• How to Save on Dining Furnitures (hack?) When You Are Broke

    I was left with little budget to furnish my unit when I purchased my condo. This is because of all the fees that came with buying a property such as lawyer’s fee and more. So I had to be resourceful, creative and on point with my budget.

    Find out below how I was able to have a minimalist mid century modern dining furnitures for only $103.47. A simple minimalist mid century modern house dining theme that anyone with low budget can have.

    Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.

    Furnitures

    1. Table (a desk actually)

    I considered this as my dining furniture “little hack”. Ikea offers this great concept of mix and match desk and legs. You can choose your preferred desk and then matched it with the color/type of the legs that you think would go well with your chosen desk.

    Now I know what you’re thinking — a desk is not sturdy enough to be an alternative for a dining table. But let me explain.

    I live by myself and my condo has a nice kitchen island with granite top. So I figured I wouldn’t be using the dining table much except when I have family and friends over.

    I’ve had my table (a desk actually) for over a year now and it is still in good shape. And just as I have predicted, I only use it when I have guests over.

    Ikea Mix and Match Desk for Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.
    Ikea Desk
    Ikea Mix and Match Desk Legs for Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.
    Ikea Legs
    1. Chairs 

    I used an app called OfferUp to sell my old furnitures before moving in to my condo. I had a good experience selling my furnitures in the app. So I thought I’d try buying this time. I was confident I’d have similar positive experience in finding minimalist mid century furnitures that would suit my taste and my condo.

    I’m so glad I tried OfferUp because I found these 4 beautiful mid century chairs. They’re not authentic mid century pieces but they’re a nice replica.

    They’re being offered at $60 for 4 pieces with one caveat — 2 chairs are a bit wobbly. The seller said it was because they’re missing “washers”.

    I contacted the seller. And after one offer and one counter offer, I picked up 4 mid century chairs. And guess what, I paid only $40 for all of them. 

    Are you wondering what I did with the 2 wobbly chairs? I was able to find matching washers from ACE Hardware for less than a dollar.

    Alternative

    As of this writing I could not find similar listings in OfferUp so I searched elsewhere for you. Though Amazon could not beat the price I got from OfferUp, it is the cheapest I could find online. And they’re brand new.

    (Disclaimer: I am not connected or affiliated with the seller. I have not ordered anything from this seller. Please take your time in reviewing the item and vetting out before purchasing).

    Amazon Mid Century Chairs for Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.
    Amazon Mid Century Chairs
    1. Plant accessories

    I am in so much awe that one such tiny thing can make all the difference. My minimalist looking table ( a desk actually) looked so much better when adorned with this artificial plant from Ikea. This wheat grass-looking plant paired with galvanized pot is the bomb.

    Ikea Artificial Plants for Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.
    Ikea Artificial Plant
    Ikea Galvanized Plant Pot for Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.
    Ikea Galvanized Plant Pot

    Alternative

    A tip for an even lower price — I found a cheaper galvanized plant pot from dollar tree which I wish I found first before I bought the one from Ikea.

    Dollar Tree Galvanized Plant Pot for Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.
    Dollar Tree Galvanized Plant Pot

    Those are my mix and match pieces of furniture that I didn’t expect would go so well together. Mid century meets modern minimalist furnitures enhanced with trendy artificial plant.

    I always find it delightful seeing the shock in people’s faces when I reveal how much they only cost.

    Price List:

    Total Cost for My Simple Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures
    Total Cost Using Alternative Items from Amazon and Dollar Tree
    Modern Minimalist Mid Century Dining Furnitures on A Budget When You Are Broke.

    Allow me to showcase my Dining Set on a Budget

    P.S. You might think “the wall could use some decors” and you are so much right.

    How I would love to hang a classic elegant looking framed art. Or to make it even more functional a flat screen tv. But when I think of how much it would cost me, I abandoned the idea. And instead, I thought of a better one.

    I could just have the wall function as a projector screen. A nice portable projector is way cheaper than a flat screen tv. And since it’s portable, I can use it in my living room and I can set it up in my bedroom too. The best part is that I don’t have to deal with wires and cables that are kind of an eye sore for me.

    I don’t have a projector yet. I haven’t found the need to have one. But when the time comes, I’ll be sure to post it and share my experience.

    Or if you have any suggestions on what to decorate my empty wall, please feel free to comment down below.

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  • HOW TO CONFIDENTLY BUY SMARTPHONE ON EBAY DURING THE PANDEMIC

    Imagine your own phone breaking down in the middle of a pandemic when everybody was supposed to stay home and most brick and mortar stores were temporarily closed. Um yeah, it happened to me.

    So I had to find a replacement , I had to find it fast (because you know, cellphone withdrawal is a thing) and I had to find it online. 

     Samsung Note 10 looked very interesting and that S pen was very intriguing but very expensive. I didn’t want to spend too much in this pandemic situation where no one knows what the future holds but I couldn’t stop thinking about the S pen. Then I stumbled upon an article about a poor man’s Note 10.

     Samsung released an affordable version of Note 10 and Note 10 Plus called Note 10 lite. It has most of the features that its flagship siblings have. This meant I get to have S pen experience at an affordable price.

    One challenge I had to face before I was able to get my hands on this promising  new smartphone was that this poor man’s Note 10 was only released in few countries and US was not one of them. Challenge accepted! 

    I went into my  research mode again and eventually  I found out that this  phone is available here in US but as an International version (unlocked) and can be purchased from Amazon or Ebay. 

     

    Ebay vs Amazon

    Between the two, I preferred Ebay over Amazon.

