1. Find a plastic freezer bag. In fact, think thrifty – recycle a used freezer bag. Drop in all credit cards. Fill with water. Bury in the back of your freezer until after the holidays.

2. Call, write, email, or get together with each person on your gift list over the age of 21, and specifically to talk about gifts. Do they mostly agree with you that holiday presents are for kids? If so, would they like to join you in working toward a financially responsible, simpler lifestyle by forgoing an adult gift exchange?

3. If so, suggest that each of you set aside half the money you would normally have spent on each other to buy a gift for a needy child and/or make a donation to a charity you both like. It’s guaranteed to give you a good feeling, and you’ll avoid having to conjure up a false enthusiasm for the extraordinarily useless thing that person would have chosen for you.

4. Take a reality check. The family down the street can afford to go to Vail to ski over the holidays. You can’t. Have a family meeting or round robin email or letter. Ask each person what would be the ideal gift they would like to receive from you. The most frequent answers usually cost almost nothing – a new photo of you, some time together, a guaranteed phone call or letter every other week – and mean so much more to the recipient than the knick-knack you buy.

5. Take reality check #2. OK, the children thought a little differently. They want the most expensive gaming console or motorized scooter or this year’s fully outfitted Barbie. Show them the price of that gift, explain how much you could contribute to acquiring that and let them help think of solutions to collect the rest of the money. Maybe one less treat a week? One less fast food dinner a week? Of course, be sure to set aside one affordable gift for Santa to bring, but some of the greatest lifetime gifts you’ll be giving your children are 1) a sense of reality about money; 2) the understanding that their opinion counts; 3) the knowledge that they are part of a family team that needs to operate together for the good of all, not just the gratification of one; and 4) a strong grasp of the lesson that to choose wisely leads to control of their own life.

6. Create your own Holiday Club fund. Such accounts used to be a big deal years ago at most banks. Unfortunately the clubs paid little or no interest – they just acted as a nagging reminder to start putting away money all year toward holiday gift giving. You can do the same thing on your own, but shop around and find out how to get the best interest accruing while the fund grows. Rigorously contribute to the account with a set amount out of every paycheck.

7. Create a little extra cash over the year by regularly putting the price of one day’s lunch or one week’s lattes or one fewer pair of shoes into that holiday money fund you’re building. If giving a gift to someone is truly meaningful to you, the sense of not indulging yourself in order to give to him or her will become a heartwarming, fulfilling choice.

8. Design the budget of your dreams for holiday spending. Now cut that in half, at least. Does your next door neighbor really need one more knickknack for her already overcrowded home? Instead of a gift, maybe your co-worker would prefer that you cover her job or work overtime the next time she wants to leave early for her child’s school play.

9. Now, stick to your budget. Rigorously. Remember your credit cards are buried in layers of ice. If you can’t afford the gift you’re coveting with the cash in your wallet or checking account – without sacrificing normal daily needs – the gift gets to stay on the shelf for someone else to ponder. Remember that money does not equal love.

10. Have little ones around? Be the first on your block or in your school or church to organize a trade-a-toy event for adults only. A toddler will never know the shiny toy you cleaned and polished once belonged to the little boy down the street who’s tired of it. Ditto for those clothes quickly outgrown, or the computer game software not played in the last year.

11. Shop wisely to make sure the deal you’re getting is the very best available, whether online or in a retail outlet. Especially make use of online comparison pricing that will indicate the cost of a certain Barbie doll, for example, at a number of different sources. Always be on the lookout for bargains; in today’s economy, some really elegant clothes and toys are donated to thrift shops and can be had for a quarter or less of what they cost brand new.

12. Shop late. Until my son was in grade school, we simply celebrated Christmas gift giving time a few days after Christmas. I bought almost all his gifts at rock bottom post-holiday sales. Over the years he realized he got a lot more of what he wanted this way instead of celebrating the same day as his friends did – and we continue the tradition. Does your family absolutely require getting together on Christmas Day? You could save a bundle on gifts and airline tickets, for example, if you traveled and celebrated off-peak.

13. Does your glitzy holiday card really brighten up someone’s life? If you want to send something bright and cheery, cut the front off a card you received last year, and tuck it into an envelope with a note that lists ten things you like about that person. The enjoyment of a lovely but mass-manufactured card is limited. The heartglow from a list like this is boundless.

14. Subscribe to any one of many excellent couponing newsletters and websites and put a portion of your additional savings over the next year into your holiday club account.

15. Keep your credit cards in the freezer until the next genuine emergency. Playing financial catch up is always expensive. Credit card companies have craftily designed their fees, extra charges, and interest rates to keep you in financial bondage forever. Break free. Be conscious. Be conscientious. Always save ahead instead of paying behind.

If you’re like most Americans, that collection of nickels and dimes adds up. According to Coinstar, a company that makes self-service coin counting machines found in many supermarkets, an estimated $10 billion worth of loose change is effectively out of circulation because it is accumulating in homes throughout the U.S.

What to do with your windfall? Sara Harrington, a retail store manager in Des Moines, Iowa, says that she used last year’s accumulation of $45 to treat herself and a friend to lunch and a movie. Helen Brooks, a production coordinator, saves her change to use for gambling money on her annual trip to Las Vegas, Nev. Sharon Dearborn of Orlando shares the wealth: after cashing in her accumulation of change, she donates the proceeds to her favorite charity.

