Pinecone open AGAIN!

Hurry! If you've ever wanted to be a member of Pinecone Research, now's the time! I have worked for them for several years now, and I love them. They send you short surveys a few times a month. You get paid $3 for each completed survy. You will not get rich with Pinecone, but every little bit counts! They do not open for new applicants often, and their application window closes VERY quickly. Head over here if you're interested in applying- I hope you catch it before it closes!

Pinecone Research is OPEN!

UPDATE: The window is now closed. I hope that some of you got in!

Are you interested in becoming a member of Pinecone Research?

Pinecone is a survey company. They send you surveys that you qualify for. You are paid $3 for each survey. They Paypal it to you a few days after the survey is submitted. You're not going to get rich from this, but a few dollars here and there really do add up.

I've worked with them for two years now, and I love them! They are hard to get into, so I'm pleased to be able to let you know that they are OPEN for new members right now! If you even *think* you may want to join, do it now! It closes up very quickly!

BeRuby: Yet another tiny income source on the side! :)

Have you heard of BeRuby? It's a search site that pays you to go to your regular old sites.

It's similar to Swagbucks, but instead of points, you earn cash!

I'm trying it out right now. So far, I've been pleased. They have a low payout threshold ($10), which means I may actually get a check in this lifetime. :) I love earning money in these small ways. It's a small way to get paid for stuff I do anyway, which is pretty awesome.

Go here to sign up or for more information. I'm optimistic about BeRuby!

It's MEGA Swagbucks Day! :)

Don't forget that every Friday is Mega Swagbucks day! Every Friday you can earn anywhere from 10-100 bucks from one search! Pretty nifty. Swagbucks is helping me save Christmas this year. I love the $5 Amazon gift cards (45 Swagbucks), but they have a lot of other great prizes. Are you on Swagbucks yet?

Pinecone Research is OPEN!

UPDATE: The window is closed again. :(

Pinecone is accepting new applications again!

I work with Pinecone Research and love them. If you qualify, they will send you surveys through e-mail. I get $3 for each survey completed. It's not big money- I get maybe two surveys a month, but every bit adds up! They pay via PayPal a few days after you complete your survey- no waiting for payout limits!

I personally work with them, and can say that they do what is promised! Go here and see if you can still sign up! They don't accept applications often, and the window closes quickly.

Thanks MoneySavingMom and MoneySavingMethods for the heads up that they were open again!

Lockerz?

Have many of you tried Lockerz? It's sort of like Swagbucks, but with less hassle. You get points for logging in, for playing games, and for referrals. At this point, it's invitation only and in its beta phase, but they will be open to everyone at some point.

I've been hearing about them a lot, and I finally snagged an invite this week. It seems really good so far- the points have been very easy and quick to earn, they have not spammed me, and I know several people who have gotten the promised prizes.

I'd love to hear about your experience with them! In the meantime, I have 20 invites for anybody who is interested- leave a comment with your e-mail or send a request to Frugal.Homemaker.Plus @ gmail . com if you want to try them for yourself. I'll give an update in a month or so. I've done so well with Swagbucks that the idea of Lockerz is really intriguing!

Note: I will not be publishing the comments, so nobody will see your e-mail but me!

4 Ways to Get Rid of Clutter Without Leaving Your Home

Do you have a lot of clutter but not a lot of time? Here's four ways I've used to get rid of the "stuff" that is doing nothing more than taking up space!

1. Ebay: I still sell things on Ebay here and there. I use flat rate boxes from the post office, then take advantage of carrier pickup. I no longer list things that I can't fit into a flat rate box. It's nice to get money for an item that was just taking up space.

2. Paperback Swap: If you're a reader, check out Paperback Swap! I get rid of books that I'm "eh" about or have outgrown, and replace them with things I'm interested in. I often use carrier pickup for these items as well, or I use the post office at customer service at the grocery store when I'm there for my regular shopping trip.

3. Cash4Books: If you'd rather have cash, try Cash4Books. They don't take everything, but I've gotten decent prices for books that were just cluttering up my home. I've always been paid promptly. They even pay the postage for the books you're sending to them. I print out the postage slip and arrange a carrier pickup- no need to interrupt my day with an unplanned trip to the post office!

4. Charity pickup: Our local DAV thrift store sends bags about once a month to be filled and placed on the curb for pickup. We have a box in our closet that we fill with good condition items we no longer need, and set them out on pickup day. If your local charity does not have a regular pickup, give them a call and see if they'll stop by to get your items. We used to do this when we moved out of apartments- arrange for a charity pickup just before we left. You will have to take the items outside, but it's better than hauling them across town.

5. Craigslist: Too big for E-bay? Try Craigslist. I've sold a lot of random items by listing it on Craigslist. If you're uncomfortable having someone come to your home, you can meet them at a nearby landmark. Put a picture of the item up for faster results! If you don't smoke, listing that it comes from a smoke free home may move it faster as well.

After you're done these things, the key is to not bring more clutter in! Once you've gotten rid of your clutter, avoid getting more. Ask yourself questions before each purchase: Do you need it? Is it useful? Can you borrow one? The less clutter you bring in, the less you'll have to send out.

How do you get rid of clutter without leaving your home?

Pinecone Research Update: Window Closed

If you have been trying to get into Pinecone Research, now is the time! They are taking new panel members. I have been working for them for a couple of years, and I have always gotten paid via PayPal for each survey. I have never had a problem with them. You are sent surveys every now and then, and they pay $3 for each survey completed. They almost never open up for new panel members, so go there now before they close it again! Only one person per household my register.

UPDATE: The window has closed- they are no longer taking applications. That was fast!

