Hello all! I have been so busy with the Holiday that I have not had time to finish my new posts. I apologize for my lack of posting. I do have some new posts in the works that just need some fine tuning and fact checking, I like to make sure the information I share with you is accurate. These will be out sometime this week.
I had some people say that they were having trouble leaving comments because they did not have an account, I changed the setting and you can leave a comment anonymously now.
I want to hear from you! How did your Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, or Cyber Monday shopping go? Get any spectacular deals? Please leave a comment and let me know what great deals you
got!
Happy Couponing! : )
Independently owned businesses offer some great features that you will cannot find in box stores or online. They offer a one-on-one shopping experience, high quality goods, American made, Hard to find items and more. Supporting your local businesses ensures that your money is going back into your local economy to better your city or town.
The city I live in started participating in The 3/50 project, which can also be found in many other cities. The basic idea is to spend $50 across 3 independently owned businesses each month. For every $100 spent in independently owned businesses, $68 returns to the local economy through taxes, payroll, and other expenditures. If you spend that in a national chain, only $43 stays local and when you spend online nothing comes home.
I decided to take a break from looking over my coupons and sale fliers and took my daughter for a walk through our local downtown. My goal was to see what my downtown offered for goods and services and to see how I could save money by shopping local, here is what I found:
- It was so nice to be able to walk from one store to another, get some fresh air, and have a lot of different items in each store that I know I wouldn't find at Walmart or the like.
- I met the owners of each business. They were all very friendly and willing to help me in anyway they could. The customer service just goes above and beyond anything I have experienced in big box stores. Every employee had extensive knowledge on the products they sold.
- The products were high quality, well made, and most were made in America.
- EVERY store was having a sale! These businesses understand that the economy is not in the greatest place and they want to help their customers in anyway they can.
- All of them offered mailing lists either snail mail or e-mail. Sign up for all of them, they will send you a notice when they are having sales.
With the holidays here most of these stores will be offering sales. For one example in my downtown area I visited a children's clothing store, Lakins, all of the clothing was American made, the fabrics were high quality, the detail work was just beautiful, and there were sections of 20%, 50%, and 75% off! You can get some of the most gorgeous dresses and suits for the holidays around $30, that is an awesome deal! If there is a store near you that has some items you want to purchase but are out of your price range ask an employee if there are any sales coming up and let them know that you are interested in buying items but they are out of your price range. They will usually be understanding and want to get your businesses so they can let you know when the sale is and you can go back!
I have decided to make a pledge to shop downtown first for the rest of my holiday shopping before heading to any big box stores. I would love to see you make this pledge too! If you are willing to shop independently owned businesses first before heading to a big box store please leave a comment below and let everyone know that you will do your part to save the independent businesses!
For more information on the 3/50 Project you can visit the links below:
http://www.the350project.net
https://www.facebook.com/The350Project
Gardner Square Two Inc. has a list of participating stores in the area for my local readers:
http://gardnersquaretwo.com/members/member-list/
I hope that we can all try and remember the local businesses. If we keep forgetting about them, they wont be there anymore.
Happy Couponing! : )
Toys R Us is offering 2 specials for holiday shopping, 1) Buy $75 in-store and get a $10 gift card or 2) Spend $100 online, *on participating items*, and get 20% off plus free shipping!
A great way to work this deal: Look up the toys you would be buying online and see which ones qualify for the 20% off online and mark them down, I usually add them to my cart so they are there when I get back. Now go to the store and buy any other items that do not qualify for the online discount, spend $75 get $10. Remember Toys R Us is price matching when you shop in the store, click here for details, so make sure to compare other stores prices before you go. Go home and order the items you left in your cart, get 20% off plus use your gift card to get another $10 off.
WAIT IT GETS BETTER!! Pair it up with Ebates and get 1% CB (Cash back), The other day it was up to 8% CB so watch it because it could change from day to day. So here is a quick break down of how this could go and how much money your could save:
Shop in Store: $75.00
Shop Online: $100.00
Total: $175.00
20% off online: -$20.00
Gift Card: -$10.00
1% CB on online total ($70): -$.70
Total for $175 worth of items: $144.30 (Savings of $30.70)
Another couple of ways to save is to use your Toys R Us card, or open one if you feel comfortable with doing so. You will earn 10% CB on all your purchases, details here. They are also offering free pick up in store, when available, on your online purchases. So you can buy online through Ebates to get CB and then pick up in the store and not pay for shipping, details here. Last but not least, they are offering free layaway if you want the option of paying for it over time, details here.
Let me know of any good deals you get!!
Happy Couponing! : )
Right now Mattel is doing a Toy-A-Day Giveaway. You can enter once everyday for a new toy and you will be entered to win a $500 shopping spree! Whoo-hoo!
When it comes to contests and sweepstakes I usually send myself an e-mail with the link and everyday I go into my e-mail and I have the link right there. If you are not good at remembering to look for it try setting a reminder on your phone to enter the contest everyday until it ends.