If you’ve ever eyed that stack of bills with trepidation, you know that money means more than the number in your checkbook register – there’s an emotional component to the way you approach your finances. You have a relationship with money – healthy, unhealthy or somewhere in between – just as you have relationships with friends, family and coworkers. But while you wouldn’t dream of neglecting the emotional fabric of your relationships with your loved ones, you may ignore the feelings that come into play in the way you handle your money.

Although you may believe that your money woes would abate if only you had more of the green stuff, it’s likely that your relationship to money has little to do with your financial status. Even women in the highest tax bracket can feel the emotional tug of financial anxiety. Eileen Dorsey, a Certified Financial Planner in St. Louis, Mo., says, “If you make $20,000, you spend $25,000; if you make $500,000, you spend $600,000.”

Jennifer (who asked that her last name not be published), a connoisseur of financial classes in Austin, Texas, says, “I’d get a bill and feel panic, despair, hopelessness. I didn’t believe I could make [my finances] work. I felt at the mercy of everyone else.” Like many women, Jennifer associates money with control. A bad money situation, such as unexpected expenses or tremendous consumer debt, can trigger feelings of powerlessness. Jennifer’s downward spiral led her to feeling both powerless and victimized.

The question, however, is whether Jennifer’s financial woes created her emotional state, or her emotional state created her money problems. According to Iris Fanning, an accredited Success Coach in Albuquerque, N.M., many women “substitute money as a way to take care of themselves.” In other words, instead of nurturing and loving themselves, they buy a new dress.

But spending money as a temporary fix for your emotional needs is a no-win situation: after the high of buying the dress, you’ll again feel an emotional void – plus, you’ll be further in debt.

Money is a partner in life. Your relationship with money (just like a love relationship) cannot be divorced from the way you manage the partnership. If you use money the same way you might have a one-night stand, afterwards you are left feeling empty and deprived. On the other hand, consciously using positive techniques (such as budgeting, automatic bill payment and cutting expenses) to achieve financial priorities-working with your financial situation rather than against it-can improve your quality of life, just as better communication will improve your partnership with your mate.

First Steps

Certified Financial Planner Eileen Dorsey says good money management “pretty much revolves around a spending plan, and then doing those things to simplify your life.” Don’t be afraid to seek help by attending classes or seminars, consulting financial planners, surfing the Internet, and reading books. These resources can help you develop skills to relate to money successfully.

Once you have the tools to begin making informed financial decisions, you stop being a victim and start taking control of the situation. Fear and hopelessness quickly lose their hold. As Dorsey observes, “People who go through a complete financial process come out of it happier, less stressed.” Education can help you define your relationship with money.

Calming Strategies

Difficult financial situations inspire negative self-talk, like “I’m going to be ruined!” These dark thoughts inspire terrible feelings, which lead to more negative thoughts, until you find yourself in the great abyss. It’s time to change the tape playing in your mind.

Confront your feelings: Jennifer once received a medical bill for $500, almost twice what she anticipated. She had a long moment of panic, then took a deep breath and embarked on a new approach.

Jennifer listed each of her emotions on a piece of paper, and then jotted down the thoughts behind each feeling. She wrote that she felt desperate, frightened, and helpless. Her fears included, “I’ll lose Dad’s respect! I’ll be trapped into a mediocre life! It’s never going to get any better!”

Then she wrote what she’d rather think, including the complete opposite: “All things are possible in God. I’m enjoying greater freedom than I ever have before. I’m finding new options, and everyone, including me, is amazed and awed.”

Find the silver lining: Jennifer spent some time focusing on that affirmation. After calming down, she looked for the silver lining in the situation. She noted, “The medical care kept me healthy. This bill will help force me to develop a budget.” She remembers that, at the time, the positive thoughts provided only a glimmer of hope, but that just listing it helped.

Avoid lingering on fear or hardship. Immersion in positive images can blast away the negativity. Reading books that are uplifting and inspiring, working at a craft or hobby, or watching a beautiful sunset can keep anxiety at bay. As soon as you feel the upset mounting, turn to your affirmations and indulge yourself with something that inspires you.

Find the Answers: It’s okay to be upset about an unexpected bill or other financial woes. But immediately turn around and ask yourself questions like, “How can I make this work?” or “What can I do right now to make this better?” At first, you may need to ask these questions over and over, until your brain finally deigns to answer, but finding solutions gets easier with practice.

In working with her clients, Success Coach Fanning encourages them to look for the payoff to their behaviors-how, for instance, avoiding bills makes them feel better. Using that knowledge as a foundation, she coaches her clients to devise small steps that enable them to begin the journey to money-related emotional peace.

Jennifer listed every possible solution for paying her health clinic bill, however unlikely. Her list included asking family and friends for money, taking out a loan, using more credit, cutting back on movies, negotiating a lower payment, getting a second job, working overtime and asking for a raise. Jennifer then called some like-minded friends to brainstorm other ideas.

