ArcaMax

When I am not writing about personal finance and consumer debt, I knit. Something about the gentle rhythm of yarn and needle calms my spirit and unwinds my brain.

I have managed to finish a few projects, not because I'm a great knitter but because I can "tink" almost as well as I knit (knit spelled backward is the process of undoing your ...Read more

Of all the columns I've written, the one on how to have perpetually clean carpet in my home has generated by far the most interest. Here it is again, updated. Enjoy!

I bought my Hoover SteamVac on Dec. 7, 2008, and I only know that because there it is in my Amazon order history -- $147 with free shipping. All these years later, while still ...Read more

Favorite bed pillows get a lot of use every night. We keep clean pillowcases on them and don't think much about the pillow inside until it's time to change the bed linens. Have you looked lately?

WHAT ARE THOSE STAINS?

The culprit is sweat, the chemical composition of which varies from one person to the next depending on everything from what ...Read more

If you love your morning cup of joe, there's a pretty good chance you're throwing out spent coffee grounds on a regular basis. Take a look at this list, and you just might discover more than a few ways you can recycle and reuse old grounds so you can enjoy them over (and over) again!

Not a coffee drinker? These days, local coffee shops offer ...Read more

Most ant problems -- especially those teeny tiny sugar ants that are attracted to the sweets in your kitchen -- can be quickly solved with ordinary items you have around the house. Think of what follows as a kind of buffet to get rid of ants. You pick the solutions that meet your immediate need with items you have on hand.

MOP AND VACUUM

To ...Read more

I love Thanksgiving so much I would say it vies for first place in my favorite holiday lineup. I love and adore a classic turkey dinner with all the trimmings. I love the fall weather, which always accompanies the day. I love the fact that Thanksgiving ushers in the winter holidays, offering me a front-row seat on the very best time of the year....Read more

You can boost a young person's credit by taking advantage of a little-known authorized user provision, but credit issuer policies vary widely depending on the young person's age.

Like it or not, ours has become a culture of credit. Good credit is necessary to get the best mortgage rates, a decent credit card, an apartment, a job or a phone. If ...Read more

Whether you live in a house, apartment, condo, mobile home or dorm room, having enough electrical outlets to handle all of the accessories, appliances and tools you need can be a challenge. And that's when knowing how to safely use a power strip sure comes in handy.

While one of these devices can offer a reasonable solution for too few outlets,...Read more

You might think your coffee maker is a one-trick pony -- does anything smell more wonderful than a freshly brewed pot of coffee? But let's think about this for a moment. That appliance heats water to about 200 F and comes equipped with a hot plate to keep it at about 165 F. Whether you're traveling, living in a dorm room or just like the idea of...Read more

They're bulky and take up precious cabinet space, but we'll never get rid of our slow cookers. They can be lifesavers on days when time is scarce and we just want to make a big batch of something deliciously comforting to get us through.

A slow cooker, aka Crock-Pot, is one awesome household appliance for hands-off cooking. If you have one (a ...Read more

For years, I was on the fake acrylic nails bandwagon. From the first time I gave that manicure option a try, I loved it. Polish lasts longer on acrylic nails; my nails were always uniform -- shaped perfectly and just the right length. All I had to do was go to the nail salon every three weeks to have them maintained.

The problem is it became ...Read more

Today's topic isn't pretty, but unless you have $8,000 earmarked to treat periodontal disease, an ounce of good dental care could prevent a lot of pain -- both dental and financial.

Periodontal disease is an infection that destroys the attachment fibers and supporting bones that hold the teeth in the jawbone and can destroy the bone itself. ...Read more

A compact clothes steamer is handy for removing wrinkles and stale odors from fabric, but is that all? Just another single-purpose tool that sits on a shelf gathering dust? Don't be so sure! I've been amazed to discover all the ways to use an ordinary clothes steamer to clean, sanitize, renew and refresh all around the house.

BASICS

Before we ...Read more

Having reached the level of coffee snob some years ago, I don't think I'm quite to the level of coffee geek yet -- but I continue to work on it. That's how much I love really good coffee!

As you may recall from previous posts, I've been a home roaster for many years now. While my family and I seriously enjoy a good cup of coffee, the real ...Read more

They come in sizes big and small, rimmed or without sides. We use them to bake just about anything, but mostly cookies. And they can get super grungy with layers of baked- and burnt-on grease, resulting in ugly stains and residue buildup.

Does any of this sound familiar to you? If so, I have good news. Your baking sheets can be cleaned and ...Read more

I got the biggest shock of my life the day I realized that living on a budget wasn't the straitjacket or rigid "diet" I assumed it would be. It was my life as a credit card junkie that put me in financial bondage.

Living on a budget saved my life because it allowed me to get out of debt. It gave me my freedom. Want to know my secret for staying...Read more

Celebrity chef Alton Brown contends that a kitchen tool that does only one job is mostly useless. He calls anything like a pickle fork, garlic press, strawberry stem remover or hot dog steamer a "unitasker."

His advice? Don't waste your time and money on any kitchen tool if it is only good for one thing. It will just take up valuable space, ...Read more

Finally, you have a couple of months where things are going well. The bills get paid on time, and you actually have money left at the end of the month. Then, pow! Without warning, the water heater bursts, the car breaks down, and the first half of the property tax bill is past due -- and suddenly you're broke.

How can you possibly plan or ...Read more

Buying a home is likely the largest purchase you will ever make. This is not the time to make mistakes that could easily plunge you into an unfavorable financial situation.

During my 18-year career as a real estate broker, I learned a lot of things, but none was as valuable as what not to do! I didn't learn this in a seminar or while studying ...Read more

For many years I wouldn't have anything to do with a budget because I couldn't stand the idea of anyone -- or anything -- telling me how to spend my money. And where did that get me? Into one big financial mess.

Every month, when I ran out of money, I would turn to MasterCard and Visa for a bailout. To me, any available credit was the same as ...Read more