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A Couple of NuWave Newbies on Amazon

With the holidays around us, there are so many deals to be had. Drawing me into Amazon on this virtual trip was my sister’s birthday, and I found exactly what I wanted and what she needed.  She’s been moving away from fried foods, but I know how much she loves them, just not the greasy mess that goes along with them.  

NuWave No-Brainer

The NuWave (36001) Brio Air Fryer was the solution. Birthday Gift + No Grease Fryer = Success!!! I was abundantly satisfied with the deal that I got shopping on Amazon. Think about it, at regular price the fryer would have cost me $99, but by shopping on Amazon I was able to save $30 with the wonderful sale price of $69.99.  I could not have been happier getting such a great deal on this item as a gift. I was even able to get FREE 2 DAY SHIPPING which let me ship it directly to her house. Although small and compact, the Brio Air Fryer brought a lot to the table. Especially with the fact that it allowed us to put a healthier spin on some classic fried favs without using oil. I say "us" because of course, I had to be there when she used it for the first time, from a food tester’s perspective.  She had invited me over for a light meal on the evening that she had received her delivery.

  Just Like Magic Up first were drumettes and crinkle fries… She decided these would be the best items for testing the air fryer. We read the directions, powered it up and that’s when she got to cooking with this thing.  It was easy enough to operate, you basically just set the timer and the temperature and let the NuWave Brio Air Fryer do its thing.  After a short wait, we had crispy fries that were just right along with the tastiest, juiciest wings. You would never believe that they had been fried with NO GREASE.

My sister was so excited with the results, and I have to say that I was as well. We enjoyed our first air-fried samples. As we sat and talked over our savory combo, she discussed all the things that she could not wait to try out using her new little kitchen helper. The fact that you could fry all of your favorite foods without using oil was definitely appealing.  Guess I know what little item that I will be getting myself soon as well. Read the full article

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My Lenovo Convertible Chromebook from Best Buy

Lenovo Convertible I've wanted to get the kids a computer upgrade for quite some time now. The Lenovo C330 Convertible 2-in-1 Chromebook seemed just perfect for me. It's lightweight, has good performance, nice specs, and easy enough for myself and my kids to use. It's not too technical or complicated, and the price from Best Buy was just perfectly affordable for my budget. Did I mention it's a touchscreen, reversible style screen system? It’s awesome and also has an SD card slot and an HDMI port, two very important things to me along with the hard drive capacity.  

The price for the Lenovo Chromebook was $279. If I had opted for 6-month financing, I would have been charged $46.50 per month, but at such a low price, I paid for it all together at once. I love buying tech items from Best Buy. Their products are always good quality and come with at least a six-month guarantee, which can be extended up to a two-year warranty. Any time I've bought a computer from them, I always choose the option for additional protection, especially accidental damage plans. For this order, I took the 2 year damage protection plan offered by Geek Squad. Best Buy Features The Best Buy site uses a feature where they match up my price expectations as closely as possible with the kind of gadget specs I want. They even offer a payment plan option in case I can't cough up the entire purchase price all at once. As a cardmember, I can get 6 months financing that makes it easy to afford expensive equipment. This comes in handy for those times when the kids accidentally break something. Cardmembers also enjoy 5% in rewards on all purchases. Best Buy provides free shipping on most orders. All my orders have always taken 3 to 5 days to get delivered, and I like how reliable they are. Their order tracking is simple to use and accurate, and I can always find out my order status without having to call their store staff. Divine Discounts The thing with Best Buy is that any time I'm shopping online with them I have so many options for getting good value for my money. For instance, they have a Deals page where you get all types of offers. The page always features the Hottest Deals with amazing discounts every day. You can also check out their weekly ad or their deal of the day for great deals. Members have a member area where Best Buy showcases member offers. These are based on your membership details such as shopping history and items you have viewed before. I also regularly find some hot deals on the Best Buy outlet portal. Look for additional goodies like clearance sales or open box items. You can also get pre-owned and refurbished products on the Best Buy outlet page. Students can claim extra discounts from Best Buy. They even offer additional discounts during back to school seasons. If you're a holiday person like I am then you know the season of gift-giving is always better when you can save on purchases. Best Buy always has some fantastic discounts during holiday seasons. Black Friday and Cyber Monday can be particularly good for getting high-quality products and accessories at amazing discounts. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years are also fabulous times for great Best Buy deals. Read the full article

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Treasures of Pacific Coast at Macy's

My Cousin’s Anniversary I needed to get an anniversary gift for my cousin and her husband. I really wanted to get something nice that was also useful, and Macy’s always has so many options for practical gifts, so I knew exactly where I was going to shop. Macy’s offers a wide variety of products from shoes to jackets, dresses to handbags, and tons of household items. My cousin has this thing for silver items, and it's her theme for everything in her home, décor-wise. The Pacific Coast Silver Plated table lamps that I found were definitely right up her alley. They were beautifully crafted and possessed a very stylish design. I was sure that she would love them.

