Comments on: Your After-Christmas Shopping Checklist

By: j

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 03:10:41 +0000

In the spirit of getting things that are needed, resupplying bed linens and bath towels has to be done periodically and the post-Christmas sales can be a good time. This year, my son will be moving up from his crib to a regular twin bed in a couple months, but he hasn’t mastered bladder control yet. I scanned the ads and got waterproof mattress pads for 60% off.

By: kay

kay — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 15:00:17 +0000

Last year I bought napkins and paper towels that had xmas trees on them for 90% off. This year I saw xmas themed foil but it was only 50% off so far. I think the Halloween stuff for xmas is a great idea maybe even for white elephant gifts for work.

By: kev

kev — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 19:41:33 +0000

A couple years back I bought my wife a whole pile of Hallowe’en stuff (we love hallowe’en stuff) for pennies on November 1st. Put it in the Christmas stocking. It was a heck of a lot better than filling it out with chocolate or cheap junk. It made her laugh, she uses the stuff every year, and there was less chocolate and junky flotsam kicking around the house that year.

By: deRuiter

deRuiter — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 11:39:39 +0000

Please don’t buy exercise equipment new from a “new things” store! Exercise equipment is an item which is generally bought in a flush of enthusiasm, used a few weeks, and then ends up quickly being used only as a place to hang clothing as it comes from the dryer. Exercise equipment is EXPENSIVE even on sale. Use Craigslist, curbside shop (adopted a fabulous treadmill that way and the home owner helped me load it in the truck!), yard sales, tag sales, estate sales. You can pick up exercise equipment for pennies on the dollar, and generally it has barely been touched by human hands.

By: Lenore

Lenore — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 09:46:19 +0000

Thought of a few other things that routinely go on sale starting around New Year’s Eve:

1. Holiday-themed food, especially candy.
2. Hats, gloves, scarves and earmuffs.
3. Toys and games for all ages.
4. Sleepwear and slippers.
5. Cologne gift sets.
6. Jewelry boxes and vanity accessories.
7. Grooming tools and small electronics.
8. Coats and sweaters.
9. Watches and jewelry.
10. Blankets and throws.

Pretty much anything wintry or gifty may be overstocked and needing to go. Try asking a manager if items are going to be marked down again soon. You might walk out with something at next week’s price.

By: Griffin

Griffin — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 02:29:20 +0000

Clothes, coats and other winter gear are super cheap at the end of December. I’ve gotten winter shirts for $2.50 each from Sears before — less than 10% of the original price. We otherwise would not have bought them, but we really needed winter gear so we bought ten of them and didn’t bother buying similar shirts for $20/each.

If you are a size that is hard to find in your area, you can be surprised at what you will find in after-christmas sales. The caveat is that it’s a better deal if you will use them next year.

My roommate and her daughter have a tradition of buying very nice ornaments the day after Christmas, when they are 75% off at Hallmark. Their tree is gorgeous and they spend very little per year. They also get nice decorations in the off-season and just save them in plastic storage containers. They use this tactic with Halloween as well. =)

By: Dale

Dale — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 00:07:23 +0000

Everyone in our family gets an ornament every year. We scored big this year because we bought our ornaments last year, on valentines day in a quaint little village of shops where everything was really expensive, except for the xmas ornaments.

By: Sara

Sara — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 21:01:06 +0000

I’m in the market for a big-screen tv, and it looks like there are some good deals out there now, but I’ve also heard that it would be better to wait until after the Super Bowl.

By: KC

KC — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 18:28:28 +0000

storage and organizing things are also on sale this time of year – plastic storage bins and tubs, shelving and closet organizers are in all the sale ads

By: Maureen

Maureen — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 17:38:10 +0000

Glad to see you’re stocking up on Christmas wrapping paper. :)

By: Julie

Julie — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 16:27:46 +0000

I’d also add that mid-to-late January is when most of the clothing stores get their new lines in for the summer, so the winter lines are super-cheap, often 70-90% off. If you need clothes, wait two or three weeks and then go shopping. The deals are amazing!

By: Evangeline

Evangeline — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 15:10:28 +0000

Besides holiday items, it is an excellent time to stock up on household and organizing items. Paper goods, cleaners, clear storage boxes, air fresheners, you name it, it’s all on sale. Throw in some coupons, add in one of those $10 free with purchase store cards and top it off with the Christmas gift card you received and you can stock up quite nicely.

By: Stacey

Stacey — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 14:52:43 +0000

Ditto to Peggy. I bought plain gold wrapping paper ($1 for 90 square feet!) and white curling ribbon for birthdays and year-round gifts. It beats running to the Dollar Store to by 15 square feet of wrapping paper that I hate!

By: Peggy

Peggy — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 14:13:10 +0000

We buy wrapping paper, but not Christmas-themed. We get as plain as possible and use it all year for birthdays, anniversaries and such.