Frugality | Zlittle Saving with Style

09 Aug 2011

Do Yoga Toes Really Work?

Every time I look at my feet, I just don’t like them. Honestly, I want to learn to like them, but it’s really difficult to fall in love with my tiny size 5 feet. If they were just small in size that would okay. That’s cute, but bunions have ruined my feet’s appearance for many years. If I can describe it, my feet almost look like raw ginger with a bump here and there because of silly bunions. Bunions make feet look so unflattering. Especially if you want to wear sexy open toe high heels/ sandals.

A little bit about bunions. They are an enlargement of bone or tissue around the joint at the base of the big toe. If you have a bunion, you will notice a bump on your big toe joint. The big toe may turn in toward the second toe, and the tissues surrounding the joint may be swollen and tender.

One afternoon, I went to take my husband to a doctor. I was reading a few magazines in the doctor’s waiting room. I stumbled upon an advertisement about yoga toes. Actually, I have been tempted to do foot surgery to have my bunion removed a few years ago. I have already had a daydreaming about how cute my small feet look like after surgery. The result of the foot surgery will be perfect and faster. But I heard that “the after” surgery recovery indeed is really painful. You can’t walk freely for a few weeks. Besides that, it’s quite expensive. I confess I don’t actually know how much bunion surgery costs. Even though we have fairly good insurance, I doubt the insurance will pay for bunion removal.

I looked for some yoga toes reviews on the Internet. Based on the reviews, 90% of yoga toes users said they are really satisfied with yoga toes.
I love doing yoga, I know in yoga “practice makes perfect”. At the very first time I did yoga, I couldn’t even bow and kiss my knee. Because of regular practising, now my body is really flexible. I can bend it like a cobra snake dancer If I want :)
The principal of yoga toe is similar to doing yoga for your body. You actually teach the foot muscle and bones/joints.

Based on the positive reviews about yoga toes, I decided to gave it a try. My husband was so skeptical about yoga toes that can fix bunions. He said ” impossible.” I know the result is not as instant as when you do a surgery. But at least it is a lot cheaper than a surgery. Besides that, it’s less less less painful. If yoga toes don’t work then surgery will be my last option.

Last month, I ordered my yoga toes online at www.yogapro.com. I tried to find it on eBay but decided not to buy on eBay even though the price was a bit cheaper. The reason I bought it at Yoga pro (even though the price a little bit higher) is because they give 90 days money back guarantee. I thought I’d try it for 3 months. If nothing happen I’d send it back to them and get my money back.

I bought a package called Mani/Pedi kit for $60 with free shipping. Together with this package, I got Lemon Butter Cuticle Creme (.30 oz) , – Almond Milk Beeswax Hand Creme (.25 oz) , – Hand Salve (.30 oz), – Coconut Foot Creme (.56 oz), – Shea Butter Hand Repair Cream (.50 fl oz) , – Beeswax and Banana Hand Creme (.30 oz) , – Honey Lip Balm (.15 oz), – Cozy Cotton Socks in this package. Not bad huh? Yoga toes itself comes in several different colors. I picked pink.

I got my yoga toes 7 days after I ordered them online. I couldn’t wait to try them on. The first time it was really uncomfortable wearing them. I wore them just for an hour everyday. Gradually, from an hour I could wear them for 5 hours. Now I can wear them a whole day while I work at my desk. I even can walk when wearing them, well, walking like a cave woman of course. They are not easy to walk with because yoga toes aren’t designed for walking I guess. I’ve just been silly and lazy to remove them from my feet; that’s why I walk around the house with my yoga toes. My husband always laughs at me. He said it’s not sexy at all.

After a month, I saw a slight change in my feet. I was eager to speed up the process, then 2 weeks ago I started wearing them at night. I sleep in with yoga toes on my feet. My husband was shocked when one night in the dark he rubbed my fingers. They are rough and big. He asked me “why you have all toes in your hand, honey?”, wua aaaha ha…. gotcha!! “that’s my yoga toe”, I said.

Here’s how I wear them to sleep. I put on my yoga toe then cover it with loose socks so that yoga toes won’t move. I have seen a lot of improvement since I tried this trick. Based on my experience, yoga toes really work. The result is not instant, of course. It just needs a little bit practice, patience and discipline. Again that’s the yoga principle, isn’t it?

Also, I think yoga toes are really good for your legs. I used to have bruises all over my legs every time I walk, now since I wear yoga toes regularly, I noticed my bruises were gone. I think they fixed my poor leg circulation. Now wherever I go, my yoga toes faithfully go with me. My legs and feet are smiling :) all the time because of yoga toes. Thanks yoga toes. Even though my toes still look like ginger, but I hope one day, from the ginger shape they will turn to be a cute carrot shape.

