Mercury Magazines is offering a FREE one year subscription to Cosmopolitan!  Just answer a few questions HERE then fill in your mailing information and your subscription will begin in 4-6 weeks.  There are no strings attached and you will never receive a bill!

Thanks MoneySavingMadness.com!

Free Year of Cosmopolitan Magazine! is a post from: Dough Defender

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PaperBackSwap is a free online book exchange service. You create an account on the site and create a list of any books you’re looking to swap. Books are swapped through snail mail. The magic number is nine, list nine books and the site gives you three credits to “buy” books that other people have listed.

What Do I Do With a Credit?

Credits are freebies on shipping. Once you list nine books you’re willing to swap, you receive three credits. You can then search the site for a book you’re interested in and use the credit to “buy” it. Once you receive the book in the mail you go online and mark it as received. The person who sent the book then receives a credit and they can “buy” a used book of their choice.

You get a credit each time someone receives a book that they have requested from your list and the cycle goes on and on.

Check it out!

Read any Book on The Cheap! is a post from: Dough Defender

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I’m getting ready to start my fall garden and instead of buying pots or containers for starting my seedlings, I’ve decided to investigate making paper pots out of old newspaper. Save money and recycle with this great project!

After you pull out the coupons and circulars from your Sunday newspaper, make sure you save the rest. The paper is folded around an object to create the shape of a pot. Fill the pots with soil and add your seeds. Keep them in a tupperwear or box and cover with celophane to keep in the moisture and keep out any investigative pets. My cats are going nuts trying to figure out what’s in that box!

Check out this video and learn how to fold your own pots!

Save on Gardening with Homemade Paper Pots is a post from: Dough Defender

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Today I’m at home sick with either a cold or allergies…either way I can’t breath but my nose is running and I feel like a garden gnome is having a rave in my head…as if Monday’s weren’t bad enough right. I do get to catch up with my Google Reader, and the never ending feeds that always pile up as I have no time to get to them. The bright side.

Pursuing my personal finance feed I ran across a great article about 9 Money Saving Reasons to Buy a Food Dehydrator by Alex Wayne from WiseBread. Great article outlining the various ways you can save money on food by using a food dehydrator. Including making beef jerky and potpourri at home. Check out Alex’s site DehydratorBook for more great ideas!

While reading about ways to save money using a food dehydrator, I started to wonder what other kitchen appliances out there saved money and here is what I found…

Food Saver
You’ve undoubtedly seen the infomercials for this one. Thefood saver is a cool contraption that shrink wraps leftovers and whole dishes to be safely saved for later. This can save tons of money by saving leftovers that you may not want to eat the same week. Just zip em up in the food saver and you can freeze them without worry of freezer burn for months and months!

Crock Pot
Crock pots or slow cookers are awesome! I use mine at least once a week so I don’t feel like I have to cook. If you lead a busy lifestyle with a hectic schedule this is the perfect dual purpose appliance for you! Heh, I sound like Billy Mays, RIP.

Just defrost you meats the night before in the fridge, then add all your ingredients to your crock pot in the morning before you set out for the day and by the time you get home you’ve got a warm ready meal already finished and waiting for you. I love to make soups, stews, roasts, chilis, chicken dishes, ribs, and even macaroni and cheese!

Always freeze those leftovers for a great meal on another night or revamp the leftovers into a brand new dish.

Coffee Maker

Skip Starbucks! Yup, I said it. Don’t even settle for McCafe either. The biggest money waster in society today is take out coffee! Not mention all those plastic, paper, and styrofoam cups end up in the trash and later the landfills.

Spend the equivalent of one Starbucks coffee on a whole weeks worth of brewed at home coffee. Shoot, invest in an espresso machine if you really need that double shot!

Bread Machine

Here we go again with the processed, pre-made item we can easily make at home. Pre-made bread in the grocery store costs anywhere from $.99-$6.00/loaf. You name make a dozen loaves at home for that much money and you can ad any ingredients you want! Make all the artesian breads you want, you can even go gluten free or low carb.

Try jalapeño and cheese, garlic herb, cinnamon raisin, cranberry, even made desert breads like zucchini,carrot, and spice!

Rice Cooker

Just like popcorn, beans, and grains, rice is cheapest in it’s raw form. Use a rice cooker and get the same fluffy rice you get with the instant stuff for just pennies!

