STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

travelgirl · Kate Spade

When/Where/How Do You Buy...Bargain Tips

kittenheels · Coach

Clothing - Loehmann's. I can't get suits there, but I can get cute Nanette Lepore and Theory separates for at least 30 percent off. They are about 2-3 months behind the big stores, but I don't mind - since I live in LA -there just aren't a whole lot of different seasons for work clothing. I also watch carefully for codes in the back of Lucky. I've been able to do pretty well with them.

Shoes - Cole Haan has great sales at the end of the season, so I can usually get the shoes/boots I want for 30% less than the original price. I really love comfortable shoes, so I am willing to have fewer pairs that I love and that will last.

Beauty products - I have a limited makeup wardrobe - so I really don't spend other than replacing my products.

Other than that, I work a lot, which keeps me out of the stores :)

Kelly · Hermes

For groceries, check out thegrocerygame.com it's a website that helps you coordinate coupons with sales to get things super cheap. I did it for a few weeks, and I definitely saved up a lot of money, but the big idea behind it is to buy multiples of things when you can get them for super cheap, and then have this stockpile of groceries to fall back on until the sales cycle around to that item again (you have to go shopping every week, but every week you stock up on different things), and with a little apartment and tiny freezer, it wasn't practical for me to keep it up. When I move into a house this summer, though, I'm going to start it back up again because I'll have a place to keep my "store"

For clothes, I tend to get them on sale just by shopping when I actually need them. By the time the weather actually gets warm, most of the spring clothes have been around for a while and are already on sale. Same thing about when it gets cold. So I just don't buy things when they first come out.

I buy random things on ebay, like new filters for my brita pitcher or razor cartridges. You can get anything on Ebay for cheaper than the store.

This sounds dorky, but when my BF and I eat at a fast food restaurant, we have started getting one meal supersized and then buy an extra hamburger. Then we share the drink/fries from the meal, and a lot of times we don't even finish them, because supersized is huge! Considering how much fast food we eat, I know we'll start to save a lot more than if we bought our own seperate meals. And then we'll be able to splurge when we go out for nicer dinners :) When I stop at McD's alone, I get a kids meal.

-- Edited by ttara123 at 19:11, 2007-03-25

luckylily · Gucci

ttara123 wrote:

I buy random things on ebay, like new filters for my brita pitcher or razor cartridges. You can get anything on Ebay for cheaper than the store.

I do this too. I buy almost all my make up and beauty products on Ebay. I usually get them at about 1/2 the cost or less. I've never had a problem w/ bad/old product.

We love eating out, so we always go thru our coupons and valpacks because a lot of the restaurants we like in our neighborhood include by one dinner/lunch get one free. I also make it a priority to know the happy hour deal at all my favorite restaurants.

I'm actually pretty bad about getting bargains. I'm trying to do better.

kealoha · Kate Spade

I scour the racks @ Macy's, Marshall's, TJ Maxx and Off 5th for work clothes. I've been fortunate to score a ton of theory from Macy's @ deep discounts.

For cosmetics, I've got a mixed bag of items. I'll buy during GWP promos @ Saks and Neiman's, but for nail polish, I scoop that up from Ulta. I like baby wash & will buy generic. Some beauty products I'll get from drugstore.com, but for the most part, I'll just buy from Target or Walgreen's.

For random household items like plastic storage bags, sponges, foil, etc., I'll buy house brands from Target. However, I try to buy Simple Green for cleaning since it's biodegradable.

I've rediscovered ebay for other stuff. I found my JCrew wedding dress BN for $50 shipped & couldn't be happier. I'll probably get my invitations through ebay as well.

As far as food goes, there are certain things that I don't care about & will buy generic--especially cereal. Otherwise, I'll try to stock up on non-perishable items when they're on sale & will happily freeze chicken & meats when I find them on sale. And of course, I'll use a coupon if I have one.

If I do buy online, I always use fatwallet or ebates & will utilize a code of some sort.

