I was at TJ Maxx the other day looking for one or two specific things, but a bunch of other pieces caught my eye. If I weren’t moving soon, I’d totally snap these up.

Dutch ovens and ceramic bakeware. The pots were about $30-$59 each, which is an excellent deal.

These shower caddies and organizers ($11-20)…

…for the express purpose of recreating this storage idea (as seen on Pinterest) inside my closet:

And these napkins and under the bed boxes. Just because they are cheap and practical.

While I showed no restraint with respect to buying new curtains and bedding, these I think I should resist.

So…I basically did almost everything I said I wasn’t going to do in my nesting post. I slipcovered my boxspring with a fitted sheet (easy), I bought a new duvet (majorly on sale, of course), I bought new fabric for curtains, and I made new pillows to match the new curtains and duvet. I also had two job interviews, wrote the methods section of one of my papers, and did some CS coding from scratch. I’m like Jessie Spano on caffeine pills.

As I mentioned earlier, there was (and maybe still is?) a huge sale on bedding at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I picked up two euro shams, which are 26″ x 26″ pillow covers. These were marked down to $9.99 each plus an additional 33% off. I had a $5 off $15 coupon, which means I got these for less than $5 each. I actually didn’t have $15 worth of stuff in my cart, so had to buy a Diet Coke to make up the difference. Anyway, these shams were cheap.

Amy Butler sham: before

The Amy Butler sham was awesome…for the most part. I don’t know if you can tell from the crappy cell phone photos, but the entire thing is embroidered. I wasn’t a big fan of the trim or the fabric on the back, so those came off. I replaced the back fabric with something from my stash. I also objected to the daisies on the front, so I made a 19″ x 19″ template for my pillows and strategically cut off the parts I didn’t want.

made a template out of a Whole Foods bag because I am classy

bye, daisies!

bye, ugly parts

Then I used this tutorial from Sew Mama Sew* and sewed a new cover that would fit my existing 18″ pillow. I did the same with the quilted sham. I didn’t really object to anything on that sham, but it was too big. So I ripped it apart, cut it down to size, and made a smaller cover with a zipper. The results look like so:

I should also note that I serged the edges of each piece to on the inside to prevent fraying. You can probably use a zig zag stitch to achieve the same effect.

The back pillow looks a little janky from the back in the photo, but looks fine in real life. Anyway, each pillow cost $5, so I’m not going to be too anal. It’s better than buying a $30+ cover from West Elm, that’s for sure.

They say the closer you get to finishing your dissertation, the more you craft. I think it’s the idea that you can see something come together so quickly, whereas the papers and analyses literally take years to complete. At my current crafting rate, this must mean my dissertation is almost done!

*The Sew Mama Sew pillow tutorial calls for some sort of adhesive for your zipper. I just used Jiffy Fuse, but you can also probably use a glue stick and be just fine.

As I mentioned earlier this week, I’ll be birthing something (a secret baby or a dissertation) in 4 months and I’m totally in nesting mode. I innocently swung by Bed Bath and Beyond today and guess what? They’re having a sale!

This isn’t surprising, as January is the best time of year to buy linens. (Check out other ideal purchasing timelines here.) But I was shocked that things were crazy cheap.

Amy Butler organic full sized sheets. $39.99 + an extra 33% off + a 20% Bed Bath and Beyond Coupon = $21!

King sateen quilt (similar to this). $49.99 + an extra 33% off + a 20% Bed Bath and Beyond Coupon = $27!

They also had a bunch of pillows like this little dude. $9.99 + an extra 33% off + a 20% Bed Bath and Beyond Coupon = $5!

There were tons of comforters, lots of Amy Butler, pillows, sheets, and shams. I picked up two shams for a project. More on that later.

Target was also having a linen sale, but I didn’t spend much time browsing since I was running late for a meeting. But if you want to cover your boxspring with a fitted sheet, they’re on sale for $9.50-ish, which is a good deal. Sheets are expensive!

Last month, I did a giveaway with Lands’ End  and DonorsChoose.org. The talented Stephanie Sabbe helped me out with this. I’m way behind on posting this, but check out her post to find out what classroom she supported and find out how you can win a Thomas Paul-print pillow sham!

Deets on how to win at SabbeSpot.

Thanks, Stephanie!

I am deep in dissertation writing mode, firmly on the job market, and almost certainly not going to be living in Boston after this summer. But lately, I have found that I am nesting.

Nesting [ˈnɛstɪŋ] noun: (1) The tendency to arrange one’s immediate surroundings to create a place where one feels secure, comfortable, or in control, (2) A primal instinct and uncontrollable urge to clean one’s house brought on by a desire to prepare a nest for the new baby, to tie up loose ends of old projects, and to organize your world.

Am I preparing for the upcoming birth of my dissertation?

Here are the things I really want to do:

1. Create a chevron wall with Happy Tape. (Image 1 & 2)

2. If I can’t find a new duvet or quilt to buy, I’m going to make a duvet cover.

3. Make custom new curtains for my gigantic windows (5 feet wide and 8 feet tall, ugh).

4. And hang them properly.

5. Make a half-clear shower curtain for our clawfoot tub. Or maybe I’ll just buy one.

6. Get new bath mats. Most of the ones out there are surprisingly pricey and almost all ugly.

7. Convert a kitchen cabinet into drawers.

8. Make a fitted sheet to “upholster” my box spring. (Image)

9. Find a new mirror for above my dresser.

10. Get a new floor lamp like this one from West Elm.

Alternatively, maybe I’m just pregnant.

In either case, it’s probably better to wait until I move and have a job, so I’ll limit my nesting to Pinterest for now.

