challenge

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$13,369…that’s the amount of credit card debt I was blessed to be able to pay off in the past 11 months. But before I throw up the celebratory confetti I’ll be honest and say that if you had asked me a year ago how long I would have speculated it would have taken me to do this, I probably would have erred on the side of caution and said least a couple years.  I mean, after all I had semi-tried before and always had to resort back to using my cards in times of financial emergency….but I’ve never gotten it all paid off.

Don’t get me wrong….the commitment to “knock it all out” was loooooong overdue.  It hadn’t been enough for me to calculate the small fortune I’ve forked over to landlords in NYC rent with nothing to show for it….nooooo.  It wasn’t until I had paid over $10,000 for a 2-year acting conservatory out of pocket,  that the lightbulb went off for me. It was then that I asked myself “if I had it to give someone else….why and the heck couldn’t I do it for myself?”  I had had enough of the debt merry-go-round, and I was ready to get off. Who’s ready to come with me?! Read more “Frugal-nomics Pay Off Your Debt Challenge” →

BUDGET/SPENDING

5 Ways to Start Being Frugal, Pronto!

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Ever find yourself thinking, “if only I made more money, all my financial woes would be over?” Well, let me be the first say that you are totally not alone in feeling that way — not even close.

But along with that realization comes another somewhat harsh one — the truth is, if you were to continue your same spending habits past today, even with a bigger paycheck, you would soon find yourself in the same economic position, despite the fact you have more money.

Yes, sad…but oh so true. If you’ve been living beyond your means with the money you make now, and not earmarking anything for savings or tackling some of your amassed debt, your fate would have already been sealed.

So how do you change your outlook? Check out these five tips you can apply right away that will help you start being frugal, and help you free up some cash to save. Read more “5 Ways to Start Being Frugal, Pronto!” →

BUDGET/SPENDING

My Manilla Fashion Makeover Feature

I get great joy out of sharing tips on how to shop on a budget.  I feel like a great thing to remember when you have limited funds is that, you should aim to invest in closet staples that can be worn countless times, in a variety of different ways — that way you get a lot of mileage out of each and every piece you purchase. Think of it like this….you won’t have a bunch of odds and ends that only go with one look, if when you are looking to buy something, you think to yourself “can I think of at least 3 outfits I can wear this with right now?”

So because of my love of sharing frugal style advice, I was oh so glad when the folks over at Manilla asked me to be a part of their #GetItTogether series and do a Fashion Makeover Video for a very deserving young lady named, Kate.

I’m ecstatic with how it turned out, and can’t wait for you to see it.  Want to see the one piece we got for her that was used interchangeably throughout the 3 looks?  Check out the video on Youtube here.