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CTC Readers' Poll:
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"My best bargain was just
this week. I was in line to buy groceries, the man ahead of
me was paying for his food with a credit card when the computers
went down. He was unable to pay and had no cash. His total was
just under $20 and he looked like he was ready to cry, so I
offered to pay for his food. He looked stunned and so did the
cashier. He said he could not pay me back and I told him it was
ok. As I was leaving the cashier commented that she didn't think
that I was very smart to do that. I just smiled.
The next day, I was at another
store. As I was preparing to pay for my $30 purchase, the
cashier in the line next to me, stopped me and told me to wait.
She explained to my cashier that my purchase was 75% off. They
re-rung my purchase and I saved $20!! As I was walking out of
the store, I remembered the $20 I gave away the day before. I
also remembered the scripture that says "The same measure
you measure out, will be measured back to you." I really
believe if I hadn't helped that man, I would have paid full
price the next day. In obeying the still small voice, the man
was blessed, the cashier was blessed, and I was blessed. I think
that is a really great bargain!" ~ Jonanna
"I've really been enjoying
sending my grandkids surprises through the mail. At Valentines day
I was nearly stumped, but conferred with my shipper and she
assured me I could send the items by ground (not air) so I hiked
down to the dollar store and purchased two large balloons, filled
with helium, and placed the big ugly frog and large bear in a big
box (which we were tempted to weigh down with a brick), sealed
them up and off they went. They even arrived on Feb.
14th and that evening I received a most delightful phone call from
both of them - so excited the words were tumbling out and I think
both of them were bouncing off the walls 'That was the neatest
valentine, Grandma. No one else had anything like it"
It was great fun and my total cost for the contents of the box,
balloons and cards was $4. The cost to mail it was something
else, but well worth it." ~ Beverly "I have discovered going to the mall does not have to be more expensive than purchasing clothing at Wal-mart, Target or K-Mart. When a store like Macy's puts their clothing on sale, they seem to put a much steeper discout than the other stores. I purchased my daughter a brand name dress for six dollars. It will wear much better and I could have easily spent more than that for a department store version which would not have lasted." ~ Jeremy "One of the best bargains I
have found in a while is restaurant.com I wait until they have
a 60% off sale (which is often) and stock up on certificates
from inexpensive restaurants. I also use them when I'm traveling. If
we change our minds about a certain restaurant, you can exchange the
unused certificate for another one." ~ VIcki "Fall
sports just began again for my two high school boys. We moms know
what that means: more expensive gear. My kids are good about not
asking for much, but safety gear really isn’t an option. I have
found that at my local Big 5 sporting goods store, if you know to
ask, they will often give you the last sales price (even though it
is no longer on sale) on what you are buying. By asking, I
got a pair of knee pads that were marked $19.99 for $14.99.
Last year for a Christmas gift I purchase a pair of Nike gym
shorts that I knew my son would love for $19.99 instead of the
$29.99 marked on the tag, because they had recently been on sale.
What I’ve learned is, it never hurts to ask, what’s the worse
that can happen, they’ll say no. "I love a good bargain and have found numerous ones at thrift stores - picking up toys or games or kids furniture that was new even or barely used, having my children play with it for 6+ months and then selling it again at our Early Childhood Education garage sale for more than I bought it for! (Some of the money goes to the program.) The large kid-focused garage sale brings many moms who just want to buy something and are used to paying full prices for them, so they think they're getting a great deal too! Win - Win!
Also, at the grocery store, prices
are often especially low for a period of time when a new product
comes on the market so that all will bite at trying it. Often the
product's marketing team also puts coupons in the Sunday circular
section. Using the low cost and coupon together often leads to
close-to-free foods. I've done this with strawberry-flavored marshmallows,
new cereal flavors, protein bars, soda, and more. It goes back to
the example that many 'thrifty treasures' can be found with a little
logical thinking and open eyes at the grocery store!" ~
Danielle
"I found a real bargain last year. My husband and I were looking for a portable DVD player and went into a furniture tent sale. There was a gorgeous cherry table on clearance. The table was regularly tagged at $3,000.00 but because it had lots of scratches and a corner was broken off the leaf (extender) it was marked down to $100.00. We purchased the table. Using some wood filler, wood glue, wax, and a couple hours the table is remarkable. It's hard to see where the scratches were." ~ Wanda "Know where the bargain racks
are in your favorite stores. I was recently in Wal-mart and
found all the Spiderman food on clearance. Everything was a dollar. I
got several boxes of General Mills Spiderman cereal and cereal bars. I
also bought 3 cases of the 8 packs of Spiderman apple juice boxes.
This was a huge bargain for me. I have three children and also babysit
in my home." ~ Tonya "I don’t buy clothes unless they are on the 50%-75% off rack. I’ll go shopping at department stores and pick out clothes for the family then watch for them on the sale racks. I’ve bought clothes at the end of the season for as little as $1 a piece. With three daughters, I tend to buy new clothes rather than used garage sale clothes so they’ll wear long enough to last through all three of them. Shopping the sales racks allows me to do this. I enjoy adding up the savings of the regular price compared with sale prices. I kept track once for 6 months and the savings averaged $90 a month! The lesson I learned from doing this is you can dress 'fashionably' for a frugal price!" ~ Kim Editor's Note: Thanks to all these readers who took time to write! |
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