Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Round 1: I'm not the winner

So I had this great idea - encouraged by an article on my jewelry supplier's site - to dye some pearls. Not any dye job either, mind you, but a lovely ombre blue. Imagine - a pearl necklace that naturally shades from light to dark blue - how lovely would that be!

I understand the concept of ombre, and since I've seen pearls in every shade imaginable, figured I could make this work. I'm an engineer after all!


I purchase a packet of the darkest blue I could find (since I want some REALLY blue), and patiently dipped my pearls in blue water over the stove. (No, I'm not sharing all the details, in case it does finally work) After 30 minutes, I rinse...and instead of blue ombre, I have all one shade of blueish-grayish-purple.


Admittedly, it's a pretty shade - it's just not what I want! (That white one is the original color, just for contrast)


Got to figure out what happened, and how to make the next batch successful.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Swimming with sharks

Being quite the bargain-hunter - and probably insane - I've decided to venture out to The Lost World.

You know it as the local car dealership.

With prices low, rebates plentiful, and a great rate from my credit union, I figured we should at least LOOK. Our 04 Explorer runs fine, but when you pile all the kids in there, little space is left for other necessities, like groceries or luggage. We need a minivan - a big one.

My first trip out this weekend didn't yield much. The sales people looked only mildly desperate, and the reaction wasn't what I expected. (Since I have been offered meals before to buy a car - a cup of coffee on a rainy day would seem like the least they could do)

Perhaps I'll try again - I wasn't feeling well, hubby wasn't there, so it might not have come across as serious. Still, for an industry struggling...not the way to bring in this customer!

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Missed opportunity?

Am I the only one to think of this?

With so many consumers trying to save, why aren't more companies marketing "we'll help you save money"? (I've only seen a few Discover ads like this)

Home Depot should offer free sessions on home gardening and energy-saving upgrades - people will buy pre-cut lumber, plants, weatherstripping...

Auto shops can offer discounts for MPG-improving services to 'keep your big investment on the road longer'.

Where are the companies lining up to help us FIX what we own (shoes, clothes, computers)? It might generate less revenue per shopper right now, but you'll get more people in the door...and most people still spend more than planned.

Wish this applied to eBay - but I'm doing what I can. I've written a "mini-book" (now 21 pages and counting) with almost 100 ideas for saving money...and I'll shortly be offering it for sale for just $3.