Dishwashing soap is among the staple consumables in the modern home. Being a consumable, it means that you will have to purchase refills of the stuff regularly. Thus, you’d need to find ways to stretch your dishwashing soap of choice.

Most of my frugal friends prefer dishwashing paste as opposed to liquid because it seems more economical. However, I find the gritty feel very annoying, and the residue it leaves on the dishes and glasses afterwards is just too ugly for my taste.

That being said, I stopped caring about whether the paste is more economical or not. I’m going for the liquid.

I’ve watched those Joy Dishwashing Liquid commercials quite a few times when I still lived with my folks. I’ve memorized how Michael V. would challenge his subjects to pour a packet of Joy into a liter of water, lasting them weeks. Thus, I decided to dilute my Joy Ultra Antibac with water. I figured the antibacterial properties would be so strong anyway, diluting it wouldn’t matter much.

I was pleasantly surprised that my last 10-peso packet of Joy dishwashing liquid lasted from before I left for Manila on August 12, 2011, up until the 9th of September, 2011. Take note, I returned to Kalibo on the 18th of September, so I must have used one packet for around 3 to 4 weeks. I also used some of the liquid undiluted, so I’m even more impressed. I opened a fresh pack on the 9th of September. Let’s see how long it lasts with the dilution system in place.**

**I’m also thinking of using a separate packet for those dishes that need the liquid undiluted. Also, I might want to pre-mix it in a 1-Liter bottle. The last packet was used with just pouring a few drops of the stuff and then adding water. No controls, no consistency at all. Hmm. I’ll make a better experiment out of this and will let you know how long my Joy Ultra Antibac lasts.

Photo Credits: Jejade @ Sulit

Me and "Undeserved Blessing"

Undeserved blessings can come in great to amazing packages. Recently, I was blessed with a Cherry Mobile Nova by one of my clients. Well, it wasn’t really a “blessing” in the full sense of the word, as we Christians know it. You see, in “Christianese,” when you “bless” someone, you give that person something, without expecting anything in return. A real, full gift. Mine wasn’t exactly a gift; rather, the unit was financed for me, issued for an ongoing, possibly permanent project I’m working on.

I’ll be repaying the unit via salary deductions. I’m looking forward to being able to pay it in full, actually. But as it is, I’m already grateful that a long-held prayer was realized sooner than I targeted.

I’ve wanted and prayed for an Android for a while now. But not as long a while as I’ve been praying for an iPod Touch. I’ve been praying for an iPod Touch since it came out in 2007 or 2008, I believe. And after three years, the dream has been realized.

Of course, I sowed along the way. In my church, we were taught that when we give, God blesses us tens to hundredfolds after we give. I gave to achieve that, in the past. Later, I learned to give because it felt amazing.

Today, I feel like what I received in the way of the financed gadget was more than what I had asked and given for, in the past. After I tinkered with and saw the full potential of the Cherry Mobile Nova as an Android device, I realized I no longer urgently need an iPod. I still want one, however, as there are quite a few apps on the iOS that aren’t accessible via the Android platform. But that’s a different story.

I didn’t save for or work too hard to get this undeserved blessing. I did, however, pray. Bugged my Provident Father in Heaven for it, like, daily. He gave me something better than what I specifically bugged Him for. And for that, I am more than grateful.

Kendra Thinks Saving Receipts Is Hogwash, Too

I don’t know why I do it, but I do. Collect them deng grocery receipts, that is.

I started the habit because my mom taught me that it’s important to keep the receipts of things we purchased when I moved into my first dorm when I was 13. Straight out of elementary, I passed and was allowed to try going to school in Philippine Science High School – Diliman. So when we bought my things for the dorm, my mom would painstakingly collect all the receipts and make sure that everything’s there. Aside from tracking whether the things we bought were complete and hauled off to the dorm, the receipts served as her tracker for her budget. Moving in to a new place is not cheap. We bought everything from my mattress down to my electric fan. Thus the reason why she may have needed to make sure that we weren’t overspending.
Since that example set in the balmy, beautiful Philippine Science High School dormitory, I’ve collected my receipts since. From money transfers to grocery receipts I have them all, dumped in boxes, brown paper bags, or even plastic bags.

