Blog

Shop Your Closet & Save Money

Posted on by kaitlyntessmer

In 1930 the average American woman owned 9 outfits. Today, that number has increased to 30 outfits. And yet, how is it that we women can have a closet full of clothes but never have anything to wear? Today I’m going to show you how to shop your closet to save money and never again say “I have nothing to wear.”

Organize your Closet

First things first, you need to organize your closet. That means taking out all of your clothes, shoes, bags, and anything else that’s hiding in there. By taking everything out you will be able to thoroughly clean out your closet. Once it is empty and wiped down, come up with a plan for how you would like it organized. I prefer to organize mine by type: Dresses together, shirts together, jackets together, and pants together. Then within each type, I organize by color. For example, all of my little black dresses are together and next to my gray dresses which are next to my white dresses. This makes it easy to see what my options are, it also helps to make your closet look put together.

Out of season = Out of closet

When you go through your closet, get rid of all of your clothes that are not in season. If it’s summer, pack up all of your winter hats and coats until you will need them. This will free up a lot of space in your closet and not only to help declutter the physical space, but also space in your mind so that you can plan out unique outfit combinations.

Keep your shoe boxes

Before you go and throw everything away, stop and save your old shoe boxes! They are a great way to store shoes that you rarely wear or small things like scarves, gloves, and chunky necklaces. This is an easy way to keep everything neat and organized in your closet.

Choosing Outfits

Choosing unique outfits is essential when you’re looking to mix up your wardrobe by shopping your closet.

Layer, layer, layer

Layering can take your outfit from drab to fab. You can easily transform an outfit by pairing it with a different jacket or sweater. Is is starting to get just a bit too chilly for skirts and dresses? Add a pair of tights and you have a totally new outfit.

A selfie a day keeps the credit card at bay

Start documenting your outfits. Take the selfie challenge and document your outfits every day for a month. Humans are creatures of habit which mean we tend to gravitate towards pieces of clothing we like, and we wear them often. Taking a photo of your outfit each day will make you more conscious of your choices and also show you what looks you like to repeat.

Flip your hangers

One of my greatest tips, that I talk about in the video above is flipping your hangers. After you’ve worn an item of clothing, flip your hanger backward. This is a visual cue which slows you down when you’re tired and on autopilot in the morning. Plus, at the end of the year, you’ll know which items of clothing you haven’t touched and you can sell or donate them to a good cause.

Reading Every Day

Posted on by kaitlyntessmer

Investing in yourself is a surefire way to help you boost your income and job security. This habit will put you in the top 1% of earners in your field within 3 years. Within 5 years you’ll be one of the most influential authorities in the nation. And in 7 years? You’ll be one of the best in the world in your field of study.

Why Read

The fact of the matter is that most Americans, just don’t read. When was the last time you picked up a book and just sat down and flipped through the pages, can you even remember that far back? Most people stop reading when it ceases to be required, i.e. after they finish school. Because of this 25% of people have not read a single book in the last year. And 46% of adults score in the lowest 2 levels of literacy.

What to Read

You can read anything, read books, e-books, newsletters, scholarly articles, journals, magazines, you name it. Naturally, the more you read the faster you will become, but the real purpose is to gain knowledge. That’s why it doesn’t matter whether you read books or e-books, the more important thing is if you’re reading quality content.

Read 500 books a Decade

Let that sink in. Right now, could you even name 500 books? Reading an hour a day equates to about 1 book per week which translates to just under 50 books a year, a decade later you will have read 500 books. That’s a lot of knowledge on a specific topic.

How to Read 1 Book per Week

The average commute time in America is just under 30 minutes each way. If you spent your commute listening to an audio book instead of the morning recap of celebrity gossip, how much smarter do you think you would be after 2 months?

According to the Wall Street Journal, the average American spends over 5 hours a day on “leisure” activities which include watching TV, working out, socializing, spending time browsing your smartphone. What if you spent your lunch hour reading a book to better your career? You would probably be less self-conscience since you’re not spending that hour looking at photoshopped images of unrealistic expectations. But how much faster do you think you would get a promotion?

 Be Exceptional

The average American reads 5 books a year. That’s less than a book every 2 months. If you start by reading 1 book every month you will be an exceptional minority. In fact, reading correlates to wealth, just look at how many books Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg read every year.

Get Started Now

Get started now, go to your local library, or check out Amazon’s great Kindle selection (which offers affordable and often free eBooks), pick up a nonfiction book of interest and read. Take an hour out of your busy day to just sit and read. As with anything new, the practice will likely be difficult to begin. However, after the first month or two, it will probably become second nature and you will begin reading faster which means absorbing more knowledge.