Popcorn Maker

Orville Redenbacher is $3-4 a box, but a bag of raw popcorn is $1 or less a bag. You can even buy raw popcorn in bulk at the health food store or the heal food section of the grocery store. If you’re into popcorn or watching your fat intake this is a great option.

You can even cheat and take a bag to the movie theater to save on concessions…sshh, don’t tell anyone I told you!

Freezer

The freezer is my best tool. I often freeze my huge couponing hauls and keep stocked up all year on items like meets, cheeses, butter, Pillsbury rolls, frozen veggies, frozen fruits, ice cream, pizzas, you name it I have found it cheap or free and popped it in the freezer!

Rotisserie

Think about it, how often do you see a sale for whole fryer chickens on sale for $.79/lb vs the $5.00 ready made rotisserie chickens? How much does the rotisserie chicken at Boston Market go for? If you’ve got a store coupon on top of a dynamite sale like this then it’s likely you know how play this game and your freezer is already stocked with whole chickens. I know I’ve already got a couple!

Like everything else, save money by making restaurant quality food at home! Simple and fast, Just skewer a whole chicken on the spit, season with a little seasoned salt and poultry seasoning and let the rotisserie do the work.

What did I miss? How do you save money in the kitchen?

Nine Money Saving Kitchen Appliances is a post from: Dough Defender

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We’ve all been there, bored at home on a Sunday with nothing to do. Where do we end up? Most often shopping, or at the mall, going to dinner or the bar. Spending money on things we really don’t need.

Here are a few ideas’ to keep you occupied free or very little.

Read: I love to read and suggest it to anyone writhing in boredom. I’m not talking about trips to Barns & Noble or Borders. No orders from Amazon…although Amazon.com is a great place to find used books at a discount and I often take advantage of the wish list option to keep a running list of the books I’d like to read.

Used bookstores like Bookman’s or Goodwill are the best place to find cheap books. You can usually find recent new releases that people have already gone through as well as unusual finds that you may have never considered while shopping a traditional bookstore. There are also used book exchanges online that allow members to swap books at very low cost. You could always trade or borrow from friends; everyone I know has a couple of books sitting around collecting dust.

Exercise: We all need to do it and the biggest excuse not to is “not enough time”. So why not check this off your list when you’re bored at home? Many simple exercises don’t cost a penny. Go for a run, do some push ups or sit ups.

Comb sites like craigslist.com or visit the local Good Will to find cheap workout equipment. Many apartment complexes also have workout rooms available to residents at no additional cost. If it’s already part of your rent, take advantage!

Garden: Save money on your grocery bill and entertain yourself. Gardening doesn’t require much space. Find pots from garage sales or on craigslist.com and great an indoor potted garden or use any available space in your yard.

Surf the Net: The internet is where I spend most of my time and it can be a great place to blow a few hours. Surf forums, read articles, look for helpful information, watch movies, listen to the radio, there is a plethora of things to do in cyber space.

Movies at Home: Just like cheap books, you can rent cheap movies. RedBox is a great place to find rentals for just $1 each. You can also find movies at your local thrift store and Netflix is a great place to get a range of new releases for very little cash. Invite friends over and have each of them bring an item for a movie night.

Play: Remember when we were kids, playing outside was the most entertaining thing you could ever do. Go for walks or runs outside, play in the snow if you live in an area where it snows, or play in the rain.

Color in coloring books from the thrift or $.99 store, print your own coloring pages online or draw your own scenes and color those. Make play dough from salt, flour, and water.

These are great activities to do with your kids if you have them, but nothing says you can’t do these things as an adult either. Get creative; it’ll be good for your state of mind to act a little silly!

Ways to Entertain Yourself at Home to Keep from Spending is a post from: Dough Defender

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Take advantage of those 2-for-1deals, the brown bag stuffer sales, the day old bakery steals, and the great prices on seasonal produce. Don’t let those great coupons go to waste because you won’t be able to use everything before it spoils!

Save Space in the Freezer

Use these great tips from Shelley Elmblad to save space in your freezer and take advantage of those great grocery deals.

One great way to save space in your freezer is to freeze food flat in freezer bags and then stack them. Try freezing fruits and veggies on cookie sheets and then placing them in freezer bags to keep them from sticking together.

Always make sure the freezer bags are as flat as possible by removing excess air. This can be done with a food saver or by using a straw to suck out as much air as possible.

Get rid of any excess packaging that foods may come in.

Make sure the freezer is always at 0 degrees Fahrenheit, use a thermometer if you need to and make sure there is enough room for the cold air to circulate around the items.

