Tag: Budget

6 Ways to Save On Summer Vacation

On By mutualcuIn Just for Fun, Saving Money, Uncategorized, Welcome / About MCULeave a comment

Family packing for vacation

 

  1. Time it right. Experts say the sweet spot for cheapest flight booking is 54 days before your travel date.
  2. Clear your cache before every new flight search. This way, airlines can’t access your browser history and inflate the prices they offer you.
  3. Sweet-talk your way to savings. Ask for an upgrade at the check-in counter. About 78% of hotel guests who request an upgrade at the front desk actually get one.
  4. Never pay full price. Check sites like coupondivas.com, entertainment.com and Groupon.com for deep discounts at local eateries and entertainment centers.
  5. Freebie fun. Search local sites and blogs for write-ups about free things to do near your destination.
  6. Save your mega event for the last day. Finish your vacation on a high note by saving your most exciting event for the last day of your trip.

Your Turn: How do you save big while getting the most out of your summer vacation? Share your best hacks with us in the comments!

Be More With Less

On By mutualcuIn Financial Lessons, UncategorizedLeave a comment

be-more-with-less

Look around your home, your room and your life. How much useless stuff is crammed into every available corner and taking up your valuable space, time and money? More importantly – is any of it actually making you happy? 

Courtney Carver believes that our obsessive drive to acquire more stuff complicates our lives on every level. And she is determined to change the world, one reader at a time. 

Courtney is the founder of Project 333, a minimalist wardrobe challenge that requires participants to choose just 33 items of clothing to wear exclusively for the next 3 months. You can read all about Project 333 here. Since launching her project in 2010, Courtney has been on a mission to spread awareness of her passion to readers around the world through her blog, at BeMoreWithLess.com. 

Be More With Less is all about simplifying your life to start living it to the fullest. To do so, you’ll embrace a minimalist approach when taking stock of your possessions and the way you spend your time. If you can’t honestly say that you need something, out it goes!

Courtney promises that joining her journey will help you rediscover the things that really matter. You’ll save money, have more space, create spare time and enrich each of your relationships by cutting down on the energy and resources spent acquiring and maintaining all your “stuff.”

As Courtney says, “Simplifying my life gave me the space, time and love to be more me.”

Be More With Less is updated several times a month with fresh content on a wide range of topics that all lead back to minimalism. You can check out the latest postings on the blog’s homepage or browse through the archives in any of the following categories: Clutter, Busy, Health, Money, Lifestyle, Work, Mini-missions, Project 333.

Some of the recent posts on the Be More With Less blog include: 

  • How to Quit Anything Without Feeling Like a Failure
  • Busy Boycott: Trading busyness for what you really want (+ live challenge)
  • Becoming Debt-Free: 21-day guide to help you get started
  • How to Let Go of 3 Fears that are Holding You Back Every Day
  • How to Simplify Your Life: gifts, downsizing, wardrobe, work and other good stuff
  • Journaling Prompts to Relieve Stress: 10 for Morning + 10 for Evening
  • 3 Little Lessons from Minimalist Fashion Challenge Project 333
  • 90 Days of Discipline: Why I’m Going All In and How You can Too
  • Choosing to Live with Less is a Privilege for Most of Us

Enrich your life by simplifying it. It’s that easy. 

Your Turn: Are you a fan of minimalism? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.

