Smart Moms Save

Old Navy Coupons

2009-08-06T07:20:00.001-07:00

You can find Old Navy coupons at OldNavyWeekly.com. The site makes you "look" for hidden coupons. There are some really high value coupons like $75 off $100 purchase in addition to the 10-20% off ones. It looks like they reset the coupons every Sunday AM. I imagine you must be up in the middle of the night in front of your computer and wait for the reset to get the high dollar value coupons.

Personally, I don't want to stay up that long. I just checked eBay and there are a few sellers with coupons for $50 off $100 purchase for $4-$5 with free shipping. I think that's a pretty good deal.

40% off Borders and Waldenbooks Coupon

2009-08-05T22:35:00.000-07:00

Borders are waaayy expensive than Amazon but if you absolutely must have a book now and has no time to wait for an on-line order, then by all means head to the nearest Borders and use this 40% coupon to lessen the sting. Good 'til 8/9/09 and valid in-store only.

Free Burrito With Drink Purchase From Baja Fresh Today, 7/22 11 am to 9 pm

2009-07-22T10:11:00.001-07:00

Get your coupon HERE.

HURRY! Gymboree Polka Dot Cardigan, on sale for $1.99. Original price is $32.75

2009-07-20T21:54:00.001-07:00

Check it out here: $1.99 Cardigan

FREE Samples From Top Name Brands

2009-07-19T17:17:00.000-07:00

FREE Gooseberry Patch Cookbook

2009-07-19T16:37:00.001-07:00

CLICK HERE to get your copy.

Free Sundiwear Stickers -- lets you know when to reapply sunscreen

2009-07-19T16:20:00.000-07:00

These are cool little stickers! I'll be ordering a sample for my daughter; should come handy when we go to the State Fair next month. CLICK HERE to order yours.

Free Starbucks Pastry On July 21st

2009-07-19T16:12:00.001-07:00

Free Starbucks Pastry On July 21st with a purchase of any beverage.

CLICK HERE to print your coupon.

CHEAP MAGAZINES!

2009-07-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

Parents, $4.97 after $3 instant discount: Parents (1-year)

Good Housekeeping, $4.97 after $3 instant discount: Good Housekeeping (1-year automatic renewal)

FamilyFun, $6.95 after $3 instant discount: FamilyFun

Woman’s Day, $4.99 after $5 instant discount: Woman's Day

Family Circle, $9.97 after $5 instant discount: Family Circle (1-year automatic renewal)

American Baby, $8.97 after $5 instant discount: American Baby (1-year)

Ladies Home Journal, $7 after $5 instant discount:Ladies Home Journal (1-year)

Make Money by Selling Online

2009-07-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I was busy filling up orders from eBay and my Etsy shop these last couple of days which brings me to the topic of making money by selling on-line.

eBay:

Sell your junk and declutter your house. If you have anything laying around your house just collecting dust that might be usable to others, why not list it on eBay and make a few bucks? I’ve sold a lot of things over the years through eBay. I’ve sold clothes, old scientific calculators, dog outfits and carriers, etc. pretty much stuff that we no longer need or use.

I’ve also sold coupons online. Technically, they’re not paying for the coupons as those are free but for your time and effort to collect, list, and mail these coupons to the buyers. Some of the coupons I’ve sold are Gymboree coupons, formula coupons, and home improvement store coupons. They cost me nothing and after the eBay and Paypal fees and the cost of a stamp, I’ve made a few bucks out of it.

By the way, there are tons of Gymboree coupons out this month on magazines such as Good Housekeeping, Oprah, and Parents. Luckily, I have GH and Parents subscription already. Other places I’ve gotten these coupons are from the doctor’s office (I also work in one) and the library. If you want to know the scoop on Gymbo coupons, check out http://Gymbofriends.com.

Buy and Sell: After I got some experience selling on eBay, I then started purposely buying stuff to sell on-line for a profit. Yes, there are men and women out there that actually make a living on eBay. The hardest part for me was deciding what product to focus on. Sure, I could randomly buy stuff and sell them on eBay but figuring out how to ship it and how much to charge is a huge headache. I once got diaper bags for dirt cheap but wasn’t able to sell them because the shipping alone was twice as much as the bags!

So, I focused on products that I’m actually familiar with and can be mailed easily and cheaply. One of my hobbies is making hair clippies for my daughter. I know how much clips, ribbons, and appliqués cost. With a little bit of research, I found out where I could get these supplies on wholesale prices. Best of all, these are small enough items that can easily fit in a padded envelope or a small box. I use the Automated Postal Centers at the Post Office to mail these and never had to get in line for the cashier. What a time saver!