But sometime early this year, I figured out I was just collecting CLUTTER. Those receipts never really got double-checked beyond 15 minutes after getting home. Those receipts were never really used to track my budget. Instead, they just cluttered up my room. They added to my trash.

The money transfer receipts, I needed to keep, yes. But the grocery receipts, what’s the point? I spend the same way, anyway. It doesn’t make any sense to obsessively, even manically keep track of my expenses when, after certain periods of lack, I’ve learned how to spend only what’s enough for the day?

But I still kept my receipts. They’re there, in case I need them. I aim to throw them out every year-end. Sounds sensible, no?

Photo Credits: My 10 Online — Saving and Organizing Your Receipts

iPhone 4 -- Chained to Globe! (Image by Everything In Budget)

You either love it or you’ll hate it. Mobile network plans, that is. For some of us, we love being on a mobile network plan because of the free phone unit every two years. Others, however, may find that a mobile network plan is restrictive, and the fact that the phones are locked to the operator that provided it also poses another handicap.

However, there are some compelling reasons for getting a phone on plan. Take the iPhone for example. While it is very affordable in the US, the iPhone is very expensive here in the Philippines. One unit may set you back at least Php 29,000 for the 16GB model, or Php 33,000 for the 32GB model. On the other hand, you may be able to take a unit home for only Php 5,000: by signing up for a 24-month contract with a Globe Platinum plan.

The caveat with that plan is that you will be locked to that for 24 months. So at the end of the 24 months that you pay Php 5,000 a month for your mobile service plan and your iPhone, you will end up paying Php 120,000 pesos in all. That doesn’t really sound like a good deal now, does it?

If you consume only Php 400 a month in calls and texts, you will have spent Php 9,600 for 24 months. Then if you want to subscribe to a mobile Internet plan, at Php 999 a month for unlimited service, you’ll have spent only Php 23,976 for the whole of 24 months. At the end of it, the total dent on your pocket will only be Php 66,576 for an iPhone (with Php 33,000 cash-out), an unlimited data plan, and your regular use of calls and texts. Half the price of what you’d pay for a 5000-peso premium plan!

There is much to love and much to hate for mobile phone plans. If you go for the value-packed plans of Sun Cellular: Unlimited Calls and Texts, as well as 250 free texts to other networks and get a good-enough WiFi capable phone available under the plan, you will have found something that’s really worth your money. Other than that, it’s really best to go prepaid.

• Sun Cellular
• Smart Communications
• Globe Telecom

Photo Credits: Everything In Budget

It’s been a looong time since I last wrote on here. Been battling backlogs since last year, not to mention suffered a few emotional and career ups and downs. I’m actually at a low point in my career, as Google did an algorithm update and it really, seriously affected my boss’ website. So she had to change a few things. Meanwhile, I took a pay cut and needed to look for other things to do while I waited for her website to get back to full swing.

Because I have more time on my hands, I have time enough to be able to read. Or maybe I’m really really tired of feeling enslaved by my tasks that I decided to throw caution to the wind now and just chillax whenever I want then work whenever I want. Well, not really.

I can’t afford to not work. But the pressure of a lot of things piling up on me has been so great that there’s no other recourse than to step back.

I think it was worth it. Because reading Fabulously Broke In The City’s series on The Idiot caused me to see my own behavior that was pretty idiotic.

It’s a blessing in disguise and I thank Fabulously Broke for sharing this series with the rest of the world.

I came across Fabulously Broke when I was looking for other websites to link to in one of my social media tasks. Since then, I consider myself addicted to her blog. She writes witty, snarky, even bitchy content that frank and honest in a good way, and hits home too.

You’re not reading Fabulously Broke? You’re missing half of your life, dude. Hop on to Fabulously Broke In The City and get conveniently shaken and spurred to make better, less idiotic financial decisions for your sanity’s sake.

