10 Ways to Save Money When Furnishing Your Small Apartment

Finding the right furnishings and housewares for your small apartment can be a fun experience. Yet even in a small space this can get expensive fast if you don’t know how to save money on all the basics you’ll need. While apartments generally cost less to buy stuff for than larger homes, based on the limited space you are working with, you can still shop smart and frugally, allowing you to save as much money as possible. You can direct your savings to other needs like throwing your apartment-warming party.

Here are ten simple tips to save money on all your apartment furnishings, décor and other apartment needs:

Buy adaptable pieces. One of the best ways to get more out of your apartment and your lifestyle is to stick to furniture and housewares that serve more than one purpose. This will allow you to adapt and move things around as your needs change, without having to buy more. Choose a high-end futon with a generous cushion to serve as a bed for guests, or benches that double as storage chests. Try adding an armoire for storing either clothes or entertainment items in cramped spaces.
Choose quality over quantity. You are better off spending a few extra dollars on a high quality used piece of furniture for your apartment than buying a cheaply made newer piece. Look for sturdy hardwoods and metals, which offer flexible décor options. A well-made table with simple lines can serve as a desk, a dinette, or a place to tuck a television.
Buy multiples. This might seem counterintuitive with a small apartment, but if you find a good deal on items you like such as dinnerware, bedding, or other apartment needs, it often makes sense to stock up. You’ll very often be able to buy box lots of items or come away with some great bargains buying several pieces from a container store or wholesaler. This will save money and keep you stocked for years to come.
Shop locally. Chances are your neighborhood has several thrift stores or antique stores where you can pick up some amazing deals for pennies on the dollar. Visit these places with an open mind, and don’t be afraid to ask for what you need or for a break on a price if something catches your eye. Local retailers will work with you in ways big chain stores will not–plus it supports your community.
Swap or trade. Have something you are looking to replace? Try putting an advertisement on a free community swap of website like Yerdle and ask for something in trade. You may be surprised to find that other people are trying to get rid of something that would be perfect for your place.
Go for impact with art. When it comes down to buying for your apartment, there’s no better investment than a great piece of artwork. Shop your local community stores, head for auctions, and visit the local art colleges for unique artwork to adorn your walls. It will look like you spent a fortune.
Avoid fads. When buying for your apartment, stay away from the latest styles in furnishings and instead opt for the classics in furniture and fabrics. You’ll usually end up with things that last longer and don’t cost as much.
Buy post season. Sales occur after every major holiday, and this can be an opportune time to buy things for less than half of retail. Good things come to those who wait, for clearance sales!
Shop with friends. Your friends are likely to have an eye for style, so be open to going in on deals with them. For example you may need a new living room set, but you don’t need all the pieces. Go with a friend who needs some new tables or a loveseat, and split the cost of a marked down set. You’ll both come out ahead.
Be eclectic. Shopping for an apartment on a budget means that you may need to develop a décor style that mixes and matches pieces. Try adding a few modern things in with classic glamour, for a unique apartment that’s all you.

Decorating and buying for your apartment takes careful planning and strategic shopping. Think about all the ways you can save money and only bring in items that look good for your space, and are made well. Over time, you will want to repurpose these items in other ways, so think ahead as you furnish your place.

Mark Russell writes about apartment living and frugal apartment living tips at Apartment Guys.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

February 8, 2013May 23, 2014

Optimize Your Emailing with Keyboard Shortcuts

Many of us spend a good portion of our days dealing with email. Whether we relish or loathe the task, we can all agree that it makes sense to figure out how to do go through your inbox as efficiently as possible. We’ve looked at ways of optimizing your Gmail account, but today we’re looking at something a bit more basic: The keyboard shortcut.

Every on and offline mail service (Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, Outlook, Apple Mail etc.) has them, but many of us don’t use them. Just like when you discovered ctrl/Apple + c, v and x (you have discovered those, right?), a little know how can result in a ton of time saved over the years.

