Budget Friendly Idea #2

First of all, I loved hearing your recommendations on the last post! Keep them coming! I don't claim to have all the bases covered on these topics, so your input is greatly appreciated & I'm sure it helps out other readers as well! Anyway, on to #2!

Budget Friendly Idea #2- Craigslist It!

It's no secret I'm a huge craigslist fan- and before I explain how (if it's not already obvious) it helps your budget, let me give you a little list of the things I've found, sold, or purchased on craigslist:

• A place to live #1. Z's sister & our found our duplex in the city this way.
• Roommate #1- a great girl- a little weird at times, but a good roommate nonetheless!
• Roommate #2- the law school student- still friends to this day. Love her!
• A place to live #2- Z and I found a house we were going to buy. Great deal, but turned out it just wasn't where God wanted us.
• A Brand New Dryer. Z's sister and I needed one for the duplex- $100 brand new. Not bad.
• An entertainment center and TV. In excellent condition, at a fraction of the cost.
• Coffee Table & End Table. Excellent, quality construction for $75. A coat or two of paint and they look like something out of a magazine.
• Dining Table, 4 matching chairs, and 3 vintage-y chairs- $40. A good bit of time refinishing and they're gorgeous!
• Our Wii
• A Piano. Unfortunately, we had to call the deal off because our living situation changed (again), but still, it was an amazing deal.
• A car. Great deal!
• A truck. Great deal again.
• A puppy. Oh wait... that was just me dreaming... :(
  
• Sold a little coffee table we got for free for $20. Straight profit baby! :)
  
• Just sold a ton of lockers for my boss for upwards of $4k.
• Sold 3 cars. (Yes, we've gone through a few)
  

I'm sure there's more, but I'll stop now- you get the idea.

Holly over @ Life in the Fun Lane blogged about a craigslist find recently. Read it here. (Hope you don't mind me mentioning it, Holly!)

This is not just limited to craigslist either- we've found amazing deals on ebay, amazon, Ubid.com, and theknot.com message boards when it was wedding time!

If you are patient, and keep your eye out for a good deal, you can find just about anything- at drastically lower prices. And when it comes to furniture, buying a piece and refinishing it can be a fun project & way to practice your handy-woman skills. :)

It can be a good way to compromise with the hubby too. If yours is anything like mine, he doesn't exactly share the same appreciation for decor that I do, and tends to keep the budget reins a good bit tighter than I would. So if you're redecorating a room & have a piece you absolutley love & want to buy new, chances are your hubby will be much more receptive to the *new* pricetag when you've saved him major $$ on other pieces. Or it could be the fact that he doesn't want to redecorate at all, and could be swayed to accept it at a lower pricetag.

Anyone have some awesome finds they'd like to share?