Sale Adjustments

I just made back $7 by making a 30 second phone call!  How?  Sale adjustment to the rescue!!!

'Caitlin' Chevron Knit Throw, Plum

It's just my luck that a blanket I bought on sale would get even further discounted not even 2 weeks after my purchase!  Well, it turns out that Nordstrom has a "Sale Adjustment" price policy {here} that saved the day!  I made a quick call to their Customer Service Line and was off the phone in less than a minute with $7 credited back to me.  Now that's what I call efficient customer service!  :)

The funny thing about great customer service is that it's a relatively inexpensive way for a company to encourage its customers to support the company, and increase sales!  For example, I just took a couple minutes to post a very positive product review online {which I don't often remember to do}, I'll definitely considering buying from Nordstrom again in the future, and now I'm telling my readers about my great experience... all because of a 30 second positive experience!  I guess it's true what they say: creating great customer experiences is the best kind of marketing strategy!

Seasonal Steals

Like many of you out there, I just LOVE me a good deal.  That's one {of many!} reasons why I get excited about the changing seasons -- it's a great opportunity to score big savings on seasonal items.  Here are a couple examples:

This pair of leather boots retails for $250 at macys.com, but I got myself a pair in February for only $80.99!  {WOWZERS, that's 68% off!}

Enzo Angiolini Gregie Tall Boots

And, for those outfits that work better with a short boot, I picked these up from Shoebuy for only $23.99 {regularly $89.95, that's 74% off}!

A2 by Aerosoles Playaway in Faux Suede

Unfortunately, although it's mid-March it's still freezing in NY so I've gotten some good use out of my new boots, even though I bought them late in the season!  I've also gotten a lot of use from the new down coat I treated myself to...

Patagonia Down With It Parka in Prussian Blue

I wouldn't consider this a super bargain, but it was on sale for 40% off on Zappos and I just LOVE the color!  Considering I got 7 great years of use from my other down coat {the white one seen here} and the forecast is calling for yet another snow fall this weekend, I'm sure I'll get my money's worth out of this pretty blue coat.  ;)

And finally, here's a pair of sunglasses that retail for $159, which I scored for only $19.99 {87% off} through an online sale website called Smart Bargains.

Oleg Cassini Sunglasses

... although at this point summer sun is a very distant dream.  Yes, I've been quite the shopper this winter.  What can I say -- some people eat their way through winter; I shop through it.  ;)

So tell me, what seasonal steals have you scored???  I love celebrating a good bargain, so please do share!!!

Cool Customers

{Disclaimer: This post is very delayed, but better late than never!}

This summer, Shep and I officially became "Cool Customers".  How, you ask?  Let me tell you!...

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Our electricity provider, PSE&G, has a program called the Cool Customer Program.  The gist of it is that customers who enroll get a new fancy shmancy programmable thermostat installed free of charge AND a $50 statement credit.  Once you're enrolled, PSE&G has the ability to cycle your air conditioning compressor in order to minimize the impact of high energy demand on the electric system.  This is especially important to them in summer when temperatures soar and ACs roar, because the cycling ability allows them the opportunity to avoid blackouts.

Shep wanted to join the program for the free thermostat (he's been wanting to buy a new one since we moved in!); I liked the idea of $50 worth of free electricity (to help counteract my darling hubby's hobby of turning on, and leaving on, every light in the apartment).  But, the program seemed a little "big brother"ish to me.  I like being in control of my own home's temperature, thank you very much!  Plus, we didn't really need new thermostats; we already had programmable ones!  Shep's curiosity took charge so he called PSE&G and spoke with a service rep, who explained that it would be a rare occurrence (and pretty dire circumstance) for them to actually exercise their ability to cycle the system.  That put Shep at ease, but I still wasn't buying it.  So, I asked around at work and did a few minutes of online research to perform a quick cost/benefit analysis.  Before signing up, I wanted to ensure the pros of the program outweighed any potential cons.  Lucky for me, a couple of colleagues of mine had joined the program the previous year and confirmed that PSE&G had never to date adjusted their AC cycles.  This made me a lot more comfortable, so we took the plunge.  Well, to our delight we received TWO free programmable thermostats (which were installed very quickly and painlessly by a PSE&G representative) and a $100 statement credit, because we have 2 HVAC units in our condo.  Woohoo!  Double the benefits and no additional risk... that's my kind of offer!  ;)  Oh, and as expected, we didn't experience any compressor cycling at all throughout the summer.