Rather than cover every mail service, we’re going to give a few keyboard shortcuts for Gmail, which is still the mail service of choice for the majority of us. (We’ve put links to other mail services below).

Enable keyboard shortcuts on Gmail by going to settings (the little gear in upper right corner). On the “General” tab, scroll down to “Keyboard shortcuts”. Turn keyboard shortcuts on and save settings at bottom of screen.
Shift + c to compose message in new window.
/ puts your cursor in search box. This is especially useful for those of us who keep documents in our inbox.
Shift + c to reply. Shift + a to reply all.
Shift + 3 to delete a message.
gi Takes you to your inbox.
? shows a keyboard shortcut cheatsheet.
Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL, Outlook, Apple Mail (may vary between OS versions).

We like to say that the hours of our days are often lost in teaspoons, not gallons. While not revolutionary for many of us, sometimes mini timesavers like these keyboard shortcuts help us do the things we’re doing faster so we can get on to more important things.

What simple but important email timesavers do you use? Let us know in our comments section.

image credit Shutterstock.com

January 31, 2013May 23, 2014

8 Tips for Making Your Own Micro Apartment

With all the hoopla around the adAPT NYC competition and other micro-apartments around the country, it’s clear there’s a demand for smart, small apartments. In fact, people write us daily asking if we have apartments available to rent or buy.

While LifeEdited is working with development teams to get you your micro-apartments with the greatest haste (be sure to sign up for our list), many of the developments are years away. This leaves the question: What do I do now if I want a micro-apartment?

If you’re interested in living in a micro-apartment–either converting your existing place or starting fresh–here are some suggestions we think are critical to living a big life in a small apartment.

Pick a good address. We think small spaces work best when you use your city or town as your living room. With amenities like restaurants, entertainment and parks at arm’s length, a good address will provide a living room you actually want to hang out in. Central locations are more walkable and have better public transport, allowing you to live car-free or get by with a car-share. Check out Walkscore.com to see how a neighborhood stacks up in terms of walkability and amenities. Yes, a good location will cost more, but you can save money by being car free and choosing a smaller apartment.
Size matters. While there is no magic number for square footage, the micro-apartment designation is about 250-400 sq ft for singles; 300-600 for couples; 500 + for families (separate rooms are generally a good idea for a peaceable family). In most cities and towns, there are plenty of apartments these sizes.
Get in good shape. In general, square and rectangular spaces are ideal. They feel bigger than odd-shaped spaces and are easier for fitting modular furniture.
Get a Murphy Bed. It’s the single easiest way of creating space without sacrificing function. A queen size bed is about 35 sq ft.–i.e. 10% of a 350 sq ft space; a 10% used exclusively while unconscious. We use the Swing sofa/bed by Resource Furniture; the sofa on the frontside provides even more space-saving as most Murphy beds have unused front sides. Starting at over $10K, the Swing is not for everyone. Resource Furniture has many less expensive models and there are a number of decent Murphy beds that can be purchased for around $3K. We were recently turned onto Murphy Bed Center, who has models starting at $1699. If you’re a DIY type, build your own for $275.
Get high…with storage. Almost all of the adAPT NYC submissions included floor-to-ceiling storage. Having high storage utilizes unused vertical space and frees up floor space, making an apartment seem larger. On the high end, Resource Furniture offers modular storage units to fit with their furniture. On the low-end, the IKEA Pax system can be had for less than $1K and is almost 8′ high.
One table is enough. A while back we looked at tables that serve as both coffee and dining tables. While these table are a little on the pricey side, only needing one table frees up quite a bit of floor space and provides two important surfaces.
Sit and stow. Having chairs available for guests is important, but when we’re home alone or with our partners, we only need one or two chairs out at a time. The rest of the time, extra chairs just take up space, which is not a luxury the micro-apartment dweller can afford. If you don’t know what chair to get, here are 10 folding chairs to fit almost any budget.
Get a comfy couch. A micro-apartment requires that every object be highly useable. While that stiff, low profile couch might take up little space and look super cool, if it’s not comfy, you’re not going to want to sit in it. Get a comfortable couch you’ll want to sit in day-in-day-out. If it’s big enough to sleep guests, all the better.

