Remember the days when dinner and a movie made for a cheap night out? Sigh. Neither do we. That’s why we came up with 5 dates for $20 (or less!).

People-Watching

Pick a beautiful day to chill at the park and take in the beauty (and freaks!) of nature. Grab some lattes and a croissant and set the scene. ( Approximate Cos:t $20 or less)

Free: Book Reading

Check out a local (free!) book reading. Then grab coffee and talk about your latest read.

Pottery Painting

Okay, you won’t exactly be able to reenact the scene from Ghost at a pottery shop, but you’ll be able to paint funky coffee mugs! ( Approximate Cost: $16)

Movie Theme Night

If you’re in the mood for Italian, rent The Godfather and cook up some pasta. Watch Wedding Crashers with slices of cake from your fave bakery. ( Pasta, sauce, bread and a little dessert: $20 or less)

Cooking Class

Get friends together and ask everyone to bring their favorite recipes and the ingredients to make them. Get creative with your ingredients and keep costs low- that adds to the fun and makes for great conversation.

A couple that saves together...stays together. So cut costs and keep the love.

Chime In: What are you best low-cost high-love date ideas?

It’s that time of year when we can all use a little fun and sun.

I found this great web site that allows you to search multiple sites with one-click for the best airfare and hotel deals www.CheapOair.com.  The savings can’t really be beat and they have the lowest price guarantee.

My other fave for all-incisive and last-minute deals is www.applevacations.com. My strategy for last -minute deals is to plan ahead by budgeting for the vacation and to book the week before you want to go and score big! What an exciting and economical way to travel. Bon Voyage!

Chime In: Where do you go to score the best deals on vacations and airfare?

Let’s be Penny Smart and Refund Wise!

Think of it this way, receiving a tax refund means that you overpaid taxes throughout the year and therefore gave Uncle Sam 0% interest on a loan. Sam’s your uncle in theory but I don’t see him giving you a 0% loan anytime soon- so be wise.

Did you get a large tax refund this year but feel like you could have really used the cash earlier, rather than later in the year?  If the answer is Yes- you may want to increase your exemptions on your withholding Form W-4. Doing so will evenly distribute the funds you would have received at tax time and make them available to you in your paycheck each cycle. Use a Withholding Calculator see how the adjustment will affect your take home pay.   If getting a tax refund all at once is your easy way to save- stick with it. Just be disciplined and diligent.

Chime In: What did you do with your refund this year? Have you changed your W-4 for 2012?

It’s mid-March and these 31 days will fly by and next thing you know, masses of procrastinators will be beating down the doors of their nearest accountants trying to get their taxes done by April 15. Rushing is good for track meets and shopping sprees, but not for analyzing your obligation to Uncle Sam. You may make mistakes, you may miss information and, even worse, you may gloss over deductions that you’re rightfully allowed to take. Make sure you keep an eye out for three of the most often overlooked but beneficial breaks on the book

Real Estate

This is probably the most popular of the new standard deductions, so don’t miss out! Single filers can deduct up to $500 in real estate taxes, while joint filers can deduct $1,000.

Job Hunting

For all of the headaches and anxiety that come with job hunting, there’s a big time perk: It can also be fabulously tax beneficial. For example, if you land some interviews in Orlando, Fla., the IRS doesn’t care if you stop over at Disneyland for a night. Just be sure to limit your deductions to fair expenses related to your trip, such as your airline ticket and the hotel you stayed in the night before your interview.

Plus, you can make a date of it and bring your honey because the hotel costs are the same whether your boo is with you or not. Just make sure that the primary purpose of your trip is related to your job search. Happy hunting!

Medical Travel Expenses

Any mileage to and from doctors, dentists, hospitals and other health care providers to receive medical care, and roundtrip travel costs to visit a sick spouse or dependent, are deductible if the visits are recommended by a doctor as part of the patient’s treatment.

If you take a taxi, bus, train or ambulance, you can also deduct the actual expense of the trip and if you drive, you can deduct 19 cents per mile traveled between Jan. 1 and June 31 and 23.5 cents per mile driven from July 1 to Dec. 31, plus any parking fees and tolls. Take advantage of your Uncle Sam’s generosity!

Chime In: What tax deduction gems did you discover?

I’ve missed you, I hope you’ve missed me, but we’re together again! Daily Pearls is back in full swing and poised to give you the empowering words of wisdom you need to make over your money mentality. If there was ever a month to make financial strides, it’s March-not because you’ve finally recovered from the holidays, not because it’s almost spring (though we certainly celebrate both of those reasons, too). March isWomen’s History Month! And it’ll be that much harder for you to make your own mark on the world with the burden of debt and bad spending habits sitting on your shoulders.

While you’re out building a reputation as a mover and shaker in your industry and a powerhouse making the world a better place, the last thing you need is high interest from a credit card or a nonexistent emergency fund forcing you into bad financial decisions. History has taught us some valuable lessons about the power of responsibility (even the government has jacked up credit card use) but herstory is destined for so much more than being a day late and a dollar short. Rewrite your financial storyline with our empowering tips and an attitude that money itself doesn’t make you great, but having ready access to it makes it easier to accomplish your personal, professional and philanthropic goals. 