Figuring how much to price an item to make a profit is a bit confusing as you have to factor in the cost of the product, eBay fee, Paypal fee, and shipping. Lucky for all of us, here’s a nifty little calculator that will all do the calculating for us. It’s called the eBay calc by Ryan Olbe at http://www.rolbe.com/ebay.htm

Also, you might to check out this article about making profits on eBay. It's free and you have nothing to lose as long as you REMEMBER TO CANCEL after the 14-day free trial period.

I'll post about Etsy next time. See you then!

Nicole's Savings Advantage -- Moneymaker or Scam?

2009-07-15T22:43:00.000-07:00

Nicole's Saving Advantage claims to be a discount club where members can save up to 90% on their everyday purchases from hundreds of merchants by shopping through their special offer links. You can try it for only $2.95 for the first month, and $9.95 a month after that.

Nicole's Savings Advantage is so confident you'll love their program they're offering you a $25 Target gift card AND a $25 Starbucks gift card AND a FREE 6-week subscription to Celebrity Gossip Magazine just for trying their service for 30 days.

If you decide you don't like the program afterall, simply cancel your membership and the gift cards are yours to keep. You'll be out of $2.95 but you should get $50 gift cards in return. Pretty sweet moneymaker, eh?

Well, not so fast. If you blog hop a little in search of review of Nicole Saving's Advantage, you'll notice that there are quite a bit of disgruntled members. There are complaints of not being able to cancel and the site is not usable as none of the links work. If you can't cancel, then they'll keep billing you and at $9.95 a month after the first month, this deal could easily end up costing you more than the value of the gift cards.

Also, I read somewhere that you don't receive the cards right away. Instead, you get a postcard that you need to mail back to claim your cards. I don't understand the purpose of that. Why don't they just send you the cards right away?

Having said all that, I think I'd still sign up myself. I'll be using a card that only has $5 on it; enough to cover the first month's fee but not the additional months. If they turn out to be a scam, I'm only going to lose $5 and I can blog about my first hand experience about this discount club.

If you want to sign up for Nicoles Savings Advantage yourself, sign up here. Remember to use a card that doesn't have much funds (a reloadable card, maybe?) just in case.

Saving Money on Baby

2009-07-13T23:17:00.000-07:00

I have a 7 month old daughter and those of you who have children already know that babies are expensive. One way I save money on diapers, wipes, gears, shoes, etc. is by using Diapers.com and Vistaprint.

Get $10 off your first order of diapers with $49 minimum purchase

Referral Code: SHOP4LESS

Here's how: I availed of Diapers.com's $10 discount off the first order of diapers with $49 minimum purchase. You can do the same by using referral code SHOP4LESS at checkout. Orders over $49 receive free shipping and they ship fast! It beats lugging baby to the store to haul ginormous boxes of diapers and wipes home.

Once you're a customer, you can participate in their Referral Program in which you receive $1 credit for every new customer you refer PLUS a $1 for each additional order they place. The new customer receives a $10 discount upon sign-up. You can then use your credits for anything they carry. There's no limit to the number of credits you can earn but you must use them within 6 months or they will expire.

Once you have a referral code, you want to e-mail it to your friends and family, especially mom friends that might find this coupon and website useful. Diapers.com makes it easy for us to do this, they have a Referral Manager feature which will email your friends for you. All you have to do is enter their e-mail addresses. You can also print a personalized coupon or a flier with your referral code on it.

Some of the more creative advertising I've seen are posting it on Craigslist (this is technically a violation of their TOS but it's up to you. We're all adults here) and even eBay! I've listed my referral code on eBay before and signed up a lot of people that way.

Other reasons why I love Diapers.com are: 1) they do price match BEFORE and AFTER you buy so you know you're getting the best price. 2) they accept manufacturer coupons. Simply mail it to them before placing your order. It's really a wonderful website and I highly recommend it.

Another way I advertise my referral code is by printing business cards and postcards from VistaPrint. Yes, it's really free except for shipping and handling. Just be careful to ignore all the other offers they have towards the end. My cards have the Diapers.com website, the $10 off discount offer, and my referral code. I carry and distribute these cards with me everywhere I go.

Prime locations for distributing these cards are the pediatrician's office, the library, and of course, mommy-and-me classes. If you're quite ambitious, find out ALL the pediatrician's office in your town and pay them a visit. No need to make an appointment or anything like that. Just go and leave a few of your cards in the lobby where the parents can see it. You don't want to leave too much that the office thinks it's litter and throw your cards away. Replenish them every week or so.

