Cable Confessions from A Non-Consumer

by Katy on September 22, 2011 · 28 comments

My name is Katy Wolk-Stanley and I am a cable-TV hypocrite.

There is no bit of frugal advice more cliched than “Drop that cable TV!” (Okay, maybe “lose that latte habit,” but why quibble?) But these words of wisdom have never applied to me. Because, with the exception of during last year’s World Cup soccer tournament, my family has never chosen to bring cable TV into our home.

But all of that has changed. Because I, The Non-Consumer Advocate am now a cable-TV subscriber.

First of all, let me show completely disloyalty to my family by pointing an accusatory finger at my soccer-obsessed husband. Because a man who feels the need to watch English premier soccer, as well as European games is a sad man indeed when broadcast TV is his only option. First, a little background — my husband coaches soccer, as well as volunteering with our non-profit soccer league approximately 30 hours per week. He sets up clinics, attends board meetings, arranges for stocked first-aid kits, designs merchandise, coordinates summer soccer camps and countless other tasks.

So yeah, the man loves soccer.

The poor guy for years has begged and pleaded for cable-TV, but it was Netflix’s recent shenanigans that finally broke my resolve. Because it turned out that adding cable TV would only cost us an extra $20 per month, as we already have cable internet. (A deductable expense, as I am a professional blogger. 😉 ) Cutting Netflix would then bring it down to an extra $10 per month.  And then . . . my husband offered to start cycling to work and back to offset that last bit of expense.

Hmm . . . cycling to work would increase fitness, help prolong the life of our car and save money.

Sold!

And that, my friends is how I,  The Non-Consumer Advocate ended up with cable TV.

Shh . . . Can’t you see that I’m watching Cash and Cari? 

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Having Fun with Spray Paint

by Katy on September 21, 2011 · 26 comments

Who’s been having fun with spray paint? I’ve been having fun with spray paint!

For example, We had a number of framed portraits of our sons peppered throughout the house. I never really liked the frame color, which was super bland blonde wood, so I decided to spray paint them black.

Watch their transformation from bland to fabulous:

 

 

 

 

Much better, right?

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Extreme Tidying from the Extremely Untidy

by Katy on September 20, 2011 · 6 comments

Before Extreme Tidying.

After Extreme Tidying.

My day is super busy, as we are signing papers for refinancing our mortgage, (hooray for 15 years at 3.62%) plus a number of ongoing projects that are going on in my life right now. As a result, my house is mess-mess-messy. And I’m not being self-depricating, it’s truly awful.

I am not too worried about the long term effects of today’s grunginess, as I know it’s just part of the process of working on some long term projects.

However, if you are looking for some tidy inspiration, I present to you:

Extreme Tidying

 

It ‘s fantastic, it’s hilarious, and basically it’s pure genius! I could explain the back story, but I’ve got work to do. Click on the link, you will not regret it.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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Fabulous Frugal Find — Vintage Hostess Cart

by Katy on September 19, 2011 · 4 comments

It’s time again for Fabulous Frugal Finds, (F.F.F.) where readers send in their rather fantastic secondhand finds to share with The Non-Consumer Advocate community.

Today I shine a spotlight on Linda, whose back porch just got a little cuter:

I recently completed a back porch addition to my house. The project took way longer than the original prediction and cost WAY more than the initial bid, (partly because I made some significant changes along the way.) Knowing I had blown my budget and wouldn’t have money to furnish it with I spent the three years that it was being constructed collecting second hand furnishings for it.

One of my favorites is a vintage hostess cart. I saw it at Goodwill on a Friday. I was attracted to it but the $30.00 price tag scared me away. Over the weekend I began to regret passing it by so Monday I went back to the store anxious to see if it was still available. Not only was it available but they were having a 30% off all furniture sale. SCORE!!!!

Since I’m using it outdoors I gave it a coat of clear Varathan to protect it from the elements. It is now part of my well beloved seating area right off of the master bedroom.

All the knick-knacks on it were also 2nd hand store finds.

Thank you very much to Linda for sharing her F.F.F. If you want to submit your stuff, please e-mail the story and a good quality photo to nonconsumer@comcast.net.

And please enjoy these previous Fabulous Frugal Find posts:

High End Designer Furniture

Hand Knotted Oriental Rug

Fancy Velvet Dresses

Pot Belly Stove

Free Girl’s Sleeping Bag

Patio Set

Priceless $1 Painting

Rejuvenation Light Shade

Glamour Edition

Roseville Vase

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

 

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Ask The Readers — Ginormous Jar of Hot Dog Relish

by Katy on September 18, 2011 · 43 comments

Note: I ended up placing a post on my local Freecycle group, and was able to get someone to come and take away the offending jar of relish. Hooray!

My husband Dale volunteers approximately 30 hours a week for our local recreational youth soccer league. He’s on the non-profit board, he coaches and mentors; as well as overseeing the uniforms and merchandising. And last week he organized a huge soccer clinic for the league’s 8-10 year olds with Portland Timbers player Sal Zizzo. The clinic was a giant success, and featured a big ol’ spread with hot dogs, fruit, veggies and the inevitable condiments.

Unfortunately, the leftover food came home with my husband, which means I am the proud new owner of a ginormous half-gallon jar of pickle relish.

Not exactly an ingredient for too many recipes. It’s currently sitting front and center in my already fit-to-burst refrigerator, using up prime real estate and offering up no solutions.

I know I could pour it into the compost or post it on Freecycle, but I though I would ask you, the readers what you would do with the relish?

Seriously, I am loathe to toss perfectly good food, but at the same time I do not relish the idea of actually eating this glop.

