All Posts By

Nicole

Lose Weight With Housework!

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Hello again, savvy savers!  Today I am 32 years young, I am 5’6”, and weigh 192 lbs; I am down one pound since last week. I walk my dogs but beyond this am not terribly active. My lifestyle causes sedentary behaviors; I work-from-home, blog, run two internet businesses, and perform advocacy work online as well. I am an internet-based excuser! Today this changes! Spring has sprung, and so shall I! I have taken up yoga, and have started working out with a pedometer on as well!

For this weeks Battle-of-the-Bulge, Budget Style post, I wanted to share with you one of my favorite ways to exercise, and that is with basic, everyday housework! Consider the amount of time you spend each week completing the following, and you will see how much extra pounds you will be able to shed!

Did you know that according to a 2014 survey by the Discovery Channel, that many of us find cleaning our homes ‘mentally therapeutic’ and say it helps us feel in control of our lives. However, a 2013 Pew Research Center Survey found that more than 40 percent of polled women believe themselves to be “cleanaholics,” citing that the average American woman spends more than 16 hours a week cleaning her home – that’s the equivalent of 2 hours and 23 minutes a day!

So, with this idea in mind, and under the premise that women are really spending almost 2½ hours cleaning and tidying up every day, there’s plenty of opportunity to get a sufficient workout without even leaving home!

So if you are like me, and the idea of knocking out two birds with one stone is intriguing, you are not alone. For not only is working out at home a more budget-friendly way to battle the bulge, but housework is a great way to burn calories, too!

But as is the case with any workout, the more effort you put in, the greater the benefit. Consider the following examples:

  1. Want to workout your arms? Try polishing, dusting, mopping and sweeping.
  2. Looking to tone your thighs? Try bending and stretching while making beds.
  3. Wanting to increase flexibility? Try to wash windows or do the laundry to improving flexibility.
  4. Looking for quick cardio? Just by running up and down the stairs de-cluttering you can fit in a 20 minute aerobic workout.

Also,here is a simple guide as to how many calories you can earn by completing each chose for 15 minutes:

  • Carpet sweeping, sweeping floors: 39 calories
  • Mopping: 43 calories
  • Multiple household tasks all at once, light effort: 26 calories
  • Dusting: 26 calories
  • Washing dishes, While standing: 22 calories
  • Vacuuming: 43 calories
  • Butchering/Freezer Cooking Prep: 85 calories
  • Cooking and Canning: 17 calories
  • Serving food: 26 calories
  • Feeding animals: 26 calories
  • Putting away groceries: 26 calories
  • Carrying groceries upstairs: 111 calories
  • Food shopping: 22 calories
  • Ironing: 22 calories
  • Doing laundry: 17 calories
  • Putting away clothes: 22 calories
  • Making the bed: 17 calories
  • Moving furniture: 85 calories
  • Scrubbing floors: 48 calories
  • Sweeping garage, sidewalk, and outside of house: 51 calories
  • Watering plants: 26 calories
  • Playing with children: 26 calories
  • Carrying small children: 34 calories
  • Elderly & Disabled Adult Care: 51 calories
  • Playing with pets: 26 calories
  • Bathing pets, while standing or kneeling: 43 calories

So, with these few ideas in mind, you can be able to combine simple cleaning strategies with simply, cost and time conscious workout options! 

Here’s to better health,

mbnlogosm

Meal Plan Monday & Weekly Stockpile Shopping Trip: 8/3-8/10/15

LESSONS

Happy Monday, savvy savers! This week is starting off to a sunny, humid start here in Dixie. Thankfully, this weeks menu is going to be a breeze, and consists of Cupboard Clearing ideas, so stepping out to the market is not necessary! I am cooking and prepping solely from what is in my deep freeze pantry, and stockpile this week! The couponed cost of this weekly menu is only $23.41 and it feeds a family of four.