As seen on Maven of Savin. The title says it all! Best Buy is selling iTunes digital gift cards at 20% off.

If you’re going to spend money on iTunes anyway, you might as well save a few bucks, right?

iSave!

Happy New Year!

There are many exciting things on the horizon in 2012 for me– finishing my PhD, a new job, a new city, and once I graduate I’ll allow myself to start making new friends again! (I imposed a a “no new friends rule” in the fall of 2010 so I could be more productive at work. Amazingly, I stuck to it.) In the next few months, I’ll also be ending this blog. Leaving grad school and Boston will be sad, but I’m excited about new beginnings too!

I have so many changes on the horizon that I don’t know if I need to make any resolutions in order to see any big differences in my life this year. However, if you’re looking to make resolutions, here are two tools to help you out:

(1) GymPact. I talked about GymPact a few months ago on the blog, but the program has changed radically since then. You can use the GymPact iPhone app to monitor your gym progress at any gym you want. Long story short, you put up some cash and make a commitment to go to the gym x times per week. If you don’t go to the gym as many times as you say you will, you forfeit the money. If you do go, you get a small cash bonus. Learn more here.

(2) Stikk. This is another commitment contract program similar to GymPact. With Stickk, however, you can set any goal you want– it doesn’t have to be fitness-related. Again, you put up some money and if you don’t meet your goal, your money goes to a charity you would support, an anti-charity (like the Santorum campaign), or to a friend (or enemy, I suppose). You can be honest and verify goal completion yourself, or set a proxy to verify that you stuck to your commitment.

Both of these programs are based on the science of behavioral decision making, which you may have read about in books like Nudge. If you’re as a cheap as I am, the financial incentive is enough to keep your resolution. And if you’re as much of a hater as I am, the idea that someone you hate could benefit from your failure is icing on the cake.

Wishing you a very happy and healthy new year. I hope you keep all of your resolutions!

-A

Did you guys see that Jet Blue is having a sale today and tomorrow?

Me too, which was pretty distressing given that I booked a ticket on Sunday for an interview next month. The fare is $45 lower today than it was on Sunday. I was on the phone with my mom when I realized this. Our conversation went something like this:

Mom: “Didn’t you check the Bing Travel Predictor before you booked your flight?”

Me: “No. I was worried the flight would sell out, so I wanted to book it ASAP.”

Mom: “Oh, so the student becomes the teacher!”

This is coming from the lady who doesn’t know how to copy + paste a URL from a browser.

My mom suggested I call JetBlue and ask for a price adjustment. And you know what? They did it without any hesitation whatsoever! So now I have  $45 credit to use on a future flight. Go Jet Blue! According to Airfare Watchdog, Alaska Airlines and Southwest will also give price adjustments.

Now that my flight is set, I need to book a hotel. I was thinking about using Airbnb to book a cheap guest room, but a little research on BetterBidding.com tells me I can do just as well (with a bit more privacy) bidding on Priceline.

A happy cheap start to the new year!

P.S. Note: All JetBlue fares don’t show up on Kayak, so be sure to double check on the site first.

Heads up– there are two Fandango movie vouchers out for grabs right now.

The first, from KGB Deals, gives you 4 Fandango tickets for $24. The codes must be used in sets of two and can be redeemed any time between January 3 and February 12, 2012. You have three days left to buy this.

The second, from Plum District, gives you a $20 Starbucks gift card and two Fandango movie tickets for $28. If you’re a big Starbucks drinker anyway, you might as well grab this and get two movie tickets for $4 each! The codes can be redeemed 48 hours after purchase and must be redeemed by April 1, 2012. You have two days left to buy this deal.

I’ll probably grab one of these. I’m thinking Sherlock and Hunger Games, maybe?

I mean seriously last-minute.  As in “it’s Christmas Eve and all the normal stores are closed” last minute.

1. A Turning Art gift subscription. Turning Art is basically Netflix for art. They send you a frame and you can choose from a wide library of artwork for your home or office. Every dollar you spend on art rentals goes toward the purchase of an original piece of art. 3-, 6- and 12-month subscriptions are available for $10/month.

2. A Hubway bike-sharing membership. Hubway is Boston-specific, but your city might have a similar program. An annual membership is only $59 through Tuesday, December 27.

3. The experience gift. 3 nights of free babysitting, a massage, a home-cooked meal for four, guitar lessons…you get the point.

4. Kindle books, which can be read on any device that uses a Kindle-reading app.  You can set the delivery date when you buy it.

5. Magazine subscriptions. I always buy my magazines subscriptions through Magazines.com (via Ebates) or Amazon. In order to make it a little fancier, I usually buy a copy of the magazine at the drugstore and wrap that up along with it.

6. Baked goods. I’d recommend a rum cake. You probably already have most of the ingredients in your house right now. The Pioneer Woman has a pretty good recipe online.

7. Get crafty. If you have a color printer, make a calendar using Young House Love’s template. If you have a sewing machine, go for sweaty bands or other headbands, aprons, the Colette Sorbetto top or dress,  a table runner, or any number of printable patterns from BurdaStyle (personally, I love the Marie tulip skirt!).

8. Gift certificates. You can get gift certificates for almost any store, including Groupon, at the grocery store or drugstore. Daily deal site, Etsy, and  Amazon gift certificates are also available online for the really last-minute gifts. eShakti is currently offering 50% off gift certificates. The key in gift card giving is to wrap it creatively– in a massively big box or wrapped with a small knick knack or stocking stuffer.

9. A Snuggie. Don’t be a hater. Snuggies are awesome and any respectable CVS or Walgreen’s probably sells them.

I’m just saying.