Don’t Go Solo: Financial difficulties can isolate you. You may feel ashamed of your financial situation; you don’t want to talk about it because you think it will reveal how stupid, foolish or incapable you really are. In reality, though, sharing experiences and support with other people in the same or similar circumstances can be liberating and can give you the inspiration you need to make choices that will bring you closer to financial well-being.

Support groups provide wonderful opportunities for women to share their turmoil and fear about money. Feeling connected as a community, participants find the power to face their difficulties. One-on-one support helps, too. As a financial planner, Dorsey often suggests that her clients find a therapist to help them work through money-related emotional issues.

Choose Carefully: On the other hand, beware of people who constantly bemoan their finances. It’ll be too tempting to commiserate and return to your bad feelings, instead of focusing on positive solutions. While some people may even actively oppose your new approach to money, remember that you can’t live your life according to other people’s financial standards. If the topic comes up, just say, “I don’t feel like talking about money today.” Most people will respect your wishes.

Go Higher: Don’t underestimate the influence of a Higher Power in your journey toward financial peace. In fact, stop thinking about money altogether! Take a walk in nature and appreciate the solidarity of the trees. Pray to whatever Higher Power gives you comfort, or just meditate. Those positive thoughts you wrote earlier make excellent prayers or meditative affirmations. Remember that money is just a tiny piece of the Big Picture of life, one relationship among many.

Following Through

The easiest way to fall into money anxiety is to just sit there and do nothing – throw the bills in the backseat, keep using those credit cards and keep worrying. Indeed, money anxiety can cause a kind of emotional paralysis, leading to a self-perpetuating cycle of fear and inaction. To avoid that trap, develop your step-by-step solutions and implement them one at a time. Jennifer, for example, was able to re-work her budget slightly and negotiate a comfortable payment schedule with the health clinic. She also refused to allow the bill to eclipse her dreams, which helped keep her from sinking into despair.

Follow through! Discouragement and frustration are unavoidable at those times when it seems impossible to find any silver lining, or when the situation just seems overwhelming.

In fact, you can actually use the stress to help you. Fanning says, “Enough pain around money issues makes [you] willing to take action, and that’s a strong motivator to change.” Dorsey concurs, saying, “Willingness is an important component to get through the problems.”

When all is said and done, you have to make your feelings a priority. Don’t concentrate on making more money, concentrate on feeling better! Remember that you get to decide what role money plays in your life. The bottom line is amazingly simple: Take care of yourself and respect your feelings. All else will follow.

Delve Deeper

Books

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You don’t have to be a Martha Stewart clone to transform your abode into the warm and fuzzy (or cool and sleek) casa of your dreams. The first step is to define your personal style, which simply means deciding what you like.

Thumb through the pages of your favorite decorating magazines or check some books out from the library. Stroll through local home-furnishings stores, browse Pinterest, and check out your friends’ homes. You’ll soon discover that elusive thing called “a look” that feels right. Don’t shy away from things that seem beyond your checkbook – a great style that you’ll love to come home to doesn’t have to be expensive.

After you’ve collected as many pictures as you can, review the pile and eliminate anything that doesn’t speak to you, even if it was on the magazine cover. Does the wall color lift your spirits? Does the bedroom wallpaper make you feel glamorous and sexy? Do you feel like a pampered princess just looking at pictures of cushy oversized furniture?

Start with a plan

Begin translating your personal style into your own space with a simple floor plan. Invest in a metal tape measure and a floor-plan kit, 1/4″ graph paper, or a home decorators’ software program. Measure every wall and window carefully, and be sure to include any furniture you already own and love – but resist the temptation to create a plan around that hand-me-down over-sized easy chair in avocado green.

Next, get a binder with a separator and pocket-file for each room you’re redecorating – though a notebook, glue stick and a couple of rubber bands works, too. Put the small scraps of paper, paint chips, fabric samples and the pictures you’ve collected in the various files. Try to visualize the style you love in your own space and get started.

Paying for it all

Ancient Rome was pretty spectacular, but it wasn’t built in a day. Your home won’t be, either. Part of the fun is the planning, the shopping and the Saturday afternoons spent mastering the art of using a glue gun. Indulge in a little window shopping to get some idea of what the types of things you want will cost. With some careful planning and lots of ingenuity, you can do it for less. The secret is to complete your project in stages. Take advantage of seasonal sales and unexpected finds that cross your path. Stick to your plan but be ready for a few detours.

Finding the right furniture

Maybe your plan calls for a living room conversation area with a large sofa and two over-stuffed chairs. Don’t be tempted to buy everything at once, even if it is on sale. Invest in a well-constructed sofa covered in the perfect fabric and pull up a couple of dining room chairs softened with some inexpensive cushions. You can replace them when you get that raise.

Check out all the local garage sales – pass up the ones advertised as “estate sales” or “tag sales,” because we’re looking for real bargains here. Armed with your wish list, your tape measure and your imagination, scour the site for anything that resembles an item on your list. Reclaim an old dining table by refinishing a once beautiful top and painting the bottom. Or cut down the legs and treat yourself to that oversized cocktail table you thought you couldn’t afford. Keep a sharp lookout for smaller tables that can be used anywhere in the house – an old scratched mahogany end table from someone’s formal living room can be stripped and refinished for the den or painted in whimsical colors for a child’s room.