Here’s what we purchased this week:

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Winn-Dixie:

  • 4 Jumex Juices, $0.49 each
  • Candied Orange & Lemon Peel Tubs, $0.25 each
  • Ripe Banana Bags, 2/lb for $0.39
  • 2 Marshmallow Fluff Cups, $0.39 each
  • (2) 1-Liter Coke Bottles, $0.99 each; Submitted for a $1.00 iBotta App, and only paid $0.50 after rebates
  • 2 Zapp’s Chips, 2/$2.00
  • 2 lb bag of Cabbage, $0.49/lb
  • 3 bags of Yaki Nori, $1.00 each
  • Tomato, $0.89 each; submitted for $0.25 Checkout51 Credit
  • 2 cloves garlic, 2/$1.00
  • 2 Tubs Move Over Butter, $1.19 each
  • 1 Quart Fat Free Land-O-Lakes Hal and Half, $1.39
  • 1 cucumber $0.50; submitted for SavingStar 20% back credit
  • 1 Roll of Rollos, $1.19; submitted for full rebate back on SavingStar
  • 3 pound bag of Bolthouse Carrots, $1.29
  • EarthBound Farms Salad Tub, $3.99; used $1.00 Earthbound Farms Coupon

So this week I paid $20.76 for $81.23 worth of groceries and home goods, all of which went to replenish my stockpile, freezers, and pantry! 

As well, this week we will be having:

Monday
Breakfast: Meatless Monday low-fat Mozzarella and Spinach Omelette, with Green Tea.
Lunch: Almonds, Cheese Crackers, Cheese rounds, with celery, and Crystal Light.
Snack: Almonds, and Gala Apple Slices.
Dinner: Crockpot Three Bean Chili, cooked with Boca Crumbles, with Diet Cola.
Dessert: Sugar-Free Dulce de Leche Cups.

Tuesday
Breakfast: Green Tea, Coconut Milk, and Strawberry Smoothie; made with Truvia.
Lunch: Freezer Cooking Chicken and Dumplings, and Crystal Light.
Snack: Frozen/Thawed Strawberries and String Cheese.
Dinner: Taco Roll-ups; in lieu of taco shells I use Romaine Lettuce Sheets.
Dessert: Gluten-Free Brownies.

Wednesday
Breakfast: Baked Frittata Cups, with Unsweetened Almond Milk.
Lunch: Taco Salads, with crystal light.
Snack: Grapes and apple slices.
Dinner: Crockpot Chicken Curry, steamed peas, and crystal light.
Dessert: Homemade Gluten-Free  Truvia brownies.

Thursday
Breakfast: Homemade Greek Yogurt, with fruit cup, and Unsweetened Almond milk.
Lunch: Tossed Salad with Turkey, light vinaigrette, and Crystal Light.
Snack: Grapes and apple slices.
Dinner: Grilled Turkey Burger Patties, sweet Potato Fries, with Crystal Light.
Dessert: Brownie flurries with leftover brownies; we use Edy’s Sugar-Free Ice Cream.

Friday
Breakfast: Homemade Greek Yogurt, with fruit cup, and Unsweetened Almond milk.
Lunch: Tossed salad, with homemade Greek Yogurt dressing, and Crystal Light.
Snack: Strawberries and two pieces of Sugar Free Chocolate; candy is used as melted drizzle for berries.
Dinner: Barbecue Pork, Steamed Green Beans, and Crystal Light.
Dessert: Diet Coca-Cola slushies.

Saturday
Breakfast: Homemade Greek Yogurt, with fruit cup, and Unsweetened Almond milk.
Lunch: Chicken Salad, and Crystal Light.
Snacks: String Cheese and grapes.
Dinner: Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry, Quinoa, and lemonade.
Dessert: Sugar-Free Dulce de Leche Cups.

