What a great article Trish. You make some very good points on staying on track with a budget while enjoying a hobby. And with contest and sweepstakes hobbies you can often get something back in return.
If it's cash you win then you can boost your budget or replace the costs you've already put in the budget.
I wonder if a postal scale would be useful, too? That's only if you are using it for other mailings so that it doesn't take too much out of the budget.