In summary, I'd definitely recommend the program to anyone out there considering it!  As far as we can see, there's nothing to lose by trying it out!

Do any readers out there have any experience with a "Cool Customer" program?  I'm curious to hear about other power companies out there that have similar programs, so do share!

{I was not asked or encouraged by PSE&G to write this post; the views are my own and I'm voluntarily sharing them.}

Yard Sale!

Last weekend, we had a yard sale at my mom's house.  We originally hoped to have the sale at the beginning or end of summer, but you know what they say about the best paid plans and all.  Having been through it though, it's probably better that we didn't have it sooner because even though it was the first week in October and temperatures were cool the sun was strong and we were hot!!!  I think I would have melted into a puddle sitting out there all day in July or August!

Shep and I have been designating things as "yard sale" for what feels like a year now.  Each time we came across something in our apartment or storage unit that we couldn't find a place for or no longer wanted, we'd yell "YARD SALE!" (similar to how a granny would yell "BINGO!" in a game hall).  It kind of turned into a joke, and we'd giggle every time we designated something to be sold.  We did such a great job of "de-cluttering" our living space that we created a huge pile of items in the extra bedroom of our apartment.  Talk about counterproductive.  ;)  Eventually, we de-cluttered the yard sale staging area by driving multiple car loads of crap yard sale goodies to my mom's house, including a cargo van full of furniture and other crap treasures (huge thanks to my brother who helped out with that task like a rock star!).

Curious what we had for sale?  Here's a sample....

It was scary to see how much STUFF Shep and I had accumulated to sell, especially since we've only been married for 3.5 years, and we live in a condo!  A lot of our overage was due to having too many lamps, for example, after merging homes years ago and never down-sizing properly at the time.  Other items (like all the blue boxes above) were a result of recent upgrades in our new apartment to lighting and bath fixtures.

All in all, it was a productive first yard sale, and we made $231.35!  Not bad for a couple of amateurs!  Because knowledge is power, we created a tip list for any brave souls out there in cyberspace who will one day master your own first yard sale!

Lessons learned:

• Advertise, advertise, advertise!!!  We actually took it a little light on the advertising since this was our first sale and we didn't want to be overwhelmed.  We also didn't have a need to sell everything at once though.  The Monday before the sale I put an ad on craisglist that included a description of the items I was selling, the time and date of the sale, the location of the sale (we included directions but not a street address for privacy reasons), and some photos of key items.  I also included a note instructing "cash only" and "no early birds".  Saturday morning, I refreshed my ad so it would appear toward the top of the listings and visible to those searching that day.

• Have change on hand: People will pay for a $5 item with a $50 bill, and will also pay in quarters so it's a necessity to have change and small bills on hand.  Before the yard sale, we stopped at the bank and got approximately thirty $1 bills, several dollars worth of quarters, and about eight to ten $5 bills.  We had some $10 and $20 bills on hand as well, which came in handy to break larger bills without needing to give all our small bills away.  After the sale I had $50 in one dollar bills, which solicited a very intriguing look from the bank teller when I deposited the money.  I just smiled politely and handed the wad of ones over.

