Thrifty and Thriving

Does your kid destroy backpacks? As in, carries everything and a hamster around and by the end of the school year its barely able to hold a folder? Yeah, thought so. I used to do that too. But wait! There’s hope! There are a lot of places you can get inexpensive backpacks for your kids, and not feel bad that they are ruined by the end of the year. Here are a few places to check out:

Target has backpacks on sale! You can get a nice backpack for your little dudes and gals for under $10. Check it out here.

Staples has 25% off Jansport Backpacks here. (The coupon is really tiny at the bottom of the ad)

School-Bags.com has a bunch of bags under $20 here.

eBags.com has 20% off site-wide on backpacks here.

And finally, don’t forget to check out Amazon and eBay for inexpensive bags.

Happy hunting!

The usual promotion from restaurant.com – 80% off – when you enter code SAVOR

I find these are only worth buying if you’re going to use them in NYC, Boston, or some other big city.

Readers, have you found these useful in the 518 area?

Ask.com has a new search engine devoted to looking for online coupons and deals at ask.com/deals. According to the AP, this move is in response to an increase in consumers using coupons, an activity that doubled in the first half of 2009 from the same period last year. To be more convenient, this service is supposed to filter out expired offers and be staffed to ensure offers are valid. Read more about the new service from Ask.com.

Do you have a site you use frequently to find online deals? What works best for you?

That’s what I’m hearing from the circulation department will be the value of the coupons in this Sunday’s paper. I’ve become more diligent about clipping coupons recently. I used to try and avoid them because I believed I would actually spend more money buying things that I normally wouldn’t have, just because I have the coupon. A lot of products are cheaper if you buy the generic brand anyway, even if you do have a coupon for the name brand.

That being said, I have been using coupons a lot more lately, but I’m trying to develop a smarter strategy for them. Mark and I focus on the list of things we need for the house first, and then go look for coupons. I try to only look for the products I know I will buy. If I see something else I might be interested in or may need down the road, I clip it and put it aside, but we don’t bring it to the store unless it’s on the list for that week. I try to avoid coupons that require you buy 2 or more of the product, unless it’s something we really use a lot. Even if it’s a good deal, we don’t have a lot of storage.

Generally, I use the newspaper and Coupons.com to find coupons. If I can’t find something there, I’ve tried the manufacturer’s site, with limited success. I have been able to find coupons for $2 off Pull-Ups this way in the past. One thing I’ve noticed is that while I may bring 5-10 coupons to the store with me, I usually only end up using a couple. Either the brand I want isn’t in stock or I find something even cheaper without the coupon.

I don’t know if I can say I’ve ever saved a ton with coupons, but it is kind of fun to hunt for ones I know I’ll use. Do you have a coupon strategy that works for you?

$30 off $75 purchase or $15 off $30 purchase at Express. Same offer online code 3049. Offer valid now – September 20th.

DSW: $10 off $49 purchase. Online code EXP10. Offer valid through September 27th. Says free DSW membership required but I’m not sure if they’ll be checking it; but you can always sign up for free on their web site

Here’s something you might not know. Pacific Pillows is a site that lets you get pillows, comforters, towels and such just like the ones in your favorite hotel!
They’re now offering 50% off their entire stock if you use code CELEBRATE.
Shipping is $4 and everything you buy is backed by “30 Night Comfortable Sleep Guarantee!”

Personally, I cannot think of any hotel I really enjoyed sleeping in; I always look forward to sleeping in my own bed but I still enjoyed browsing the site.

One woman in Boston says that she can…and does it all using coupons and buying in bulk. A reporter from WCVB in Boston accompanied Kathy Spencer on a recent shopping trip where she got $279 worth of groceries for 39 cents. Of course, the article doesn’t say what she bought. Some commenters on the story suggest that it would be very difficult to feed your family healthy food this way, as most coupons are for packaged food, not meat and produce. Read the article and comments. Also, find more discussion about this story on Consumerist.com.

Do you think you could feed your family healthy meals for less than $10 a week? If so, please tell me how.

Buy $15 worth of school supplies and get a free 4-pack of Sharpie highlighters with this coupon. It’s good now until August 29.