Category Archive

Life

We launched as Offbeat Home in 2011, but it has become clear that the site is about much more. In 2013, we relaunched as Offbeat Home & Life, with an expanded focus on Relationships, Budget & Career, Travel, and Style. This is the category for the non-home/rest of life stuff!

Budget hacks for when you’re “broke as a joke”

I recently left a job that was making me miserable in favor of going to school to pursue my lifelong dream. The result has cut my family’s income by about 50%. With the life hacks we had in place, paired with new life hacks, we are keeping our heads above water and still keeping the smiles on our faces.

The ultimate how-to guide for home-dying a rainbow mohawk

I love experimenting with hair. From my teens I’ve generally had colour in it — starting with gentle rinses, up to bleached-bright shades, mohawks and shaven headed designs. With a helper, hair supplies, and an evening (it took us about four hours, including development time) you can become your own colour wheel.

Look but don’t touch: Let’s talk about tattoo etiquette

Obviously touching anyone without permission isn’t cool, but is it really just as shitty for strangers to even look at your tatts without asking? What are your rules for admiring ink and having your ink be admired?

Ever wonder what a TARDIS tastes like?

Apparently it can now taste like whatever you want it to with Think Geek’s TARDIS gelatin mold set! Obviously blue Jello is the way to go if you’re making a TARDIS gelatin mold. But did you know this baby can also make a tiny TARDIS cake!? Look at the delicious cuteness…

Use a bag of water to stretch out your shoes

Try filling Ziplock bags with water and inserting the entire bag (now ziplocked closed) into the shoe. Then put the shoe with said bag inside it into the freezer.

5 ways parenting is like college, kind of

A couple of weeks ago, a guy kissed me all sloppy with his mouth wide open, tried to take my shirt off, and then barfed into my hand, which I promptly wiped on my jeans. As it turns out, that is not the only way my life as a new parent closely resembles my life as a college student.

LinkedIn: I use it for exactly one thing (and it’s not job hunting)

It feels like we pretty much all have a LinkedIn profile. We know that 200 million people do. So we all have accounts, but this, my friends, is the question: WTF is LinkedIn actually FOR? It’s a social network, but no one seems to network much there. It’s for finding jobs, but how?

Keep your spare change in a pirate-y treasure chest

As someone who is always making that mad dash to the door, most days the whole lot of it was dumped unceremoniously on the floor to root through for precious bus fare, vending machine coinage, and the necessary float I was expected to bring to make change for my customers. So, the pirate chest became the ideal solution.