10 Things I've Bought That Save Me Money, part 2

Welcome to this week's continuation of the 10 things I've bought that have saved me money. I'm going to go ahead an dive right in.

6. eReader
I have always been an avid reader and my house has always been full of books. Now that I am living in an apartment with limited space, I really need to be choosy about the books that I actually buy and keep in hard copy. I bought my Nook eReader a few years ago during a Black Friday sale at Barnes & Noble for $59. I now save an average of 30-50% (sometimes even more) on books that I purchase, not to mention the loads of free eBooks I can borrow from the public library.

7. Hair Dryer & Straightener
This one is along the lines of my manicure kit. I have naturally super curly hair and of course, I want what I don't have...aka straight hair. Also part of the curly haired problems is the fact that I cannot wash my hair with normal products or more than twice a week unless I want it all to fall out. Queue in the hair dryer and straightener. Yes, you read that right! I own a portable hair dryer, much like the ones that you see at the hair salon, and every week my mom sets my hair in rollers and I straighten it after it's dried. I choose this method rather than blow-drying it for two reasons; I have insane back problems, and also the hair dryer is less damaging to my hair. I paid $30 for the hair dryer many moons ago and is still running strong and about $70 for the straightener, which will need to be replaced this year. All in all, my at home hair routine saves me $30-$60 per week!!! That's a yearly savings of $1,500-$3,000!

8. Online Babysitting Services
So this one is a little different because instead of saving money, they actually make me money. I currently am part of two online babysitting services that are technically free for the babysitters; they usually make their money off of the parents that have to subscribe and pay a fee. Part of the process, however, is that the sites offer background checks so that parents know that you're a credible and trustworthy person. I pay about $15 every 6 months for each of the sites ($60 total per year), and because parents see that I'm fully screened, I am able to land babysitting gigs more easily. With my crazy work and training schedule, I can't really work a regular part time job, and babysitting is a way that I make extra income whenever I can fit it in my schedule.

9. Mason Jars and Airtight Containers
This one goes hand in hand with my wholesale membership. Buying in bulk often times means that you need to be able to store your dried goods in airtight containers to keep them from going rancid. Ikea has these great mason jars in a variety of sizes that I use for everything from storing my sugar to making my overnight oatmeal during the week. If you are big into buying in bulk and can resist buying everything in the marketplace on your way through, I would highly recommend these!

10. Sewing Machine
For as long as I can remember, my mother has always sewn and she taught me to sew at a very young age. My mom stayed at home with all three of us until we were old enough to be in school and one thing she taught me is to always have a bit of mad money. For as long as I can remember, my mother used to make beautiful home goods and sell them from home. She started off on a small table sewing machine and eventually bought an industrial machine where she would whip up her wonders. I have learned to make so many housewares and a large part of my apartment is actually decorated in items that I've made from the window treatments to changing up throw pillows whenever the fancy strikes. I'm also extremely short (4'11") and have to hem all of my pants, even if they are petite! Not only do I get pleasure from creating things, but the ability to sew has definitely saved me tons of money over the years.

I hope you enjoyed reading today's blog. Stop by on Wednesday for some super exciting news!