frugal tips – Page 4 – Luv Saving Money

The Best Sites to Find Back To School Clothes Deals

It’s about that time for back to school clothes shopping. With 4 kids, my budget for back to school shopping could easily get out of hand if I wasn’t a deal hunter. I thought I’d share the best places online to find back to school clothes deals with you. Places to find name brand clothes without paying name brand prices.

Athletic Wear Deals

My oldest son lives in athletic shorts while my middle son lives in athletic shorts and athletic pants. They love their Nike, Under Armour, Reebok, ADIDAS, and other brands. These brands can be expensive and it’s sometimes hard to find a real deal but this is stuffed full of bargains.

Proozy offers all the name brands I offered and many more. You’ll also find Northface, Columbia, Puma, Oakley, Birkenstock and lots more. This is my go-to site for athletic wear for my family. Amazing deals. I just got a 4 pack of Reebok boxer briefs for both my older boys for only $12.99 each and free shipping with code PZYSHIP which expires 8/7/19.

New to You

There is nothing wrong with gently used clothes. I buy them often, especially for myself. I’ve bought a few pair of shorts, hoodies, and even shoes from this next site. They have every day deals as low as $3 and often have coupon codes available to save even more! They even have some school uniforms available.

Schoola is an online consignment store offering clothes for kids, women, men, and more. If you’ve never shopped Schoola before, you can save 50% off your first order with code: FIRST50OFF this code does not have an expiration date.

When Name Brand Doesn’t Matter

There are plenty of clothing companies out there that aren’t name brand but still have good quality clothes. Did you know that Amazon has their own line of clothing called Amazon Essentials. You can find Amazon Essentials for boys and Amazon Essentials for girls. This includes school uniforms!

There’s also Prime Wardrobe which has a special section for back to school. You’ll be sent a box of clothes in the size and gender you choose. Keep only what you like, send the rest back.

Don’t forget that qualifying college/university students can get Amazon Prime Student for 50% off for 6 months!

The Deal Treasure Hunt

There are several sites that offer exciting deals that are every changing. Maybe they have a deal up for Under Armour but it will only last for 3 days, maybe they have a deal up Hush Puppy shoes but it ends tonight. These type of sites are typically referred to as daily deal sites.

One of my fave daily deal sites is Zulily. It’s worth checking out at least a few days a week. Right now they have deals on school uniforms, graphic shirts, back to school workbooks, and more. But the deals won’t last long.

Ebay actually has a Daily Deals section which has become one of my new favorite places to shop. I actually got my youngest son an ADIDAS shirt and hoodie that he loves. Often times they’re deals direct from the manufacturer and offer free shipping. Plus you can use PayPal to check out.

Make Your Own Deals

Cash back sites are competing for your business. While one site might offer more cash back at JC Penney, and other site might offer more cash back at Target. Where you choose to shop there’s a good chance there’s a site offering cash back for you. Stack cash back offers with coupon codes and that can lead to big savings!

Here are my fave cash back sites (they’re all free).

TopCashBack – Consistently high cash back lots of choices for payout options
Rakuten – formerly Ebates, lists coupon codes with cash back pays every 4 months if you have at least $5 in your account
BeFrugal – Deal posts and high cash back rates
Giving Assistant – allows you to donate some of your cash back to your favorite charity if you wish.

This post does contain affiliate links. I will get a small commission from sales made through my links at no extra cost to you. Any opinions expressed are my own.

Finding Scholarships for Your College Major

My oldest son is at the end of his junior year of high school. He’s been attending college fairs, he’s scheduled to take his SATs, and he knows what he wants to go to college for, and even which college. He’s looking at biology with a fisheries major. His ultimate career goal would be to work for the fish and game commission.

We found out that in Pennsylvania, there is only one school that offers this major as an undergrad program and it’s Mansfield University. I’ve asked for guidance from other parents who have recently been through the college application process (it really is overwhelming). Also doing my own searching and education has yielded some results. Of course the hope is always that maybe he’ll qualify for a some grants and/or scholarships.

If we take my son’s fishery major as an example. I started doing searches for scholarships, fisheries scholarships, and scholarships specific to Mansfield University. I was actually surprised to find several. One of which was the Ralph Abele Conservation Scholarship that includes several conservation majors in Pennsylvania including fisheries. I was able to find this buy searching the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat commission website. I also found that many colleges and university have scholarship funds set up from donations and trusts specific to the university and even majors. There are scholarships geared towards auto mechanics out there too. If fixing damaged cars is your thing, there’s scholarships out there for you.

There are scholarships that anyone can apply for but are lesser-known like the Melvin Brewing Scholarship. This scholarship is for students who are currently enrolled either full-time or part-time in a college or university. Melvin Brewing Company also does a fair amount of Philanthropy work around Jackson Hole, Wyoming and beyond.