Ever since I was a kid, I remember being bad with money. I never really minded how I administered the cash; I just knew that I needed lunch, so I’ll have to let my Php 20 fit on what I wanted to eat. If I wanted the sidewalk vendors’ toys that were so ubiquitous around the schools in my time, they have to be able to fit my budget. If I couldn’t buy it with my lunch money, I’ll have to wait a few days more.

I didn’t know how to wait.

There were days when I borrowed money to buy a set of jackstone stars and ball. And while I paid my friends back, even at that age, it was odd that I already took on the concept of borrowing to get what I WANTED.

As my boss observed, people are divided into two: the Spenders and the Savers. Sadly, I’m a SPENDER.

Fast forward to today. The biggest pain in my life had been learning how to manage my money. Since I left the house in 2007 and tried to make a go of my life at the age of 22, I couldn’t seem to apply the concept of budgeting and giving myself an allowance. Zoom up to the present, though I’ve learned, and I’m slowly (talk slug-slow) learning from the past’s wounds, I still have not gotten a good enough hang of budgeting.

Yeah, I try my best to pay my bills; I’ve started repaying my debts, but there are still days when I fail and I need to double time to recover.

Today is one such season that has me finding myself in the same old, similar pit. The only thing different is that I work for a personal finance blogger, one of the best in the industry. It’s pretty ironic, if you think about it; but I think it’s more of divine providence that God put me there: to learn and immerse in literature on how to budget, manage my money and eventually, to overcome my spendthrift ways. From just soaking in all these stories, facts and tips on how to be frugal, to save, to invest, and ultimately how to manage money well, it seems like God is in the business of making me walk the talk.

As the Bible says, whatever you give attention to, God will add to it. According to some self-improvement gurus, whatever you behold, you become. And as I behold all these articles on financial wellness, I would hope that after a few months of these, I’d be financially amazing!

I’m grateful. I’m glad. I’m taking my VERY SMALL baby steps. I’m taking it day by day. I’m going to hit 6 months with job soon, and I’m happy I’ve come so far. It’s enough to push me near the rim of the ditch I found myself in (the ditch of the bad spending habits), though not enough to boost me out of it yet.

I’m not in a huge hurry; I’d rather have indelible lessons.

So my lesson for this week is: As soon as I get my salary, I have to resist the urge to go out and splurge. I have to settle down in a place where I don’t need to buy anything, isn’t public, and could afford me some privacy to partition my money.

1. I have to separate my tithe and give it ASAP.
2. I have to separate my bills.
3. Then I have to secure my allowance or else I’m gonna be ornery.
4. I have to stash a small amount of money into a separate account for emergencies. (Why do I keep procrastinating on this?)
5. Then, I have to partition my allowance day by day.

Then when I’ve apportioned my money as such, I have to act on it as soon as possible. Give my tithe. Keep the emergency money away from my reach. Then make sure I keep my allowance in separate compartments so I can’t spend all of my money in just one day.

Then I can skip off to get a good meal, but living within the allowance for the day.

The last part is the hardest. When I get my salary, I wanna par-tay! But control the self, I must.

And so, I wonder if I’m going to pass this next season in my financial life? I would hope so! Because this is the season that would propel me out of this ditch.

So help me God.

There is one thing that’s so maddening about the Philippines’ mobile phone industry: the prepaid unlimited offers. Maddening because while the flat rate for unlimited calls and texts that would last you anywhere from a day to up to a few days might end up costly, if you think about it.

How and why? Read on.

The Philippines has three major cellular phone carriers: Globe, Smart and Sun. Globe Telecom is used prevalently in Metro Manila, Smart Communications in the provinces, especially in the Visayas, while Sun Cellular is used mostly as a second line. Globe has been marketed as a mobile carrier for the wealthy socialite set, Smart for the working class, while Sun Cellular has spanned the range that both carriers cover.

Before the era of unlimited calling and texting, prepaid top-up was rather expensive. Prepaid credits came in denominations of Php 300, Php 500, and Php 1000, eventually making way for Php 100 denominations. Then electronic loads came in, bringing the minimum to about Php 30 per top-up. Unlimited calling and texting offers came a little later, however, when they first came about when Sun Cellular rolled out its product offerings.