• Price items reasonably:  This was probably the hardest part of the day for us.  Some of the items we were selling were either of great sentimental or monetary worth.  However, those shopping at yard sales are looking for bargains, not memories, so price accordingly if you truly want to sell your stuff!  I think we did fairly well in this category, but there is definitely room for improvement next time.  For example, I had about a dozen glass vases I was trying to sell for $5 each, which I think I'll mark down to $3 next time around.  One pair of grumpy old garage sale ladies actually uttered the phrase "YEESH!" while looking at some of our items.  I think at the time they were looking either at purses that I was trying to sell for $5 or a perfectly working and almost new cordless vacuum cleaner for $15, I can't remember.  But, both are pretty good prices if you ask me, so I'm not sure what they were "yeeshing" about!  I think they were professional pickers and generally grumpy, so I tried not to take it personally.  A gentleman proclaimed to Shep that we would "never sell anything at that price!" (that price being $3 for a hardcover book in excellent condition), so Shep invited the man to make an offer.  The man offered $2 and a sale was made.  Flexibility is key!

• Staging is important:  Think of your yard sale as a department store -- group similar items together, arrange items in an attractive way, and ensure all items can be easily seen.  One thing we're going to do next time is rent or borrow a rack, to more easily display the many pieces of clothing we want to sell.  I managed to sell a couple shirts and a few hats this time around, which were folded nicely and placed in bins, but I think a clothing rack is going to make a huge difference next time.

• Be ready for early birds:  We woke up super early and made it to my mom's house in record time; however, the items took a bit longer to pull out, set up and price that we predicted (rookie mistake) and one or two shoppers arrived before the official start time of the yard sale.  Even though I specified "no early birds!" in my craigslist ad, some folks arrived early so be prepared!

• Have a plan for after the sale:  In this case, ours was to shove everything back into my mom's garage at the end of the day, where it will sit until our next yard sale in the spring!  It's hard to predict what will sell, so be sure you're not stuck with a bunch of stuff you have no room for when the day is done.  If you absolutely must get rid of all items by the end of the sale, start marking prices down in the afternoon and have transportation or help (or both!) on standby to help haul the items away to a local charity or drop-off location.  Many charities will accept used clothing, furniture, housewares, but some have strict rules so make sure you research ahead of time!

• Buddy up:  It's good to pair up with at least one other adult.  At times, there were nearly a dozen people simultaneously perusing the items, asking questions, asking to pay, etc.  At other times, there were no guests, so we took turns going inside to cool off or grab a bite to eat.  I wouldn't advise holding a sale on your own -- it's a lot easier, and more fun, to share the responsibilities!

So there you have it, folks... Yard Sale 101 as told by Nicole & Shep.  :)  Any readers out there have any great advice to share?  We'd love to hear it!

Fantastically Free!

Remember when I won a gift certificate to One Kings Lane, courtesy of a giveaway Erin hosted over at House of Turquoise?  {I do -- it was one of the most exciting things that happened to me this year!}

Well, ladies and gents, I've spent my OKL gift certificate and I want to show you the fantastically free items I got!

First up, a pretty wreath of dried hydrangea blooms, purple sinuata, white larkspur, natural phalaris, mint flower and fern, for our front door:

Rustic Romance: Jewel Collection 18" Wreath
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It was packaged well so it arrived in great shape, and up on our front door it went!  Since we live in an apartment building, our front door is metal and we're not permitted to drill through it.  So, I used a handy dandy removable Command hook, which is working perfectly!  The only minor hiccup is that I placed the hook too close to the peep hole in our door, so the wreath blocks our view of the hallway.  Ooopsie.  What can I say... it was late and I was tired.  It's not that big of a deal since we don't really get any strange(r) visitors, but one of these days I do plan to spend the 5 minutes it would take to reposition the hook.  ;)

The next item I ordered was this toilet paper holder:

Bath Boutique: Jumbo Tissue Cylinder
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Our master bathroom is pretty large, but there is a serious lack of storage space.  {Boooo.}  This functional but attractive paper holder is just the thing we needed!  It's large enough to hold extra big rolls, and it fits great in the nook between our porcelain throne and shower stall.  I don't think I need to explain the value of having toilet paper within easy reaching distance.  ;)  Who knew a paper holder could be pretty?!  Not I!

