All Entries in the "Free" Category

Amazon is giving away Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On”

Amazon is giving away Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On”

Obama’s favorite song. 

Happy Valentine’s Day

• 12 Days Of Valentine Romance in Tallahassee by Bill Yeldah Everybody has heard of the twelve days of Christmas. Why not the twelve days of Valentines day? I decided to be a...
• Saving Money On Valentine Gifts - Some Frugal Ideas One of the ways I save money on gifts is by planning way ahead of time what I am going to give.  This way it...
• Money Saving Tips - 2/01/2007 Since today is the first day of February, I thought I would make today's tips on the upcoming holiday that wreaks havoc on many budgets...

Free Investor’s Business Daily (IBD) Offers

If you’re into investing, but not sure you want to pay the expensive fees for Investment tools such as Investor’s Business Daily, here’s a chance to check out their products for free.

I’m getting the newspaper right now, and also have the on- line edition.

The best news about it?  They don’t ask for your credit card number up front.  No strings.  You just sign up.

Successful Free Swap Sites for Books, DVDs, and CDs

It’s all about stretching your dollar these days.  Swapping helps you do that.

For the cost of shipping you’re items to others, you get what you want back for free.

It’s easy.

And it’s fun.

These sites have received accolades from:

Swaptree has you swapping books, CDs, DVDs, and games interchangably.

These three affiliated sites below have you swap books, CDs, or DVDs separately.

You earn credits every time you send an item out.

That gives you more flexibility.

And if you sign up for any of these three sites from these links, I’ll get a credit, too. You can also earn free credits - by putting links on your website, or having your friends and family sign up.

• DVD Planet Information [ad#ads] There are many places where you can find DVDs for sale and renting. The DVD Planet is one such place. You will find a...

Suze Orman on Oprah: Free Webcast & Download of Suze Orman’s 2009 Action Plan

The Oprah Winfrey Show is sponsoring a free Suze Orman Webcast next Thursday evening, January 15th 2009.

You can also download Suze’s book - Suze Orman’s 2009 Action Plan - for free in either English or Spanish here.

This offering is one of a series of webcasts that are a part of Oprah’s Best Life Series.

Register here for the Suze/Oprah webast, and to receive e-mails and updates of future weekly events.

• KFC cancels free chicken deal after Oprah promo !! The Oprah Winfrey-fueled free chicken give-away that caused pandemonium this week at Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants has been canceled due to what the fast-food chain...
• Free Suze Orman Book Download. If you have seen her on television and have always wanted to see what Suze Orman was all about, this is your chance to do...
• Suze Orman's book FREE Suze Orman is on a mission to get people on the right track with their finances on 2009. She wrote an published a new book...

10 Ways to Emotionally Separate From the “I Have to Have It” Holidays

Lots of Christmas presents = Love in the good old USA.

Or so all those massive million dollar marketing campaigns would have me believe.  And now there’s the added guilt of “helping keep the economy going.”  What really ticks me off is the latest Bernanke brainchild - easing credit for consumers - mostly so we can charge more this Christmas.

Here’s a novel concept for both me and the US Government - No New Debt.

Debt is bad for all but those collecting the interest. I’m not spending more money than I have.  Will it kill me? It will wound me - but I’ll make it through.  I’m a product of our society, after all.

The US government is increasing our National Debt exponentially, while giving us tax rebates.  Now that will kill me. What are they, one beer short of a six-pack?

I’m fighting back.

Here’s 10 ways I’m going to re-think Christmas -

and save money and be a little green doing it.

