Comments on Feminist Finance: Boys v. Girls, Allowance Edition

De Beers, the diamond company, actually started po...

2008-10-22T09:54:00.000-05:00

De Beers, the diamond company, actually started popularizing surprise proposals in their ads because they found that when women chose rings they would spend less money.

Errr... so, leaving a comment here, after reading ...

2008-10-07T23:39:00.000-05:00

Errr... so, leaving a comment here, after reading yours on Get Rich Slowly. I'm not quite sure what to say to all that... I like Offbeat Bride as well, it's my favorite wedding website, hands down (I obviously don't count my own, since it isn't something I can well, read, to help keep me sane). I just wanted to let you know that 1) I use the same advertiser model as Ariel. She also writes clearly labeled advertorial content, and her sponsors have various price points (and she makes more doing it. deservedly so) and 2) I clearly label all my sponsorship posts (and I make very little money off them). All the rest of my content is just my own thing. I do try to turn away sponsors that don't seem to be a good match for readers, but everyone has different price points, so I can't shoot people down just based on that. The whole point of my site is, after all, that it's up to each couple to make their own decisions.

Anyway, I just wanted to drop you a line to say that. Just because you love Offbeat Bride (and really, who doesn't? She's amazing) doesn't mean you need to hate my site, or well, tell people they should hate it. We're all working hard for little to nothing, to provide resources for those of us with a dearth of wedding resources that have anything to do with who they are and what they want. I'd be the first to say that OBB is the best wedding site on the net, bar none.

My dad taught my younger brother how to run the ri...

2008-10-07T23:07:00.000-05:00

My dad taught my younger brother how to run the riding lawn mower, but I ended up being the one who mowed the lawn dang it. But when I went into finance, we gained up on my brother about investing for his future...heh.

In many ways I had similar experiences learning ab...

2008-10-07T23:00:00.000-05:00

In many ways I had similar experiences learning about money, and it shows in the contrast between my saving/spending style and those of my friends.
By the time I reached double digits Dad took me to open a joint account. He would contribute a little of each of his paychecks to a regular savings, and a small percentage to a "Christmas Savings Account." The latter was so I would have money to buy gifts for my family. The money was "locked" until November and while it didn't yield a higher interest or do any other tricks, it was my first experience with a savings account that was not accessible for deductions for a set amount of time and was aimed at a specific savings goal. I don't know if he did this with my sister and brother because they are respectively seven and 10 years older than me -- and our saving/spending styles are as far apart as our birthdays.
My mom, on the other hand, taught me to shop at thrift stores and discount stores and never ever ever pay "retail." She also taught me that in-store credit carries a way higher APR.
In addition to money smarts, I learned work ethic from Dad and social responsibility from both my parents.
I'm glad my parents never skimped on my financial education, but I know this is far from true for many young adults, boys and girls alike. On the flip side, I hope those parents out there who are teaching their offspring to balance a check book are also teaching them how to be charitable and that (cliché alert) money isn't everything.

My dad's advice was never that sophisticated, but ...

2008-10-07T22:44:00.000-05:00

My dad's advice was never that sophisticated, but my parents set aside a minor amount of money for me (and my sister) each month to spend on clothes and when we'd go out to shop, would tell us how much we had to spend (and lay down any rules about what we NEEDED -- if you owned no unripped pants, you needed to buy pants). We were allowed to choose what we wanted, which meant my sister buying less, more expensive, brand-name stuff, and me buying more, but cheaper, stuff. Easy, early lessons in budgeting and planning. Very, very useful.