When I logged on to make my purchase online, the set was on sale at a 37% discount. This lowered the price from $229 to $142.99, giving me a pretty good savings of $86. By signing up for the Macy’s email newsletter, I automatically got an extra 25% discount. This further lowered my price to $107.24, for an additional $37.75 in savings. If you want even more savings on your purchases at Macy’s, check out their Coupons, Deals and Promotions portal on their website. I’m always getting some super great deals on my purchases. One of my favorite things about Macy's is their international shipping. I have family abroad and every now and then I love sending them stuff from the US since we're not able to get together often. The Macy's shipping and delivery system is flawless even across borders. The tracking works great, and I always know where my purchases are in transit. Gifts That Keep on Giving Macy’s even offers gift wrap services for your order too. So, I know that when my family receives these little tokens of my love, they will always appreciate how nicely their items are packaged. For more help with gifts, I like to visit their Holiday Gift Guide. In this section, I can specify a gift price range, whether it’s for a man, woman, or child, and whether it’s for grooming, beauty, or home products among other categories. This brings me a list of suggestions to pick from. You can also save even further by purchasing discounted gift cards to Macy's. I was pretty happy with myself after finding these little treasures of Pacific Coast for my cousin and her husband’s anniversary. Even though I know the appearance was more for her benefit, I could also find joy with the fact that the lamps were practical items that everyone in their household would get use from. All in all, I’d say this virtual shopping trip was a success. Read the full article

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The World's Greatest Detective at Barnes & Noble

My Discovery of Mr. Holmes. My fascination with Sherlock Holmes began at an early age after hearing stories about him being the world’s greatest detective. I've always loved reading and watching movie mysteries and after seeing quite a few movies about Sherlock Holmes and his mysteries, I came across one that I had not seen before, Mr. Holmes starring Ian McKellen at Barnes & Noble's online store.  

Barnes & Noble has always been my favorite bookstore. They offer a wide range of book choices coupled with high-quality toys, DVDs, Blu-Rays, and other educational and entertainment products which makes it a wonderful shopping experience on each trip. My Double Savings Price Drop I was shopping online, not looking for anything specific, basically just browsing when I noticed they were having a 50% off sale. The DVD which was originally going for $19.99, was now reduced to a pocket-friendly $9.99. My second pocket saving surprise came when I realized I was lucky enough to make my purchase on one of their Educator Appreciation Days. As a teaching assistant, this earned me a 25% discount off the $9.99, bringing my price down to $7.49! If you're a new customer, creating an account comes with an enticing 15% off signup discount. For a Barnes & Noble member like me, I also enjoy free express shipping. For the Mr. Holmes DVD, this meant I received a waiver on an estimated $2.98 shipping fee. Not a member? You can sign up for membership at $25 per year. This entitles you to over $60 in bonuses. They send you coupons via email which you can use in-store or online. If you're buying for your school, workplace, or an organization, then you can also get a bulk order discount. The B&N website is very easy to use and making a purchase is very easy. I can add items to my shopping cart like other online stores, or I can jump straight to their instant purchase feature. I mainly use that feature when I'm only buying a single item. Whenever I'm on a tight budget but need something new to keep the kids busy, I always visit their sale page. Active clearance sales with discounts of 50% or more can usually be found in this section. Whether I'm searching for collectibles to keep the kids engaged, or a movie to keep the whole family engaged, I can always find something on sale at my favorite book spot. Read the full article

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Saving on Gift Giving at Barnes & Noble

Books are one of my favorite gifts to both give and receive. How else can you transport someone to another time and place in just minutes?  You can find a book on a topic that interests them. So its a great gift, even for those who are not avid readers.  The hard part sometimes is figuring out what book to get someone. This is especially true if you're not sure where their interests lie. Browsing at Barnes & Noble I wandered into Barnes & Noble recently looking for birthday gifts for a couple of family members. I have a hard time shopping for one of them and I really wanted to get her a book that she might enjoy. Even better would be to find one that she can enjoy at the beach, because she visits the beach often. I want to give her the gift of losing herself in a good book. The problem is, I don’t really know what kind of book she reads. So I hoped that I might find some inspiration at Barnes & Noble.

Well, if you are looking for some great gift ideas and want to save 20% in the process, Barnes & Noble has got you covered. I lucked out to find that my store had a whole “Discover” shelf of new writers and all the books were 20% off, 30% off if you are a Barnes & Noble member. This shelf is right next to their staff recommendations too so I could look through the titles and read the convenient little cards which detailed each book. Definitely the inspiration I needed! If you are a frequent book purchaser or gift giver, the Barnes & Noble membership might be worth your while. You pay an annual fee of $25 and that entitles you to 10% off of everything you buy, 40% off of hardcover best sellers (perfect for gifts!). It also comes with free express shipping for your online orders, $60 in bonus coupons when you sign up, and member-exclusive discounts throughout the year. Pretty good deal! If you buy just 2-3 hardcover best sellers a year the membership will pay for itself. The Book List I ended up selecting Educated, a Memoir and The Mermaid and Mrs. Hancock,  historical fiction book. Both books are  really interesting and I hope the recipient enjoys them! Memoirs are always a great gift choice because reading about someone else’s life is voyeuristic and fascinating. In my experience, historical fiction is often uneven in quality. However, critics described this book as “completely transporting” and "evocative of Dickens". I would say that is high praise and I hope the book's recipient will agree.