1. I’m changing my attitude about Christmas frugality.  Here’s my new mantra: Christmas is dead.  Long live Christmas.
2. My spouse and I are going to donate money to our local food pantry rather than buy each other gifts.
3. Donate time to my local food pantry.
4. Shop smart. Make lists.  Ask what people want.  Buy gift cards with discounts if you don’t know what they want, and buy on line.
5. Be practical. If someone likes the movies, I’ll buy them movie tickets.  Chances are they’ll be going soon, and will appreciate the gift.  Buy Savings Bonds for nieces and nephews.  ( Not that our government is the safest place to invest right now….)
6. Splurge a little on something inexpensive but luxurious. Some ideas:  Manicures, massages, concert/theater/sports event tickets, gourmet coffee and chocolate, a good bottle of wine.
7. Use saved newspapers for wrapping paper.
8. Cook in rather than going out.
9. Do things for people.  Dog-sit for someone traveling over the holidays.  Offer to shovel their driveway, or take care of their plants.  Offer up a night - or if I’m brave, a weekend - of babysitting.
10. Make gifts. I’m not knitting toilet tissue covers, but I have canned some apple butter and apple sauce that will make nice gifts.

What’s up for you these holidays?  Is this stuff frenzy getting old to you, too?  Is money tight?  Or do you enjoy it, is it status quo?

• Credit Free Christmas Hopefully, you have been preparing for the extra financial impact that Christmas invariably brings with it. We have a separate savings line in our budget...

Fancast Offers Free Full TV Shows and Movies Online

What I like about the website Fancast.com is that in addition to its free line-up of many current TV shows and movies, it also has a great collection of classics.

Want to catch an old favorite Gilligan’s Island Episode? Or that Star Trek tribble episode?  Fancast has those, and much more.  It even has SNL’s latest Sarah Palin skits.

For the truly addicted, the Fancast blog, Inside TV, has breaking celebrity gossip and news stories.

A rare FREE website with a truly amazing collection.

• Highlight - Star Trek XI On the 8th May 2009 an incredible eleventh Star Trek movie will be released worldwide and is inventively titled 'Star Trek'. The movie, directed by...
• Latest big screen Star Trek on track to set records ?? J.J. Abrams has already endured one impossible mission: The producer-director is responsible for Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible III. So a few in Hollywood were surprised...
• Nokia 5800 Star Trek edition warms up the UK for the movie As trekkies dust off their costumes and prepare them for the long wait in line for the premiere of J.J. Abrams' reboot, Nokia are offering...

10 More Money Saving Websites With Ongoing Big Fat Deals

10 time saver and money saver sites I use to get a little extra mileage out of my budget.

My criteria:  I don’t lay out my credit card number unless I know the site’s legit.

Mint - Free money tracking website.  This does circles around costly finance software such as Quicken and MSN Money.

• Pros- It’s endorsed by some pretty heavy hitters, like Time, The Wall Street Journal, and The Motley Fool.
• Cons- your inputting all of your personal data onto the web.  Security is totally trustworthy, I’m assured.  Still makes me a little nervous.

Dealighted - This site’s a little bit like going fishing.  Deals are posted by other shoppers. You search, and see what you catch.  Right now, the site owners are paying $1 per post up to $300 per month.  Here’s the scoop:

 ”Beginning in September, we’re testing out a new promotion where you can earn up to $300 cash each month for your deal posting efforts, paid via Paypal. Here’s the scoop:
Post deals to Dealighted.com’s forum. Once you post a minimum of 25 deals that month (the counter resets at 12:01 am on the first day of each month), you will receive $25 for those 25 deal posts, and then $1 for each additional deal post above 25. “

Check out this link for additional - but very reasonable - rules.

Coupon Winner - This site’s loaded with promotion codes and printable coupons from over 2000 popular merchants.  A winner.

Buzzillions  - When I last checked, this site had over 3 million user reviews from people like us.  Weed out the lemons when purchasing electronics, toys, baby products, green products, and much more.

Freeshipping  - Just like the name says, free shipping promotion codes to over 800 popular stores.  Always up to date.

Hey It’s Free  - Free stuff.  Now that’s cheap!  This fun site boasts:

“Real 100% no joke freebies…you’ll never need a credit card…Are they always the best products in the world? Well, as our freebie reviews have shown time and time again, not quite. But that still doesn’t mean there aren’t some awesome freebies out there.”

