Yesterday DH and I did the last bit of our in store holiday shopping.
I had been saving a bunch of high value coupons and free samples offers and finally I had enough courage to hit the mall.
We went our separate ways and the shopping began.
First Stop for me was JCP. I picked up a present for DH that was originally $40.00. It was 60% off, because of a super crazy sale, however, I also combined the store sale with a 15% off coupon that I received by doing a survey on the back of a receipt from another recent purchase and a $10 off of $10 purchase coupon that a friend had given me. Final result: DH's present was $5.55. Total savings $34.91!!
Second stop: Origins. Somehow I ended up on their mailing list and they had sent out $10 /$10 coupons a few weeks ago. The coupon had tons of restrictions, but I managed to find something in-store that was $10.00 (Peace of mind sensory therapy). So after the coupon- FREE! And as an FYI- you can take your empty cosmetic jar, bottle or tube to any Origins store for them to recycle. They'll give you a free sample for your trouble! $0.00
Third Stop: Aveda. I love Aveda, but can't afford it. Thankfully, they give out some of the best samples. When you sign up for their Birthday Program, you'll get a coupon for a free 3-pack of hair goodies (that you can redeem right away) and near your b-day they send you a Q for a free product. They will also email you occasionally and their emails almost always have a sweet coupon! They had recently emailed out a coupon for a free sample sized tube of Hand Repair, which I LOVE!! So I received my hair care three pack sample and my purse sized tube of Hand Repair. $0.00
Next stop: Hallmark! I had 2 $5.00/$5.00 purchase coupons from recent magazines. DH and I met up for this part of the trip. I gave him one and I took the other. He bought 2 birthday cards b=for upcoming family b-days. His after Q total OOP:$1.08. I bought 2 large rolls of wrapping paper (which we needed). They were buy one at $4.99, get the second for $.99. My total after q OOP: $1.85. Total: $2.93
We quickly departed the mall and headed to Fry's Electronics where we spent $14.00 on a secret Santa gift (savings $4.00).
At this point my energy was waning, but we needed to power through to get all of the errands done!!
Next stop: Office depot. I had a $10/$25 Q and DH's last present was in sight. I picked up a 3 inch binder (Why didn't anyone tell me how expensive binders are!!) and DH"s gift, and used my Q. Total after Q OOP $23.98. I basically used the coupon to get my binder for free (which I'm OK with, cause ain't no way I'm paying $11.00 for a binder!).
Only 1 more stop to go. At this point, I felt dead on my poor, swollen, pregnant feet.
BORDERS!!! DH had to pick up a gift for his sisters BF. We had a random Borders GC hanging around the house with $15.30 left on it. DH picked up the gift and the total OOP after the gift card was... $1.00.
Most of the other gifts that we have picked up for family have been pretty close to free too. I used the lulu.com sign up bonus promo (now dead) for 2 gifts (one for DH and the other for a friend) total OOP (including shipping with was $9.45 of the total) $11.75. I used the Gilt.com sign up bonus promo (also dead) for a gift for my niece (total OOP .95), and I used Mypoints points for several gift cards that will be used in gift baskets for a couple friends/relatives.
We've managed to stay under our budget for the holidays, and everyone is getting some super cool stuff.
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