Sunday
Breakfast: Bacon, Eggs, and Toast, with Unsweetened Almond Milk.
Lunch: Grilled Sausages, Steamed Broccoli, Crockpot Macaroni and Cheese, with Crystal Light.
Snack: Grapes and walnuts.
Dinner: Crockpot Orange Chicken with Almonds, Steamed Peas, and crystal light.
Dessert: Sugar-Free Dulce de Leche Cups.

August No Spend Challenge Day 2: Kitchen & Pantry Organization

30-day-No-Spending-Challenge-day 1

 

Hello again, savvy savers! As many of my readers and online friends may know, I am always juggling several projects, business opportunities, scholastic goals, and home projects at any given time. With so much constantly going on, it’s sometimes easy to forget one of my main passions, and antithesis for this blog, the ability to save money, while live a better live, in hopes of having a “whole living blog,” to help me have a better run life. So, for 2015 I have decided to take an old-school approach to spending, and so for every other month this year, for the months of February, April, June, August, October, and December I will be participating in a NO SPENDING month cycles! 

 

 

Why this crazy idea? Well, a month of NO spending is an awesome way to both reset your spending patterns, as well as to either kick-start your budget or revamp and make changes to any existing budget you or your family may have. This is also a great challenge for personal responsibility; you can track what you have been spending your hard earned funds, and keep yourself on track, in terms of responsible spending thereafter. 

I will be blogging daily about my NO SPEND struggles, victories, and suggestions from the previous day, and will be posting easy-to-follow daily challenges for my readers during my no-spend months. As well, each Sunday will share what I’ve learned, saved, and gained from this challenge as part of my Weekly Goals & Reflections Posts. I hope that many of you will join me in this challenge, as we can all you use more ways to save around the home.

 

 

The rules are pretty simple:  

  • No spending on anything  beyond absolute necessities.
  • Eat from your pantry & freezer as often as you are able.
  • And make changes to the way you purchase and consume goods, services, and commodities in your home. 
  • The idea of the challenge is to keep up with your daily activities,, but the main goal is simply to stop spending.  
  • This challenge can be a life changing experience, as you may just be amazed at how your mindset and perspective will change after just a month of seeing how you can enrich your life, without spending more!

Challenge 1: Part 1, Commitment

This first challenge has two parts. The first part of the first challenge is committing to the challenge itself. Knowing that starting any personal challenge, starts with following through with the challenge itself, and this no-spend month is no exception! 

Also knowing that this April is not just about not spending, although that will be our main goal.  I always challenge each of you to find ways to live well, live better, find new sources of joy, will spending less. You may just find out just how much we already have, and how little more we really need.  And hopefully, by the end of them month, a life rich with family, friends, and creative planning, secured by fiscally responsible measures, will be who we truly are. In addition, I hope to make my posts comments section a place of encouragement and accountability for us all, too!

I’m not gonna lie, there presumably will be tough moments, and for that reason, with one week remaining, stock-up on any items you currently feel you cannot do without. But the biggest reason for following through with this month daily challenges? In the month of February, I was able to save$1,456.87

This month is not about thinking what you won’t be spending and economizing on, but what you are saving for!

With that in mind, for today’s challenge, I encourage you all to physically take a few  minutes to make a list for this month, to include the following:

  • How much you plan to save this month.
  • What are your long-term financial goals.
  • What activities will you plan this month, to take the place of your spending.

 

 

Challenge 1: Part 2, Pantry Organization

I should warn you from the get-go:  my challenge is going to be geared around a lot of cleaning, organizing, self-and home inventorying this month! This is done in an attempt to re-wire our spending habits to include less conspicuous consumption, and finding more contentment is the ability to live off of what we currently have, and moreover, can afford! This is a spend less, dig deeper kind of month!

So today, we are going to start by taking stock of exactly what we have on hand. And if  you are a couponer/stockpiler like me,  you probably have more than a few forgotten packages hidden in the recesses of your pantry, and it’s time they come out to play!