Shopping in store does not always lead to the deepest discounts. Sure, I could have bought these on Amazon for less, but I would not have known what books to get. I appreciate the in-store shopping experience for its ability to fire my imagination and expose me to new products I wouldn't have seen otherwise. I also happened to have a discounted Barnes & Noble gift card that I had bought online earlier and I was pleased to have saved some money in the process. With the discounted price, those two dollars I would have saved by shopping online saved me the time and hassle of having to remember to order the books and wait on their arrival. By shopping at Barnes & Nobles, I came home with two hefty tomes all ready to be gift wrapped. Read the full article

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Metallic Roses of The Children's Place

  The Children's Place always has a pretty good collection of trendy and fashionable clothes, footwear and accessories for kids.

Metallic Roses

I love that my kids always have a variety of clothing because of the latest designs at Children's Place. Recently, I went with my daughter and thought she would be so pretty in the Baby and Toddler Girls Sleeveless Rose Gold Metallic Jacquard Dress that we saw. Though I didn't make my purchase in-store, when I got home I went on their site and made the purchase. I made sure to use coupon codes as I didn't want to miss out on some discounts. My rewards credit card from their store also gives me additional discounts and a convenient way to manage my purchases and returns.

  I also really appreciate the convenience of online shopping. Though their store associates are very friendly, sometimes I just prefer to browse through at my own pace. And I enjoy making it a game with my kids as we compare sizes using the handy size charts. Apart from the latest kids’ fashions, the other thing I enjoy about the Children's Place is that they almost always have a sale going on. The store price tag for the Metallic Roses dress was $32.95, but when I checked on the website, they had it on sale for $16.48. That's an immediate 50% savings, amounting to a $16.47 deduction. If you want coupons, my best suggestion is to get some from the official Children’s Place website and from Groupon. When you shop online, your coupon code gets added automatically to the cart. However, when I want to shop at the store, I usually just print out my coupons at home and carry them along. For even more discounts, they offer $10 off if you sign up for their text alerts on your phone. Joining their email list nets you another $10 discount. The referral program earns you and any friends you refer a $10 discount each. One more thing that sets Children's Place ahead of the rest is the free standard shipping with no minimum purchase amount.

Double Discounts

I tend to find some awesome deals shopping at the end of the season because there is always a wide range of kids clothing on clearance sale. The trick is not to wait too long because once the clothes lose their trendiness and go out of fashion, your kids will never wear them unless you have younger kids who could care less. Last summer I did lots of clothes and back to school shopping the second week of September and experienced discounts of up to 70% on some clothes. I can’t wait for the Black Friday deals to kick off for the holidays this year. There are always amazing finds, and the styles will keep your kids looking great throughout the festivities.  

  Like sending gifts? Check out their multi-priced gift cards and very convenient gift services. You can ship the item to yourself or to your gift recipient. If you wrap it yourself, the service is free. If you need a little help with the wrapping, gift packaging will cost you an additional $2. You can also get a plastic gift card or send an animated e-gift card. The gift cards come in $25, $50, $75 and $100 denominations. Gift cards earn you discount coupons and extra reward points. So, next time you're looking for great kids clothes at even better prices, be sure to check out The Children's Place! Read the full article

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Skylanders Starter Surprise at GameStop

If you're a Skylanders fan or know someone that is, then head over to the GameStop website or store for some amazing sales as they always have them going on. My son has been attracted to the Imaginators game series for a while. After much pestering from him, I caught a lucky break with an online sale at GameStop.com and got the Skylanders Imaginators Starter Pack at $9.97, which translated to a $5 savings off their regular $14.97 price tag. These kits can range at prices up to $29.99, so finding it at this price was unreal. 

  I'm sure most parents will love that the game has varied story lines, which makes it hard for your child to lose interest. It's not one of those games you play, complete, and forget. The side missions will keep you and your family busy for ages. GameStop has free in-store pick up which makes it easy and convenient to drop in and get your items. Rate the Ratings The online store is easy to maneuver and very helpful. If you are a parent getting something for the kids, make sure to check the packaging for ESRB ratings. GameStop makes it easy for parents and non-gamers to know what's safe and what's appropriate for each age group. Read the rating summaries for an even better understanding. Signing up for their newsletter gives you access to coupons and details on promotions. You'll also be informed about game tournaments. Deals by the Dozen If you're on a very tight budget but still want the game, head over to the GameStop Pre-Owned section. You can also trade in old games you have and get store credit or cash in return. I enjoyed the chance to earn some money with the GameStop sweepstakes. Giving me a chance to win a $100 Virtual gift card. Don't worry about missing it, the sweepstakes is an ongoing thing. If picking out the perfect game proves difficult, you can always buy a gift card for someone and have it delivered via email. It can be used in-store or online. Starter Surprise Once you’ve bought your game, make sure to enter the player in the PowerUp rewards program. Being a previous shopper, we were already signed up. My son gets all this cool stuff making it easier for him to level up. He was so happy with his Skylanders Imaginators Starter Surprise. Read the full article