    For Amazon loyalists and prime members, before you react, let me tell you why — Amazon is actually my “go-to” online store. I trust this site and I have been a prime member for almost 10 years now. But when I searched for Note 10 lite there were not a lot of listings and not a lot of reviews. So I had to look elsewhere.

    I checked Ebay and found several listings of this phone. I have also been a longtime Ebay member but honestly all of my purchases up to this date were very inexpensive. The reason is so that if I ever get scammed (forgive me for my paranoia, it’s just that I’ve heard a lot of scam stories), it would only hurt my pride not my pocket.

    I was still  hesitant to purchase from Ebay so I did some more research online. 

    After extensive research, I am happy to announce that I am now a proud owner of a brand new International version of Note 10 lite. As of this writing, I have been using the phone for weeks now and haven’t gotten any issues.

     

    How to Vet for Legit Ebay Seller

    Allow me to share the steps I took before I was able to decide which Ebay seller to buy the phone from. I hope that this article can give you guidance when purchasing not just a smartphone but any items on Ebay.  

    1. Top Rated Seller Seal

    I looked for the Top Rated Seller seal on the listing. This seal is being awarded by Ebay when a seller meet certain qualifications and guidelines. This shows  the seller’s  level and performance standards.

    Here’s what I found on Ebay page for the qualifications to receive the seal.

    Qualify as a Top Rated Seller

    To become a Top Rated Seller, you must meet the following guidelines:

    • An eBay account that’s been active for at least 90 days.
    • 100 or more transactions and $1,000 in sales during the last 12 months with US buyers.
    • A defect rate less than or equal to 0.5%, with three or fewer defects from unique buyers.
    • Cases closed without seller resolution less than or equal to 0.3%, and two or fewer cases.
    • A late shipment rate less than or equal to 3%, and five or fewer late shipments.
    • Tracking uploaded within your stated handling time, and carrier validation for 95% of transactions to US buyers.

    2. Number of Sold Items

    I looked at the number of Sold items and read the feedback for that particular item in the Product page. From reading the feedbacks I have learned that the buyers who recently bought that item were happy and satisfied with the product and the seller. NOTE: These are just feedbacks for the item listed. You should also check out Seller’s overall feedback ratings. Refer to step 6 below.

    3. Seller's Score

    Another thing I looked  within the Product page was the seller’s score. This is the percentage of seller’s positive ratings and feedbacks. The screenshot below showed that 99.7%  of the buyers who left a feedback had positive experience with the seller.

    4. Star Ratings

    Next I looked for the star ratings.  This can be found in brackets next to the username. This shows how many buyers have left feedback for the seller.

    NOTE: Take time to read the feedbacks for more detailed view of a seller’s performance. Refer to step 6 below.

    Ebay awards a star to the Seller based on this chart:

    You can read more about Start Rating here.

    5. Seller's Store

    I also checked the seller’s store and look for other items that the seller is selling. I felt at ease to know that this seller is selling other smartphones and tech items. For me, having a lot of listing means that the seller took time to source his/her products and list them on Ebay. The seller has established his/her online store on Ebay and is not a “here-today-gone-tomorrow” kind of store.

    6. Seller's Overall Positive Feedback

     I took the time to read all (ok, I lied, not all because there were a lot but I read enough)  seller’s overall positive feedback. I looked  at how many positive feedback versus negative feedback this seller has received (feedbacks as a buyer has a separate tab, you should concentrate on the seller’s feedback). My tip is do not concentrate on just the positive, I especially like reading negative feedbacks because they give me an idea on which area the seller is lacking and how he/she resolved an issue. Through negative feedbacks you will also learn that sometimes they are about failed expectations from the product and not from the seller.

    7. Contact the Seller

    I contacted the seller to ask questions before purchasing the item. The seller responded after only 3 hours. This did not automatically mean that the seller is trustworthy but it gave me a feeling that the seller backs and stand by  his/her  product. I also contacted the seller after receiving the product because I had some questions and again he/she replied within 3 hours. The responses I received made me feel the seller’s presence, that there really is a businessman/businesswoman behind the listed item.

    8. Payment Options

    I paid through PayPal. I like using PayPal whenever possible. PayPal makes it easy for buyers to dispute a charge. I also like the fact that when you send payment to PayPal, the seller won’t receive financial information like credit card number or bank account number.

    It is also worth mentioning that Ebay has its own money back guarantee program. 

    Full Disclosure

    I actually haven’t had the need to file a claim from either PayPal or Ebay. I consider it a good thing that I have been lucky so far with all my online purchases. It really pays to be an informed consumer.

    Words of Advice

    There are a lot of advices online on how to ensure the seller is legit and how to spot a scammer on Ebay. The ones I have mentioned above are not 100% foolproof, they are just the ones I did to vet out this seller so I could purchase a phone. 

    To be honest, even after all the steps I took I was still not 100% confident with my purchase until I had the product in my hand and was able to check and scrutinize it. 

    The agony is in the waiting for the product to arrive at my doorstep especially when I learned that the seller sent the product via USPS and not UPS or FEDEX, no signature required. I couldn’t remember how many times I have checked USPS tracking. But once I had the product in my hand and was able to check and test it, that’s when I patted my shoulder and told myself I did a good job.

    Remember if it seems like it isn’t right, it probably isn’t. And if it feels like something is wrong, trust your guts. Do your due diligence in checking out the seller and the product. Research, research, research.

    Gallery

    I took pictures when the product arrived . I want you to see how it was packaged neatly.