New York & Co.

Yesterday was probably one of the best sale-days ever. And, it could have been even better, but I did what I could between work and our Good Friday service! New York & Co. had a $15.00 off any purchase coupon good for only yesterday; my friend/co-worker and I grabbed our coupons after work and headed straight to the mall! Their workout pants were all on sale, so I got the pair of yoga pants on the left for $0.00, and I paid $3.50 for the pair on the right. They normally retail for $24.95 and $36.95…and best of all, I needed workout pants–I can scratch them off my short list of things to buy. SO glad I waited!

Total Savings: $58.40
OOP: $3.50

Then, we swung by Victoria’s Secret, using this coupon for a free 1 oz. Acai Berry & Magnolia Body Lotion and this coupon for a PINK free panty (sign-up/sign-in necessary for the latter).

Victoria’s Secret Savings: $7.52
OOP: $0.00

Finally, we went to Bath & Body Works, using this coupon for a free 3 oz. body lotion (shower gel worked for us!) with any purchase. Just a hint: with “any purchase” at Bath & Body Works, I ALWAYS go for the tiny hand sanitizer…I scrounged up $1.50 in my purse to get that, and then got the $3.50 gel free!

Bath & Body Works Savings: $3.50
OOP: $1.50

AND, Victoria’s Secret just sent out a $20.00/any purchase coupon (I haven’t seen it posted online yet), so combine that with the “rewards card” from the last sale, and that’s at least $30.00 off anything in the store! I also got a 4-coupon set in the mail for: $10/any purchase April 7-May 11, $10/any bra June, Free VS Cotton Panty July, and Free bare Ultimate Panty in August. Looks like some good deals coming up!

I did–for a brief moment–think of taking pictures of a lot of very worn out things, but then thought better of it. Maybe it’s my father’s thriftiness, maybe it’s DIY stubbornness, maybe it’s sentimentality (I wore that belt on 5+ years of archaeology digs!), but I have a hard time just letting things go. So, here are some of my favorite ways to wear things down, reuse, and recycle!

1.) It becomes part of the comfy-AT-HOME-ONLY rotation. Since things rarely really break down at once, I have a pretty good collection of clothes that I won’t wear outside the house, but have become perfectly acceptable for working out in, lounging about, and throwing on to do the dishes so I don’t get anything on my good clothes. Double longevity!

2.) Cleaning Cloths! The ultimate re-use cliche, but whatever, it works! Some for buffing, shining, dusting–old shirts are perfect!

3.) They get re-sized, and re-sewn. I’ve never yet turned clothes-into-some-other-form-of-clothes, but I have been able to cut and use scraps for patches, home decor items, and other crafty projects. Fabric is fabric, and especially if it’s a large swath or funky pattern, cutting it up can be a great way to save memories and add some homemade charm to your home!

Some quick-and-easy retools:
A Bandanna
A work-out towel
A pillow
Bibs
Doll clothes
Headband cover
Uber-Cool Gift Wrap!
Small bag (The T-Shirt Tote!)
Jewelry Roll
Potholders (Check the fabric!)
Draft Stoppers
Padded Hanger Covers
Art projects
Cover frames or books
Make a hacky-sack!

In the same vein, Martha Stewart has an awesome list of earth-friendly ways to use extra buttons, glass bottles, belt buckles, and all sorts of odds and ends in a manner that seems actually pretty do-able.

And that’s what Works For Me!

12-Pack Pepsi or Coke Fridge Pack 4/$10.00
Buy pepsi and use with 4 $2.00/1 Pepsi Rebate Coupons for
4/$2.00

English Muffins 2/$3.00

Hannaford Butter $1.39

Edy’s Ice Cream 2/$4.00

Tide 2X Ultra or Bounty 6-Roll Paper Towels $5.99

Cook’s Shank Portion Smoked Ham $0.79/lb.

Top Round Roast $1.79/lb.

Chicken Drumsticks or Thighs $0.79/lb.

Gold Sweet Potatoes $0.49

Applewood Smoked Ham or Taste of Inspirations Black Forest Ham $5.99/lb.

Haddock Fillet $3.99/lb ($3.00 off)

Swordfish or Tuna Steak $6.99/lb.

Crabcakes $0.99 each

Asparagus $1.99/bn.

Green Beans $1.29/lb.

