Confessions of a Tight Wad

I am a tight wad. 

      There, I've said it, it's out there - now we can bless that phrase for coming out in public and perhaps come up with a different one that doesn't make me feel quite so much like this beloved character?

I'll be giving it some thought... 

Here's the point, I like saving money, which unfortunately diabolically opposes this deeply ingrained desire I have to spend money. I also have this penchant for pretty things - clothes, shoes, jewelry, candlesticks, furniture...as a general rule I like to spend money on aesthetically pleasing items. I feel like I can safely say that this is a widespread dilemma.

      Now, take all of those things and add in the mix a pet peeve pertaining to inflated prices and clearance racks that, contrary to the name - are capable of wiping out any hope of a financially secure future in one "discounted" swoop. What are we left with...? Class? Anyone....?

Two options.

Dumpster diving, and thrift stores. As a person well equipped to take a stance on both issues (don't worry about it...I'll cover dumpsters in another post), thrifting is the way to go. Always. 

Ok, lets kick things off, shall we? We'll start by meeting some of my favorite thrifted items, in no particular order.

1. This chair...he used to have navy blue upholstery with dark natural wood. Since I think it's best to be honest, I don't mind telling you he used to be on the dark side of hideous.

(FYI: "Reupholstering wing-back chairs" coming soon to a blog near you)   

 I already had white paint, so the total cost for this guy was $13.00 + $5.00 (fabric) = $18.00 

I'm choosing not to assign a monetary sum to the experience of shooting myself in the foot with a nail gun, some costs are better left uncounted. 

2. This thing? It's like a race car on my counter. I registered for a red one when I got engaged and although we received tons of lovely gifts - this wasn't one of them. I wasn't surprised since retail value for one of these mixers plus all of the attachments is easily over $360.00 

  I picked this up along with 5 attachments for $25.00...saving myself $335.00. Moment of silence please.  




3. This shirt, it has embroidery and a drawstring. These two things alone make it lovely, the fact that it still had a tag on it when I bought it also didn't hurt. The clincher was that in my limited knowledge...it seems like it might work as a maternity shirt if, y'know, that became a need....whatever though.  

Purchased for $3.99 

Retail Price $245.00 

Savings = $241.01

So, what's the point. So far you've been shown savings of $596.01 and a lovely view of my laminate counter tops. How is this supposed to help you? I want to share a little slice of my life with you and along the way show you how to successfully search out deals, see the potential in things that might not look so great at first glance and steer clear of things that give thrift shopping a bad name (see XXXL Tweety Bird t-shirts). Thrifting and the whole scary world of doing-it-yourself is not for everyone, but if you're interested or just want to observe my sometimes comical efforts, hang around. I'm just getting warmed up.

Over and Out,

Rae