Cashiers: The Good, the Bad, and the Incompetent.

Hey everybody!

I hope you're having a great week!

Today, I just wanted to talk about an important aspect of the couponing process- your cashier!

If you're serious about your savings, sometimes that will mean doing more than one transaction at the register in order to use manufacturers coupons to purchase multiples of discounted items. 

This will mean that you need a cashier who is willing to cooperate with you and be patient as the process may take awhile.

As my title may suggest, not all cashiers are created equal.

Some are great and some not so much.

Today I went to three different stores, and the cashiers who helped me fell into three distinct categories; The Good, the Bad, and the Incompetent.
Here are the experiences that I had with each, and how I think it's best to react to each given situation.

The Good: Cat, cashier at Rite Aid

Rite Aid has had some red hot deals these past couple of weeks.

Unfortunately, it seems that a lot of other couponers in my area have noticed the deals too.

The two stores that I usually shop at have been fresh out of almost every deal advertised the last few times that I've visited, and that gets super frustrating when I'm pressed for time.

Today, I visited a store on the outskirts of town and it's safe to say it's my new fave! 

They had every deal I needed, and a great cashier as well-Cat!

To say that today was not my most organized  trip would be an understatement.

Having been to two stores prior, I'd bought what deals I could find there and had to rearrange what was left to buy at location number three into new transactions in order to properly use my +Ups to get the best deals.

I also recently got to the 250 point mark on my +Up rewards program, so that means that I get 10% off of my store brand items now. 

I didn't realize this prior to making my list, so I also had to grab filler items as I went, making the process even messier. 

Cat was very understanding.

She was patient with me, helped me grab cheap filler items, and answered some questions I had about bogo deals.

Fillers, for those of you who don't know, are cheap items you use to make the dollar mark to be able to use your register rewards at Rite Aid and other stores. 

Unfortunately, you're not able to use register rewards towards tax at many stores, so at a minimum, you pre-tax total must equal the value of your register rewards.

Anyhow, I had Cat ringing for about 30 minutes, and she was friendly and cheerful the whole time. 

Cat is the ideal cashier to have when you're on a couponing trip.

The Bad: Shay, Cashier at Walmart

Sometimes you get a cashier who just plain stinks.

They could be grumpy, rude, or flat out uncooperative.

Shay was all of these things. 

I was already not in a great mood because the Walmart I went to was out of stock of a lot of the items I wanted- apparently they don't even carry most of them.

I grabbed the couple of items I was able to find and headed to the register.

I had two transactions and four items total, not a lot to handle. 

Two of my items were Neutrogena face wipes in travel packs.

I had coupons for $2.00 off of any Neutrogena face product, which made the wipes free.

These coupons have been ringing incorrectly, so the cashier is required to manually enter a code to allow the use of the coupon.

I've had the same issue with Neutrogena coupons before, and cashiers have fixed it without question.

Such was not the case with Shay.

She initially refused to accept the coupons, at which point I explained to her that the coupons were in fact applicable to the items that I wanted to purchase.

She again refused, at which point I asked to speak to a manager.

I asked several more times to speak to a manager, and Shay continued to ignore my point and insist that the coupons would not go through.

I finally told her that I would find a manager myself and see what they could do about it, at which point she keyed the coupons through and allowed me to get my items at the appropriate discount.

Some cashiers don't like couponers, but some just don't like to do their jobs correctly.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, stick to your guns!

If you know that a coupon is being used correctly, don't accept a 'No' without speaking to a manager first. 
Though most employees are more than willing to help, occasionally you get someone stubborn or ignorant of coupon policy.

Most stores policies are available online, and lots of couponers find it helpful to carry a copy of the policy with them just in case a discrepancy arises.

In this case, however, the discrepancy was with the coupon itself. 

Avoid problems by making sure that you read the fine print on your coupons thoroughly before redeeming them, and make sure to use them correctly.

The incompetent: Matt, Cashier at Target

Sometimes an employee just straight up doesn't know what they're doing.