Make sure you know what is in there! Always label your items with a sharpie, listing the contents and date. You could always have an inventory list as well for reference when planning meals and recipes.

Get another freezer if you have too. Chest freezers can be small and compact while offering a large amount of extra space for freezing your grocery store finds.

Freezing Meat, Poultry and Fish

Most meat, poultry, and fish will be good for up to three months in the freezer. Avoid freezer burn by wrapping meat, poultry, and fish in freezer paper or plastic wrap or use a freezer bag. If you choose to freeze foods in the store wrapping, make sure to wrap them again with plastic wrap as the store wrapping may be compromised in route to your freezer.

Freezing Bakery Items

Breads, cookies and cakes all freeze well. Always use a freezer bag or container that keeps out air to prevent bakery items from tasting dry and stale when thawed. Most breads and unfrosted cakes freeze well for two months, while cookies and frosted cakes stay fresh for up to a year in the freezer.

Freezing Milk and Cheese

Freezing milk can take up a lot of room in your freezer; if you’ve got that second freezer mentioned earlier you can easily freeze a gallon of your favorite Milk product. Empty out a cap full of the milk to allow the container to expand when frozen. A gallon of milk will keep for up to three months in the freezer. When thawed, shake well and enjoy!

Cheese may become crumbly after freezing, but freezing does not affect the taste. Freeze most cheese for up to three months, but do not freeze cottage cheese. Butter and margarine both freeze well for six to nine months.

Freezing Fresh Fruits and Veggies

Freeze fresh fruit when it is fully ripened so it is not bitter. Always wash the fruit thoroughly before freezing in freezer bags. Fruit becomes mushy when thawed; it is great for smoothies, shakes, and cooking.

Fresh veggies can be frozen, they key is to blanch them first. Fresh, blanched veggies will keep up to eight months in the freezer.

Freezing Fresh Herbs

The best place to save when freezing is with fresh herbs like basil, cilantro, and parsley. Fresh leafy herbs like basil, cilantro, and parsley freeze well for up to three months. Place the herbs in freezer bags and freeze. Freezing allows for easy chopping for cooking.

Get Shopping!

Make sure to look for coupons for your favorite foods and scope out the grocery ads weekly. Grocery stores often offer the same sales on a revolving basis and don’t forget the seasonal sales on produce!

Freeze Food and Save Money: Harness the Power of Your Freezer to Save on Groceries is a post from: Dough Defender

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I set out to figure out how I could save money on my grocery bill and here is what I have discovered.

Produce Co-ops

I have found a great local, volunteer-run organization called Bountiful Baskets. Bountiful Baskets is a produce co-op, selling baskets of produce, breads, cheeses, spices, olive oil, honey, and occasionally meats.

What’s so great about the co-op? It’s cheap! I am able to get a full sized laundry basket loaded with fruits and veggies for $16.50. The service is available every two weeks and there are so many locations that I found one right around the corner from my home. I love it. Check your local area for produce co-ops and see if you can eat the fresh stuff for cheap.

Buy in Bulk

Yup, the good ol’ bulk stores like Costco and Sam’s Club where you can get enough toilet paper to dress a whole football team like mummies at Halloween. I’ve got the produce covered with my co-op, but what about meats? Animal products are what really seem to be expensive aside from the fresh stuff so I buy in bulk and freeze everything. Large pallets of ground beef, bags of chicken and fish, large packages of cheese, and many cans of tuna fish.

Discount Stores

Don’t forget places like BigLots and the Amazing $.99 Store. These guys are warehouses of cheap canned goods and snack foods. Now that grocery store brand canned goods are three times the price they were just six months ago, these discount stores are selling them at the prices they were six months ago or lower.

Make a List

Make sure you make a list and stick to it! Never go grocery shopping when you are hungry, you’ll kill your list in 5 seconds flat.

Along with these tips, there are always traditional methods of saving with grocery ads, coupons, and competitor price matching. If you have more tips on saving on your grocery bill share them in the comments!

Photo: Bountiful Baskets, Bloomberg, Hammerhead Rabbits

Save Money on Your Grocery Bill! is a post from: Dough Defender

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Click here for your free subscription. Deals like this one can expire quickly so get in there fast. You can expect to receive your first issue after 6-8 weeks.

Thanks: The Bargainist
Foto: SELF

Free SELF Magazine! is a post from: Dough Defender

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