Grocery Store Savings

Posted on by kaitlyntessmer

Did you know that you can easily save money at the grocery store without dumpster diving for coupons (any Extreme Couponing fans out there?!) I’ve found an easy way to save money at the grocery store without the hassle of clipping coupons. Check out my tips below.

4 Ways to Always Save Money at the Grocery Store

Grocery Coupon Apps

I mentioned you wouldn’t have to dumpster dive or pull out the scissors so here me out on this one. There are so many apps out there to help you save money at the grocery store. My personal favorite is your own grocery store’s app. I typically shop at Sprouts, Safeway, and Grocery Outlet. Both Sprouts and Safeway have free apps that you can download to your phone to electronically find and clip coupons. Plus, you’re able to see their weekly ad flyers on the app, which will help you see what is on sale that week. Ibotta is another great app, you can earn money back from things you regularly purchase. You have to answer a few market research questions before you can electronically clip coupons, but the money you will save is worth the 10 seconds it takes you to answer the questions.

Shop the Perimeter of the Grocery Store

We’ve all heard dietitians tell us to shop the perimeter of the store, but did you know that not only will not buying junk food shrink your waist, but it will also shrink your grocery bill. Ever wonder why you have to walk through the entire grocery store just to grab a gallon of milk or a package of chicken? Junk food often has the highest markup, which means grocers strategically place it throughout the store. That gum and those candy bars you often grab when you’re at the register are some of the worst deals in the entire store!

Choose Generic

I know what you’re thinking, Cheetos, and Cheese Curls aren’t quite the same thing, and there’s something special about the brand name. I agree. However, there are a lot of items in which the generic and the brand name taste exactly the same. For any of your staples, i.e., beans, rice, pasta, the generic tastes exactly the same as the brand name. I’ve never heard anyone say that they can taste a difference amongst pasta brands.

Stop Buying Toiletries

I get it, paying an extra dollar or two for your shampoo and toothpaste doesn’t seem like a huge deal when you’re at the grocery store. After all, you’re paying for convenience, right? Wrong. Habits make or break a budget. While spending an extra dollar here and there may not seem like a big deal, that adds up when you’re a hundred dollars over budget. The best place to purchase your toiletries is at the drugstore. It may cost you an extra 5 minutes to run over to your nearest Walgreens, but you’ll gain peace of mind knowing you’re building money-saving habits.

Frugal Take-Aways

It’s easy to save money at the grocery store. There’s no reason you can’t cut your grocery bill in half by planning what you’re going to eat that week and sticking to meat and produce. By staying away from the center aisles and grocery store traps, you can easily keep money in your wallet.

Budgeting 101 – How to Create a Budget

Posted on by kaitlyntessmer

I think it’s safe to say no one likes to hear the B word, budgeting. In fact, when I tell people they need to create a budget 9 times out of 10 they let out a big sigh. But creating a budget is the first step towards generating wealth and becoming free and living life on your terms. Everyone needs a budget, you need a budget, I need a budget, even Congress needs a budget (although Congress balances a budget is a topic for another post), a budget is a planning tool. While a budget is an essential part of living a financially free life a lot of people are wary and wonder, “How do I create a budget”.

Budget Basics

Creating a budget doesn’t have to be difficult. In fact, once you create your budget you can easily replicate it month after month. To start your budget preparation, begin tracking your monthly expenses, this will give you a baseline for how much you are spending on food, entertainment, and miscellaneous. Fortunately, things like rent, utilities, insurance, and debt are typically fixed costs which mean they don’t vary every month.

Budgeting Tips

For more budgeting tips including, how to create a budget, check out the video above. In it, I describe how I create my monthly budget which only takes me 5 minutes at the beginning of every month. A new trend in budgeting is to create both an annual budget and a monthly budget. The annual budget will help you prepare for things like birthdays, anniversaries, vacations, etc. The monthly budget will help you stay on track and not overspend on little things, that quickly add up.

Budgeting Apps

Several budgeting apps exist, the most well-known budgeting app is Mint. Mint makes it easy to budget because you link it to your bank account and viola! Your spending will automatically be tracked within the Mint app and since it is on your smartphone, you can easily access it anywhere you go. My personal favorite is the EveryDollar app, it was created by the well-known financial expert, Dave Ramsey. With the premium version, you can link it to your bank account, but I prefer the free version. With the free version, you have to manually enter in every transaction.