i've been branded

I recently, and by recently I mean a month ago, got a job at the best store in the world...I'm sure you all know my opinion on that. I work at Value Village. Yes there are some VV's out there that could do better when it comes to appearances, But I must say that I work at a pretty amazing one.
I get to be one of the first people to see what comes into the store, and I have to say it's some pretty fancy stuff. Of course there are tacky things in the mix, but that's fun to go through as well.
I think since I have worked there I have seen at least 3 or four brand new lulu lemons go to the floor, amongst some other high brands.
I can't snatch them of the lines though and get first dibs as many people may think. Everything that is sell-able, must go on the floor. However, now that I get 50% of clothing, I can finally afford to buy brand name clothes. I am currently wearing a Hollister sweater and I feel cooler already! I know that many people, including myself say that we don't care about brand names, but I think secretly we all do. I don't mind wearing B.U.M  equipment from walmart (or is it Zellers?) but I do enjoy the higher qualities of high brands too, just not at their ridiculous original over priced costs.  I'm honestly shocked that a name in the back of a pair of pants can make the item costs so much!
Do you ever read through a magazine and sometimes thet compare an outfit on one celebrity and show you how to do the same outfit for less? I always think I can do it for even less. sometimes I am shocked at the prices of the items they suggest. I think they should either fire the person who finds the cheaper out fit and hire me, or they should add a third person to show how you can do the outfit for waaay less.
another cute item I saw was a baby Gap coat. It was pink and brown plaid with fur/fluff on the inside, with these great loop buttons and courderoy hearts to hold the loops in place. The coat was $4.99 so I would have only paid $2.50 for it!
I could not imaging purchasing items like that brand new for an infant. They grow out of it in 2 weeks! Every day I see baby Gap and Baby mexx and baby Tommy Hilfiger, and I think "what is wrong with people?"
 But then I think, "man my kids are going to be stylish!"
 and then I think, "wait a second, I don't have kids, let's go to the women's section and look at savings there!"

I saw this comic in the Spec today in the break room and I thought of my opa and oma:

not my typical blog

Sun god: Ra

Decking the halls with boughs of holly... this was a tradition started by ancient peoples such as the Egyptians, druids and early Romans. These people worshipped pagan gods such as the Egyptian God Ra. During the winter solstice, the people beleived that Ra, the egyptian sun god was getting weak, but on the day of the solstice the people celebrated his renewal of strength by bring in greeneries into their homes to represent the victory of life over death , and everlasting life.
This pagan traditon like many, was borrowed by Christians several years after the birth of Christ to represent the victory of life of death and evelasting life through Christ. During htis season many things outside die and the world looks fairly grim ( except in warm places like the caribbean of course) but here and there we see little bits of green peeking though in forms of pines, giving us hope of new life to come.
Many people still deck their halls with greeneries. Though more and more each year, it seems that people are not decking their halls with the right kind of green. Instead people are decking their halls, with money, and greed, and the need to out buy the person in front of them in line. I love Christmas, I really do. It's a fantastic time of the year. Seeing houses decked and trees lit really creates a festive mood. But when I go to a store during this time, I see so many frustrated and angry people, and it makes me wonder if they really know what this season is about. It's not about getting your kid the latest technology, or your spouse a ridiculously expensive watch. I think its a nice idea that we give each other nice gifts, but I think we've all gone a little mad. My family decided not to do gifts this year. Although I did get a nice tea cup set and ceramic vase from my parents. I thought it was nice just to get together and enjoy each-other's company. I think that instead of buying materialistic and over priced things, we should give more to people in need. My church does this thing where you can purchase goats or school supplies and other stuff for people in 3rd world countries. I think that is a fabulous idea.

Sinterklaas

Growing up my family celebrated Sinterklaas, as I am dutch and was born in the Netherlands. this was separate from Christmas, and celebrated on the 5th of December. This is when gifts would be given and such. Not on Christmas. Christmas is a time to reflect on the birth of Christ.  I think this is a tradition that I want to bring into my family when we have kids one day. I don't want then to lose the real meaning of Christmas in the hustle and bustle of the money hungry consumerism.

   Happy Holidays  

   Seasons greetings  

   Merry Christmas!

a thrifty friend, a furry friend

I love dogs, except for German Shepherds and  Rotweilers. My Husband and I both had dogs as pets growing up and we grow very attached to them.  It's strange how we make these connections with dogs. It happens all over the world, people have dogs as pets and they become part of the family. Dogs always seem to be willing to lend a listening ear, or ready to go out and have a good time in the park, always happy to see you. 

