Ruffle Me Up [Old Navy: Colma]

I don't say this about many things, but I definitely am my mother's daughter when it comes to shopping.  She loves to shop and goes almost every weekend.  This time she and I went with my grandma in tow as well.  We drove about 30 mins south of the City to the small town of Colma, known for shopping centers, car dealerships, and cemeteries.  (Lovely, I know.)

We made a quick stop at Old Navy in the 280 Metro Center so I could exchange some jeans, but of course I couldn't help making a short detour to the Clearance section, just to browse.  One of the first things that caught my eye was this ruffle collar, wool-blend coat:

Stock photo:
(clearly much more purple than the real thing)

I'm a pretty avid Old Navy shopper, so I knew this coat had been part of their winter line and had, on numerous occasions, been 50% off in stores over the past few months.  With the tag showing the original price of $69.50 and no clearance sticker in sight, I brought it to the register with me to get a price check.

It rang up as $45.99, which I was NOT willing to pay, but the girl behind the register said she was pretty sure the coat should be on clearance and sweetly offered to check with the manager for me.  The manager came around, thought for a second, and said, "I could do it for $19.99."

To be honest, the stingy side of me wasn't all that impressed with $19.99 but I bought it anyway since (1) Old Navy has a good long return policy (90 days for full refund or exchanges) and (2) I had a gift card, so only paid about $6 out of pocket.

The coat fits well at the shoulders and sleeves, but otherwise is pretty loose.  I tried on an XS in a different style and the body fit me perfectly but the shoulders were too tight (grrr at my disproportionate body).  Also, this coat is only about 60% wool so I'm not sure how warm it will be.  But the rich royal blue color is pretty, and I do have a weakness for jackets and coats, so I'm a bit torn.  Should I keep it?

[EXPIRED] Free Song: "Life Is Sweeter" by The Afters

Until Tuesday, one of two free tracks from Walmart is "Life Is Sweeter" by the Christian band The Afters.  Click here and look for Track 6, which should say FREE next to it:

(click to enlarge)

To download the song for free, you'll need to sign into your Walmart.com account (or create a free account if you don't have one already).

I got this song a while ago from a different source but it's been in my iPod ever since.  It's a really catchy tune!

Three Free Modern Hymns

Modern hymn writers Keith and Kristyn Getty are offering 3 free songs for download.  Here's some of what they had to say about each song:

1. Behold the Lamb (Communion Hymn)

The “Communion Hymn” is a song we wrote for congregations to use during communion. The opening verse prepares us for what is to come, while the following two verses focus on the bread and the wine. The final verse is meant to be used during the time of response at the closing of a service.

2. The Power of the Cross

The hymn is essentially about the suffering of Christ. Through use of visual imagery, it asks us to consider some of the horrors the Lord endured on our behalf.

In addition to realizing the suffering Christ endured, the song also helps us understand what it means for Christ to "bear the weight of our sin"—to bring about our forgiveness.

3. Come, People of the Risen King

“Come People of the Risen King” is a call to worship, intended to unite our hearts in praise of the One who saved us and who invites us to come and rejoice in him. 

The Lazy Chef

When I first started my current job—right out of college—I thought it was a boon to have a Safeway within walking distance.  I could grab a $5 sandwich for lunch everyday: what a steal!

Then my dad showed me that paying $5 for lunch every day is ridiculous...

$5 per day x 5 days per week x 4 weeks per month
=
$100 per month just for lunches at work!

N-to-the-O on that.

So I bring my work to lunch almost every day.  Mostly I eat leftovers from dinner, but if my fridge is empty then I resort to frozen food.

Not those nasty TV-dinner-type frozen meals.  Homemade frozen food, a.k.a. Freezer Cooking!

Freezer cooking saves money by providing a cheap alternative to eating out.  For me there are plenty of times where I only eat out because I'm too lazy, tired, or busy to bother with making myself a meal from scratch.  When you eat out, you are paying for the convenience of someone else cooking for you.  With freezer cooking, you get the same convenience of having someone cook for you because you already cooked for yourself! :)

How to Freezer Cook:

1. Make a big batch of food you like to eat.

2. Divide it into smaller portions.

3. Stick the portions in the freezer.
4. When you can't or don't want to cook and don't want to pay to eat out, take a portion out of the freezer and let it thaw (or zap it in the microwave).
5. Eat your yummy and cheap meal!

I've done this a few times with great success on one of my go-to meals, what I call "Bacon Pasta."  The ingredients are bacon, penne pasta, spinach (I sometimes substitute zucchini), garlic, and canned diced tomatoes.  The recipe can be found here and is very easy to make.  (If you ever attend a potluck with me, chances are you will eat this dish.)

Drool

Once I've made the huge batch of pasta, I let it cool and then cram as much as I can into single-serving sized plastic containers.

