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Dear Sumo Skinny,

This summer I’m going on a trip, but it’s in August and I want to make sure I save money for it.  Do you have any suggestions for how to discreetly save money throughout the summer so I can enjoy my vacation and not go broke from it?

Sincerely,

No more beach days?

 Dear Beach Days,

 There are definitely still some beach days in store for you!  Do you know that column in Cosmo that tells you what you could save if you gave up buying something for the course of the year?  It tells you, you could have bought a car if you had not gotten a mani-pedi every other week.  Well, that’s awesome info, but it’s even better to not have to surrender things you love just so that you can save a lot.

I would suggest taking a look at what you’re spending money on that can be altered a little bit, especially the things that can contribute to your trip as well.  For example, my friend sometimes buys regular coffee and asks for a cup of ice, dumps the hot coffee on the ice, and saves herself a buck or two by not paying for iced coffee, which is more expensive.  And as Cosmo has taught us, it’s the little things that add up. 

Another thing to change is definitely the movies; they’re so expensive, and you can go in with all your friends to split a Netflix account or a Megavideo username and save a ton of money.  Also, check out the Blockbusters that are closing; the chain is gradually closing a lot of its stores, and each time one closes, all the movies, movie cover art, video games, etc. go on sale.  Plus, if you invest in this virtual movie-watching thing, you can watch them while you’re on vacation if you hit a rainy day or are too sunburned to go outside at noon.

Ditto for other stores as well.  Looking for some new furniture for your beach house?  Check out the Borders that’s closing down the street from you, or the Blockbuster that’s clearing out all of its stuff.  They sell cheap things like bookcases.

If you’re looking to save more than just a little, I would take advantage of the season.  Tons of garage sales go on this time of year; instead of going to the mall, go to a yard sale.  Then you can buy a beach umbrella for your trip but not feel bad about spending a lot on it.

Sincerely,

Alessandra Siraco, Sumo-in-Residence

Questions?  E-mail asksumo@sumoskinny.com!