2008 | DIY Bride

Dec01 2

Budget Watch: Things To Watch For In December/January

As 2008 comes to an end, I wanted to give you a heads up about some things that may directly affect you and your wedding budget in the coming weeks.

With the economy on shaky ground companies big and small are looking for ways to reduce their potential losses for their next quarter or fiscal year. Translation: look for a reduction in services & perks and a rise in fees.

Here’s what to watch out for:

Credit Cards

Pay attention to every single word on your monthly credit card statement and all of the little extras they send with your bill each month. The terms of your credit card agreement may very well change in the new year. Special attention needs to be given to the annual fee, interest rate, and late fee terms. Check every month for any changes in those rates!
The U.S. credit card industry is expected to lower credit limits to new and existing customers in the next year as a risk aversion strategy. This means that your once $5000 credit limit, for example, may be cut by hundreds or even thousands of dollars leaving you with less credit to use.
Citigroup recently announced a 3% hike in their rates for many of its credit card holders. Expect other banks to follow with higher interest rates.
Qualifying for new credit cards will be tougher – especially if your credit isn’t perfect. Don’t count on getting another card to help fund your wedding if you’ve maxed out another one.

Air Travel

If you’re planning on using frequent flyer miles or points to pay for your honeymoon or wedding flights, there’s good news and bad news here.

First, the bad news: United Airlines is raising prices on their FF rewards. This means you’ll need more points to pay for a ticket in 2009. Delta rumored to be changing their SkyMiles card loyalty program to reduce the amount of points gained when using the AmEx SkyMiles card.

The good news is that there are other ways to rack up miles and lots of FF deals to be found. Airlines are struggling to get those seats filled and are offering, often in conjunction with credit card companies and/or their own loyalty programs, deals to entice you to fly. I love Tim Winship’s blog over at SmarterTravel.com for alerts and resources for finding FF mile deals and info.

Check your mail (and the airlines’ websites) for changes in your Frequent Flyer rewards or airline loyalty programs!

Worthy of note: Airlines are also positioning to reduce the number of available seats per flight to help raise prices (and increase their profits). Some airlines are still imposing extra baggage fees plus surcharges for fuel and gawd-knows-what-else. Don’t forget to include those costs into your travel budget.

Jewelry/Diamonds

As the holidays are upon us, and the economic gloom looms over, start checking out small indies and chain jewelry retailers for deals on engagement/wedding rings. The price of gold is dropping a little and retailers are desperate for sales. Christmas and New Years are big engagement events so there are good sales going on right now. Do beware of going of out business sales. There are some larger chains that are closing for good. If you buy from one of these retailers, all sales are final and you’ll have zero recourse if there’s a problem with your ring.

Slightly cringe-worthy but a good resource if you’re not superstitious: pawn shops are doing well right now and many have an increased inventory of wedding and engagement rings at low, low prices.

Nov24 2

‘Tis The Season To Save Some Cash

Posted by Khris in Steals + Deals

As we in the US gear up for Thanksgiving this week, the inevitable barage of Black Friday ads are undoubtedly already on their way to your hot little hands. For those of you with DIY wedding projects on your to do list in the next few months NOW is the perfect time to stock up on crafting essentials. Coupons, sales, and discounts galore will be abundant for the next few months. Take advantage of this most wonderful time of year, my friends.

What you should you stock up on:

Double-sided adhesives. If you’re doing stationery projects, you’ll likely need plenty of double stick tape. I go through several rolls a year.
Printer ink cartridges
Printer papers & cardstock
Extra blades for your paper cutter
Embellishments like ribbon, rhinestones, glitter, eyelets, brads
Ink for rubber stamps
Floral supplies
Fabric and notions

Bigger-ticket items to watch out for:

Inkjet printers
Good paper cutter
Heat embossing tool (if you’re going to stamp & emboss)
Jewelry tool kits
Die cutting machines
Sewing machines

Where to look for deals:

Newspapers. This is THE week for print coupons in the paper.
Craft store websites. Some have downloadable printable coupons and some have online coupon codes.
Sign up for craft and office supply store newsletters. The big guys are starting to send out 30% – 50% coupons on a regular or semi-regular basis to their email subscribers.
Local store newsletters. If your favorite scrapbook or fabric store has a mailing list, get on it ASAP. Many send out notices of in-store events and sales on a short notice.

Nov23 4

Under $500 Bridal Ensemble Contest: Thank You!

Posted by Khris in Contests

Thank you to everyone who entered this contest!

With all sincerity – I am amazed at how talented and resourceful you are! I admit to buying a pair of shoes that was showcased and found some nifty ideas for Xmas gifts.

I’ll be announcing the winner on Monday. Hopefully everyone will have had a chance to view all of the awesomeness that was turned in.

Notes:

If you missed the contest and want to share your Under $500 boards anyway, please send ‘em in anytime! There’s no prize involved except the utter adoration of all of us DIYers on a budget. Wedding pros, readers, past-brides, etc. are all invited to participate. (Please, please, please do NOT put the links/sources in the .jpg/image file! Include them in the body of the email.)
Etsy was, by far, the #1 resource for our readers’ boards. Nordstrom and Macys followed as go-to spots for wedding attire on a budget.
If you entered and your entry is not displayed: it’s probably due to it not being in the format specified in the contest rules.

If you didn’t get enough budget-friendly ideas, my friend Liene of Blue Orchid Designs, will be announcing the winner of her Recessionista challenge – the under $1000 ensemble challenge. Check out the details: http://www.blueorchidblog.com/2008/11/recessionista-giveaway.html

Nov23 3