Using Points for Christmas Shopping? Now's the Time to Order.

I remember one Christmas my mom used green stamps (remember those?) to get all our Christmas presents. Genius!

If you've been racking up rewards points, there are a few ways to use them to get extra mileage when Christmas shopping.
1) You could order an actual gift from the rewards catalog, like the bumble bee shaped flashlight I just ordered for my little one.
2) You could order a gift card to give as a gift.
3) You could order a magazine subscription as a gift.
4) You could order a gift card that you use to do your Christmas shopping.

However you slice it, getting those rewards can take as much as 6-8 weeks! So, now's the time to order because the 8 week mark puts the calendar near Thanksgiving (yikes!). Putting off an order will leave you with no time to try to resolve any issues if things don't arrive in 6-8 weeks. And if you're planning to shop with your gift card, you want to get it in enough time to hunt up the best deals, and Black Friday.

The one exception to all this being a gift magazine subscription. Order those in mid-October so issues don't start arriving before the holidays. Your gift might start arriving with the December issue, but more likely, with the January one.

Going-out-of-business sales might not make for the best deals

Ultimate Electronics and some Borders stores in St. Louis are closing their doors, but before they do, liquidators are on hand marking down prices. This may sound like savings rally call, but it could be with a horn that’s a little out of tune.
It’s important to remember that the point of liquidation is to make money. Sound contradictory?

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Going-out-of-business sales might not make for the best deals - St. Louis Frugal Living | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/frugal-living-in-st-louis/going-out-of-business-sales-might-not-make-for-the-best-deals#ixzz1ELixQA9d

$8 Tshirts plus free shipping on at DisneyStore.com

I know how the kiddos go through t-shirts so I thought I'd share this deal with you.  Disneystore.com has a sale on t-shirts for $8 and they're shipping free all weekend with coupon code freeship.

If you're shopping for a toddler, the XXS is a 2T-3T and the XS a 4T. So there are T's to fit toddlers through older kids.

If you use ebates, go to disneystore.com through their link and you'll get 5% cash back on your purchase. If you don't use ebates, you can sign up and you'll get $5 credit for signing up plus the 5% cash back. You just have to go to disneystore.com through their link.  I've used ebates for at least 10 years, so I can vouch for it. In fact, I just got a check in the mail yesterday!

Stock up on red wrapping paper to save time, money and space

How? Think of red as the beige of wrapping paper. As a wrapping paper, red can be combined with other ribbon or bow color combinations to fit the occasion. That package of multiple colored bows in the closet that only gets used at the Holidays will get new life being combined with red paper.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Stock up on red wrapping paper to save time, money and space - St. Louis Frugal Living | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/frugal-living-in-st-louis/stock-up-on-red-wrapping-paper-and-never-buy-more#ixzz1E3oCESqt

Fox 2 News' Deal of the Week

Each Wednesday, during the 11am newscast, Fox 2 News announces a new 2-for-1 or half-off deal for the week. This week’s offer comes from El Paisano, a Mexican cuisine restaurant on Watson Road, just south of Arsenal in South City. (Map it)

Continue reading on Examiner.com: El Paisano is this week's Fox 2 News 2-for-1 deal - St. Louis Frugal Living | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/frugal-living-in-st-louis/el-paisano-is-this-week-s-fox-2-news-2-for-1-deal#ixzz1DUL8LFfa

Remember the Herbal Essense Facebook Coupon???

Mine just came today, and I almost missed it because my mailbox was full of junk and this almost got lost in the mix.

If you are expecting one...
Be looking for a postcard with 2 coupons - the coupon for a freebie, plus a $1.00/1 coupon.

You saw the ads, now find out what Groupon is all about

My new Examiner.com article Groupon, Living Social, Mamapedia, oh my! will give you a basic overview of how these "daily deal" sites work. 

Check it out here.

Dollar General $5/$25 Coupon Info

I just started using the Dollar General $5/$25 coupons last month. I've done this 4-5 times now and here's what I've learned.