Blackberries 2/$4.00

Strawberries 2/$5.00

Spinach $0.99

Fruity Pebbles 2/$4.00

Berry Berry Kix 2/$5.00

Hannaford Split Top Wheat Bread $1.59

Chef Boyardee Canned Pasta $0.84

Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice $1.98
Use with $1.00/3 Uncle Ben’s coupon (2.22.09 RP)
for 3/$4.94

Kraft Philadelphia $0.99

Hannaford Sour Cream $0.99

Hannaford Granulated Sugar 4/$3.00

Glaceau Vitamin Water 5/$5.00

Aim Toothpaste $0.99

Hannaford Frozen Vegetables $0.99

Gorton’s Crunchy Fillets $3.49
Buy 2 and use with $1.00/2 Gortons coupon (3.01.09 SS)
for 2/$5.98

Brie Log $4.99

Cape Cod Popcorn 2/$5.00

Fresh pork Picnic $0.89/lb.

Spiral Sliced Honey Ham $1.59/lb.
Spiral half ham $1.99/lb.
Boneless Lamb Leg $4.49/lb.
Premium Turkey $0.99/lb.
Carando Spiral Ham $1.99/lb.

Plastic Eggs $0.99
Easter Grass $0.99
Bubbles $0.79
Russell Stover Chocolate Eggs 2/$1.00
Mayfair Jelly Eggs $0.99
Solid Milk Chocolate Bunnies $0.99
Palmer Solid Bunny $0.99
Peeps $1.19
Cadbury Mini Cadbury Eggs $3.49
Reese’s Peanut butter Cups 2/$6.00
Easter M&Ms $3.49; Use with $1.00/2 M&Ms coupon (3.01.09 RP)

No pictures for this post!

It all started a few days ago, when I went in to redeem that little “Free Panty” card that always comes in the mail. While in the store, the saleswoman mentioned that if you try on The Perfect One bra, they’ll give you a free $5.00 coupon good for anything in the store!

So I got the free panty, and I did end up buying The Perfect One since it did fit, if not perfectly, then pretty darn well. The “free” card also had a $10.00 off barcode, so I ended up with $52.50 worth of merchandise for only $30.00 once the freebie, $10.00 off, and $5.00 off in-store coupon were applied.

Now, while I’m not so picky on brands, I do LOVE their PINK brand! And VS is having a 7 PINK (or VS) panties for $25.00 sale…normally they’re 5/$25.00 and off-sale completely they’re $7.50 each.

So, I went home, redeemed the $10.00/$50.00 survey code that always prints on the bottom of your reciept, went back today, tried on the bra again, got another $5.00 off coupon, and walked out with pre-sale $111.00 worth of PINK underwear for only $35.00 post-sale and coupons. That’s 14 pairs of underwear for only $35.00–$2.50/pair! That’s cheaper than Target!!! THEN, to top it all off, I got a “Secret Reward” card that’s good for at least $10.00 and up to $500.00 off my next order (you find out at checkout, of course).

So really, that’s only $25.00 after everything…this recession is doing wonders for store sales–while I hate that we’re in it, I’m very appreciative of these prices that I’m not sure we’ll ever see come again!

See more Super Savings Saturday here.

I wish I had a picture to post. Alas, I don’t even know the brand–it may have been Alex & Chloe. *sigh*

For most of us trying to live a frugal life, I would assume we do the mental checklist before buying something.

• “Do I need it?”
• “Can I get this for less elsewhere?”
• “Do we have the money right now to pay for this?”
• “Could I better serve the family by buying something else?”

When I’m buying something non-essential, like, oh, jewelry, I’m even more inclined to carefully weigh my answers. And so it was a few weeks ago; I was on one of my favorite sample-sale sites, Hautelook.com, when I saw a necklace.

It had a fine black-anchor like chain, and three charms: a grey pearl, an anchor, and a ship’s wheel. It may not sound that cool, but it was SO. Awesome. I wanted it, and I wanted it badly. But, it was $40.00. Who spends $40.00 on a necklace that’s not exactly an everyday sort of necklace OR a fancy event necklace? So I hemmed and hawed, and since these “sales” only last a limited time, I let it expire without purchasing it. We didn’t need it, I don’t need it, we didn’t have a ton of spare cash.