This past March, Fritz and I decided to buy a dog. We went to many SPCA's but the prices, though they do cover shots and other necessities, seem pretty high, and we could not afford to make such large payments. So we turned to Kijiji. everyday we searched through the many pages. Eventually we landed on a picture of this adorable Boston terrier beagle mix. The ad said  he was 1 year old, but we are pretty sure he was only 7 months. We loved him right away. we picked him up that night. 

He had these huge ears that flopped on top of his head, and when ever you  asked if he needed to pee, he tilted his head to the side.  He loved playing fetch and got angry when you stopped. When we went for walks, he would pee of everything that stuck out of the ground. He'd work very hard to get his leg up in the air, but ALWAYS peed on his own front legs, he was not a very steady aimer. And when he did number two...he'd lift his leg....how bizarre! This dog also humped other dogs non-stop for hours! it was so embarrassing!

It took a lot of getting used to having a dog in the house. He once managed to get into the bedroom in the morning, which we didn't want because I don't like the idea of dogs being on the bed. But this particular morning he managed to get in and he hopped on the bed, crawled under the cover and when right to the bottom of the bed! When Fritz and I sat on the couch together, he would jump up onto our laps and just sprawl out, he was the cutest Dog in the world! Until one day:

Fritz went to work and I had the week off, since it was march break. I was painting the bedroom that week, and Bentley, the dog, was playing around in the house. Every now and then I'd hear him whimper so we would go outside and he would walk around a bit, We even went for two 1 hour walks that afternoon on top of the 11 times that he whimpered to go outside and was let out. After the second walk, I went back into the bedroom to continue painting, I was working away for about 1/2 and hour, when I thought "hey I wonder what Bentley is up to?" I went out to the back room, only to discover that in  the span of 30 minutes, he had crapped on the floor, peed on my curtains and peed on my just finished painting and frame! I even spoiled him rotten with all the walks and time outside! I decided then and there that I was not ready for this type of commitment. Work did not allow me to take any type of maternity leave for new dog owners who need time to adjust, so we did what we had to do. We turned to Kijiji after having the dog for only one week and gave to dog, to a wonderful couple who had more time to commit to this dog. 

This dog ( a beagle)

plus this dog (a boston terrier)

equals what our dog looked like

I'm glad we chose the thrifty way of purchasing a dog. Could you imagine if we had spent all that money at the SPCA only to find out we were not ready for the commitment of being dog owners? Not that I don't encourage potential dog owners to adopt a pet there. But there are other dogs that need new homes too. I'm sure Bentley loves his new home. I think I will stick to dog-sitting for now, or going to the neighbours to pet their dog. That should be enough for my for now. Also going to the pet store to see the puppies... sometime they let you hold one. 

Someday, when we have more space, more money, more time we will have a dog, we both want a springer spaniel. But not now.

doors: not just for opening and closing

Sometimes a door closes for the last time. So that's when you simply have to take it off the hinges and do something else with it. No sense in wasting a good door!

Just like moms or grandmas always say "when I was a little girl..." I always seem to relate to when we first bought the house. so here it goes again:
When we first bought the house, one of the first things we had to buy was a bed. we bought the simplest bed frame from Ikea, because the really nice ones cost a lot of nice money, that we didn't have. plus a big beautiful bed would look silly in our teeny tiny bedroom.

After a year, I decided that i wanted a headboard for this bed. So I went to this place called the Drop n'Shop. Now if you haven't been here you need to check it out...if you are up for it. It's basically a store at the garbage dump ( I think I am making my self sound desperate for deals) where you can find things that people want to throw away as garbage but is technically still usable. This isn't a value village though so don't have high expectations. But it's a great place for parts or tools, or other random little things.
I went there in search for a door...a very specific door. The door I wanted was a wooden door with five even indented rectangles...one exactly like my bedroom door. of course I couldn't take that door and use it because I like it where it is...plus I need that door there.
I found an old door at the drop n shop, not the exact door I wanted, but it was a door. It was a very plain  simple door with a raised outline of a rectangle...there is a word for what I am saying but I can't think of it.