Anything we missed? Let us know in our comments section.

January 23, 2013May 23, 2014

10 Quick and Cheap Life Hacks to De-Clutter and Simplify Your Life

These ten quick and cheap life hacks prove that simplifying life, saving space and de-cluttering is not sole domain downsizing your house, elaborate Italian furniture and hi tech apps. Sometimes all you need is some paperclips and lots of old toilet paper tubes. And who knew there was actually a way to fold a fitted sheet? Find another 90 suggestions at Muxedo Task.

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Via Twisted Sifter

January 21, 2013May 23, 2014

Edit Your Workout with a Tabata Burpee Set

While there are some of us that relish working out–the chance to flex muscles, purge pores with sweat, gulp down air–there is surely an equal or greater number of us who do not enjoy it–who do it to keep weight off, keep some muscle tone, to offset an otherwise sedentary lifestyle. For the latter category, the question becomes how do you do as much good for your body as efficiently as possible? There is a one word answer for that question. It’s burpee.

A burpee is a single exercise that involves a squat, leg thrust, pushup and jump. Watch the video above to see it performed. It works every upper and lower muscle you have in one continuous–and grueling–calisthenic motion.

No equipment or gym required.

Think you’re not strong enough. Think again. There are a million variations to cut intensity: Do bent leg pushups, use a chair to reduce the depth of squat, do your pushup against a table, don’t jump…you could literally make a nonagenarian adapted burpee (see one example of modified burpee below). There are also a million ways to add intensity.

One of the ways to truly maximize your burpee experience is to use the Tabata method. Tabata, named after Olympic trainer Izumi Tabata, is a form of high intensity interval training (HIIT), that requires 20 seconds of maximal effort, followed by ten seconds rest. You repeat this exercise/rest set eight times. Four minutes and you’re done.

One study (Gibala et al) showed that 2.5 hours of HIIT training had the same muscular and endurance benefits of 10.5 hours of specific endurance training. Another study reports that HIIT exercise is better at burning fat than aerobic exercises. (Note that HIIT can be performed with virtually any exercise and Tabata is just one form of HIIT.)

All of this runs counter to our aerobic-centric exercise world, where gyms are lined with elliptical machines and treadmills. Don’t get us wrong, aerobic exercise is great, and walking is still probably exercise supreme. But if you want to get stronger and leaner faster, nothing beats HIIT like Tabata. And if you want a complete exercise, few things outside of waterpolo do it like the burpee.

A proper warmup like a brisk walk, jog or jumping rope is highly recommended when doing HIIT to avoid injury. If you have health concerns, consult an expert. And consider adding something like a Tabata burpee set to your existing routine (maybe swap it for a cardio session) rather than replacing it altogether. See how it goes.

November 7, 2012August 23, 2013

Debt Free and Loving It

Each week we are profiling real people who are editing their lives for more freedom and happiness. This week we hear from Sigrid, who shares her story of living simply, lightweight and debt-free.

Tell us about yourself.

My name is Sigrid. I am almost 40 years old. I am a medical technologist and getting my Master’s in healthcare administration. My husband, border collie mix and I live in Seattle in a 1800 sq ft 1914 bungalow, where we grow veggies, fruit and fresh flowers. We also make beer yearly from our hop vine. My interests include medicine, minimalism, gardening and crocheting.

What makes your life an ‘edited’ one?

I think I’ve been on the life edited path for a while, but it has taken back-steps at times. Throughout my life, I have found a tremendous pressure to live a conventional American life with its ideas of success like large houses, fancy cars and jewelry, and other forms of materialism. This way of life says you aren’t successful if you don’t make and spend a large income.

After college, I felt obligated to grow myself professionally which also meant monetarily. At first, this seemed a reasonable goal as, like most college grads, I had debt and little savings. There was no where to go but up. But after a while, I started to feel embarrassed when I didn’t have more clothes, better car, etc. So, despite the fact I was exhausted chasing this way of life, I felt I had to attain at least some of these items in order to be socially acceptable.

