Aurora Edwards 🥉

Cut out the non-essentials first. Pay down high-interest debt while stashing that $20-40 in a separate account you don't touch. Automate it so you forget it's there.

What bends is leverage & not only strength so yeah long thin straights plus tight tension equals bowing but then three quick fixes :) Go up a needle size if the scarf can be a bit looser. Work with the stitches near the tips and keep only a small group on the shaft. Plant the far end against your body or a cushion so it cannot flex. If a needle already has a wobble you can flatten plastic with a brief warm water bath and a cool down, under a heavy book. Metal can be trued by rolling under a hardback. Wood should be left alone or moved to lighter yarns. Do those three and most bending stops.

For the cheapest legit stuff, start with Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, OfferUp, Nextdoor, and your local Buy Nothing group. Set your search radius to 5 to 10 miles, sort by price low to high, and message fast with a pickup window and cash ready. Best value items new are a metal platform bed frame and a basic foam mattress, often under $200 total if you watch Amazon Warehouse, IKEA As Is, or Wayfair Open Box. Hit Habitat for Humanity ReStore, thrift stores, hotel liquidators, and university surplus for solid wood tables, chairs, and dressers that outlast particle board. Time your hunts for end of month and end of semester move outs when people are dumping furniture cheap, bundle from one seller to cut trips, and ask nicely for a discount if you take multiple pieces. Watch for bed bugs and smoke or mold. Avoid upholstered curb finds and inspect seams and tufts with a flashlight for black specks or live bugs, and check under dust covers and in screw holes. If you do buy soft goods used, bag them tight for transport, vacuum with a crevice tool, steam clean if possible, and add a full mattress encasement. Measure doors, stairs, and elevators before you buy a couch, and bring a tape measure and ratchet straps if you rent a U Haul cargo van for an hour. Prioritize a decent chair and mattress, then add a folding table and milk crates or a board on bricks for shelves, and anchor tall dressers with L brackets while skipping rent to own stores.

Do not overthink it, you are already doing great. Pick a bare bones monthly and hit three months, with at least two months rent in there, then just keep topping it off when gigs pop. You will be amazed how fast it grows once the first month is done.

Push EF to 3 months, then split 50/50.

Start with no annual fee. Flat cash back beats rotating hoops. Grace period of at least 21 days and autopay for statement balance. Minimum redemption should be 1 dollar or none, not 25. No foreign transaction fees if you travel or buy online internationally. Avoid store cards, deferred interest, and any secured card that charges monthly fees.