Tightwad Tuesday: Wine in a Box

If you are a wine drinker, an excellent way to save cash is to buy boxed instead of bottled. Some of the most prolific and popular American vineyards, such as Turning Leaf and Woodbridge, are beginning to offer most of their varieties in a box (with a bag-and-spigot system housed inside). The advantage is that the wine stays fresh longer because it is not exposed to air until poured, and the transportation costs and fuel expenditures are far, far lower without the glass—one large box equals four to five bottles but weighs only as much as one or two.


Hopefully some of the smaller craft vineyards will catch on to this trend. I've seen some from the Pacific Northwest embracing non-glass packaging technologies, selling .75 liter lined cardboard containers. Some purists and sommelier-types likely demur, but proponents claim that the new methods are superior to cork, which can degrade and crumble or allow oxygenation to spoil the wine. For some good information on the method and its advantages, check out About Boxed Wine. There is also a Chowhound discussion on the subject.

You could always invest in a lovely decanter set so that no one but you ever has to know the source of your party libations. Here are some options in several price ranges (click pics to buy):

Mirabel Decanter from Crate & Barrel, $36.95

Bohemian decanter from Pottery Barn, $29.00



Riedel Vivant decanter at Target, $16.99



Milk glass decanter at Swanky Lady Vintage on Etsy, $10

"Swanky Vintage Pressed Glass Decanter" at To Hell in a Handbag on Etsy, $7

(For more awesome inexpensive vintage options, check out my Etsy favorites!)

If you really can’t abide your wine a box, consider a simple, inexpensive table wine. The French don’t drink expensive wine at every meal; usually it’s the equivalent of what those in the know dubbed “Two Buck Chuck,” the Charles Shaw brand sold at Trader Joe’s. Not every store is permitted by town bylaws to sell alcohol, unfortunately, but if one near you does, stock up on this perfectly decent brand for $2-3 a bottle. In general, except for on special occasions, try to stick with wine produced in your own country (in your own area is even better if you are on good terroir), to reduce the transport impact.

Happy cost-cutting and crystal-shoppin' :)

Money Monday: Money for Nothing

Even if you’re living paycheck to paycheck, it is unspeakably essential that you start setting aside anything you can, for retirement and in case of a layoff or medical emergency, even if those possibilities seem less remote than imminent starvation. (Difficult to care about social security shortfalls when you want to gnaw your own arm off for sustenance, I know.) The simple math facts are that the earlier in life you begin to save, the less you actually have to put away in the long run in order to have a decent retirement (or at least hopefully not die naked in a ditch). So even if it’s only $20, which you make returning cans or forgoing one latte per week, start a savings account and contribute to it regularly. Do it NOW.


I’ve had an account with ING for a year now, and I couldn’t be happier. They pay a slightly higher interest rate than most banks because they are online only and don’t have to support expensive edifices. They also usually hand you $25 or $50 for joining or adding a checking account… email me for a referral and we’ll probably both get some dollars ;) There are other options- check out this article for comparisons. You could start a regular savings account at your brick-and-mortar bank too, but my favorite thing about ING, pointed out recently by my financial guru, Ramit Sethi (of I Will Teach You to Be Rich), is the “Bucket” system.

For someone very visual and very Virgo like me, being able to move money in and out of labeled accounts within my savings account (they call it opening a “new one but it’s just a sub-account) is the best method of saving for specific goals ever invented. It's like having jars labeled "Summer Vacation,"House Down Payment," "In Case My Job Goes Up in Flames," "Car With Four Wheels," except you can't steal quarters for laundry or bus fare out of them.

My new “buckets” are the main “Dez-Savings” that I transfer money into, and then:

VACATION

HOME IMPROVEMENT

EMERGENCY

WEDDING

My dream dress by The Secret Boutique on Etsy, $650 (custom)

Right now I have a month and a half’s pay in Emergency, slightly more in both Wedding and Home Improvement, and about week’s pay in Vacation. If I hadn’t diverted $1000 to my Roth IRA to buy a target-date mutual fund (more on this when I discuss Ramit’s book in detail), I’d be a lot closer to re-doing the kitchen, setting an actual wedding date and location, and planning a honeymoon. Oh well. It seemed like the thing to do at the time, but it took a great deal of straining against impulses for instant gratification.