Click here to enter. If you win something let everyone know here!
Happy Couponing!
With Thanksgiving around the corner and Christmas on the horizon my brain has been locked on one thing, shopping. I have posted a lot about online shopping, we have talked a little bit about shopping at big box stores, and great daily deals have been posted.
There is something that I feel should be addressed, though, and that is shopping locally. I would love to hear from you, my readers, how you feel about shopping locally. Here are some of the questions I am asking:
- What are some of the reasons you do or don't?
- What do you feel are the pros and cons?
- Do you currently shop locally or have you ever?
- If you don't, what would have to change to make you start?
I am looking for your feelings on this topic because I am in the process of writing a piece on shopping locally and want to know how you feel about local businesses or what things you wish to see change. I hope to hear from a lot of you so that I may share whatever knowledge I can with all of you.
Thank you in advance for your input! Happy Couponing! : )
I have a poll listed at the top of my blog wondering what everyone is more interested in learning about. Seems that Christmas shopping a topic you want to learn more about.
What I Do
When Christmas time comes around I make a spreadsheet and I list out the following by column: Recipient, What gift(s) I bought them, My budget, What I actually spent, and a check mark if I have purchased it. I have all the columns total at the bottom and make sure that my Actual spending total is subtracted from my Budgeted total to show me how much money I have left to spend on gifts. I also include my Ebates cash back that I have earned and add that to my total budget left to spend.
My goal when doing this is to have in mind the amount a gift should cost and plan to spend half of that. So, If I have budgeted $50 for Mary and I find a sweatshirt that is $50 but on sale for $25, that is perfect! By creating the spreadsheet I feel in control of my spending. Also it helps me keep track of what presents I got for everyone as I wrap my presents as I get them!
Online Shopping
Well, if you have been following along so far you know that I have a few favorite sites that can almost guarantee my Christmas budget get cut in half. We will start with online shopping and then move on to some actual store shopping:
- Ebates.com- Offers you a % of cash back on purchases made with partnered stores through their website. This is a good overall tool to have in your back pocket no matter what purchases you are making. When you first sign up it gives you the option of choosing a gift card. When you get your gift card you can use it as a gift or stocking stuffer (free!). I opted for the $10 Target gift card. I added $10 to it and will use it as a Yankee Swap gift (1/2 Price!).
- Groupon.com- Offers you local deals and goods for a limited time, most for 1/2 price! I love Groupon Goods. I think it is perfect for Christmas shopping. Most items are 50% off or more and have free shipping. They also offer vouchers for Restaurants or other businesses. The only thing about gifting a voucher is that the amount you paid for it is shown. So it depends on who you are giving it to and if you are ok with that. I have also thought to just black out the price. I know that they have great customer service and any problems are resolved very quickly and easily.
- Living Social.com- Pretty much the same as Groupon but I feel they have more vouchers than they do goods. I do buy things here and there and so far I have had no issues. A neat feature they offer is the opportunity to get your purchse for free. After you buy something it will give you a special link to share with your friends. If 3 of your friends buy the product through the link you will get yours for free!
- Totsy.com- Again, a lot like Groupon but it is geared towards children and moms. They have a wide variety of items clothes, toys, decor, ect... The prices are good. A lot of times I go on there and start to look at something and it is sold out which is annoying but they have some good deals on there.
- Woot.com- Same idea except they have 8 categories; woot!, tech!, home!, sport!, kids!, shirt!, wine!, sellout!. Every day each category has a new deal and it will only last for 24 hours. I usually find higher priced deals than what I have budgeted. You will find a lot of appliances and electronics that are refurbished and marked down 50%- 70%. I saw a Dyson upright vacuum once for $299 retail $499.
- Buy.com- This is like Walmart and Amazon combined. Through Ebates I get 6% CB (Cash Back) where I get 1% with Walmart and pretty much nothing with Amazon. I have ordered a few gifts through here already and have had no problems.
Store Shopping Tips
There are a few things you can do when shopping the stores for presents this year:
- In most stores the sale racks are in the back of the store. Make it your priority to work back to front. It is an easy way to start saving money.
- If you find something you like but feel you can't justify the price as a cashier if there are any coupons or store promotions going on. I was in Payless with my friend and she needed shoes. She found a cute pair for $30 but didn't want to spend the money so I politely asked the cashier if there were any coupons or promotions going on. Without even looking at me she said, "No, sorry." I replied, "Oh really? There are a pair of shoes that I would really like to buy but I just don't have the budget for them right now." She looked up and asked, "How much?" I said, "$30." She then handed me a coupon for $5.00 off $25 coupon. SO! It definitely pays to ask and let them know you want to buy something! The economy is bad and everyone is fighting for your business, take advantage.