They may be new, poorly trained, or just incapable or performing their duties for some other reason.

I had a few issues with Matt the incompetent.

I had coupons to make some crackers free, but was only able to find one package, which was on the wrong shelf. 

When I asked where I'd be able to find more, Matt just shrugged his shoulders and told me he didn't know, but that they were "Maybe with the crackers and stuff". Helpful. Not.

I also had the same problem with him that I had with Shay- he refused to accept some of my perfectly legit coupons.

In this case, I just bought the other items I came for and decided to deal with it another day.

I had left a stack of coupons at home, and knew I'd need to return to Target tomorrow anyways, so I didn't see the point in arguing about it.

My advice when you find yourself in this situation is to politely excuse yourself and go talk to someone who is more familiar with store inventory and coupon policy.

There's no point in wasting your time trying to deal with someone who doesn't know what they're talking about, it's as simple as that. 

Make sure that you find someone who will give you the assistance that you need. You deserve it.

I hope this is helpful to any of you who have dealt with similar situations.

What do you do in similar situations?

Have a great day!

-Madeline

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Twotip:Be loving to your cashiers, even if they don't treat you the same way! A bad cashier may just be having a crappy day, and being rude back to them won't get you anywhere good. If you have a great cashier, let them know! Lots of stores have suggestion boxes, online surveys, and other ways to give reviews as a way to get feedback from customers. It may be five minutes out of your day to recognize the hard work of an employee, but they certainly deserve it they're willing to put up with your crazy couponer behavior;)

Buying NEW at the Thrift Store

Hey everyone!

For awhile now I've wanted to post about buying new items at the thrift store.

Thrift stores are known mainly for selling "new to you" items.

While I'm ok with used clothes as long as they're clean, I understand that not everyone feels the same way.

(Though if you think about it, tons of people could try on an item at a department store before you buy it, making it "used")

Even if you squirm at the thought of wearing someone else's used things, you can still save big by buying at thrift stores.

I'm sure over time you've bought things and never worn them, or received the occasional gift that went untouched. Those items have to end up somewhere, and often that place is a thrift store.

One thrift chain in particular known for selling brand new items is Goodwill!

Goodwill often carries salvage items from Target that are seasonal, slightly damaged, or have damaged packaging, at a much lower cost than you would pay at Target!

Though the damaged ones may not be so appealing, damaged packaging? No problem!

I've found tons of great bargains at Goodwill, as well as other stores on brand new items-no damage or use to them!

Here are a few great examples of Target and other cheap finds I've snagged at thrift stores:

This great Xhilaration Dress cost me $5, and it's still available on the Target site for $24!

Why was it there? Apparently because that tag is ripped. Score!

These bikini bottoms are still at Target on clearance.

I paid $3.50, the lowest price they have is $7.00.

The hygienic liner is still in place, but the tag was missing so they were quite a steal!

This Nike baseball tee still has its' tag on.

Retail price? $24.99

My price? $2.00 at Salvation Army

I bought four of these sweatshirts at Salvation Army for less than $2.00 each!

They're a rare combination of vintage AND new with tags.

They still had the tags and stickers attached, and based on the aging of the paper I'm guessing they are over a decade old. 

According to the tags, they once retailed $19.99 each

 

These are just a handful of the items that I've purchased brand new at the thrift store, so as you can see, even if you're not into used things, it's still worth a trip to the store to see what you can find. 

Based on a recent experience though, I do have to say BEWARE: all that glitters may not be thrifting gold!

This week, I bought a Brita water dispenser, which as you may know is a water filtration system that sits in your fridge.

 Goodwill often carries these brand new with slightly damaged packaging. 

The going rate for Brita systems is $21 at my local Goodwill, and this unit costs $44.00 new, so I thought I was getting a great deal.

I even asked at the register to be sure that it was new and the packaging was the only damage that it had, but  to my dismay once I opened it at home, I found it was used. with a pretty gross looking filter. 