And last (but not least), I purchased this little bath tub caddy:

Bath Boutique: Spa Bathtub Caddy Gift
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Admittedly, I have yet to use the gorgeous jacuzzi bath tub in our home (although we've lived here for 9 months now!)... but when I finally do get to test it out, I now have a little caddy to store some bath goodies.  And, although I've also never read a book in the tub in my entire life, for some reason the book stand in the caddy called out to me.  What can I say, I'm weak.  ;)

So there you have it.... my three most recent fantastically free finds!  {Say that three times fast!}

What do you think of my finds?  Have you purchased anything from One Kings Lane yet?  If so, I'd love to hear about it!

P.S. -- If you're not yet a member of OKL, click here to sign up and get $15 off your first purchase!

Free Shutterfly Photo Book

Free alert!!!  Through Wednesday, September 12, Shutterfly is offering YOU (and me!) a free* 8 x 8 photo book!

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Click here for more info and to order!  I've ordered a couple photo books from Shutterfly in the past: the interface is easy to use, the quality is pretty great given the price, and they're delivered quickly!  I definitely plan to utilize this end-of-summer offer.... hmm, maybe on a France vacation memory book!

*You'll be charged for shipping, but it's still a great deal considering these books are typically $29.99!

I'm not receiving any payment or other perk for referring this offer - I just wanted to share this great deal as a PSA to my trusty readers!  Enjoy!!

AmEx gift card alert!

Disclaimer:  I have not tested or verified this offer myself, nor am I receiving any financial or other award for sharing this offer.  I'm merely passing on a tip I just saw at one of my favorite blogs, 20somethingfinance.

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American Express is currently running a promotion whereby if you order and load at least $200 onto a new American Express pre-paid card before this Friday 8/31, you will receive a bonus $25 gift card.  For more details, click here.

I have received AmEx prepaid cards in the past as gifts or as the form of payment for various product rebate offers, and I can tell you they are as easy to use as a regular credit/debit card.  If you don't mind going through the steps of loading up an AmEx prepaid card with $200 from your bank account, then this sounds like a pretty simple way to score a free $25 AmEx gift card.  But remember, as always, to read the fine print when signing up to ensure there are no sneaky fees involved!  It doesn't appear as if there are any tricks behind this offer, but you can never be too careful!

Pottery Barn Fall Open House

As you all know, I am no stranger to sales.  The Pottery Barn Fall Open House is something I had not heard of until now though...

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That is of course until I received an email invitation to it.  I'm intrigued as to what the Open House is and whether it's worth attending.  Is it a sale?  Is it a sneak peak?  Or is it simply a marketing tactic with no actual value to consumers.  ;)  Their website doesn't really describe it so I'd love to hear from any readers out there with intel or experience on the matter!

Have you attended a PB open house?

I won!!!!

I read a lot of blogs.  I love looking at the pretty photos and reading about other creative projects and exciting things happening in lives of perfect strangers out there on the world wide web.  A bunch of the home blogs I read frequently host contests, which I always enter and usually never win.  Until now that is...

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I was shocked and simply giddy to see my name announced as the winner of the One Kings Lane gift certificate on House of Turquoise the other day!  I drool over One Kings Lane on a regular basis, so to think I now have $100 to spend on anything I want is beyond exciting!!!  If you aren't already a member of One Kings Lane (it's free to join but you have to join to see the sales!), click here to sign up and get $15 off your first purchase!

I wonder what I'll buy with my winnings?!  The possibilities are endless...

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Fantastically Free!

Like any good bargain shopper, I enjoy a good sale.  But scoring an item on sale is nothing compared to obtaining that item for FREE!  That's right folks, I have some serious bargain shopper bragging to do.  Welcome to the first edition of "Fantastically Free!"...