 Chime in: How will you be rewiring the way you think about money?

My favorite part of any September Issue is the cover model. Of the many fashion icons to cover the fall issue of Essence magazine they chose Tracee Ellis Ross. Ms. Ross is not only the daughter of Ms. Diana Ross, she is a fashion icon for this generation. Tracee gained much notice for her style while starring as Joan on the hit series Girlfriends.

There is no doubt that much of Tracee’s style is inherited from the classic style of her mother. In the below snippet from the behind the scenes of shoot for the Essence cover she jokes about wearing many of her mother’s pieces. I always say a unique vintage piece always adds character to any outfit. However, she seems to take classic style and add her own edge to it. She makes the look work for her by adding pieces of her personality to any look.  I tell women all the time do not try and fit yourself into a look you see on the runway or in a magazine, make that look work for you. Find pieces that reflect who you are and build from there.

Check out Tracee and her thoughts on style below. Who are your fashion icons and inspirations?

1.      Blue Fly- http://www.bluefly.com/

Blue Fly has great designer items 15-80% off of retail prices for their final days of summer sale. They also have a few very entertaining promotional tips that I’m sure will get you in the shopping mood, highlighting the closets of women like that of Kimora Lee Simmons!

2.      Daily Candy- http://www.dailycandy.com/all-cities/fashion/

Daily Candy is what I like to call my online shopping ‘tool’. Though it is not a site where you purchase items directly, it leads you to deals in your city and beyond. Daily Candy also highlights the season’s fashion trends and proposes an inspired look at a lower price point.

3.      Shop Style- http://www.shopstyle.com/

This is a site I visit often and have mentioned in my previous posts. I can’t get enough of it! Looking for the perfect piece in line with the classic and the trendy is not hard to do on Shop Style. Click on the ‘Sale’ button to find the right sites to purchase your items on sale.

4.      The Outnet- http://www.theoutnet.com

A great location to shop designer outlets. The site is based in the UK and has great insight into the best designer pieces available. I was able to find Alexander Wang pieces for up to 80% the retail price.

Have you pearlistas utilized these sites? What has been your experience? Share other online sites you love!

People always ask me, “should I pay down the highest interest rate first or the highest balance first?” That’s a great question because you can, indeed, dead your debt faster by paying down your credit cards in the most beneficial order. The way to SAVE BIG is to move from highest to lowest interest rate. Why? Simply because the debt with the highest interest rate is costing you the most money. The less time you are carrying a balance on that card, the less time you will be paying that onerous interest rate. When that balance is wiped out, move on to the next highest.

Many respected experts argue that people should pay off the cards with the smallest balances first, for the psychological boost of finishing off an entire debt and moving on to the next. I think that the best psychological boost would come from being debt free. C’mon gang you don’t need artificial pick-me-ups that cost you money. Let’s do the math. Let’s say you have a $5,000 credit card debt at 29.99 percent and a $2,500 one at 9.99 percent. Here’s how much it costs you in interest to pay them off if you make the typical minimum payment of $300 on the two cards plus add an additional $50 per month.

Benefit of Paying the Highest Interest Card First

Interest owed by paying lowest balance first = $2,641
Interest owed by paying highest interest first = $2,332
SAVINGS = $309

Why would you want to waste $300? I stand by my strategy. Fire on the highest interest debts first. If you would like to experiment with different payment strategies, check out this excellent calculator from Bankrate.com.

Pay More Often

Now, here’s a more unique strategy you may not have heard of. Instead of paying your credit card bill once a month, when it’s due, try making a half payment every two weeks. Many of us are paid bi-weekly, so this evens out your cash flow. More importantly, it results in making more payments per year, since there are more than four weeks in most months. You’ve probably heard of this technique for paying mortgages off early. Well, it works for credit cards too. The reason is basic: there are two months of the year that you end up making three payments instead of two.

I’m going to use a real whopper of a debt for this example, to show what a difference this strategy can make. Let’s say you owe $20,000 at 24.99 percent interest. A typical minimum payment would be $800 a month. So instead you send $400 every two weeks. Here’s how this will help you SAVE BIG:

Benefit of Paying Bi-Weekly Instead of Monthly

Schedule interest owed monthly: $8,539
Schedule interest owed bi-weekly: $7,539
SAVINGS = $1,000

It really does pay to PAY- imagine how great life is when you have the money you would have used on credit cards sitting in savings. What’s your repayment plan looking like? Have you figured out a way to get to destination debt-free even sooner? Pass the Pearl$

Travel Size

These items are not just for your quick getaways via the airport. Keep a few travel size items  in your purse for those moments you may want to freshen up:

• Wipes- CVS travel pack of baby wipes can be used to quickly freshen those areas of perspiration.
• Deodorant- my favorite is Dove, however many of your deodorant brands come in a travel size that fits easily into any purse.
• Baby powder- I love this item it can be used in your shoes and other areas to keep you dry. Something I recently learned via Khalana Barfield ( Instyle senior beauty editor) is that baby powder can also be sprinkled on your roots to help with oily or greasy hair. Check out the video HERE!

