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.  :)

Vacation Idea Fail

Those of you that know me know that I looooove vacations.  I am always dreaming about our next potential vacation.  While I don't know for sure where our travels will next take us, I will tell you what our next vacation WON'T be...

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A Titanic Anniversary Cruise?!?!
http://www.titanicanniversarycruise.com/anniversary/itinerary.php

Am I the only person that thinks this is a terrible idea???  My immediate reaction was:  facepalm

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To each his own.  I guess I'm just too superstitious to ever go on a cruise ship voyage to commemorate the anniversary of... a cruise ship sinking and causing 1500 people to die.

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.  ;)

HomeGoods Manhattan

I heart HomeGoods.  As the name implies, they sell "home goods", but at lower-than-typical-retail prices which a bargain hunter like me can't help but appreciate!  The neat thing about HomeGoods is that the inventory changes frequently, and varies from store to store, so you never know what you're going to find!  Like its affiliate stores T.J. Maxx & Marshall's, the inventory at HomeGoods can be hit or miss, so you never know whether you'll strike the big time or come home empty-handed, which is part of the fun of it.  ;)

Last year, a new HomeGoods location opened in Manhattan's Upper West Side (right around the corner from my old apartment in fact!) that I'd been curious to check out so when I read that Apartment Therapy's Maxwell was going to make an appearance in late January, I decided that was a good of a time as any to go.

The store is gorgeous.  It's huge and new and really well-stocked with throw pillows, wall art, mirrors, lamps, cook books, bake ware, pots, pans, bathroom accessories, furniture, rugs... you name it!  Ahhhhh, if only this mecca was in the 'hood when I lived there...

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As luck would have it (I typically have the worst luck ever so this was super exciting for me!), I was one of the first 25 people to respond for the event, which earned me a free autographed copy of Maxwell's book!

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Maxwell's presentation was informative and interesting -- he gave helpful and budget-friendly tidbits specifically applicable tor smaller-sized home (a.k.a. apartments) and even took questions from the audience!    For example, using a larger area rug or accent furniture in smaller spaces is better than keeping everything on the small side (which makes the room feel even smaller than it really is).  The use of mirrors to add depth and open up the space in a room is an oldie but goodie trick as well.  Finally, creating an artificial "divide" such as an island between an otherwise combined kitchen and living area help gives definition to each space, although adding to the "footprint" of a small space might be counter intuitive to some.  I haven't had the chance to read the book yet, but I'll definitely share any other great insights when I do!

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?  :)