A friend of mine who lives near a Babies 'R Us leaves her cards on the windshield of cars parked in the BRU parking lot. She said it works as she has tons of credits but I don't know, I kinda feel funny about that. Just throwing that idea out there anyway in case you're as daring as her.

We Have A Winner!

2009-07-13T23:05:00.000-07:00

The winner of the $30 Targer or Walmart Gift Card is ..... (drumroll, please)

#3 --- Frugal Femina!

Congratulations! Let me know which one you prefer, Target or Walmart?

Thank you all for partipating and I will be doing another giveaway soon. So, check back often.

Free Shipping Code for Gap, Old Navy, and Piperlime + 8% Cashback

2009-07-12T19:37:00.001-07:00

FREE SHIPPING CODE: BTSCHOOL

Gap, Old Navy, and Piperlime are running a back to school sale from July 12-16.

Use code BTSCHOOL at checkout for FREE shipping.

Your purchase must include at least one kid's item for the coupon to work.

8% CASHBACK

Before you place your order, log in to your eBates account first and shop through them to get 8% cashback on your purchases. If you're not an eBates member yet, sign up now. It's painless and you earn money back on your online purchases. Plus, Ebates gives you $5 just for signing up!

They send you a big fat check or pay you via Paypal every quarter as long as your rebates exceed $5.01, not including your $5 signup bonus. Once you've become a member, you can then participate in their "Tell-A-Friend" program in which you earn $5 for evey friend you refer. Of course, your friend (husband, mom, dad, etc.) gets their own $5 for signing up. It's a win-win!

One Year Subscription to Real Simple Magazine for $5 from Amazon.com

2009-07-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the duplicate post but Blogger is buggy and it won't let me lump this blurb with the previous post so here it is again.

You can get a one year subscription to Real Simple (1-year) for $5 from Amazon.com. Five bucks for the whole year. That's what I call a really good deal! And the magazine happens to be very high quality with lots of useful and well-written articles. Just the perfect (and frugal) present for those hard to shop for, like my mother-in-law.

Get yours now while supplies last! Deals this good don't stick around too long.

One Year Subscription to Real Simple Magazine for $5

2009-07-12T10:31:00.000-07:00

Free Pencils From Coach

2009-07-11T15:26:00.000-07:00

If you're heading to the mall this weekend anyway, might as well pick up some free pencils from Coach.

Sign up here: Coach Free Gift

Print out the page for your free gift, and

Visit your Coach store.

Here's a picture of the pencils you will get. Apparently, you get 12 pencils, 2 of each colors. Enjoy!

Thanks to smartass_honky of SD for posting this first.

Need Back to School Supplies?

2009-07-10T09:15:00.000-07:00

Staples will have a back to school supplies sale from July 12 to July 15 only! Make sure you use the $5 off coupon for any $20 in-store purchase that's on their weekly ad.

Win an HP Laptop or Desktop!

2009-07-09T07:25:00.000-07:00

HP and Slickdeals.net, one of the biggest and coolest site for what else but slick deals have partenered up to give away one HP laptop or desktop every day from June 30to July 29. Yes, it's one laptop or desktop everyday. That's 30 winners!

The official giveaway page is here.

The Giveaway Terms and Conditions is here.

As far as I can tell, the basic requirements are:

1) You must be a US citizen,
2) A registered Slickdeals.net user in good standing (sign-up is easy, they're reputable and they don't spam), and
3) 18 years of age.

You can enter once everyday with oppurtunuties for additional entries. What are you waiting for? Enter now.

Don't forget my own giveway of $30 Target or Walmart GC. I made it super easy to enter. Have fun and good luck!

Giveaway: $30 Target OR $30 Walmart Gift Card. Your Choice.

2009-07-08T21:46:00.000-07:00

Gotta join in on the giveaways fun over at Money Saving Mom!

The prize: I'm giving away a $30 Target or Walmart Gift Card. Your Choice.

How to Join: Simply subscribe to this blog, leave a comment that you did and you're entered. Very easy.

Other Terms: The Giveaway ends on Monday 12 pm. I will pick the winner using a random number generator. I will contact and announce the winner on Tuesday.

Thanks and have fun!

10:30 PM
Oooopps! Something's wrong with my comment thingy so just subscribe to the blog anyway and e-mail me at mama.kuripot@gmail.com saying you've subscribed and you're entered in the giveaway. I'll try to fix this ASAP!

