There’s been a bit of a row over Target’s advertisement slamming homemade costumes (video after the jump) and it’s no wonder – homemade halloween costumes are awesome. In fact, the homemade Iron Man costume in the advertisement is pretty good relative to some of the things I’ve been able make. Check out the sweet cardboard helmet, light-up chest and flashlight hands… I mean it looks pretty darn good. A lot better than a cheesy plastic thing made in China for $2 (and sold for $25) that doesn’t even light up.

More importantly, why make fun of parents who are trying to do the right thing? Making a costume is a lot more fun and resourceful than buying a piece of junk plastic costume. The fun is in the whole experience, not just running around collecting candy. Also, the costume is unique. A million other kids will be running around with that unimaginative costume, only one kid will be wearing that costume.

What do you think? Are homemade costumes da bomb or just cheap?
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Can you believe it’s the first Monday in September already? I would say that this year has absolutely flown by but with the severe weather (multiple feet of snow in the winter, multiple days of 100+ degree weather in the summer), I think I’ve acutely felt every single day as it passed.

With Labor Day upon us, I did a little bit of research into the origins and thought it’d be fun to know the history of the holiday. Labor Day was first celebrated in 1882 and when you think about its origins, it’s actually a pretty ugly story. In 1894, there was the Pullman Strike in which a labor dispute (3000 employees of the Pullman Palace Car Company went on strike and President Grover Cleveland sent US Marshalls and the US Army to break the strike) led to the deaths of 13 strikers and the wounding of 57 others. As a way to reconcile, we celebrate Labor Day as a national holiday with parades, barbecues, and other minor celebrations.

So on this Labor Day, get some rest, relaxation, and we’ll be back with more personal finance tomorrow!

A while back I ran a short little series outlining a few fun frugal weekend ideas and with Labor Day around the corner, I thought it’d be fun if we all shared some fun ideas we had planned for the weekend. It doesn’t have to be a frugal weekend idea but it does have to be fun!

For us, we’ll be taking our annual trip down to North Carolina to the Outer Banks for a week. We rent one of those enormous vacation homes with a dozen of our friends (actually closer to twenty than ten) at a steal because it’s now past the peak season. These homes go for more than five grand in the peak seasons and drop a long way once the weather gets a little cooler. We each pick a night to cook dinner for the group, we play games, have a few adult beverages, and basically have a great end of the summer vacation where we get to rest and relax. We look forward to this trip each year and this time a bunch of us will be packing in a few rounds of golf… which pretty much throws frugal out the window.

What are you favorite frugal weekend ideas?

(Photo: savannahgrandfather)

Thank you to all the brave men and women who have given everything so that we may enjoy our freedoms. Often times the social and political discourse around the use of military force overshadows our utmost respect for the men and women put in harms way, hopefully that doesn’t happen on this day.

We won’t be publishing anything for the remainder of the day but will be back to our regularly scheduled programming tomorrow morning.

(Photo: tonythemisfit)

With Valentine’s Day coming up in just a few short days, you’re either all ready or not at all. If you’re in the second camp, don’t rush out and buy a mass produced Valentine’s Day card and a box of chocolates in a heart shaped box. It lacks character, it lacks creativity, and shows that you’ve put only a little bit of thought into the day… which can hurt how Valentine’s night goes.

So, this year do something a little different. Being green is on everyone’s mind, whether you think it’s a bunch of BS or legit, so why not just try something new? Rather than overpaying for a Valentine’s Day card and that box of chocolates, find something that will save you some money and help the Earth while you’re at it? Here are seven green Valentine’s Day gifts I promise your Valentine will love.

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I wish you and yours a happy and safe holiday season. It’s Christmas Eve today, so we’ll be using it as an excuse for the day off and hopefully you can too! We’ll return with the regularly scheduled programming on Monday, the 28th.

Have a safe long weekend and may you be able to spend it (stress-free) with family and friends!

(Photo: nez)

As the holiday season of sparkle and glitter quickly approaches, it’s easy to get swept up in the costly winds of buying, giving and receiving. Personally, I’ve spent way too many hours browsing the aisles (at the last minute) trying to find the perfect thing that my friend will like love not have to re-gift!! This year, instead of mindlessly scanning the shelves, take a moment and plan a gift that will create memories, warm hearts and build friendships without adding any financial stress.

Here are some of my ideas to get your creative giving juices flowing.

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To those who are celebrating Thanksgiving today, I hope you and yours have a festive Thanksgiving day and weekend. I hope you celebrate the merriment and cheer that is Thanksgiving, enjoy the time with loved ones, and stuff yourself full of food prepared with loving care. To those who aren’t celebrating Thanksgiving, eat something decadent.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I want to thank you all for visiting today and every day. So often people think that I’m an expert because I write a personal finance blog. The reality is that while I may be more knowledgeable than the average Joe on money matters, it’s because I’m constantly being educated by the you guys. I see this as a community, not as a podium, and I’ve learned as much from you as, hopefully, you have from me. I hope we can do this for a long time together.

I don’t want to take too much of your time because today should be spent off the computer and with real live human beings.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We’ll return with regularly scheduled programming on Sunday… when I unveil another themed week!

(Photo: voght)