Here’s a few tips for cleaning up your home pantry:

  1. Clear your kitchen counters, kitchen islands, and table before you begin to allow you so you have adequate work space. 
  2. Empty your pantry.
  3. Put like items together; all like items should be grouped separately into piles.
  4. All open containers need to be grouped separately.
  5. Any items that you will not be eating in the next six months, discard.
  6. Any items that will expire in the next three months, that you will not eat, group separately and donate. 
  7. Wipe down and sanitize cleared shelves.
  8. Take a sheet of paper and create an inventory of what you currently have in your home pantry.
  9. Keep in mind, when placing items back into your pantry, arrange items closest to expiration, nearest to the front of your shelf, and those items farthest from expiration towards the back of each shelf.

A few additional tips to keep in mind:

  • All shelved goods should be checked and rotated seasonally, and this is a task that should be placed on your calendars accordingly. 
  • Place all unopened containers in your pantry in like areas; cans with cans, boxes with boxes, jars with jars.
  • Open snacks, cookies, and candy should be taken out of the pantry and placed in other areas of the kitchen so that they can be easily consumed.
  • Be sure to wipe down the front of your pantry; this includes cabinets, panels, knobs, etc.
  • Take a well needed break, for a job well done!

Stay tuned for my end of day report updates, which will be posted to my Instagram page!

Here’s to saving.

mbnlogosm

August’s No-spend Month Challenge Starts Tomorrow!

Hello again, savvy savers! Tomorrow starts a new No-Spend Month Challenge on The LadyPrefers2Save! So, here is a re-cap of last months start, the ground-rules, and the basics for this month:

As many of my readers know, I am always juggling several projects, business opportunities, scholastic goals, and home projects at any given time. With so much constantly going on, it’s sometimes easy to forget one of my main passions, and antithesis for this blog, the ability to save money, while live a better live, in hopes of having a “whole living blog,” to help me have a better run life.

So, for 2015 I have decided to take an old-school approach to spending, and so for every other month this year, for the months of February, April, June, August, October, and December I will be participating in a NO SPEND month cycles! 

Why this crazy idea? Well, a month of NO spending is an awesome way to both reset your spending patterns, as well as to either kick-start your budget or revamp and make changes to any existing budget you or your family may have. This is also a great challenge for personal responsibility; you can track what you have been spending your hard earned funds, and keep yourself on track, in terms of responsible spending thereafter. 

I will be blogging daily about my NO SPEND struggles, victories, and suggestions from the previous day, and will be posting easy-to-follow daily challenges for my readers during my no-spend months. As well, each Sunday will share what I’ve learned, saved, and gained from this challenge as part of my Weekly Goals & Reflections Posts. I hope that many of you will join me in this challenge, as we can all you use more ways to save around the home.

The rules are pretty simple:  

  • No spending on anything  beyond absolute necessities.
  • Eat from your pantry & freezer as often as you are able.
  • And make changes to the way you purchase and consume goods, services, and commodities in your home. 
  • The idea of the challenge is to keep up with your daily activities,, but the main goal is simply to stop spending.  
  • This challenge can be a life changing experience, as you may just be amazed at how your mindset and perspective will change after just a month of seeing how you can enrich your life, without spending more!

There are a few exceptions to the rule as follows:

  1. Unavoidable expenses related to employment, such as gas, are okay.
  2. Unavoidable school related expenses.
  3. Doctors appointments, veterinarian appointments, co-payments, family/pet prescriptions, and therapy sessions are okay.
  4. Do keep existing service and repair appointments that can’t be rescheduled to “Spending” months, such as hair appointments, lawn care services, trash removal, in-home repair services, etc.
  5. Do keep existing tithing and charitable giving.
  6. Do have an adequate stockpile of necessities prior to beginning this challenge, such as pet food, bedding, litter, laundry detergent, dish soap, snow salts, bottled water and emergency staples (if you live in areas frequently affected by seasonal weather), etc. 
  7. Do keep up with healthy living habits. I will continue to use my envelope saving system to fund app purchase rebates (iBotta, Shopmium, Snap by Groupon) for fresh produce and milk savings that may pop-up during my no-spend months; due to my PCOS I need several servings of fruits and veggies daily, and these app savings help keep my freezer stocked on a budget. 
  8. And it goes without saying, please do pay all of our monthly obligations; rent, mortgage, insurance, utility payments, banking fees,  student/financial/business loans, medical expenses, and assumed or credit card debt. 

