My friend Lara Spencer from Good Morning America stopped by the Revolution last week to talk about three of my favorite things: thrifting, yard sales, and flea markets!

I have to say, she’s really not messing around – the lady knows how to spot finds and refurbish them so that you’d never know they were thrifted. 

Take this birdcage, for example:


When Lara found it at a flea market, it was just a plain old birdcage – she only paid $20 for it. Slap on a few coats of paint, electrify it, and you’ve got an incredibly unique and striking lamp that looks a lot more expensive!

The trick is to think about the structure and the condition of the foundation of an object – don’t fixate on things that are easy to change like color, fabric, etc. If you know you’re going to fix up an item, you can normally get it for a pretty decent price.

For more examples of her refurbished finds, check out the clip here. 

What’s the best thing you’ve found at a yard sale or flea market lately? Tell me about it in the comments below – or better yet – upload a photo and leave me the links. 

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Earlier this week on “The Revolution” I learned that a neti pot can clear your nasal passages of allergens. Useful information, but not too pretty in execution… 



Have you ever used a neti pot? Any surprises come out of your nose? It’s sort of like a science project….  

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Caption this photo in the comments below- I’ll tweet my favorite caption on Friday so make sure you’re following me on Twitter to see if you won. 

UPDATE: And the winner is...

Linda: "Ty, 'Kermit, what is your secret to happiness?' Kermit, 'I eat what ever bugs me.'"

And the runner up...

Evi: The green with envy joke is getting really old Ty! Now I'm echo friendly!

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It’s always nice to have a little extra cash. No matter how much you’re hustling or how many jobs you’re working, life has a way of hitting us with surprises, and it’s smart to have some financial cushion to get you through the tougher times. Well, this week I’m challenging you to try out one (or multiple-go big) of the simple saving tricks below. 

All of these money-saving tricks are easy to tackle and allow you to save money without taking any funds out of your income- sweet deal right? 

10 Simple Ways to Save Money

1. Unplug appliances when they’re not in use.  Anything that’s plugged in still uses electricity and power used equals a bigger bill for you. Added bonus: you’re helping the environment with this move too. 
    
2. Clean out your closets and the garage... then cash in. 
    
3. Take the extra time to cook at home. 
    
4. Cancel unused club memberships (secret money suck). 
    
5. Cancel unread subscriptions. 
    
6. Carpool (or take the bus/ ride a bike!). 
    
7. Hit the library instead of a book store. 
    
8. Eat out early and enjoy this awesome thing called happy hour. 
    
9. Shop smartly- retailers have specific days that they put out new stock and mark down merchandise, so ask the next time you’re in the store and sync your shopping schedule accordingly. 
    
10. Ditch bottled water. Buying plastic bottled water can add up to thousands a year. Go green, and cheap, with a glass water bottle you can refill. 

If you try out any of these tricks let me know in the comments below. And share your money-saving tricks too. Good luck. 

P.S. Have you been enjoying our weekly challenges? I hope that they’re an easy way to kick off your week on the right foot. Let me know what you think of the series in the comments. 

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Recently on “The Revolution” the hilarious Annie Potts and I discovered some unconventional household fixes. 

Check out the video below to see what I mean:


So here’s your challenge this week. Use one of the fixes above and let me know how it goes. Don’t forget to share your story, upload pics and leave any other unconventional fixes of your own in the comments below! 

And as you’re trying out one of these creative fixes, here are some success stories from last week’s organic challenge:

•  Kathy Workman - Near Lodi, Ohio is an organic farm that we get eggs and some produce from, have been doing it for several years.  My sister has a small garden that is all organically grown herbs and vegetables that we all contribute to, whether it is weeding or having something there that one of us wants.  Once you taste organic grown, you never go back.  Don't do much meat in my house, but I try to find the organic meats because the ones marked "natural"  still have some form of chemicals in it.  If it's not listed as organic, it ain't so!  

•  LB Russell - I love organic!  I grow my own and what I don't use I pass out to friends, family and neighbors- so we all share in the bounty!  What I can't grow I try to buy from local farmers markets. Being in the North East- I also try to freeze or can as much as I can before fall and winter set in- but I still have a few staples growing all year round in the house as house plants- green peppers, cherry tomatoes, various hot peppers, herbs.  Fresh produce just can't be beat!

•  Katharine Peck-  Since last October, I've been purchasing more organic produce, such as strawberries, blueberries, and vegetables, as much as possible.  I have also been maintaining my New Year's resolution via learning how to cook more in my remodeled studio efficiency. By the way, I've also been using some of Harley's recipes! So far, so good!  Take care! 

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Gotta love Martha. Caption our thoughts in the comments below. 

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Last week I shared the story of one incredible Homegrown Hero, Birke Baehr, a 13-year-old organic famer that’s making a big difference just by asking smart questions. Well, his questions got me thinking a little more about where my food comes from, and this week I’m challenging you to do the same. 