This post is sponsored by Diamond Links.

Spring House Cleaning Tips with Powerizer Complete + Giveaway

This information is brought to you by Powerizer Complete. All opinions are my own.

**Add a few sentences about Spring Cleaning**

Between normal house cleaning and spring cleaning – you could be buying a lot of different cleaners, but now there’s 1 product that can do it all! Powerizer Complete is going to make Spring Cleaning so much easier (and more affordable). It cleans practically everything.

Laundry
Dishware
Carpet
Appliances
Bathroom
Counter Tops
Floors
Hard Surfaces
Tile & Grout
Toilet bowls
Upholstery
Walls
Cars
Garage
Patios, decks, and outdoor furniture

If you have a separate cleaner for counters, windows, bathrooms and more you are no longer going to need to spend the money to buy all these products because Powerizer Complete can do it all.

How to use Powerizer Complete For Spring House Cleaning:

In a squirt bottle for multi-purpose cleaning:

Mix a ½ scoop of Powerizer Complete with 16 oz to 1 gallon of warm water to hot water in a spray bottle, squeeze bottle, dishpan or fill the sink and use a cloth with the solution to wash off the counters. I plan to add this mixture to a bucket and go around my home cleaning off the walls, baseboards, stair railings and more!

Remove Hard Water & Soap Scum From The Shower:

In the shower, it eliminates the hard water spots, film, and soap scum. I just sprinkle it on the stains and add a little water to make a paste. I let it sit for a few minutes, and I scrub it away with a microfiber cloth. A simple paste is all I need to get my showers clean!

In The Kitchen:

Replaces your dishwasher detergent, rinse aid, and machine cleaner. Just use a scoop to clean off caked-on foods, leaving your dishes and glasses sparkling clean and residue free, even if you have hard water.

Laundry

One product is all you need for clean whites, colors, linens, towels, rugs, delicates, and heavyweight fabrics.
This will also clean your washing machine so no need for a separate cleaner.
No need for pre-treaters, bleaches, or softeners.

There isn’t much that Powerizer Complete can’t do! Plus it’s affordable – especially since it is going to replace all your other cleaners!

About Powerizer Complete:

Powerizer is a Complete all-in-one cleaner and detergent that effectively cleans your laundry, dishes, carpets, and every surface of your home, inside and out.

Powerizer uses a Concentrated formula for powerful cleaning with just one small scoop.

Powerizer is the only product on the market that offers the Convenience of one product for all your cleaning needs. Bleach, softener, color booster, stain remover, dryer sheets, dish detergent, all-purpose cleaner, toilet and shower cleaner, window cleaner… leave them all on grocery store shelves from now on.

Powerizer helps you Conserve money and the environment. Powerizer is made from all natural biodegradable ingredients, and free of heavy perfumes and other damaging additives. So, you can reduce your monthly spend on cleaning products and the risks associated with harmful chemical usage and disposal.

It’s great for people with sensitive skin and it is septic safe! No phosphates, dyes, or fillers – just an awesome cleaner! Simplify your cleaning and save with Powerizer!

I’ve used Powerizer myself for cleaning countertops, used in the dishwasher and in my laundry. I love that it’s multipurpose!

Use code SPRINGSYD to save 15% off Powerizer Complete!

Here are some more tips:

Giveaway Details:

Enter to win a 6.5lb bag of Powerizer!
Open to US Residents
Giveaway Ends 4/25/19 at 1159pm EST

Entry -Form

FREE S.T.E.A.M Events This Week At Michaels!

My kids and I have attended the free classes on Saturdays at few times. It’s definitely something fun to do with the kids that doesn’t cost anything.

This week from Sunday 3/10 – Saturday 3/16 there is a free S.T.E.A.M event for kids 3+ years of age each day! You can check out what each days activities are here:

My kids love slime so I know they’d love the pink of slime event. I’m going to try to get them to at least a few of these events! It’s free!

This post does contain affiliate links. I will get a small percentage if purchases are made through the link at no extra cost to you.

8 Ways To Save Money When Planning Your Wedding with Lance Advisors

If you’re planning a wedding you know how many expenses there are. It seems like nothing comes cheap and it’s more expensive that was originally figured. Some expenses usually incurred with a traditional wedding are:

wedding decorations
caterer
flowers
DJ
photographer
bridesmaid/groomsmen gifts
wedding dress
bridal party outfits
rehearsal dinner
and more

While there are some things that shouldn’t really be skimped on I have lots of ideas to save money on items throughout your wedding. Lance Advisors actually has a blog post about setting up checking and savings accounts before marriage too to help get your marriage off on the right financial foot.

