Thrifty Thursday

Thrifty Thursday

On Tueday I spent a beautiful day in what I call "My Happy Place"; Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  It was great to visit 5 quilt shops and have a delicious lunch.  I will be going back in a few weeks for the The AQS Quilt Show and  The Lancaster Quilt Show.  This week I will attend The Quiltfest of New Jersey.  I am sooooo glad that it is quilt show season!

Now, on to Thrifty Thursday.  Today I have five tips to save money.  Hopefully they will help in your quest to be more thrifty.

1.  Disconnect land phone line if possible.  Unless you have small children or older people to take care of, it is more than likely that you will be able to survive with only your cell phone.

We decided to switch our land line phone number to our cell phone account.  This way we have a phone number to use when we need to give a number but don't want to give out our cell numbers.  We just retrieve messages when needed.

2.  Instead of buying books, borrow books from the library.  Whenever possible, borrow your books instead of buying them.  The card to your public library is free, and the libraries are generally well stocked.

In Mercer County, NJ, the chain of public libraries is connected and the available books can be checked online.  If there is a book I can't find in my local branch, I can request online for it to be brought in from one of the other branches to mine which is very convenient.

3.  If you have to buy books, check if you can buy them used.  Used books do not quite give the same feeling as leafing through the crisp pages of a brand new book. 

But considering that you can get used books for almost as much as half the price of a new book, it is a small price to pay.  You might want to check out Amazon.com for both new and used books.

4.  Price check before buying anything expensive.  When contemplating an expensive purchase it would behoove you to do a price check before buying the item. 

  If you can wait for a while you can track the prices and grab a great deal when it comes along.  Frequently available online coupons make it even more easy to save some money.  This is especially true when purchasing any electronics.

5.  Avoid impulse buying.  Make it a habit to avoid impulse buying.  Many of the things you want to buy do not seem all that necessary, if you only wait for a day or two.  Also, waiting means you will be able to check prices and make an informed decision to buy it at the best price possible.

 Following these tips will certainly help you save a few dollars.

Words of Wisdom

Many troubles are avoided by leading a simple life.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Lancaster, Pennsylvania

Burkholders

Show & Tell Tuesday

Show & Tell Tuesday

Happy Tuesday!!!  Today I will share two quilts that I made in 2011.  These quilts were made as part of a class offered by Pennington Quilt Works.  The class was called Stash Club.  Every month we would bring fabric from home with only a hint as to what we would do with it.  During the class we received instructions to make a quilt using a specific technique.  I loved the element of surprise with these quilts.

Bubble Balls

I made this quilt using 2 charm packs that I had in my stash.  The blocks are snowball blocks and they reminded me a little of bubbles so I named it Bubble Balls.  I really like how colorful and happy it is.

The next quilt I made at Stash Club has lots and lots of flying geese blocks.

Geese Take Flight

Because of the colors I used a pumpkin fabric backing.  I named it Geese Take Flight.

That's it for today.  Hopefully I will have lots of pictures from Lancaster, PA tomorrow for Wordless Wednesday.

Words of Wisdom

Don't criticize others when you are angry with yourself

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching

Sharyn

Quilt Square Quilt Along - February

Quilt Square Quilt Along

February

Thanks, Jo, from Jo's Country Junction for this quilt-along.  I LOVE the way the blocks are turning out.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Make-A-List Monday

Make-A-List Monday

Another Monday and another list...so much to do!  Let's see how I did with last week's list:

1.  Finish quilting three Quilts for Kids and deliver.  The quilting is done but I can't deliver them until next week.  Here is a picture of one.

A "split rail" quilt for a teenage girl

2.  Finish knitting two ribbon scarves and deliver.

The scarves are done as you can see, but I still need to deliver them to my Dear Mother-in-Law.

3.  Complete backing for "Debbie's Garden" quilt and prepare binding.  Continue working on "Just Takes 2" blocks.

"Debbie's Garden" quilt is completely pieced and ready to be quilted.  Here are the "Just Takes 2" blocks I finished this week.

I'm starting to like the black background.

4.  Visit my Dear Son, JT, in Philadelphia.  What a great day this was!!!  It was so nice to see him and spend a few hours together.  Here are pictures of some of the things we did.