I took this door home and set it out in the back yard and stared at it for hours ( over a span of days) trying to figure out what to do with it to make it look uniques and head-boardy.
Without knowing to next step, I measured it, cut it to proper length and I took out my giant barrel of primer and and put on a coat or two of that. then after some more pondering, I took out the can of cream coloured paint from my bedroom walls and put on a couple coats of that.
I still could not figure out what to do so I did what I'm sure most researchers do...I googled ideas. Google is great for ideas. I knew what to do.
I got out my multiple rolls of painters tape...even though it didn't even take one. I covered whole door with tape, drew a big grid inside the inner rectangle, and started drawing  away, then cutting away then painting away and then peeling away.

here you can see the grid line. This
was unintended, but I muchly
enjoyed the result

I felt worried when I started peeling away all the tape. You see, when I drew the grid, I used a mechanical pencil, not realizing that it would pull up not only the paint, but also the primer. But it turns out that it was a good mistake because it added character to the work.
once the door...or now headboard, had dried, Fritz helped me attach it to the bed.
After I finished that project, I had to put some things up in my crawlspace of an attic. where I store things ...only to find that exact door I was looking for....oh well.
Maybe one day I will make the foot end for the bed.

Do you see what I mean by the rectangle thing?

I mentioned before that when we purchased our home, the previous owner left some no-longer wanted-by-her-family items. This included side tables, dressers, tv, a cubby-cabinet-thing, two couches and some other little nic-nacs. What am I supposed to do with all this stuff? Well some of I used until I replaced it with my own, others we donated to someone who needed it more.  However, some pieces I sold. I mean why not make some money off these items that I don't want. A lot of it was not my style. Aside from the main structure of the house, most of what was found inside the house was not my style.
When we first walked into this home, which was very cute from the outside, I gasped at the interior decorating.
Recently Fritz and I went to an open house for another house that had the same cookie cutter shape as our little war home. We wanted to see what changes and improvements were made there that we could possibly do also. The representative told us that about 90% of buyers look at the interior decorating of the home. It is very true that the way you home is set, will affect it's ability to sell. home buyers want to know how the home will look when neatly decorated. If someone had an option between a large, well structured home that was cluttered and poorly displayed, and a small, less well structured home that had neatly arranged well matched furniture and nice paint colours, the buyer is likely to choose the home that is better presented. The first thing most people will notice is clutter. However, there are people out there, like myself who are potential seekers.

When we first bought  out house, there was forest green carpet in the living room, a gross neutral colour on the wall, it wasn't even a nice neutral...it looked like the skin colour of a naked Caucasian. the office had a gross carpet with burn stains and wax drips all over it, the bedroom had navy blue and peach walls and a dirty beige carpet. The kitchen cupboards were filled with random nic-nacs and santa clauses, the backroom's pantries we poorly constructed and falling apart. The house looked like it hadn't seen improvements since the 1970's. and to top it all off, there was fake fruit and fake birds everywhere...I'm still finding them in random spots in the gardens, and we've lived here a year and a half!
So anyways this wasn't what I was planning to blog about at all. so I will get back to the main part. I bought this rug at Ikea  that they were selling at 1/2 price for that week. I paid $30 for it. However after 6 months, I decided that the rug was too dark for our small house. I told Fritz I was unhappy with the rug and that I wanted to buy a new one.
He said to me "if you want a new rug, you can have a new rug. But you need to sell this one first"

"okay" I said, and immediately got on Kijiji, and posted the rug. I sold it for $40.00 that same day which is $10 less than the current price at Ikea. I went out and purchased a new rug. My living room is much brighter now.
On top of that rug was an Ikea lack. Those cheap coffee tables you can get there. We knew from the beginning that we wanted to replace someday with a better quality one, but better quality doesn't come right away. Not long ago, maybe three weeks or so, I was at Value Village and I noticed this coffee table in the furniture section. There was a woman sitting on it who wasn't exactly petite, so I know it was sturdy. (and i am not being offensive. The woman even said to me " you Know it's sturdy if it can hold me") It was a beautiful table, solid wood, not sure what kind, I'm not a wood expert, and none of those tacky 1990's features. the table was selling for $30.00 so I didn't even hesitate to find a sales person to put a sold sticker on it for me. As soon as I got home, I went right onto kijiji again and sold my other coffee table for $20.00. After the math, I bought a beautiful solid wood table for $10.00 What a Deal! and it looks so much better with my new rug!

This is my new table and rug. in the background, on the right
side, you can see the old Ikea table, which of course got  sold. 

