Clothing Shopping
Happy New Years! Ways big and small to save some bucks!
Many of you have made a New Year’s resolution to start shopping, and living, better– here are a few things that can help you on your new path and it’s often the small and relatively painless changes that can make BIG changes in your bottom line.
Here’s a bunch of small–and some big– changes that you can make and see an impact on your household budget– and many of them will not only improve your bank account, they’ll also improve your quality of life!
Food Shopping:
-Let the sales dictate what you’re buying and stock up on your favorite items when they’re on sale.
-Use coupon matchups for our local stores.
-Clip and use coupons– $.25 here and $.75 there really adds up.
Clothing Shopping:
-Shop with purpose, not for recreation.
-Buy clothing just slightly off season–just waiting a few weeks can save you 50-75% off of retail.
-Make no large purchase without research and comparison shopping.
-Buy fewer, higher quality items that will stand the test of time.
-Find and use a good tailor– or better yet, learn how to do simple alterations like hemming pants and skirts yourself.
-Scour thrift stores, craigslist and even eBay for statement or vintage items– brooches, handbags, and shoes can take an outfit from ordinary
to extraordinary for very little outlay.
Eating:
-Bring your own coffee or water– and your own snacks– on your way to work and when you’re out and about.
-Cook more and double your recipes so you always have cooked food ready to go in the ‘fridge or freezer.
-Always have a few convenience foods stored in your pantry or freezer so you aren’t ever tempted to order in or go out for dinner for convenience’s sake.
Household:
-Cancel the movie channels that you don’t watch.
-Consider canceling your home phone and using only cell phones.
-Adjust your cell phone plan to ensure that you don’t have too few– or too many– minutes.
-Rent movies from RedBox or Blockbuster Express or even Netflix– or better yet, borrow them for FREE from the library!
-Find out if your employer offers discounts on things that you are buying anyway– anything from cell phone service to gym memberships to cars.
-If you can afford to do so, raise the deductible on all of your insurance policies and lower your premiums.
-Shop your insurance quotes for auto, home, and life insurance– make sure you compare the *exact* same coverage to ensure you’re comparing apples to apples.
-Switch from incandescent lighting to CFLs– compact fluorescent
lighting– they do cost more to purchase but cost WAY less to run and
last a lot longer than incandescent bulbs.
-Turn off lights when they’re not in use– and install dimmer switches and ceiling fans in your home.
-Set your A/C a few degrees warmer– and get a set back thermostat so you aren’t heating or cooling an empty house.
-Lower the temperature on your water heater and insulate it.
-Call FPL out for a home energy survey to find out how you can make your home more energy efficient.
-Consider hanging some of your laundry to dry instead of using the
clothes dryer– it’s gentler on your clothing and on your budget, too.
Transportation:
-Walk and bike more, drive less.
-Empty your car of unnecessary items, the extra weight causes your fuel efficiency to suffer.
-Plan trips to be both time and fuel efficient.
Few, if any, of the items I’ve mentioned cost much money nor do they take much time– they’re just small, painless changes that can result in BIG savings.
Remember, don’t change your lifestyle, just change the way that you shop and live fab-u-LE$$!
15 Ways to Save Money Every Day
We are always looking for ways to save money so I thought I would repost an article a wrote a long time ago giving you a few ideas..
Stay home more- first off with the cost of gas staying home more is just going to save more because you are not driving. But staying home makes sure you are not buying things on impulse.
Get movie Rentals from DVDPlay Or RedBox- These vending machine movies only cost $1 to $1.50 per rental and can be picked up when you are at your grocery store. The only down side is they are one day rentals- so make you have time the next day to return it. Sometimes you can alot find free codes here at FFD or just by doing a Google Search.
Stop drinking soda and juice- Drinking soda a juice on a regular basis is expensive and a habit that is worth breaking. Think of all the calories that you will not be taking in and the money that will stay in your pocket. If you go out to eat soda can add as much as $10 to your bill for a family of 4.