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Triple TRU Triumph at Bed, Bath & Beyond

The Triple TRU Triumph I love shopping online, and the Bed, Bath & Beyond site is one of my favorites. So as I excitedly wait for my sister's upcoming nuptials in December, I knew that Bed Bath & Beyond would be the perfect place to get her a gift for her bridal shower. I purchased a Triple Crock Buffet Slow Cooker, and she loves it. The buffet slow cooker has a magnificent quality and looks so sleek and beautiful on my sister's serving table. She has made great use of it at all of the family gatherings we've been having lately as we prep for her special event. It's a triple crock slow heating cooker manufactured by TRU. It has 3 separate removable crocks. Each with its own temperature dials and three different heat settings.  

  Pricing Over Priority The TRU buffet cooker's regular price is $64.99. You can either pick it up in-store of have it delivered using standard shipping. I opted for standard shipping, and my sis received it within 4 days. If you're a member, you get free shipping for all orders above $29, so I wasn't charged for standard delivery. I had the option to choose express shipping, but that would have cost me an extra $21, and I could stand to be patient. Since time was on my side, I decided to move on with standard shipping. Before I sent the buffet slow cooker to the online checkout cart, I subscribed to the Bed, Bath & Beyond coupon service. First timers are eligible for a 20% discount on their first online purchase. This gave me additional savings of $12.80 making the cost of my buy a little over $52. Email Extras You can sign up for coupons either by email, your regular mailbox or on mobile. Getting early notifications on upcoming sales and coupon offers gives me leverage on finding out about deals ahead of time. As a member, I also receive updates on manufacturer deals, clearance sales and closeouts. Bridal Party Card Caravan I also decided to buy my sister a gift card and load it for $25. The physical gift card was a lovely plastic card featuring a bridal bouquet. The store sends it to your recipient using standard shipping that costs less than two bucks, but since I was already placing an order, my gift card was shipped separately for free. She was so excited and happy about the pre-wedding gifts and loved the gift card idea that she decided to order her entire bridal party gift cards to be used in wedding favor bags. I have to say I feel triumphant about the Triple TRU Cooker purchase because I know my sister is going to use it happily. Read the full article

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Flexible Flexagons at Reebok Outlet

My Flexible Flexagons Recently, I started to get back into running in order to get fit, or in my case, as close as I could get to it. I know proper running requires quality shoes, so I had been admiring the Reebok Flexagon running shoes for a while now.  They seemed like the perfect footwear for my workouts. So, when my younger brother told me of a 50% off sale at the online outlet store for Reebok, I immediately rushed online to get mine. At checkout, I applied the discount promo code FALLBACK and the price went down to $40, making my Flexagon deal very flexible to my shopping budget.

I loved the way Reebok handled my purchase. I could track my shoe order from time of purchase till the time it was delivered. Mine were delivered within two weeks. The shoes came with a 90-day warranty in case I find any defects. I chose the coal black color as it goes with most of my workout outfits. Other black choices included the classic black and shark. The Flexagon also comes in different shades of blue including navy, bunker blue and vita. I was very happy with my purchase, as these shoes were comfortable and have stretch straps offering perfect upper support. If you're into fitness, you know how important this is. I’ve always loved Reebok footwear and after wearing the Flexagon, they seemed to be a class above the rest. Plus, they look good even as streetwear or for outdoor activities. Discount Deals at Reebok For extra discounts, Reebok runs a student discount program where students can take advantage of ongoing promotions and additional discounts. If you're a student, head out to Reebok's sister site, myunidays.com and go through the super easy verification process. Once you're verified as a student, you can enjoy bigger discounts on Reebok apparel and footwear. The Reebok company also offers 25% loyalty incentives if you're a member of their ReebokOne instructor network. E-Gift Cards Aplenty My brother shares my love for Reebok shoes, and their website has some very convenient gift cards. The e-gift cards have a $250 limit. I sent him $50, so he can get a matching pair of Flexagon shoes. The site even makes finding, buying and sending the e-gift card easy. I was able to choose the visual look of the card from among six varieties. I loved the one with a picture of three runners, but since my brother loves basketball, I knew he'd appreciate the sporty one more. The Reebok e-gift cards are offered in denominations of $25, $50, $75, $100 and $250. You can include a personalized message and even schedule when to send it if you don't want it to go out immediately. If you're not so keen on e-gift cards you have the option of sending out a physical gift card. These come in two designs and have a low shipping charge of $1.95 for any of the gift card amounts. However, priority mail will cost an extra ten bucks and 2-day delivery by FedEx costs $12. Personally, I like the convenience and the less costly value of e-gift cards. All in all, I couldn’t find a better deal than my flexible Flexagons from Reebok, and I'm glad my brother was able to share in the joy too. Read the full article

