Valerean

Along with thrifting my guy and I have been shopping at outlets and big lot/remainder stores like Ollie's, which is where I bought everything in this post. Laundry detergent has become a big ticket item for us, and I've even changed how often I do the wash in order to make bigger loads and conserve detergent. This Gain is different from the original scent I use, but we sniffed it and didn't mind it, so we brought it home for $13.99. Even with my 5% discount I pay $15.19 for the same size at Target. That's a savings of just $1.20, but hey, every little bit helps. Will I pay $32.00 for any hardcover novel? Nope. Will I pay $4.99 for a remaindered $32.00 hardcover novel that I've wanted to read for a while? You're darn right I will. I have been collecting recipes off the internet for years now, and I've kept them in a plain black binder that has seen better days. Also, it has no splash guard, so when I cook I have to put it on the other c...

My best clothing thrift of this year so far was this pair of ivory jeans; I got them new with tags still on that told me they retailed for $44.00. They're a little big on me, but I can tailor them to fit. I paid $4.99 for them. Not even Wal-Mart sells jeans that cheap. :) CVS has stopped honoring my medical insurance, which I didn't find out until I went to get meds for an inner ear infection. They would have cost me over $200.00, but when the pharmacist overheard the clerk telling me about the problem she found a cheaper alternative for the most expensive drug and I ended up paying only $64.00. Moral of the story: there are still good people in the world who care about their customers, folks.

With the ever-increasing and pretty unreasonable prices at the market I've had to alter my shopping strategies, so I thought I'd share what's working for me. Today I'd like to show you why I'm making regular trips to our local dollar store. Technically it's $1.25 store now that they've raised their prices, but you can still find some low-cost alternatives to pricier products you use all the time. Here are two lighters we use around the house and out at the fire pit in the yard. The Scripto lighter on the right is one I paid $2.99 for at Publix; the unbranded lighter on the left was $1.25 at Dollar Tree (difference: $1.74). There is no difference between them except that the unbranded lighter doesn't have a safety lock on it. Since it's becoming hard for me to use locking lighters with my arthrits the unbranded is the superior product for me. I've been making our hand soap for 2+ years because it was impossible to find anywhere, but no...