And…I regret it. I look at other discount stores like Nordstrom Rack, Marshalls and TJ Maxx hoping to see it–I Google descriptions, hoping it’ll pop up on eBay. No luck. So I think I’ve learned that yes, I can regret not buying something…which I really didn’t think was possible, telling myself “You can regret buying something, but you don’t regret not buying something!”

And now, if I see something that I have that feeling about…I just might buy it. Suppose you can’t beat intuition!

Get out there and do your duty to stimulate the economy!!

From today, March 12, to March 15, you can get 30% off your total purchase at Old Navy, Gap & Banana…and at the end of the transaction, they hand it back to you to use in another store! A specific-multiple-use coupon…yeah, they must be hurting, but how awesome for us!

Old Navy Coupon here.

And while we’re talking about Old Navy, I’m sure everyone’s heard, but go to www.oldnavyweekly.com each Thursday to hunt for hidden coupon codes that include:

5% (unlimited)
10% (unlimited)
15% (25,000 unique codes)
20% (10,000 unique codes)
$10 off $100 (5000 unique codes)
$50 off $100 (3500 unique codes)
$75 off $100 (1000 unique codes)

and print it off right then and there! Not sure if you can use both coupons (probably not, I assume…), but either way, it’s a steal, especially if you can grab one of the bigger codes.

My husband and I just got back, and we got:

That’s 2 square-neck tops, 1 3/4 button-down, 1 cover-up sweater, and 2 pairs of flip-flops for me, and 6 shirts for my husband. Total pre-sale was $126-something, and after sale was $86.10…which is what mine at original cost would have uh, cost. Now, if I grab a $75/$100 coupon, I won’t be as happy, but as it is, I’m pretty pleased that we ended up saving $39.00.

Back in early January I went on a clothes-trying-on trip; I’d seen a couple of the Thakoon by Target line items that I liked so I made sure they were the right size…and promptly put them back. The second trip was to try on their flip-flops so I knew for sure what size fit me (turns out I’m in-between, unfortunately enough).

I decided to wait on purchasing, since I had just started Swagbucks, and was counting on the $20.00 e-gift-card being earned before they all went out of stock (which it was). AND,  as it turned out, all my items went on clearance, plus I found a $5/$50 promo link and free shipping. So earlier this week I put in my order for:

This Thakoon by Target sweater.
Original Price: $29.99
Clearance Price: $20.99

This Thakoon by Target White Pleated Shirt.
Original Price: $22.99
Clearance Price: $11.49

This pair of flip-flops. I really just needed to get above $50.00, all my flip flops have holes in the bottom, and I know I’ll need about 6 pairs this summer. So one down!
Original Price: $9.99
Clearance Price: $6.99

This Target belt, which I haven’t seen in person, so I hope is of at least normal Target-quality. It wasn’t on sale, but my normal-worn-every-day-for-two-years belt is giving out.
Price: $14.99

Pre-Everything Price: $66.46
Sale Prices: $54.46
Minus $5.00: $49.46
After $20 e-gift card/Total OOP: $29.46

Not bad, for only waiting a few weeks…and I get to scratch all four items off my summer shopping list!

Ugh, what an exhausting week! And even worse, it’s been one where nothing really gets done that’s noticeable. Anyways, my apologies for lack of posts, but I plan to have Shaws and Stop & Shop up tomorrow (night, I should specify), God-willing.

As sort of a random update, I DID end up calling our post office since we again didn’t get the circulars. My local branch called back while I was at work, so hopefully that’ll get resolved tomorrow, and I can blog Shaws/Market Basket/Stop & Shop all at once before they appear online!

But for now, coupons are clipped and ready, the dishes are done, pork chops are thawing, I was able to complete a PineCone Research survey (after cashing my first check from them today), and I have lots of blog posts “in the hopper” as my husband would say. So I suppose that’ll do for now.

Two minor FYI notes:
1.) Watch your inboxes…I got a $5/$30 CVS coupon today!

2.) Ideeli ( http://www.ideeli.com/invite/nesaving ) is having a limited-time only Lanvin tote giveaway…sign up and enter while you can!

I wish I could have days like this about once a month…that would be just right. I went to the mall today, with all the joy of a normal shopping spree. I tripped along to the house music, smelled the ubiquitous cologne-counter smells, bumped into millions of slow-walking, hand-holding teenagers, even tried on clothes and a few pairs of shoes. And though I came home with stuff, I spent exactly $0.00. The thrill of a mall trip with none of the spending!

