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How To Get Doll Money: The Master List of Ideas!

Mar 21, 2009

    1. I'm so frugal, this is right up my alley >:D

      The starving artist's money saving tips:

      Bank it
      1. Set up a savings account with a decent interest rate. Meanwhile you're saving up, your money is growing on its own. Check http://www.bankrate.com to compare rates.
      2. Use a checking account that earns interest, too - every little bit helps.
      3. Set up automatic withdrawals from checking to savings - as little as $20 a month can add up to a doll before you know it. Just be careful not to empty your checking, leave a safety buffer.

      Cook it
      1. Learn to cook- cheap staples like rice, potatoes, pasta, and canned tomatoes can be turned into tons of tasty and quick dishes. Even students can cook decent microwave meals with a bit of creativity.
      2. Brown bag your lunch - a fresh sandwich or homemade bento is healthy, too.
      3. Make your own drinks - tea and lemonade are easy, and skip the bars for a cocktail party at home.

      Cut it

      1. Ditch cable TV- watch shows free online, through a netflix subscription or via itunes.
      2. Downgrade the cell phone - use a prepaid plan and pay for only what you use.
      3. Stop renting movies and buying books - check the library and used bookstores instead.

      One more tip: Write the name of the doll you're saving for onto a sticker, and put that on your credit card or wallet. Every time you buy something, consider whether you'd rather be saving that money for your dream doll :)
       
      • x 3
    2. Ok I actually have several ideas that I've wrapped into one, (some of which are already mentioned)

      I am over weight and I have very little money. So I'm making myself a jar (already mentioned) and giving myself an incentive plan. I'm paying myself (into my doll money jar) for working out and for pounds lost. I'm paying myself small change (usually 25 or less) for working out for 30 min, maintaining my weight for the week, Skipping a desired or planned snack. Larger amounts (no more than 2 dollars) For dropping inches and pounds. In order to keep myself Honest and keep track I made myself a weight loss Journal and set up rules in it, I have a page for pictures of both my starting self and the doll I want in it for motivation ^_^

      With how many people are overweight in America I think it's nice to be able to reward yourself for loosing weight in a more real and tangible way (especially with how hard it can be with our generally sedentary lifestyle). Better yet, it can be altered to be insentive for any habit or lifestyle change that you should desire. Reward yourself for skipping a cigarett, for doing the dishes or other household chores you hate. Better yet if you can use it to slow or quit smoking or pop with how much those cost, you double your rewards.

      I think the savings or doll journal could help people regardless of what they are doing to save. I like a physical journal, but some people might enjoy a blog for it ^_^

      Just my thoughts ^_^
       
      • x 5
    3. i don't know why i never thought of this before, but i am going to start this soon. if you have a paypal account, there is an option to "add funds" from your bank account. with each paycheck you can set aside a certain amount to put into your paypal account. that way, you can't easily spend it to buy things day to day. you can pretty much only spend it for things on the internet. each paycheck i think i'll set aside $20 or $25 dollars to put into my paypal account for dolls and doll things. :)
       
      • x 1
    4. I don't know if you covered this, but most employers offer direct deposit. This means that your paycheck is automatically deposited in to an account (or multiple accounts) that you specify. I have my paycheck set up so that a certain percentage goes in to an account I don't touch and the other remaining percent goes in to an immediate spending account. This system helps with the problem of having to cash your check and then divi up the amount manually. That, and it goes by percentage, not a set amount, so your always ensured that a fair amount of money goes in to each account (For example: if I had set up the account to deposit $40 each paycheck to my doll fund, that might be problematic to my immediate spending fund if I only make $50 that period).
       
      • x 2
    5. Okay so this may not help everyone but here are some of the ways I save money

      1. Grow your own vegetables and fruit - even if it's just a few herbs that you normally spend a couple of dollars on for each bunch it adds up

      2. Put the money your saving into a separate high interest savings account - mine takes a few days to show up properly after transferring but it means I'm less likely to spend it on impulse

      3. Make yours or your children's clothing - not everything as some things are pretty cheap but jumpers and pants can get quite expensive

      4. Make bulk meals and freeze them into serving sizes ie spaghetti bolognese, chicken curry, stew, chicken cacciatore etc

      5. Be smart when it comes to your electricity use - ie turn off lights, computers, televisions etc when your not in the room. Use the airconditioner or heater less often - use ceiling fans or rug up. Have shorter showers.

      6. Save money on petrol. Go shopping for food less often - make a list and don't go when you're hungry or in a rush. Try walking to the shop if you can.