City Hall

Champps Restaurant

Inside Champps

Spool

Loop

Hand Dyed Yarn

5.  Work on two blocks for PQW Saturday Sampler.  Both blocks are complete.

All in all, a very productive week.  Now for this week's list:

1.  Go to Lancaster for the day.  I hope to spend a day in Lancaster, PA; one of my favorite places to visit.

2.  Attend The Quilt Fest of New Jersey in Somerset, NJ.

3.  Go to Kindred Quilts in Clinton, NJ for Saturday Sampler class.

4.  Make two Dear Jane triangle blocks.

5.  Work on TOP secret Baby Boy Hutchinson quilt. Shhhhhhh!

Well that's it for Make-A-List Monday.  It looks as if I have a lot of traveling in my plans for this week.  I hope I have time to quilt!

Words of Wisdom:

Appreciate the many things that make your life so valuable.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Sunday Soup-athon

Chicken Noodle-Vegetable Soup

• 2 cans    chicken broth (14 oz. each)
• 1 C         water
• 1 can      condensed cream of chicken soup (10.75 oz)
• 1/2 t       dried thyme, crushed
• 1/8 t       salt
• 1/8 t       black pepper
• 2            boneless chicken breasts
• 1 C         sliced carrots
• 3/4 C      chopped onion
• 1/2 C      sliced celery
• 1            bay leaf
• 2 C         dried wide egg noodles
• 1/2 C      frozen peas

1.  In a large pot combine chicken broth, water, soup, thyme, salt and pepper.  Add chicken breasts, carrots, onion, celery and bay leaf.  Bring to boiling; reduce heat.  Simmer, covered, for 30 to 40 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender.

2.  Remove chicken from pot; cool slightly.  Discard bay leaf.  Return broth mixture to boiling; add noodles and frozen peas.  Cook for 5-7 minutes or until noodles are tender, stirring occasionally.  Meanwhile, shred or chop chicken meat; stir into soup.  Heat through.

 
                    ENJOY

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Foodie Friday

Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes

• 1 1/2  pounds     ground beef
•     1    cup         chopped celery
•  1/2    cup         chopped onion
•     1    bottle      chili sauce (12 oz)
•     2    T            brown sugar
•     2    T            sweet pickle relish
•     1    T            Worcestershire sauce
•     1    t             salt
•  1/8    t             pepper
•     8                  hamburger buns, split

1.  In a large skillet, cook the beef, celery and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Transfer to a 3-quart slow cooker.

2.  Stir in the chili sauce, brown sugar, pickle relish, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper.  Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or until flavors are combined.  Spoon 1/2 cup beef mixture onto each bun.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Thrifty Thursday

Thrifty Thursday

Today for Thrifty Thursday I want to talk about just a few miscellaneous tips on avoiding unnecessary fees.  Hopefully a few of these will help save you money.

1.  Consolidate and pay off debt as soon as possible.  Money paid in interest is money thrown away!  If you carry any debt, focus on consolidating it to lower interest and paying it off as soon as possible.  Why spend your hard-earned cash to make the financial institution rich? 



2.  Pay your bills on time and avoid late fees.  Get organized about your regular bills.  If possible, automate the payments.  Most utilities and other recurring bills can be set to be charged to a credit card or deducted from a checking account these days.

Also, many banks offer free bill pay programs.  So there really is no excuse for forgetting to pay a bill on time and forking out the late fee.  Say, by chance you do forget to pay a bill, if you are a first time offender, call the company and request politely to waive the late fee, and more likely than not, they will oblige.

3.  Be aware of your bank balance to avoid overdraft fees.  If you use your checking account often or have some bills that are paid automatically from your checking account, be aware of the balance to avoid overdraft fees.

4.  Avoid ATM Fees.  Be aware of the ATM withdrawal fees charged by your bank.  While some banks waive fees for all ATM transactions on any ATM machine, most don't.  So be sure to use only those machines where your bank will not charge the fees   

5.  Avoid Credit Cards with annual fees.  Credit cards with their cash back bonuses and reward points are a great way to save some money.  Just make sure that the credit card does not charge you any annual fees.  There are plenty of cards that offer fee-free reward plans, so there really is no reason to pay the annual fees.

Following these tips should help you save a few dollars. 

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn