Black Friday Victories

Glenn and I went Black Friday shopping for the first time this year. Grandpa stayed with the boys and we were out the door at 3:15am to hit the door busters at Kohls Department Store, Dick's Sporting Goods, and Lowes Hardware. We got home at 6:30am and Glenn rested a bit while I saw Dad off and then got the boys up, dressed, and fed. Then we left again at 9:30am to hit the Outlets. We got home about 1:30pm. That's a lot of shopping, but every gift is purchased and we are DONE! And I mean EVERY gift from family and friends down to the minuscule white elephant exchange gifts. I can't list specifically what we got cause some of you reading this will discover your gift, so all you get is the totals!

This is it...all our Christmas shopping reduced to the grand totals.

Total Spent: $336.96
Total Retail: $704.65
Total Savings: $367.69
A savings of over 52%!

Our best deal percentage wise was, surprisingly, found at the grocery store. I was picking up the final items for Thanksgiving dinner and at the back of the store there was a bin of bargain books. I got a hard cover book for over 80% off retail!

Plus, we came in under budget by $160!!! What will we do with the extra budgeted amount??? Why, after Christmas clearance, of course!

Disclaimer: Some of the gifts were purchased prior to Black Friday.

Geoffrey Beene Going Out Of Business Sale

Geoffrey Beene is going out of business and everything is at least 70% off! They're last day is December 24, so it's a great place to pick up some Christmas gifts!

Here's what I got (pictured below):
1 pair men's corduory slacks, khaki
1 pair men's corduory slacks, black
1 men's v-neck sweater, blue
1 pair women's stretch slacks, grey
1 pair women's twill slacks, olive
1 pair women's shorts, green
1 women's V-neck, sleeveless blouse, pink print
1 women's hairband, ecru
Total retail price: $323.37
Total spent: $61.73 -- This is 19% of retail, meaning the total was 81% off retail!
Total saved: $261.64

Great grocery shopping trip

Just returned from Lowe's Foods and got the following items:

2 boxes Progresso Beef Broth
2 boxes Betty Crocker Mashed Potatoes
2 cans Carnation Evaporated Milk
1 bag Pillsbury frozen biscuits
1 box Swiss Miss hot cocoa
1 French's worchestershire sauce
2 boxes Green Giant frozen vegetables
2.93lbs bananas
1 jumbo yellow onion
3 jumbo sweet potatoes
1 bunch asparagus

Total before coupons and rewards: $35.79
Total savings: $21.82 ($6.55 regular coupons, $1.90 double coupons, $13.37 rewards)
Total out of pocket: $13.97

Save money by saving the earth

Reusable grocery bags are all the rage these days. Almost everywhere you go, stores are selling these bags with their logo. Using just one reusable bag can save up to 6 plastic bags a week....or 24 bags a month....or 288 bags a year....or 22,176 bags in a lifetime!

So, what's so bad about plastic bags? First, there just so many of them. Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide. That comes out to over one million per minute. Billions end up as litter each year. Second is what happens to this litter. Hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales and other marine mammals die every year from eating discarded plastic bags mistaken for food. Plus, plastic bags don't biodegrade, they photodegrade, which means they break down into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways and entering the food web when animals accidentally ingest.

There are financial benefits, too! Some grocery stores offer credits for shoppers who use reusable bags. Ever wonder who pays for all those "free" plastic bags? YOU DO! Grocery stores increase the price of groceries to cover the cost of all those bags. Whole Foods will credit your total $0.05-0.10 per reusable bag and Lowes Foods offers 50 greenpoints per reusable bag. Check your local stores to see if they offer any credits.

Want to make the switch? Right now Target is running a promotion to get a free reusable bag (retail price $5.99). You mail back 5 Target plastic bags and they'll send you a coupon for a free reusable bag. Hurry, your bags must be postmarked by November 30. Here'sthe link: http://sites.target.com/site/en/spot/page.jsp?title=retote_offer

Or, if you're crafty, you can make your own reusable bags. Check out this site for 35 different tutorials and patterns: http://tipnut.com/35-reusable-grocery-bags-totes-free-patterns/

So, go save some green, in more ways than one!