1) DO NOT shop at the S. County store on Tesson next to Old Navy (near Sams). Long story, but in 2+ years of couponing, I've never been in a more "coupon unfriendly" store - and I mean of any stores not just Dollar General!!!
2) Ask the cashier to key in the coupon code, not scan it. From experience, when scanned it will beep like the coupon has been accepted but nothing will be deducted. But for some reason keying in the code works every time.
3) Most stores will accept the $5/$25 coupon before other coupons, however I've been told by 1 cashier that they can't use it with any other coupon and another cashier that it is supposed to be $25 subtotal after all other coupons are deducted. However, both times the manager let me use it.
4)My Dollar General will not adjust down the value of a manufacturer coupon, so you can't get a free item if the coupon value is higher than the item price.
5) The $5/$25 deducts a percent from all the items you've purchased. Not a big deal except for #4 above. If you have a manufacturer coupon that makes an item free at regular price, it won't work with the $5/$25 coupon.

Should I Print That Coupon?

See my guidelines for making sensible decisions about printable coupons and save on paper and ink.

http://www.examiner.com/frugal-living-in-st-louis/should-i-print-that-coupon

Went Buck Wild At Walgreens

I don't normally get out on Sunday morning, which means I usually end up frustrated because none of the scenarios I have planned end up working because things are already sold out. Well, I HAD to get out this morning for other errands and went a little overboard!

Spent: $20.86 Out of Pocket (because I forgot to use the $2 Register Reward I already had)
Price before sales/coupons/register rewards: $112.22
Saved: 82% and I left with another $11 in Register Rewards

Reconsider your loyalties and you could save money

If you only purchase the dish detergent that will “soften hands while doing dishes,” you’re the dream consumer and corporations have worked very hard to get you.  It’s called “brand loyalty” and corporations spend small fortunes to achieve this loyalty for their products. But, it’s not just costing these corporations, it’s also costing consumers.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Reconsider your loyalties and you could save money - St. Louis Frugal Living | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/frugal-living-in-st-louis/reconsider-your-loyalties-it-could-save-you-money#ixzz1CWxBKDvV

FREE CFL Light Bulbs at Ace Hardware

Ace Hardware has GE Energy Smart CFL light bulb singles on sale for $1.00.  Use the $1/1 coupon from the 1/9 SS insert and it makes them free.

Beware, even though Missouri tax code states you don't pay sales tax on coupons, the store I went to DID charge sales tax. I wasn't up to explaining Missouri sales tax laws, so I just paid it. Since Ace stores are independently franchised, you may or may not have the same experience.

Walgreen's PediaCare Fever Reducer Register Reward No Longer Working

Apparently today Walgreen's "fixed" the register reward for PediaCare  Fever Reducer - it is no longer printing. I checked with the manager and confirmed the register reward was only for the Cold formulas.

Countdown to My First "Frugal Living Columnist" Post

Be looking for my first post as Examiner.com's new St. Louis Frugal Living columnist early next week!

As I told you a few days ago, I've been selected as their new Frugal Living columnist. Right now, Examiner.com is setting up my column and bio page which is expected to be complete by the end of the week. Once that's complete, I can start posting.

Help me choose what to write about. Post your suggestions in the comments.

PediaCare Fever Reducer Included in Walgreen's Sale

As you may know, PediaCare is on sale this week at Walgreens for $5.99 and triggering a $4.00 Register Reward. What you may NOT know is that PediaCare Fever Reducer (their version of Tylenol) is INCLUDED!

This is fabulous because there are $1.00 coupons in the 12/5/10 and 1/23/11 SmartSource inserts, making it only $0.99 after coupons and Register Rewards.  The newspaper coupons, unlike the $1.00 printable here or here, specify that they are for Fever Reducer or exclude the cold, allergy and sinus versions pictured in the ad.

Now, moms of little ones too young for PediaCare cold formulas can take advantage of this sale.

iPhone users should also download their symptom checker ap for free, here.

Double My Coke Rewards Points

If you've got Reward Codes from Coca-Cola products and you been putting off entering them... DO IT TODAY!

Why? Today only, you'll earn double points for all My Coke Rewards Codes you redeem.  There's nothing additional to do.

I've never seen Coke offer double points, so take advantage if you can.

L'Oreal Gold Rewards = Free Hair Dye

If your a user of L'Oreal at-home hair color, you'll love L'Oreal's new program, "L'Oreal Gold Rewards." Boxes of hair color will now come printed with a code (a la Pampers rewards codes) which can be entered here. After 5 boxes, you'll receive a 6th box of hair color free.