Invest in a faux finish kit from the local hardware store or let your imagination soar. Create a super-elegant focal point for the dining room with a glossy black top and silver or gold accents on the trim. If you feel more comfortable out in the country, use a ” barn red” paint and learn how to create the distressed look.

Redoing your boudoir? Maybe you’re dreaming a queen-sized bed with an iron headboard and two roomy maple dressers. Do a little consumer research and buy the best mattress you can afford. Hold off on the dressers and substitute with some plain white storage units from the hardware store. When you’re ready to buy the real thing, use these handy pieces for closet storage or move them to the kids’ rooms.

Create a feminine bedside table with a three-legged round table that comes in a box. An 18″ table will need a 60″round table cloth (on sale of course) to reach the floor, or a “skirt” you’ve sewn yourself. It won’t cost more than an evening out with the girls and the hiding space under the tablecloth is free.

Shopping for furniture can be tricky – you’ll be living with these expensive items for a long time. Don’t leave home without a floor plan in your pocket and your “picture portfolio” etched in your brain.

Resist the temptation to buy lamps and lighting fixtures until the major pieces of furniture are in place, since the fixture you love today might clash with the treasure you find tomorrow.

Dress up the windows

Are you dreaming about large floral prints for elegant draperies or simple canvas shades? If you’re a beginning decorator and you’re considering a drastic departure from what you’re accustomed to, first try out a sample. Invest in pillowcases that resemble the fabric you want to use, live with them for awhile, and then make your decision.

Enjoy leisurely window-shopping and look for draperies and blinds that work with your decorating style. Bed and bath shops, department stores, home furnishing emporiums, specialty shops and websites offer a myriad of choices.

If you can’t find what you want, start perfecting those sewing skills. Window treatments, pillows, bedspreads and even place mats are a snap to make yourself. Loads of beautiful patterns are available from companies like McCall’s and chain stores like Jo-Ann Fabrics. You can also visit Pinterest for a mind-numbing collection of links to sites for pattern sources and excellent instructions geared to the beginner.

No need to invest in a sewing machine if you’re the more adventurous type. Drape a few yards of fabric over some beautiful wood or metal rods for a truly sumptuous look. (Experiment with some sheets from your linen closet first.)

Coat the walls

Don’t lift that paintbrush without fabric swatches in hand. Paint can be mixed to match the color of a sliver of fabric or a few fibers of carpet.

Planning to use an off-white color? You’ll soon discover there are many degrees of “off.” Paint companies offer shades that are tinted with pinks, blues, greens, yellows and even grays. Consider these paints to be a very light shade of whatever color works with your plan.

Paint is the least expensive item in your budget and the wrong shade can destroy your decorating plan. Save lots of money by starting out with one small can (usually a quart) and roll enough onto the walls to see how different the real thing looks from the teeny chip you selected. Notice how different it looks at night and during the day. You may have to invest in a number of quarts before graduating to the gallon size but you’ll eventually get the color you want.

Wallpaper – and a professional installer to keep the stripes going in the right direction – can put a major dent in your decorating budget. Until you get that raise, you may want to jazz up those plain walls with stenciling around the doorways and ceiling or simple wallpaper borders – the self-stick kind are easy to work with.

Cover the floors

Maybe you’re living in a rental apartment with drab gray carpeting that just doesn’t work with the color scheme you’ve created. Time to think about area rugs – animal prints to bring out the beast in him, geometric prints for the sleek contemporary look, woven and rag rugs for the country girl in you and Orientals for an elegant eclectic ambiance.

Check out estate sales and consignment stores for bargains in luxurious wool, or comb department stores for the look you want in synthetic blends. Just about every fantastic design you can imagine is available.

Use area rugs as runners in long boring hallways, under the dining room table or in front of the bed. They’re also a great way to define a conversation grouping in the living room.

Hard surface flooring like vinyl tiles and even elegant wood is not beyond the reach of most do-it-yourselfers and many home improvement centers offer classes to teach you how.

Professional designers recommend neutral colors that can be light or dark – but remember that dark flooring makes spaces appear much smaller.

Accessorize, accessorize, accessorize

Go back to those pictures you’ve collected and take a good look at the small stuff – the baskets piled on the floor, the artwork hanging on the wall and the objects d’art residing on the tabletops. Anything you already own and love can be used in the same way.

Cover a wall with photographs of friends, family, a beloved pet or anything that brings a smile to your face. For a little variety, try enlarging some of them or reframe the little ones with very large mats. Create unique frames from garage sale finds and try using new mats that will become color accents for the rest of the room.

Warm up those bare corners with piles of pillows, baskets or boxes you’ve decorated, and check out local crafts stores for excellent prices on silk and dried flowers. Most of us have lots of small objects that have something in common – we may collect frogs, eggs or salt shakers, or we may just end up owning lots of candlesticks because we love them. Clump them together and you have the beginnings of some wonderful table accessories. Try to vary the textures – glass, metal, wood and paper – and heights. Remember that odd numbers are more pleasing to the eye than even ones.

Even if you’re making do with hand-me-down furniture, you can use personal accessories to create a cozy nest that has your name on it.