So . . . What the heck should I do with this relish?

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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The Time has Come to Usher in the Era of the Reasonably Priced Kitchen

by Katy on September 17, 2011 · 46 comments

Custom hammered copper vent hood! A pot filler spigot above every stainless steel stove! And let’s not forget granite, granite granite!

Have you had enough of ridiculous, over the top kitchen remodels? Me too! Which is why the featured article in today’s Homes and Gardens of the Northwest section of The Oregonian was a breath of fresh air. Why? because amateur designer Julie Thompson’s $4000 condo kitchen remodel  did not feature stainless steel or granite, and it was partially constructed using bit and pieces from her neighbor’s kitchens remodels.

“While other residents of the 30-unit condominium building were busy remodeling their kitchens to look ultramodern, Thompson was remodeling hers to look old — but in a way that is tailored, sophisticated and functional. In her quest to create an updates and authentic-looking space, she even salvaged pieces from other parts of the building and refurbished them.”

At a time when the average “mid-range” kitchen remodel cost has crept up to $56,000, it is time to put a stop to kitchens that cost three times what our parents paid for their houses.

So repaint those existing cabinets, refinish those floors and maybe, just maybe you can even scavenge among the discards from your neighbor’s swanky remodeling project.

You are not going to pay the average amount for your kitchen, because you are not an average American.

You’re a Non-Consumer.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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The High Price of Raising Kids

by Katy on September 16, 2011 · 24 comments

 

The following is a reprint of a previously published post. Enjoy!

I have always been very skeptical of statistics that estimate the average cost of raising a child. The number are tremendously, well . . . tremendous. For a child age 12-14 (the ages of my sons) the numbers run $7560 per child, per year. Granted, this number is taking into account the larger house necessary to house children, as well as feed and clothe them, but I still scoff at this number. (Which is the number for the lowest income bracket, which we are not.)

My theory that I’ve always stood behind is that having children lowers your earning potential.

I use myself as an example.

As an experienced high risk labor and delivery nurse, my earning potential is quite good. Not only is my hourly wage quite high, but the opportunities for overtime is usually limitless. However, my husband and I have never wanted to have our sons in day care, so I’ve never worked more than part time.

My locker partner has grown children that live in another state, and she hardly ever turns down the overtime. She is famous on our unit for consistently earning six figures. That’s right, she earns more than $100,000 per year doing the same job that I do.

My husband took the kids up to Seattle for the weekend as a little Spring break treat, (don’t worry — they stayed with my sister, so it was very frugal) which left me all by my lonesome. The reason I didn’t accompany the menfolk was that I was scheduled to work both Friday and Saturday. Because I knew I had no one to come home to, I offered to stay for a full 12 hour shift both days, which ended up garnering me 6-3/4 hours of overtime. This will add hundreds of dollars to my paycheck! Had my kids been home, I would have left work when my scheduled shifts ended.

But what about men, does having children limit their earning potential as well? Yes, but differently. Because we have kids, we bought a house in Portland where our families live. (We had been living in New Mexico before kids) We wanted both the help from having our parents in town, but also to give our kids the gift of truly knowing their grandparents.

My husband’s college degree is in photography, and he ran a commercial photo studio here in Portland, which he eventually closed down. Had we been childless, we could have moved to New York City, (where we also used to live) and had a much better chance at success. Not to mention that I wouldn’t want to transfer my children out of their school unless it were an absolute necessity.

But here’s the thing, my children are more important to me than my earning potential. I don’t really think about the money I’m missing, because their presence in my life is worth more than any currency.

Do you agree with my theories on the relationship between parenting and earning potential? Please add your thoughts and insights in the comments section below.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without.”

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Non-Consumer Photo Essay —

by Katy on September 15, 2011 · 9 comments

Congratulations to Barb @ 1 Sentence Diary, whose comment was randomly chosen to win a copy of The Frugal Girl's eBook. Here's of photo of the two of us in 1985 during our senior year of high school. I just love this picture. And yes, I do choose the winners randomly, but sometimes random occurrences come full circle.

This photo pleases me. Pyrex + Fiestaware = perfection.

 

Although I loved my antique coffee table, it was too big and stuffy/formal for the space. I sold it yesterday for $100 and have replaced it with a $10 squishy garage sale ottoman. I have set aside the $100 to buy the perfect coffee table, and am more than happy to wait as long as it takes. I have made room for something wonderful in my life.

 

I have been painting my picture frames for a more cohesive look throughout my house. And I do have to say that the clothesline came in mighty handy for drying the paint.

 

Doesn't the black frame make the image look striking? This frame had been an unfinished grubby looking wood in its former incarnation. I bought this piece at an Albuquerque estate sale when I was in nursing school. I think the cuddling couple are very sweet.

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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A Decluttering Task for You

by Katy on September 14, 2011 · 27 comments

After years of working on decluttering, organizing and decorating my house, my energy for the project sometimes wanes. (Okay, who am I kidding here, it always wanes.) But I have an easy, no brainer delcuttering task for you:

Return everything that doesn’t belong to you.

That’s right, return those library books, give back your mother-in-law’s leftover containers and if you have tools, dishes or anything else in your home that doesn’t belong to you — take them to the person they do belong to!

Because it’s hard enough to stay on top of your own possessions without having to deal with everyone else’s as well.

So, what are you waiting for? Go do it. Now!

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

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The Trifecta of Non-Consumerism

by Katy on September 13, 2011 · 12 comments

Sheets on the clothesline, an in-process piece of project furniture and a garbage picked patio umbrella. Kind of the trifecta of Non-Consumerism. Ahh . . . .

Katy Wolk-Stanley

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Twitter.

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