I'm Examiner.com's Frugal Living Columnist

I'm excited to announce, that I'm back, but in a new way. I've been selected as Examiner.com's "Greater St. Louis' Frugal Living Examiner." This means a few times a week, I'll be posting articles on Examiner.com and I hope you'll follow me there.  I'll be posting snippits of my articles here with a link back to them on Examiner.com.

You may have noticed that I've been making a few posts here and there. I'll continue to pass on deals that catch my eye. However, coupon matchups just wasn't the type of writing I enjoyed. I hope that the more journalistic approach of Examiner.com will quench my thirst for writing and help me continue to share with my readers what I've learned and continue to learn.

Wish me luck. And thanks for following me.

Another $5 off $25 at Dollar General

First things first.... If you print this coupon tell the cashier that they need to key in the number. Scanning the coupon doesn't work! I've had this experience each of the last two $5 off events. The cashier scans the coupon, it says it's accepted, but doesn't deduct anything. The manager comes up, voids my transaction, re-rings and keys in the coupon code instead of scanning - $5 deducted, no problem.

Now, for the deals. STL Mommy has a nice list of regular price items matched with coupons here. Because these are regular price, they should be the same even though this post is from last week.

There are a couple ads with prices that will be valid for the week (including Friday). The first is the Super Savings Event ad here. The other is the WOW Savings ad here.  The weekly ad doesn't update until tomorrow. It may be something different than the Super Savings Event ad and it may not. We'll have to wait to see.

I haven't found any good matchups to the sale ads, but I'll keep my eyes peeled and pass them on if I find them.

PINK Puppies are at VS - Free with ANY Pink Purchase

If you're a fan of those cute little puppies Victoria's Secret gives away only a few times a year, be sure to hurry down to Victorias Secret because they are in. 

Get one FREE with ANY pink purchase, so look for something in the Semi Annual Sale bins. I got a set of PINK pajamas (top & bottoms) for only $9.99 PLUS the free PINK puppy. I also spied some PINK panties for only $2.99 which qualify. Clearance PINK beauty would also qualify and would make a nice valentine.

Be sure to get to Victorias Secret ASAP if you want one. These things go QUICK!

Free Purse PhotoBook Offer at Walgreens

Today through Sunday you can get a free photo purse book from Walgreens. Use coupon code PURSE at checkout. You will have to pay shipping.

Dollar General $5 off $25 Purchase on Saturday 1/22

This Saturday, 1/22, Dollar General is having another $5 off $25 (pre-tax) purchase deal. Print the coupon here. A couple weeks ago, I was able to purchase $26 of merchandise for only $3 combining this coupon with sales and manufacturer coupons!

I have to warn you that I had trouble using this coupon last time. I only shop Dollar General when there is a deal like this, so I wasn't familiar with which store in my area was most "coupon friendly." (FYI- It's not the South County store on Tesson Ferry next to Old Navy if you're in St. Louis. I'll never set foot in that store again!!!)

Here's my suggestion. After your transaction is rung and totaled, show the coupon the total value of coupons you have including the $5 off coupon. This way, at the very end, if there is confusion, she already knows what the total should have come out to. Trust me, having this established up front will be very helpful addressing issues.

$1.00 Coke w/ Prepared Food Purchase at QT

When you're at QT redeeming your Free Johnsonville Roller Grill Item coupon (QT Web Group Members). be sure to look for $1.00/1 bottle (20oz or 1liter) of Coke coupon on the cooler glass.  Coke bottles (20oz) are $1.59 at my local QT making you're entire meal $0.59!

Beer Display Coupons

The Super Bowl is nearly here, so be on the lookout for beer displays... even if you're not drinking.

Yesterday on a display at Walmart, I found coupons for $3/2 Digiorno Pizzas and $1/2 Lays Chips - No Purchase Required.

Great Deal on Disney DVDs & Mickey Mote

Coupons.com has a great coupon for $8 off when you buy 2 Disney DVDs with Mickey Mote capability.

Combine this deal with the FREE Mickey Mote offer wyb 3 Mickey Mote capable DVDs for Disney Movie Rewards members here.

Showtime Free Preview Starts Today Through Late Monday Night.

 

 

If you don't already have Showtime (including TMC), you've got it for free this weekend. Go here to check out the schedule, and for info on how to get $25 back if you decide to sign up.