I love Amazon.com

For the most part I'm your typical guy who doesn't find going out to stores or the mall to shop a relaxing day. I'd rather just go in, get what I need, and get out, without having to deal with the crowds. I like online shopping because I can go at my own pace, and take time to look at items. And that's what brought me to this post.

Valentine's day is coming up, and I had a fairly good idea of what I want to get for my someone special (shh, I'm not telling since it's still before Valentine's Day). I turned to Amazon.com for a couple of reasons -- I shop there frequently, I knew they had the couple of things I wanted, and most importantly they offer FREE Super Saver Shipping when you spend $25 or more on qualifying purchases.

The free shipping is the main reason I keep coming back. I know I can get the items I want at about the same price as I could find them in a store, and I won't be paying extra for shipping charges. My son's birthday is coming up shortly, and I could have put his gifts in the same order, which I really wish I did. But I know I'll be spending more than $25 on him anyway, so I don't have to worry about free shipping.

There's always that excitement of getting mail at home that isn't a bill!

Save money on Twist Ties

There is never, a need to buy twist ties! EVER! Sure, twist ties are handy to have around for various projects. You can use twist ties to close garbage bags, to secure non-garbage bags, as a quick repair for a broken shoe lace, to tie loose computer and TV wires together, hang Christmas ornaments, secure luggage zippers as a make-shift lock, and many more.

Even with all of these uses, you should never spend money on buying twist ties. All you need to do is start saving the twist ties that come in packaging you use on a daily basis. The most common source for twist ties are on bread packages. Additional sources include packaging on any type of product. But bread is your main source. As you finish each loaf just start saving the twist ties, or start using them for any of the ideas mentioned above. It's not neccessary to save them forever. Once you feel you have saved enough you can stop. Just be sure to keep enough on hand for situations that come up where you'll need them.

More ideas for using samples

I just posted last week that you can stretch your budget by using up your various samples of toothpastes, mouthwashes, and other items. But I neglected one area of free items which we all have in our homes, and many times our cars too -- things from fast food restaurants. Just take a look around your house, do you have extra ketchup packets, salt & pepper packets, napkins, plastic cutlery, or straws? You probably keep telling yourself that you will use these things one day, and that's why you can't throw any of these free items out. Well, now is the time to use them! Next time you're serving hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, or sausages use your ketchup and mustard packets first before grabbing for the ketchup and mustard bottles. If you want to add salt to your fries, grab for those extra salt packets. Use up all those extra napkins you've brought home with the intention of using. And all that plastic cutlery can be used on meals that you take to work. Not only will this suggestions eliminate the clutter of trying to store this stuff, you will be able to stretch your budget while you do this.

Soap Saving

Here's a quick tip to help you get your money's worth out of a bar of soap -- get a soap saver bag. When the bar gets small, or starts breaking into pieces, you put what's left into this bag. After you accumulate enough pieces of soap you can start using the soap saver bag until that soap is gone as well. Now you've just stretched your bar soap budget by finding a way to use all of the soap from the bar.

Use up your sample size products

I'm sorry it's been quite some time since my last post. I had been finishing up grad school, which is where I was focusing my time rather than this blog. Toward the end of grad school I had joined the ranks of the unemployed American, and had to really step up my frugal living.

One thing I found to stretch out my dollars was to use up my drawer full of sample size products. We all have drawers filled with these products we seem to always come across -- hotel shampoos and soaps,sample size toothpaste and mouthwashes from the dentist, free items we got from various local festivals, free samples we signed up for online simply because it was free. It doesn't really matter how you got them, now that you have this drawer full it's time to put these trial size items to good use.

By using up all of these item you will be able to stretch your budget a little it by not needing to purchase full-size items for the next week or two. An additional benefit is that you will get your drawer back.