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Sneakerhead Success At Kohl's

Confessions of a Sneakers Junkie When you're growing up, the kid with the newest gadget would earn the respect of his fellow kids. At this young age, nothing really matters as much as that respect. When you hit your teenage years though, things change.  gadgets get tagged as baby stuff, and clothes take center stage. At this stage, your sneakers and clothing are what earn you respect in the street and from your fellow teens. I've been a sneakerhead since I was a little kid. I've been strongly influenced by streetwear culture, so I guess my love for sneakers is somewhat inborn. Sneakers Deals My favorite shoes have always been Nikes. Back in the day, I used to save up my dollars in a shoebox under the bed so I could get a pair of Jordans. Nike is still the brand of choice for shoe junkies.  Its super-popular, both with celebrities and athletes as well as the regular shoe-buying public A couple of months ago, my girlfriend let me know she was planning to buy me some Nikes for my birthday. She knows I'm particular about my kicks, so she urged me to find a pair myself. I went online to do some comparison shopping. Since it's on her dime, I focused on choosing the best pair while trying not to go over budget. I decided to focus on Kohl's and Walmart. I had some Kohl's Cash from a recent purchase, and wanted to compare to Walmart since there's one nearby. Shop Hopping On my first stop, I headed to Kohls.com and I checked out a number of Nike Air Force 1 sneakers and compared them with Nike Jordan sneakers. Kohl's priced a pair of Nike Air at $69.99 after a $5 discount from $75. A number of similar pairs were still retailing between $59.99 and $89.99. To me, this is a great deal on a cool pair of sneakers that's not too harsh on the pocketbook.

    I checked out Walmart's site to see their prices for the same sneakers. To my surprise, prices seem to be almost double those of Kohl's. However, they did have a wider variety of colors and sizes. Kohl's Vs. Walmart At Walmart, I would have to cough a whopping $99.96 for a similar pair of sneakers, albeit a pair of Jordans.

The best price I found at Walmart for a pair of Jordans was $75.00, and that was only for a single size, otherwise, the price was much higher. And still, this was high compared to Kohl's.

Getting a Deal I showed my girlfriend Kohl's great prices, and on top of that, we'd earn some YES2YOU Rewards and more Kohl's Cash to use on future purchases. Finally, we utilized some discounted Kohl's gift cards to drop the price another 10%. I chose the black and blue (Go Mavs!) Nike Air sneakers. I got an awesome birthday gift, my girlfriend didn't break the bank, can you say win-win?     Read the full article

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My Straight-Back Stratfords from Big Lots

An Unexpected Find I was recently visiting a friend in Texas. On one of our outings, she said that we should go to the local Big Lots. Well, of course, I said if you’ve seen one then you’ve seen them all, but she told me that this store had way more variety of merchandise than my store back home. While scoping it out, I found some furniture that I loved and noticed they had some amazing discounts. The Stratford ladder-back barstool caught my eye, and I thought it would be perfect for my kitchen island.

  We’re a family of 4, so I wanted 4 of these barstools. They’re really comfortable and have great back support. With their firm and solid structure, it appeared that they would not easily be broken by rowdy kids. Tag Deal Delivery The tag price was $69.99, which was dishearteningly steep because I always look for the best deals. However, one of the sales associates informed me they were running a sale on the item of 30% off. At that price, I even picked up two extra pieces in case I have guests. This qualified me for their $10 bonus reward. I ended up saving $125.94 on the six pieces for a total spend of $294, which I thought was an amazing deal. Big Lots has a great rewards program which I was already a member of, allowing me to earn an additional $5 toward my next purchase. This particular store having a clearance sale on select home furniture made my purchase a cool bargain, as I had not been able to find this particular style in my local store. Another thing I love about Big Lots is their economy shipping service. I got free shipping and professional delivery to my home, so it only took 3 days for them to be delivered. My purchase made it to me the day after I arrived home. I was able to check my order status and track it online at any point, which was very reassuring and took away the anxiety of not knowing the progress of my order. The 30-day return policy also gave me peace of mind, just in case the barstools didn’t sit right with the rest of my kitchen. But once they were in place, my family and I all agreed that they fit right in. My Next Big Thing I had been thinking lately about redesigning my living room after I finish my kitchen. After finding my straight-back Stratfords, I’m eager to finish my kitchen project, and Big Lots may be just the spot for me to do that. The associate also told me about The Big Lots Easy Leasing program which sounded like an affordable way to realize the living space of my dreams. As the sales associate explained to me, it’s a progressive pay arrangement where you can pay within 90 days while not needing perfect credit, and you could even earn more savings. I’ve also found out about VIP shopping days and birthday surprises. After getting to experience their quality of service, I’m now excited to take part in many more of their discount sales and promotions. Read the full article

