Money-saving + recipe

I don't usually talk about coupons or recipes here, but today I have a few odds and ends:

CVS stores have been springing up in St. Louis over the past year.  Shopping there can be a lot of fun because you can get ECBs (Extra Care Bucks-like money toward a future purchase) for buying certain things.  I used to shop CVS and Walgreens like a pro when I lived in Texas.  (Once at Walgreens I spent 4 cents for about $57 worth of stuff and got a rebate back on one item and a coupon good for $5 off my next purchase!)  This week at CVS you can get a 6x8, 10 page photo album for $7.99 and then get back $7.99 in ECBs, so it's free.  Nicole at Nicole's Nickels has some tips on how to make your photo book here.

Did you know that you can make cinnamon rolls from Trader Joe's (99 cent) pizza dough?  You could also use Pillsbury French Loaf (but it would take 2 cans and run you about $5).  I first read about this idea on My Dear Trash (go visit!) and then found this recipe for IKEA-Inspired Cinnamon Rolls on the kitchn (yet another chapter of apartment therapy).  They are so delicious!  We have been missing IKEA and their cinnamon rolls!

Lastly, I am trying to dig in to my thrift store stash and make some new things and I have decided to do a theme week: Totally 80s!  Come back this week and see how I update things that are obviously products of the 80s: chunky hearts, mauve, lace and peach ribbon and maybe ducks.  I don't know.  Wooden ducks are as quintessentially 80s as mauve and that sad shade of country blue.  Can they be updated?

Einstein on a Bike

My favorite thrift store find right now is a poster of Einstein riding a bike.  I found it rolled up on a shelf at Goodwill without a price on it.  Instant love.  They marked it at $2 and I brought it home where it sat for months.  The other day as I was putting together the boy's room (reclaiming it from the toy storage area it had become) it occurred to me that this would be the right place for it, especially since the boy just learned how to ride his bike:

I love how whimsical the idea of Einstein riding a bike seems but I suspect there was nothing whimsical about it.  Regarding the theory of relativity he is reported to have said, "I thought of that while riding my bicycle."

Next I want to paint the room something a little bolder.  Everything else you see here is originally from Ikea.  The "nightstand" is actually one of the TRONES shoe storage cabinets.

It's perfect for holding a few bedside items in a small space.  The duvet and pillowcase were purchased new for $10!  Alas, there is no Ikea here in St. Louis.  We used to live near an Ikea and I trolled craigslist for the abundance of Ikea goods.  That's how I found the bed.  If you don't live in an Ikea town but are making a pilgrimage to one, it's definitely worth your while to check the craigslist there.

Go ride your bike.  That's where the magic happens.