Have Fun by Bart Everson via Flickr
I get it ladies… you want to have fun dating but it can be hard on a budget and sometimes happy hours and prix fixe get old. How about some ideas for some alternative inexpensive dates that you can do wherever you reside and without clipping coupons or Groupons? You go it! Here are three you probably haven’t thought of yet:
- Skip the expensive brunch downtown and do your own! I know they might have bottomless mimosas, but isn’t it more intimate to brunch at home? How about mimosas in bed?! How to do it? Convince yourself you don’t need some epic fancy omelet or hollandaise laden breakfast sandwich and instead opt for a Subway breakfast, or homemade omelet for $5 or less and use that saved money to buy your own champagne and OJ! Bottomless mimosas at the restaurant seem like a great deal until you realize it is cheaper and totally doable to do at home!
- Skip the movie theater and pay-per-view and up your “stay in” night! New movies are fun to watch at the theater, and it can get old to convince your partner to stay in to save money and just watch what is on tv or Netflix. But, you and I both know you end up having a “nothing is on” conversation because nothing feels new and exciting like that movie theater movie feels. The solution? Sign your budget self up for the Redbox Text Club and you get sent codes for free movies! No joke, you usually get one every month! This lets you get a newer movie that hasn’t hit tv or Netflix for free yet, leaving you with the similar feeling of enjoyment you get when at the movie theater!
Photo by See-Ming Lee via Flickr
- Skip Pinterest and reading on a rainy day and try to be famous! Are you comfortable with your dating partner and want to do something fun, creative, and/or productive? Why not shoot your own videos and edit them together! If you have the guts you can even post them to Youtube and see if you become famous. You might think your life is boring and no one would want to watch, but you’d be surprised. Youtube has it’s own following of “alternative reality television” as I like to call it, where regular people basically make their own reality tv show about their lives. I am currently obsessed with Anna Lee & Jesse’s channel. Neither of you know how to shoot or edit videos? Start simple with shooting with your smart phone, and using a free or cheap editing software. I personally think Adobe Creative Cloud is a great deal, and if you already have a subscription for yourself for using other programs, downloading on of the video software programs is like free!
- Skip the expensive gourmet food you see on Pinterest and have a UEFashionista style picnic! Remember that super handy article about government assistance and food stamps? Put your fabulous budgeting self to the test and host a fabulous but inexpensive snack or meal with your boo! Just add a blanket and some grass to lay in and, voila, instant picnic! Too cold outside still where you live? Crash a sunroom/porch, or just “go for it” and have a winter picnic. Maybe your apartment has a fire escape? Think outside the box fellow North East Corridor-ers!
Photo by Steven Depolo via Flickr
- Skip seeing Saving Mr. Banks where you hear the song “Let’s Go Fly A Kite,” and actually go fly a kite! All you need are two sticks or rods, a cloth, a ribbon for a tail, and some twine or string for the tether! Not crafty? Check out your local dollar store. They almost always have kites in the kids section. Plus, the images on the kites tend to be fun and dorky, haha. Maybe you and your SO can have a little competition to find the craziest dollar store kit a la ugly christmas sweater party style.
What do you think of these three alternative cheap date ideas? Love them? Hate them? Totally thought of them already? Comment below with your favorite cheap date idea that your friends wish they knew about sooner!
Written by Elizabeth
 Elizabeth Rice is a lawyer by day who is breaking free from the corporate world one sprinkle of glitter at a time. Over at Girl Got Glitter she is inspiring women to find their inner glitter and shine from the inside out. She also is a compulsive organizer, loves fluffy little kitties, and drinks way too much coffee. Stop by Girl Got Glitter and become a GlitterFriend or connect on Google+ for more fun! |
The UnderEmployed Fashionistas 