 

SOURCES:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/experiencelife.com/article/be-more-with-less-qa-with-courtney-carver/amp/

https://bemorewithless.com/category/money/

https://bemorewithless.com

Grilling On A Budget: A Blow-Out BBQ That Won’t Break The Bank

On By mutualcuIn Affordable EatsLeave a comment
Hosting a cookout on Labor Day weekend is an excellent way to celebrate our strong workforce. Like any other party, though, hosting a cookout can get expensive. With summer vacations and college tuition payments memories lingering, it’s an important time to save as much as possible. Here are some handy tips to make your cookout the best it can be, on a budget.
1.) Bakery outlet shopping
There are lots of great deals at a clothes outlet. Garments that are out of season or slightly imperfect find their way to discount racks to be had for pennies on the dollar. It might seem ridiculous, but there’s a system just like that for baked goods.
Commercial bakeries make the same amount of bread every day whether it sells at the supermarket or not. This leaves grocery shelves overcrowded with buns, breads, and desserts. These baked goods are perfectly fine, especially if you plan to use them in a day or two. Still, they’re pulled from grocery store shelves to make way for a fresh supply.
The “old” baked goods are often taken to a day-old bakery, where they’re sold at a significant discount. If you need a lot of hot dog buns for your cookout, this can be an excellent place to save. Don’t forget to pick up mini doughnuts and other desserts while you’re there!
2.) Plan the meal for savings
If you’re buying meat for the whole family, the costs can add up quickly. Fortunately, there are a few ways to knock the cost down a little bit. Get your family to try some new things!
If you have a very large gathering – 50 people or so – consider getting beef by the side. Prices for this vary from region to region, but costs are usually between $4 and $6 per pound. Sides usually contain about 200 pounds of meat. That will include several premium cuts of steak as well as enough hamburger to feed an army!
Alternately, you can veggie up your cookout. Asparagus, zucchini, and potatoes all do well on the grill with a little bit of olive oil, salt, and pepper. They’ll absorb some of the cooked meat juices for extra flavor. Veggies are cheap, nutritious, and filling. Plus, it’ll be something new to talk about!
You can even go a step further and offer some veggie alternatives to cookout classics. Meatless patties made of beans, spices, and rice cost half of what a similar-sized beef patty would. These are healthier, cheaper, more filling, and don’t have the same dangers of undercooking.
3.) Mix your own drinks
One of the biggest cookout expenses can be the drinks, especially if you buy individual bottles and cans. Doing so also leaves you with the unpleasant task of picking up dozens of half-empty soda and beer cans. Try this instead:
Large plastic pitchers can be used to store homemade drink concoctions. Loaded with ice and kept in a shady spot, those pitchers will keep your drinks cool for hours. Be sure to label your pitchers with their contents so no one ends up with “grown-up punch” by mistake! This is a great chance to be creative. Mix iced tea and lemonade for a big batch of Arnold Palmer, a wonderfully refreshing summer drink!
Not only will you save on costs, you’ll also save the planet. Using washable plastic cups instead of disposable Styrofoam will reduce your waste and make cleanup easier! Be the host with the most fun, not the most expenses!
Sources:

