Thrifty Thursday: A Frugal Way to Organize Your Jewelry

Over the years I've struggled to find the perfect organization method for my jewelry that really works for me. Being organized is all about "having a home for everything" and making sure that you routinely put your things back in their home after you use them. To me, I find that being organized saves me time - the time it would take me to find what I lost or the time it would take me to untangle all those necklaces that I just crammed together in a box. Sometimes... that's easier said than done. It has to work for you!

While I was in high school, my grandparents gave me a jewelry organizer that hung on the wall. It was a very nice piece that had jewelry hooks, earring hooks, a bar to hold bracelets, and the ring inserts also on the inside. Then there was a hinged door that closed, and I could have collage photos. As long as we hung it on a sturdy stud in the wall, it was fantastic! It looked very similar to the one pictured below, except mine was black to match my room's decor...

Well, over those few years, my jewelry collection grew, and it was time to go to college. I knew I wouldn't be able to hang this organizer on the wall of my dorm room, and it wasn't a piece that could really be put anywhere else. I took all of my jewelry and organized them into small tackle boxes that I stacked and kept in a drawer.

     The problem was that I felt it was too much work to open the drawer, find the correct tackle box, open the tackle box, and put my jewelry back. The trend was for me to just leave the jewelry wherever... and it was very unorganized again, not to mention tangled or even lost.

      Now, that I'm out of the dorm and in a spacious home, I've found a new solution that really works. It actually would be perfect for a dorm also (if I'd only thought of it sooner), because it's frugal, easy-to-make, and it can be hung in a dorm room using Command tape or Command hooks.



So, now you can see what I do now. I'll I've done is purchased a regular ole cork board from Wal-Mart for about $10. This was the largest one they had in the office supply section, but it works perfectly for me. You could also probably find a cheaper one at a Thrift Store, making this project even more frugal.

 Then I bought some wooden tacks that were on sale for $2, making this entire project only $12 to make, which is extremely frugal compared to the jewelry armoires that I had been seeing everywhere for $60-$200!

Another nice thing about these cork boards is that you can decorate and style them however you like! They are easy to paint, either the border or the entire thing. You could paint patterns or make it an art piece. You could also hang it more beautifully, by adding a colorful ribbon to the top to hang it like a piece of art. I decided to leave mine natural for right now because it matched the natural decor of our bedroom,
but it's all up to you!

    I also needed a way to organize my earrings, chunky bracelets and necklaces, watches, rings, pins, and charms. I bought this acrylic drawer organizer at Dirt Cheap for less that $2, and it sends on a shallow shelf in the larger armoire that we have in our bedroom.

   So, now you've seen the frugal way that I organize my jewelry for under $14. I dreamed about those jewelry armoires for a while, because I was really in need of something that worked for me to keep me organized. This was a nice alternative, and I'm really glad that I thought of it.

Do you have any frugal tips?
Email us at sistersandsavings@gmail.com,
and we just might feature your tip!

Modnique's Summer Blowout Sale on Womens' Apparel

Modnique.com is a retailer of designer merchandise at highly discounted prices. Members save up to 85% buying products from well-known brands such as Ed Hardy, ST Dupont, Maurice Lacroix, and others. All items sold on Modnique.com are 100% brand new and authentic.

This Weekend, Modnique, is having a Summer Blowout on Womens' Apparel. The deals can be pretty great at up to 96% off. New users of Modnique also get a $5 credit to use on Modnique purchases. To make this deal even better, Modnique is offering FREE shipping to all USA recipients!

To take advantage of these amazing deals, just follow this direct link to become a member of Modnique. Then, have an awesome shopping experience without ever leaving your home!

7/31 Sunday Paper

There will be a total of 4 coupon inserts in this Sunday's paper!
1 Proctor & Gamble (our personal fave!),
2 Red Plum, and
1 Smart Source

Some of our Tips about getting the Sunday paper:
1. Get one paper per member of your household.
The more people= the more mouths to feed = the more toilet paper your family will use
=the more coupons you will need to purchase those items and others at low prices!
2. Get your papers before church instead of after.
With this "Couponing Craze", almost everyone is looking to save by using coupons.
It's important to get your papers before they sell out.
3. Check your papers to make sure they have all of the expected coupon inserts.
I've had several people tell me, "I got my paper,
but I didn't know there weren't going to be any inserts in it this week."
Weeks with no coupon inserts are very seldom and mostly on major holidays.
We'll let you know if there's ever a week where you can skip getting your Sunday Paper.
To us, the coupons inside the paper make the price of the paper worth it.
If there are no coupons, we're not getting the value we're paying for.

$25 Grocery Challenge

We hope you've all had the chance to come to one of our workshops or home parties to learn how to use coupons effectively. We also hope that you've "mastered" the topic and are saving your family tons of money!

Here's an article about saving on groceries you might enjoy: $25 Grocery Challenge

Week	Produce	Grocery	Total
Week 1	$10.00	$8.38	$18.38
Week 2	$9.50	$13.97	$23.47
Week 3	$10.00	$13.68	$23.68
Week 4	$10.00	$13.19	$23.19
Week 5	$8.00	$16.29	$24.29
Week 6	$0.00	$18.83	not done

For more information about saving money the way we do, email us at sistersandsavings@gmail.com!

70% of Restuarant.com with Promo Code "Sweet"

Restuarant.com is offering customers 70% off most purchases with use of the promotional code "SWEET" at checkout until July 24, 2011.