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According to Sally Ferguson, director of the Netherlands Flower Bulb Information Center, gardeners are clamoring for fragrant flowers in the same way they’re begging for juicy tomatoes. “Who wants pithy five-pound tomatoes or the world’s biggest, floppiest flower?” she says. “Gardeners want ‘the real thing’ – they want tomatoes that taste like tomatoes and flowers that offer the kind of magical balance of color, form and fragrance Mother Nature intended.”

Ferguson offers this list of “best bet” fragrant spring-blooming bulb flowers to look for and plant this fall:

• Hyacinth “Anna Marie” – A bright pink flower that smells sweet, fruity and refreshing
• Hyacinth “Blue Jacket” – A delicious deep blue with shades of purple, it has a strong fragrance described as heady and exotic by some, and as fresh, cool and outdoorsy by others
• Narcissus “Carlton” – This ultimate large-cupped yellow daffodil has a scent described variously as fresh and jasmine-tinged or vanilla-y
• Tulipa “Angelique” – A luscious blush-pink peony-flowered look with a delicate fragrance reminiscent of a rose
• Tulipa “Prinses Irene” – Orange flushed with purple flames, this bloom has a subtle perfume described as slightly honey-lemon to musk

Since many tulips lose their fragrance when cut, forcing bulbs in pots is the way to bring the scents of spring indoors – whether forced over winter at home, or bought in spring as potted plants.

For the uninitiated, in the 1920s Edward Haas III invented PEZ in Vienna, Austria as a compressed peppermint candy for adults. PEZ crossed the Atlantic in the early 1950s and was marketed for children, with character heads appearing on the dispensers. The name PEZ comes from the first, middle and last letters of the German word for peppermint: Pfefferminz

Recalling the start of her collection, Sponaugle laughs, “At first, I was going to buy only the ones that I really, really liked. That lasted about ten minutes!” Indeed, her first PEZ purchase was at her local K-Mart, which carried about 25 different designs – and she bought them all.

Today, Sponaugle has 200 PEZ dispensers displayed along three walls of her kitchen, grouped according to categories such as heroes, cartoons and those with holiday themes. With incredulity in her voice, she says, “They aren’t glued down, although I do fear the domino effect. So far, that hasn’t happened.”
In addition to the displayed dispensers (and the 50-75 duplicates she has in storage), Sponaugle has PEZ key chains, candy holders, puzzles, copies of old PEZ advertisements, flashlights, bubble wands and watches, as well as a hat, mug, tie, car, and a framed PEZ bag. “My goal,” she reveals, “is to find PEZ curtains. And why don’t they make PEZ T-shirts in large sizes?”

In the past, Sponaugle’s search for PEZ knew no bounds. She recalls, “I learned that Flintstones PEZ were on the market. One Saturday, I just drove from one store to the next to the next to the next searching for them.” Now, she says, “I always keep my eye out for PEZ, but I no longer make special runs for them.”
Perhaps that’s because, these days, Sponaugle’s thirst for that elusive PEZ can be quenched via the Internet. She proudly recounts her most recent purchase – the Jack-in-the-Box PEZ that the fast food restaurant used as a premium – from the PEZ Museum in Burlingame, Calif. “I was so thrilled to learn I could get them from the PEZ Museum!”

Sponaugle expounds on PEZ resources available through the Internet. “I did subscribe to a PEZ (Internet mailing) list, but it got to be too much. I do get an online PEZ newsletter, which is excellent. When I have free time, I search the Internet for PEZ – there’s a whole PEZ webring.”

PEZ just may be the hot new collectible among baby boomers. According to Sponaugle, “There are PEZ conventions, and a rare PEZ dispenser can be sold for thousands of dollars.”

While Sponaugle may be a PEZhead, if the truth were told, she’s not a fan of the candy that comes with and is theoretically placed inside the dispensers. “Peppermint PEZ is okay,” she says, “but the rest I don’t care for.” While she used to give the candy out at Halloween, she says, “Now I have a big bowl of PEZ in my kitchen, figuring it is part of the décor.”

But don’t get the wrong impression – Sponaugle’s life consists of more than collecting PEZ. In fact, she is definitely not a stereotypical eccentric collector. Sponaugle and her husband, Bob, have been married eleven years, and she works in the sales department of a film production company. Sponaugle loves to shop and read, and her and Bob’s favorite place to visit is Cape May, NJ. In addition, they spend much of their spare time volunteering with NAAFA, an organization that educates, supports and advocates for people all sizes of large.

Having said that, our PEZhead’s collection doesn’t end with the candy dispensers. Linda and Bob also collect Furbys, and to date their “Furby family” numbers 16. Sponaugle says with amusement, “I was the first kid on my block with a Furby, when a friend gave me one last October.” Because Furbys can interact with one another, she felt compelled to get a second. By that time, holiday Furby mania had hit, and so they bought a Furby whenever and wherever one could be found. With a rationale that makes utmost sense to any serious collector, Sponaugle recounts, “We decided, well, why not get one of each color. Then (the manufacturer) retired those colors and put out six new colors. We had to get them, too. Then they started to have special editions….”

