[DebF_EONNext]

Hey Community 👋

I think it's safe to say that everyone loves a bargain 🤑 be that a cheeky discount code or scooping up yellow sticker items in the supermarket it all helps.

Personally I love a good rummage at a carboot sale, through the bargain bins in a charity shop or the rails in a vintage shop. Not only is it great for the planet by saving so much waste from landfill but it's also saving on the pennies!



I always seem to miss the "big bargain finds" though 😅 Our @Han_EONNext on the other hand found the bargain of the century on her recent trip to a charity shop, she found a Ninja ice cream maker that she had been after for a long time for just £35 (these new are around £200 👀) what an absolute steal!!

Nothing on the scale of what Han found but while I was having a snoop I did come across a brand new Christmas themed board game for £2 that I have put into hiding for Santa coming soon🎄

I know a lot of people don't think about heading to a charity shop for gifting but I always check, especially at this time of year as people often pass on their unopened and unwanted gifts while clearing out before December 🎁 as they say "one mans rubbish is another mans treasure!".

Do you have any tips on how to find a bargain? What has been your biggest bargain find? Have you ever bought a gift from a charity shop or have you ever re-gifted something that you were gifted 👀 I did this once and it went horribly wrong as I re-gifted to the person who bought it in the first place, the less said the better 😂

[WizzyWigg]

@DebF_EONNext Our local adult hospice runs it's own shop for repurposed gifts, furniture, clothes, and lots of other items. Lots of bargains.

With Christmas just round the corner it's one of the best places to go for quality decorations. A fraction of cost of the high street retailers.

With 4 grandchildren who regularly come for sleepovers all toys and games have come from either the hospice shop or the local charity outlets.

As it is run by volunteers so all monies go to the hospice.

Okay I am slightly biased. My daughter is a Senior Staff Nurse in the hospice, but truly if you want quality repurposed items it's a great place to go. Most hospices have outlets so it's definitely worth checking them out.

[retrotecchie]

@DebF_EONNext

I like a good rummage in a skip myself. It's amazing what some folks chuck out. And I never leave home without a folding Japanese saw, especially at this time of year. A good storm usually brings down a few trees so I can remove obstacles and get free firewood too👍

[JoeSoap]

Originally Posted by DebF_EONNext

Hey Community 👋

I think it's safe to say that everyone loves a bargain 🤑 be that a cheeky discount code or scooping up yellow sticker items in the supermarket it all helps.

I’m the food shopper in my house and have learned you have to be really savvy in the supermarket. I would live on cheaper own- brand stuff if it was just me but I’m outnumbered most of the time. It’s music to my ears when I get told, “I prefer Tesco Wheat Biscuits to Weetabix” 😂.

I’m attracted to yellow sticker items but always do my sums. Sometimes it’s still cheaper to buy the big box at full price than the small box that’s discounted. I stock up a bit on regular-use items when they’re discounted, even if it means stashing stuff in the garage. I love it when my favourite wine is reduced from £8.50 to £7 and then there’s 25% off on top of that if you buy six bottles or more.

Another bizarre thing I’ve noticed is that buying a smaller box rather than the bigger size sometimes works out better value.

The small print on the shelf price labels has “Price per kg” or whatever the unit might be. That bit of helpful info doesn’t always appear on yellow sticker items so the mobile phone calculator comes in handy.

Thankfully I have the time to ponder over what’s the best value when food shopping and can over-spend on any individual shopping trip but know I’m saving in the long term.

Mind you… it still seems to cost an arm and a leg 😂

[meldrewreborn]

@JoeSoap

rummaging round in the bins at Sainsbury’s produced a good selection of vouchers. Yorkshire tea is never on promotion so getting 15% off via a voucher (£6 off £40) is worthwhile, but I’m waiting for my Cadbury chocolate to come back on offer, or for discounted big bars after Xmas.

have you ever wondered what the “e” stands for on a weight like 250ge. It effectively means a minimum weight but it could be much more. Taking a number of packets to a scale proves it. I buy the heaviest - especially useful when you can’t see the product inside, like lamb shanks. Or meat that can’t be cut exactly to the specifications.