Remember the new sucker friend and the 3rd-one-was-a-charm bench we purchased?  We bought them during a Kohl's Cash week -- which means that you get Kohl's Cash back equivalent to a percentage of the price paid for your purchases that you have to use during a designated time period.

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Well, we sure put the cold hard green printed Kohl's Cash we received to use...

I'd been eyeing this piece of wall art for months, so naturally this was the first item I thought of to use the Kohl's Cash on.  Lucky for me, Shep liked it too so we got it!

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The tricky thing about this frame is that it didn't come with any hanging hardware, so we need to figure out how exactly to get it up on the wall.  It's a wood composite-like material so we should be able to attach hanging hardware to it; we just need to be careful not to split the wood.  Once we figure out how to hang it, we plan to put it above our fireplace.

The second item is one that Shep picked out.  He said that our apartment is too neutral and needs more color, so we got this:

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It's colorful alright!  Right now we're using it as a decorative dust collector accent piece on our fireplace, but one day we might actually put flowers in it!

And that, my blogland friends, is our first edition of "Fantastically Free"!  Fantastic + free = happy me.  :)

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe

Catch a storage-solution-for-our-entryway by the toe...  Hmmm, the lyrics don't quite have the same ring but you get the point!  ;)

Since moving in, we've been trying to figure out how to best wrangle our belongings in the entry area.  Hall table?  Coat hooks?  Bench?  We luckily have a functional and spacious coat closet (finally! - our previous apartment hall closet was not deep enough to hang anything in!) but it's jam-packed with coats, scarves, hats, gloves & the like and the doors, while pretty, are not easy to open and close which means we avoid doing so.  ;)  The problem is, the entryway space is pretty tight, so we had to be strategic about which solution to choose.

Option 1
While on a recent trip to a Home Decorators Collection Grand Opening in Vauxhall, NJ, we decided to get a bench for our entryway so we'd have somewhere to sit while putting shoes on/off, cubbies to store our shoes out of sight (and out of the way to prevent tripping) and a convenient place to drop our keys/purse/gloves/briefcase/whatever in lieu of a table.  So after finishing our delicious hot apple cider (thanks Home Decorators Collection grand opening!) we bought ourselves this little guy:

Martha Stewart Living™ Storage Bench

Option 2
After getting Bench #1 home, we found a different bench online that Shep liked better.  It was pricier and didn't come with a cushion, but looked like it was made of nicer-looking materials (real wood perhaps?!) and appeared from the description to hold more shoes.  So, we ordered it:

Winsome® Walnut Finish Storage Hall Bench with Storage

Unfortunately, a few weeks after ordering it I received an email that the bench was back-ordered, and wouldn't ship for several weeks.  We weren't in a huge rush (illustrated by the fact that bench #1 was still in the box we bought it in), so we figured we'd just wait out the backorder.

Option 3
While I was out being a rebel on SuperBowl Sunday, a little sale fairy steered me in the direction of a sign stating that this bench was seriously discounted:

SONOMA life + style® Storage Bench

One of Kohl's famous 50% off sales AND I would get an additional 20% off from the Kohl's charge application I was planning to submit?!  That was enough of an incentive to call the hubby to discuss a revised plan of attack.  After looking up some reviews and measuring the space for the bench out at home on Shep's part, while I anxiously paced the sales floor of Kohl's holding on to a Dyson box on the other end of the phone, we decided to go for it.  So, we bought our third (and final!) bench and decided to return the other two.

Since we've already assembled lucky #3, this particular search has officially ended!  ;)  One more item crossed off the "to get" list... we're making progress!

Splurge AND Save?!

Things in life don't always fit solely into one category -- black or white, on or off, positive or negative, pro or con, or even splurge or save!  Many things can fall into multiple categories: splurge AND save.  Like the newest addition to our household...

