So Many Shoes, So Little Money
I’ve just finished reading the book So Many Shoes, So Little Money: A Girl’s Guide to Finance, written by Lisa Serwin. It has 16 chapters that address the basics tenets of personal finance while associating each topic with something fashion-related. Check out the titles:
- Budget Basics: What’s in Your Closet?
- Advanced Budget: Tailor Made
- How To Spend: Avoid Visible Panty Lines
- How To Save: If The Bra Fits
- Bank Accounts: It’s In The Bag
- Debit Cards: Jeans & Tees
- Credit Cards: Little Black Dress
- Interest: Shoes
- Time Value of Money: It’s In Style Today
- Debt: Trendy Splurges
- Investments: What’s The Event?
- Net Worth: You Are Priceless
- Big-Ticket Items: Marc Jacobs, Prada…
- Insurance: Avoid A Bad Hair Day
- Taxes: Face The Facts
- Professional Help: Personal Stylists
Conclusion: Walk The Red Carpet
Glossary (defines basic personal finance terms)
Written for the shopaholic who needs divine financial intervention, each chapter includes a “Fashionista Fact” and ends with a summary recap that reminds the reader to “Organize Your Financial Closet.” I commend the author for taking a boring topic, like personal finance, and writing a book that appeals to women who would rather be shopping at Nordstrom.
I have to be honest though. This is a beginner’s book, so if you already have a basic understanding of budgeting, saving money for a rainy day and retirement, the perils of irresponsible credit card use, employment taxes, and car/health/renter’s insurance, you may not find anything of substance. But if you’re a reformed shopaholic who wants to learn the basics of personal finance and don’t know where to begin, this book may give you a few pointers to overcome the self-sabotaging behavior and finally take control of your finances.
And guess what? I have two copies to give away for my fabulous readers!
If you want a copy, the only thing you have to do is leave a comment in this post anytime through Sunday. Tell us where you are in your financial journey and what you’ve done so far to overcome the financial mistakes of your past. Only 1 comment per person. On Monday, I will choose two winners using a random number generator.
Good Luck!
This blog is a personal account of my journey to achieve financial freedom. If you like what you've read, feel free to subscribe via (feed reader) or (email) to follow along.
I am starting to clean up my credit, and being more frugal and saving…I have no credit card debt and a brand new paid off car, so I want to focus on my credit and long term…
After a *long* battle we are on track with our finances. We are now gearing up for long term investing.
Great blog!
I am just getting started and would love to read this book…
i am cleaning up my debt and trying to save as well…
i love your blog..
Single Ma, that book would be heaven sent. I’ve been reading your blog about a year now for inspiration. But I am the shopaholic in stage one- I’ve admitted I have a problem. I just don’t know where to start in terms of fixing it.
I’ve gone back and forth with paying off credit cards and charging them back up. I can’t even speak on saving. I’m ready, to get my financial situation together, and this book could help keep me motivated.
Hello Single Ma,
I’m currently 40% through paying off my debts and have an automatic savings plan in place. Actually everything is (finally) automized and I’m beginning to research my next big steps: investments, beefing up insurance and retirement and buying my first home.
Thanks for the chance!
Leilani
I was recently laid off so my spending have been limited to only necessities in order not to deplete my savings, however I splurged a few months ago to purchase a DSLR so that I could generate some extra income while looking for a 9-5. It has paid off because I’m doing what I love (photography) and getting paid for it. With the extra income I’ve been able to pay off ALL of my credit card debt. That was the bulk of my debt so now I’m working on getting rid of and paying down the remainder and I can’t believe the “high” I get from paying bills ON TIME and IN FULL. I’m a full-time student and will be graduating come fall and am so busy networking. I’ve learned a lot from this site and countless others so I’m ready to finally have a career!!!
I am still in the baby stage, but a forced baby stage. I have GOT to find out what triggers my spending & eating & not living right.
I am on tract to be debt free with the exception of my house in 3 yrs, but it causes me SO much stress, it is not funny.
This book would be a blessing
I am a college student who is graduating in the fall… finally, my 20th highschool anniversary is in a year! I am a finance and economics major. I have lived in the vicious cycle of debt for a while. I am working on creating my budget and straightening out my financial life.
So any help with finances would be a great help.
I have made a plan to start saving and paying off my credit card debt. I started this month with putting an $25 in each of my savings accounts and tracking how much money I spend on eating lunch out or grabbing starbucks.
Single Ma,
I enjoy reading your blog. It’s very INSPIRING. Usually after reading a post I feel like setting more goals.
On my current financial journey I’m paying off debt. (Making weekly payments) It’s been going well.
Where am I? Hmmm Well, I don’t know. I know my account isn’t overdrawn nearly as much as it used to be. I’ve learned from past mistakes, like borrowing from my 403(b) …yeah I did that….But I struggle to live beneath my mean because I’m a full-time student. But I know that all this knowledge is going to pay off when I graduate and get a job in 2010 god-willing
Awesome! :) I just committed to a new budget on Tuesday. Your blog is very inspiring and has helped me get my debt from 13k to 8k.. and I am slowly chugging along.. thanks
I’m in step 4 – Lose Motivation… I’ve chipped away at the majority of my debt for the better part of 2 years (after divorce, cancer, and losing my business and finances due to those two heavy hitters…), but UGH!
For me, though, I’ve stopped thinking in, “I HAVE to budget EXACTLY like this,” which equates more to, “I’m going on the grapefruit diet TOMORROW” and started thinking in the, “is this expense/pair of stilettos/night out on the town REALLY worth it?” (similar to “is this Big Mac REALLY worth 4 hours in the gym!?”… so that I don’t view it as depriving my present self so much as rewarding my future self. :)
I am at a good place in my financial journey, but my sister is a shopaholic and does not know the first thing about money. She has just finished school and I know she needs some basic advice. This sounds like a great book for her.
