HAUL: $50 at Village Thrift
Today I made my fourth trip to Village Thrift, one of my new favorites. My first trip was somewhat lackluster, but since then I've gotten a 25-item haul for $80 and a 15-item haul for $60. I scaled back a bit more today, but still came home with a good haul.
I've mentioned before that Village Thrift's discount days are Sunday and Monday, when three different tag colors are 50 percent off. Today, perhaps for the holiday, in addition to three tag colors at 50% off, there were another two tag colors at 33% off. I succeeded in restricting myself to only discounted colors, buying 8 blue tag items at 33% off and 3 violet tag items at 50% off. (And, looking at the receipt now, I just realized that some items that I had thought would be full price actually received a discount... always like when that happens!)
The Goods
White cardigan sweater
Gray knit cardigan
Patterned tank
Blue knit tank
Flowered blouse
Purple dress
Gray & blue dress
Eagles jersey
Orioles jersey
Christmas Cards
Brown & blue organizer
The total: 11 items for $41.31.
Continue reading for the price and brand details.
HAUL: Payless BOGO
Today I was at the mall with friends and noticed Payless was running a full-store BOGO sale, so I stopped in to pick up a few essentials. (For those of you who don't know, BOGO stands for "buy one, get one"... in this case, it was buy one item, get one of equal or lesser value for half off. So buy one pair of shoes, get a pair of shoes for half-price. Buy a purse, get a second purse for half-price. Etc.)
The Goods
Tights and shoelaces
I snagged 5 items for $15.46. Not exactly a steal, but not bad to get some items we've been needing. (One of the pairs of shoelaces isn't pictured, as my husband has already put them into his shoes.)
The Details
I only picked up some items my husband and I have been needing: tights for me and shoelaces for him. The haul:
- 3 pairs of Minicci tights: a hot-pink pair on sale for $0.99, a brown pair at full-price for $6.99, and a grey pair half-off for $3.49 (50% off of $6.99)
- 2 pairs of shoelaces: one pair of 54-inch brown shoelaces (not pictured) at full-price for $1.99 and a pair of 40-inch brown shoelaces half-price for $0.99 (50% off of $1.99)
HAUL: $60 at Village Thrift
I was divided about Village Thrift after my first trip there, but after my second trip there last week it's become a new favorite. Today was another discount day at Village Thrift, with 50% off on three different tag colors. Once again, almost everything I bought was discounted, although unfortunately the most expensive item I bought was not. (It was still a good deal, though, and will be very useful.)
My husband really liked the shirts I got him last week and gave me the go-ahead to outfit him with more, so I focused on the men's department this time around. I'm really glad he wanted more shirts; I think he needs more variety in his wardrobe (and the less I need to do laundry, the better!). I only picked up two clothing items for myself, as well as a few books and household items.
We'll see if Village Thrift expeditions become a weekly tradition...
(I apologize for the poor quality of the photos today. I think it's a combination of bad lighting and difficult-to-photograph patterns and colors.)
The Goods
Blue men's button-down
Blue striped men's shirt
Green striped shirt
Tan striped men's shirt
Brown striped shirt
Maroon men's polo
Purple men's sweater
Pink knit cardigan
Striped cotton blazer
Men's khakis
Striped throw pillow
3 hardcover books
Set of drawers
That's a total of 15 items for $60.60, or an average of $4.04/item.
Read on for all the brand and price details.
HAUL: $80 at Village Thrift
After my first visit to Village Thrift, my closest (big) thrift store, I had mixed feelings: I was impressed with the size, the organization, the quality of the items, the cash registers, and the discount days, but I was disappointed with some of the prices (higher prices at Village Thrift than the original/sale price tags still on new items, clothes from places like H&M for the same prices as new). I also was a little confused about the discount days; I thought it was 50% off certain colored tags on Mondays, and a different percentage off on Sundays, but it's actually 50% off three tag colors on Sundays and 50% off three tag colors on Mondays.
Today, I decided to give it another chance... and boy did I clean up! I found many items that I've been looking for: spare pillowcases, word games, cardigans, flats, generic wrapping paper, and polos for my husband. I purchased almost entirely discounted items; the full-price items I bought were ones that I felt were very good deals anyway and/or things that would be very useful to me.