 Two pounds of pasta (the bowl on the left did not go in the freezer; that was my dinner!)

Then I write the date on a piece of masking tape, attach it to each lid, and secure each container with rubber bands.

 

These pics are old so don't worry—I do not have this batch from September still in my freezer!

I've found that it takes me about 2 months to go through the amount of food pictured above so I have yet to test the limits of how long these frozen meals last in the freezer without going bad, but here is a list of foods that freeze well (plus some that don't).

Bon appetit!

Stinky Feet Fix

(image credit: kiwikewlio)

 If you

• like wearing ballet flats
• like wearing flats without tights, stockings, pantyhose, or socks on
• experience sweaty feet when wearing flats barefoot
• have stinky shoes from wearing flats barefoot

then I have a solution for you!!

Hidden cotton liners save you money by keeping your flats in good(-smelling) condition for a longer period of time, so you won't need to buy replacements as quickly.  They also save you from buying an endless supply of products to deodorize your feet or shoes to little or no avail.

All of the bullet-points above apply to yours truly, but then I came across these hidden cotton liners by Hue. They are FABULOUS and only cost $2.99 a pair from Ross!

 

 

Reasons why Hue cotton liners are awesome:

1. They are made of cotton, so they let your feet breathe and also absorb moisture better than synthetic fabrics.

2. They are machine washable. I even stick mine in the dryer and have had no problems with the durability over the past year.

3. They have a gel pad at the heel to prevent the liners from slipping off (a HUGE plus).

4. They are low-cut so they won't show with most flats.

5. They come in a nude color and in black to help blend in with your feet or shoes.

6. They come in 2 sizes: S/M (fits shoe sizes 4-7) and M/L (fits shoe sizes 7-10).  I wear a size 5.5-6 so I have the S/M and they fit fine.

Even better, it looks like hidden cotton liners are being made by other brands so you now have a few different styles, cuts, and colors to choose from.  I may need to try these next time I'm at Kohl's—extra low-cut and even cheaper per pair!

Be Like the Ant [Old Navy: San Francisco]

Do you know the fable about the ant and the grasshopper?  My dad used to tell this to my sister and me as a bedtime story all the time. Basically the ant stores up food for himself when times are good while the grasshopper doesn't worry about the future and laughs at the ant instead.  Then winter comes and the ant is fat and happy and the grasshopper is dying of starvation...

So what does this have to do with saving money in the city?  Like the ant, a smart saver in the city needs to think ahead and prepare for what's to come--specifically when it comes to clothing and how the changing seasons necessitate a changing wardrobe.

When stores are getting ready to sell clothes for the new season, they also need to unload the previous season's merch.  And that means SALES!

Last September, on the cusp of fall, the big Old Navy in downtown SF had some crazy sales on their clearance section. At the time the clearance section largely consisted of summer clothes. The first week I went, all the clearance items were Buy One, Get One Free.  Sweet!  I bought 2 tanks, 2 shorts, and 2 sports bras for around $25.  Can't get much better, right?

WRONG.  The following week, the clearance section was all an extra 50% off instead!  It sounds like the same promotion but the BOGO is actually not as good a deal because it requires you to buy 2 things to get the lower price, which may result in unnecessary purchases.

This brings me to Lesson #1: Buying clothes out of season can save a LOT of $$$.

As far as I know Old Navy doesn't do price adjustments, so I re-bought the same pieces plus a few more.  Here was my haul:

Camper shirt with buttoned roll-up sleeves

Clearance price: $9.49

Final price (extra 50% off): $4.74

Stretch cotton sateen skirt 

(I bought these in 3 colors: olive green, gray, and black)

Clearance price: $7.49

Final price (extra 50% off): $3.74

Sports bras

Clearance price: $4.99 each

Final price (extra 50% off): $2.49 each

 

White cotton cardigan

Clearance price: $9.49

Final price (extra 50% off): $4.74

Denim pencil skirt

Clearance price: $6.99

Final price (extra 50% off): $3.49

Embellished striped cardigan

Clearance price: $9.99

Final price (extra 50% off): $4.99

Bermuda shorts

(I bought these in 3 colors: gray, khaki, and brown)

Clearance price: $7.49

Final price (extra 50% off): $3.74

Embellished racerback tank

(I bought these in 2 colors: black and white)

Clearance price: $4.99

Final price (extra 50% off): $2.49

Lounge pants

Clearance price: $6.49

Final price (extra 50% off): $3.24

I couldn't believe that every single piece was under $5.00!  And you can see that I mostly bought basics that can be mixed-and-matched easily to create many different outfits.

Lesson #2: It's possible to buy NEW clothes at dirt cheap prices--even cheaper than used clothes at some thrift stores!

So I hope as winter ends and spring begins that you'll have a chance to stock up on scarves, coats, and sweaters at cheap prices!  In 6 months you'll be glad you did :)