T ishis months saving not just about not the overall act of not spending, although that will be our main goal, it is about so much more!

By not spending we seek to find out:

  1. Better ways to revamp our monthly budgets.
  2. Analyze unnecessary spending patterns.
  3. Minimizing clutter and chaos as a means to give more freely to out communities. 

So, this month I will challenge each of you to find ways to live well, live better, find new sources of joy, will spending less. You may just find out just how much we already have, and how little more we really need.  And hopefully, by the end of them month, a life rich with family, friends, and creative planning, secured by fiscally responsible measures, will be who we truly are. In addition, I hope to make my posts comments section a place of encouragement and accountability for us all, too!

I’m not gonna lie, there presumably will be tough moments, and for that reason, with one week remaining, stock-up on any items you currently feel you cannot do without today;  you will also need pens, paper, a clip board, laundry basket, and an open mind these coming weeks!

I’m not sure how many of you are on board for this month’s challenge but the gauntlet has been tossed, and I am calling on all of you all to try this challenge, in your own way, with your own rules, and just to do this with me. Right here, right now let’s both commit to a whole month of no spending, starting tomorrow!

Here’s to Saving,

mbnlogosm

What To Buy In August!

save_money

Hello again, savvy savers! For this weeks Wednesday Ways to Save, I wanted to share with you my list for the things to buy in August here at The LadyPrefers2Save!

Here’s what to be on the lookout for:

  • Laptops; online outlet stores are offering laptops and net-books as much as 60% off!
  • Back-to-school items, including paper products, dorm furniture; check manufacturer and store websites for money-saving coupons before shopping!
  • Office supplies, even if you do not have school-age children; remember that most office supply stores will also price match ads!
  • Summer apparel, with shorts and sleeveless shirts up to 70% off.
  • Patio furniture & grills, up to 75% off; Target and Walmart are the places to check on these normally high ticket items after the 25th of this month!
  • Year old Halloween and Autumnal Decor; many large and small retailers will start the season with 75% off savings, then go back up to 25% off for the holidays, especially craft stores!
  • Turkey and Ham; if you freeze your meats for the holidays, then now is the time to purchase them at under $0.10/lb at Walmart, for example!
  • Holiday toys; All major retailers have already released their perspective top-ten lists for the must-have holiday toys, and many can be paired with manufacturer coupons, purchased now, and stored for priced half of what they will be Black Friday! Toys should be purchased before Halloween to save on holiday markup then discounted pricing!
  • Cola; cola pricing, around Labor Day, will be at its lowest price point until Christmas, so stock-up now. A good price point is for any 2-liter under $0.50 each, 12-packs 4/$10.00, and 24-packs under $3.50!

What to Wait To Purchase:

  • Fall clothing, like sweaters and long sleeve shirts: October is the time to buy these items at rock bottom prices!
  • iPhones; As the  new iPhone 6 is set to be released in September, October will find 5S and 5C phones slashed in price!

Here’s to August savings!

mbnlogosm

How I Am Saving $1,344 Annually by Cutting Cable!

CRO_money_cuttingbills_12-13

Hello again, savvy savers! For this weeks Thrifty Thursday post, I want to share one of the easiest ways I have found in the last year to save on my families monthly budget, and that is by having cut my cable and home phone services last month, for good! You may wonder why the sudden decision?

Well, here is the long and short of the decision:

  • I called Comcast Customer Service several weeks ago, to scale back my service package, as my family and I did not watch most of the channels, and it had been months since I used the home phone service.
  • Customer Service was very uncooperative.
  • I was placed on hold for 76 minutes.
  • The representative returned to the phone and said that they were not going to let me lower my plan, and they were doing me a favor in doing so.
  • In that moment, I spoke up and said, CUT IT OFF!