The Goods
Satin jacket
Purple cardigan sweater
Fuchsia knit cardigan
Straight jeans
Dressy tank
Empire-waist shirt
Striped skirt
Metallic gold flats
Plaid canvas flats
Men's green T-shirt
Men's green polo
Men's teal polo
Men's striped polo
Men's yellow polo
Green men's shirt
Striped men's shirt
2 pillowcases
2 rolls of gift wrap
Scrapbook refill pages
Set of Christmas cards
2 word games
1 hardcover book
My total: $80.25 for 25 items. That's an average of $3.21 per item! I have a feeling I'll be making a lot more visits to Village Thrift...
Read through for all the nitty-gritty, like brands and prices per item.
HAUL: Birthday Presents
Last week was my 25th birthday. I haven't had a chance to post much since then because, the day after my birthday, I was bitten by a dog on my right hand. It's a long story, but I'm fine; it's just a little harder than usual to type.
Anyway, I received a number of items off my wish list, as well as some other great presents; you can check out all the goodies below. The only birthday deal I wound up using was the Rita's one for a free regular ice, partly because of my injury but in large part because most of the offers weren't compelling enough for me to go out of my way to use them.
The Goods
5 sets of 5 items
Books and more
Penguin umbrella
Ravens jersey
3 books
Read on for all the details.
MISSION: Hooded Raincoat
We recently experienced a mini-monsoon season here in Virginia, which emphasized again my need for a good raincoat. I have two jackets that I intended to be for the rain, but they're both lined (one with fleece, one with faux fur), which greatly reduces their usability in 70-degree weather. I also have two peacoats, but they're wool, which doesn't smell too great when it gets wet as well as having the same overly warm problem, and they lack hoods. My hooded coats include several winter coats, but again, they're not too useful when it's 70 degrees out. Finally, my husband and I own a whole heck of a lot of umbrellas, but I never use them because they tend to be more trouble than they're worth: the wind will yank them or blow them inside out, they can only fit one of us under them, etc.
So, my mission: Find a hooded, unlined, waterproof raincoat that can be worn with sweats to walk the dog or with cute clothes to go out with friends. I'd prefer for it to be a bit longer, maybe mid-butt or so, than the typical top-of-the-hip coat length. Finally, I want it to cost $50 or less, preferably $25 or less.
I'll let you know how it goes. I have no idea how soon I'll find one, but I'm hoping I get one before the next big rain!
Some of the rain coats I'm using for inspiration:
North Face's K in White, ~$180
Marmot's Precip in Black, ~$100
LL Bean's West End in Sage, ~$140
Marmot's Sassy in Granite, ~$200
North Face's Grace in Black, ~$200
Birthday Wish List
Over the years, my family has spread out... instead of 5 kids at home, my mom now has 5 kids living in 4 different states. Our grandparents, aunts, and uncles also live in one of those states, and my parents live in yet another state. So you can imagine it can get difficult for the family to coordinate who's buying what for birthdays and other gift-giving holidays.
When we were younger, we'd simply hand-write wish lists that my mom would then distribute via phone tree, giving certain ideas to certain people so there wouldn't be any repeats. Then we moved on to e-mailed lists. Now, I like to use Kaboodle*, and I've talked a few family members into it, too. You can make as many or as few lists as you want (and it's not just limited to wish lists; you can make shopping lists, inspiration lists, and lists of things you have, too). My favorite aspect of it, though, is that you can add products from all different sites, unlike the proprietary wish lists on so many shopping sites. Plus there's the ability to "reserve" an item, which helps eliminate duplicates.
My 25th birthday is a week from today, so I thought I'd share with all of you my current wish list. Check out the slideshow below, and click through if you want to know cost or store of any of the items.
You can find me on Kaboodle here.
*Kaboodle started out as a list-making, shopping-oriented site, but it's evolved to become a community to discover and share cool products, get input on shopping quandaries (this purse or that purse?), and be informed on new products and special sales from your favorite brands.
Confession: No Shopping for a Month
Today I lost a bet. A stupid bet. And now, for the month of September, I'm banned from shopping.
Since moving to our new house, my husband and I have been planning to buy a new TV for our living room, as our 4+ year old one is not quite up to par anymore. Of course, that meant that my husband wanted to get an even bigger TV.