If you’re one of those lucky people who has achieved most of the improvements and toys and sojourns that your heart desires and you have money languishing in a savings account, even a high-ish interest one, you should probably move some of it out into a Roth, CD, or other investment. (By the way, I am a firm believer in having some fun money in the market: I bought a tinch of Harley and a wee bit of Victoria’s Secret stock when I was in my early twenties, and I hang on to them, in addition to my more sensible holdings. They say buy what you love, don’t they?)

The next thing to do, once you have set up your savings accounts, is to find ways to cut expenses and up your income so that you can increase your rate of savings. You simply must track your expenses. Some people really like to do so electronically, through a service like Mint or their own bank’s online statements. The only problem with this solution is a little-known ethical one: most small business owners are charged several dollars per debit or credit transaction by the issuing bank or the card machine leasing agent. They have to take cards because “no one carries cash anymore” but they lose money on every transaction. This eliminates their already-miniscule profit margins and helps to drive them out of business, destroying neighborhoods and contributing to the Walmartification of America.

If you can get off of the debit card habit, give yourself a cash allowance and keep strict track of how much you have on you and how much you’re spending on incidentals. If you run out, examine where it all went. And try to do a little bit better next time (or re-evaluate whether your allotment is realistic). Think of your spending like you’re on a business trip and will have to account for every penny or it’s lost to you forever. Learn to ask for a receipt every time and to collect them in a centralized place (if you find a gorgeous flat wallet or pouch or a small notebook with a pocket , you’ll adore looking at it so much you’ll remember to put the receipts in it. Hopefully).

Pink Giraffe wallet clutch by DesignSK on Amazon, $13.99

Growing your savings is akin to tending a garden: plenty of work-- but in the end, enjoyable. Do avoid fixating on the long-term—retirement— so much that you forget about surrounding yourself with beauty, rest and relaxation, and the occasional rich meal prepared by someone else or good bottle of imported wine that makes life worthwhile.

Happy saving!

Dresses and Lovelies on Clearance, Oh My!

We stumbled upon Alloy's site while styling for a friend and just chanced a look at their clearance. *swoon* $10 dresses my friends. Granted they're not natural fabric, and probably not responsibly or carefully made, but $10! We are absolutely snapping up this cute lilac ruffly scoopneck...And we think this is a very cute take on the LBD with the gathered A-line satin skirt and banded waist (nice wide bra straps and good coverage for the more modest of us, too!)! Ten measly bucks. You pay more than that for lunch some days, right?

Tragically for us, this amazing deep red-violet Grecian-style ($15) is only available for our tiny sisters (juniors S-M). *Sniff* Shop on, skinny chicas!.
For $20, here's a sexy little interpretation of the psychedelic/kaleidoscopic retro print trend for the summer:

We looked around for comparable deals and didn't find much.

Victoria's Secret did have a couple of under-$20 cotton/spandex summer cuties like this halter dress (shown in white but available in several colors) and this darling babydoll in green with bow detail (precious!) for $18.99 each.

Everything else was clearly overpriced even though it's "on sale."

We couldn't seem to find the actual clearance section this time, either, evidently due to the annual sale being on (bother!). We can usually find a few really fabulous bargains, but currently even simple tank top dresses are fetching $29; and who wants simplicity, anyway? A little bit of embellishment, like the crochet bust in the halter and the bow in the babydoll, are what femininity is all about!



We just discovered Jane'sClothing - motto "Look Fabulous For Less," which we venerate, of course- and wow... some really adorable little numbers for astoundingly cheap like this other kaleidoscope dress, in pink, $14.99, and this unusual metallic leaf-print bright magenta halter dress with no back (ooh lala) for our lucky bra-going-without girlfriends! $15.99:

We hope you're as excited for summer and flirty little dresses as we are! Now just to work off a little of this accumulated winter pudge... uh-oh...

Do you like these? Let us know if you end up buying any of them!!