10:41 PM

Problem is fixed. Let me know if you're still having trouble leaving a comment. Thanks!

Make Money With Bank Bonuses

2009-07-07T14:08:00.000-07:00

I love bank bonuses. They're a great way to make money. Granted not a whole lot of money but in this time and economy, every little bit helps, right? Just like this $100 bonus from Chase. Pretty much, you open a Free Business Checking in person with this coupon, deposit $500, and within 10 days, you'll see the $100 bonus deposited into your new checking account. Although this is technically a business checking, just tell the banker that this is for a business you have under your name. That way, you only need to present two picture IDs. They won't even need a business license.

Here's another one from Bank of America. It's geared towards new customers. It's a bit more complicated than Chase but also has a lower deposit requirement. Directly from B of A, here's how you get your $100 bonus:

"Get $75 when you open a new qualifying personal or business checking account with a $250 deposit and make a purchase with your debit card.

Get an additional $25 when you make 2 online bill payments within 30 days. Business checking customers can pay 2 bills with our Small Business Online Banking Bill Pay service or use the Online Business Suite® Direct Payments service."

I did the Chase bonus when I was running errands this morning. The bank was right next to the store I was in so I went and opened my account. It took approximately 30 minutes from start to finish. The banker was nice and friendly and best of all, I will get my $100 within 10 days. That's a guaranteed 20% return on my money. Not too shabby at all.

I will convince my husband and my mom to open their own checking accounts there for the bonus. As for the B of A bonus, unfortunately, my husband and I are already members so we're not qualified for the offer. But my Mom is not, so she can open an account there to get the $100 bonus. Between the three of us, these account bonuses will amount to $400. $400 we didn't have before.

If you're a beginner at this, don't get yourself overwhelmed. Just do one offer at a time until you get the hang of it. You'll be a pro pretty soon and you'll realize there's really nothing to it. Enjoy!

100 Free Prints From See Here

2009-07-06T20:49:00.000-07:00

Get 100 4x6 prints with new sign ups from SeeHere by Fujifilms. Use promo code "prints".

Yay! More free prints! I'm loving it!

Don't forget the 50 free prints from CVS!

Free Meal From Chick-fil-A on July 10th

2009-07-06T13:09:00.000-07:00

The 5th Annual Cow Appreciation Day is on Friday, July 10.

Come into any Chick-fil-A® restaurant dressed as a cow and receive a free meal.

Click here for more details.

Butterfly Pillow for 2 cents at Target.com

2009-07-05T08:45:00.001-07:00

That cute and bright butterfly pillow is 2 cents at Target.com right now. It measures 13x13x4 so it's just the right size. Hurry before it's gone!

I ordered 10 for all the little girls in my life.

Pictureka Card Game $1.64 at Target

2009-07-04T17:52:00.000-07:00

This is sooo cool! Pictureka is priced $6.64 at Target right now. Coupon.com has a $5 off coupon that you can use to get this for $1.64 plus tax. Remember that you can print 2 coupons per computer and the more computer you have, the more coupons you can print.

Here's a frugal idea: Instead of going out for a movie, how about playing this game instead for hours of fun and laughter in the comfort of your own home? My husband and I love board games and this game will be a good addition to our collection.

You can also get several of these and use them as stocking stuffers come Christmas time. So, hurry and print your coupons NOW while they last.

I Found My Kind of People!

2009-07-04T00:49:00.000-07:00

I found my kind of people! There's a whole community of them! Some of them are at Money Saving Mom posting about their Super Savings. Well, I just have to participate. Here's mine:

I snagged this chair from OfficeMax for a little less than $5.

That's right, I paid less than FIVE bucks out of pocket. It's high back, made of soft leather and just really nice. It's originally priced at $99 but was on sale for $49.99. However, Officemax runs a reward program called MaxPerks Recycling in which you get a $3 for recycling an empty ink cartridge. I recycled a bunch of empty ink cartridges last month and I earned $51 which I used to pay for the chair. I still had to pay tax so that was the $5.

This program is a pretty good moneymaker if you do it right. I'll write a more detailed post about how I used this program to get all of our office supplies for a fraction of a cost and make some money in the process, too. So stay tuned!

My first post

2009-07-01T18:26:00.000-07:00

My goal for this blog is to share the many ways I save and stretch my family's hard earned money. So, how fitting is it that my first post is about getting free prints from CVS? I probably have gazillion pictures of my 'lil bebe girl so I can definitely use this offer. At checkout, opt to pick up your prints from the store to avoid the shipping fee.