Tip(ful) Tuesday: SWAP MAMAS

I am all about the Reduce. Reuse. Recycle...I'm crunchy and cheap like that. So when Marlie outgrew her newborn cloth diapers, I went hunting online for a way to exchange them for larger sizes. Environmentally-conscious and frugal moms, meet SWAP MAMAS where you can connect with more than 4,000 moms to swap stuff, be green, and save money! It took me a minute to figure out how the site works and it's pretty simple. You post a description and photos of your items for trade and wait for members to barter with you. You can also scroll through posts looking for stuff you need and make your own offers. Sometimes, members just give stuff for FREE! It is a thing of beauty! Plus, no money transactions are allowed so you don't have to worry about being defrauded. The site is divided into groups such as crafts, books, and coupons (just to name a few out of hundreds). My only recommendation for improvement would be to add a search function so that you can query the posts by key terms rather than having to click through each one. Other than that, I find the site is fairly easy to use AND addictive. I have already exchanged coupons with a mother in North Dakota and I'm hoping to swap cloth diapers soon. Not every group is about swapping goods though...there are even groups that exchange recipes and baking tips! In this economy, very few of us can afford to buy the things we want or need brand-new. Say your kids want the latest Disney DVD, but it's not in your budget. Just join the Disney Mamas and/or the Big DVD Swap and offer to trade a DVD you no longer need in exchange for the one your family wants. My next task is to swap some of my old books for children books to start Marlie's library.
If you have stuff you want to get rid of, check out SWAP MAMAS. Your junk IS someone's treasure!