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Finding Great Kid Gifts on Amazon

If you are a parent, chances are that you and about 100 million of your closest friends are Amazon Prime members. Parents love Amazon Prime for a few reasons. You don’t have to plan trips to the store around nap times and there's no need to wrangle a stroller. Best of all, you have access to millions of unique and affordable kid and baby products in 1-2 days. That doesn’t even include the hours of streaming content available online, discounts at Whole Foods, and Prime Music. Think about how easy it can be to stream Baby Shark over and over again, much to your toddler’s content.   Prime Pillows I was recently in the market for a small pillow for my toddler. Of course I thought of shopping on Amazon because of all the reasons listed above.  More to the point, I have no idea what store would even sell toddler pillows! Not to mention being very uninterested in driving around to local stores just to end up empty-handed. So I got to searching on Amazon and found some super cute options. I discussed with my sister what her daughter prefers in a pillow.  She recommended a lovey type of stuffed animal that doubles as a pillow.

I was so excited when I found these adorable pillows from Squishmallow. Fifi the Fox is my favorite and I am sure that my daughter will love it! This pillow will definitely make bedtime more fun for her and help her to sleep more comfortably. They make it in three sizes so you can get a pillow that's right for your kid, whatever their age. Or you can get the tiny travel size pillow to take with them in the car or on an airplane. Amazon lists all the specs for the pillow including the measurements and washing instructions. And one of my favorite parts of shopping on Amazon is the extensive lists of reviews for each product. This pillow was rated 4.5 stars on Amazon. Reading the reviews helps me be sure that I am making a purchase that my family will love and that is a good use of our hard earned money. Pantry Savings In addition to getting fast shipping, Amazon Prime members can save with electronic coupons.  These coupons are often for grocery items and baby essentials like diapers. Just click the coupon on the item page and go to checkout. If you shop for your grocery essentials online you can save using the Amazon Pantry service which offers a discount if you buy a number of items to all ship in one big box. We also love the subscribe and save option offered by Amazon which allows us to set up auto-ship purchases for diapers and other essentials that will automatically arrive on our doorstep every month at a discounted rate.   More Prime Perks For Prime members, if your item arrives later than the two-day shipping window, you can send an email to Amazon or use their online customer service chat and they will give you a $10 credit or a free month of Amazon Prime. I have received a $10 credit on a less than $10 item. That refund meant I got a free item! Amazon has great customer service and their complaint and return system is a breeze. With some inexpensive items that need to be returned, Amazon will actually just issue you a refund and not ask you to mail it back, saving you a trip to the post office.   Here's another pro-tip to save at Amazon if you're looking to buy a popular product. Check out the other sellers on Amazon of the same product or consider purchasing it used if available. Look at the bottom of the product description for a link to other sellers offering the same item used or at a different price. Sometimes you can get a cheaper price than Amazon, though in this instance it wasn't cheaper. Usually, but not always, the cheapest price/seller will be listed in the “buy box”, the price that is listed at the top of the page and that will be the default selection when you add that item to your shopping cart.

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Scent of Paris at Burlington

  SETTING OUT ON MY SEARCH FOR PARIS My teenage daughter recently ran out of one of her favorite perfumes. She is so serious about her scents, so when I say this one was one of her favs, I mean as in her top five. You would think that it would not be so hard to find Paris Hilton perfume, but you would be wrong. It was a lot harder than I thought. I searched stores and online everywhere before finding what I was looking for in a 3-piece gift set online at Burlington in their Fragrance Gift Set Collection.  

  THE DEAL DISCOVERY Normally $32.99, I really found a deal at Burlington for $14.99. I could not pass up the opportunity to save over 50% and get my daughter exactly what she wanted plus two bonus items! I had been searching almost two weeks for this particular fragrance, the much coveted Paris Hilton perfume for women, and was thrilled to find it at such a great buy.   POTENTIAL FOR GIFTING Another way to save even more is to buy a discounted Burlington gift card, which can also be helpful for gifts as I found some nice items that I know would be great gifts for my friends and family during future birthdays and holidays. So, gift cards will definitely stay on my mind for upcoming events. Can’t go wrong with these because the recipient can use them to purchase the item or items of their own choosing. This, of course, leaves me having the upper-hand when shopping for future gifts or gift ideas - plus while getting them at a discount!    

  MISSION COMPLETED   The knowledge of my success was tap dance-worthy, having found these fragrant Scents of Paris. I told my daughter about my results and she was ecstatic. You would have thought it was her birthday. Fulfilling my mission and finding this hot little commodity for her was awesome because I was able to get what she wanted and save money too. I love savings. I think it is totally worth the extra effort to look for deals when shopping. Sometimes it is a matter of a planned outing where I know exactly what is on sale and where. Other times, I come across a few surprise sales that give me that fun, warm, finding the prize in the Cracker Jack box kind of feeling. My mission had come to a very successful end and left me with a Scent of Paris. Read the full article

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Steal of a Deal at Office Depot!