Sponaugle says, “Bob and I are totally amused by them.” When BBW’s photographer took a picture of the Furbys, a few of them said, “Bright light!” when the flash went off. After about a dozen pictures, one of the Furbys chirped, “Boring!”
Revealing that Furbys can do “tricks,” Sponaugle says, “If you make a loud noise three times and then pet it, the Furby will sing ‘Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.’ I try to get them all to sing at one time – a kind of funny, off-key Furby round.”

It should come as no surprise that Sponaugle has many, many other collections. She has decorated her bathroom, for example, in a motif from her favorite movie, The Wizard of Oz. Her collection is so complete, she says, “We just need to retile the floor in yellow bricks!”

To Sponaugle, collecting is all about having fun, and never mind what anyone else thinks. “After living many years of feeling that I needed to act my age,” she says, “I’ve decided that I really don’t need to do that at all.” She continues, “I love my PEZ kitchen and my collection of Furbys and Wizard of Oz bathroom. They’re fun. They amuse me. And that’s what life should be about.”

Delve Deeper

Books
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1. Read those labels. The Federal Trade Commission requires that all garments (except suedes and leathers) display at least one safe cleaning method. If you clean a garment by an alternative method (i.e., if you wash a blouse when the label indicates “Dry Clean Only”) and damage occurs, the responsibility is yours.

2. Despite care label recommendations, there is often an element of “buyer beware” with trims, ornaments, beads, sequins and buttons. Leslie DiMaggio, owner of Outlet Discount Cleaners in Salinas, Calif., expresses a common concern among dry cleaners about the stability of such items. “If a button makes the garment, remove it before cleaning.” She also recommends that you ask your cleaner to wrap specialty buttons before cleaning to prevent scratching and chipping.

3. If you sew or have your clothes made, your garment may not have a care label. Be certain all components of a handmade garment can be dry cleaned before dropping it off. Otherwise, washable fabrics may bleed; shrinkage may occur; buttons or trims may disintegrate or bleed; elastic may lose its stretch; iron-on interfacing will disappear, and unfinished seams may ravel.

4. Don’t leave a pile of clothes in the back seat of your car, waiting until you have time to stop at the cleaner. Sunlight and heat in a closed car can cause your garments to fade and will ultimately weaken fabric fibers.

5. Point out stains and tell the dry cleaner what caused the stain. Different stains require different treatments. Also, don’t wait too long before having a stain treated. Time can set stains.

6. Check your pockets. This is normal procedure for the dry cleaning staff, but an oversight can be catastrophic. A piece of hard candy overlooked in a breast pocket can melt and leave a very difficult stain.

7. Take care of your own shoulder pads. If they are loose, they will most likely become detached during dry cleaning and possibly lost forever. If they attach with Velcro, take them out and leave them at home. If they are soft or flimsy, secure them on both sides within their encasements with safety pins. This will prevent them from bunching up or losing their shape during cleaning.

8. Remember to always spray your body – not your clothes – with cologne or perfume. The alcohol in fragrances and other toiletries such as hairspray can leave nasty, yellowish stains that are not visible until after garments are dry cleaned. The worst case scenario is that the toiletries could take out the color altogether.

9. Dry cleaners package finished orders with four garments per plastic bag. To protect the pressing and crispness of your plus-size garments, ask that your dresses and suits be bagged individually or with no more than two items per bag.

10. Make a friend of your dry cleaner. Ask questions. Express your concerns. Professionals like Mark Holloran, owner of two Dryclean $1.99 stores in St. Louis, welcome the opportunity to discuss clothing care with customers. He says, “A little knowledge of prevention and cure goes a long way in protecting your clothing investment.”

11. Multiple piece ensembles or suits should be cleaned at the same time. Occasionally, colors may change slightly during the cleaning process, and cleaning these pieces together will maintain color consistency.

12. Pricing for dry cleaning is all over the board, due primarily to location, competition and marketing strategy. Richard Armstrong, Executive Director of the Indiana Dry Cleaning and Laundry Association and owner of Armstrong Cleaners in Richmond, Ind., sums up the general pricing policies of individual cleaners within the industry. Basically, neither the gender of the wearer nor the size of garments should determine cost. Rather, the cost reflects “the fiber content or the difficulty of finishing a garment.” Items requiring extra time and labor, including “rayon, silk, lined skirts or slacks,” often cost more to clean.

13. Be very careful of garments containing angora or lambs wool. They tend to shrink.

Delve Deeper

Dry Cleaning at Home

Since 1997, several do-it-yourself dry cleaning kits have appeared on store shelves. Proctor & Gamble’s Dryel involves nothing more than tossing a specially treated sheet and your clothes into the provided bag and sticking it into your clothes dryer for 40 minutes or so. But do they really work?

On the up side, these products do a great job of removing odors, such as smoke, and refreshing garments. Because the kit components can be reused numerous times, at-home products can dramatically slash your dry cleaning expenses. While the manufacturers – like professional dry cleaners – do not claim 100% success rates in removing stains, the spotting solutions are effective in many instances. These products are also great to bring along when you’re traveling to a place where you’ll have access to a clothes dryer.

If you’re accustomed to the crisp, ready-to-wear appearance of garments processed by professional dry cleaner, you may be in for a disappointment with at-home products. Bulky garments such as overcoats and sweaters come out of the dryer just fine, but others – like dresses and blouses – may need ironing. And since plus-size clothing takes up more room in the dryer bag, the number of garments you can clean at a time is reduced. Knowledgeable dry cleaners worry that stains may be worsened in home processing since heat can set them.