Since the previous owner had saved the box, the sales girl had assumed that the dispenser was new without checking.

If I had been smarter about this purchase, I would have asked to open the box and double check to make sure the unit was new, however knowing that GW often carries them brand new, I didn't question the cashier. 

Unfortunately, due to the fact that GW does not accept returns or do price adjustments after a purchase is made, I'm unable to return the unit. 

A really simple way to avoid this? Open the box! Most GW employees will be happy to oblige your request.

Even though the filter is gross, I do have coupons for a box of new ones and the unit is otherwise undamaged, so I'll still have saved about $15 when all is said and done. 
Just make sure you check your appliances before you pay!

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Twotip: The easiest way to share the love? Share your knowledge of savings, of course! If you know a friend or family member who is on a budget, turn them in the direction of GW or other stores that sell new at cheaper prices! Or you could always just steer them in the direction of my blog!;)

Couponing Deal of The Week: August 17, 2012

Hey y'all!

When there's so much else to write about savings-wise, I don't want to bore you with the details of each and every one of my couponing purchases. 

From not on, I'll try to post my favorite deals every week and only post a full report of my steals and deals every once in awhile.

This week I have a great example to show you of how Catalina rewards can make a purchase worthwhile.

My deal of the week is:

Nivea Skin Firming Body Lotion with Q10 

4 for $1!

or $0.25 each!

Here's how I got the deal:

The lotions cost $10.49 apiece retail, so 41.96 total.

They were marked down to $6.00 this week, as advertised in their ad, so that makes $24.00

Rite Aid also had a deal giving you $10 +Up rewards when you spend $20.00, making the cost $14.00

I had four (4) $3.00 coupons for Nivea Q10 products which added up to $12.00, making the deal $2.00

I then used a $1.00 store coupon, making the total cost $1.00 (plus tax) bringing my total down to $1.00 total, so I ended up saving myself almost 98%! Sweet!

Some savvy couponers were able to print 7 coupons, making the deal a money maker

(The deal was $10 +Up rewards for every $20 spent before coupons, limit two) 

Like I said in a previous post, catalinas are great, but you are really only getting a discount if you actually use them!

Fortunately I had some other stuff to buy today, so I used them right away. 

I'm really excited to start trying out this lotion!

I've lost about 10 pounds now, and hopefully as I continue to lose this will help keep my skin nice and firm.

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

Twotip: Some items are great to 'stockpile' away, but sometimes it's just better to share the freebies! When you get multiples of an item and know you won't be using them all up anytime soon, go ahead and give them away to a friend or relative who will! I know my mom would love some of this lotion, and it would take me quite a bit of time to use all of these big bottles, so that's where some of mine will be going! 

God bless!

-Madeline

To Save and Be Saved

Hey everybody!

I hope you're all having a wonderful week!

So as you know if you've been reading, this blog is all about savings for those of us who are on a budget, or who are learning to be.

I hope that if you've been reading and seen my blogger profile, you've noticed that I'm a Christian.

The "TwoTip"s that I include in every post are based off of the Second Commandment, to love others as we love ourselves.

I like to include them because something that I've learned over the years and that I hope you all can agree with is that while monetary savings are great, they are absolutely meaningless when it comes to your happiness.

So, before I go on to tell you about more savings, I'd just like to say that it is much more important in the long run that you BE saved. 

A great Bible passage that I read last night is called "The Futility of Wealth" and comes from Ecclesiastes 5:8-20.

In the passage, Solomon writes about how wealth does little to bring long term happiness to those who seek it with no other fulfillment. My favorite verse from the passage is:

Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness! (Ecclesiastes 5:10)

For me, it was pretty easy to recognize the truth in that verse.

I know that on days like today when I'm feeling blue, no amount of free Glade products or other couponed goodies can make me feel better. 

I have found that I can go work out, eat something sweet, read a good book, or any number of other things, but they won't do me any long term good if I'm not coming to Christ with my worries.

