$30 Date Night Challenge: 12 Ideas
Last week, on June 10th, officially marked 12 years since my husband and I first went on our first date and shared our first kiss. Now that…
The Simple Pleasure of Snail Mail
As connected as we are on a daily basis, thanks to email and Facebook and texting and Skype, there still is nothing quite like the sensation of receiving a handwritten letter or care package in the “snail mail.”
Sew Nice: The DIY Bespoke Clothing Comeback
A very curious thing is happening in attics across America. People are going into the far, dusty corners of their basements, crawlspaces, and their grandmother’s closets to pull out….sewing machines.
Money Morality & Low-Income Friends
I’ve been feeling generous towards a low-income friend lately. Not that he needs any help, but I am able to give it. I’m not interested in giving this friend a loan, but I’m considering subsidizing various activities with him, like picking up the lunch tab or treating him to a movie.
Have Her Over for Dinner: 3-Course Meal Under $30
Matt Moore is the type of guy whose friends turn to him when they’re clueless in the kitchen, blowing up his phone and his inbox with pleas born of date night distress.
8 Ways to Say I Love You Without Saying a Word
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: make the most of the recession by focusing on your relationships, with help from these eight tips for saying “I love you” without saying a word from Hitched Magazine.
Recession Confessions: Behind the Headlines
To paraphrase Carrie Bradshaw, what are your “secret budget behaviors?” Romi Lassally, founder of TruuConfessions.com, takes the pulse of the population each month in her new column exclusively for Shoestring: Recession Confessions.
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Family Finances: Aging Relatives
Grams and gramps, mom and dad—if you have elderly relatives living on their own, or “aging in place” as they say, they may need your help to survive this recession financially. Follow these expert tips, as reported by the Associated Press, to get the conversation and the savings underway.
Dream Weddings in the Downturn
Tough times offer some a chance to embrace their inner tightwad and, in select cases, toss a little scorn at the $60 billion industry that bridal bloggers sometimes refer to as the “wedding industrial complex,” as the AP reports in this feature story on the state of dream Weddings in the economic downturn.
Top 10 Places to Elope
Every couple thinks about eloping at least once during the wedding planning process, but many more are considering it as a viable and cost-conscious option these days, as the price of an average wedding soars past $25K. Forgo frills, formality, and hurt feelings by sending your nuptials down the fun and frugal route at one of these 10 top destinations, as picked by Tango.