Shopping at office supply stores in September can lead to some amazing deals. Not only can you find amazing back to school supply deals, but fall also is the best time to get great savings on computers and printers. Office Depot/ Office Max is running a huge sale from September 16 to October 13, 2018 with sale prices on over 1000 items in-store.

I am desperately in need of a new printer. Mine is approaching ten years of life, practically a dinosaur by electronics standards. Wanting to see what they had to offer, I ran over to my nearby Office Depot. I found an amazing deal by stacking coupons with already super low blowout sale prices. Tiny Printer, Big Savings

I found this small yet mighty Canon Color Inkjet PIXMA TS6120 printer. It is about the size of a piece of paper and is ideal for home use. It doesn’t take up much space, has a scanner, holds 100 sheets of paper, and prints 15 sheets in a minute. I really love the super cool sleek black look of this printer. It absolutely suits my printing needs. It is regularly priced at $149.99 but this week it is on sale for $90 off and is only $59.99. That is a savings of 60%! What a great deal for a brand new printer. To further compound your savings at Office Depot, check out the Retail Me Not app and website for coupons. Right now show a coupon for $10 off your $50 purchase and a coupon for 20% off your purchase. For this printer, the 20% discount gives me a savings of about $12 so that coupon is the most valuable. That brings the price for the printer down to $48 which is a total discount of 68%!

I know that Office Depot is my go-to store for printer ink, paper, and other office supplies. So I buy discounted gift cards online to make my dollar stretch even further. Racking up Rewards Office Depot offers a rewards program which gives you 2% back on your purchases and $2 for each empty printer ink cartridge that you bring in to recycle. I love a recycling incentive program since I am always looking for ways to be a little more eco-friendly. If you spend over $500 in a calendar year in store or online, you automatically get upgraded to their VIP rewards program. The program gives you 5% back on all your purchases and free shipping online with no minimum order. Office Depot issues rewards certificates quarterly provided you have at least $3 in rewards. They will also mail you valuable coupons monthly that you can use on in-store and online purchases. Savings now and savings later! If you wanted to read the reviews online and think about the new printer or laptop you were thinking of buying, you can add to your savings by shopping online through a cashback site like Mr. Rebates which offers 3% cash back for Office Depot. If you need it today, you can order online through the Office Depot site. They will have your purchase ready for you in-store pick up in one hour. Can’t beat that turnaround and you don’t have to pay for shipping!   Read the full article

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Home Depot And BestBuy Helped De-stress My Renovations

In the last few weeks, I started a big re-decoration project in my recently purchased home.  The whole process of buying a house has been as exhausting as you might expect. I once read a study that said people found moving as stressful as getting married or losing a family member.  I couldn’t believe it; was moving really that big a deal? But after going through it myself, I realize that those people weren’t exaggerating. Now that I’m through those first difficult stages, I’ve begun the more enjoyable task of looking to decorate my home in my own cool style. Helping along on this mission have been a boatload of great deals that I’ve found online from many of the nation’s leading retail websites. And having purchased gift cards to these retailers at a discount really allowed me to pile on the savings.   The Search In order to get my renovation project on track, I needed to find a wide range of household products that were within my budget and available for a quick delivery. I thought this was going to be quite an undertaking, but the service and deals I found on the websites of Home Depot and BestBuy pleasantly surprised me. They helped make my search for elegant and affordable furnishings into a great experience. Home Depot became my go-to source for a wide selection of wall and floor coverings. A favorite I found on their website was the Alaskan Drift Ceramic Floor and Wall Tiles. They look like subway tiles but without the beveled edges. They were available at a very reasonable sales price of 97 cents per tile. I took advantage of the $5 off a $50 purchase online coupon offer. This let me reduce my basket price by approximately 10%, as I needed about 45 square feet for our powder room (more on that later). I bought a few extra tiles, just in case anything ever happens to them, I would have a replacement and won't have to worry the tile may go out of stock. 

More Savings This rug was exactly what we were looking for in our formal living room. I loved how the red color really contrasted nicely with our white furniture. Priced at $42.45, this purchase had a 20% price reduction applied. They added the discount because the item was in the Home Depot Special Buy section. It also came with the choice of free delivery or free in-store pickup.

Home Depot is also currently offering a large range of must-have bathroom items discounted up to 40%. Many of these fine items caught my eye as potential accessories for my new home. I eventually settled on this cabinet and vanity combo. This cabinet and basin set has proved a stylish and highly practical household addition. And more importantly, I love how it works with the tiles we had picked out. It adds a touch of elegance and is also the perfect place to hide unsightly bathroom products. It’s an absolute bargain at $179.00.