My testimony is a pretty long one, so I won't write out the whole thing, but I will say that I've become a totally different person since dedicating myself to Christ. 

There is a happiness and a peace that I find in God's Word and in prayer that I'm unable to find elsewhere, and a comfort that I find in knowing He is by my side listening day and night, no matter what happens.

I'm not a perfect person. I sinned today and I will sin tomorrow, not because I want to, but because human nature is imperfect. 

There is a peace in knowing that you are forgiven and that you Heavenly Father loves and cares for you no matter how far you fall and no matter what you do. That peace has spoken itself into my life and turned me from a bitter, angry, insecure and mean person to someone who does my best to live up to the Lord's standards for my life. 

Whether you want to hear it right now or not, I just wanted to take a moment to say to you all that God loves you. 

He sent his Son to die on the cross and bear your sins. He watches his most precious creation be torn apart and viciously beaten for your sake. 

As horrific as that may be to imagine, Jesus made the choice to bear that pain for you. 

Not only to die for you, but to endure beatings, ridicule, and extreme amounts of pain so that you would never have to.

Everyone has struggles and everyone has bad days, but having the One who created the Earth by your side is an incredible feeling, the perfect support system.

I hope that you all will take a minute to read Ecclesiastes 5:8-20 and consider the things that it says.

If you don't have a Bible, you can look it up online, but if you'd like a hard copy, feel free to message me your contact info and I'll be happy to send you one.

God Bless,

 Madeline

Couponing Results-Week of 8/5/2012

Hey y'all!

Hope this post finds you well.

Today I wanted to share a second post with you about couponing and some calculations as to what you could actually be saving-even without paying for a newspaper subscription!

First, here are some pictures of my haul this week:

According to my calculations, this cost me a grand total of $10.64 (including tax)

All of this was free!

Here's a list of everything I bought on my couponing trips:

2x Travel Size Gold Bond Medicated Foot Powder 1 oz

2x Stride Shaun White Whitemint Gum 14 pack

1x Full Size Comet Stainless Steel Cleaner 17 oz

1x Lanacane First Aid Spreay 3.5 oz

1x Papermate 10-pack Ballpoint Pens (this is a different color of the same pens from my previous post)

1x Glade Expressions Fragrance Mist Starter Kit in Pineapple & Mangosteen

2x Glade Expressions Fragrance Mist Starter Kit in Cotton & Italian Mandarin

1x Glade Expressions Oil Diffuser Starter Kit in Pineapple & Mangosteen

2x Glade Expressions Oil Diffuser Starter Kit in Lavender & Juniper Berry

1x 30 count Up & Up Cotton Rounds

1x 60 count Arctic Naturals Daily Omega-3 Fish Oil

2x 7-count Neutrogena Make-Up Remover Cleansing Towelettes

1x Physician's Formula Youthful Wear Cosmeceutical Youth-Boosting Concealer (full size)

1x Physician's Formula Youthful Wear Cosmeceutical Youth-Boosting Foundation (full size with brush)

1x Up & Up Bathroom Cleaner Deodorizer and Disinfectant 22 oz

1x Method Tub-N-Tile Flushable Cleaning Wipes 28 count

1x Aquafresh Extreme Clean Fluoride Toothpaste Travel Size .8 oz

Not Pictured:

CVS brand 30 SPF sunscreen 2.0 oz

The total value of my purchases: Approximately $108.24 (including tax)

 My savings? $97.60, or 90.17%!!

This week I had lots of high-value coupons for various items, as you can see above. I had $5 off of Glade Oil Diffusers, $3 off of Glade Fragrance Mists, and $2 off of Neutrogena Products, just to name a few. 

I don't want to bore you with the details of every transaction, but a few strategies that I've used this week to save and get free items are:

1. Stacking Coupons- Stacking coupons is a pretty simple technique. It just means applying both a store coupon (one you will usually get from a newspaper ad or store website with the store logo on it) and a manufacturer's coupon (one directly from the company) to make an item either cheaper or free. A lot of stores like Target will allow you to use one of each type on a single item. 