I will say that while we lived in Jackson, we went out to eat one night and by chance met some friends of ours there. They bought a gift certificate from Restaurant.com, while we did not. We ended up paying full-price about $35 plus tip, while they paid only about $12 for the two of them, including the amount they paid for the gift certificate and the additional amount from their bill that night. The discount is pretty significant and definitely worth checking into! We sure learned our lesson!

Managing Our Household with a Few New Tools

Guest Post: Laney at The Barretts' Blog

   Well, my favorite hobby, and stress-reliever I think too, is organizing. It allows me to feel "in control" of whatever I am working to organize at the time. I'm constantly organizing something, and it makes me feel really good and really productive.

   There's nothing else that I feel I can organize at work with my lesson plans- I've got that almost down to a science. Yay, me for keeping it up! Our house is pretty organized also since I'm constantly organizing some area of our home in my free time. It also helps that we have more room here to work with so our kitchen table can actually be used for eating instead of eating, homework, paying bills, lesson plans, art projects, meal planning, and everything else you could possibly use a table for. We now have a functional office space, an organized kitchen, living room, utility room, bedroom, and bathroom. So, for the most part, everything is organized. (Just don't look it my car or purse- I allow those two things to remain chaotic.)

   So what else could I do? With every space around me completely organized, why was my house so messy when I came home each day? I'll let you in on a little secret and give you my confession...

   With a physically demanding job (chasing 3 year olds for 8 hours a day), I would spend my time doing nothing important- which to me is un-productive - or organizing that space that's now finished. I would not spend hardly any of it actually cleaning our house. Yes, I would let the dust bunnies throw parties & invite friends to the floors beneath our couch in the living room. The laundry was a never-ending cycle that never EVER got caught up. The pile of dirty dishes in the sink could probably have set a new record for the tallest sky scraper in the country. But probably the yuckiest thing was the inside of the microwave which was supposed to be white in color. Instead, it was yellowish, orange caked-on food particles - really gross!

   I'm really hoping at this point that you keep reading so I can at least tell you the good part, the part that lets you know I'm really not "that" kind of wife & home maker. I want you to know that I really do want my house to be clean and inviting. It's really important to me actually. In fact, I'm hoping there's at least one point that you could maybe relate to... maybe?

   Okay, so the last paragraph or two just goes to show that you can have every space organized - every nook & cranny. Being organized doesn't mean everything is always clean. It is possible to be organized (every object has a home), and still have a mess.

   So, now (finally!!) I've learned what I've gotta have, and it's "Time" Management & a Plan for actually cleaning my house. I actually didn't think of this on my own. I very seldom think about organizing my time, but I happened to stumble upon an article from one of my favorite blogs, Money Saving Mom. She had written an article to answer a question from a reader about managing her home & kids while being a stay-at-home mom who home schools. She shared her Household Management Forms that she uses to keep herself on task throughout the day and keep her house in order.

   I've, since then, customized her forms to fit the needs of our home and our family. I've found them to be quite helpful. Just by spending less time in the mornings "piddling" as I call it (taking my sweet, precious time), I've found that I can actually be really productive and get lots of  things done. It's an amazing feeling. It's also really nice to come home to an empty sink and home that is pretty darn tidy.

   I've taken advantage of a few tips that I'd like to share as well...
  *Add "Relax" to my To-Do List - It's really hard for me to relax if there's still things left to do. I can't cross
     this off my list if I don't get to it, so I just had to add it to the list. So far, it works!
  *5-Minute Clean Up - Instead of fretting over every single little thing that's not in order or where it should
      be, I'll just set a kitchen timer and put things away for 5 minutes. It's really productive!

   It also really helps to have a husband who (although not a list-maker), can be a BIG help in getting things done around the house. Often, I will come home to the laundry already completely done or all the dishes washed. Today, he mentioned adding something to his list... then quickly added "the list in my head". He has a list too- I just can't see his.

Happy Home Managing to You Too!

Saving is a Mindset

Guest Post: Lindsey at Saving $en$e

     I have been couponing since January 1, of this year!!! I know, Quick Learner! Right? If you're amazed, you have a right to be, especially if you know me at all.... I tend to be kinda "blonde" at times! With that being said, you can learn how to save just like we have.
     Once you learn how  much you can save with coupons, it tends to become a way of life... I will not go back to life BC (Before Coupons!) Besides, it pleases God when we learn to be better stewards of the resources that he has blessed us with! (It also pleases our husbands, Bonus Points!)
      I save on groceries every week, but saving on shopping trips is just as much fun, if not more fun!! So while shopping at "The Avenue" in Collierville today, my mom and I decided to check out "Charming Charlie", which is a cute store filled with any costume jewelery you could possible want. Very reasonably priced, too. (Average of $6-12 per piece) So we are going through the store picking up a couple of pieces each to buy...
       Then we find it............................The clearance section!!
     God knows what we need, (or in this case, want) and he can make it happen. There was tons of jewelery marked  down to..... drum roll, please...$1.00! Yes that's right!! $1.00! Everything that we had previously thought about purchasing had suddenly become too expensive! Isn't it funny how God changes our minds for us! We left the store with a lot of really cute jewelery, and with spending very little!!

      You can go shopping and have lots of fun without breaking the bank!! It's all about the mindset!!