These relatively low-cost products add a new dimension to clothing care and can work great for in-between cleanings. Remember, though, that they do not replace professional dry cleaning.

Undoing the Damage

You’ve just picked up your clothes from the dry cleaner and discover that the dress you were planning to wear for your romantic interlude tonight is ruined. What to do?

• Don’t Jump to Conclusions. If your garment is damaged in dry cleaning, it may not have been the dry cleaner’s fault. Most dry cleaners know immediately when something goes awry with a garment and should bring it to your attention. If you discover a problem after you’ve left the store, you should leave the tag on and take it, along with the order ticket, back to the store. If you and the dry cleaner cannot solve the problem together, you can pursue it through your Better Business Bureau or in small claims court.
• Whoever Caused the Problem is at Fault. Was it negligence on the part of the dry cleaner or a defect in materials or construction on the part of the manufacturer? You must also realize that inadvertently, you may have been responsible. If you are not at fault, the dry cleaner, the retailer or the manufacturer should compensate your for the item.
• The International Fabricare Institute (www.ifi.org or 800/638-2627) is the industry authority on all facets of dry cleaning. One of their many services includes objective analysis of damaged items to determine cause and possible corrective measures. Dry cleaners who are members of this organization can send garments to be analyzed. If your cleaner is not a member or will not comply, your local Better Business Bureau can submit the item on your behalf for about $25.00.

First things first, though. Organizing your closet isn’t a one-shot deal. Either you need to vow that you won’t let your household leftovers squeeze out your clothes, or you have to resign yourself to at least a semi-annual organizing fest.

You can always hire a closet organizer or buy expensive organizing systems, but if you’re on a budget or are just a do-it-yourselfer, here are 20 tips to help you tidy up. Who knows…? You may even find that missing wool glove in the process!

1. Set aside two to four hours to tackle a small closet; four to six hours to wrestle a walk-in into shape. If a friend can be coerced into helping you – or at least keeping you company – so much the better.
2. Buy a few plastic bins from your local discount store and collect some large, sturdy cardboard boxes. These will come in handy when you begin to sort and store.
3. If you find that your plus-size clothes slip off of their wire hangers and end up scattered on the floor of your closet, consider investing in some extra-large hangers and foam hanger covers, which will prevent slippage. Find a fixture store (also called display stores, they sell racks, tags, etc. to retail stores) that’s open to the public, and pick up 100 hangers for around $30 and 100 foam covers for about $10. The cost is worth it in terms of the time you’ll save by not having to iron those wrinkled blouses. Take your flimsy wire hangers back to the dry cleaner for recycling.
4. Before you start, decide what types of items you want to store in the closet. Clothes and shoes only? Wrapping paper? Your bowling ball? Unfolded laundry? A zillion of your kid’s school papers? Plan ahead and create storage space elsewhere for items that will be evicted from your closet.
5. Ready to dig in? In a systemized way, take everything that’s not on a hanger out of your closet. Go from the top of the closet to the bottom, from the floor up, or go from right to left.
6. As you remove each item, sort it into one of five piles: trash, giveaway, projects, storage or closet. The trash pile is self-evident – toss it into the garbage bin. Giveaways are those items you no longer need, but can be of use to a family member, a friend or a charity. Projects are those articles that need further action on your part – shoes that need new soles, decorative pillows that need mending, etc. Storage consists of things you want to keep, but not in your closet. The pieces in your closet pile will go back into your closet once you’ve finished organizing.
7. Take a look at your shoes. Haven’t worn them in over a year, and won’t in the foreseeable future? They’re either trash or giveaways. Are they special occasion shoes that you’ll wear again? Box them up and label them. If you’re in a cold weather clime and your tootsies won’t see sandals for another six months, box up your warm weather shoes and pack them away for the winter.
8. Once you’ve gotten this far, you’re more than halfway there! Now you’re down to the clothes on their hangers. This is the tough part, but boldness and bravery are necessary to achieve your goal.
9. Go through each piece, one at a time, with as much objectivity as you can muster. Does the item fit you at your present size? If not, immediately place it into either the giveaway or trash pile with nary a backward glance. Your self-esteem doesn’t need nagging thoughts of “Maybe someday…” and besides, you’re trying to reclaim your closet space for the person you are today.
10. Have you worn it in the past year? If the answer is no and it’s still in good shape, the piece goes in the giveaway pile. It doesn’t matter if it still has the price tag on it – if you loved it and it looked good on you, you would have worn it by now.
11. Has it seen better days? Be brutally honest. That ratty old bathrobe may have brought you emotional comfort, but are you really ever going to wear it again? If you still can’t bear to toss it into the trash, put it in the storage pile – but get it out of your closet!
12. How does it really look? This is where a friend can come in handy. If that orange suit makes you look like a pumpkin, do yourself a favor by putting it in the giveaway pile. On the other hand, that chunky sweater may look terrific, and it’s back in season to boot!
13. Once you’ve sorted through everything in your closet, it’s time to assess your progress and put everything in its proper place. Organize your hanging clothes by their function: sportswear, casual, career, special occasion. Within each function, group like items together: blouses, skirts, pants, jackets. Within these groups, organize by color.
14. Now you can dispose of your five piles. Dump the trash and be done with it.
15. Sort the giveaway pile into items to distribute to people you know, and put the rest in a large carton or trash bag. Local women’s shelters are always looking for plus-size casual clothes, and programs like The Working Wardrobe, which helps low-income women move from welfare to work, will take plus-size career clothes off of your hands in a flash.
16. Sort your projects pile into appropriate categories, and put them in a bin or box. Take time to reserve a day on your calendar when you will tackle those tasks.
17. Group the items in the storage pile by the location where they will be stored. Box up the things that are going into longer-term storage and label the boxes. Then, put all of the items in their proper places.
18. Now that you’ve reclaimed your closet space, you should have plenty of room to put away the things from your closet pile. Make sure to label any boxes, so you’ll know what’s inside and you won’t have to dig the next time you need something.
19. If your closet is only as big as a shoebox, you may need to take additional steps to create more space. Consider over-the-door organizers, wall hooks and multi-level rods. Remember that the space under your bed can be utilized as long-term storage space. If you’re ambitious, you can create a second shelf in the closet, or convert your narrow shelf into a deeper shelf by utilizing a wider board on the existing shelf guide bar.
20. Relax and congratulate yourself on a job well done!