Example: Comet Stainless Steel Cleaner- $1.99. I used a $1 Target Coupon and a $1 Comet Brand coupon making the item free!

2. Rebating- You can frequently find items in stores with "Try Me Free" or similarly phrased tags or stickers on them. With these items, often all you have to do is save a UPC and your original receipt and mail them in to the company. However, always be sure to check for specific rebate instructions before making your purchase or you may end up stuck with the cost! Not all companies have the same policy! You can check for rebates when you're in the store, or search google for a list of current items that are free with rebate.

Example: I'm actually taking advantage of rebates for my three highest-value products this week. Both of the Physician's Formula Items have 'Try Me Free' rebate forms that you can print online, as well as a sticker that must be attached for rebate. The Arctic Naturals Fish Oil also is eligible for a rebate, but you have to pick up a Walgreens in order to redeem it.

3. Catalinas- Catalina is a term for a reward certificate that prints out with your receipt after you make a purchase. A lot of stores use these types of rewards. Rite Aid calls them +Up rewards, Walgreens are Register Rewards, and CVS uses ExtraBucks. You can use these to get "Free" items as well. Sometimes the rewards you receive for purchasing an item are equal to the cost of the item itself, and they're as good as cash if you have other items to purchase from the store. 

Example: Lanacane Spray-$7.49. This spray was marked down to $6.00 and I received a $6.00 Register Reward. I then used the Register Reward to purchase another item that I needed, giving me the spray for free.

4. Multiple Purchases: It's important to read the fine print on your coupons. Some say "One coupon per customer" or, which means that you will need to come back to the store at another time, or visit another nearby location to redeem a second coupon. However, another phrase that you won't want to get confused with this first one is "One coupon per purchase". This simply means that you will have to use more than one transaction if you want to redeem multiple coupons and receive multiple discounts/free items. Some stores will allow you to complete this transactions consecutively (you will obviously have to indicate to the cashier the separation of the purchases). Others, however, may require you to get back in line and wait your turn to make each purchase. In my limited experience, this has yet to happen but I have heard stories of others being asked to move to the back of the line, and out of courtesy if a store is particularly busy and you have a lot of purchases, you may not want to hold up the line. 

Example: The coupons that I used to make my Glade Expressions Fragrance Mists free were available on a few different sites, so I printed out four copies (I only redeemed three because the scent that I wanted wasn't available, so I'm planning to check again next week since the price is steady and the coupon is good until September) and was able to redeem all three that I used at Walmart in consecutive transactions for three free sprays!

5. Clearance Items- This may seem obvious, but how many times have you walked past clearance endcaps at Target or other stores without giving a glance to the items they contained? While you may not be in immediate need of the items they contain, these can be a great place to stock up on basics like cleaning supplies, hand soap, and other items that you don't want to pay top dollar for. Print store coupons online and see if any of them are compatible with clearance items for a killer deal!

 Example: This bathroom cleaner spray, which I found on clearance at Target. Sorry for the blurry image, but the original price of the product was $1.97. The item was on clearance for $0.98, and I used a $0.75 coupon and paid $0.23 before tax. That's less than 12% of the original price for a product that I'll definitely be using once I'm living in and maintaining my apartment!

I hope that these techniques are helpful to you, and I'll do my best to provide you with more info as I myself continue to learn more about couponing. As you can probably tell, right now I'm building up a "stockpile" of items that I'll need to use once I'm out on my own. Once I'm doing more food shopping then I'll include info on saving on edibles. In the meantime, here are some links to sites that I use to help me with my savings:

The Krazy Coupon Lady

I use the KCL site almost every day to check up on the newest deals. The ladies who run this site are great at keeping us updated, and they even have a blog section where guests can post when they find freebies and steals of their own.

