Dear Mommies, I know how hard it is to resist the temptations of shopping for a high heel red shoes just so we could stick to the budget. But the fabulous life we live during our single days need not be compromised when we become a mother. Yes, I know that in a mother's world, a shower is already a luxury but just a reminder: Your beauty is one of the things your husband loves about you. Please do not let it fade just because the needs of the kids should always come first before yours. You can be fab without spending so much. The happiness of seeing yourself beautiful in the mirror can change a lot about yourself. We need not to buy expensive and branded things to look pretty. Make sure your budget would include a little to buy something for yourself once in a while. Looking good need not to cost an arm and a leg. Here are some of my tips for being frugal. I hope this could be of help to you too:

1. Buy yourself some cosmetics. Yes, I know its not a budget friendly advice but hey, we're talking about being fab here. You don't need an expensive lipstick to get everybody's attention. A lipstick of quality can may you look as good and brighten up your face without having to cut your family budget in half. A foundation, lipstick and eyebrow pencil if properly applied can make you a head-turner. Add up a smile and sexy eyes... perfection!

2. Invest on classic-looking clothes. Classic never gets out of fashion. A simple and elegant little black dress and little white dress is a good investment on clothing. You can wear these two dresses a lot of times and just add some accessories to make it look different everytime. You can add bangles, watch, scarf and even you bag can be an accessory to your outfit. And because black and white are neutral colors, mixing and matching with bold colors will always result to fabulous!

3. Tyangge is the place to be. You don't need to have all your clothes branded to feel fashionable. What we all need is not a name patched on our clothes but a good looking jeans that would fit us properly. I surely realized that when I was a mom. I never visited tyangge when I was still single. But now, its one of my favorite place! How many times have I bought an ill fitting pants when I was still young? Oh God, I can no longer count! I bought them just because its the fashion trend and because of the label. Now, its a different perspective. I recently bought a pair of jeans for 500pesos (yup, 2 for 500) in tyangge and I would always get a compliment how good it looks on my legs. One more thing, because it fits me well, its also a comfort to wear.

4. Work-out from home. Gym membership fees are ridiculously expensive. If you really, really want to be fit, you do not need these fitness center to get in shape. You can easily search and download work out videos from the internet that would be effective for you. I, for one, can attest to that. I downloaded a video of Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred and I was able to really shred some lbs! Yes, I am proud to say I lost some lbs but there's more to lose to reach my ideal weight. Jillian Michaels ways work for me and I am keeping her as my virtual trainer. No need to go to the gym (I hate it, I get bored in the gym), no expensive fees, no transportation expenses, definitely home-based, best of all, in no time you'll see the difference in your body. Try it!

These are just few of the things I would like to recommend as a mother to be able to stay fab and still apply frugality in every way we can.