Kitchen Finds Another site where I spotted some great deals was BestBuy Outlet. I was looking for a cool new microwave, but had to be really selective as we didn't have a lot of space to install it. I was amazed at the offers on the Samsung Microwave, which was perfect! It looked like it would just manage to squeeze into the space above the stove that we had left open for our microwave. Originally marketed at $469.99, this appliance was on the  50% off sale items list. But the savings didn't end there. BestBuy Outlet re-sells items that have been returned unused. Since the microwave was one of these open box items, the discount got even steeper. My final price for this beauty was an astonishing $117.99. I scooped up the deal and saved a bundle. Now, this masterpiece of microwavery serves as an efficient, hassle-free mode of cooking and the stainless steel look really meshes with the rest of my newly re-decorated kitchen.

  The deal of the day offers placed on BestBuy's site are always worth a look.  The site offers tremendous savings on electronics and appliances every 24 hours. With all of these great offers available across many major sites, redecorating on a budget goes from stressful to blissful! Read the full article

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Modern Farmhouse Style for Less at JoAnn Fabrics

Modern farmhouse home decor is all the rage now. Who doesn’t love the warm textures, wood accents, and the clean neutral color palette? A bit of rustic and a bit of modern makes for a winning combination. I went out looking for a modern farmhouse accent to add to my humble abode and found myself scoring an amazing deal at JoAnn Fabric and Crafts.

Most people probably think of JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts as a fabric store, but did you know that they have a huge selection of home decor and seasonal decorations as well? Their selection is amazing. A lot of the great items on sale are from JoAnn’s own exclusive line, so you cannot find them anywhere else. Their stores are stuffed with their Simply Autumn items, which are located on the seasonal shelves at the center of the store. There are lots of pieces that are very clearly Fall and Halloween themed, but there are also many items that are good for all year round.

The trick to saving at JoAnn is to shop the sales and use their coupons on top of their sale prices. They tend to over-price many of their items, especially seasonal items, because they run constant sales. The discounts are usually around 40%-50% off the retail price. If you sign up for their mailing list, they will email you weekly coupons. The coupons are usually a mix of specific types of items, like quilting supplies or Cricut brand goods, a percent-off coupon on regular priced items, and a discount on a purchase over a set amount. Remember, almost everything in the store is on sale, so it can be a bit difficult to use that generous 40% off any regular-priced item coupon. You cannot use coupons on clearance items, but many of their coupons are good for sale items.  

My Find I found this lovely wood and tin piece that reads “Together We Make A Family” on sale for fifty percent off. It is originally priced at $49.99 but with the sale, it is only $24.98. A lovely piece at a lovely price! It looks amazing in my living room. Who would’ve guessed I bought it from JoAnn and that it’s a seasonal decor item?!? Savings For further savings, I scanned my JoAnn Smile code at checkout for tracking in their rewards program. The Joann Smile rewards program tracks your purchases and rewards you with $5 reward coupons and customized coupons via their app. The rewards program will give you missions to complete for each reward. An example mission would be making two separate purchases in a month. Further Discounts JoAnn also offers discounts to teachers, military personnel and families, and Girl Scouts. If you are a business owner that uses JoAnn products regularly, they even have a bulk pricing program called JoAnn+. If you shop JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts regularly, another great way to save is buying discounted gift cards online. On top of the great sales and coupons, this will help you stretch your dollar even further! With the holiday season fast approaching, stocking up on discount gift cards is a great gift idea. You can use them to help buy presents or crafting supplies to make special holiday gifts. Read the full article

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Informed Uniform Hoodie Hunt

I must admit that being informed by my son’s high school that the uniform policy would be changing just a month after the school year started was inconvenient. Think about it - I had already purchased the required pants and shirts and was not looking forward to spending more money to comply with the change. So, I held my breath waiting to hear what the change would be. It turns out the school simply wanted parents to purchase all black hoodie jackets to account for cooler weather, as they did not want students wearing different color jackets, coats and sweaters at school. The Search I browsed a few websites - pretty much window-shopping on a screen - before coming across a sale at Macy’s in the clothing department. I love Macy’s and have found many a bargain over the years shopping there. After a few minutes, I found exactly what I was looking for in a Solid Black Nautica Hoodie as required by the new uniform policy.  

Bargain Found The deal on this fleece hoodie was incredible. At regular price, I would have paid $39 for this item, but with the sale, the hoodie was 61% off and was a steal at $14.99. Using the code "SHOP," I was able to get an additional 20% off, making the hoodie only $11.99. That is HUGE SAVINGS! I saved $27 off the original price. At that price, I decided I had to buy more than one, so I purchased two of them for less than the usual price of one!

  Here I was, thinking that trying to find a good price on this style of jacket was going to be rough, and it ended up being quite the enjoyable experience. I placed my order and requested store pickup to save on the shipping cost. I ended my virtual shopping trip feeling very proud of myself because I had survived my hoodie hunt. Two days later, I received a confirmation that my items were ready for pickup at the store. The ten minute drive to the store seemed like it lasted only seconds, while my son and I rode and talked about something and nothing at the same time. My son loved the look and feel of the hoodies as he tried one on in the store. It felt good to know that he will be warm and “in compliance” with his school’s uniform policy as cooler temperatures start approaching soon. As an added bonus, it was great to be able to save so much money on something that we needed. Read the full article