Just some possibilities

Beauty school student Cristina R.—called “amazing” by one Brokelyn reader, “incredibly talented” by another—writes in about two more days of cheap haircuts and blowouts from her and her wonder-working fellow students at Carsten Aveda Institute:

“April 5th and 19th my school is hosting another fundraiser- all haircuts and blowouts will be $15 and 100% of proceeds will be donated to a foundation dedicated to providing clean water to underprivileged communities. The last fundraiser for Haiti relief was a great success due in no small part to the readers of Brokelyn who joined us!” (more…)

Note: This article has been sanitized to comply with Google AdSense family-friendliness policies.

Have you ever looked around your room and wondered what you could sell for some extra/much needed cash? Did you look in your small-laundry items drawer? Maybe you need to.

The used-bottom fashion trade is a flourishing industry where sellers can make up to $75 a pair, and routinely between $15 and $30. By sellers, I mean average women (some very average) who are selling their tush-covers to pay bills or even buy wedding gowns. Don’t ask me how I know this. But if you’re interested in earning a couple hundred bucks a month for doing something you’re probably already doing for free, here’s what to sell and where to sell it. (more…)

This is the third in our series on the venues featured in the Brooklyn Beer Book (great places, all, even without coupons.) In honor of the US gold-medal sweep at the Olympics yesterday, today’s spotlighted establishment is Trophy Bar, the Williamsburg bar where everyone’s a winner.

TROPHY BAR
www.trophybar.blogspot.com
351 Broadway between Rodney St. and Keap St., Williamsburg, 347-227-8515

Beth: comedienne, Brokelyn writer.

Who doesn’t need a real reason to spend Wednesday nights at a bar? This Wednesday, Feb. 17, our very own Beth Hoyt (of Connect Four tourney fame) is hosting a new event called Speakeasy, a free weekly story-telling series at the Sackett bar, one of our homes away from home (661 Sackett St. between Fourth and Fifth Aves.). Beth has a line-up of “funny and smart people,” including Jessie Cantrell, Ryan Paulson and others, who are going to get on stage and share their stories with you. It’s not really stand-up and not really improv—just awesome people telling tales. (more…)

My PC is having some serious issues. It’s running way slow. It’s freezing up. And a couple of weeks ago I started getting “Your system has a virus!” pop-ups that just won’t go away. I’m not a techie, so where to take my decrepit machine for help? By decrepit, I mean a 2007 Gateway laptop. Tired of listening to my friends telling me to “just get a Mac already,” I decided to find out how much it would cost me for a professional diagnosis. I checked out Yelp for a list of computer repair shops, chose those with decent reviews and called for some quotes. Here’s what I got, and what I figured out in the end. (more…)

Have you been thinking this is the year you are going to learn something new? Maybe you’ve always wanted to learn Esperanto or pluck a harp, but how about making your own LED lamp or nature journaling? NYU and The New School aren’t the only places with interesting-sounding classes this winter. There are plenty of schools and “learning collectives” here in Brooklyn where you can pick up all kinds of useful and not-quite-so-useful abilities. They vary in price—with a few distinctly out of our range—but most are likely better values than, say, $430 for a series of museum walking tours with NYU: (more…)

This is Kristen and her fiancé, Wes, the beaming winners of our wedding ticket give-away to last Saturday’s Brooklyn Based wedding fair at the Bell House (which we heard was big fun). To win tickets, we asked readers to submit their best ideas for saving money at their wedding, and Kristin had a bunch:

“Think of all of your friends and friends of friends and see who might be willing/able to pitch in. My best friend does a baking blog, and she’s making my wedding cake. Another friend has a restored classic Mustang, so he’s providing the getaway car. Yet another works at a brewery, and he was able to give us an awesome deal on alcohol.  Cashing in on relationships—without taking advantage—is a great way to save money while making the wedding unique at the same time. “

Yep, ya gotta have friends, and ones with restored classic Mustangs are the best kind. But Kristen isn’t the only Brokelyn bride-to-be with some cheap tricks up her sleeve. (more…)

You already know we love a good board game, so it should be no surprise that at least one would make our list of under-$25 gifts. There we were trolling the shelves yesterday at Family Dollar, the discounter with locations  around Brooklyn when we stumbled upon Battleship, Perfection and Hungry Hungry Hippos for the inexplicably cheap price of $5.50 each. They look legit… pretty much … and isn’t Family Dollar a reputable retailer? For a quarter the price of what you’d pay at Amazon, we’re not asking too many questions.

If only Newton had had one of these, his theory would have been such an easy sell. This $14 gallon of  gravity from the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Co. is the perfect gift for anyone you think  is taking the world just a bit too lightly. Why spend a very real $14 on a gallon of the invisible stuff that keeps us all with two feet on the ground? Because it’s a funny idea, the Sam Potts-designed packaging has a cool retro look, and all the proceeds go to 826NYC, a Brooklyn non-profit that helps kids with their writing skills. You also can purchase other intangibles like immortality, omnipotence, anti-matter and intelligence both online and at the Park Slope store. And if a gallon’s a bit much, pints are available too (in-store only).

If you’re a merchant, local craftsperson or a reader with a fun find for our growing list, please send photos and descriptions to faye [at] brokelyn [dot] com. And check the site every day through Christmas for our latest additions.

If you have a design-y friend who’s been big into those mod, one-dimensional takes on fussy classics (chandelier decals on walls, picture frame stickers and the like) these “boudoir” mirrors from A & G Merch are a natural next step. Delicately gracing a dressing table or hung on the wall for last-minute spot checks, they’re ideal for that 19th-century damsel living in a Boerum Hill brownstone. Mirrors are sold in store for $10 a piece, or on the web, five for $49.

A&G Merch is in Williamsburg at 111 N. 6th St.  (718) 388-1779. If you’re a merchant, local craftsperson or a reader with a great find for this daily post, please send photos and descriptions to faye [at] brokelyn [dot] com. And check the site every day through Christmas for our latest additions.