Bonus!

This morning, I was able to get my hair done at JCPenney. I got it cut and styled and was done by 11:10ish, which meant I still had half an hour or so to kill before going to pick G up from his half-day of school. It would have been rather pointless to come back home only to head immediately back out, so I opted to focus on one or two things we could use from JCPenney and headed off to the men's department to shop for Hubs.

And then I got sidetracked.

I noticed a little old lady with a pile of boxes on the floor near a small rack with a "$1 and up" sign on it. So I headed over to browse what looked like sale-priced Christmas merchandise. And this is what I found:

• St. John's Bay Women's Knee High Socks in Cream - originally $8, marked down to $1
• #1 Teacher Owl Ornament [I purchased 2 and removed the "2011" charm on the ribbon] - originally $18 each, marked down to .50 each
• "Let's Sew" Kit - originally unsure of price [barcode was no longer in the system] - marked down to $2
• Liz Claiborne Gloves [I got a pair each in brown and cream] - originally $26 each, marked down to .50 each
• Colorplay Gloves [I bought two pair] - originally $28 each, marked down to .50 each
• A.n.a. hot pink gloves - originally $22, marked down to .50
• Liz Claiborne jeweled flower bookmark - originally $20, marked down to $2
• Liz Claiborne snowman bookmark - originally $18, marked down to .50
• Winelines [a dozen in a pack] - originally $12, marked down to .50
• Liz Claiborne butterfly brooch [x2] - originally $18 each, marked down to .50 each
• Liz Claiborne "L" ornament - originally $18, marked down to .50
• Liz Claiborne handbag holder [similar to this one] - originally $18, marked down to .50
• Decree arm warmers - originally $24, marked down to .50
• American Living Fingerless Gloves - originally $26, marked down to .50

I spent around $20 total, and I saved about $318. But why share?

Glad you asked. Firstly, I *love* a good deal. Secondly, when I get a good deal I like to share where I got it and how much I saved. In case you're curious, I'm not an extreme couponer (actual or aspiring), and I don't horde stuff I don't need. I am, however, an opportunist - and a blogger. :) If you're curiouser still, here are the guidelines I personally use before taking advantage of what seems to be a good deal:

• I have to know - or at least think - I can afford it right then. If not, it stays.
• I have to have an immediate and/or specific use for it in mind before I purchase it. When I saw those butterfly brooches, I knew I could use them for Mother's Day gifts. When I saw the make your own bear kit, I immediately thought of a little girl's upcoming birthday. As for the Christmas items, I've already labeled some of them so I know who they'll go to in ten months' time - which will also keep me from thinking I still need to buy gifts from those people.
• I share with anyone who wants to know. I'm friends with other stay-at-home moms who have to think ahead and save money wherever they can. So if I see a deal, I say so.

See you on the flippity-flip (and sorry if any of my math is faulty- JCPenney doesn't tell you how much you saved at the bottom of the receipt, so Hubs had to calculate on his IPhone calculator. Hopefully we didn't miss any numbers. Also, I factored in 10 bucks as the original price for the bear kit since the Amazon price was near that),

Honest[ly Frugal] Q