If you have experience with yoga toes, please share with us! We like to hear that………

Categories: Frugality

08 Dec 2008

Fix Your Old Car & Save Money!

By Suzana 5 Comments

My Car: "Marty"

Have you ever noticed wherever you go now, you see a lot of nice cars on the road. Just mention it; Lexus BMW, Mercedes, Infinity, Jaguar, Ferrari and etc. It seems people in the US are getting prosperous and prosperous each day.

If its about cars, I can careless. I have a different perspective about cars. A car is not a good investment because of its depreciating value. I don’t want to invest my money in cars. I don’t really care about the image like most of our society does.

For more than 3 years, I am still driving my old “year 99 black Chevrolet Cavalier”. I remember 3 years ago, when my husband got a new job ( a sophisticated job, i would say) he desperately needed a new car.
other people in his office were driving “better/good car”. I told him that his car was fine, the engine was still really good, the AC and heater were still powerful. There’s nothing wrong with that car except a little old dull appearance from driving it for a few years and of course less maintenance. My husband spilled coffee in his car almost everyday (sorry husband :) I exaggerate it a little bit). [Read more...]

Categories: Frugality

09 Oct 2008

Make Money on Stocks?

By Suzana 3 Comments

Zlittle has a new hobby now, trying to make a little money from the volatile stock market. That’s something new for zlittle but she’s learning something new each day. A little a the time……a dime here, a dime there.

You don’t need to invest a lot. If you haven’t started yet, I think this is the time to start learning even if you don’t have any experience.

I’ll write some more with the detail.

Categories: Frugality

11 Apr 2007

Is throwing away coupons a bad idea?

By Suzana 7 Comments

Poor Girl

I love coupons. There’s a certain satisfaction that brings on a proud smile if I can use coupon when I buy something, especially if the coupons come to my door. One time I bought Sunday newspaper for $2 . I heard there are a lot of coupons in the Sunday Paper. After I checked carefully, one by one, I came to the conclusion that some coupons are simply “not for me” and I can’t use them at all. Well, I ended up throwing away my $2 bill without gaining anything. Since then I promised I won’t buy Sunday newspaper again. I decided that I will just wait for coupons come to me/my mail box.

Actually the reason I don’t like the Sunday Newspaper is because most of their coupons are for big projects that you would only occasionally need. Like roofing, tiling, building a deck, upholstering your furniture and etc. You know something that we don’t do or use often. If they have grocery coupons, the coupons are actually for new products or brands that I’ve never heard before. What I need more are coupons for daily necessities.

Recently, I’ve got so many free good coupons on the mail. Some locals and some general like Doves, Victoria Secret and etc. I get some coupons regularly from my 90 year old aunt. I was a little bit sad though because most of the time I end up throwing away coupons. Not because I don’t want to use them but because of the timing.

A few reasons why I throw away coupons:

Expiration date. Some coupons have a short expiration date. For example a week. Because I don’t go to grocery every week, then I have to throw away the expired ones.
Some coupons that I received are coupons for new products or products that I don’t normally use or wear.
Time difference. For example restaurant coupons. Some restaurants coupons are not valid for weekend (Friday,Saturday and Sunday) when we usually go out for dinner.

Coupons mean money to me. I’m sad because while throw away some coupons, I believe there are so many people out there might need that specific coupons.

I have been thinking of giving away coupons that I don’t want and share them with other people who need it. But I don’t know how. I’m still thinking the best way of sharing…Have any idea?

Categories: Coupon Stuff, Frugality

29 Nov 2006

16 Tips to Win Bidding on eBay

By Suzana Leave a Comment

eBay

1. Before buying something on eBay, take a deep breath; control your body and mind

2. Decide what you want to buy

Remember always that buying something on eBay always has a few risks.
Why? The first reason is because you cannot see the product in person. The second is that once you buy something on eBay, you normally cannot return it.

However, some sellers do state that you are allowed to return goods under certain circumstances. In these cases, you risk losing part of your payment because they probably won’t return the shipping cost.Shipping costs can be the most deceiving part of an eBay item that you are interested in buying.
My first inclination to buy something on eBay is always taken down a notch when I remember that I have to include “shipping costs” in addition to the price of the item. Many sellers list their products below the market price in the hopes that buyers will create excitement among bidders who will then bid the price of the item higher and higher, sometimes even higher than what is reasonable. Remember to take into account the shipping costs along with the price of the item. If you don’t, your total cost for the item could be higher than if you bought it in a retail store.

