A great way to shop...

As far as I can remember, Layaway has always been a wonderful resource for my family when I was growing up. That of course translated into adulthood as it has been a lifesaver. Now with the holidays ramping up, and the restart of Walmarts Layaway program from 9/13 through 12/13/2013, it got me to wondering if there were many folks still using this great method of purchasing.

With Kmart, not only do I get to put the items I want on layaway for $5 with the flexibility of paying over three months, I also earn points when I use my Shop your way rewards card each time I make a payment, and I earn Plink points. I absolutely can not find a reason to live without such a great program.

Growing up in Chicago in the 80’s, my parents relied heavily on layaway from different stores for myself and sister’s school clothes. It was great to know that the kids in my class also boasted about their wardrobe with the help of layaway. As I reached high school, there was a stigma attached to it and I often found myself among the ranks of the unpopular. Now wiser and carefree about what it takes to survive, I find that there is no shame is using such a practical and useful service.

Customer Service Update...

So after a week of arguing for what is right, I was able to purchase the sweatpants I intended to buy last weekend as Christmas gifts for my sisters in law for $4.99 each. It took a lot of effort, patience and common sense to get them to understand that the photograph does not lie and the customer was right. I wish they would have simply honored their price from day one, but perhaps they needed to be reminded that customers can find other retailers to spend their money with. 

Weekly Shopping Trip 9/16/13

Another great week of deals. All told, we spent $45.46 out of pocket and saved $234.19

We happened across a mega clearance sale at Kmart and scored some shoes for $4.98 and shorts for $10.98.

At CVS we picked up some dish liquid, soda, snickers and deodorant for a total of $9.54.

And finally we stepped over to Aeropostale and got (4) sweat pants for $4.99 each.

Not a bad weekend for deals!

Home made Christmas gifts...

With the holiday season quickly approaching, there are many ways to waste money on overpriced gifts. It got me to thinking that I’d really enjoy making some home made gifts for some of my co-workers.

I work in a very male dominated industry and the men I work with are very rough around the edges. In fact, I’m surprised that half of them are married. But for some reason, they have a soft spot for me and when they are spewing obscenities they clam up as I walk by.

The creative juices started to flow and I decided that I will make “food gifts”. More specifically, I would make biscotti jars. Essentially, they are just mason jars filled with different biscotti cookie flavors with a pack of hot chocolate to adorn the outside with raffia, a tag with their name and gold, green or red ribbon to make it festive.

I’ve found that the ingredients are not at all expensive and the jars are very reasonably priced when purchased from Joann’s with a 40% off coupon. I have yet to come up with an idea for the ladies, but at least this is a start.

Are you planning on giving home made gifts?

Weekly Shopping Trip 9/9/13

This weeks shopping trip led us to CVS, Sallys Beauty Supply and Walmart.

I had a $5.00 gift card from Sallys and was able to get some Fru Fru hair accessories for free.

On to Walmart where I had (4) coupons for .75 cents off of Suave deodorant, which made each one .87 cents each.

Then off to CVS where we got (4) Mitchum Deodorants for $1.00 each

(4) V05 Shampoo/Conditioners at .52 cents each

(4) Progresso Soupons at .75 each.

All in all, it was a great week to stock up on deodorant, I will be heading back today for more as well as shampoo/conditioner. 

Total Retail Value $42.13

Total OOP $9.88

Bad customer service experience...

This past weekend, my husband and I spent time with his little sisters, we had the whole day planned for fun and a bit of shopping. We were going to ‘walk the mall’ and window shop for Christmas gift ideas (unbeknownst to them) and if we found something inexpensive we planned to treat them to a blouse or an outfit each.

We stopped by one of their favorite stores and were excited when we found sweat pants with the stores logo down the left pant leg. They were priced very reasonably at $4.99. As we approached the check out counter, the manager on duty advised that the price was $15.99 for one pair and $7.99 for the other pair. I expressed my confusion and I informed her that the price is marked at $4.99 each for the entire rack of sweat pants.

I walked over to show her and she stated that it was incorrect and that the price tag would reflect a sale price if there was any. I expressed my concerns that if there is a product with multiple colors all on one rack with the sale price clearly marked above it that means that the price is as indicated. No where did it say “as marked” as she explained.

I was frustrated to say the least. My husband inquired for a customer service or corporate phone number to which she obliged and provided. I then immediately walked back over to the rack and took a photograph of the product with the pricing clearly reflected. The moment I took the photo, the price card was then removed. I called customer service (answering machine) and left a message.

I then called another store and requested the name and phone number of the district manager. The associate advised me of his name and further advised that she could not provide the phone number but that she would take my information and relay it to him for a return call.

I was disappointed by the manager’s unwillingness to honor the set price, what ever happened to customer service? What ever happened to the “customer is always right”? I did not ask for anything more than what was advertised in store.

How have you handle poor customer service?

End of week totals...

We've been working hard on growing out Plink and Shopkick points, especially before the holiday season kicks in gear. Here's what we've managed so far. 

Swagbucks 4,974 points ($45 Gift Card)

Shopkicks 16,013 points ($60 Gift Card)

Plink 18, 035 points ($180 Gift Card)

Inbox $33.02 (Via Paypal)

Panda $42.25 (Via Check)

Coke Rewards 803 points

Amazon Credit $34

Health Savings Account $129

It's paid in full!

We have persevered once more and have paid off our credit card as of today. 

We sent out the last payment of $84 and we can now breathe a sigh of relief to be credit card debt free. What a wonderful feeling! I thank our Lord for giving us the discipline to achieve this goal.

Have you had a great achievement that you'd like to share? 

This weeks shopping trip...

This weeks shopping trip took us to CVS and Dollar General for great deals.

The total retail value was $74.71

Our total Out of Pocket was $20.79

We both met our $50 Beauty Club Card threshold and got $10 in EBC's which we paired with a few other CVS Kiosk coupons. 

Needless to say, it was a great week for specials.