BargainQueen · Marc Jacobs

For Online Shopping I try and click through rewards sites like MyPoints, Ebates and Lucky Rewards. Last Xmas I received my Lucky MC for $25, just for clicking through their rewards site to Zappos, and I'm about to redeem my MyPoints rewards for a $40 GC to ON.

I always Google for any discount codes and try and combine them with any sale the website may be running. I also price match through Zappos.

For In-Store Shopping, I'm signed up on mailing or email lists and use coupons in conjunction w/sales and store credit card if possible. This works great w/Macy's cuz they'll usually give you extra % off if you use your CC, then I'll pay the bal. off when I get my bill. Also good w/my Gap card, I accue pts pretty quickly for a $10 savings card.

This has worked great so far when buying for DD, I hit up the end of season clearance and buy the next size up for DD to wear the next season. I got a bunch of Gap/ON/Gymboree l/s tops and pants for $2-3 and $5-7 that will fit her in the fall/winter.

For groceries/household stuff, newspaper coupons work great, but it's really time consuming and havent had the chance to save as much as I used to in that dept. I highly recommend using websites that do all the work for you and tell you whats on sale at your grocery store. When I was on maternity leave we used to get free toothpaste, shampoo/conditioner, deodorant, frozen food free w/coupons/sales.

I also look for marked down meats or bakery items. THey're still good, but they're maybe a few days close to their "must sell by..." date, I use the meat/poultry the same week and DH loves his pastries in the morning so we use them up right away.

For cosmetics, I love the CVS savings card cuz you scan it when you arrive and almost always get a coupon off your purchase plus another for a makeup/beauty item and they're always having a sale on top of that. If you're on their mailing list you'll get a ton of coupons

Prescriptions/RX - I look through the Walgreens/Rite Aid/CVS/Target ads and they're usually a coupon from $10-30 for a GC when you fill or transfer a prescription at their store. We got 3 jumbo packs of Pull Ups w/our $30 CVS GC! Who-hoo! (The moms can totally understand my excitement here)

For make-up items I've already used and just need a replacement and are usually dept brand or catalog items, ebay is a great resource to find them at 70% off the retail price.

For undies/bras, I wait until the VS semi annual sale is an addt'l 50% off, I got a ton of super cute undies in Jan for $2! and bras for $6!

BargainQueen · Marc Jacobs

Oh yeah! I almost forgot....Price Adjustments...the stores I shop at are usually on my way home or to work so I just have to pull over, walk in, get my money and go on my way.

ViViDogWear · Kate Spade

Wow! I thought I was pretty good, but with the tips here I'll do even better.

Clothes & accessories - I'll shop Loehmann's, Marshall's, Nordstrom Rack, and sample sales when I can. I don't like to sacrafice quality and brands, but I don't mind things being from past seasons. In CA as kittneheels mentioned, I can pretty much wear most things year round. Oh! also love scouring ebay and places like buffalo exchange for vintage.
For stores I love (i.e. Antho) I'll regularly scour the sale section for deals. It pays to be patient.

Makeup/beauty - I admit I am a product/label whore. I pretty much shop at Sephora for makeup - haven't really had luck with "bargains" on ebay - but find harder to find stuff there. Luckily, I get gifts from sephora for Xmas and b-days and I can keep or exchange. For store brands - I'll get bonus buys at Target (i.e eyeliner w/mascara). For nail polish I look for Essie and OPI in the sale section in Ulta for bargains.

Shoes - I am DEFINITELY a bargain hunter for shoes. I'll buy a majority of shoes at places like Nordstrom Rack (GREAT DEALS) or Marshall's. Last week I also got 3 pairs of St. John shoes from my work sale (for employees). Each were ranging $300-$450/pair and I got them for $60 each. Still not "cheap" as some of my friends tell me - but the savings ratio is my kind of deal.

Hair - If I have time, I go to the Vidal Sasson or other salon schools in the area. It just takes a lot of time (VS is about 3-4 hrs for a haircut). I will dye my hair myself also if I am trying to save $.

Bras/undies - I usually stock up at the VS sale as well.