Shop It To ME  - is like having your own personal shopper.  Set up search criteria, and Shop It To Me races around the web for you searching thousands of websites for bargains.  Once a week you’ll get a summarized report of what they find.

Restaurant.com - A nationwide restaurant coupon site that’s currently offering $25 gift certificates for $10.  Enter your zip code and you’ll get a list of your local restaurants currently offering promotions.

 Bargain Book Closeouts - great deals on overstocks and slightly damaged books.  An on-line bargain book rack.

For the UK

Promotional Codes - Kathryn and Captain Frugal offer up some on-line discount codes and a hilarious blog with some very creative money saving ideas.  They also have a link to their Frugal News - a regularly updated collection of frugal articles from “the best money saving blogs around the web!”

• Free Printable Templates: Mini Wall Street Journal Carrier Gift Bags Our freebies today are mini carrier gift bags in Wall Street Journal headline and print from the July 12-13, 2008 Weekend Edition. The headline reads:...
• Free Printable Templates: Miniature Flower, Treat, Gift or Decorative Baskets These Miniature Gift Baskets are a part of our Freebies series of Printable Gifts and Accessories by Madoline Hatter. They are great for gifts, flowers,...
• Free Printable Templates: Gingham Mini Gift Boxes These are a part of our Freebies series of Printable Gifts and Accessories. These Miniature Gingham Gift Boxes match the Miniature Gingham Carrier Bags we...

Free Obama Button

Want a free Obama button?  MoveOn’s giving them away - no strings attached.  I just got mine, and want to share the opportunity with you.
You can also make a donation, and get large amounts of Obama buttons to give away to your friends.

Click this link to get your free Obama button:

Free Obama Button

Six Money Saving Websites With Ongoing Big Fat Deals

Here’s six remarkable on-line money saving venues. Any you’d like to add to the list?

Fat Wallet
If you shop on-line, you need to check out this site. Discounts and cash back, plus a knockout on-line forum, where large numbers of surfing consumers offer their discount finds.

PriceFox
Price shopping comparison site for On-line shopping.

Ebates
Join now, and receive a free $10 gift card. Membership is free. Over 900 on-line discount offerings.

Woot
One deal a day, but boy, it’s some deal.

LL Bean On-Line Bargains
Updated regularly. Check out their Thursday Morning Deal. A walloping great price. Sign up for their credit card, and get free shipping, free return shipping, free monogramming, and coupon dollars as follows:

• (a) 3% on all qualifying net retail transaction purchases at L.L.Bean (valid only at L.L.Bean’s businesses in the U.S. and excluding L.L.Bean Outdoor Discovery School® (”Discovery School”) course purchases).
• (b) 10% on the enrollment fee of each Discovery School course purchased.

GasBuddy
Not on-line deals here, just the best search engine for finding the lowest gas prices in your area.

P.S. -In the United Kingdom-

Money Saving Expert
This site, looks good from afar. Any feedback from the U.K. folks? Is this a good site? Any recommendations for other sites?

• Starbucks gift cards and God's economy I'm not sure if there is any explicit biblical opinion on coffee, but a number of friends from church really enjoy their daily grind --...
• Quick travel tip I'm in California right now on travel.  If you get a per diem for meals (like I do) then you can "make" a little extra...
• Dillyeo.com Free $10 Gift Card Offer! Tuesday Only! If you've been reading this site for long, you probably realize that I like getting stuff for free.   Today only if you sign up over...

Linkonomics - 15 More Best Links to Save You Time and Money

More best links!

The Dollar Stretcher- A smorgasboard collection of money saving tips.

Energy Savers - Tips on saving energy and money at home.

-Plug the leak in your wallet.

Federal Citizen Information Center - Free or inexpensive US government consumer publications. Here’s an example: 66 Ways to Save Money

Social Security On-Line and AARP, two great sites chock full of senior set info.

Bizcalc - Best collection of free on-line calculators for adding to your website that I’ve ever seen. Categories include financial, health, parenting, fitness. Here’s an example-
Eliminate Debt or Invest Calculator

GreenPrint - has a free patented software download that will help you eliminate printing excess pages- seen in the Wall Street Journal, CNN and cNBC. it also has cool downloads like this one–>

Academic Info - “Academic Info is an online subject directory of over 25,000 hand-picked educational resources for high school and college students as well as a directory of online degree programs and admissions test preparation resources (SAT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, GMAT, USMLE, TOEFL). We also offer timely news and analysis of critical events including the Iraq War, Afghanistan Reconstruction, Hurricane Katrina recovery, the genocide in the Sudan, and the War on Terrorism.”

Wikipedia- has a great hummer of a list of Commercial Games Released as Freeware

Just for Fun:
Political Economy Research Institutes Top 100 Corporate Polluters
Top Ten Baby Names Since 1980
And once again, for those who missed it, Happy News. All the news that’s fit to print.

For those in the UK:
Martin Lewis, Money Saving Expert - Consumer Revenge for you UKers.

• The Money Saving Methods Report One of the topics I discuss often here on Gather Little by Little is saving money. Well, I received an email the other day from...
• USA Today I was recently interviewed and featured in an article in USA Today. The article talks about how the downturn in the economy had more people...
• Is There a Cure for the Economy? The Spending and Saving Catch-22 If you read personal finance blogs or magazines you'll find a lot of advice to save money, get out of debt, and build an emergency...

21 More Great Free Websites That Will Save You Time and Money

When sleep eludes me, I inevitably end up wrapped in a blanket, on the computer, rambling about the Internet with Google. Thus, my “favorite bookmarks” tab is overflowing with random, haphazardly filed, great links, discovered in the middle of the night, while half asleep, with no particular agenda.

Periodically, I attempt to weed through and organize them. I thought you might enjoy the fruits of my insomnia.

Free-

Music at Soundpedia.

Movies at Top Ten Popular Video Sites. Not all are free, but most are.

Stuff of all types: TheFreeSite. This was on my Seventeen Best Links to Really Free Stuff post, but it bears repeating.

Phone calls: Skype

A list of links for free down-loadable eBooks at About.com-free e-books.

Widgets. If you need a break from Google Gadgets, Yahoo has free Yahoo Widgets. Forever Geek compares the two in his post Yahoo Widgets vs Google Gadgets. It’s a 2006 post, but still relevant and worth reading.

And if you’re interested in-

-a financial site that has it all?
E-trade Financial was voted number one in 2007 by Money Magazine and SmartMoney.

-buying or selling your home?
Check out the “Real Estate Neutral” site Opthome, for some great advice.

-stopping junk mail?
See Get Rich Slowly’s post How to Stop Junk Mail in It’s Tracks.

-keeping your car running forever?
Car Talk can help.

-traveling on a budget?
Another “Kayak.com- like” site, with a search engine that non-preferentially searches all the airlines and hotels, is Best Fares.

-frugal spring activities?
The Frugal Wench can help keep your costs down with her post Frugal Gardening 101. Her general web site helps answer the age old question: Are you a frugalite? I definitely am.
The Simple Dollar has a great article on Ten Frugal Tips for a Great Grilling Experience.

Really great cool time saving links-

The American Library Association has published a list of the Best Free Reference Websites for 2007.

Check out the facts on anything, at Refdesk. For example, did you know the oldest gorilla in captivity just turned 55 at the Dallas Zoo?

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is a government site containing relavent and current health and safety information.

And last, but not least-

If you’re tired of reading about bad news, check out Happy News. This won’t save you time or money, but it will brighten your day!

• Understanding Junk E-Mail Filtering Junk e-mail filtering works on two principles. The first is the content of the message; certain keywords and phrases are considered likely to be spam....
• I Like Junk Mail Ever since I started reading Hustler (the blog, not the magazine). I began to view junk mail in a completely different way. I used to...
• Save the Planet – Dump the Directory We are fast becoming an internet-reliant society. I personally tend to think I live on the internet now. At any rate, the internet - despite...

How Long Could You Go Without Buying Something New?

I can’t buy my free range chicken hot dogs used, but what about everything else?

Would it be that hard? Wouldn’t one of the the golden rules of a sustainable planet be to make less garbage-? I have nightmares of floating around in the ocean surrounded by big white trash bags.
I found this on Bankrate:

Once an item is no longer new, there are several ways to make money or save money
Reuse it- for its original purpose or a new purpose.
Give it away- to someone who can use it.
Sell it- recoup original cost while reusing.
Buy it used- reuse it and save money.

To that end, there’s a freecycle website I’ve been exploring.
freecycle.org - 47 million members in 4300 communities in the US alone. Thousands of similar organizations have sprouted up around the world. All non-profit.

Let’s explore some of the other local opportunities that support the reusing mentality.

Clothing- In addition to Good Will and the Salvation Army, where if you can find what you want will most likely never pay more than $5 dollars for it, used clothing is eco-chic right now. There’s two store’s where I buy my t-shirts at right in my own small town. For the creative, there’s also the more elite trashion fashion. Go wild.

Furniture- My hairdresser asked my what my decor was in my house, and my answer was Nouveau Yard Sale. Antiques are nice, but who can afford that? I am passed the stage in my life where the couch on the side of the road with the “free” sign on it looks enticing. And no more milk crates, thank you. But there’s lots of shops in my area with recycled furniture at a good price. Not all need elbow grease. Beat’s the bookcase from Target.

Plastic bags- when did I become a plastic-bag-aholic? I’ve used these for everything- groceries, lunch bags, garbage, for bringing my cookies to work. Time to start the Twelve Step Program. “I know I’m powerless over plastic…” This has been a change of habit thing for me. I bring the cloth grocery bags, and wash and reuse all the “baggie”bags. Garbage bags are a tough one to get around.

There’s an aspect of my life that’s nothing more than a series of habits. It’s all the non-thinking things I do in the background, while I’m actually focusing my attention on something that is, of course, very important. These habits are comfortable, so changing them is not a piece of cake. I’ve been trying to think of some habit changing motivators for reusing.

Re-using Motivators

Never put my trash out for the dump. Make myself live with it.

RecycleBank- Free coupons for recycling in your community. This one is real. I’m e-mailing it to the mayor today. I’ll let you know what happens.

Any one else have thoughts on this?

• Reusable bags are conversation starters too Squawkfox's post on 50 reasons to ditch the plastic sack reminded me of a recent trip to the grocery store. I usually go through the...
• Frugal Dad Tote Bag Winners Announced! Thanks to all those who entered the Frugal Dad Tote Bag giveaway!  We ended up with over 200 entries, and many of you made a...
• DIM (Did-it-Myself!) Country Kitchen Storage Shelf Our new DIY country kitchen shelf and frugal kitchen storage solutions for under $10....

Eleven Great Websites That Will Save You Time and Money

One Page Wonders- Collections of links to save you time and money

The Wall Street Executive Library-A compendium of links for the business executive. Imagine the magazine and newspaper area of your library. These are the links to those, and more!
Alltop - an easy-to-use eclectic organization of thousands of links

On Real Estate:

• Zillow- The best site to obtain your (or anyone’s) home value instantly.

On Travel- the only travel search link you’ll ever need

• Kayak- Search 140 travel sites at once for the cheapest fares, rooms, and deals.

On Shopping

• Ebates- Get discounts for shopping at the on-line stores you love. Sign up through this link and make your first purchase, and we’ll both get $5!

On Health

• Food Additives- Which artificial sweetener increases your risk to cancer: Sucrolose or Aspartame? Find out here.
• When Buying Organic Pays Off and Doesn’t- Do you know the twelve critical fruits and vegetables to buy organic? How about the ones that you don’t need to buy organic?

These below are from my Seventeen Links to (Really) Free Stuff Post

On Education

• Universities With the Best Free On-Line Courses
• Free On-Line Courses From Great Universities

Other Free Educational Sites

• Federal Resources for Educational Excellence
• Free Maps

• Travel Websites - 5 Dirty Little Secrets Well, I never meant to create quite the stir I did! I wrote an article on travel web sites and posted it on the Internet...

Seventeen Best Links to (Really) Free Stuff

“Free stuff?” “Free Education?” Sure…..
Well, I’ve done some checking, and these sites offer really-truly-for sure-no kidding free stuff, or free college courses at major universities.

Have fun!!!! Bookmark this post- you can’t take it in all at once. Please feel free to add any favorite sites of your own in the comments.

Stuff

Updated Daily Free Stuff

Free Stuff Times

All Kinds of (Really)Free Stuff

FreeSite

That Freebie Site

Freebie Fanatic

Only Really Free Stuff

Best Free Stuff (lots of baby stuff on this one)

Totally Free Stuff and Freebies Directory

Freaky Freddie’s Fun House of Free Stuff

A Reference Desk to Free Sites

Free Software Directory

Freeware

Major Universities Around the World Providing Free On-line Classes.

Universities With the Best Free On-Line Courses

Free On-Line Courses From Great Universities

Other Free Educational Sites

Federal Resources for Educational Excellence

Free Maps

• I Just Got Some More Freebies I have recently received some more freebies from the incentive sites that I use. At christmas I was lucky enough to get a Free PS3...
• Looking for New Laptop As many of you may know I have been using the Internet over the past 8 months to get free gadgets from Freebie Networks. I...
• What free software do you use? No Credit Needed has a post on free software he uses every day. I'm a big proponent of open-source software, since I think it's every...

23 More Freebies for the Frugal

I am amazed at just how much you can find on line for free. I went surfing this afternoon and came up with some major finds. I hope you enjoy them. Take a little time. Some of these are really good.

It’s All Free:
These links are each chock full of literally hundreds of links to free stuff.
The Free Site
Totally Free Stuff:
Free Stuff:
More Free Stuff:
Free Stuff Channel:

Fun:
Astrocenter has free personalized horoscopes. You can have them delivered to your e-mail every day.
Bring your 3-d sketch ideas to life digitally with Google SketchUp 6
The Video Cafe is a collection of very creative videos downloaded by people like us. Some of them are hilarious.

Personal Finance:
See what people can find out about you for free at Free Public Record Sites.
Annual Credit Report
Free Federal Tax Filing at the IRS.

Education: These sites are pretty impressive.
The US Government has pulled together an index of their on-line educational publications at Free Federal Resources for Educational Excellence.
You can learn for the fun of it with on-line courses at Free EdNet.
SchoolExpress offers free worksheets and educational software for elementary age children.

Software: I was amazed at these collections.
Freeware Guide
Freewarehome
Freewarefiles
Freewareweb

Spyware:
Ada-ware

For your blog:
Free Fotos
Photobank

Publications-
HighWire Press out of Stanford University offers free full text science publications.
Radio Free Europe offers an interesting perspective of the world and the USA from an international perspective.

• How to File Your Taxes Online (Often For Free) For whatever reason, many Americans are terrible procrastinators when it comes to filing their taxes. They wait until the last possible moment to begin doing...
• 2008 Federal Income Tax Rates It’s the beginning of a new year and people are once again worrying about the yearly chore of making the IRS happy. None of us...
• How To Make Sure You Get Free Money For Your Child's Education. Kiplingers, one of my favorite personal finance sites & magazine, has a great article up for parents with advice on making sure you can get...