Surviving Black Friday

While I'm not one to get up early and stand in line waiting for stores to open, I know many of you are, so I thought I'd share some Black Friday tips I've read and heard elsewhere.



1) Check out http://bfads.net/ or http://www.theblackfriday.com/ to plan your shopping trip ahead of time. Check store hours so you know what's open when and what time you need to be there to get the doorbuster deals. Then, plan which store you'll hit first, second, etc.



2) Team up with a friend or relative. If there is a good deal you want and two stores, have someone else go to one while you go to the other. You get what you both want from the store you're at and your partner does the same. Then meet later to divy up the goods and reimburse each other.



3) Throughout the year, make a list of items you would like to buy IF they are deeply discounted on Black Friday. Then, check the ads and make decisions on your purchases.



4) Make a list of gifts and pre-shop the day before so you know the layout of each store and exactly where each item is located. Then start with either the most expensive gift, or the one that is most important to purchase.



5) Make sure what you are buying is actually a good deal! Check online stores like amazon.com to compare prices.



6) Hit smaller, less trafficked stores like Ace Hardware and CVS. Less busy, and still great deals.



7) If you miss the deal, check online retailers in the coming days and weeks. You might be able to find the item at the same or just a little higher price.



8) Make a list and don't deviate from it! Get in, get what you need, and get out.



9) Don't stand in line for hours unless you are trying to get electronics.



10) If the store is sold out, always ask for a raincheck. They might give you one and you'll get the item the next week at the BF price.



11) Take your coupons and use them! Make a great price even better.



Seems like the best advices is to plan, plan, plan, and then stick to your plan!



Happy shopping to all and to all a good night :-)



All tips were gleaned from thrifty posters on http://www.savvydollar.org/

Best priced turkey

Harris Teeter is selling turkeys for $0.29/lb this week, but there is a $25 minimum grocery purchase.

Kroger has turkeys for $0.39/lb with no minimum purchase, but limited to 1 per Kroger card.

Check out smartsource.com for a $1 off coupon for Honeysuckle frozen turkey (on sale at Kroger) or Shady Brook Farms frozen turkey.

If you use the $1 coupon at Kroger, a 10lb turkey would be $0.29/lb same as at Harris Teeter without the required minimum purchase.

So, go gobble up that turkey, but don't let high prices gobble up your money!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Glade scented candles deal at Target

I got a great deal at Target on Glade Scented Candles (I know what you're thinking, but they're not for me, they're for Christmas presents).

Anyway, here's the scoop: Buy 4 Glade scented candles refills in Christmas scents (apple cinnamon, gingerbread or snow something or other) at $2.50 each ($10 total) and get a $5 Target gift card (the gift card deal is good till mid-December, but the coupons expire at the beginning of December).

To make it better, go to coupons.com and print a $1.50 off 2 coupon (I printed it twice for a total of $3 off). Then from last Sunday's paper (not sure which insert) use the buy 2 get one free coupon (I had two cause I got two papers) to get 2 more refills free!

So, I got 6 refills (3 candles in each refill) for $7 with a $5 card back.

Then, on coupons.com I also found a BOGO coupon for the scented candle holder, which comes with 2 candles, which were on sale this week for $5.59.

So for about $13 I got two candle holders, 6 refills and a $5 gift card...that's a lot of Christmas presents!

Another good deal - in the travel section there are single packs of Mr. Clean Erasers for $0.99 and back in September there was a $0.50 off one any size coupon, so I got 1 eraser for $0.49.

And if anyone is thinking of getting Halloween costumes for next year, they're 75% off right now. The Target in Knightdale has a lot in size 4 through 8 and also 0-9 months. There were several 2T and 3T, but not tons. I got costumes for both kids and spent less than $11.73 (this year I got their costumes used at consignment and spent $13...I thought it was a good deal at the time!!!)

Happy Saving!