      7. Get some chickens for fresh eggs. They taste better than the shop, the chickens are relatively cheap to feed, they all your scraps and are great for pest control.

      8. Instead of wasting money on a gym membership that you probably won't use that often take your pet dog for a walk and get a set of cheap hand weights or rubber bands and get your resistance training that way. There are plenty of free workouts on the internet

      9. Won't apply to most people but were about to buy some land so we'll be putting some lambs on the overgrown property and will fill our freezer later

      10. Again won't apply to most people but we're also getting a goat(s) to milk and we'll have our own milk, cheese and butter

      11. Shop at wholesale butchers and go to farmer's markets for fresher and cheaper produce (cut out the middle man)

      12. Make your own dog's food. It's very easy, saves money and I have 2 very picky Siberian Huskies that don't like anything else except raw bones and meat

      I could go on but I think I need to go paint something - there's 13 dolls screaming at me for a face-up
       
      • x 1
    6. Wow, Whitewolf! Some of those suggestions are really hardcore! I will see about working a lot of those into the list in its next revision. Thanks so much, and good luck with your new land and other projects!

      Numerous people have pointed out recycling as a way to earn money. Though I do have the "return deposit" form of recycling on the list already, I will modify the wording to encompass all forms of recycling with the next revision!
       
      • x 2
    7. If you're over 18 and you have time to spare, a slow (but effective) method to earn some (Paypal) cash is Mystery Shopping. I found out about this because the company I work for uses Mystery Shoppers and I've received several "evaluations" from them before and started looking into it.

      I started doing some mystery shops last fall and rather enjoyed it. There are several reliable mystery shopping companies online (beware any site that asks you to pay first or take a "online course" for a "online certificate" - it's a scam! You're trying to earn money, so you shouldn't need to pay anything first! Also, be careful about where you share your personal info online (SIN number, address, etc) - most mystery shopping companies only require this info after they approve your online application to see how well you can write a report). I won't post any links in case it's against the DoA rules but a online search will give you a lot of info about mystery shopping.

      This is what I do when I go out for a Mystery Shop:

      Whenever big clients want to check up on their stores they go to the mystery shopping company and it gets posted online and you apply for it. You basically go to a store, restaurant, kiosk (whatever) and follow the instructions. Sometimes you have to try on clothes, chat with the sales associate, indirectly ask about promotions, etc and then write a report about your experience. Some "shops" involve buying something (like a birthday card, fashion accessory, etc.) or a business card and then you email a photo of your that with your report and get reimbursed and get paid a shopper's fee (ranging from $8-30, depending on the type of shop) directly to your PayPal 30-60 days later. It feels like forever but then when it arrives it ends up getting spent so quickly! ;) It was a bit confusing at first but since I only did a few when I had time and it suited my schedule I sometimes fit 3 of them into a day. That was an extra $35 just because I happened to be downtown anyways!

      You won't get rich fast doing this since you can't mystery shop at the same location too often (30-90 days) and also I'm pretty picky about which ones I'll do since I don't drive. If it'll take me a 3hr bus ride to get there just to earn $8 it's not worth it to me. Sometimes writing the report can take a while since there are lots of questions and you have to have a good eye for detail and good command of written English. However, if you have a car or have a lot of time this is a legitimate way to earn some cash on the side.
       
      • x 1
    8. Here are five more that I haven't seen here yet (unless i missed them?):
      1. Open a Keep-the-change account (NationBank and other big banks usually have them). This is a savings account that works like this: Every time your use your Visa Debit card for a purchase, the change over the amount bought goes from checking into your little keep-the-change savings account. So if you buy a candy bar with your debit card for $1.89, there goes 11 cents into your savings! I have mine set up so that $25 from each pay also goes in there. It really adds up! In a year, I have over a thousand dollars in my fund!
      2. Drop your designer coffee habit, if you can. Around 5 bucks a day can go into a fund for a total of $1500 a year!
      3. Stop smoking for similar savings and it's the healthiest thing you can do for yourself.
      4. Do your own manicures, or just polish your nails with a buffer, which is the latest look. Most dolly people are talented and creative enough to do good nails. That's $20 a week!
      5. Join Swapbot and share your art supplies with others. You get things you can't find in your area that way, too. I make all kinds of amigurumis and jewelry and swap them with other crafty types for all my yarn and other art supplies. Swapbot it hot!
       