3. Especially for clothes or apparel, it’s good to know the brand of the goods you want to buy, and also your size in detail

Watch out! Not all products have the same standard measurements. For goods that have a brand name, they always have the same standard. But measurements always differ from country to country. For example, standard measurements of clothes in the U.S. may be different than those in Asia, or Europe.

4. Of course, if you’re really concerned about clothing size, you can go to a retail store and fit the items you want to buy.

For example you want to buy a Nike pants? You can go to the Nike store and fit the things you interested in. It costs nothing to try on clothes at the store. Later you can use all the sizing information to search the same brand and size on eBay.

5. Now, let’s move on. You are on eBay now. Once you get the exact item you want, the next thing you have to examine is “Seller Information”
This is really important because you know the Internet is a market for many people from all over the world, a huge community in cyber space where you can’t see the people face to face.

6.The first thing you must read is “The Feedback”

Positive feedback is really important because from this part you will know what kind of seller they are. Are they committed to stand behind their products they’ve sold in the past? Are they honest? As a rule of thumb, I use 80%-100% positive feedback as the criteria for finding the best sellers. But under 80%, watch out! I won’t say that all sellers with less than 80% are bad people, but you have to be careful because it’s all about your money.

For 80%-100% positive feedback sellers, I rarely actually read their feedback comments in much detail. If you’re going to do business with someone with positive feedback under 80%, it’s better for you to read the feedback comments carefully. You can examine a few negative comments and you determine the sellers credibility from the negative feedback.

In some rare cases, other eBay users may try to sabotage another user “perhaps a competitor” with negative feedback.

7. Okay, keep going! The next thing you have to know is to read the entire “Item Description” and
“Shipping Instructions” and information carefully. This is true especially for clothes. Make sure they have detailed measurements including size, brand, and condition.

Never assume! For example, for pants misses size S, if the seller doesn’t give you the exact measurements, please never assume that it’s the size you want because they are many subcategories of sizes S, M, L, small from 1-4, medium from 4-8 and etc.

8. Examine the picture, if provided, but remember that the original is always different than the picture.
That’s why you need to gather as much information as possible about the product beforehand.

9. Always ask the seller questions

if you are seriously considering buying. This way, you can get an advantage by receiving a bit of information about the products that others don’t have. If seller never answers your question, don’t buy from them. Just leave it, even if it looks very good.

10. The next important thing you need to know is “Shipping Cost”

Take your calculator and put in the numbers. Watch out! You don’t have to be Einstein, so don’t make it difficult. If you think the shipping cost is reasonable then keep moving on. Alert! Some sellers like to put the price extremely low with the shipping cost very high. That’s a trick!

11. Next, read “Payment Method”

Not all sellers use Paypal. If the seller only takes cash or checks, be extra careful! It’s best not pay cash to someone you don’t know, unless you’re convinced in your heart that God has given you instructions to do so. Or if the seller is someone you really trust and someone you always buy from and have experience with them before. It’s your money.

12. Check the “Time Left”

If the time is still long, I like to bookmark the item and monitor it everyday. If I really want to win the auction, I like to wait till the last minute and see how the bids are flowing and how much the price has changed. If it’s still reasonable, I’ll bid at the last minute at the highest maximum bid I’m willing to pay. You may not win the auction.

Of course you have to know that you’re not the only one who knows the trick of bidding at the end of an auction.
Imagine that if another person bids a high price at the last minute too. Even though you may win, you will pay for a higher price. So be careful with this trick and give it back to your heart,go with your intuition.

13.Always put “Positive Thinking” in your mind.

If you bid them and someone outbids you, just forget about that auction. Just put this thought in your mind: “there’s a good for me” Keep moving on and try again later, because eBay is so big and there are always new things appearing for sale. Don’t be stubborn and bid higher and higher simply because you want one item. Often you will regret doing so.

14.It’s also okay to bid at the start of an auction or in the middle at the lowest price, and then bid again later if you really want to own that item. Imagine if you bid in at the lowest price and no one bids after you! Yipieeeeeeeeee! You’ll get the thing you want in at a great price.

15. If you win the auction, always “Pay Immediately”
not just because its good business, but because you will be more likely to get positive feedback from the seller.

16. Always give “Feedback” to the seller after you receive the goods.

Those are just tips. They are not as complicated as it sounds. Practice makes perfect, guys.Happy Bidding!!
Happy Bidding!

Categories: Home And Garden