On to Savings! Tips from the Queen of Thrift

Here is my brother, David, pulling the boys in a wagon from a garage sale.

Our ward's Enrichment meeting last night was about being frugal.
We had women model outfits they had purchased at a thrift store (D.I. or Goodwill) or at a comparable price somewhere else.
Then, the women went around the room giving their tips on saving money.

I was excited to learn new tips, but from 30+ women, I only learned _one_ new thing.
The rest of them I already knew (and mostly practice). Thus, I am the self-appointed Thrift Queen.

So, for those of you who missed it, or want the details, here is some advice for money saving. If you are a Thrift Queen (or King, of course), feel free to add your ideas. I'll update this as people add items or as I remember more from the discussion.

Overall
-Don't Go Shopping, "The heart cannot covet what the eye hath not seen"
-Live simply, only buy things you really need. Get out of the consuming craze.

Clothes-Houseware-Furniture
-Ross often has clothes on sale that are comparable or less than many thrift stores.

- Department stores: Macy's, Dillards, Kohl's, JC Penney, Meryn's (going out of business soon), have great end of season clearance. In AZ, we wear summer clothes for 3/4 of the year, so August and September are good times to look for summer clothes. For any kind of clothing purchase, shop the clearance rack first.
However, don't buy something just because it's a good deal. Wise advice from a fashion book, "If you wouldn't buy it at full price, don't think of buying it on clearance."

Also, buy online, some stores (Gap, Children's Place, Old Navy, and many others have sales online before they do in the stores, and offer greater selection and you can sometimes get free shipping, depending on how much you order.) Overstock has great prices on everything from electronics to jewelry and bedding.

- Goodwill, Deseret Industries, Savers and other thrift stores and be good places to find clothes. I wait until the 50% off days to get the best deal.

-Resale/consignment stores: Once Upon a Child, Plato's Closet, Name Brand Exchange, and Buffalo Exchange are good places to find higher quality/label apparel.
Last Chance, in Phoenix, is not resale, but it is usually returned items from Nordstroms or other high-end retailers. Great deals there, especially on shoes.

-Garage sales, I cruise garage sales most Saturday mornings especially for holiday decorations, housewares, and toys. Sometimes I will find such amazing deals that I can resell them on Craigslist (a Potterybarn girl's crib bumper $1 at a garage sale, I sold when I found out I was having a boy. I made $25)

-Craigslist, I like to look for a long time before I buy, to make sure I know what reasonable prices are. I always try to bargain down and see if we can meet somewhere to buy it. We got our Wii on Craigslist and a cabinet in our office. I also got Jaxon's boot for Halloween last year that he ended up wearing every day.
There's also a free section.
You can buy or sell items on craigslist, it's a great site.

-freecycle is a yahoo group that you can subscribe to and post things you'd like to get rid of to see if anyone needs them. You can also request things (Looking for a scout uniform) or offer your own items (offered: baby bath tub).

-Swap or hand-me-down. The girls in our ward are going to have a clothing swap, to get trade out clothes that we're a little tired of for something that is new, to us!

Food
-Bread: Alpine Valley Bakery on Southern just east of Extension
They sells day-old bread, rolls, buns, breadsticks, granola, pastries, for a very low price.
Their bread is very good, I prefer the organic multigrain or oat because sometimes the honey whole wheat is too sticky. The prices range from 3 loaves for $1 to $.99 a loaf. It can be hit or miss with variety or quantity on sale. I usually buy 8 loaves or so and freeze them so I don't have to go back very often.

-Bulk food: American Discount Food: on Extension north of Broadway.
They sell restaurant quality/size food and a low price. They have frozen meat, #10 cans of sauces, mandarin oranges, pumpkin, etc. Other products include: produce, dry mixes, dairy, and cleaning personal.
The most EXCITING discovery for me at this store was a generic brand of butter flavored Crisco in a #10 can with a HARD METAL TOP. I wouldn't be excited about this except Crisco only comes with foil lids now and they don't last very long. So, grab them while you can, they are great for food storage.

-Produce: Superstition Ranch Market on Main between Greenfield and Higley
This place is amazing. It's been around forever, I remember going their with my mom as a child. They have the most variety of everything and the best prices. Today pears were $.25/lb and a pint of raspberries $.50. You can also buy cases for wholesale prices. I usually get boxes of peaches and raspberries to make jam.

-Fresh and Easy
Use their $5 off $20 coupons multiple times, just split up your orders! (The staff there will give you more coupons). They also have food at half price that expires the next day, if you want to use or freeze it soon.

-Fry's is accepting competitor coupons and always honors the Fresh and Easy $5 off coupons (I've heard this but never tried it).
Fry's Marketplace also has killer sales on toys, sometimes 75% off or more. I buy toys that are my kids age and gender and have them ready for when my kids get invited to parties.

-Wal-Mart does ad-matching which means you shop all the ads at one store then tell the clerk which items are advertised for how much as he scans them in. It takes a while, but it saves a lot of money. Using the ads to plan your menu can also help you save money.

-Clipless Coupons: THE NEW SAVINGS TIP!
In addition to using paper coupons, Kate told us about a new paper-less coupons system. I couldn't find it last night when I googled for it, but apparently you can go to website, enter your Fry's (Kroger) card number and load coupons onto your account which will be deducted automatically when you use your card at the register. SO COOL!
The online clip-less coupons I have "loaded" onto my Fry's card can be found at:
www.pgesaver.com
and
www.shortcuts.com

-Couponsense is great if you are organized and willing to go to many stores.