It is no secret to the planning community that designing weekly spreads and dashboards can cost quite a lot. It may not seem much when we're buying our planning supplies but when you look at the frequency of your visits to stores like Michaels and Hobby Lobby and to Etsy shops, and how much you spend each time, they add up quite quickly. It is a very happy addiction!
When I first got into it, I easily spent a $100! I've been planning since summer of last year and I can't tell you how many times I've gone to Michaels to stock up on stickers and washi tapes.
But determined to not to spend that much again, I've learned these 7 money-saving tips that helped save me some dough, and still enjoy planning.
1. Arm yourself with coupons when going to a Michael's store
This store is craft heaven, that much is undeniable. We go to it ready to say "take my money!" But they are actually generous enough to provide 40-50% coupons off one regular item. I know the Michael's store I go to has these coupons every weekend. And you'll also find that their planners aisle are at at 40-50% off on some days. You can get a Washi pack and a sticker book for almost half the price - double win!
All these items I got with a 40-50% off coupons from Michael's website
But this is Michael's and it will be hard to get just one or two items. So how to prevent that? For that...
2. Go to Michael's with a person who will restrain your spending spree
I know it sounds cruel but this tip has helped me so much to get my head out of the cloud and bring me to reason. It's easy to say that "But it's so cute and I have to have it!" and have that be enough valid reason for us go ahead and run with it. Believe me, that item isn't going anywhere. And chances are you already have something similar anyway. So bring a friend who's not into planning, your spouse, or significant other to help you make the right decisions when buying.
Don't think that you'll run out of creativity just because you don't have that particular washi or sticker book you're wanting to purchase. Believe me, you will be able to produce creative weekly spreads when you work with what you already have.
It is thanks to my hubby for refraining me from going wild, I still have a modest collection of planner supplies. But that doesn't mean I lack the resources to be creative with my weekly spread designs. You don't have to have themed stickers to create a themed spread. Look at what you've got and for sure you'll find something to work with.
3. Look for free sticker printables
The planning community is very creative and generous. There are a LOT of free printables for download. And they also usually come in both the Erin Condren and The Happy Planner formats, two the most popular planners out there. Go to Pinterest or Google and type in "free planner sticker printables" and you'll get millions of hits.
These sites are where I get most of my printables from:
You can print them on sticker paper or if you're like me who really is into saving, just print them on a regular paper and cut and paste them. It may be tedious but my reasoning is that I don't use all of them anyway and may end up wasting my sticker paper. At least I won't feel as bad throwing away regular paper as opposed to sticker paper.
4. Don't forget to check out your dollar stores, Daiso, and Target Dollar Spots
Dollar stores almost have everything. I go there to get my supply of colored pens, double-sided tapes, cute folders (to store my printables in), labels, glue, craft paper, and cute stickers and sticky notes. Seriously, I've gotten some pretty cute planner stuff without the guilt of spending too much.
All these are from Target, Daiso, and Dollarama
5. Design your own set of stickers (and inserts)
If you can't find the design you're looking for, you can try and create your own stickers. You can start with creating full box designs for your Erin Condren or The Happy Planner. You can watch this simple how-to video on YouTube here -. I recently made my own and I love them as they're all designs I want!
Who knows, this may lead you to discover a new passion in sticker designing and you can open up your own business selling them.
6. Support your fellow planner sisters and buy from their Etsy shops
As I mentioned above, a lot of planners also design their own stickers and make a small business out of it. They don't charge that much (at least I don't think they do) and you can get some really unique designs from them.
7. Enter Instagram giveaways and hope you win!
I've been entering giveaways on Instagram and no luck yet winning, but who knows, you may be luckier than me! I've said this before, the planning community is generous - they like to spread the planner love and sponsor giveaways for when they reach a certain number of followers as a thank you for supporting them. So make sure to look out for those and best of luck when you enter!
Here is a giveaway that is still ongoing...it will close on April 17, 2017 so be sure to enter!
I hope you find these tips useful and happy planning!
