...to Earn Extra Cash Online.

Every year, I end up spending hundreds of dollars on gifts.  Christmas gifts, birthday gifts, wedding gifts, baby gifts...you get the idea.  And most likely, you're in the same boat, unless you hate bringing smiles to the lovely faces of all your friends and family.  But those smiles get expensive.  Especially if you're close with not only your immediate family, but grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins.  Add in a few friends, and your bank account gets even smaller.  So this year, I have decided I will make enough extra money to pay for all of those gifts, and here is how I will do it.

I posted on my Facebook awhile back a referral link for a little site called Swagbucks.  You may have heard of it, but more likely you haven't.  Swagbucks is a website where you can shop, search, take surveys, complete tasks, play games, and watch video clips - all while building up your "swag buck" total which can be redeemed for gift cards to a wide variety of establishments.  Amazon is my gift card of choice, since that's where I do a majority of my Christmas/other gift shopping.  You could also opt for Target gift cards, since you're probably still too afraid to use a credit card there.  Or, there's always PayPal, if you just want the cash.

Once you've signed up on the site, you have so many options for earning your bucks.  The best part about this site is that you can do all of it while watching television.  For those of you who are constantly on the go, perhaps this site isn't for you...but for you couch potatoes out there who watch an entire season of a show on Netflix in only one or two sessions (I'm not alone right?), this is perfect!  It can be overwhelming at first, but here's my process for earning large amounts of bucks with minimal effort:

1.  Create an email address for your junk mail!  Heads up, you will get junk mail.  I spent two seconds and created a junk email account on Gmail, and I use this for everything on Swagbucks.  It takes no extra effort, I promise.

2.  Log in every day!  It's worth it!  On the right side of the screen, activate your daily goal meter when you first sign up, and each day it will give you a couple goals to meet.  If you meet the first goal amount every day for a month, you'll get an extra few dollars come bonus time!  The second goal is higher, but you will see even bigger bonuses at the end of the month - an extra $5-$10 if you're good about it.

3.  Set up your survey profiles!  You can get surveys a few ways, and each require you to fill out profile information so they can qualify you for various paid surveys.  They pay out on average 50-100 swag bucks per survey.  You will quickly learn how to be disqualified for surveys.  

4.  Take advantage of special offers!  On the home page and in various other locations on the site, you can register for free samples, sign up for store coupons, get approved for new credit cards, and join free trials for sites like Hulu Plus, all while earning swag bucks.  I just got a free sample of lotion in the mail yesterday, and I earned 30 swagbucks for signing up for it (about $0.30).  I was looking to get a credit card recently, and through Swagbucks I actually earned $30 for signing up for one.  

5.  Explore the site!  Take advantage of the blog, the Facebook page, and the Twitter to get tips on offers and surveys that pay well.  Online shopper?  Check out the shopping page and see if your store is on the list to get 2-10 swag bucks back for every dollar you spend.  

No, it's not a scam.  These are my actual gift card earnings:

So, to sum up, that's $195 in a month and a half.  If I keep this up til Christmas, my family will be very happy.  And so will I.  And so will you, if you sign up now!  Here's the link again, Swagbucks.com, and you know where to find me if you get stuck.  Enjoy!

And if this is all too much work for you - try this site instead:  PaidViewpoint - Simple surveys that take a few seconds, and once you get $15 you can cash out.  It takes a little longer to get the money, but it's mindless and requires no effort.  Just link it to your PayPal and you're good to go.  I just cashed out $15.77.

Use the links I posted here if you choose to sign up - then use your own referral links to make money off your friends, too!  

...Not Giving Up Yet.

I know you're all just dying to see what I've been up to these past few months.  I never wanted to stop writing, but somehow I did.  The end of the year and into the start of the new year is a really busy time for me at work, and I didn't manage to keep up with everything as well as I had planned.

Stop right there!  I know what you're thinking:

But Amy, it's almost April!  Well, yes.  It is.  So... I was busy, and then I wasn't as busy, but because I wasn't as busy anymore, I found time to do other things with my freedom and then failed to write about those other most definitely awesome things that I did.

Amy's back!  I bet she made lots of cool stuff while she was gone.  To that, I guess my response would be...yes?  I made money, and that is cool stuff, because it's nice to have a job and feel useful.  I also sewed about half a jacket in three months.  And if that wasn't enough, I made jello shots on two separate occasions.  Two!  Hold your applause.

Jello shots? What are you, twenty one?  Have you seen Pinterest and its love of jello+booze?  It's no longer for kids!  (Also, I'm not sure how old the people that partake in the jello shooting are these days, is it twenty one?  Seventeen?  Who knows.)

So you're telling me in over three months all you've accomplished is half a jacket and jello shots?  Yeah, that's pretty much it.  But I promise I'll finish that stupid jacket soon.

Oh yeah, and I hit a home run at softball a couple weeks ago!  Amy Attempts Athletic Greatness.

...Another Sewing Project.

Sorry guys, I've just been on a sewing kick lately.  So much of a kick I haven't been doing much writing.  It seems like multitasking isn't my strong suit these days.  It all started with that dang apron.  I spent more hours than I'm proud of at Joann's Fabric these past couple weeks.  The first trip had me there for over two hours!  Of course, part of that was the locking of keys in the car and the waiting for my very generous grandparents to drop off my spare.

It was Pattern Sale day, and I picked up five patterns for only seven dollars, plus an extra I just couldn't resist.  This of course locked me into six more sewing projects.  A linen jacket, an old man cardigan, three dresses, and an adult fleece onesie.  That's right.  Head to toe fleece pajamas with a zipper up the front.  Here's the thing about sewing these days...it's not cheaper than buying already-made clothing.  I learned this at checkout.  The big advantage though, other than making you feel productive, is not showing up to the party wearing the same dress as that girl you hate.  You know the girl.  You will be one of a kind.  And if you're good at it, you've got something to brag about.

I will not brag, but merely state the facts.  I made two dresses, and they turned out, well..."sew-sew."  (Oh no, she didn't!)  The first dress is really comfortable and the fabric was on sale, the problem is the size.  I still haven't perfected the art of interpreting pattern sizing.  Which measurement do I use!?  They all seem wrong.  I guessed.

I guessed not right.  Probably one to one and a half sizes too big.  But it's still a cute dress and I'll probably wear it anyway because it cost about $20 to make.

The second dress cost about the same, and was much more complicated, mostly because I chose a ruffled fabric like a dummy.

So. Many. Ruffles.

It took me about twice as long because I was constantly adjusting ruffle-direction to make sure I didn't catch any extra ruffles in the seams.  The size was actually perfect on this dress, but with the added ruffle-bulk, made it look a bit frumpy in areas.

   

I also ended up cutting the back ties off because I used a different fabric, since the ruffles wouldn't turn inside out after I sewed the ties.  The fabric I did use also wouldn't turn inside out, so I sewed the ties a third time, wrong sides together, and they frayed like there was no tomorrow.  Cut!

Random pattern ties from leftover apron scraps.  Now removed.  Dress will surely fall off.

And that is the story of my journey into the magical world of sewing, and I apologize in advance because you'll have to see at least four more projects in weeks to come.  No wasting money!