The seeds of living another way [expanded on below] were planted in my childhood. I was raised in a devout household, and always had an example of non-materialism to look at.

I spent my formative years living in a beautiful 4400 sq ft Victorian house, which made me realize at an early age the downsides of materialism. Although the house had gorgeous white oak floors and paneled doors with brass kick plates, it was an upkeep nightmare. I dreamt of living in the woods inside a hollow tree listening to the wind and rain falling instead.

How long have you been living this way, and do see yourself continuing to live this way?

The active process started about ten years ago. My husband and I became convinced that we didn’t want to spend our lives in the rat race. We made a goal of paying off his car and my student loans before our wedding. We did it, and then we made our next goal to pay off the house by age 40. We did this too. Then, we began saving money for a rainy day, other goals, and retirement.

For me, debt was a form of slavery, even though we ‘voluntarily’ acquired it. The more debt we had, the more a our lives existed to serve the debt. Shouldn’t money serve the needs of people, and not the other way around? The freedom of being debt-free is indescribable. The day we paid off our house was one of the happiest days of my life. I can’t see going back to the conventional way of life.

What are the biggest advantages of living this way?

Because we have so little overhead, we are free to do what we want when we want. This spring we decided to take some time off work before I started grad school. We loaded our small sedan with our suitcases and 10 year old border collie mix Lainie, and drove off into the wild blue yonder. We had a rough idea of what we wanted to do, visit the Grand Canyon and visit with family and friends, but no set itinerary. We covered six states, 7000 miles, and saw most of the national parks in the western US.

We lived in one room motel rooms, washed our clothes in the motel laundry, mostly ate at inexpensive restaurants or PB&J sandwiches from the local grocery stores. We couldn’t buy a lot of souvenirs because there was no room in the car for them. This automatically forced us to focus on the non-material aspects of the trip such as the large amount of free time we had to spend together. The trip was wonderful. It strengthened our relationship and created lasting memories.

What are the biggest challenges?

Even with the Great Recession, my husband and I deal with a lot of misunderstanding as to why we choose to be relatively frugal, which can be challenging. It just doesn’t fit with the American Dream or ideas of success endemic in our culture.

What many people don’t realize is that money saved is money earned toward living life more fully. Being disciplined can be difficult, and some people feel guilty and then angry when faced with this kind of self-limitation. They have been socially conditioned to feel deprived if they don’t spend money, rather than free from anxiety.

Do you and your husband think you could maintain this lifestyle with a family?

Yes, although raising children is a bigger drain on the family budget. It would take longer to save the money up for such a trip. It would probably also make more financial sense to buy a used camper to sleep in rather than motel rooms. The kids would probably enjoy it. If they had to be taken out of school for the trip, we would teach them ourselves so they wouldn’t fall behind in school.

What is the number one suggestion you’d give to someone looking edit their lives?

Set a goal and stick to it regardless of what other people think. After all, if you are burdened with debt, you are the one suffering from the debt and not the Jones down the street. Be creative in coming up with ways to get things done or have fun without spending money, but don’t skimp on important things like health insurance, or repairs to a home or car that could be dangerous if left undone. Spend wisely, not frivolously.

Remember, for every item you purchase you have to work some amount of time to pay for it. More money can always be acquired, but more time cannot. Once the time is spent, it is gone forever.

What item(s) have made your lifestyle easier?

We keep a few card or board games on hand to play. We substitute social interaction for material acquisition.

Do you have any design or architectural suggestions derived from your lifestyle?

Put size limits on your house, car, etc. It makes it easy to forgo impulse purchases. There is no place to put extra items. With no place to put things, you don’t go shopping without a list. We immediately throw catalogs in the recycling bin without looking at them.

Also, almost no one needs a 4400 sq ft house like I had as a child. Each room in your house can do double duty, kitchens and bathrooms excepted. Specific architectural style is less important than using the space inside the home wisely.

