Let's save each other some money

[Bascombe]

First of all, I'm a newbie here, and there are at least ten million billion threads on this site, I've been through alot of them and I hope this hasn't been addressed yet, but if it has, sorry.

I thought we could share our money saving tactics with each other so we can all build more props.

Here's one from me:

Every paint store sells mis-tinted paint. Usually a gallon of custom tinted paint costs around $25-$35 dollars. Sometimes the paint clerk screws up and uses the wrong base, or messes up the recipe, so the customer isn't obliged to purchase it. That paint goes on a pallet in the back and is for sale as mis-tinted paint. It can be had for $5-$10 a gallon. The paint store can't send it back to the company, it wasn't their fault the paint was screwed up. So they decide to sell it at rock bottom prices so they at least get part of their investment back.

With a little patience, and a paint can opener, you can find some great colors that cost pennies on the dollar and will work just fine for your haunt.

I painted a backdrop for an orchestra's Halloween concert last year and the paint store employees didn't believe I wanted something that dark, so without asking me they mixed each of the colors two steps lighter than I asked for. That really chapped my hide. I spent $135.00 on 5 gallons of paint and they screwed up every single color.

Now when I have the paint store mix my colors, I insist they take the color chip I ordered from, put a smudge of the paint they mixed on it and dry it before I pay a dime so I can tell if the color is right.

[Psyc0 Walrus]

Haha yes that is a very good idea and all but uhhh what exactly are you pointing out XD

[RoxyBlue]

You'll see this referred to as "oops" paint in many of the threads here. In our area it goes for $1 a quart and $5 a gallon. We check the "oops" shelf whenever we go to Lowe's or Home Depot to see what's available.

[nixie]

I believe that you created a thread where we can all share our money-saving tips? I like that idea!!

One thing I do to save money is to buy muslin by the bolt and cheesecloth by the box when I get 50% off coupons from the fabric store. This gives me a massive amount of fabric that I can dye and turn it into whatever I need for very little cost per yard.

[Haunted Bayou]

Yeah...oops paint is great. I think somebody here mentioned you can also get paint at the city recycle place for free.

[Psyc0 Walrus]

OHHHH I get it now haha sorry about that :p

I never knew about this before actually.. But I use spray paint ):

[House of Dewberry]

I just discovered oops paint this year, wish I had known sooner, that is a big cost saver for me!

Nixie mentioned the 50% off coupon for fabric, some may not know that you can also use the joann's 50% off coupons at Michaels craft store, they take Joannes coupons as well. Michaels distributes their own coupons, however, most of the time they are 40% off that extra 10% is great for that bigger ticket item. You don't have to have their mailers you can print them directly from their sites.

[nixie]

Michaels also takes Hobby Lobby coupons.

[House of Dewberry]

Hobby Lobby that's cool! I don't think we have one here in Cali, I will look it up on line.

[Bone Dancer]

Such a thread might be ok but we do have a "Search" option in the forum and if that doesnt work for you then just ask. This is a very open forum here. Lots of great folks that love to help and share thier info on various subjects. And in time you will pick up the lingo here. Opps paint, wall wart, ect.

[trentsketch]

Forget the 50% off coupons at JoAnns for fabric. Go all the way to the back for the clearance fabrics. They have a red sticker and the super shiny, weird textured, and out of season Halloween fabric sits there for months untouched for less than $3/yard. The clearance fabrics also usually get 30-50% off sales once a month. Lots of times, you can take some of the cheapest fabric and use the back side for what you're looking for. Standard Halloween colors--orange, green, purple, black--are never in short supply there.

Anything else at JoAnns--craft supplies, decor, storage--do not buy without a coupon. They always charge more than their competitors to cover all their 50% off sales. It's just like Michaels and framing. The companies charge a lot more as the normal price so they still earn a profit on sale.

My other big tip? I buy all my basic supplies at the dollar store. White glue, masking tape, scotch tape, scissors, scotch tape, and craft knives are always available and just as good as what you pick up at the hardware or craft store. Plus, it's always a good source for inspiration. You never know what you'll find that you can use for super cheap.

A word of advice on craft paint: don't buy the cheap stuff. It's mostly water, does not hold up in sunlight, and requires a lot more than you would expect to cover anything. You'll spend more money buying multiple bottles of the $.50/$1 bottles than using part of a more expensive bottle. Once you reach the $2.50/$3 bottles, you're getting a decent paint. If you plan on painting a lot, it's just better to invest in good art acrylic and blend your own colors. Use a good oops paint base and you won't use nearly as much paint as you'd expect. I rarely use the bottle craft paint for Halloween displays unless I really need a color I cannot blend myself.

[Haunted Bayou]

I just discovered oops paint this year, wish I had known sooner, that is a big cost saver for me!

Nixie mentioned the 50% off coupon for fabric, some may not know that you can also use the joann's 50% off coupons at Michaels craft store, they take Joannes coupons as well. Michaels distributes their own coupons, however, most of the time they are 40% off that extra 10% is great for that bigger ticket item. You don't have to have their mailers you can print them directly from their sites.

Every season, we have a coupon thread to alert everybody as to what is on sale. Michael's, JoAnns, and anything else that might have a coupon or sale.

[Aquayne]

What I love about this hobby is thinking outside of the box. I save alot of money by buying cheap gear motors then mounting a strong muffin fan to cool it. Both together are much cheaper than buying one unit with both. surplus supply is my favorite.

[debbie5]

At Lowe's, they sometimes have a $5 or $10 rebate on a certain brand of paint. The Oops paint is $5 a gallon. If you send in the rebate on the Oops paint, whiel is says in fine print that rebate cannot be used for Oops paints, you WILL get your $5 back. Final cost of paint? POSTAGE. You can also change the Oops paint color by mixing it with other Oops paints for many diff colors...

Never be afraid to ask for money off, or free. I keep a small pic portfolio of my haunt in my car so I can whip it out when I am begging for a severely reduced price at a store.Politeness and succinctness usually gets a discount!

Take the Cheap Challenge & think creatively. Why spend $3 for a piece of velvet at the fabric store when I can go to a yard sale and buy a plus sized velvet skirt for a quarter and use the yardage? Curtains, sheets and bedding (old mattress pads make great quilted coffin lining) all are good ways to harvest fabric.

[jaege]

One addition to oops paint: if you take several colors of oops paint and mix them together you will get a fairly good grey color (the navy calls it haze grey) that is useful for tombstones. It may take 3 or 4 cans, but the blend will eventually mix to grey. Using quarts and mixing in a gallon can works well for me.