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Dreams + Coffee

North Carolina Healthy Living + Style Blogger

{Being Budget-Friendly}

June 6, 2012 Comment : 1

I’ll be the first to admit that I love to shop. There’s nothing better than retail therapy. Well, actually there is…seeing my savings account grow is truthfully more satisfying than shopping to my heart’s content. There was a time when I wouldn’t have said such a thing, but that time is a thing of the past. See, I have no problem spending someone else’s money…but I’m really conservative with my own money, especially now that I work full-time and live off of my own salary. I’ve had a savings account since I was in high school, but I really didn’t have much money to save all throughout high school and college. Things are different now, though. I save 25% of each paycheck, which makes my savings account look really pretty. Luckily, I am living at home until M and I are married, so I don’t have to pay rent. I do have expenses – insurance, car payment, groceries, gas, necessities, etc, which add up quickly. Planning a wedding is also very expensive! 
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Since I’m able to save more right now, I try to be mindful of spending and maximize my savings, and I’ve had time to work on a budget as well. I swear by mint.com for tracking my spending and making a good budget! For someone who loves to shop as much as I do, I think I’ve done decently with managing my money. Here are a few money-saving steps that I have taken or plan to take:
{1} Cleaned out my closet. I just did this recently, because soon I’ll be moving into a (much smaller) house/apartment with my soon-to-be husband and won’t have as much room…aka, we’ll be sharing closet-space (yikes!). I tend to hang on to clothing, shoes, and handbags because I might “want to wear them again” but probably never will. Since I prefer quality over quantity, many of the items in my closet are nicer and actually worth selling, so that’s what I’ve started doing more of. I list things on eBay from time to time, and I’ve had some good luck with it. I may not be selling the items for nearly as much as I paid, but it’s better than nothing. And nothing is what I’d get if I let this stuff sit in my closet and collect dust. 
{2} Cut back on Starbucks. This is a new goal, and its going to be a challenge. I’m a little bit ashamed to admit that M and I both went to Starbucks every. single. morning. for the past several months. It’s kind of a “bribe” and a pleasant way to start the day after an hour-long + commute every morning. However, it adds up. We figured that we’d spend over $2,000 a year if we both continued to visit Starbucks every morning. I think a lot of us go to Starbucks and think, “Oh, I’ll just get an iced coffee…it’s one of the cheapest items on the menu and it’s only $2.50, etc.”…that was my rationale. But that $2.50 every single day adds up quickly. I refuse to quit Starbucks completely, because I do enjoy it and quite frankly, life is boring if you always deprive yourself. However, I think 1-3 times per week is much more reasonable than 7 days per week! I noticed that I didn’t even really crave Starbucks iced coffee when we were going every single day, it just was a habit more than anything. So maybe this way it’ll be more of a reward and I’ll enjoy it more by going less frequently. 
{3} Open a savings account. If you have a bank account, which obviously most of us do….you can open a savings account (and manage it online). I try to save as much as possible, and I transfer the money as soon as I get paid. Right now, I’m able to put 25% of every paycheck into my savings account, and sometimes even more than that. Financial experts recommend saving at least 10%, which is still substantial over time. I’m just trying to save as much as possible while I have the smallest amount of expenses that I’ll probably ever have. 
{4} When you want to shop, spend wisely. I used to be guilty of buying clothes, shoes, and handbags…and then some of them would sit in my closet with the tags still attached. I’ve gotten much better about thinking critically about every purchase I make, and making sure I really want it before I buy it. That means no more impulsive decisions. I will literally stand in a store with an item in my hand and rack my brain to make sure I really need it or that it will pair well with items in my wardrobe. If it’s something I might wear once, I will probably put it back. And I don’t buy something just because it’s on sale (I used to be very guilty of this!). I went into Ann Taylor LOFT recently and tried on a pair of dark wash flares that were on sale for $20. Sure, $20 is a great deal for denim. I tried them on, liked them, and thought I “needed” a pair of dark wash flares because they would be a good dressy casual piece to add to my wardrobe. As I was standing in line to pay for them, I suddenly realized that I actually have a pair of nice, dark wash designer flares that I ordered from Hautelook…and I promptly put the jeans back on the rack. I did this because I could think of several uses for that extra $20 instead of buying a pair of jeans that were so similar to a pair I already had. I try to stick to purchasing wardrobe staples that can be worn multiple ways to create a variety of outfits. I’d rather buy a pair of light wash jeans or a pencil skirt, for example, to add new items to my wardrobe without duplicating anything in my closet. 
{5} Another shopping principle: if you love designer clothing (like I do), then shop on sites like Ruelala.com, HauteLook.com, and Beyondtherack.com to find great sales. I have purchased a majority of my jeans from these sites, because I do prefer designer denim, and it’s typically much cheaper. You still have to shop around and be mindful that you don’t make too many impulse decisions (it’s easy to do that on these sites because it’s a “flash” sale site and items sell quickly). I like to shop on these sites when I have something particular in mind that I’d like to add to my wardrobe. If I want a pair of colored skinny jeans, I’ll scour the websites daily (or just periodically) until I find a pair on sale. Even then, I shop around to make sure that it really is a good deal. 
I could probably go on and on about how to be smart with money, but most of it is common sense and I think we can all do these things….I think it’s just hard to commit to them! It takes a bit of dedication, but it’s entirely possible. 🙂
What are your favorite money-saving tips?