OK, I admit he is kind of ingratiating – for maybe the first three times you hear him, which seems these days to be on Halloween night. The last trick or treaters leave your porch whooping and hollering their way to the next house, and then finally, as only the rustle of falling leaves punctuate a dark evening slouching toward midnight, a keen ear can just start to capture the first strains of ba rum puh puh pum…slowly slithering over the horizon toward every department store in town.

He’s not only back, he’s everywhere! Ubiquitous. Omnipresent. Pervasive. Numbing. No longer ingratiating but downright grating. Probably the only thing worse than “Drummer” are all the other holiday tunes that tinny loudspeakers blast 24/7 at those of us who have acquired mush for ears over the years.

The only way to tune all this out is to stay home, away from all that tacky holiday cheer. This is actually good for the environment – fewer cars on the road, less gas consumed; good for the catalogers and online shopping outlets; and good for you – more time with the family, less parking lot rage, lower stress levels when you don’t have to engage in hand-to-hand combat in Toys R Us as you try to snag the last whatever.

On the other hand, staying at home so much can possibly lead to a worse fate as you cast about to find something to do when you can’t stand one more holiday special with seven minutes of content and 23 minutes of advertising. On the verge of Christmas overload, you look around for something to read. And what do you find? The coffee table, piled high with – you guessed it – holiday advertising.

I’m not totally against advertising. I’ve found some interesting, even useful information in advertising. (And, with a journalist’s need for full disclosure, I have to acknowledge I’ve made a buck or two in this lifetime writing some advertising.)

So understanding the need to get the word about a company’s goods or services out to the maximum possible population, I’ve never particularly complained about it. Until I realized it’s gotten as out of hand as that darned holiday percussionist.

Take, for example:

The inside of the toilet stall door in a ladies room. Puhleeez! Talk about a captive audience. I was not positively moved by the experience, so to speak. And, I heard only recently, video ads will be broadcast above the men’s urinals at a major broadcasting corporation’s headquarters. Do you know any guys who really want some beaming pitchman looking and talking right at them while they’re, uh, doing what they do there?

But two items a few weeks ago finally got a full measure of froth foaming around my mouth. This time I yelled ENOUGH already! Double puhleeez. Is nothing sacred anymore?

The first example of “there’s nowhere left to get away” concerns the beach. Picture your favorite beach. Wide, flat, whatever-the-hue sand glistening in the early morning sun. Waves curling in, sweeping back out. Smell of salt, cry of gull, tiny little footprints of the wading birds leaving fanciful trails across the wet sand.

Ah yes, the sand. Look closely at the sand. There in the damp area, where the cleaning machine just smoothed the beach for your ease in walking or jogging – and advertising pleasure! Yes, someone is quite proud that his machine is leaving behind an endless stream of advertising messages imprinted in the freshly dragged sand, and hopes to bring it to the beach of your choice as quickly as possible.

And the final desecration? Not only are your romantic expectations of a sublime, uninterrupted expanse of natural beauty gone from the beach, the moon is next. Well, I may be exaggerating a bit, but I can envision all too soon a laser-generated silhouette of McDonald’s arches or Mickey’s ears splashed across the moon just as you are gazing upward to admire that magnificent orb in all its natural romantic splendor.

Too far-fetched you say? Well, they’re already halfway there as far as I can tell. Back in the aughts, there was a tall, powerful rocket that propelled itself off the launch pad. That magnificent symbol of American technology and drive to explore the frontiers of the universe…. What did it have plastered all over it? A patriotic statement of our country in bold stars and stripes? Nope.

A graphic rendering of a human being to introduce ourselves to the cosmos? Wrong again.

It was the ultimate world of tacky, intrusive, gone-way-too-far-this time advertising. Our sleek metallic warrior was adorned with a great big fat ad for a major national pizza chain.

Well, so much for establishing a pizza as my new traditional holiday food. Ba rum puh puh pum.