Cuckoo For Coupon Deals

This is another great site for finding freebies and deals! Make sure to read the fine print, however, or you may end up disappointed. On more than one occasion, I've been excited about a deal only to get to the store and realize that the deal relied on doubling coupons. Doubling is just what it sounds like- stores in some states allow buyers to double the value of certain coupons and score extra saving, however California is not one of those states so not all of the deals apply. Otherwise, this is a great site!

Coupons, Deals, and More Rebate List

This is a nice, long list of a bunch of items you can buy and receive money back on. Not all of them are 100% of your money back, but even small amounts back are better than nothing! There are also "Satisfaction Guaranteed" rebates if you are interested in trying a new product but don't know whether you'll like it.

Have any of you scored big with coupons lately? Tell me all about your hauls!

God Bless! 

-Madeline

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

TwoTip: A lot of items that are free or close to it are only available at low costs for short amounts of time. If you are able to use your couponing savvy to score bargains, but know you won't use the items, start a second stockpile of items to donate to a local shelter or charity. I don't use the foot powder that I bought this week, so that will be the first item going in mine! 

Savings and Freebies with Bzzagent and Fresh and Easy Friends Rewards

Hey y'all, 

     I hope you're having a great day! I just wanted to do a quick post to introduce you to a website that I started using about a month ago, Bzzagent! Bzzagent is basically a word of mouth website that allows you to test out new products and programs for free, all you have to do is "spread the Bzz!" I'm currently involved in a BzzCampaign for Fresh and Easy Friends Rewards. You can see what they sent me for this campaign in the video below:

              Since I promised a review here, I'll just say that the food was awesome! For semi-healthy stuff, Fresh and Easy's food is actually pretty affordable and reasonably priced. My best friend/almost roomie Ashley and I ended up picking out a tomato and mozzarella pizza and it was super delicious! The tomatoes and cheese seemed really fresh, and that was nice especially since (before my coupon) it was only a $4 pizza. All we had to do was put the pizza in the oven for about 10 minutes to warm it up. I definitely suggest doing your research on the Friends Rewards program, because if you use it correctly you can rack up some major points. I don't remember if I mentioned it in the video, but while I love their pre-prepared stuff I don't do the bulk of my shopping at Fresh and Easy because the ones in my town are pretty tiny, but if you are near a larger one it could definitely be worth checking out.

As far as Bzzagent, check it out! Lately I've been looking into a few different sampling sites, and as far as I can tell Bzzagent requires the least amount of effort and some pretty great rewards. Like I said in my video, I was a little disappointed in my Fresh and Easy Bzzkit after some of the things I've seen people get for free, but hey, free is free right? I woke up this morning to an invitation for my second campaign for some health conscious candy, so me, my shrinking behind, and my mega sweet tooth are very excited to see what comes in the mail.

                         Are any of y'all Bzzagents? Do you shop at Fresh and Easy? Let me know about all your awesome savings/samples in the comments!

-Madeline

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

TwoTip: Share the benefits of being a Bzzagent! Bzzagent makes it really easy to spread the samples and savings, since the purpose of what they do it to get new customers for the companies they represent. As you can see in my vid, I was sent Rewards cards to share with others, and often you get some product sent for yourself and smaller sizes for others. I'm excited to be on the candy campaign because I know the roomies would be super stoked to have some free candy. Nothing wrong with freebies all around:)

Unique Finds-Thrifting in Paradise!

Hey y'all! Hope you're having an awesome week! I got back about a week ago from a vacation in Newport Beach. My family owns a week at a time share down there, so I've been going once a year for about a decade now. But this year, I decided to spice up the vacation with a new activity, surprisingly frugal for such an affluent area- thrifting of course! I was surprised to find when I searched on the 'places' app on my phone that there were several thrift stores in the area. The only day I had free to go thrifting was Sunday, which unfortunately meant that a lot of the stores close to me were closed. The good news is that it lead me to what I now consider to be a Thrift Mecca.  There is a Goodwill in Santa Ana that has a tech store, clothing store, and a marketplace where you can buy clothing by the pound! Although I stuck to the clothing store since I was short on time and the marketplace was closed because it was a Sunday (I'll definitely be there next year though!), I found some incredible stuff at pretty good deals, including tons of merch for my store and some things for myself. This post will just showcase a few things I got for my own enjoyment, and I'll do a post soon about the things I sell online. But without any further ado, I give you some of my favorite finds from the two Goodwills I visited in Santa Ana:

