The Invisible Woman - Halloween Costume Success!

Thanks to Old Navy, I was able to make my own awesome, true to character Invisible Woman costume. What do you think?

I don't know if I inherited some super strength or something through my costume, but I totally felt kick-ass and confident yesterday. Or maybe it was the remarkable response I received from a few people, like how good I looked in the costume and how I should wear form fitting clothing more often. One guy at the Halloween party I was at last night even said I was SEXY...and here I was thinking I was going to look fat! Watch out, Jessica Alba....there's a new Susan Storm in town...and she's as Fantastic as ever!

The only sad thing is that most people at work didn't know who I was. Some saw the 4 on my chest and knew I was from the Fantastic Four, but didn't know which character (which is sad because there is only one female character in the group). Others thought I was a Dr. Seuss character, but if they know their Dr. Seuss literature at all, they'd know that there is no Thing 4 from The Cat in the Hat, only Thing 1 and Thing 2, not to mention that they wear red outfits (only their hair is electric blue).

I didn't win one of the Top 3 spots in the costume contest at work, but that's okay with me. It's been a SUPER FANTASTIC Halloween this year, and that's all I could have asked for.

By the way, since this is a savings blog, here are the details on my costume, by the numbers:

1. Electric Blue Top and Pants - Old Navy, $27.19
2. Black Gloves - Spirit Halloween Store, $8.69
3. Black Belt - my closet, FREE
4. Black Boots - my closet, FREE
5. #4 Patch - my crafts box, FREE

So, my costume came to a grand total of $35.88....not bad given the fact that this wasn't the only time I'd be wearing this outfit. Look for the Fantastic Four's Susan Storm a.k.a. The Invisible Woman coming to a superhero play date near you!

Debt Consolidation Card

Last night,  I watched an old episode of The Suze Orman Show on iTunes (she has free podcasts every week!). It was the "Bank Bullies" episode where she talked about how credit card companies were raising the minimum amounts due on card balances and other things they do to screw people over.

One piece of advice she gave was to do a debt consolidation and transfer all of your credit card debt onto one card. That way, you only have one payment each month with hopefully a lower interest rate. It's just like consolidating student loans, but instead it's credit card debt. Suze said the best way to do this was to go through a credit union because they offer lower interest rates.

So...I called one of the local credit unions today, and the credit union today, and to make a long story short, they couldn't help me. I have about $12,000 in credit card debt on three different cards that I'd like to consolidate. But in order to do so, I have to apply and qualify for a credit card at that amount or higher. QUALIFY? There's no way I'd qualify for that amount, so I stopped the application process and went back to the drawing board.

To me, the whole thing doesn't make sense. All I want to do is take the current debt I have and dump it onto a new card so that I can reduce the number of payment I have each month. Sounds simple right? I kind of understand where the credit union is coming from (they can't guarantee I'll use the credit card to pay off my debt, which is why qualifying is important), but still!

I just want to consolidate my debt, and NOT with one of those debt consolidation services! If anyone out there knows of any good accounts, programs or credit cards I can start to consolidate my credit card debt, please let me know!

3...2...1....BLASTOFF!

I'm on a mission...a mission to earn extra cash, and I think I just found the perfect rocketship. A co-worker  recently told me about Blastoff, a new online cash-saving opportunity (or shopportunity, if you will) that just launched on the Web.

Blastoff is a Web site that allows you to save money by shopping online.  Sure, there are other sites out there just like this, but they typically offer a poor selection of retailers to choose from. With Blastoff, hundreds of the nation's most popular retailers, such as Zappos.com, Kohl's, Target, Best Buy, iTunes, Starbucks, and even Southwest Airlines, have signed on to reward its customers for shopping online by giving them anywhere up to 20% cash back. (Click here for a complete list of stores.)

To take advantage of this awesome shopportunity, all you have to do is sign up for a free Blastoff site and start shopping! Also, when you invite friends to sign up for the site, you'll receive cash back on their purchases as well. How can you beat that?

I signed up recently and can't wait to start reaping the benefits! Check out my website for more information about Blastoff and sign up for your very own free Blastoff site.

http://my.blastoffnetwork.com/princessmyd
 

Wish me luck! I hope one of these days I'll be debt free and be able to say "Mission Completion!" (Sorry, I couldn't resist the references to Disney's Little Einsteins.)
 

Keep the Change?

Every time I go to the bank, the teller asks me to join their "Keep the Change" program. The deal is that every time you purchase something with your debit card, the bank will round your purchase to the nearest dollar amount and transfer the difference from your checking account to your savings account.. For instance, if you made a purchase for $7.59, the bank will put the extra $0.41 into your savings account and then match it, leaving you with savings of $0.82. The deal only works if you make LOTS of debit card purchases, because the more purchases you make, the faster the money will add up. Oh, and FYI - the bank only matched the money 100% for the first three month, then only 5% thereafter with a $250 per year maximum.

I joined once before a few years back, but I found that I lost more money than I saved because the bank required me to keep a certain amount of money in the savings account (money that I did not have, by the way...) Because I couldn't meet their limits, I incurred additional fees. Since then, I believe the bank has lowered the account limits, and the teller told me that as long as I put $25 a month into the account, I wouldn't be charged any additional fees.

I'm still a little skeptical about the whole thing, and I'm not sure if I can actually commit to this right now. Although $25 doesn't seem like a lot of money, for me it could mean choosing gas over groceries for the week. However, it would be a great way for me to jumpstart my savings plan.

What do you think? Should I keep the change or keep walking?

Halloween Costumes Savings: Make or Cheat?

When it comes to Halloween costumes, many moms are faced with the same dilemma every year - should we make our children's costumes or buy them? Although it's always fun to gather different materials and accessories and get creative with the sewing machine, sometimes it's more cost effective to just buy the costume from the store. My advice? Shop early so you can get exactly what you want in the right size.

My son is going to be Spiderman this year (surprise, surprise). Because of the popularity of the costume, I bought his Spidey outfit back in September, as soon as Target started hanging them up because I knew it would be gone if I waited until the last minute to buy it. So even though I spend more more than I would have liked to on his costume, it saved me lots of time and aggrevation in the end. (Also, I don't know where I would have begun if I tried to make a Spiderman costume myself!

There are only 8 days left until Halloween, and if you're anything like me, you still don't have a costume yet. I've gone over several options in my head, but it's really hard to find one costume that fits several occasions. This year on October 30, I'm volunteering at the Halloween Carnival at my son's preschool, followed by a few hours at work, and then an adult party that night.

At my son's delight, I've already committed to being a superhero, The Invisible Woman from the Fantastic Four. It's a pretty simple costume, but I'm not sure whether I should make it or just buy it. At this stage of the game, making a costume seems like the better option because the costume I want may be unavailable in stores and ordering online will result in enormous shipping costs. But then again, will I be able to pull it off? That electric blue color is going to be hard to find, especially in pants! Check out the storebought Invisible Woman costume vs. the homemade versions below:

What are you doing this year - making your costume or cheating and buying it from the store? Which method has saved you the most money?

Green All Around - Go Green and Save Money!

I've been thinking about starting this blog for a while, as taking care of my finances has been one of my top priorities lately. I've also been inspired by work and the media to be more "green" by saving water and energy, which will also reap benefits in my wallet as well.

Well, lo and behold, on the day I start my blog, one of my favorite sites, SavvySugar, posts a story that perfectly resonates with my goals. Check out their 10 Simple Ways to Go Green and Save Green. It's steps like these that will create a more sustainable environmental for all!