Hosting A Super ‘Big Game’ Party On A Budget

On By mutualcuIn Saving MoneyLeave a comment
Big brands are paying upwards of $5 million for 30-second Super Bowl ad slots, and the city of San Francisco is forking over $4.8 million to host weeklong festivities leading up to the big game. But when the two top NFL teams compete on Feb. 7 in Santa Clara, California, for Super Bowl 50, thankfully you’ll be shelling out considerably less than that to hold your Big Game party.
Super Bowl parties are among the most inexpensive to host. Besides the traditional chicken wings, tortilla chips and guacamole, and beer–the most important must-haves are adequate seating and a big-screen TV to watch the game.
The most widely watched sporting event of the year last year drew an estimated 184 million viewers to see winning team the New England Patriots take on the Seattle Seahawks. According to the National Retail Federation’s  Super Bowl Spending Survey , viewers spent an average of $77.88, up from $68.27 the previous year. That covered everything from game day food and new televisions to athletic wear and decorations. Food and beverages accounted for nearly 80 percent of the total of $14.3 billion in spending.
Hosting or attending a Super Bowl party in someone’s home was the most popular option. Only 5 percent of viewers opted to watch the game in a restaurant or bar, where loud noise can detract from the game-watching experience.
So if you’re planning to host a Super Bowl party for family and friends, how can you avoid going over your budget? Below are some ideas for throwing an inexpensive event that will still be fun and entertaining.
Keep It Casual
Set expectations with guests that your event will be low key and casual. After all, it’s the game (and the commercials) that will be the star of your event. Nearly half of viewers in the NRF survey say that the game itself is the most important part of the day, followed by nearly one-third saying that the most important parts for them are the commercials and hanging out with friends and family.
Stress in your invitation that you’re just hosting a casual get-together to watch the game. No fancy invitations are required: a simple email or e-vite with time, place, directions, and other details will do. And make sure you ask guests to RSVP so you’ll have an idea of how many people plan on attending. That way you’ll know how much food to buy–and won’t overspend for guests who won’t attending.
Make It a Potluck
People love sharing, and this goes double when it comes to sharing favorite dishes with family and friends. Asking each guest to bring a dish will not only create an interesting array of food and beverage offerings, it will significantly reduce your expenses.
You might say in your invitation that you’ll provide one hot main dish (such as chili or soup) and snacks (such as cheese and crackers or raw veggies and dip) so you’ll have something to serve in the very unlikely event a majority of your guests show up empty-handed. But in all probability, once you ask guests to bring something, you’ll be inundated with food and beverages.
And don’t worry about asking people to sign up to bring a specific type of dish (such as a beverage, snack, entree, or dessert). For some mysterious reason, potlucks always seem to turn out. You may be buried under an avalanche of chips, guacamole, salsa, and beer for a while–but that’s a good problem to have since you can always eat the leftovers or give leftovers to guests.
If one of your guests has a special recipe (such as spicy chicken wings or a football-shaped cake) that you think could be the star of your party, you might reach out privately and ask them to bring it. Once the teams are decided, you can ask people to use the colors of their favorite team in the food they bring (or their serving dishes) to up the fun factor.
In light of people’s food preferences (vegetarian, vegan, low-carb, low-fat) and food allergies (gluten, lactose, nuts), it’s also a good idea to ask guests to label the dishes they bring accordingly. A small card indicating the dish is vegan, vegetarian, or gluten-free, or containing nuts can go a long way to making sure your guests enjoy themselves and don’t ingest anything that won’t agree with them.
Buy in Bulk
Whatever food and beverage items you plan to supply for the party, watch for sales and try to buy in bulk. Your local retailers are gearing up for the Super Bowl and will have an abundant supply (and probable sales) on Super Bowl staples such as avocadoes, tomatoes, salsa, chips, carrots, celery, chicken, and beer.
Watch for the circulars that show up in your mailbox, and take a trip to the local supermarket to see what they have on sale. Now might be a good time to visit a big-box outlet such as Costco and take advantage of savings by buying in bulk. You can always use the party leftovers to feed your family in weeks to come.
Seating Options
You’ll want to make sure you have adequate seating for guests, but you don’t need to go overboard and rent chairs. Clear extra pillows and cushions that might reduce the seating capacity of your TV-adjacent sofa and chairs, and place them on the floor to create comfortable nearby viewing areas.
If your seating options are skimpy, don’t worry. Many people like to stand up to watch the game, freeing themselves for circulating or enthusiastic cheering when their team scores. And if you must bring in extra seating, ask a friend or family member if they can bring over a few folding chairs.
Decorations
It fun to spruce up your home with banners, balloons in team colors, or football-shaped trinkets. Definitely feel free to unleash your inner decorator for your Game Day bash. But your friends are really there for the game, and in all likelihood, they won’t remember your decor. It will be the fun they had, the nail-biting moments of the game, the moments of triumph and defeat as they watch their favorite team struggle for dominance. And thankfully, moments like that cost nothing.
If you must decorate, dig out decorations you have on hand or visit the dollar-store so you won’t break your budget. And as with everything, less is more. A strategically placed banner or a few balloons will go a long way to add a spirit of festivity to your gathering.