Sun Cellular was a late entrant into the cellular network market. In order to catch up with the traction that Globe and Smart have made, it had to position itself in a niche that no one has ever gone before. And as they blazed a trail for obscenely low cellular phone rates, the rest of the competition had to follow suit, as their subscribers were already heading for Sun Cellular, seduced by the prospect of being able to call anyone, anytime, as long as they wanted to, for only Php 450 for 30 days, bringing the cost of calls to as low as Php 15 per day. At that rate, it would only cost a subscriber Php 0.63 per hour, Php 0.01 per minute to call someone!

Doesn’t that blow your mind?

Today, prepaid unlimited offers could go to as low as Php 25 a day for unlimited calls and texts. Globe and Sun both have Php 25 per day offers, while Smart makes sure that users buy in bulk with their Php 100 per 5 days and Php 500 per 30 days offers.

However, there is a catch to all these. Unlimited offers are limited only within the same network. So Sun subscribers can only call using those obscene rates to fellow Sun users, Globe to other Globe users (as well as Touch Mobile, which is their sub-carrier, aimed at the masses), and Smart to Smart and Talk and Text (their mass subscriber offering). A new entrant, absorbed by Smart, Red Mobile, offers Php 25 a day call and text unlimited services. Red Mobile users can call Smart and Talk and Text users using this offering, but Smart users cannot connect to Red Mobile using unlimited service. What’s more is that if a user is enrolled in an unlimited offering, he or she has to maintain at least Php 1 to keep using the service until it expires. Most users will load only what they need to enroll in an unlimited service, plus around Php 1 to Php 5.

Most Globe users will never text Smart users because they are down to their last peso in their cellphone network accounts. Same thing with the other networks. Worse for Sun Cellular users, because their unlimited offerings could be used without that Php 1 maintaining balance.

Because of this catch, some users, me included, have opted to use multiple SIM Cards. Such a maddening situation.

Thus, the essence of “cheap” and “unlimited” gets lost as you need 3 Single-SIM phones or 1 Dual SIM phone and another Single SIM phone in order to make sure you’re connected to everyone you know. Your teachers may be on Globe, your classmates may never text you your assignments and projects if you’re not on Sun, and your office may have issued Smart plans but your family is on Globe. You can definitely text them, but they may not want to text you. Go figure.

The cost of the offerings in the long run may not be worth maintaining. Or maybe they are, if you’re thinking about getting a plan or going for prepaid. For a detailed analysis, here is where I break it down if it’s actually worth it. The detailed analysis is in a monthly comparison, compared against monthly postpaid plans.

So, is it worth it?

You decide.

***

Part 2 of Unlimited Madness: Unlimited Madness II – Cost Analysis

More On Saving On Phone Costs: How To Make Cheap Phone Calls and Lower Your Phone Bill

1. An emergency fund is something you should never touch apart from the event of a dire, dire, dire situation, like losing a job or something in your life going kaput. A car, a house, a pet..
2. That you really should put that emergency fund in a SAVINGS ACCOUNT; something liquid, never something semi-frozen, as in a Time Deposit account (CDs to the people who live in the States and elsewhere that this term is used), a Stocks account, a Bonds account, or even a Mutual Fund.

My dad had given me advice on #2 around 3 Saturdays ago, and while I chewed on the thought, the low interest rates in the “regular” savings accounts turned me off from the thought. Now I realize that it’s true: the emergency fund does have to be something that you would not ever be able to touch, but liquid, if worse comes to worst.

Hmm. I think I shall have to shop for the savings accounts with the best interest rates, and make sure that I update it with some activity ever so often, to avoid penalties.

Oh the mess of being an adult!

And this brings me to the point of why I need TWO emergency funds:

1. One fund is for the long, long, long term. Meaning, NO TOUCHIE!
2. The other fund is for the short term craziness that I have. I am still such a spender at heart that I have weekly “emergencies.” Until I grow out of that, I need a RIGHT-NOW emergency fund!

Gah. I think Shoppingera really has to give way to Frugalista and soon, eh?