      • x 1
    9. -I myself do not even believe in Starbucks, so I consider myself fortunate enough to work at a place that gives us free Peet's coffee (10x better!). However, I do have a yen for sparkling water & those fancy bottled hippie nutri-drinks-- which can add up to yea bucks if I indulge a lot per week. A kombucha or frappucino once a week won't hurt your bankroll, but they do add up. Kick the habit of pre-prepared coffees AND bottled beverages, and your monthly savings will increase much more than you think.

      -Ditto prepared foods! This has already been mentioned numerous times, but bringing your own lunch to work instead of eating out will save you tons of money per week. Especially if you live in a big city where downtown lunch-prices run to the ridiculous (we have $8 sandwiches here in San Francisco).

      -But my first advice to anyone if you want to save mucho dinero per month: Get rid of cable TV. You don't need it anyway. It's 1500 channels of brain-rotting crap. ^^ I just pay for internet, because there are priorities. And these days you can get a lot of TV online, anyway. Not only do you save big bucks, but you'll notice a new quiet space in your life where cumulative hours of commercials used to shout at you. Quiet space you could use for playing with your dolls. <3
       
    10. For those who live in Texas, a law passed September 1st of this year that makes it legal for people to sell home-baked goods from your home.

      The only catches are that the payment has to be made inside the baker's home, and you can only sell baked goods.

      Which means you can only do local sales, no online payments, and you can't sell non-baked foods like fudge.

      You CAN publicly advertise and you can have a website for the menu and for contact/placing orders.
      Also from what I read, you don't have to worry about charging taxes because the ingredients used to make most home-baked goods fall into a tax-excluded list.

      You have to label all goods with your name, home address, and a note saying items have not been inspected by the health department as a precaution.

      You don't need the health department come inspect your kitchen because they can't without a warrant since its a residence and not a commercial building/kitchen.
      However they will keep track of any complaints which may result in an inspection warrant and possible shut-down of your home business.

      Don't take my word for it 100%, its always best to do the research yourself but for those in Texas or other states where selling home-baked goods from your home IS legal, its a thought~
       
    11. I'm sure it's likely been already said but I recommend keeping a money journal for two months so that you see where all of your money goes.

      Also... there is a really really really good book out there on Financial Management. It's directed towards women but the advice in there is AWESOME and really applies to everyone. I'm actually planning on starting a once a month gathering with my friends as a kinda book club. If it goes well enough I'll be starting a monthly workshop on it. It's called On My Own Two Feet by Manisha Thakor & Sharon Kedar they also have a second book directed towards couples called Get Financially Naked that focuses on how to merge/mingle finances.

      Another piece of advise I have is to well give yourself a bit of cushion but to do this you need to keep a check Register and checking your balance daily on the atm doesn't count. ;P Each paycheck take off 10 from what's deposited. Also if/when you get a check refund (assuming it's at least 300 dollars) take off 100 and record it as 200 dollars that you got. This cushion acts as a buffer and helps guard against small little overdrafts. -Friends argue that this cushion method also requires a strong will, to others this is a simple and easy step-
       
    12. If you'd like to be a guinea-pig for experiments like the first post suggested, you can try if the psychology major of the local university is looking for test persons. There are lots of students who need to do some kind of experiment for their education and they are always looking for volunteers :) These tests are usually easy and harmless. The amount of money you receive depends on the hassle and the time it costs you. I got €5 for a half-hour computer test and €22 for a three hour test that involved EEG. These tests are usually quite interesting and you're actually helping someone while making money!
      If you've got spare time you can also sign up for testing medicine. These usually require that you stay at the hospital or research facility so they can monitor you, but in return you can make lots of money. Usually the medicine has already been tested and is regarded as safe; they just need to know what side effects it may have. So the information they get from testing on you is what ends up on the instructions leaflet. I haven't tried this myself but I've heard good stories from others. The test persons well-being is definitely the doctors' main concern; if you're not feeling well the doctors will run to your aid :P

      And another tip:
      Even if you've got a car, consider walking, cycling or taking public transport to your destination. Petrol costs a lot of money and is bad for the environment!
       
    13. here's something that might not be on the list... i logged into my Second Life account today for the first time in a few months and i had earned over $200 while i had not been playing.

      explanation: in Second Life you can buy virtual money with real money, and sell virtual items or services to other players for the virtual money, which can then be exchanged into real world currency if you want to. there is a set exchange rate.

      before i took a break from playing, i had set up a shop in the online marketplace for Second Life. i sell mostly very cheap items that always cost under $1 that i have an infinite stock of (but people can only buy them from me and can't resell them to other people)

      so while i was away from the game my shop was still functioning... so people were buying the things i had left for sale there. i wasn't making new items, advertising, or doing anything to encourage people to buy because i wasn't playing the game at all, but i still made <$200 (i didn't have $0 on my account when i quit, but the number was low)

      anyway, it all adds up to what could be a down payment on a doll if i wanted to exchange the virtual money i made into real money.