TV shopping is one of the few shopping experiences I let my husband handle; to me, they all pretty much look the same, and they're all pretty much way too big. He had picked out a 55" Vizio from Wal-Mart and debated for a few days with our friend Chris whether the box containing the TV would actually fit in our car.
I told them that they were being ridiculous; of course it would fit. I was so sure of the stowing capacity of my car (which has moved me in and out of college dorms, carted bookshelves and Rubbermaid bins, and can fit our dog's crate) that I promised it would fit... and if it didn't, I wouldn't go shopping for a month. So I told him to get a move on and buy the darn TV already.
Today, we went to buy the TV. Man, that box was massive. They let us wheel it out to the car on a heavy duty stock room cart (with which William ran over my toe, breaking my toenail).
It didn't fit.
We had to put the box in an empty parking spot next to us, unpack it, and then load the TV, styrofoam, and flattened box into the car separately... and it still didn't fit. The flattened box was still slightly too long for the car, so I had to go back into Wal-Mart, purchase a package of bungee cords, and then figure out how to hook them onto my car such that they would hold the trunk shut. All while receiving tips, "That happened to us, too!" comments, and weird looks from the other customers in the parking lot. (I hope we don't wind up on People of Wal-Mart.)
Suffice it to say William was quickly claiming bet victory, and now I won't be shopping again for the month.
Luckily for all of you, I managed to squeeze in a trip to Borders, which has entered the final days of its liquidation, before the ban went into effect. I'll be posting that haul soon. For the rest of the month, I'll be posting pre-blog hauls that haven't been documented yet, freebies, deals, tips, confessions, and peeks into my wardrobe, as well as updating the site with recommended TV shows, additions to the book shelf, background on my 3 fellow Fernandes family frugalistas, and other goodies. So don't stop visiting just because I've stopped shopping!
P.S. - Don't tell my husband I said this, but it never hurts to take a break from the spending, anyway. After all, we are trying to be frugal!
HAUL: Village Thrift
Having recently moved to a new house (and the first one that we own), I've been making almost weekly trips to the home improvement stores. I noticed a thrift store, Village Thrift, in the same plaza as my local Lowe's and have been wondering what the store is like. (Unfortunately, while their cash registers are quite up-to-date, they appear to have no web site and apparently have only the one location.)
I had heard their best deals are on Mondays, so Juliana and I headed over on Monday to check it out. Overall, I was impressed with the store: it's large, well-organized, and offers just about everything, without offering a lot of items that feel like trash. However, I had some major problems with the prices. Many items I saw still had their original tags, or tags from other thrift/yard sales, but often the Village Thrift price was equal to or more than the other tags. For example, I found one shirt with its original tags, which showed many prices, ending with a final clearance price of $7.20; Village Thrift was offering the shirt for $8.90. One of the shirts I bought had another tag on it for $3.00, but Village Thrift was charging $4.90. I also noticed that many items, particularly popular brands, had prices that were close to what they would sell for new, like an H&M knit dress for $19.90.
So, while I'll certainly be going back because it's so close and large, I'll have to be very vigilant regarding brands and prices to ensure I'm actually getting good deals. I also plan to only ever shop there on Mondays, when certain colored tags are 50% off, and Sundays, when certain colored tags are other percentages off — the regular prices were not good enough for me, especially since I'm usually buying items that simply hit my fancy, and not items that I actually need.
Anyway, enough with the review, and on to the haul!
The Goods
Gray knit dress
Sparkly tunic shirt
Empire-waist shirt
Flowered shirt
Straight jeans
Word Spot coffee table game
I brought home 6 items for $23; not bad!
Read through for specific details on prices and brands.
HAUL: $40 at Salvation Army
Despite promising myself after Saturday's haul that I wouldn't go back to Salvation Army for a few weeks, I wound up taking my sisters today, since they're in town. We all snagged some great deals, so they'll be posting their hauls, too.
The Goods
Flowered dress
Shift dress
Green knit dress
Skinny jeans
Straight jeans
Bootcut jeans
Tank top
Wine rack
Folding garden fence
The total: 9 items for $38.91 before taxes.
Read through for the details on brands and prices.
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