But I am making progress, somewhat. Hee.

But I am making progress! Thanks to this need of belt-tightening, I have been able to force myself to have 20-peso meals. And it’s been going great! The Karinderyas or street restaurants here in my area have rice that ranges from Php 6 to Php 8, and viands could cost as low as Php 7 for veggies and Php 20 for meat viands.

I could just choose a veggie viand for Php 7 and only one cup of rice for Php 8 at most, and I have a full meal at Php 15. Neato!

Works both ways: helps me maximize the money I have left, and helps me thin down too.

Someday soon, I shall learn how to use my money like a time-release pill!

I’ve been obsessed with makeup lately, and I know I have to stop buying already. In the past two months, I’ve purchased a total of Php 1,995 in makeup. Php 803 in June, and Php 1,192 this month. I got the majority of my makeup from Fuller Life/Sara Lee/Tupperware, which my former roommate sells, a la Avon Cosmetics.

I am in no way overly proud of my collection. I just like collections, and I am actually somewhat ashamed to realize exactly how much money I’ve invested in makeup.

I would love to say that I hope to cap my future makeup expenses at Php 500 a month, but alas and alack, it is hardly doable. Kits, brushes and even single pieces could cost more than Php 500 apiece, and a budget of Php 500 a month for makeup is just not doable. Unless I buy an item once this month for over Php 500, then make sure that the next month, I shall subtract the value for my makeup budget then. Hmm. That’s a thought I could seriously consider. So say, I will buy that brightener from Etude House that I’ve been salivating over (the Beige-colored piece is Php 578), then next month, I have to make sure that either I won’t buy, or my purchases will be less than Php 322. Hmm! I hope I could do just that!

But enough of the guilt trip. I’d rather list down what I do have, so I could enjoy my “investment” in beauty. My dear friend Patti was asking what I was using, so answering her via email (Facebook private message really feels like email) actually inspired me to write this post. I did want to catalogue my makeup once and for all, so here it is:

Brushes and Equipment:

• Nichido Latex Sponge
• SanSan Brush Set
• Fashion 21 Eyebrow and Eye Pencil Sharpener

Powders and Foundation:

• Beauty Touch Cake Foundation – Summer Beige
• Johnson’s Face Powder Fresh & Smooth – Beige
• Beauty Touch Cover Up Express – Light Medium

Eye Makeup:

• Beauty Touch Double Kohl Eyeliner – Smoky (Black/Silver)
• Pop Shop Glide N’ Shine Loose Powder Eyeshadow – Lilac Twirl (Purple)
• Aido Classic Makeup Kit (Eyeshadow Palette)

Multi-Use Makeup:

• Fashion 21 Lip and Cheek Tint – #2 (Red/Crimson)
• Colour Collection Triple Treat – Lip-Cheek-Eye Color – Multiple Beige
• Colour Collection Triple Treat – Lip-Cheek-Eye Color – Myriads of Sugar

Lip Makeup:

• Colour Collection Crystal Shine Lipstick – Luscious Red
• Beauty Touch Shine – Toffee Glitter
• Beauty Touch Moist – Honey Rush
• Pop Shop Shine Lipstick – Garnet Shimmer
• Pop Shop – Blossom Beauty
• Pop Shop – Princess Punk
• Pop Shop – Honey Crush
• Pop Shop – Raisin Rush

• Maybelline Lip Smooth Color and Care – Cranberry
• Maybelline Lip Smooth Color and Care – Cherry
• Blistex Lip Tone (Nude)

• Avon Simply Pretty Swirl Lipgloss – Very Berry

• Aido Lipstick Pencil – #4 (Fuschia)

Makeup Given to Me:

• Ever Bilena Pro Longwear Lipstick – Retro
• Zalan Aloe Vera Mood Lipstick
• Motives Lip Gloss Basics – Neutral
• Clinique High Impact Shadow Duo – The Blues

*Beauty Touch, Colour Collection and Pop Shop are all part of the Fuller Life/Sara Lee/Tupperware catalogue.

