DIY Life

Hefty cable bill got you down? Do some people pay less for cable than others? Yes and yes! Here's how to reduce your monthly cable bill, with realistic advice gleaned from frugal cable subscribers.

Warning: to make this advice work for you, you'll have to be painfully honest with yourself about a) how much you really need/use your existing cable and b) how much you can really afford cable, if at all.

1. Not yet a cable customer? First, search for special deals offered by your cable provider, such as a low monthly rate for the first six months. When you do call to sign up, make sure to ask if you can get one of those low-rate deals, plus extras, such the modem, thrown in for free. Hey, it doesn't hurt to ask!

Lately, I've been coming across beautiful vintage TV and stereo cabinetry while making my weekly thrift shop rounds.

Most have beautiful wood finishes, and the designs are unusual and very retro, but I haven't been able to bring myself to buy a heavy cabinet filled with a dead Magnavox just for the cabinet. I continue to rack my brain to come up with a practical purpose for such a behemoth. What could possibly justify the time and trouble to lug this thing home?

Moxie, over on Craftster, came up with a clever and functional use for an old 1950s-style TV cabinet. Read more about it after the break.

If you still live in the dark ages and have one of those old cabinet TV's, maybe it is time to upgrade to a new one. Really, I am surprised you even get any reception from that thing anymore! Come into the 21st century now, ya hear, and get yourself something you can actually enjoy watching because it is time to recycle that old clunker.

AlpineButterfly was given a cabinet TV by a friend, so she decided to turn it into a swanky new bar, complete with curtains and LED lights. She admits it was her first time sewing curtains, cutting glass, and tackling grouting, but the finished cabinet TV bar is sure to be a hit at all her parties.

Check to see if you have some old shelving and unused speakers hanging around and you can build yourself a cool cabinet bar too. If you aren't up to the bar idea, check out Dan Chilton's post on turning an old TV into a flat panel. Either way, you'll be keeping that old TV out of the landfill.

Did you get a high definition LCD or plasma television for Christmas? Are you scared to death to hang it on the wall because it just might fall? For those of us who still have questions about hanging a television, Popular Mechanics shows us how to mount an HDTV on the wall in an hour. I don't know about you, but the step by step instructions with photos make me unafraid to hang a $3000 piece of electronics on the wall now, where as before I would have thought the television would have crashed on the floor within seconds of me hanging it on the wall.

You'll need a drill, a stud finder, a socket wrench and an HDTV wall mount to hang your new TV on the wall. According to Popular Mechanics, the weight of the television will determine how many mounts you will need. Placement of your television is critical also.

Now, in the olden days of, say, the 1980s, we thought a La-Z-Boy recliner was the height of indulgent relaxation. No longer. Now you've got your specialty home theater seating, meaning super-adjustable, huge, comfortable theater-style loungers complete with cup holders. Mmm. Comfort. And a mere $1,499.99 for a three-seat set of leather loungers. Yikes! Oh, and check this out for the ultimate in lavish living. At the other end of the spectrum, though, are budget-conscious DIY makeovers like this one for under $500, proving you don't have to be super-wealthy like Tony Soprano to theater-it-up. (Remember those episodes where he installed a home theater in the downstairs den, complete with an old-timey popcorn machine?)

Thinking of taking the plunge? The home improvement website Home Time has a really useful feature on home theater planning. It covers everything you'll need to consider, like the space you'll need and even suggested room layouts, to maximize your viewing pleasure. Need inspiration? Visit Projector Central for tons of makeover pics.

Are you tired of going to the same old events all the time? You are not alone. Many people have a hard time finding fun and interesting things to do, without spending a ton of money. Buying the tickets to get into events can cost a lot of money, and just doesn't seem worth the time.


If you like to travel, then the only cost of these events to you would be traveling expenses, and we all know how the cost of gasoline is these days. If you like to stay closer to home, check your local area chamber of commerce to find out what special upcoming events your community may be hosting. Our local paper always has a list of community events for the new week. Every spring we receive a schedule of events for the entire year. With a little imagination and no strain on the pocketbook, you can have a great and memorable time for next to nothing.

Flat panel TVs are cool. I'm sure you've seen one before, either while you were walking through your local electronics store, or visiting that friend or relative who gets paid eight times more than you; and I bet you've found yourself imagining where you'd put your very own flat panel if you ever found the money to buy one. Well, do I have good news for you: turns out you can turn just about any good, working old TV into a slick flat panel unit with little more than a Sawzall and some spare wood.

Believe it or not, the TV you see above is a full-size, space-hogging CRT. "But where's the rest of the television," you ask? Continue reading to find out...