So, within hours I had pulled cords, taken off adapters, removed boxes, and had returned all of the companies apparatuses pertaining to the home phone and cable to the local Comcast office. On the way home from this errand, it dawned on me… I needed to tell my husband when he got home, and how would I do that? How shall I tell him that the Saints and the Whodat Nation will no longer be on television? Simple, we would be saving money, and lot of it!

So, in the four hours until my husband came home, here’s the plan I came up with:

  • By cutting cable and home phone service, I would save $1344.00 annually.
  • I would be able to watch as many of the shows my family enjoyed, minus sports channels using Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon Prime; I am already a member of all three.
  • I would be able to put the money I would spent on cable to pay for season tickets to my husbands Alma Mater, the University of Southern Mississippi.
  • I would no longer pay for channels we didn’t watch.

The plan sounded rock solid! My husband took it rather well, and after a month of cutting my services here are some other insights I can share with how anyone can make this switch as well:

1. Investigate internet service providers:

When I made the rash decision to drop my cable bundled deal, I did not take into consideration that my internet plan would now cost me more per month; my monthly internet plan went from $45.00 per month to $58.00 a month. As I work from home, the internet, unlike a home phone, is a necessity (we have cell service for our main phone services), and though I am looking at other options, currently Comcast is my only service provider in my area, and so I am okay with the charge. If you live in an area with several providers, please call your current company’s customer retention department and try to make a deal!

2. Choose a video streaming service:

We were already members of Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Amazon Prime. We chose to retain all services, especially Amazon Prime because along with video streaming, free two-day shipping, and the Kindle Lending Library were also included in the $79 yearly fee; we pay for our Amazon Prime membership out of our annual tax returns, and so it doesn’t come out of the monthly pot, per se. As for my Netflix and Hulu Plus services, I use Ibotta, Checkout51, and Shopmium (using code GMYMMYPT) to pay for these services, and so there are no additional costs out-of-pocket for our family, as well; if you are like me and have a small but loyal following list of weekly or seasonal shows, than go with Hulu Plus, it’s been my favorite go-to for the past season!

3. Meet My New Friend, Roku:

Roku is a small, plug-and-play device which allows users to stream videos via your subscription service straight to your TV; the service also includes additional free programming as well. We purchased our unit through Amazon, using earned survey gift cards, for only $48.00, refurbished! This service is really awesome! The unit I purchased is here!  Our Roku is currently being used with our living room television, as we moved our PS4 to our den, as the gaming system already came prepared with downloadable streaming apps; for those without gaming systems, Roku is the way to go! 

4. SlingTV: You can also  sign-up for Slingtv, a service which allows you to watch premium channels, as soon at ten minutes after the start of a program in live time. Also, when you pre-pay for three months of tv service (packages start at $10.00/month for cable channel services, with the option to add a la carte channel packs, you will receive a free Roku stick!

5. Get a Leaf for local/sports channels:

I have also been able to purchase the Mohu Leaf,  a flat antenna mounted to our TV in our den, which picks up local stations in HD; this feature gave my husband sports channels, which is a plus! I used money from surveys to purchase a unit for $42.00!

6. Re-Think How You Watch TV:

Consider this, by cutting cable you may be cutting your package and the way you watch programming, but that just means you need to think outside the box. My family watches the same shows as before, just a day, perhaps two days later, for upper channels, and using the Leaf, the same as before. Also, I have began to explore programming online that I had not seen before, such as the Youtube Wigs series, watching shows using network apps such as Lifetime, MTV, Bravo, and the like! I now watch what I want to watch, as opposed to simple channel surfing! Its a win-win!

So, this past month I was able to save $112.00 a month, nearly three-quarters of my grocery budget! Was the process simple, no. Was the way we now watch tv easy, yes! Do I recommend this switch, absolutely! So, that’s just a new way I now save money at home!