- Make sure that you get a Sunday paper every week, it has coupons. Around the holidays they offer discounts on the subscription price and if it saves you 1/2 of your Christmas budget then it's worth it. There will be a ton of coupons that come in during this time plus all the flyers so you will never miss a sale.
- Look for coupons that say things like, "Buy Any Item, Get a $15 item free!" Try and find something small that you could use as a stocking stuffer and then get a $15 item to use as another present. The key, I think, is to look at a coupon and say, "How can I make this work so that I get it for close to nothing?" The goal with this kind of coupon is to get you to buy a $30 item and then get a $15 item for free. If you don't spend that $30 then you are saving.
- Coupons that say things like, "$10 off any purchase of $10 or more." They want you to spend "the more". Try and find something you can give for $10 and then you will get it for free.
- Black Friday shopping...will be a post all it's own.
- The last thing is, what I think, the most fun...after Christmas shopping. I will take my Christmas savings, that I have worked so hard to get, and go stock up on all the holiday supplies I need to make my holiday complete. You can get everything for cheap, it lasts for a couple of weeks and the longer you wait the more you save! I think the best part about after Christmas shopping is the next year when you take out all your wrapping and decorating supplies, it feels like a pre-Christmas just for me!
With money being so tight in the economy now Christmas shopping seems more like a burden and tends to take the fun out of shopping for gifts. There are a lot of ways to save on your Christmas shopping this year. I
hope that this list gives you some good tips on how you too can save
money.
Leave a comment with any questions. Happy couponing! : )
***UPDATE*** This groupon price has changed!! It is no longer $389 it is $299! Plus FREE SHIPPING!! This is such a good deal!
Wow! A great groupon deal! Right now they have a 40" Colby LED 1080p Flat screen TV for $389 $299! It retails for $800! If you use Ebates with it, you will get $11.67 $8.97 Cash Back!!
Check out the link below, if it sends you to the homepage click on Goods and it will be the first deal you see listed:
Groupon- 40" Colby LED 1080p Flat screen TV
Leave a comment with any questions. Happy couponing! : )
Here is a great deal from Living Social; $15 for $30 to spend at Powercapes.com. Pair it with Ebates and get $0.30 CB. You can create a custom cape just for your child! I actually bought one of these vouchers and created a cape for my daughter for Christmas. I already received it and I think it is absolutely adorable!
Something about LivingSocial I think you should know, you can get your voucher for free! After you purchase your voucher get 3 other people to buy the same one through your referral link and you will get yours for free!
Right now Powercapes.com is having a sale on their custom capes for $24.95. If you buy just the custom cape and use your voucher it will cover the shipping costs! It's a win win!
Click here to go to this deal!
Leave a comment with any questions. Happy couponing! : )
I absolutely love Groupon for gift shopping. I can usually cut my gift budget in half, and earn money back through Ebates!
When I first told my husband about some items I wanted to buy off Groupon for Christmas presents he replied, "I don't want to give everyone cheap gifts!" Listen, these are not cheap gifts, these are smart gifts! When you look at something on the website it will tell you what it retails for. If you buy a pair of earrings, let's say, for $9.00 but they retail for $100.00 you are giving someone a $100.00 present (see below, the deal is going on now!). Just because you paid $9.00 does not make you cheap, it makes you smart or as I like to call it, Savvy!
Here are a list of some current good deals going on right now on Groupon.com. All of these gifts are UNDER $30!
- **White Topaz Stud Earrings- $9.00**
- Value- $100.00! | Ebates CB- $0.27
- Ultra Thin Wallets - $12.00
- Value-$25.00 | Ebates CB- $0.36
- Coffee For Less- $10.00
- Value- $20.00 | Ebates CB- $0.30
- Christmas Cookies- $15.00
- Value- $40.00 | Ebates CB- $0.45
- BenchPrep- $25.00
- Value- $150.00 | Ebates CB- $0.75
- eMeals.com- $29.00
- Value- $58.00 | Ebates CB- $0.87
- Lash Extender Mascara- $20.00
- Value- $55.00 | Ebates CB- $0.60
- Motorola T325 Bluetooth In-Car Speakerphone- $25.00
- Value- $50.00 | Ebates CB- $0.75
- Case and Stand for iPad- $14.00
- Value- $45.00 | Ebates CB- $0.42
- Picaboo.com- $29.00
- Value- $75.00 | Ebates CB- $0.87
- ScoreBig.com- $9.00
- Value- $40.00 | Ebates CB- $0.27
There are a lot more groupons on the site under $30.00. Pair up Groupon.com with Ebates.com and you will be on the fast track to saving money on your gift shopping all year round!
Leave a comment with any questions. Happy couponing! : )
Hello all! I have been so busy with the Holiday that I have not had time to finish my new posts. I apologize for my lack of posting. I do have some new posts in the works that just need some fine tuning and fact checking, I like to make sure the information I share with you is accurate. These will be out sometime this week.
