Here’s another reason to keep your receipts!

After-Christmas sales are in full swing as stores try to clear their inventory and get people to use those gift cards they received beneath the tree. Prices are dropping everywhere.

That’s good news if you’ve got some more shopping to do — and it’s great news for everyone who kept their receipts from Christmas shopping!

Here’s how to take advantage of the sales to get some money back.

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Here’s a great idea from Angie at YouLookFab: save those cardboard wrapping paper rolls after you’ve used up the paper, cut them in half, and use them as boot shapers to keep your boots from getting bent out of shape! It’s an idea I’ve put to use in my favorite pair of boots and it works fabulously.

If you’ve already thrown away the rolls, or have more boots than rolls, then check out Angie’s post for more ideas…

Have you been told over and over again that “It’s the thought that counts”, but you still feel pressured to spend more on someone simply because you feel that they deserve something special? Sometimes it seems that “special” and “costly” are synonyms, but really that’s not the case.

As I shared in My gift shopping strategy, or why small gifts rock, I’m a big fan of gifts that don’t break the budget. If you’re still worried…

It’s Christmas day and you just found out that your aunt is coming to Christmas dinner at your mom’s, but you don’t have a gift for this unexpected guest. The stores are closed and it’s far too late to get anything shipped in time. What do you do?

First off, don’t panic. I’ve got some last-minute gift ideas to get you out of this jam.

Photo: Mars Infomage, flickr.com/marstheinfomage

The stock market has crashed, a world-wide recession is said to be starting — and cheap chic is the topic du jour:

• The Rocky Mountains News asked can cheap be chic?, but delivered an article on whether cheap shoes are comfortable. Disappointing, but then the article to match the headline can be written in a word: “Yes.”
• Forget the stock market, invest in a coat says The Telegraph (UK). (Via The Thoughtful Dresser.) I’ve justified more than a…

If you’re searching for a shopping tote that’s more colorful than these basic grocery totes, but still inexpensive, then I have a keyword for you:

Costume jewelry has been chic since Coco Chanel made it so, but sometimes there’s no substitute for real gemstone jewelry. If you’d like to pick some up for much less than usual, here’s how.

Hint: It’s all about timing — and March is my favorite time to hit the jewelry counters.

Since I’ve been a Floridian all my life, I know a thing or two about dressing for even triple-digit temperatures.

Fortunately, those temps are still a ways off even here — but with spring just around the corner, it’s time to start thinking about warm-weather purchases that will keep on working as the temperatures rise.

It’s shaping up to be a fabulous February. If you don’t believe me, just check out the featured posts at this month’s edition of The Fabulous! Festival, hosted at All About Appearances.

From fashion faux pas to female centric art, there’s plenty of interesting reads.

Bloggers: The Fabulous! Festival is a great way to introduce your writing to new readers. If you’d like to participate in and/or host an upcoming edition of The Fabulous! Festival, here’s what…

In a recent advice post, I explained the basics when it comes to using stripes and other lines to look thinner, taller, and generally balance out your figure. Now, I’m going to give you more examples that you can use.

Here I focus on verticals, a great place to start since they’re the easiest to use.

Ways to create and extend those thinning vertical lines

We love vertical lines because they are the easiest to work with and…