Here’s to saving!

mbnlogosm

Back-To-School DIY Pencil Pouches, In-Binder Supply Pouches, & Student ID Cases!

DIY Pencil Pouches

Hello again, savvy savers! Today finds us with another awesome DIY project just in time for back-to-school savings! If you were anything like me as a child, you always needed a pencil pouch, supply case, and student ID bag; all needed to make sure that our schedules, Lisa Frank pencils, push-through lead insert-able pencils, scented Mr. Sketch markers, and the illicit ultra-cool, but highly impracticable pencil top erasers handy!

So for this weeks Tutorial Tuesday’s post, I will be showing you how to make DIY Pencil Pouches, In-Binder Supply Pouches, and Student ID Cases; also note that for the Student ID cases, you could also use these pouches for Epi-pen pouches, a pouch with business cards letting teachers and school personal know about food allergies, or feminine case products for young women!

Also worth noting, be sure to check the Scotch website for everyday coupons on duct tape, colored tape, and the like; I purchased my rolls of Duct Tape, the day after Christmas for the past two years, at CVS with coupons, for only $0.10 per roll! I also purchase my baggies, with coupon at the Dollar Tree, making this project $0.15 per bag, on average!

IMG_0459 

So, to begin you will need the following:

  • Scissors or Cutting Board
  • Ziplock bags; quart size for Pencil Pouches and Student ID & Gallon Bag for In-Binder School Supply Pouch
  • 3-Ring Hole Punch
  • Customized Duct Tape
  • Straight Edge
  • Card-stock or Scrapbook Paper Sheet
  • Sharpie or Colored Marker
  • Binder (or D Clip, if linking to a backpack)
  • Page Re-Enforcers, Optional

PicMonkey Collage

Step 1: Here’s how to make the DIY Pencil Pouches:

  1. Lay a Ziplock baggie on a clean surface, as flat as possible.
  2. using a straight edge and sharpie, mark two inches off of the bottom of the baggie.
  3. Cut the two inch section off of the baggie and set to the side.
  4. Lay your tape flat on the baggie, and continue to wrap each strip of the baggie; each baggie will use three strips.
  5. Secure the bottom strip together.
  6. If you just want a pencil pouch, you are now done!

 Step 2: Here’s how to Turn Pencil Pouches into Student ID Cases:

PicMonkey Collage

  1. Using the piece of cut-off baggie listed above, lay the piece flat and cut it in half.
  2. Using a sheet of card-stock or scrapbook paper, cut a template to fit the baggie half sheet; I used a 3″x3″ sheet.
  3. The cut-out will act as a backing to whatever you will need to place in the pouch, for your Student Id, words of encouragement card, epi-pen instructions, etc.
  4. Place the card in the sleeve and place the sleeve on top of the pouch.
  5. Tape down both sides and the bottom section of the sleeve, leaving the top sleeve of the envelope open for the pouch.
  6. Also note, you can hole punch your pouch, and then add a D-Clip to the pouch, if adding it to a backpack!

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Step 3: Finally here’s how to make the In-Binder Supply Pouch:

PicMonkey Collage

  1. Using the instructions for the Pencil Pouch and the Student ID instructions above, make a pouch using a gallon-sized baggie.
  2. When adding a sheet envelope to the top of the pouch, aim for a 4″x4″ rectangle to the pouch; this envelope can house your student schedule or emergency contact information.
  3. When your pouch is completed, using a three-ring hole punch, punch your pouch to accommodate its use in a three-ring binder.
  4. You’re done!

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So that it, folks! An easy-peasy DIY version of  DIY Pencil Pouches, In-Binder Supply Pouches, & Student ID Cases! If you make a similar version or have other DIY back-to-school tips that make help other LadyPrefers2Save readers, I’d love to hear about them, and feature them on my social media channels!

Here’s to saving,

mbnlogosm