Anything else?

For anyone serious about getting out of debt or downsizing, I recommend reading “Your Money or Your Life” by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominguez. It very eloquently demystifies money and our relationship to it. Then, the book presents a 9 step program to get out of debt and live your life more fully. Following a frugal lifestyle is easier knowing that others have done the same thing.

October 23, 2012September 9, 2013

5 Products That Make Our Lives Better

We are always on the lookout for products that do more, last longer and take up less space than their conventional counterparts. We’re not talking about things like a good laptop or phone, which might be indispensable, but will be outdated in six months. We’re talking about the products that won’t go out of date, whose utility proves itself through the years.

We’ve put together a short roundup of products we find ourselves unable to live without (not literally of course). It’s also a nice excuse to ask you what your list includes. What are the things that make your life or home work better–things that make life simpler and more streamlined? Let us know in our comments section below.

Waffle-weave towels. We’ve talked about them before, but too much cannot be said about their merits. The longer we use them, the more they prove their superiority to terry cloth. We’ve been using Aquis microfiber towels and Gilden Tree cotton waffle towels. Both take up less storage and washing machine space, dry faster and avoid mold. If we were to choose one however, it’d be the Aquis; the synthetic material seems to grab moisture from your skin. It’s also softer than cotton. If you’re not into synthetic stuff, the Gilden Tree towels still work great and are available in more sizes and colors.
Outlier pants. These things rock. They look like dress pants, feel like sweat pants, wick and repel moisture like mountaineering pants and wear like iron. Starting at $188, they are not cheap, but they will literally replace three pairs of conventional pants and outlast them as well. I have had several pairs for the last few years. My favorites are the 4 Season OG’s and Climbers, both of which have four-way stretch material (not all Outlier pants are as stretchy). Their shorts rule as well. Right now, they make one women’s variety.
A cast iron skillet. Nonstick skillets are great, but they wear horribly and have a dubious safety record. Copper and stainless steel wear great, but are temperamental, scorching and staining easily. Cast iron, on the other hand, wears like, well…iron. It distributes high and low heat great. With a little bit of use–i.e. ‘seasoning’–it can be almost as nonstick as a Teflon pan, without all the plastic bits in your food. You can clean them without water. And while enameled iron pans are nice, the bare cast iron versions are less fussy and prone to marring. I use a beautifully designed 12″ iittala Hackman Dahlström Tools for almost everything (pictured at very top. Discontinued, but available at various stores), but most any cast iron skillet work equally great. Get a size that’s big enough for the amount of cooking you do, but not so big that it takes ages to heat.
A comfy couch that you can sleep on. I was at IKEA a few weeks ago and they had a 375 sq ft mock-up apartment featuring a huge, overstuffed sectional couch. I thought it a waste of space until I sat it in. Few things demarcate home like a comfy couch. In the LifeEdited apartment, the Resource Furniture Swing couch is the most used piece of furniture. A great couch can be your guest room in a pinch, and while convertible sofa-beds are great, sometimes it’s better to get a longer couch than invest in a substandard sofa-bed, which are often pretty uncomfortable.
A scanner. We thought scanner technology was stable enough that it could be included on this list. Scanners are simple, can last ages, don’t require stupid, overpriced toners and, most importantly, allow you to dump tons of paper by scanning receipts and important documents. Scanners eliminate the need for a fax. You can also scan old photographs for posterity and digital display.

What would you include on this list? What items streamline your home and your life more than most? Let us know in our comments section.

October 17, 2012May 23, 2014

10 Tips for Creating a Small Apartment You’ll Love to Live In

Today’s guest post is from Karen Krizanovich, a small-space dweller living in London. She recently shared her experience and philosophy in the The Times UK. Today, she gives pointers for how to create a no-fuss, reasonably-priced small apartment (aka apartment) you’ll love to live in.