Gah, I can’t believe how much makeup I have. I think this really is a sign that I have to seriously retire that side of me that’s such a hoarder.

If there was anything that I realized in this season’s makeup buying spree, it was that when I was still a kid, I used to have this habit of collecting things. Then when the collection gets out of hand: something got lost, or the company started producing more variants that I could no longer keep track of how many pieces more I need to acquire, or if there are still pieces I still don’t know about, I would let the collection go: I would either neglect it or give the pieces away.

I learned that I had that childhood quirk. I’m not sure if I still have it today. This time, however, I do seem to no longer be so anal about my CD or book collections. I buy music for the sake that I don’t wanna be part of intellectual property piracy. So it’s not exactly a collection. I just hoard ebooks and think about reading them. I have books that I have read only partway. But I no longer obsessively wantwantwant to have certain titles nor hoard books, the way I have back in my teens. Neither do I do that with my CD collection; I just buy because I need to listen to ROCK, Christian ROCK. I want these blaring in my ears so that I can focus on my work. Lol.

But with the makeup… Uh oh. I see the old pattern I had with my paper dolls. So I have to stop.

When I finally bought the eye makeup palette from Aido last night, just as a placebo until I can buy the Fashion 21 ginormous amazing palette for Php 350 (previously Php 500), I told myself I’ll stop buying until December or something. That way, I could keep myself from spending way too much on frivolity.

I may buy during a sale, I dunno. Just as long as it’s not next month. Heheh.

So much for makeup. I sure hope I still get cured of my shopaholism, in spite of the evidence that I seem to go the opposite way of getting cured. Lol.

And to give further evidence to the contrary, here is the last of my makeup wishilist. I am trying to convince myself that if I get these, I’ll be happy and won’t buy makeup for the next two years of my existence:

My Must-Have’s:

• Fashion 21 Eyeshadow Palette
• Fashion 21 “Complete” Brush Set
• Etude House Face Designing Brightener**
• Etude House Secret Beam Highlighter No. 1 Pink Mix
• Concealer, any brand. Could be Avon, could be Maybelline, could even be Fashion 21.

Optional, but SERIOUSLY DO WANT (and I think it’s okay to get):

• Pop Shop Glide N’ Shine Loose Powder Eyeshadow – Pixie Pink
• Beauty Touch Double Kohl Eyeliner – Sunkissed
• Pop Shop Eye Crayon Duo – Fudge/Minty
• Pop Shop Eye Crayon Duo – Pink/Purple
• Colour Collection Vitamin-Enriched Metallic Lipstick – Golden Goddess

Pure Frivolity, but I can dream:

• Maybelline Superstay Lipcolor in Flame (725) or Cherry (735) or Revlon Colorstay in Superb Sangria, Top Tomato or Grand Garnet
• Revlon Moon Drops Lipstick in Love That Pink, Iced Coffee, Peach Silk, Blase Apricot
• Revlon Colorburst in Soft Nude, Rosy Nude or Hazelnut
• More of Etude House’s highlighters

The more I researched for this post the more it seems like I am on my road to breaking my “pact” with myself to become less of a Shoppingera and more of a Frugalista. However, as I said before, scheduling one’s purchases, in order to stick to the budget REALLY makes sense. Never has it made more sense than in this season of my being makeup-crazy.

While I laugh at myself, I seriously have to think about learning how to delay gratification in my newfound addiction. O.O

And with that, I leave myself thinking of putting off buying the last items on my seriously do want lists… Unless, Fuller Life/Sara Lee/Tupperware comes out with a catalogue I cannot resist. O.O

(Which, they would most likely do. Companies exist to make you buy their wares. It is your/MY duty to resist them!)

Oh for the love of being frugal!

**My want of Etude House Face Designing Brightener was influenced by Shoppingera.net.
***The Nichido Latex Sponge was given to me by my mom; she bought something that needed to be returned, so she got me my stuff instead, and that was in the mix. I loooove freebies!
****If you want to know the individual prices of the makeup here, like the Pop Shop Lipstick (only Php 99), let me know by sending me a comment or emailing me at nenyalorien (at) gmail (dot) com!