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our Dyson!  We've been debating whether or not to bite the bullet and get one of these bad boys for years.  Literally.  In early January, I sent Shep an email about Dysons being on sale at Macy's, and he responded with the following:

We've been debating to get a Dyson since 2009.   I have the emails to prove it!  Can't we please just get one?  Please?

After a quick search of my emails, I realized he was right.  After literally 3 years of researching, flip-flopping, and buying 2 smaller vacuums that we were less than thrilled with, we decided to bite the bullet and buy a Dyson.  But which one???  There are so many models, all with stellar reviews -- but which one was THE  BEST?  This simple question is what derailed our plans so many times before.  But this time I was serious, and I wasn't going to let my indecision win out yet again.  I spent a couple (more) hours reading reviews on Dyson's website, Amazon, and individual retailer's websites, and decided that an "animal" model would be a great match for the ridiculous amount of hair I shed on a daily basis.  ;)

Now on to the save...

Once I decided which model to purchase, I quickly did a search to see which retailer/website was offering the most competitive deal.  In typical anti-competitive style, the listed sale price was the same everywhere I looked.  (Probably mandated by Dyson, no doubt.)  But I didn't give up there.  Earlier in the week, I'd gone to Kohl's, where I saw a sign advertising 20% off everything in the store in exchange for applying for a Kohl's card.  Sure that "everything" would exclude super-fancy-pants Dysons, I checked with a cashier and was shocked (in a good way!) to learn that the additional 20% did in fact apply to everything in the store - including the vacuums!  In addition, they were offering $10 Kohl's cash for every $50 spent!   Never underestimate the power of coupons and other special offers!  In this case, they helped us save over $100 and scored us over $100 in free Kohl's merchandise!

That combination did the trick - we figured there wouldn't be a better opportunity to save on this purchase, so the time seemed right to take the plunge.  And boy are we glad we did!  Vacuuming (once a former favorite hobby) is now fun again!  But more than fun, it actually accomplishes something!  It gets rid of dirt and dust instead of just blowing it around the apartment.  Go figure!  ;)  Seriously though, to see the amount of dirt this thing gets up is incredible.  Our living room area rug looks good as new again after one no-nonsense vacuum from our new favorite purple friend.  And my long web-like (as Shep lovingly refers to it) hair is no challenge at all for this thing.  We are both 100% satisfied with our long-awaited purchase (and we crossed something off our to-do list that's been 3+ years in the making!) which is the best news of all.  ;)

Splurge or Save?

The hubby and I have been searching for a rug for our master bedroom for a while now.  We definitely want something blue, and soft, but other than that we're stuck.  We're trying to avoid super-detailed patterns (a la oriental rugs) but also don't want anything too plain since the room is big and right now in serious need of some eye candy.  One day while searching I came across this beauty...

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It was nice, but I wasn't looking to commit to a rug that was $763! (Even if the so-called "list price" on Amazon was $1187!).  Then, I came across this one from Home Decorators Collection:

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Look familiar?  Yep -- same pattern but slightly lower price.  HDC charges shipping, but it's also relatively easily find coupons for that site, so I could've probably saved $100-$200 compared to the Surya on the Amazon website.  I still wasn't satisfied though.  But when I saw this beauty, I knew I'd found "the one"...

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Could it be???  The exact same pattern on Overstock.com for a fraction of the price?!?!  The regular price was $362, but the item was on sale for $308.  I quickly found an online coupon for $30 off, plus free shipping, bringing the total down to $278!

Now whether all 3 of these rugs are from the same manufacturer, I cannot say for sure.  However, when it comes to rugs I prefer to judge a book my its cover and not its author, so to speak.  ;)  As long as it looks great in the room and feels cozy, I'll take it!

Splurge or Save?

As I've been (obsessively) combing the internet for home decoration and organization tips, I've noticed that most every item out there is available at multiple price points.  Take this pillow for example...