I am almost a year into my life change. I decided in August of ‘08 that enough was enough. I was going to be free of personal debt by end of ‘09. I started with $11k of debt and I am now down to $3,500. I also now have an emergency fund of 6k (I’ve never had savings before). Even though I was laid off earlier this year, I’ve kept on my journey. I haven’t been as agressive as I planned but I am still moving strong. I even have budget. It’s crazy how much my finance habits have changed in a year.
Hey Single Ma! Love your blog and I especially love the posts where you talk about your career and how hard you’ve worked. I can’t wait to see how you get your next job to pay for your JD! I’m currently trying to get into a saving/budgeting/not spending every penny rhythm. I’m a spender at heart, so saving is so hard for me! I have stepped up my 401k contributions to 10% though and haven’t looked back. Baby steps. Next will be a payroll allotment for forced savings. Thanks!
I am on step 10 (YAY) Three years after my divorce and I made it. Never thought I could do it without a husband, OR so quickly. However, it’s amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it. I am in the process of buying my very first home for myself and my 2 little ones. I have since learned to surround myself with people who are striving or have attained that which I am seeking.
I am currently at stage 6. I’ve been here for some time as I continue to pay off my debt and save. What I’ve done to overcome my mistakes of the past is teach my teen daughters about money so that they don’t have to make the mistakes I did. No one ever taught me and that cycle/lack of education cannot continue and stops with me.
I am working hard to save to pay off my car loan in January. This would be two years early. My biggest challange is saving but still having money to have fun with friends.
This year I have managed not to buy any new clothes – sad, isn’t it? I overshopped the last 2 years, I think. I’m hoping this book will help me plan out my next steps.
I’m at the point in my financial journey that I’m paying off my student loans from university and have no other debt. I’ve got my emergency fund in place (10 months without employment insurance, a year with EI), and have a basic RRSP using a bank account, but I need to start learning more about investing options. I’ve still got lots of time, but know that now is the time to start maxing my RRSPs, yet struggle with whether I should do that or just pay off student loan – the goal is to have the loan paid off next year, which would mean my loan would be paid off in less time than it took to get into the debt for school.
This book looks great for the shopaholic in every girl :)
# 4 all the way
“So you start doing things to make you feel better. You buy that new PURSE to feel better.”
I started then as I fely like I was moving ahead then out of no where a monkey wrench is thrown it the plan. I have tried to stay on task but its hard. I kinda feel like I go to work everyday, work hard some time 45-50 hours a week, while maintaing a 3.5 in school and being a single mother. Damn Right I deserve this purse. But I know thats the mindframe that got me into this spot. So in a matter of a week or so Im going to go ahead and face # 5. But pocket books just make me so happy.
I went from having a decent salary to a grad student with a rather pathetic stipend. However, I moved to a location that has relatively inexpensive real estate and was able to purchase my first home (a small one bedroom condo). Now I’m trying to balance school and my finances with very little money :)
Hi Single Ma. I haven’t commented in quite a while, but I’m still here, keeping up with your very interesting life! We are at a very healthy financial state right now, though, I suspect we can always be saving more. I watched Oprah the other day and Suze Orman’s current advice is to try to save half of my income (we are a single paycheck family, my husband stays home with our two girls.) Hmph! I don’t know if it’s possible or completely necessary, but I’m giving it a shot.
Anyhoo, hope you are enjoying your weekend. Even if I don’t get your copy of this book, I’ll probably get it from the library; it looks interesting.
Hi, Single Ma,
I’m happy to say that I’m somewhere between step 9 and step 10. The reason it’s between is because, having moved from a freshly divorced college student to a single self-employed artist, I’m not always still sure where the next client is coming from. So the debt is gone, but many months I pay myself savings on one end and take it out on the other end to pay bills…but when there’s any left over from that formula, it gets invested.
I have a special savings account for clothes, shoes, and other possibly non-necessary things that make me happy – I call it my “Sunny Day Fund.”
I’d say I’m still at the begining of my financial journey… well the begining of the healthy part of it anyway, the unhealthy part is gone, done, finito… I am blogging at the moment to find where I go wrong, and trying out new things to make it all right. As I find a road block I dust off and start again with a new plan or tweak what I already was doing. Its working great so far. Sure I have my times where I don’t do so well but I’m getting tehre and never before did I ever have such determination.
In the last year, I’ve paid off a credit card balance of $3500, water line debt of $1800 and paid off my car, alI on a teacher’s salary. Now I only owe student loans. I have a small emergency fund and am now at the financial stage where I can begin to fully fund it, along with saving for travel, a house and an IRA.
I have recently faced my problem at the beginning of the summer. I have since began tracking my spending, created a budget and have started paying off credit card debt. If I continue on and stay motivated I should be good to go within several months.
Great post as always! Makes me want to go out and buy it… Sadly I cannot as I need every single penny to throw at my cc debt. Thanks for the inspiration SM!!!
you could have also added that the book is mainly for women coz as far as i can tell there are no men shopaholics(at least straight ones). enen though it is chickish, i love financial literacy books and i will buy it soon-after i finish the ones in my library
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That sounds like a fun book to read.
It’s good to see authors taking a boring topic and making it readable.
Im sure this will remind us of that movie/book, “Confessions of a Shopaholic”.
Hope I win a copy :)
Thanks for blogging!
I would love a copy of that book.
I was on the road to being debt free and having a good amount saved. Then my fiance lost his job and it fell on me and my two jobs to cover everything. I had to really examine our budget and have been doing my best to try and save and not use credit cards.