Tiny Income Drops

I am an avid fan of multiple streams of income, but I don't have a lot of time! Here's a few things I do to earn a tiny bit on the side. None of these things will make me rich, but the extra pennies here and there add up over time! Here's three ways I'm adding a bit of income to my family in my spare time:

1. YouData. I've mentioned them before, and I still love them! They pay you to view a short ad. The amount varies, and it's not much (I typically earn about $1 a week), but it's a very small amount of work and takes about five minutes of my time. I'll take it!

2. Cash4Books- if you have extra books laying around and you don't want to put them up for trade on PaperBack Swap, try Cash4Books! They will let you know how much they're willing to pay for your book before you commit to the sale, AND they pay the shipping!

3. Secret Shopping. I recently got into this. It's a bit more intense, as you must pay extreme attention to detail and do a lot of data entry after the shop. For me, the pay is usually worth the hour or two. Sometimes I get free stuff out of it as well! There are a lot of companies out there. Be on alert for scams! If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

What small things do you do to add a bit extra to your bottom line?

PineCone Research

I've mentioned that I'm a PineCone Research panelist before and several of you e-mailed me to ask how to get into PineCone! I was invited by a friend ages ago, but had never seen invites to offer others before until today!

If you're interested in being a PineCone panelist, head over to Sisterly Savings for details on how to sign up! I usually am offered 2 or 3 surveys every month. They pay $3 per survey for very little time on your part- well worth the time invested!

Works for Me Wednesday: Swagbucks

Have you heard about Swagbucks yet?

I just recently read about them and I gotta say, it seems like it could be a great deal, especially if you do a lot of your shopping on Amazon or are a coffee drinker.

Swagbucks is a search engine that you earn points for using. It's super easy to sign up, does not require much information, and took me less than a minute. All you do is sign up, confirm that you signed up, and download a search bar. You can then earn "bucks" by using the searches or referring others to Swagbucks. That's it- easy peasy!

If you're doing searches anyway, it can add up Swagbucks gives you results from search engines like Google. You get three points just for signing up. After you earn 45 "bucks" you can redeem them for $5 gift card from Amazon. If you hold out until you have 50 "bucks" you get a $5 gift card from Starbucks. There are several other things you can redeem your bucks for at the Swagstore if you're not into Amazon or Starbucks.

While $5 bucks does not seem like a lot of money, it's really not such a bad deal for doing something that you do anyway. If you order gifts for Christmas off Amazon, it can put a nice little dent in your Christmas budget. Every little bit helps, especially if it does not take a lot of time and I can incorporate it into something that I already do. It works for me!

Making Money On the Web: Cash4Books

Just a quick mention about one of my quick, easy money making finds on the web:

Cash4Books has generated a bit of money for me with little effort on my part. They are a neat service to use to to sell your used books- they even pay the shipping.

My favorite part is that they tell you right away if they will accept your (gently used) books and how much they will pay. I sold a few books and was very pleased with the service.

I've sold via Amazon before, but I had to list everything and wait for somebody to buy it- or not. Cash4Books says yes or no right there.

If they say yes, you print out their shipping label and send them off. Payment will arrive via paypal as soon as they get your shipment.

They also have an affiliate program!

Making Money Blogging: Blogvertise? Google Ads? Associated Content? I have it all!

When I started blogging, I never dreamed that it could earn me money. It was just something that I liked to do! Nobody was more surprised than me when my blog started getting readers. You could have knocked me over with a feather the first time I got asked if I would accept hard cash money in exchange for a bit of ad space.

I've struggled with accepting ads. I declined the first few ones offered, just because I felt weird promoting frugality, but advertising products on my blog. But I've changed my thinking a bit since my initial reluctance. While I did not set out to earn money blogging, I love the fact that I can actually earn money by doing something I love. Getting paid to write is awesome. Finding a way to get paid for doing something you love anyway...that's the advice that's been given to me my whole life. So I do accept ads. I do a (very few) affiliate things. I've started to really investigate other ways to earn money on my blog that are not too time intensive or too contrary to my personal philosophy.

Here's some things I've done to earn money simply because I'm a blogger:

Google Ads: Blogger makes adding them really easy. It's pay per click. I don't really mention them often, and they have not been too intrusive on my blog. I don't earn fabulous amounts, but I've earned more than I ever expected from a few little click ads. I have not had many problems with offensive ads popping up, but I've heard that's a common complaint.

Blogvertise: This is a new thing I'm trying. I can't report back yet on my success, but it does not seem too difficult and I know of a few other bloggers who use them. Go here for more info.

Associated Content: I've mentioned them before a few times. I don't spend much time writing articles specifically for them, but every so often I go through and copy/paste a few things I've already written for this blog. I submit non-exclusively. This does not usually get me more than 3-5 dollars per article, but hey, I'd write it either way. May as well snag a few bucks for it!

Free Money From OboPay

Sign up and get $10 Obopay is similar to Paypal, except you can send money using your mobile phone. You do need a cell phone to sign up, but other than that I don't see any catch. Right now they're running a deal where you Sign up and get $10 - ten bucks you can then transfer to your bank account as soon as you get it. It took about five minutes to sign up.Not a bad way to get a quick ten bucks!

Cash Crate?

Anybody here doing Cash Crate? I signed up today. I've not had much luck with survey and pay to read e-mail sites before, but I've heard a lot of good things about this one. I'll have to post a review in a month or so!

Need Extra Money?

If you're a writer or blogger, don't forget about Associated Content! I will admit that they don't pay fabulous amounts, but getting paid for something you would write anyway for free is pretty awesome! If you submit even somewhat frequently, it can add up to a nice chunk of extra cash.