World Map Pillow

I stumbled upon this while meandering through cyberspace one day and thought it was neat.  As you all know, Shep and I looooove our vacations, so I thought this throw might make a great addition to a chair or sofa in our new apartment!  But at $110 (for a pillow?! yikes!) I quickly decided to pass.

My bargain-hunting self, filled with curiosity, took the reigns of the keyboard thinking there must be something comparable out there on the world wide web for a lot less than $100.

And I found this...

Vintage Chic World Map Accent Canvas Pillow

A hand-made canvas and linen pillow cover for...$10?!  Now that's what I call a bargain!  This splurge or save quiz seems like a no-brainer to me.  Not only is the Etsy version a lot more affordable, but it's hand-made, which makes it a tad more special.  The low cost makes it easy to replace when we decide to change our decor up a bit, so I definitely think the "save" option in this instance is the clear winner.

Are you a splurger or a saver?  Which pillow would you choose?  Have any favorite bargain-hunting sites you care to share?  :)

Basic Window Coverings

We want to get some nice drapes for the balcony doors in each room to customize the rooms a bit, but just for privacy to hold us over until we get those, I ordered some sheer curtain panels for the master bedroom, living/dining area and guest bedroom.

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Originally $28 per panel, I nabbed them on sale at jcpenney.com for $12.99 each PLUS an extra 20% off!  Talk about a deal... the amount I saved actually surpassed the amount I spent.  Let's hope they're as pretty as they were a bargain!  ;)

Some Good Deals!

Hi readers, I have 2 great money-saving deals to share with you!

The first item is a coupon code worth 40% off any 1 regular-priced item from Land's End + free shipping on your order, but you have to act fast because the code expires tonight 10/21/2011 at midnight CST!  The great thing about ordering from the Land's End online catalog is that you can return the items to any Sears store without having to pay return shipping.  Those of you who know me know how much I love me some free-shipping-free-returns-online-shopping-deals!  In fact, I may or may not have already purchased a new pair of winter boots for myself using this code.  ;)

The second is a 15 piece cookware set + triple bonus PLUS $30 rebate from JC Penney for less than $34!

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The set is originally $149.99, but is currently on sale for $74.99 (50% off).  Code BESTOCT drops the price an extra 15% to $63.74 and the website is offering a $30 AmEx gift card for purchasing this item, making the final cost only $33.74!  77% off?!?!?!  Now that's what I call a deal!  The jcpenney website reviews give this set an overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars.  Not bad!

Happy shopping!

Want to buy an island?

Well then tomorrow is your lucky day!  Rat Island on Long Island Sound is being auctioned off tomorrow, October 2nd.  Check out the official auction site here.

According to UrbanDaddy:
Size of Rat Island: 2.5 acres
Size of a football field: 1.31 acres
Degrees of unobstructed city views: 360
Percentage of island that remains above water during high tide: 0
Assessed value of the island: $426,000
Average price of a studio apartment in SoHo: $900,000
Original year of purchase: 1654
Number of previous occupants who used it as a yellow fever quarantine hospital: 1 (Allegedly.)
Years it’s been since rats inhabited the island: 50
Neighboring islands: 1
Neighboring islands used as a burial ground for the unclaimed dead: 1
New countries created since 1990: 34
New outer boroughs created since 1990: 0
Off-site parking spaces that come with the island: 1
Distance to the nearest pizza joint: 2/3 mile
Number of boats in their delivery fleet: 0

75% off Patio Furniture at Lowe's!

If you're in the market for patio furniture, you should check out lowes.com!  Their patio furniture is currently 75% off -- wow!

This iron and wood bench is originally $128 on sale for $32!

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This black porch glider was originally $155 and is now marked down to $47!  (They also have it in white too for $38.75!)

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And this little red set was originally $98 marked down to $24.50!

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Now those are some good end-of-summer deals!  Happy shopping!