Cue the music… “It’s the most wonderful time, of the year!”
I’ve worked retail since high school. And as a seasoned
retail employee (okay, optical isn’t really
retail, but it almost is), I can feel the holiday season in my bones. So much
so, that at 11:15 pm on Halloween night, I said to my husband “okay, we’re done
with Halloween, we’re moving on to Christmas!” He rolled his eyes. If you
haven’t met my husband, just know that he is pretty much the living version of
Charlie Brown… I can hear him say “Good Grief” in my head each and every time
he disapproves of my shenanigans.
I like Thanksgiving and all, but I see my family regularly
(I love them… I want to see them more than a couple times a year), and I just
love Christmas so much that I don’t want to wait!!! By the way, when did it
become socially acceptable for people to bash others for getting into the
Christmas spirit early?!? If you ask me, those are the people with the
problems.
Anywhoo, as soon as November 1st gets here, I’m
ready to watch for the Christmas present deals. Since I like to share the
wealth, I thought I’d go ahead and let you know of all of my tips and tricks
for finding a good deal. I hope you’ll share yours with me too!
Because there are so many different stores and ways to save,
I’m going to break it down into a few posts. I’ll start with my biggest and
best resource (you’ll soon see why)… TARGET!
Now, I know Target got a lot of grief this year, and shoot,
I was one person who stopped shopping there until they realized their faults.
But, they’ve been taking a lot of steps to correct the issues, and they’re
offering even more deals than usual to make up for losses. Bonus!
Here we go…
Okay, for all of the occasional Target shoppers out there,
let me start off by saying that YOU NEED A RED CARD. My Mom hates debit cards –
she still writes checks – but I’m always telling her that she could save $300 a
year easy if she would just get a Target Red Card. It saves you 5% each time
you use it and it just comes straight out of your bank account; it’s NOT a
credit card (unless you want a Red Card Credit Card, because those are
available too). It also gives you free
shipping if you shop online, and you should always check them out online
because there are tons of online deals that you can’t get in stores (right now
you can get 20% off of toys, through 11/5).
On top of the Red Card for a free 5% off, they have a
Cartwheel app that can save you tons of money on things you already purchase,
coupons you can print from Target.com that you can also stack with
manufacturer’s coupons, and now in St. Louis you get points for all of your
purchases to earn free stuff (also on Cartwheel). Plus, they do a lot of their
“Buy X, Get X” deals like buy 3 bottles of shampoo and get a $5 Target Gift
Card. It’s all just free discounts. Hardly any effort!
 |
| Even more free goodies with Cartwheel Perks!!! |
But, the best deal they have going each and every year at
this time, and the reason I decided to do this post, is a Toy Deal of the Day
on their Cartwheel app. What it is, is they put one specific toy on the app
each day from November 1st through December 24th, and
it’s 50% off. Yep, you saw that right… 50% off. HALF OFF. It’s a big deal. New
toys. For HALF. OFF. Sometimes the toy will even be on sale in the store, and
then you’ll get it even cheaper! More than… HALF. OFF. Can you sense my
excitement? The catch is this: Once it gets closer to Christmas, they sell out
of the toys before 9am (it’s only in store and they only have what’s on the
shelf to start with). So, if you check the app when you wake up, and get to
Target at 8am, you should be okay. We missed sooooooooo many good ones last
year. But, I’ve got my game face on this year. ;-)
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| An example of a 50% Off toy deal. |
I know, I know, I’m crazy to spread this piece of
deal-saving-goodness… but, even though I’ll probably take out a few of you with
my elbows getting to the goods, I still wanted to share the wealth.
Oh! There’s one more thing. Now, this is new this year so
I’m not quite sure if it’s easy to use all around, but Target has a new app
called “Target Kids’ Wish List.” Your child can create a list of the items they
want for Christmas (or you can create one for them) and anyone can search for
the list online or in stores; it’s like a registry. I think that’s pretty
freaking cool! And the best part is that you can get 10% off of those items if
purchased by November 23rd! There are some exclusions, and rules… I
believe it’s a one-time use, but I’m not sure if that’s per person shopping, or
per child. But, if you have the holiday shopping money now, you may as well try
to get as much as you can in one stop.
So there you have it!
I hope you got a lot out of my first Frugal
shopping post! I know I have a pretty good game plan for the next couple weeks
that’s for sure. ;-)
Make sure to let me know of any Target deals you come across
too. I’m always looking for more insights on how to save more of my hard-earned
money!
And be sure to follow The Average Momma on Facebook so that
you don’t miss out on any future shopping tips/tricks posts I might have.
*All graphics and pictures on this post were from my electronic device and/or creations of my own.
*All graphics and pictures on this post were from my electronic device and/or creations of my own.
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