While lots of people dream about their perfect wedding sometimes it’s better to scale back on the dream than to go into debt because a horse drawn carriage completed the dream. After all, money problems are one of the leading causes of marital issues.

Trim The Guest List

This one is pretty obvious. If you have 50 people at your wedding rather than 500 there’s only 50 people to pay for meals, you can go with a smaller venue, less alcohol, etc. Not to mention the smaller things that add up like needing less invitations, less stamps to send them out, etc.

Wedding Cake Alternatives

Have you priced out wedding cakes recently? I mean seriously, they’re expensive for something not everyone is going to eat. There are lots of great alternatives to traditional wedding cakes that can be more budget friendly. Here are just a few ideas:

cupcakes: you can even get cute wrappers to match your wedding. You can make different flavors, and even gluten free or sugar free options if needed. Easier to transport. Get the bridesmaids together along with the parents and soon-to-be-in-laws and have a cupcake baking party. Borrow cupcake tours or find them in thrifts stores or get ones from party supply stores like Oriental Trading.
Donuts: Who doesn’t love a donut? Order ahead from Dunkin Donuts or Krispy Kreme and have someone pick them up or ask if they would deliver for a larger order. Still cheaper than a wedding cake! You can stack them neatly or see if your venue has towers you can use.
Rice Krispy Treats: You could easily mold rice Krispy treats into any shape you want. You can do one shaped like a small cake and have separate one that guest can easily grab. They even have gluten-free Rice Krispies available.
Fruit or cheese towers: This is something I’ve been seeing more and more of. People trying to be healthy so they have “cakes” made from watermelons decorated with grape cluster, pineapple rings, and more. Cheese wheels too thought depending on the cheese, it might not be any cheaper than a wedding cake.
Martha Stewart Living has an awesome alternative wedding cake idea slide show with pictures to show you just how nice they can look including items like waffles, crepes, ice cream and more!

Hall? We Don’t Need No Stinking Hall!

So yes, depending on what time of year your wedding is you may still need a hall. But for those with late spring, summer, or early fall weddings…depending on your area you can consider a picnic instead.

Lots of local parks and recreational areas have pavilions that can be rented more reasonably than a hall. Even if you have a lot of people they can spread out and it won’t seem as crowded.

If you’re lucky enough to have a close family member with a nice sized yard and parking available you can ask them. My sister rented a couple pop-up tents and had her reception in my parents’ back yard. They just had a speaker for some music.

Intimate Service, Bigger Reception

So you want people to share in the big day but you need to cut costs somewhere. Consider just having a small, intimate service with immediate family and then invite who you want to invite to the reception. In this way, you don’t feel the need to go all out with flowers, bridal party, etc.

Alternatives to Fresh Flowers

Fresh Flowers can also be expensive and end up getting thrown out most of the time.

This is another popular trend. Instead of carrying flowers brides are opting to to carry other items along with their bridal party. In my wedding only I had a bouquet while my bridesmaids carried votive candles in jars. The were extinguished once they got to the alter.

I had a cousin that made her own silk flowers for her bouquet and bridesmaids.

Bridesmaids can carry a small basket with silk flowers, parasols, light-up items. clutches, or whatever may go with the theme of your wedding. BridalGuide.com has a fun slide show of bridesmaid bouquet alternatives.

You’ll Be Amazed Where You Can Find Decorations!

There are lots of sources to find decorations for your reception, shower, and more.

Thrift Stores
Buyout and Surplus Stores
Borrow from family and friends
Marketplace and yard sale groups on facebook
Consignment sales
Dollar Stores
Yard Sales and Garage Sales
If you rent a hall ask if they have decorations that can be used
lots more

Skip The Formalities and Invest/Save

So this is another obvious one but you’ll often here “In the end the details don’t matter all that matter is that you love each other” In reality all you “need” is each other, a marriage certificate, and someone to marry you.

When my current husband and I got married we did talk about an actual wedding because he had never been married before. Some circumstances changed and we ended up getting married by a JP in a small court room in our small town. We had a dinner at a local restaurant, and THE END. We chose to save our money toward buying a house instead. Talking to a financial advisor like Lance Advisors can even help you plan for your financial future together.

I could not believe how much less stress my wedding to my current husband was because we didn’t have to coordinate near as much, the financial cost was minimal, and we just had immediate family so no family drama or guest list stress.

Saving Money On a Wedding Dress

This can be another huge expense. Some dresses can cost $10K or more. But even $500 is a lot of money. You can find wedding dresses in thrifts stores, formal wear consignment sales, use a dress from the family and just have it altered, or just buy a nice dress you really like at the mall. I bought a short white lacy dress from a department store for my JP wedding and I got lots of compliments on it.

This post is sponsored. Any opinions expressed are my own.