Never Waste Money On Gifts Again!

I've been told that I'm an oddity when it comes to receiving gifts, in that I absolutely adore every single gift I get, from the blingy watch my husband bought for me a few birthdays back to the scribble drawing my three-year-old nephew created for me this birthday. I don't care what it is, as long as I get something. 

Warehouse Club Pricing Codes to Know

I don’t have a car, so I don’t get to shop in bulk at those glorious warehouse stores as much as I’d like. But, don’t cry for me. I’m good at talking a car-owning friend into dropping me off and picking me up; and when I do, my favorite things to buy at Sam’s or Costco are salsa, wine, and batteries – in bulk, of course.

I just found out that many warehouse clubs have secret pricing codes to indicate an item’s status – re-ordered, cancelled, etc. For example, at Sam’s Club if a price ends in $0.01 the price has probably been recently reduced due to cancellation or to make shelf space for newer items. At Costco, look for prices that end in $0.97, as this may indicate a markdown and a great reason to stock up.

Know any other secret pricing codes that I should know to get my salsa, wine and batteries for even less? Do share!

Buy Furniture on a Budget

 Have you ever walked through a model home and thought to yourself: “The house is ehhh, I wouldn’t buy it. But some of the decorations and furniture inhere are perfect!” Me too.

Turns out, you don’t have to just lust over that cute dining room set! If you see something you like in a model home be bold and ask the sales office when the furniture might be available for sale. Such sales offer the model home furnishings for as much as 70 percent cheaper than retail.

How do you find these model homes? Go for a drive through the newer housing developments in your city, as these neighborhoods may still be under construction and still in the selling stages. Check out the websites below, too, which list model home furniture auctions/sales for cities across the country.

Buildersauctioncompany.com

Lagesseauctions.com

Extrafurniture.com

Good Things Come in $1 Packages

I recently read on Washingtonpost.com that the Dollar Tree, the nations third-largest deep-discount retailer, is one of the few retailers that is making gains in this tough economic market. Surprising? I think not.

The Dollar Tree rocks! Where else can you know your total cost just by counting the number of items in your cart?

Here’s a list of some the BEST things I’ve found at the Dollar Tree stores. What are your favorite scores at dollar stores?

Conditioner (use it as a moisturizing shampoo)

Gummy Bears (movie candy...hello!)

Cleaning supplies (buy in bulk)

Birthday cards (buy a batch of them for the entire year)

Picture Frames (get crafty by painting them or dressing them up with beads and crystals)

The Lost Art of Bartering

There’s a weekend flea market in the school yard across the street from my apartment. Vendors sit under umbrellas selling the usual fare – antique furniture, hand-crafted jewelry, homemade cookies.

Then there’s “The Lady in Red.” She is dressed in, well, red and sits cross-legged in the center of a large white sheet surrounded by a variety of baubles (cups, candy, mini-heart pillows). Her wares have no rhyme or reason (other than the fact that they're mostly red) and I recently found out why after trying to buy a cute pair of crimson hope earrings from her. “The Lady in Red” does not accept money for any of her items. If you see something you like, you trade her something of yours – as long as it’s red and/or white.

I ran home and scrounged around for something worth trading and decided upon a red and white popcorn bowl I’ve had lying around, but have yet to use. The Lady in Red was pleased with her new acquisition – as was I!


What’s the best barter/trade you’ve ever made? Click here to tell us about it!