I can see clearly now

When I was in grade 10, I went for my very first eye test. This might be shocking to people who have seen the eye doctor every year since they can remember for regular check ups. I don't even see a doctor for regular check ups. However, this particular time I went because I realized that I was having a difficult time seeing the words written on black boards. and since I would be in school for the next 9 years still, I thought it might be wise to have my eyes checked.



The worst parts of going to the eye doctor in my opinion are 1. when they make you stare at the tiny tractor in the field and then they blast air into you eye. and 2. when the doc gets super close...I get the giggles and then I feel silly.
I found out that day that yes I did need glasses. My vision was not and still is not that terrible. I can see with out my glasses but things are not very crisp. If I were to look at a forest I would not see individual leaves. What a person with regular vision sees at 20 metres, I would be able to see at 17 metres. At least that's how my optometrist explained it to me.

That day I picked out my very first set of frames. as I searched through the racks of frames I found some pretty cool trendy ones. But my mom who usually has some very wise advice, told me not to pick thick frames because it is only a trend and it will be out in a year. So of course I was a little upset, but she's right it's probably just a fad. so I picked out these regular old boring metal frames. it's now been 10 years, and thick frames are still trendy.
I have gone through several glasses since, and had my eyes checked on a regular basis...sort of.
about three years ago I noticed that I was starting to see things less crisp even with my glasses on. So I found a local optometrist and had my eyes checked. I explained to the lady that I am having trouble seeing. after my appointment she told me that I have 20/20 vision! how can that be? I came here because I was seeing worse! I have now been told that by two different optometrists! I continue to wear my glasses because despite having this so called perfect vision, I can't read road signs until I am pretty much parked on top of them.
I think the eye people need to invent something that allows them to see what you are seeing. That would be a great invention.
These glasses cost a lot of money. those of you who have them know what I am talking about. being married to someone with vision problems doubles the cost. You are probably thinking by now " what does this have to do with being thrifty?"
well people, I'm about to tell you something that will change your lives.! (I just thought of Dr. Quinn, Medicine woman as I typed that. Anyone else used to watch that? what a good show)
Recently Fritz and I stumbled upon a website called zennioptical.com . here you will find tonnes of frame selections. We both purchased $8.00 and $9.00 frames (yes that is soooooo cheap I know!) then we added anti-glare to each set for $3.99, because if I don't have that then I see my own eyeballs in the reflection...and let me tell I look very special when I do that. shipping to Canada costs $9.99.
Altogether we paid $35.00 for both pairs, including shipping and handling!!!!!!! And to make it better, they were delivered with in a week!!!!
You are probably being pessimistic now saying yeah but they probably din't work that well. But they do I see fine, and Fritz has a astigmatism thing ( I hope that's right) and he sees fine too. The only thing is you don't get designed frames. But honestly who cares about that! I sure don't so I'm sorry if you purchased designers to impress me.
Seriously though I never ask if your glasses are designer, I don't even look to see. I purchased my other glasses at Walmart. But that was before I discovered Zennioptical. Now I will never purchase in store again!

okay funny story about my Walmart glasses. I really do like them, they are a thick frame plastic pair, and when I don't wear them , I had a habit of hooking them onto the zipper of my jacket or sweater. Every time I do this though they fall off, and usually I don't notice. So one day we were helping a friend move when I guess my glasses fell off my zipper and our friend stepped on them. Now unlike metal frames, plastic ones are officially kaput when this happens.
So off I went to Walmart to explain to the optician what happened. He gave me the strangest look when I explained that they were hanging on my zipper prior to falling and being stomped on. Turns out he thought the entire time that I hung them off my fly. I know I do strange things but c'mon really? would I really hang my glasses off the fly of my pants?

Any ways I highly recommend this website for purchasing your eye wear. You can even upload your picture to see if the frames would suit you. Of course the image is not very realistic...it's like those hairstyle websites where you can try different haircuts, but it looks fake yet you can still get an idea.
just set up an account, choose some frames, fill in your prescription, add some extras such as anti glare, transitions  etc. you can even purchase prescription sunglasses, and get your self some new glasses for as little as $16.00 it's the shipping to Canada that is so expensive. If you live outside of Canada, it may even cost less for you!!
Maybe some of you feel skeptical about this whole purchasing prescription eye wear online and that's fine. You have my permission to continue paying hundreds of dollars or letting your insurance companies pay for them. But for those not covered, You should really check it out

"pssst! you can buy that cheaper elsewhere!"

