Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Retail Therapy - Day 23

With the current halting to my spending, which I haven’t been very good at, I have resigned myself to using only gift cards and gift certificates for my need to buy things. For Christmas and my birthday, I received an abundance of gift cards for Dots, HomeGoods, Joanne Fabrics and bookstores, as well as certificates to restaurants and on-line vendors. I stashed them away. I hate blowing my load all at one time.
So I thought these would be great reward pieces for me completing my tasks. These are the tasks I listed as goals for the year – one being to spend less money.
It all started out well with my Amazon gift certificate from Heidi and Paul. I received these books yesterday. It is hard to top the thrill of coming home from work with a package waiting for me on my doorstep. The best is when I forget I ordered anything and then it is a surprise.
Thank you Heidi and Paul and the gang for these new books. Craftivity is a great addition to my collection of artsy craftsy books. This one was actually a hit at work where I saw it on a co-worker’s desk and perused the pages almost drooling. I was so excited not just by the suggested crafts, but from what it inspired in my mind. Confession time: I don’t need any more suggestions for my time or tasks to start and not finish for months, but I wanted it. I particularly was drawn to the knitting and crochet projects, as well as to the glass and metal. I would love to make the cool chandelier and the mosaic tiles. Since Ronn has tools like saws and cutters and such, I don’t even have to spend a lot. I also particularly liked the sewing project of making panties out of T-shirts. Anyone interested in a pair of John Kerry underwear???

So I feel better, retail therapy is done and I only spent $3.
Of course I went and ruined this relief to my finances by using one of my restaurant gift certificates and spending a crapload on dinner. I did save $25, but it still cost more than I had planned. It was the extra sushi roll and the sakitini – which wasn’t that great to begin with. Oh well, now I am poor again and no spending for me. Not even the dollar or two for yarn at Big Lots. I am cut off – really cut off. And I will be punished. No going out for me for the rest of the month, or for the next two weeks (that is more do-able). I have my freelance to keep me busy, innumerable knitting projects and of course my books to read. You never know, Ronn may like the naughty stories, and that is always free.

3 comments:

christine said...

Craft and erotica....hmmm definitely at each end of the spectrum....or not. I love craft books too but I can never seem to get them. Alas Amazon is just dream I get to fulfill every once in a while on summer vacations. I get ideas off the internet which is a great resource.

This year I´m going to do a handmade Christmas which I think will be fun. I´m starting this summer in fact and hoping to inspire other friends to do it too. I´ll fill a box for each person s-l-o-w-l-y with handmmade and thrifted things and in November mail it on out. I think it will be fun and what fun to open all these funky things! I love antiquing so I´ll scan antique shops and of course I´ll make a few things.

Patricia said...

That's a great idea - I may borrow it! So far I have been working on things for people's b-days. I even found a pattern for knitted beer cozies - not sure how well it works, but it looks like fun. Plus with cleaning out 20 years of junk, I have found trinkets to share with others - a hand-me-down. Just so long as the funds are not squelched for any extravagance.

christine said...

Doesn't it sound like fun. I´m just doing the boxes for a few people--some friends and my mom and sister. It´s 5 or 6 people that´s all. I´m even going to try to make the wrapping paper out of watercolor paper. I have lots of ideas for making everything --mysterious.--

Everyone is getting handmade though. For my mil it´s going to be an apron-smock because I know she'll use it alot. She´d never get the box of thrifted things idea though. She'd be more apt to think I was being cheap than creative! I think she´d be insulted. For the niece and nephew they will get a handmade art bag with their initials or animal motif sewn on it and chocked full of fun art supplies (glitter glue, etc). I jot down handmade present ideas in my notebook when I see them.

The only snag in the handmade plan is MEN. What do you handmake or-thrift for men??