First off is this Hardtail convertible dress/skirt that I've fondly dubbed my "Goldfish Dress" Yup, I bought it because the hemline and color remind me of a goldfish. I'm a lover of pretty much everything nautical or sea-related so I loved the inspiration behind this dress. It's a super soft, stretchy cotton and perfect as a cover-up or sundress. Hardtail is a brand my mom used to wear a lot when I was younger, and is known for making high-end athleticwear, most specifically for yoga. I had no idea that the brand was actually pretty expensive, and I purchased this dress for around $4. I did a google search, and while I can't find the exact dress, similar styles are selling anywhere from $55-$100. Score! 

 Next is this fabulous little guy, Flounder! I actually passed right by him, but luckily for me my dad's girlfriend Jenine and her daughter Jenna were with me, and Jenna grabbed it knowing that I'm a Little Mermaid FREAK (I had two different Ariel costumes last Halloween. That freaky.) and brought it over to show me. He is actually a cup, and I was particularly excited because I have a Sebastian cup that I bought last winter that is the same style. So he's now been added to my growing collection of Little Mermaid finds that I'm hoping will have a place in a little girl's nursery someday once I'm married. These originally held snow cones at Disney on ice shows, so I'm pretty sure they're not worth much of anything (now that I've checked, they're listed between $10-$20 on ebay, including shipping), but I happily paid $1.99 for the cup.

 Next is this Design Philipp vintage jewelry box. I loved the artwork on the outside. I'm not sure when exactly it's from, but I'm going to guess 60's-70's. The poor ballerina inside is missing her tutu, but I still think it's pretty cute and a neat little organizer for some of my jewelry. I paid about $3 for this.

 And finally, seven VHS tapes! I know these are considered to be out of date, but I don't have a problem with them. I definitely see the merit in DVD's for newer live action movies, but for old cartoons and films that were captured without HD technology, I don't see any reason to pay a higher price if the resolution will be pretty close to the same. I was also gifted a VHS/DVD combo from my old job as an intern when we were junking some of the older computers and things from one of our classrooms, so I like finding films that were never made into DVD's and first editions and knowing I'll be able to use them. One of these is a first edition of The Little Mermaid (I have one copy already but couldn't resist a cheap backup) the one with the inappropriate palace tower. If you haven't heard about that, here you go. 

A couple of these I haven't seen yet, but most of them are old faves and I'm excited to have them to take with me when I move into the apartment. I paid $0.95 for each of them. 

This copy of the Fox and the Hound is actually still in its' plastic wrap, with its' "Disney Home Video" seal still in place. 

 Pretty neat, huh? I've snapped up quite a few VHS's lately because I just keep finding great classics, but this brand new one was a first. If you're not totally preferential to digital and want some cheap, nostalgic entertainment, hit up a thrift store! Almost all of them have great selections of VHS tapes.

I was also really happy about this copy of Pinocchio, another one of my old favorites. The cover art looks super old and I thought it was really neat. Even if the video doesn't work(because that's always a possibility) I'll definitely be keeping the case. 

Thrifting out of town for the first time was definitely a cool experience, and I'm looking forward to visiting a few stores when I go to New York in a few weeks for the U.S. Open!

So, what are some of your favorite things to do on vacation? Let me know!

-Madeline

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

TwoTip: Shopping for yourself is always fun, but thrifting for unique finds gives you a great opportunity to play to the interests of others in your life! At these prices, you don't have to save gifting for a special occasion, so next time you see something that you know a friend/coworker/family member would love, go ahead and spend a couple of bucks to brighten up their day! Others will be touched by your act of kindness, and happy to know that you pay attention to the things that they like.