_savings   frugal

The Temptation of Great After Holiday Deals 2

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

29 Dec 2008 11:49 AM

shopping bags All of those wonderful after holiday deals are coming your way. Sale! Sale! Sale! the stores seem to scream. But if you aren't careful, you can get into debt quickly and wind up paying so much more in credit card interest than the item is worth.

Earlier today, I posted the first part of this series. If you missed it, click here!

The secret, I think, to taking advantage of the after holiday sales is to know exactly what you want and need. Making a list ahead of time can really help with the temptation. For example, we really needed a spatual.bowl scrapper. I cook a lot from scratch, and I tend to go through those silicone-type bowl scrapers pretty quickly. One scrapper I found that holds up is a sturdy one from Williams Sonoma. This scraper has a wooden handle, a thick scraper surface and sturdy construction. It is worth the investment, since in the long run, I won't be replacing numerous other bowl scrapers. The cheaper ones tend to crumble into the food (yuck) or lose their heads.

We wanted a second one, so my kids can help me cook in the kitchen. Bowl scrapers are pretty frugal by the way, since they can often give you an extra half of a muffin or a few extra cookies.

Once those after holiday sales hit, I headed into Williams Sonoma for the bowl scrapper. There were plenty of temptations there for me, from fancy cake, muffin and cookie molds, to gadgets, tableware and other fancy things. Didn't I need a pizzelle maker and it was on sale! No, I had to tell myself, I did not. Ooh, fancy Christmas cookie cutters! No, I had three at home that served me well. You get the idea, I am sure.

Please check back tomorrow when I talk about lists and confronting a great deal. Meanwhile, check out other articles below.

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, creating a home in the Home Blog, caring for little ones in the Baby Blog and now relationships in the Marriage Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here or subscribe to the blog using the subscription box on the right.

Favorite Deal Websites:

FreeCoupons

Related Articles:

Christmas Clearance Candy

Holiday Thrift Store Deals

How to Store Hand-Me-Downs

The World's Longest Yardsale

Williams-Sonoma Deals

 
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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans
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Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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User Comments

Memartha (306) 29 Dec 2008 04:51 PM

Truth is... I can't stand the after-Christmas sales. There are TWELVE days of Christmas, folks. These days, it seems more like: Christ was born, okay, let's go shopping and let's get fit. I can't watch tv for all the fitness ads. Christmas just disappears... *sigh*.

Mary Ann Romans Online! (26886) 30 Dec 2008 08:37 AM

I was just talking about this with a friend yesterday. It does seems as though everything is in a rush. Hey, we still ahve Christmas cookies and leftover turkey!

Memartha (306) 30 Dec 2008 03:57 PM

And what about leftover Christmas spirit?

Mary Ann Romans Online! (26886) 30 Dec 2008 06:17 PM

I try to keep that throughout the whole year ;)

gracet (63) 02 Jan 2009 07:50 AM

I agree with you both...and always make sure my annual Christmas card says Merry Christmas and not Happy Holidays! Sadly, people forget what it's all about!

Mary Ann Romans Online! (26886) 02 Jan 2009 10:07 AM

I think we all are always rushing off to the next thing. I still wasn't done with summer when Christmas came LOL.

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