Cheap Gifts

I once heard that a man brags about how much he spends on things and a woman boasts on how little she spent with pride. In my case, this statement is 100% accurate. I am a single mother, so of course I am always on the look out for a great deal. And I thought I'd share some of the gems I've come across.

- 1 Foot tall pliable "monster man" at Toys R Us, marked down from $29.99 to $2 (I bought 5, 1 for my son and used 4 as birthday gifts throughout the year)

- A DVD Player with remote for $19 at Target

- A pair of black work slacks for $3 from Wal-Mart

- Wooden Scrabble set for $6.99 at the Christmas Tree Shops (I bought 2, 1 for myself and the other as a Christmas gift for a Scrabble lover)

- 12-pack of beautiful artistic Christmas cards for .25 Cents (I bought all they had and didn't spend another cent on cards for 5 Christmas's)

- 1 full and 1 twin sports oriented bed in a bag sets for my sons at Big Lots for $25 - The same ones were $34.99 and $39.99 respectively at Wal-Mart (they came with an extra 2 pillow cases and bed skirts to match)

- A lovely brown and orange dress @ Old Navy for just .49 Cents-NO LIE! Out of season of course, but who cares, everyone complimented me when I wore it on vacation)

- A large antique, well maintained travel trunk (think Titanic) for $10 at a moving sale (just a few weeks before I'd seen a smaller one at an antique shop for $75)

- A restaurant grade bundt pan at the same moving sale for .25 Cents

- A 4-drawer white dresser for $2 on Craigslist that we use in our living room, the television sits atop and we use the drawers for our DVD's and VHS tapes

There have been so many wonderful small trinkets over the years as well. My favorite were a half dozen vintage Vicks Vapor Rub glass jars. My mom has a little obsession with Vicks, like the dad's obsession with Windex in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". She was so excited and they only set me back .60 Cents.

Bargains are all around if we keep our eyes open. I always try to keep an extra $10 in my wallet for just such occasions.

A great tip I learned on "The Modern Girls Guide to Life" that has saved me money on gifts is to have a "gift closet". If space is tight, a shelf, drawer or box will suffice.

It should contain any blank cards you've snagged on sale, wrapping paper you buy for a song right after the holidays (try and stick to solid colors). And look for gifts that can be used for birthdays and baby showers. Then when you or your child has a birthday party to attend, you don't have to take any time out of your schedule or part with money unexpectedly. You can just delve into your Gift closet and choose something appropriate.

I usually stock up on cards, wrapping and tape after Christmas and Easter. I bought really great quality wrapping paper in gold one January for $1.29, original price was $8.99. As for the gifts, I do this year 'round, have even gotten a few Christmas gifts crossed off my list this way when my nephew and sister hinted for things I'd already stashed in the closet.

So go forth and create that gift closet, Happy Bargain Hunting.