      *i stress that making money fast in SL is hard and that this was just money i slowly earned over a few months*

      to make money in SL you also need to be smart enough to get over the learning curve of how making things for Second Life works as it was very confusing to me (and still is, i only made very simple objects, the game is very hard to work with sometimes)

      you also need skills:
      if you can program, know 3D modeling & animation, can use photoshop, and if you like designing clothes or objects such as trees, beds, accessories, props, etc or if you can draw or have experience creating textures for 3D models then you can use these skills to make items you can sell in the game.
      you can even upload audio files to sell that people can play in-game (or sound effects and stuff) but you have to hold the copyright to everything you upload to sell it, or the company will usually freeze your account.

      one of the simplest things you can learn to do is sell images: you could upload a photo of one of your dolls, turn it into a virtual poster, then put it for sale in your shop & people might buy it to decorate their rooms with (Second Life is a lot like The Sims...)

      there are some other easier and also more complex ways to make money on Second Life but i won't cover them here. also, it's not "quick easy money" unless you make something that becomes very very popular or have a unique idea. if you have any of the skills i mentioned and want to earn some pocket change on the side though, it isn't bad at all, and making things to sell was just something i did for fun.
       
    14. I don't know if this has been posted before, and I don't think I recall seeing it on the main page, but I've managed to make a bit of money testing apps using an app called feature points!

      You can get more information on how the app works here :) basically, all you do is download the FeaturePoints app, download different apps through it to get points, and redeem those points for Paypal funds. And you just delete those extra apps afterwards!

      Getting money dropped straight into your paypal is honestly a great feeling. ;D
       
    15. Something which I haven't seen here is online transcribing work. My town has a severe job drought, and honestly it's a decent way to make some extra bucks if you're good at it. Amazon has it's own service, Mechanical Turk, which only accepts US applicants, but CastingWords accepts people from all over! All you do is listen to an MP3 file and write down what it says- there's a style guide, but it's pretty easy to follow, especially if you just write it all down and then format it afterwards.
       
      • x 3
    16. A few things to waste less money (and save the enviroment) :
      1-Use a menstrual cup on your periods.
      2- Wash your hair using the no poo, low poo or water only methods.
      3- Use diluted soap bar as shower gel.
      4- Use as a deodorant a potassium alum crystal.
      5- Use olive oil as skin and hair moisturizer.

      These day care hygiene things are cheap, easy to get, really long lasting, healthier and MORE EFFECTIVE than commercial products.

      On the internet there are also a lots of tips for eco/cheap house cleaning, etc.
       
    17. I have another idea for those who live in the USA. You can go to your State Controller's Office website and find their "Unclaimed Property" section. If you search your name, you might be able to find unclaimed property under your name. Here's a quote from the California State Controller's Office Website:

      "The State acquires unclaimed property through California's Unclaimed Property Law, which requires "holders" such as corporations, business associations, financial institutions, and insurance companies to annually report and deliver property to the Controller's Office after there has been no customer contact for three years. Often the owner forgets that the account exists, or moves and does not leave a forwarding address or the forwarding order expires."

      Technically, it's not making money, since it's your own lost money-- but it is very nice to find it when you need it. :) Hope this helps!

      P.S. I had like $50.00 and that went straight towards a new outfit for my BJD. ;)
       
      • x 1
    18. This may not be "getting money" but a way to budget out a layaway without interest, and literally expand out the repayment period than the layaway time itself. PayPal (PP) Credit has it where if you make a purchase over $99 then you have 6 months to pay same as cash. You could put a doll on layaway with DDE, and as long as your payments to DDE are over $99 then each consecutive payment would be interest free. So if you have a 4 payment layaway, you start out paying using PayPal credit and the last(4th) payment to DDE would be 3 months later, and each payment made using PP Credit would have 6 months to be paid off with PayPal Credit. You definitely would want to still make a budgeted monthly payment anyway to PP Credit so as to not end paying any deferred or back interest. But this could be an effective way to get a total of 9 months to pay off a doll, but you would need to be sure to pay it all off before each 6m charge amount expires, as they will charge all the back interest.
      Per PayPal itself using PayPal Credit.
      Purchases of $99 or more - No Payments and No Interest if paid in full in 6 Months:
      • No Payments and No Interest if paid in full in 6 months on eligible PayPal Credit purchases of $99 or more. Interest will be charged to your account from the purchase date if the purchase balance is not paid in full within 6 months. You will get a monthly email reminder telling you when your payment is due.
       