I first picked up the Night Health Bedtime Balm at the Macy’s Origins counter–it’s tiny, but apparently contains 10 nights worth. And, amusingly enough, is really an aromatherapy cream that tries a bit too hard—not one with age-fighting, dermo-whatever qualities. The “acupressure technique” instruction card that came with it had some gems:

Step 1: “…apply to hollow at the base of the skull (The Wind Mansion point). Gently massage 3 circles forward, then 3 circles backward.” There are four steps, in which you’ll also learn that the crease between your palm and wrist in line with your little finger is The Spirit Gate. Too funny.

Then, I swung by Victoria’s Secret for the Free PINK Energizing Organic Body Lotion; it’s a nice, medium-weight cream with a citrus scent. I love the 1 oz size; perfect to use as a “purse cream!”

As I was walking past The Body Shop, I noticed a free sample center set up there as well…so of course, dropped by, and received a sample each of their Seaweed Cleanser and Seaweed Mask.

Walking into LUSH (in anticipation of next Saturday’s VIP party!), one of the employees gave me a free treatment right there in the store, using probably 5 different products. The Ocean Salt is definitely going on my short-list!

Finally, I went to my Clarins Free Facial appointment (I walked into Macy’s  first, got the appointment, then shopped)…and wow, that was SO worth it.

They have a whole little station set up behind a plastic advertisement/privacy wall…you lie down, and they go to work! She used a cleanser, toner, exfoliated, more toner, mask, more toner, and finished with an eye-cream application and SPF moisturizer. It felt sooo nice and relaxing (even in the middle of Macy’s!), and she was very helpful at explaining the benefits of the products without being overbearing.

But wait, there’s more! After that, I went to the MAC counter, where they also had stations set up…and I got a free makeover! The makeup artist matched me up with a foundation (which I HATE doing, so that was very helpful), as well as an eye-shadow color that had their signature “pop!” factor, but wasn’t overbearing on my skin tone. I had her write down both numbers so I can perhaps buy it with my next Swagbucks Gift Card.

I did have to chant “I want to be a SAHM with a house. I want to be a SAHM with a house”  a few times, especially when trying on this Ann Taylor Loft Dress (retail $79.00)

or when encountering some similar J. Crew belts that had MATCHING HEADBANDS:

Sigh. But I’m glad I didn’t spend anything, and I suppose I have a few new sewing goals for before the summer comes. And by that time, all this scrimping will  have allowed us to pay down even more debt. It IS worth it!

While I once was squarely in the realm of “Clothing is to Cover and Nothing More” (probably since my dreams were solely in archaeological field work…I’m getting there!), having an office job has quickly jolted me from that position. I don’t want to be either the Kid or the Slob, and though I sometimes still dress like both (*quarters for the laundry*, grumble, grumble), I’ve still taken a deeper interest in fashion over the past year.

So, a little while back, when when we had a party to go to in the heart of Boston, well! That was just too good an opportunity to pass up. However, I did not have $500 to spend on (on-sale) Marc Jacob shoes and a dress from the Banana Republic with accessories from some Newbury Street shop. Nor did I really even want to spend $100.00.

After a few dead-ends (Macy’s with a huge coupon, Express, Banana R. Clearance, etc.) I went into H&M. Now I’d originally passed by H&M since I had tried on practically everything in the store on a previous trip–or so I thought.  I found a nice belted black satin dress that was not only a dead-ringer for Michelle Obama style, but was only $35.00.  At that price point, I had a bit of extra room, so I threw in a pack of silver bangles for $5.90 as well. A quick stop to Payless found me a pair of shiny faux-patent-leather-faux crocodile high heels (with a pair of maroon tights half off for a later occasion) that completed the ensemble for $24.90. That was a bit more than I wanted to pay, but I don’t like shoe shopping (I own 3 pr. of dress shoes, 1 pr. of sneakers, 1 pr. of everyday shoes and 5 pairs of flip flops that you can see the floor through the bottoms), so since I actually liked…no really, almost loved, this pair, I thought them highly worth it.

And so it was that I had a brand-new outfit I loved for only $65.80. And since the dress & shoes were black, they can be re-used season after season!

I do love fashion, but I especially love re-usable, cheap, and chic fashion!