New Years Eve on a Broke Girls Budget

This past New Years Eve was the cheapest one that I've ever experienced. I spent exactly zero dollars, which I think is pretty impressive.

I'm not going to lie…this was kind of a fluke, but it's a fluke that I'm very happy with.

The week before New Years Eve I did go through the mall searching for a beautifully sequinned dress or a big, glitzy headband or necklace to try to make the night feel special but nothing seemed up to par. I decided instead to use things that I already had and I felt every bit as fancy!

If you want to make it through New Years without breaking the bank follow these commandments:

THOU SHALT NOT BUY A NEW OUTFIT
I wore a dress that my mom bought me as a gift last year, a necklace that I got as a Secret Santa gift in high school and a feather headband that I've had for a few years. It didn't bother me one bit that my outfit had already seen the light of day. I actually felt better that I wasn't going into the New Year wearing something I wish I hadn't bought!

THOU SHALT DRINK WITHIN THEIR BUDGET
All of my alcohol had been given to me as a gift during Christmas so I was able to get through the night without spending a single cent to drink! I find this pretty awesome seeing as I actually had champagne on a beer budget (har dee har har)

THOU SHALT NOT PAY TO GET INTO AN ESTABLISHMENT
We ended up going to a friends house party so we were able to forgo paying cover to get into a bar or club and got to skip the temptation of buying drinks while we were there. I'm personally a fan of house parties over bars or clubs anyways and we were able to see more people we knew and not have to worry about the possibility of not getting in or waiting to get in in the cold.

THOU SHALT TAKE ADVANTAGE OF FREE PUBLIC TRANSPO
The boys wanted to take a cab but we convinced them to take public transportation because it was FREE. It may take longer but you can't argue with that. We also may have gotten a little lost thanks to me but we figured it out eventually! We did end up taking a cab home but the boys offered to pay for that so we made out alright.

Follow these commandments to the best of your ability and next year you can start your year off on the right foot.

Sidenote: these rules may also apply any time you go out.

From the desk of:

Taylor Brown
Champagne Drinker (If It's Free)