Thriftism

It's that time of the month... time to check in on goals you know? :) Have you been sticking with it or have your goals fallen by the wayside? Here's where we at Thriftism stand: Take 6 Courses Online (1 of 6) Teach English: Foundational Principals (Completed FEB 2016) Teach English: Theories of Second Language Acquisition (In Progress Week 5 of 6) Teach English: Lesson Design & Assessment (In Progress Week 3 of 6) Install Kitchen Backsplash and Cabinet Pulls We have the backsplash... No more progress here. Construct Captains Bedframe  The main frame is constructed. Now we just have to assemble, add the facing, and make the drawers. I'd say about 25% done. Read 12 Books Down by the River - Robyn Carr (75% Complete) No other books, but lots of magazines... Does that count? Visit London Planning is in progress. I am making a to do spreadsheet, but only have one of the counties down. Hopefully by this time next year I will have at least one guid...

Hopefully you've had time since the last post to make some sugar wax and are ready to wax your legs! This is a pretty simple, but not completely painless process. It should take less than half an hour to complete the lower half of your legs. Begin by gathering your materials. You'll need: Sugar Wax Fabric Strips * Tongue Depressor Towel *Buy precut online or at beauty stores   Dishcloths can be cut to create reusable waxing strips   Old-Shirts can also be used Begin by heating your wax in the microwave for about a minute. Time will vary depending on how much you are heating up at one time. The wax should be fairly liquid when it has reached the correct temperature. Be sure you stir the wax well to make sure your sugar has not separated out of the mix. Check the wax temperature and have a wet cloth nearby in case the wax is too hot. Be careful not to burn yourself! I put a towel down on the bathroom floor to prevent the wax from get...

Besides being annoying, hair removal can get expensive. If you're currently shaving your legs, you could be saving money by switching to waxing. A cheap disposable razor starts around $1 and these usually only last a few uses. I know I switch mine every two weeks or so. This puts shaving at a minimum cost of $26/year, not to mention if you buy nicer razors, use shaving cream, or the cost of all that time you spend shaving. One article that breaks down the cost further can be found at Confessions of the Professions . I know what you're thinking, that buying those waxing kits or making trips to the beauty parlor for your monthly waxing adds up fast too. That is 100% true and that's why you shouldn't be doing either of those. I can't justify spending $50-$80 to get my legs waxed by a professional, nor can I make myself spend the money to buy the kits which start around $10 for the cheap ones. The solution is to do it all at home. You can make your own sugar wa...

Hello & Welcome Fellow Soap Enthusiasts - In this series, I will detail my efforts to create a new loaf style soap mold to replace our existing first model that is beginning to break down under use. This second version is a new, hopefully innovative design that I have yet to see on the soap mold market. The idea stems from a street fair vendor who was selling soap disks/circles made by using PVC pipe as the mold. PVC is an excellent material for use in a soap mold as it demonstrates a strong chemical resistance, maintains shape more rigidly than most common silicone molds, and has a relatively non-stick finish/surface. PVC is heavily limited by the forms available to everyday consumers, most commonly seen as drain pipe. This is fine if you like round disks of soap but I prefer bars so I need a loaf shaped mold and last time I checked they don't make square PVC pipe :(. While doing some work on my house, furring in a window for trim, I was introduced to PVC vinyl boards usua...

Now that we've covered the why of budgeting, let's hit the how. To start, grab yourself a pen and paper or an excel sheet or pull up the app/website of your choice. While it can seem more concrete if you write it all down, I find tracking to be much simpler if I use excel or an online application. The photo in the title is an excel spreadsheet. There a tons of different options in excel if you search for budget when you go to open a new workbook. If none of them fit your style, feel free to create your own.   I personally use a combination of Every Dollar  for tracking expenses and an excel spreadsheet to create the initial budget and track annual expenses. Yes, I create an annual budget in addition to the monthly budget. This allows me to maximize savings, predict future habits (such as saving) and best estimate our mortgage payoff date or our financial independence date.  Don't worry, you can choose just one budget tool and focus on monthly expenses. Then...

What is the big deal with budgeting? It seems like everyone is talking about it, but they don't always mention why it is important. Creating your first budget might sound like a lot of work, but we will walk you through it and help you understand the why and how of it. Let's start with the why.   WHY???   Creating a budget is important for several reasons. One of the biggest reasons is that creating a budget means creating a spending plan for your money. This ensures that you have money for things you need or want. By having a plan for your money, you will be much less likely to go into debt and be able to begin chipping away at your current debt. It also keeps you from spending money you don't have. It is so easy to swipe that card, but if you're not tracking what you're spending, you may end up unable to pay the bill at the end of the month. When you're tracking your spending, you're also more likely to kick those bad spending habits. What doe...

Following our series on goal setting, we figured we would follow our own advice and broadcast our goals to the world as well. We will be updating our progress throughout the year at the beginning of every month so don't forget to check back and hold us accountable. As you can see from our goals, no goal is too minor to add to your list. Take 6 Courses Online Install Kitchen Backsplash and Cabinet Pulls Construct Captains Bedframe Read 12 Books Visit London Paint Office Workout 4 Days/Week Save $10,000 Lose 10 Pounds Knit/Crochet 10 Projects Publish Blog Posts Twice a Week Learn How to Can Vegetables We would still love to hear any goals you have for this new year. If you would like to be held accountable for your actions or just want to share your thoughts for the year, feel free to share. You can update your progress with us every month too.

Hopefully you've come to realize why goals are important after reading Part 1. Maybe you've even nailed down your goals for the year/month/week/whenever. Great Job!! Now it's time to get to work making your goals become a reality. However, most people quickly lose site of those goals and give up. There are countless excuses like "I'm just too busy to find time to workout" or "My car broke down so I'll never be able to save enough money now, why would I even try if I won't make my goal?" QUIT MAKING EXCUSES!! Follow our steps to stay on track for the year ahead and finally hit those goals you've set for yourself. 1. Be Committed To start with, actually be committed to achieving your goals. This may sound silly because why would you make a goal you aren't committed to? Maybe it sounded nice to have extra money in savings, or to run a half marathon this year, but you don't really want to put the work it takes into achie...

Either you have recently read our post on why goals are so important (and why I don't like to call them resolutions) or you know goals are important, but just don't know how to go about setting goals. Most people tend to set such lofty goals that they become easily discouraged and return to a no-goal lifestyle or assume they cannot achieve the things they want. THIS IS NOT TRUE! To everyone out there, you can achieve just about anything you set your mind to. Don't get me wrong there are a few things you probably cant change. For example, if you're 6'-2" and really would have like to be 5', you're probably out of luck. However, most other things such as mental or physical abilities are achievable if you set your mind to it. Many of you may have heard of SMART goals before. This is not my invention by any means and is often used in work places to measure career progression or goals. While many have heard of it, it is not often translated out of the ...

Happy New Year! Now the real stress begins right? You have an endless list of New Year's resolutions like getting fit, seeing friends more, and saving more money. What these kind of resolutions do is set you up for failure. They have no specifics and no milestones. If you can't see progress alone the way you will most likely give up and end the year forming the same resolutions for the next. While a resolution should be a great term to use as it is defined on dictionary.com, " a decision or determination: to make a firm resolution to do something", it has become mired in too many ambiguities and failed new year's resolutions. Theses New Year resolutions have become more the stuff of wishes and dreams than being actual resolutions. That is why this year I am setting goals for 2016 rather than New Year's resolutions. Rather than falling behind and giving up, we're going to help you succeed this year. So why are goal important? 1) Goa...