[retrotecchie]

Originally Posted by meldrewreborn

@JoeSoap
Yorkshire tea is never on promotion

It's a fairly regular promotion in my Morrisons. I rarely drink tea as I have to be watchful of my caffeine intake but neighbours and friends are tea drinkers so I do keep a supply in. I've begun to notice much more 'shrinkflation' too. I saw Lurpak butter at a very reasonable price the other day but on closer inspection it turned out to be a 200g pack rather than a 250g. So I just bought my usual Dairy Manor Welsh butter from Lidl instead.

And always be wary of endcaps (the technical retail term for the racks across the ends of the aisles - I did time in retail so I know how their schemes work). They may have what look to be eye-catching special offers but always look at the price/size of the promotion and compare against the item in the usual location. They tried that with me the other day with a particular laundry liquid which looked a good price at £6 for what I usually pay around £7.49 for but closer inspection revealed it was a 38 wash size. The usual aisle had the 52 wash size but discounted to £6.49. And larger packaging but a smaller content is a regular trick too.

Not that I get 52 washes out of a 52 wash size. If you live in a soft water area, or use rainwater to fill the machine, you only need around two-thirds of what the label says 👍

[WizzyWigg]

Originally Posted by retrotecchie

It's a fairly regular promotion in my Morrisons. I rarely drink tea as I have to be watchful of my caffeine intake but neighbours and friends are tea drinkers so I do keep a supply in. I've begun to notice much more 'shrinkflation' too. I saw Lurpak butter at a very reasonable price the other day but on closer inspection it turned out to be a 200g pack rather than a 250g. So I just bought my usual Dairy Manor Welsh butter from Lidl instead.

And always be wary of endcaps (the technical retail term for the racks across the ends of the aisles - I did time in retail so I know how their schemes work). They may have what look to be eye-catching special offers but always look at the price/size of the promotion and compare against the item in the usual location. They tried that with me the other day with a particular laundry liquid which looked a good price at £6 for what I usually pay around £7.49 for but closer inspection revealed it was a 38 wash size. The usual aisle had the 52 wash size but discounted to £6.49. And larger packaging but a smaller content is a regular trick too.

Not that I get 52 washes out of a 52 wash size. If you live in a soft water area, or use rainwater to fill the machine, you only need around two-thirds of what the label says 👍

As you know be wary of the often predominantly displayed 'special offers' as you walk in the door. Looking around you'll will probably find they are not so special.

[Mailman]

Toiletries are something we check on each time we go to the bigger supermarkets. For example Sensodyne Pro-Namel toothpaste (the only one that seems to really work for us) is normally £4 ish but we never buy it at that price but will buy 4-5 tubes when it is down to £2.25 thus lasting till the next promotion. Same with SLS and parabens-free Johnsons baby shampoo/wash. Same with Kleenex tissues. Most of the time they are nearly double what you pay when they are on a genuine offer. Apart from these 3 items, toiletries and cleaning products are invariably LIDL own brand.

[JoeSoap]

Originally Posted by meldrewreborn

@JoeSoap

rummaging round in the bins at Sainsbury’s produced a good selection of vouchers. Yorkshire tea is never on promotion so getting 15% off via a voucher (£6 off £40) is worthwhile, but I’m waiting for my Cadbury chocolate to come back on offer, or for discounted big bars after Xmas.

have you ever wondered what the “e” stands for on a weight like 250ge. It effectively means a minimum weight but it could be much more. Taking a number of packets to a scale proves it. I buy the heaviest - especially useful when you can’t see the product inside, like lamb shanks. Or meat that can’t be cut exactly to the specifications.

Rummaging around in bins??? Are we talking skip diving here?

Yorkshire tea is frequently on offer at Tesco. We all drink the decaf variety. That 250ge you mention... I see it in all its glory when buying broccoli in a 375ge pack. Some are clearly much, much bigger than others.

[meldrewreborn]

@JoeSoap

We only buy loose tea - I should have made that clear. We're a tea bag free zone, and have missile defences to protect it!