Yes, I would love to live in the Hong Kong apartment designed by Gary Chang, the architect who transformed 344 sq ft into 24 different living spaces. Unfortunately, my flat doesn’t have that kind of scope and neither do I. Still, I can adopt similar principles learned from my friend architect Professor Miriam Neet, LifeEdited and other resources to live in a streamlined, no-fuss, no-muss and non-neurotic fashion. I’ve found the following tips to be indispensable for making a small home you truly want to live in.

Live in your place a few months before making complicated or permanent non-essential changes. Think you know everything already how you live–what’s important, what’s not? You’ll be wrong at least 25% of the time. Be patient. You won’t regret it.
Be a simpleton. We all love innovative, automated designs. But what happens when they break? Who’ll fix it? What if the electricity goes off? What about the batteries? As much as I’d love to own, say, electric curtain rails, I know I’m asking for trouble. Remember that guy with the cool thing that didn’t work? Don’t be him.
Follow your gut. I never liked the way my kitchen cupboard doors shut (stupid spring devices). I said I’d give them a try but, deep in my soul, I knew they’d irk me. And they still do. Little annoying things like this are accentuated in a small space and erode the comfort of your home. Fix things immediately that don’t feel right.
With things you love, buy to last. Plan to repair them when needed. Like a great pair of shoes, your home should be serviceable, look great and fit perfectly.
When the space is small, bad design really grates. Everything has to be just right. Settling for ugly solutions will do temporarily, but always keep on the lookout for the right one.
Buy a cheaper version to roadtest. I’ve bought five different chairs and none of them really worked in the space. Now I’m testing an inexpensive version of another design. If it works, I’ll buy the expensive one eventually.
Ask yourself what you really need. I don’t need a coffee grinder. I barely need a blender and I sure as heck don’t need a blender that is also a soup maker. Keep gadgetry to a basic level–and keep them off the kitchen counter. Clutter is your small flat’s supreme enemy.
Make your home user-friendly. Like training a horse, you don’t want someone to get on and have to learn new techniques. You want anyone to be able to ride your horse right away. Same with your apartment. Keep things basic and obvious. I don’t care for murphy beds or complicated heating systems. Toilets should flush, not do tricks. You don’t want a flat that makes you or other occupants feel stupid.
Love your neighbourhood. One of the big advantages of living in a small flat is that you can afford to live in a neighbourhood that would otherwise be out of reach. Know why you’re there and what’s great about it. That way, even if your apartment transformation is taking a long long time, you’ll remember the bigger picture.
Decide a good want. When you’re considering buying something, imagine your day-to-day life with it. If something really makes you happy–if it is a delight to use, to look at, to own, then it’s probably worth it. If you can live without it, try to do that.

October 15, 2012May 23, 2014

Tip of the Day: Lose the Shoes When You Roost

Here’s an exercise: Take some dog feces, antifreeze, herbicides, gasoline, motor oil and most any other common toxic substance you can think of, mix it all together, then rub it all over your home’s floors. While this might sound a bit dramatic, it’s exactly what happens when we wear our shoes in our homes.

The outside world, while filled with great people and opportunities, is a cesspool. And our shoes are the main point of contact with this wondrous cesspool, so it only makes sense that when we get home, we should take our shoes off.

Few single actions are as effective at keeping our homes sanitary as well as dirt, dust and stain free as taking shoes off every time we enter our home. It also has the benefit of preserving the finish of our floors.

Many countries, particularly in Asia, seem to get this. Most every Japanese home includes something called a Genkan (pictured above), which is an area by the front door where you keep your shoes. It is recessed so dirt and debris is quarantined to this front area.

So you know all of this, but you still don’t do it. Here are a few tips to lose the shoes forever:

Don’t make exceptions. This is the most important tip in maintaining a shoe-free home. Even if you’re popping in for a second, even if it’s your rambunctious nephew or new friend, get your shoes off.
Put a sign at the door asking guests to take their shoes off. Sometimes asking others is the hardest part of maintaining this rule. A sign lets people know the policy is universal, not personal. Put it in a few different languages if you have a lot of foreigner guests.
Have a place to remove your shoes such as a bench. Make it easy for people to get their shoes off.
Have a place to store shoes such as a rack or cubby holes.
Keep slippers or some other type of footwear used only indoors. They’ll keep you feet warm, and protect your floors from bare feet, which often are dirtier than socks or slippers [Note: make a no-exception policy about slippers as well–they are only for indoors. No runs to the mailbox, etc.]. While slippers for guests might not be feasible, a few pair of nice, clean socks are.

