Saving Money
seydoux
11 years ago
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11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofunction_first
11 years agoRelated Discussions
Saving Time so You Can Save Money
Comments (11)I'm not sure I'll be much help on this subject since I'm just now decluttering and reorganizing my home. Here's a few little things I'm doing: Since I don't have a regular pantry (I'm going to make one somewhere, someday--lol) I keep all breakfast items in one drawer, like instant oatmeal, grits, hot chocolate, etc. So, I know in a glance what I need and don't buy extras. I just tear off the top of the pkg. and set the whole thing in the drawer. I also keep my ironing supplies on one drawer---irons, spray starch, etc. I actually had to buy a second iron because I couldn't find the first one---before I organized! I took all on my junky paper and cut it into note size, put it in my desk drawer. If I have pretty junky mail, or envelopes, I cut them up to use as gift tags or small note cards. I hate frying bacon, so I bake it now on a rack. It's healthier and I don't have to spend so much time at the stove. I actually baked a pkg. this morning, used it all at once---now, we have bacon for tomorrow. I don't have very many closets, so I'm using decorative tins and hatboxes (I went thru a hatbox-making phase a few years back) for storage of sewing and craft supplies, and anything else that I can't find a place for!!! LOL These things hold a lot, so I may not have to buy any shelves. In my foyer area, I have a narrow table with a mirrow above it. I just cleaned out that drawer in the table----I have a place for car keys (his & hers), gloves, hairbrush, and glasses. Since I wash my hands a zillion times a day, I keep either an old dish detergent bottle or shampoo bottle with soap, water (*and now hand lotion or baby oil mixed in) under the sink to wash hands with. I just saw a Dr. on Tv say that if you wash your hands too much and they're dried out, germs can enter your body thru the cracked dry skin EASIER!! They were talking about the flu viruses. He actually said that rubbing your hands back and forth, creating friction, would kill germs on your hands!! Rub your hands, rub your hands!!!!!!...See MoreDid you save money buying your own plumbing fixtures?
Comments (54)Lauren, there could be a million scenarios to your situation and most will not do you any good. It all comes down to the person you dealing with and the practices how they run their business. You buying a home from a builder, you have a contract which probably includes listed items that come with the house. Any deviation from these items the builder can charge you anything he wants...and nobody can do anything about it... It's pretty much comes down to "take it or leave it". Most custom home builders that I know don't do that, it is all about the person you're dealing with and their reputation and in your case if they try to jack-up the price that much, this is not a very good practice. I will give you one example of a similar situation. A few months ago I was doing 3 basement designs and layouts for homeowners who purchased new homes in the same development of 13 homes...most homes still under construction, they the 1st-3 to move in. All 3 homeowners were telling me the same thing that its impossible to get anything from their builder. Anything they want to upgrade is quadrupled in price, i.e you want oak stairs $6k extra, you want crown molding 3k per room, etc Its beautiful close to 1m homes, and when I came to one of them the 2nd time, they had a contractor there building coffered ceilings, doing crown, trimming out a few openings, etc. Back to drop cloths, back to dust, back to painting, when everything could have been done long ago before the closing and the builder reputation wouldn't be diminished. Most of the homeowners who purchased this homes know each other, 8 of them out of 13 homes are friends and work in the same field, and the first 3 who moved in warned everyone else that builder is impossible to deal with and he won't budge on anything. That said, there is always a mark up on upgrades because it involves extra work and you endure extra expenses, but the mark-up is not to bankroll a homeowner, its reasonable and its priced in the way to be worth while for the homeowner and so they keep on smiling while they job moves along. We not living in the stone ages, today you give a price for something within a minute you can pull up the phone and look up the price online, and everyone knows that and every industry is trying to stay compatible with pricing or nobody would be buying anything from them... and I'm sure nobody wants to look like an idiot for giving unreasonable price. Now put all that all mambo jumbo aside, I wish you best of luck with your new home and I hope everything will go smooth and you end up with a well built home!...See MorePlease critique this floor plan. Also looking for ways to save money.
Comments (52)Do you really think the living area and kitchen will be that dark with there being windows on all 3 walls of the breakfast area and lots of big windows on that living room wall???? To answer your question, yes. My last place was a condo. I had floor to ceiling sliders in the living room and dining area. My kitchen had no windows and the layout was kitchen>dining room>sliders to the outside. My windows faced due west. Even in late afternoon with the sun low in the sky, the light didn't penetrate into my open kitchen and my kitchen was only 11' from the sliders. In my second house, my dining room never saw any natural light. I had a 3 season sunroom right off the dining room and it had windows on the south, east and west wall. That room was only 10' deep. No light ever penetrated to the dining room. I think some of you are used to a much fancier life than we are haha 😅 This has nothing to do with fancy and everything to do with good design. My first house was a small (1600 square feet) bungalow on a 40' x 100' lot with a detached garage. The house was built in 1927 and the bedroom/master bath was added onto in the 60's. Even in that small bungalow my bedroom had windows on two walls. And my kitchen had an actual window over the sink. For example I grew up in a bedroom with windows on only one side and I survived just fine. I dont have the time to lay in bed and stare out a window anyway. It isn't only for staring out a window. It's also for cross ventilation and natural light....See MoreHow do I save money with the kitchen sink?
Comments (2)" If I ditch the apron-front/farmhouse sink and opt for standard undermount, will I save on the cabinet cost?" No. A short apron sink is designed to fit in a standard cabinet which you will have to buy anyway. Self-scribing apron sinks are virtually no more difficult to install. Will a standard undermount sink mean I end up spending more in granite countertops?" No. "Which is the most cost effective route?" You need to think comprehensively. After your remodel, you'll have money in your checking account again, I promise. What you don't want is money in your checking account and regret that you didn't spend it on the sink you really wanted every single time you make coffee in the morning. Remember, the free sinks that granite fabricators offer are complete junk. They buy a hundred of them on a pallet from China for $29.00 each or so. You can make an informed sink decision or you can fall victim to a loss-leader sales pitch. By the way, I make a real nice living trading sink choice regret for cash....See Morelazy_gardens
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