Smart Spending = Smart Saving // From The ShoppingQueen.com » Shopping Bag

Shopping Bag – Sharp Toner

The Queen — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:22:11 +0000

It’s time to buy toner again. While I hate the high price of toner cartridges, I love getting great deals on them. Today I ordered my toner from Staples.com for $79 which is about half of the advertised price of $155. How did I manage to pull such a deal? Here are my steps:

1. I checked out Amazon’s Toner Prices and found the same toner for $108. (Note: make sure you only look at products sold by Amazon.com and not other sellers.)

2. I called Staples and asked about their 110% price match guarantee. They reduced the price to $104.

3. I then applied my Staples $25 off $75 purchase coupon. (I got this coupon by being a member of their free rewards program. If you sign up you not only get rewards credits you also get coupons on a regular basis.

4. Not even calculated into the price is the $8 I will receive in rewards credits from Staples for my toner purchase.

Now I just hope I won’t need to replace the toner drum anytime soon.

Shopping Bag – Kohler Transitions Toilet Seat

The Queen — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 03:40:24 +0000

Potty training has been a learning experience for my daughter and us. We have tried many different potties and training pants. We first tried two of the PRIMO Freedom Trainer toilet seats and stairs and was pretty disappointed when my daughter’s interest in potty training declined. So we then tried the classic Baby Bjorn Potty Chair White. Hooray it finally worked and we were all making progress.

But now I think my daughter has gotten to attached to the potty chair and is afraid to use the regular potty. So searching I went. I looked at a lot of products you can put on the toilet but wanted something permanent. So I have ordered the Kohler Transistions Toilet Seat. I am hopeful it will be the final solution in our potty training quest.

Shopping Bag – Zoom Cable Modem

The Queen — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 19:04:54 +0000

I have been experiencing intermittent internet service so after I received no help from Charter, I decided to change out my modem. So after taking my daughter to the doctor’s office, I stopped by Staples and bought the Zoom cable modem. That was the only model they had, so I bought it at (gasp) full price. I had a coupon for $25 off $100, but this was only $60 so I couldn’t even use a coupon.

Installation was easy and I now have my fast internet back up and running. So every now and then I do end up paying retail.

What I Bought Today – My Shopping Bag

The Queen — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 02:53:49 +0000

Starting today, July 1st I am starting a new feature called My Shopping Bag. In case you are curious what the Shopping Queen buys and where and how she shops, you can now learn my secrets. I will share not only what I bought but also how I found the best price. Now you can see what in My Shopping Bag.

When To Buy Stuff

The Queen — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 23:10:08 +0000

I will be appearing on Atlanta & Company on Wednesday, June 13th at 11 am on local Atlanta channel 11. I will be sharing my shopping calendar. In other words when the best time is to score a deal on different products. I will add the segment link to this post tomorrow.

I’m Back

The Queen — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 04:10:56 +0000

Ok, I know it has been a loooong time since I last posted. It’s taken me a while to recover from our trip overseas as well as our kitchen remodel. At least the time wasn’t a waste. I will be sharing my tips and experiences for handling a kitchen remodel. It was definitely a learning experience. Also, I will start back with the Friday Coupon Sharing this week too.

Google Checkout

The Queen — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 04:52:46 +0000

Checkout Google Checkout! With Google’s new service, you can save $10 off your online purchase of $30 at dozens of online stores. You just shop at the partner retailers at then choose Google checkout when you are ready to finalize your purchase. Your savings are automatic. Retailers range from Toys R’ Us to Starbucks. Some retailers also offer $20 off a $50 purchase; however, the site isn’t clear on which ones.

My Most Expensive Handbag Purchase

The Queen — Sat, 04 Nov 2006 05:31:38 +0000

So I had been looking for a new handbag for the season. Nothing had really caught my eye and I continued to get compliments on the handbag I had from last season. I had actually decided that I would just quit my search. Well that was before I was tempted by an email from Tuesday Morning. Yes, Tuesday Morning does carry handbags.

They sent an email advertising their Tanner Krolle shipment of handbags at great prices. This got my attention, so I did a search on Tanner Krolle and found a nice selection at Overstock.com. It had the bags Tueday Morning was advertising for about half of what Tuesday Morning was charging. Tanner Krolle is a well known British brand of leather goods and their products are carried in upscale department stores such as Neiman Marcus and Saks. So long story short, I bought a bag that originally retailed at around $1,000 for around $100. I can’t wait to have to get it!

Great Deals at Kohls

The Queen — Sat, 21 Oct 2006 03:15:23 +0000

There were some great deals at Kohls on Friday. All red tagged clearance was $2. I really stocked up on gifts for an upcoming trip. Yellow tagged clearance was also an additional 70% off. For some reason kids was only 50% off. So funny enough all the adult clothing was substantially cheaper than the baby and kids clothing. When you by an $80 womens top for $2 its hard to pay $8 for a baby onesie.

Knife Advice?

The Queen — Wed, 18 Oct 2006 04:28:32 +0000

Yes, even the Shopping Queen falls for infomercials now and then. Three years ago, I fell for the Ronco Six Star Knife Set. Even with the stated price of $39.99 for the whole set, with the addition on the knife block and shipping I ended up paying nearly $100. When I received them I wanted to give them a good washing, so I put them in a sink of soapy water and began washing. I was distracted a couple of times, so by them time I got to wash all of them, several hours had passed. Well, being in water for a couple of hours rusted the “stainless steel” knife blades. When I called customer service they were nice and apologized and said that is a rare problem and that they would send a replacement set. While the replacement set didn’t get rust spots as quickly, it did develop some rust stains within a month of normal use. So now pretty much the entire set has some rust stains. While I do periodically scrub them down with a brillo pad to clean, I think it’s time to invest in some GOOD knives. One brand I have been eyeing is Global Knives. I was almost ready to purchase two knives, but then learned about Ceramic knives. I can’t find much information about them. Does anyone have any experience?