About 80% of my wardrobe comes from value village. I buy most of my clothes there.If not there, then the rest are bought at an outlet store where they sell the clothes for much less. Occasionally I go to the mall and look at all the pretty things, but usually I just walk in the store and say to my self...or sometimes a little louder so that other customers hear me " I can by that cheaper else where". Of course occasionally I will put some money into good items. For example, I Bought a great sweater with large buttons at H&M for $30 which is a lot more than I am usually willing to spend on a sweater. I like changing my wardrobe, so why would I pay a lot of money for something I may not wear after a year or two.
I have certain rules when purchasing clothes and they are as follows:

and this is only the beginning

#1. sweaters can absolutely NOT be made from acrylic. Acrylic is a very cheap, synthetic fiber that starts to wear away after the first wash. Apparently, it is supposed to be a cheaper replacement for cashmere because it looks and feels the same. I don't know what they are talking about. It's not a warm fabric and it's not that soft either. You might as well cut some holes in a cardboard box and pull that over your head! This rule can make it difficult to find new sweaters since most stores such as Suzy Shier, Bluenotes and others ONLY have acrylic sweaters. They always look beautiful in the store, but after a week or so the sweater starts to have all these little fluffs on it. I've seen these sweaters being sold for $60 which I think is absurd! I wouldn't pay anymore that $7.99 for it! If you are going to buy acrylic, ,try to make sure it is less that 50%...CHECK YOU TAGS PEOPLE!!

#2. I don't pay anymore than $10 for jeans. I cringe when I see people purchasing jeans that cost more than $40. I realize that higher quality jeans cost more... but I could never do that. I find most of my jeans in value village too. Don't worry though, it's not like I am buying jeans with elastic waist bands. I dod own one pair of jeans for which I paid $40 dollars. but I have my reasons. You see I bought these when skinny jeans first came in. I didn't want the skin tight ones, because frankly I don't know how people get those things on! I wanted neater ones, that weren't so tight. I found a pair in Costa Blanca that fit so perfectly. And yes, they are my favourite jeans. I also buy new jeans at the Bluenotes Outlet store at 525 Hespler Street, Cambridge ON where they ALWAYS have most items 50% OFF!!!! ALWAYS!

over-the-shoulder-boulder-holders

#3. Wait until boxing week to buy bras...if you can. I usually dig through the regular sale bin at La Senza like a cat digs through it's litter box...or maybe a less dirty version of that. Although they usually have the $8.50 bra sale, if you wait until boxing week, you can buy 3 bras for $10. I guess if you are well endowed, you may want to purchase the more expensive over-the-shoulder-boulder-holders so not to look sloppy...or floppy which brings me to the next rule:

What's wrong with this picture?
1. sweater is too small...and what is on it?
2. they are called under wear for a reason

#4. You can do a lot with very little. Just because you want to save money/ don't have the money, doesn't mean you have to dress poorly. There is nothing wrong with having a low income. It doesn't take a lot of money to match colours or patterns or even purchasing the proper fit. I see so  many poorly dressed people. I  feel like I need to spy on them to see what they do that causes them to dress the way they do. There is no excuse for it. there is also no excuse for not buying a belt...yes I am talking to those boys who think that showing the world the superman boxers your mom purchased for you is a trend. You look stupid and no one cares about your underwear.

#5. Go to Outlet Malls. I like going to the Dixie Outlet Mall. They have a Garage/dynamite store there. In this store you will find an "almost perfect" rack where clothes go that have imperfections. I purchased a pair of pants for $1 because the button was missing. I also buy things that have seam tears because they are fixable. I'd rather spend 5 minutes fixing a seam on a shirt purchased for $3.99 than pay the full $30

#6. Don't purchase it if you haven't looked elsewhere first. I think this might be why many people don't like shopping with me. I have a routine when going to the mall: first I go to all the stores and look through the items. then I go through all the stores again and compare the  items to see where and how I can save the most, then I go through a third time to purchase the items...sometimes I don't even buy anything because like I mentioned earlier, I can buy it cheaper elsewhere.

#7. If you go to the mall, and they have a pet store, Stop to look at the puppies. They are sooo cute!



Also, even though the sales people tell you the BOGO sale ends this weekend...if never actually does. so you can buy those shoes and another pair for 1/2 price next week still