Exercise at home- Drop that gym membership and get a few exercise machines for the home off Craigslist or Freecycle. You can pick them up super cheap (or free) and you also save gas and your time.
Turn the lights off- Turn the lights off when you leave the room- pocketbook and environmentally friendly.
Cook at home- This is a no brainer- eating out is easy and yummy but very expensive. If you have to eat out use the Entertainment Book (below) or order at lunchtime when the menu offers less expensive options.
Shop at yard sales- You would be amazed at how sometimes people literally give stuff away- especially clothes. When your kids are young you can easily get away with yard sale clothing shopping- teenagers might not be so thrilled.
Swap toys with friends- Kids get bored with toys or out grow them so start a swap with all your friends where you trade toys.
Get rid of or reduce your cable- We did this and really- it’s not a big deal. Right not I think we have about 20 channels and I will admit flipping channels does not feel as good as it use to but the $40 a month savings does feel pretty nice.
Freecycle- if you haven’t checked out FreeCycle yet get to their website now!!
Pack a Lunch- When you realize how much it costs to buy lunch every day; packing a lunch doesn’t seem like such a big deal.
Make your own coffee- Make Starbucks a special treat- not an everyday thing.
Entertainment book- I love the Entertainment Book- when you do eat out it is a great way to save money. My family has been using it since I was a teenager. I like it not only for the half price meals but also because it helps you experience new restaurants. There are a lot of multicultural options to choose from.
Day old Bread Store- Half price bread is always a good thing- just watch out for other junk food temptations.
Have “Pot Luck” Dinner Parties- Instead of stressing out over planning a major dinner party go with a theme and have all your friends bring pot luck. It not only spreads out the cost it alleviates the stress.
Gymboree: NEW coupons received in the mail, expire 5/31/09.
Just got these coupons in the mail today:
$5 off $20+, good in store and online
20% off your ENTIRE purchase, good in store and online
30% off regular-priced items, good in store and online
All coupons expire 5/31/09.
A little known fact is that Gymboree coupons (excluding Gymbucks) can
be used TWICE– once online AND once in store– if you use the coupon
in store, be sure to record the unique code (I usually email or text it
to myself, along with the expiration date.)
I will NOT be using the 30% off full priced items coupons.. 30% off (in
my opinion) isn’t an enticing offer– not when I know that if I wait
just a few weeks, all of Gymboree’s new lines will be marked down by at
least 20%– and then 40% off and then 60% off and so on. No harm will
come to my children if they’re wearing fashion that’s a few months old
(gasp! the horror!)
Read HERE to learn how to shop Gymboree like a pro!
Happy discount clothing shopping! 
Aeropostale: Buy One, Get One FREE Graphic Tees, ends soon! And up to 70% off clearance too!
See the girls’ tees HERE
See the guys’ tees HERE
There are also some fabulous values on clearance merchandise– some items are up to 70% off– NOW is the time to stock up on back to school fashion (yes, I realize that the kids aren’t even out of school yet!)
Find guys’ clearance HERE
Find girls’ clearance HERE
Be sure to click through ebates to get an additional 2% cashback, if you’re not already signed up for ebates, click HERE
to do so and start getting cashback from over 1000 stores. It only
takes 15 seconds to sign up and you’ll get a $5 signup bonus (I’ll get
one too, whoohoo!)
Happy cheap and cute clothing shopping!
Thanks, Betsy!
The Childrens Place: April 2009 Birthday Club Coupon, expires 4/30/09.
Here it is, the birthday coupon for April 2009. You can use this printable coupon in store, but the online code has already been used (as it’s one time use)– be sure to print out a few copies to have them handy!
Print coupon HERE
TCP has GREAT clearance racks and sales– oftentimes, they not only mark clothing down but they also will deduct another 30% or 50% off of the already reduced prices– stack this coupon on and they’re almost paying you to take the clothing out of the store!
Happy deep discount clothing shopping!
Thanks, Renae, Elissa, Elke, and Erin for forwarding this to me– you all ROCK!