Cotton Clothing
Fabrics that breathe and allow your skin to breath are key in this heat. Cute cotton sundresses are my go to item for this eat. I tend to stay away from jean anything during the peak heat times.  For those easy, go to garments head to target for deals on a dime. They have more than a few great options.

What are a few of the items you have that are a must in this heat?

Here’s what April had to share about her blossoming music career and what it took to start and maintain it all. There is much to learn from how she planned and executed her dream. Thank you, April, for your transparency. You are a star!

Ajshay: What led you to entrepreneurship?

April: A sense of ownership. I have always been encouraged to “go for it”. My family is extremely supportive. They spoiled me in that way; so ‘no’ is a hard word for me to swallow. (laughs) The fact that I was initially afraid to do this independently, entrepreneurially, was a good sign—it indicated that this was EXACTLY what I should be doing and to move against the fear. But doing music itself is instinctual. An even better question, what keeps me here? Discovering that my great-aunt was a serial entrepreneur coming out of the Depression era–she owned businesses, property, bonds and investments and was a benefactress.

Ajshay: Tell us about what you do, why you do it and where we can find you.

April: I’m a singer-songwriter, indie recording artist and publisher of my music. I write songs and perform because it’s where my heart soars…the telling of a tale, weaving pictures with words, helping someone see a glimmer of hope—it’s part of my makeup to encourage people…so music is my bullhorn. It just so happens that instead of the songs I initially wrote being on the first album, God had me write fresh songs that were much more personal about my life, growing up, my observations, domestic violence, father issues, love, abuse and forgiveness. My mom survived domestic abuse. You can find more information about me, my debut EP, and the causes that mean a lot to me, here: www.aprilpetersonline.com.

Ajshay: Did you have a plan at first? How did you plan to succeed?

April: To be honest, I plan, but not in the way most people do.

1. I dreamed a dream. I think this is usually the first step in something blooming.

2. I sought the counsel of more seasoned professionals in my field. I asked a music mentor what her experience was recording her album out-of-pocket. What were the costs? What would she do all over again and what would she change if she had the chance? What was the wisest approach to not only recording, packaging and releasing a project, but marketing it as well? She gave me sound advice. She’d done a lot on credit. And that was not the direction I wanted to take.

3. I did follow-up research, looking up average costs for recording sessions, studio time, packaging and PR.

4. I set a budget. Although, to be honest, I would say it was more a figure that I could live with.

5. I prayed for the funds, because at the time I was doing consulting work and had no steady yearly salary.

6. I got a day-job to fuel the dream-job. Soon after praying, I received a full-time position whose total salary included to the dollar the exact amount I needed in additional funds to pull off recording, packaging and marketing the EP. It also helped that the position was flexible, allowing me time to travel and record in a different state while working remotely.

7. I sought/negotiated the best deals. Such as: Discounted studio sessions and package offers that included recording time, musicians, engineer, mixing and mastering; Bundle packages for manufacturing the CD that included digital distribution and more.

8. I was courageous and clear in communicating about money. It was tantamount that I be careful to outline and establish my expectations with vendors who were rendering services. It was also key that I get their expectations and plan before beginning a project or a day of service.

Ajshay: Did you hit any financial roadblocks or have a financial epiphany during your journey?

April: Yes. “Creative people sometimes have difficulty talking numbers…or they delay the conversation.” Once, I walked into a situation where my service provider had hired people, but payment methods and timelines were not cleared with me. This was not going to work for me, since the costs were coming from my pocket. I was expected to pay, sometimes an unknown number of workers, on the same day of service. I wondered aloud to the person, why had I not been told prior to the day of service, so I could plan accordingly or change the plan. When it looked as though details like this were left up to chance, I immediately confronted the situation with the provider. We established rules of engagement and I faced all money conversations head-on, leaving nothing to chance. As a fellow creative, I knew that I personally needed to break my own fear of broaching the subject of money if I was going to be effective in my business dealings.

Ajshay: What pearl of wisdom would you share with those who are looking to pursue music?

April: Own your rights. Own your music. Own your creative process.

Ajshay: What do you love about DailyPearl$?

April: Daily Pearl$ is a fresh approach to discussions in finance. It’s the next generation in helping me plan a better lifestyle, melding the wisdom of tried and true tactics with the innovative thinking of the next generation! I love that you can take a seasoned pearl and place it with a freshwater pearl, a black pearl and string it with an ivory pearl. Just like fashion in the 21^st century, DP is helping me mix and match the best options in my money closet!

Pearlista April Peters has certainly Passed the Pearl$ by sharing her experiences.  She’s also given us the gift of music; sign up to her list and claim your free download here.