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Hi y'all! I'm Brittany, a wife, mama to three little ladies and the creator behind Dreams + Coffee, a North Carolina lifestyle blog. Grab a cup of coffee and catch up on my latest family, food, health and lifestyle posts.

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Last weekend at the @charlotteyouthballet performa Last weekend at the @charlotteyouthballet performance of Wizard of Oz with Girl Scouts — Brynn got to meet the dancers and has proclaimed she’s excited for her own ballet performance in May on the very same stage 😘
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Last week to this week ➡️ We’re SO grateful Last week to this week ➡️ We’re SO grateful for a quick recovery from pneumonia — having a sick child is scary enough, but to top it off with no space in our local hospitals’ PICU and being flown to Asheville, you can imagine we were beyond stressed last week 😩 So so grateful she’s back to normal and on International Women’s Day, it felt like a good time to celebrate Brynn 🥰 Thank you to all of our friends & family who reached out, lent a helping hand and kept us in your thoughts & prayers ❤️ 
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We still have Girl Scout cookies 🥳 *Online ship We still have Girl Scout cookies 🥳 *Online ship-to-home orders* begin Monday, 2/27! If you’re not local to CLT and would like to place an order with shipping, I’d be happy to share the link - my girls would love your support 🥰Also, the newest cookie, Raspberry Rally, will be available in limited quantities online — I plan to place a bulk order and can deliver boxes locally in CLT if you’d like to try them 😘
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Finally took the girls back to our favorite place Finally took the girls back to our favorite place in Virginia — @colonialwmsburg ❤️ We loved it so much, we even took our engagement photos here back in 2011 😉
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Prolon Day 3 | The day started off really good — Prolon Day 3 | The day started off really good — I felt very clear-minded and awake this AM 🥳 Truly, I was nervous because today was a very low-cal day and I wasn’t sure how I’d feel 😅 I did grab a plain iced espresso because my energy was depleting super quickly and that def helped 👌🏼 After lunch, though, I started to hate depriving myself of real food and disliked that I couldn’t push myself in my workouts like I usually do 😒 After dealing with three kids who clearly woke up on the wrong side of the bed 😆, slicing my hand open with a knife and being cranky and irritable because I’ve been hangry for 3 days, I caved. And sorry, not sorry ✌🏼 I just wanted a dang salad and some protein so I can lift heavy things 💪🏼 Moral of the story, listen to your body and what it needs. And maybe try a 1-2 day cleanse/fast because that’s about all mine could handle 🤪
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