Budget Living Helps You Spruce Up The Trailer Park!
Written: Mar 31 '03 (Updated Jun 24 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Tries to glamorize Wal*Mart.
Cons: Even Wal*Mart doesn't try to glamorize Wal*Mart.
The Bottom Line: Stay on budget - skip this magazine!
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| modernmarvel's Full Review: Budget Living Magazine |
I love decorating magazines and I love budget-conscious ideas so this magazine seemed like a natural for me. I expected it to offer lots of clever money-saving ideas. Instead, it just highlights inexpensive merchandise to buy from K*Mart, Wal*Mart and Target. There are very few clever ideas. Instead, there are some really scary, almost anti-social ideas for saving money.
BTW - Think I sound snobby? - wait until you hear about the three-course meal at 7-Eleven that features a slim jim appetizer.
WHAT YOU GET IN EACH ISSUE
The first issue of Budget Living came out in October 2002. Since it is new, it may evolve over time. The format of Budget Living is similar to other general living / decorating magazines.
Below are the departments and articles from the April / May 2003 issue.
From the Editor: This page features a picture of the youngish editor in a $15 K*Mart dress. There is a bottle of Corona on her desk. Her accompanying letter talks about the current issue and explains that the beer is for research for the Cinco De Mayo article. Um, right. Then, I guess, it is back to Bud?
Contributors: Brief bios of the authors of some of the articles.
Your Two Cents: Letters from readers with pithy relies from the editor.
Loose Change (News * Events * Trends * And Mario Batali Spices Up 7-Eleven): This is a loose collection of brief articles and snippets of information.
There are several snippets that recommend: buying one orchid for Mother's Day since it will last longer than cut flowers; Duke's mayonnaise ($12 plus shipping for two quarts); a book about Trading Spaces. There are recommendations for saving money such as don't drink designer coffee (is there any magazine reader on the planet that hasn't heard this advice) and buy colgate simply white instead of getting your teeth bleached at the dentist. None of their advice struck me as particularly clever. In fact, most of it was just plain obvious.
The scariest tidbit in this section was the self-described "dark secret" of opening all of the left over soy sauce packets from Chinese food restaurants and pouring them into a bottle to use later.
The Loose Change section also contains a scary one page article about buying a "hearty three-course meal" at 7-Eleven for $13. Among the delicious choices: a slim jim, burritos and cheese sticks. MMMMMM! Of course, there is no mention of how long all the preservatives, artificial colors and cholesterol you just consumed will linger in your body.
Another one page article featured Hampden, MD. Never heard of it? Well, that is why they are recommending it. It is so off the beaten tourist path, you never get stuck paying that tourist premium. Trying to keep an open mind, I scanned the article for sites to see. However, tourist sites are not on their budget plan. If you want to actually see anything of interest, you will have to travel to nearby Baltimore. Of course, the article doesn't mention any sites in Baltimore so you will have to do your own research. The article does mention a couple of restaurants and second hand stores.
The Goods (Decorating * Beauty * Travel * and an 80s Boy Toy). This section highlights a lot of things to buy. Here is a sample of their suggestions: umbrellas ranging in price from $7 - $50; bandanas at $1.25 each, plates available at Target, plastic glasses available "at grocery stores nationwide" for $1 each, a $10 wicker basket from Target, swiffer wet jet, a scumbuster for $39 and watering cans ranging in price from $2-63.
If you already know about stores that offer inexpensive goods, including discounters and bargain stores, such as Wal*mart, Target, K*Mart, Ikea, The Terrance Conran Shop, Crate and Barrel and Marshalls, you are not going to find a lot of merchandise here that you couldn't already find yourself. This section of Budget Living was a big disappointment to me. I expected some insight, perhaps even the inside track. I wanted to know about the deals, the stuff no one else has. While they mention a couple of retailers I hadn't heard of, I could have found the vast majority of their recommendations myself. Sigh!!
Making It (Doable D.I.Y. and One Hot Seat). This section is on crafts. They suggest covering a cheap bowl with pages from the comic section of the newspaper, putting colored tape in the shape of a flower on the seat of a chair to cover rips in the vinyl, gluing buttons to a flowerpot and making a screen out of discarded industrial carpet cardboard tubes. Look, you can get better decorating craft ideas from the Ikea web site. Go there. Spare yourself.
Money (Saving Secrets * Investing Ideas * And Rethinking Remodeling). This section has several articles about Money. They cover how to avoid high credit card fees and whether you should write your own will. There is a longer article that talks about whether you will recoup your investment on major remodeling projects. There is also a two page article on mutual funds that choose investments based on environmental or other non-financial concerns.