    19. This might sound like an advertisement, but it's not :) Still my appologies if you feel it does not belong here.

      Postloop is a great website for making spare money in your spare time. They pay via paypal with minimum cashout at $5. You earn this money by chatting on forums. There's thousands of forums to choose from, and the topics are really wide. But my favorite ones are anime and videogame forums. Since many dollie people also like anime and videogames, I thought you guys might be interested.

      Postloop.com

      Or if you're feeling nice, you can use my referral link? :) It won't affect your earnings at all, but it will help me out ^^

      http://www.postloop.com/invite/Xenokitten

      And the site really does pay, I make about $5 a week, by posting 10 times on 3 different anime themed forums, which isn't much, 30 posts for 5 dollars, for a topic I genuinely really enjoy chatting about :)

      Also, if you're a webmaster (maybe you have a dollie blog, or selling your crafts, clothing, etc as a way to fund your dollie hobby) and you need to get some traffic to get your site off the ground you can instead convert these points into traffic for your website (your points will be distributed to other users posting on your site), and you retain control over who can post, can ban people from earning with you this way, and also review the quality of their posts.

      It's also an international site which is great for us here, since we have many international users in this hobby. Not sure about the age limit there though.

      After you sign up, you have to make a few posts in their "training grounds" before having the chance to earn money, you'll receive your initial quality rating, and then be allowed to join various forums based on that rating. I have a 4.5 (out of 5) right now, but I started with a 4. :) So you can also improve your rating by writing more. So if you see forums you want to join, but can't yet, because you don't meet the criteria, just keep writing and eventually you'll get better! :)

      Hope it works out for you guys :) It's enough to get a wig or outfit or prop or something once a month, or save up all your moneys for your next doll ^-^
       
      • x 1
    20. Hello DoA lovelies!

      I read some of this thread, but it is awfully long so I haven't trolled all 32 pages. This may be covered, but I really recommend coming up with a budget.

      Budgeting can be hard, especially with how living costs keep rising, but wages aren't. There are many online classes that can teach you how to budget, but since I get paid to do this for other people I thought I'd give a quick tutorial and offer a budget template to y'all.

      I graduated university in 2010 with $65,000 of debt.

      As of this very moment in time I owe $4,430 of that debt left. That means in the past four years or so I have managed to budget and pay the banks $60,570 total. Here's the part that might blow your mind: for two years of those 4 years I wasn't even working! I was unemployed and unable to pay my debts anything... only my basic needs. The amount of time I've gotten rid of my debt is actually really small!


      How do you do it?


      First step is you have to find incoming money, which is what I think this thread is all about. Finding a part-time or full-time job would obviously be the best idea. You can even start your own side business if you think that would help, or sell you time by doing odd-jobs around your neighbourhood (mowing the lawn is something most people hate doing, for example).

      The next step is to make the budget. Luckily for you I have a template made up, and I am going to make it public on my Google Drive for everyone here to access. I have filled it in with examples of the types of incoming and outgoing numbers you may see. Remember, this is a budget for someone that isn't living at home anymore, so you might not need the "regularly monthly expenses" section of the template. ;)


      Google document link


      Some notes about this template:

      1. The items I plugged in are just random things I thought people may relate to, but obviously those are things you would change according to what payments you have going on in your life. Obviously you should put whatever you have in your life here using the real amounts you deal with.

      2. At the very bottom of the template where the payment schedule dates are listed is where the magic happens! If you scroll to the right you can see why this budget method is awesome: you can EASILY see when you have an influx coming in to you, when you will have just enough for food for the two weeks, and when you will have a negative amount. I tried to show examples of each case happening.

      3. When you see a negative amount you know that you should save up some money ahead of time to help yourself out then instead of spending it.

      4. Don't be afraid to include things in your budget other than dolls that you think you'll want to do, like a night out! You deserve you time! :aheartbea

      5. LASTLY, you can check the amounts you have left owing on specific bills any time by subtracting the total planned payments from the total amount owed. I did this a couple of times in the sheet to show how it works and so you can see the formulas I'm using.

      Feel free to copy and paste this template into a new document, or use it as a reference.


      I hope this helps you easily save up for all your doll needs! :sumomo:
       
      • x 2