Holiday Gift #10: Thrift Store Finds

When you pay $2.50 for some hockey skates, it's going to be a great holiday. Way back in the day, my boyfriend played hockey for awhile, and was even drafted to the NHL although never officially played for the league before he called it quits to pursue "the arts." Meanwhile my stepdad got his stepdaughters totally obsessed with the sport back in the mid '90s. I still have binders full of hockey cards and an old Sabres jersey in my closet. No lie, I used to dream of meeting and marrying a hockey player. Obsessed I tell you. Well here I am dating an ex player and here in Milwaukee we have an official US Olympic training facility, the Pettit National Ice Center. It's a match made in heaven.

Well the magic doesn't stop there people. At the Pettit it costs $10 for public skating and that includes the $3 skate rental. Now this might not sound like all that much, but I'd love to go more often since it's fun, romantic, and a hell of a good workout for my ass. So right after Christmas, my boyfriend discovered that a local thrift store, Value Village, put out a bunch of used ice skates. He wanted to get me a pair for Christmas, but obviously a new pair is very much out of budget range. Well we scurried on over there and I found a pair of hockey skates that fit for $5! Oh it gets better! It was Half Off Wednesday, so a dull rusty pair of $2.50 Bauer Chargers were officially mine, thanks to my boyfriend and his sweet belated Christmas gift.


I'll probably revisit the awesomeness that is thrifting again and again in this blog because it's a fantastic resource for cheap gifts, and cheap fun altogether! My boyfriend is a huge Dokken fan, and last summer he took me to see them at the State Fair. (CLASSIC right?!) Well a few weeks prior we were on one of our thrifting adventures and I found his favorite Dokken album on vinyl and surprised him. You probably had to be there, but trust me it was pretty stellar.

Ok back to the skates. As I mentioned public skate with rental is $10, but now that I've got myself my own pair of skates, the cost comes down to $7 and I think I can handle that. Because sometimes you have to spend money to save money, right?

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So yeah! That will officially conclude my Ten Fabulous Holiday Gifts on a Budget. Coupon books, memory journals, and wallets full of goodies. Homemade planners, coasters, and cake cookies. Scavenger hunts, Blurb books, and enough decoupage that will get you high off the glue. I think the list provides a vast array of quality ideas that can be utilized throughout the year for really any occasion. So treat your husband, your girlfriend, your brother, and your best friend to some of your sweet creativity. PS my 30th birthday is on Wednesday. Just sayin'...

Holiday Gift #7: Wallet Full of Goodies!

Completely disregarding your sense of morality, imagine finding--and keeping--an average person's lost wallet or pocketbook. Now imagine the contents of said wallet or pocketbook and what types of things might reside inside, things that would be fun to use. Gather all this information and turn it into the coolest gift ever!

Purchase a cheap wallet or pocketbook. Fill it with all kinds of gift cards and cash, maybe a receipt for a lovely Gap sweater that's hiding in the closet, anything papery and worth a little something. Done. While seemingly expensive, this gift doesn't have to be. Goodwill works well to locate the container of choice. And as for the gift cards, think about the aforementioned average person who has like $4.58 left on his Starbucks card. Or what about a restaurant.com certificate...$25 for only $2 on 80% off days! Perhaps your local city has cheap, or even pay-what-you-want shows. Here in Milwaukee, we have a couple venues that offer $10 tickets for up-and-coming bands and artists. (Be the coolest person on your block and Facebook about seeing the latest rad indie band that came into town.) You could throw in a check that hasn't been cashed that just so happens to be written out to the giftee from the gifter. Maybe toss in a couple sticks of gum.

This type of gift spans all kinds of relationships too. You could do something like this with a purse for a bachelorette gift (omg just think of the naughty possibilities), or even a baby shower gift (throw in a pacifier and some Ibuprofen). You could place the wallet on a park bench real quick before your husband passes by. If your wife gets off on shoplifting, perhaps you should place this the purse amongst the other purses at a nearby mall. All kinds of totally legal adventures await you with this fun holiday gift!

Holiday Gift #5: Scavenger Hunt

This holiday season is probably pretty tight for virtually everyone. Perhaps you feel really bad about getting your boyfriend a pair of boxers, a mix cd, and that's about it. Well it's time to turn this seemingly ho hum gift pack into a crazy little adventure!

We've definitely arrived at the "five golden rings" portion of our list because this one is truly tops. You can get as simple as you want or seriously blow it out the box with this gift. Last year I put together a little hunt for my sister's new boyfriend and it included cheese and some lip balm! And a friend of mine just put a hunt together for his girlfriend that included a walk through the gorgeous Christmas lights display in the neighborhood park and drinks 23 floors up overlooking the city.

Either way, as cliché as it sounds, it's definitely the thought that counts and any time you have to think up clever clues, c'mon that's a whole lotta thought right?! And the clues are key. Reach way down deep on this one and get your creativity on. Stay local but slightly bizarre and hide clues in places according to your girlfriend's bathroom routine. Branch out but stay classic and leave clues at all your favorite bars and restaurants. What do I always say people? All together now! "The possibilities are endless!"

So you get the picture. Obviously scavenger hunts work year round, for any occasion, for no occasion at all, and for absolutely anyone from your 3 year old niece to your 83 year old grandpa. I honestly think we don't have enough scavenger hunts in our lives, so let's all get on this thing!

gobble gobble...

...or should I say "robble robble?" Personally I can't stop thinking of food, and it has anything and everything to do with Thanksgiving on the horizon. Well I'm going to combine this particular blog post into two things that have nothing to do with each other: T'Gives and Micky D's. Hopefully they remain that way because even this cheap-ass lady isn't having Thanksgiving dinner at McDonald's. But you know what's fun? Giving thanks for living in a country with cheap treats like McDonald's two-for-a-dollar pies and 49¢ cones*.

*Now I recently visited the bright lights of Vegas where McDonald's cones were 50¢ each, so prices are subject to change, most likely in places like NYC, Hawaii, Alaska, and additional sticks in the mud. I also don't know the prices of pies and cones in Europe or Asia, so perhaps expand your thanks to the entire world.

Over the summer, the BF and I would frequent McDonald's for a 49¢ cone. In fact, we'd have to stop at different McDonaldses in order to sample the subtle differences in each delectable cone. (There are no differences, but it doesn't hurt to pretend now does it?) These treats aren't that good for you, it's true, but sometimes it's nice to just pull on over, rummage through the sticky change inside the cup holders, purchase a couple cones, and sit on the hood of your car like it's the '50s. "Simpler times," you say to each other, "simpler times."

Meanwhile, this fall I discovered the glory that is the McDonald's PUMPKIN pie (see, Thanksgiving was around here somewhere). Probably even worse for you, but how can you go wrong when they give you two for a dollar? PERFECT to share with a friend! And if the scent of a McDonald's pie doesn't get you going, I don't know what will.

But I digress. Fast food gets a pretty bad rap, and I'm actually on the healthier side of things. But if you manage to keep the concept of eating fast food to a dull roar, than there's no harm in a cheap treat here and there. Especially when you're out on various boring errands and you spontaneously decide it's time to "Cone it up! Yay for cones!!"

So perhaps when you're out there slaving away to the beat of the Black Friday drum, try to burgle a moment to enjoy a cone or pie...or both?! Remember the McDonald's apple pie a la mode? A pie, two dollops of ice cream, caramel, nuts? Apparently I must have dreamt this thing up because I can't find a lick of anything via google.

Anyway, are there any fast and cheap treats I'm missing out on? Throw me a comment!