Swing into Spring: This is the fashion section. Apparently, price takes precedence over fit, fabric content (viva polyester!), quality or fashion. Expect lots of clothes from K*mart and Target. Don't get me wrong, I shop at those stores too. Still, when I am buying a fashion magazine, I expect the clothing recommendations to consider several factors, not just price. If I want to know what Target is offering the season, I can just drive right over. I don't need the magazine.
Party to the People: This article tells you how to host a Cinco De Mayo party from hell that will forever ruin all of your long-established friendships. Their first suggestion was a little off-putting to me. They suggest that you look through a supermarket advertisement and cut out some food pictures. Then, on each invitation, glue on a picture of the food you want that guest to bring. They even give suggestions: ask one guest to bring lettuce, another should bring onions. Look, if you can't afford some lettuce, consider another option than having this party.
(Mini-rant coming, feel free to skip to next paragraph: Usually, if my guests offer to bring something to a party, I will take them up for something small. If they don't offer, they are still my guests. There is never an expectation that they will bring something. No one is ever required to bring a key ingredient for my dinner party as an admission ticket. Even if the invitation / shopping list idea appeals to you, think about what would happen if one or two guests did not show up with their ingredient - how would you make the dinner?)
The decor they recommend can be assembled from dollar stores and general kids crafts. Props can be ordered from the Oriental Trading Company. (What ever happened to fresh flowers?)
Once your guests show up with the food, you can assemble your menu: Salsa, Guacamole, Tamales, Tacos and, for dessert, Snow Cones. Of course, you will need to serve lots of liquor to take the guests minds off the cheap food, tacky decor and tasteless invitations, so serve lots of Mexican beer and Margaritas. Since the magazine also recommends that you tell your guests to bring the beer, you better hope these guests in particular show up.
Get Fresh: More cheapy stuff to buy. Here are some decorating ideas: an inflatable fish from urban outfitters (only $24!), a fake turf doormat with a plastic daisy and an "industrial chic" garbage can that they suggest using as a planter.
More is More: A several-page color spread on a vacation home (hey, is that in the budget?!?). The home is decorated with mismatched flea market finds. Normally I like magazines that suggest integrating flea market finds into your home. This one is just a mish-mosh of various finds that don't look good together.
Paris is Burning: A article spanning several pages on how to visit Paris on less than $100 a day (not including air fare). They give several cheap recommendations on places to stay and eat. Then they give some obvious suggestions such as walk rather than take a cab. They also have some too-cheap-for-me suggestions such as saving 10 Euros by not going to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Come on, you have spent this much money and time to go to Paris. Are you going to be so cheap that you won't see one of the most famous landmarks just to save a relatively small amount of money? If you really want to do Europe cheap, try Rick Steve's Europe Through the Back Door or watch the PBS series. You will get better hints on seeing Europe cheaply.
Bargain Basement (Budget Living's Little Black Book of Steals and Deals). The title of this section promises more than it delivers. They have little snippets of things to buy and other info. How about this suggestion: use vintage quilted blankets, fake fur or fabric to line coats? I think I saw some homeless people adopt this fashion tip during our Northeast frigid winter.
My Best Buy: They highlight Jennifer Beals of Flashdance fame. Apparently they are so cheap, they can't afford a more recent celebrity.
PRICE
A one year subscription of 6 issues is $14.95. The cover price is $3.99.
ADVERTISEMENTS
This magazine has a lot of advertisements, just like any other commercial magazine. However, I think it does, page for page, have a higher percentage of content than Better Homes and Gardens, Metropolitan Home, Redbook or most other magazines I can think of. Of course, Budget Living is still relatively new and they may still be trying to attract advertisers. It is hard to know whether this content bonanza will last.
The advertisers are generally the companies that they feature in their articles.
OTHER INFO
The pages are full color but the paper is a little cheap. It is not as bad as Better Homes & Gardens, but it doesn't have that glossy feel of the more upscale magazines.
The web site is www.bargainlivingmedia.com
Call 1-800-588-1644 for a subscription.
FINAL RECOMMENDATION
I have no idea who this magazine is targeted to. The party idea sounds like they are targeting a "post-college / first apartment" stage of life, although in other articles they seem to assume that you own a home and perhaps even a vacation home.
I, like most people, have only limited money to spend. However, I would rather save it for a few nice items than lots of $15 dresses from K*Mart. So, this magazine doesn't really appeal to me. I am frugal, but not cheap. There is a difference. This magazine is just cheap.
MY REVIEWS ABOUT DESIGN MAGAZINES
Architectural Digest is decorating porn.
Elle Decor is sultry.
House & Garden is pretentious.
Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion is artsy.
Home is practical.
Metropolitan Home is modern and spare.
Dwell is intellectual modernism.
Better Homes and Gardens has something for everyone.
Nest is artistic and offensive
Recommended:
No
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modernmarvel
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Can anyone recommend a western family dude ranch for a vacation this summer?
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