Over the next seven days here’s your assignment: go organic. Who knows, once the week is up you might want to stick with it…. Here are five reasons to really give organic food some extra consideration: 

1. Organic foods are produced without the use of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). Genetically engineered ingredients are now found in 75% of all non-organic U.S. processed foods, even in many products labeled or advertised as "natural.”

2. Organic foods are safe and pure. Organic farming prohibits the use of toxic pesticides, antibiotics, growth hormones, nano-particles, and climate-destabilizing chemical fertilizers. Consumer Reports has found that 77% of non-organic produce items in the average supermarket contain pesticide residues. The beef industry has acknowledged that 94% of all U.S. beef cattle have hormone implants, which are banned in Europe as a cancer hazard. 

3. There’s more humane treatment of animals. Organic farming prohibits intensive confinement and mutilation (debeaking, cutting off tails, etc.) of farm animals. 

4. You can expect a higher nutrition value. Organic foods are nutritionally dense compared to foods produced with toxic chemicals, chemical fertilizers, and GMO seeds. Studies show that organic foods contain more vitamins, cancer-fighting anti-oxidants, and important trace minerals.

5. Buying local supports local farmers and small business. 

Give it a try for seven days and let me know how your organic challenge goes in the comments below.  

And I have to say, the TyPennington.com community really came through in the Random Acts of Kindness Challenge last week. Here are some success stories:

Kathy Workman: Great challenge this week Ty! I try to do this most every day!  My New Year's Resolution every year is TRY to do a "good deed" every day, key word being try.  Random act of kindness today:  paid my cell phone bill and saw a person struggling in a wheel chair only to discover she was someone I knew from several years ago.  Walked and talked with her for 5 minutes as I helped her up the curb and into her bank.  I have never saw such a smile on this lady's face as I did today!  Usually it is helping an old lady or gentleman on/off the bus with their groceries, giving a dollar to the person who is short on bus fare, or just standing talking with someone who needs that shoulder to cry on/ear to bend.  Makes me feel fantastic every time.

Joanne Marnick: Ty, this is fun!  :)  I was in the bakery getting cookies for my L'il friend and a cappuccino for me and I struck up a conversation with the lady behind me about the chocolate covered oreo's on the counter.  She was saying that her kids will be so happy to have them.  She looked so happy to be giving them to her kids as a treat that I decided to buy them for her.  It was small, but it made her smile and made me really happy inside to make someone smile.  I hope I have more opportunities to do things like this.  Thank you again for the inspiration.  Be happy.   -  Joanne

Ann Albers: Had to share... I helped someone struggling to lift stuff out of their car at a goodwill dropoff and within fifteen minutes someone rescued me lugging heavy stuff into a tile store for return. Gotta love the way life works. There is a love that wants to flow through the universe to and from each of  us if we let it.  Its the only way to live!

Georgia Lee - I tell myself each and every day that I will make sure I put as smile on someones face.It may be complimenting them on their hair,clothes ect... or in conversation and saying the right things to make them laugh or just bring a smile to their face.It makes feel me better knowing that I made someone smile.

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Caption this photo of Kendall Levin and I backstage at “The Revolution.”

And if you missed Kendall talking about how she beat bullying and showing off her Irish dance skills click here. 

UPDATE: This week's winner is in.

Leslie Joyce: "Ty: 'How my doing Kendall?' Kendall:  'Ty, uh..this is an IRISH jig not a 'I GOTTA GO' dance'"

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Sometimes the things that change our days the most are things we expect the least. So, in the spirit of the unexpected, I’m challenging you to perform one random act of kindness this week. 

If you caught “The Revolution” last week, then you know I hit the streets of NYC to test out the theory that kindness is contagious. 

Watch the video below to see how it went:

Get out there this week and surprise someone with a kind gesture.  Here are some other ideas:

-leave a note on someone’s car, wishing them a great day 
-pick up the tab for the person behind  you 
-let a stranger cut you in line 
-write an unexpected thank you note
-leave a generous tip 
-drop flowers off at a local hospital 

Let me know how it goes in the comments below and I’ll share some stories here on the site. 

In the meantime, here’s one hilarious prank success stories from last week’s challenge:

• Dana Parker I sewed the legs of my husband's underwear shut. When he started to get dressed that morning....Priceless! 

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Last week I met with my design partners at Sears in Chicago and got to check out my new outdoor tabletop collection.

The collection is in stores now, and I thought I’d share some of my favorite items with you:

1. Palm Leaf Accent Bowl ($3.59); 2. Palm Serve Bowl ($7.19) 3.Palm Lantern ($17.99); 4 .Palm 4 pc Condiment Server ($23.99); 5. Citronella Bucket ($4.79) 6. Palm Green Margarita Glass ($3.59)

For this season’s collection I was inspired by natural elements and colors, as you can see in the green and brown color palette and bamboo leaf theme. You can check out the whole Ty Pennington Summer Tabletop Collection here. 

Let me know which item you like best in the comments! 

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