What are your experiences or tips with keeping (or not) a shoe-free home? Let us know in our comments section.

September 13, 2012May 23, 2014

Get Happy Spending Money…Just Not on Yourself or Buying Stuff

Face it, consciously or not, many of us think that more money and stuff will make us happy. We want more money so we can get that iPhone5 or the Kindle Paperwhite or super cool off-grid tiny house or whatever.

Our logic is “As soon as I have enough money, I’ll get_____ and I will be able to _____ and then I will be happy.” So we work extra hard, make more dough (or go into hock) so we can set up our tents outside the Apple Store or go onto Amazon or call the Realtor and fix that iPhone5/Kindle Paperwhite/tiny house deficit. We get that thing and it’s like instant nirvana. Problems solved. Bliss for this lifetime and countless others.

Not exactly. A Harvard/University of British Columbia study shows that spending money on ourselves (antisocial spending) is a far less direct route to nirvana than spending money on others (prosocial).

In one of the study’s experiments, they gave Canadian university students $5 and $20 (US $100/400) to either spend on themselves or others. The students who spent money on themselves reported no increase in their happiness, whereas the prosocial spenders reported an increase. Of note, they found that the amount–i.e. $5 or $20–was less important than the act of giving.

They replicated the experiment in Uganda to make sure that this was not a phenomena limited to affluent Canadian students. It wasn’t. The Ugandans validated the previous findings.

Two of the authors of the study, Elizabeth Dunn and Michael Norton, wrote an editorial in the NY Times saying this:

…typical spending tendencies — buying more, and buying for ourselves — are ineffective at turning money into happiness. A decade of research has demonstrated that if you insist on spending money on yourself, you should shift from buying stuff (TVs and cars) to experiences (trips and special evenings out). Our own recent research shows that in addition to buying more experiences, you’re better served in many cases by simply buying less — and buying for others.

Keep in mind that a positive correlation between money and happiness has been found. But that correlation primarily relates to basic levels of material security; once those levels are exceeded–generally regarded as about $75K/year per household in the US–the increase in happiness with income becomes negligible. Above this level, how the money is spent–pro or antisocially–becomes the main driver in money’s capacity to increase its spender’s happiness.

About Dunn and Norton’s latter point–experiences versus possessions–another study found this:

Experiential purchases tend to make people happier than material purchases…We found that participants were less satisfied with their material purchases because they were more likely to ruminate about unchosen options…that participants tended to maximize when selecting material goods and satisfice when selecting experiences…that participants examined unchosen material purchases more than unchosen experiential purchases…and that, relative to experiences, participants’ satisfaction with their material possessions was undermined more by comparisons to other available options …and to the purchases of other individuals.

In other words, camping outside the Apple store is more likely to make you happy than buying the phone inside it.

While it’s not not spelled out explicitly by either research team, one can surmise that buying experiences for others is a great way of making yourself–and the recipient–happy. It also avoids clogging your friends closets with unwanted gifts ;-).

Beyond giving stuff and experiences, Michael Norton in his TEDx talk (above), shows a strong correlation between happiness and those who give to charities. He suggests Donorschoose.org, which lists projects and needs of low-income schools and their teachers as a possible recipient of that charity. You can help build wells in Africa with Graham Hill’s Charity: Water campaign (it’s his birthday today!). The author gave money to Wikipedia this morning and is already feeling better about himself.

What is your experience with spending money antisocially versus prosocially? On stuff versus experiences? Where do you give? Give us your thoughts (prosocial behavior) in our comments section. It’ll make you happy!