The Tracktor , yes sorta like a Tractor…

The Tracktor is an awesome tool; it graphs the historical prices for items on Amazon and will email you when the price reaches below the number you enter.

You can view the graphs on their website, or make it easier by installing their browser extension, available for Safari, Chrome, and Firefox.

Anyone who’s shopped Amazon, especially the 3^rd party has experienced how often prices change, a little bit or a lot.

How I use it:

I set up alerts for tons of things, random stuff I’m interested in, crafting needs, cool tech toys I’m waiting for a deal on. I especially use it when I’m thinking about getting something but the graph tells me a couple weeks ago it was cheaper, since I can live without it until that happens again.

Example:  I nabbed the $40 at Michael’s Pink Scotch ATG gun I’d been eyeing for $12.56 one day using The Tracktor. Here’s a graphic showing all the parts of the browser extension and how to use them.

Also since I’m in Tennessee and have Amazon Prime I get everything in 2-3 days and save the 9.25% TN sales tax (hello instant 10% off essentially). I’m going to be heartbroken in 2014 when Amazon starts collecting sales Tax in TN though.

Up next for the Deal-cademy is getting the most cash back or points on your purchase!

Hello Kirsti’s Deal-cademy is a series of posts I’ve created.
Forever a deal hunter I’ve been known to sit and wait for the perfect ‘time to buy’. Recently I’ve helped a few friends do the same, and determined to it was time to share my ways. So introducing Hello Kirsti Deal-cademy a series of posts with tools to help you save on whatever it might be, a necessity or a ‘treat’ these tools can help you get it for less! View all Deal-cademy posts here.

 

Forever a deal hunter I’ve been known to sit and wait for the perfect ‘time to buy’. Recently I’ve helped a few friends do the same, and determined to it was time to share my ways. So introducing Hello Kirsti’s Deal-cademy a series of posts with tools to help you save on whatever it might be, a necessity ,or a ‘treat’ these tools can help you get it for less!

Look forward to these posts coming soon and spread the word!

I went to the mall do my returns from my Limited purchase extravaganza last month. I decided to stop by Forever 21, where I never shop, to see if any of the Hello Kitty Collection was left. Since Hello Kitty was released November 18th only the lounge stuff was left, and I can't really see myself paying full price for their lack of quality, I did like some of the sweater pieces though and wish I had caught them.

Hello Kitty Junkie did a great post on the Hollywood launch event if you wanna see what they had.

Well on to the point of this post... I went totally Blair Waldorf on the headband collection...
I left with 7 headbands and 1 pair of sequin bow clips for $20 with tax.

I think I'm going to have a new addiction, even better they are ALL comfy headbands, which any Blair gal knows is CRITICAL.

The super huge 80s pink bow just make be a part of a costume this October, hint hint.

Most were around $2 and are made pretty darn nicely, especially the grosgrain wrap ones.

Now I'm just trying to restrain myself from ordering more since the site has EVEN more headbands and free shipping today.

In case you wanna indulge with me...
 Forever 21      Free shipping with code 3DAYSHIP.

ohh and the best part... online you can avoid all the awkward teenage boys they have working in the store..

oh and I found a squirrely for $7.99!!

So I nabbed the deal of the century $300 Cricut Cake for $50 free shipping, two cartridges no tax since they were in Utah!!! Yeah my inner bargain queen was jumping up and down!!

I’ve been eying Cricut and Silhouette cutter machines for ages, but as a recent graduate I couldn’t justify the $250-$300 purchase, especially not knowing how much I’d use it. (For those not in the know, think of it as a cutting printer…)

From this into that ==>

How to make a Cricut Cake an Expression:
Just add two parts

With the purchase of a Deep Cut Blade and Housing (Blade it comes with is for gum paste not paper) and some sticky mats I have me a Expression which retails for $150-180ish ATM.  Retail for these pieces $29 and $12.99 but they do go on sale for 20%-30% at Michaels and Joann’s, also if not on sale you can use a coupon at Joann’s (only on Cricut Accessories)

I did some quick paper cuts with my Pooh Font cartridge I picked up for $12. (Note I got the Cricut Imagine mats since that was all Joann’s had, they work too)

I also tried my main goal, cutting fabric. I starched and interfaced some simple cotton fabric and tried to cut it, it works BEAUTIFULLY. (That bottom little K is only messed up because it was too close to the P)

Look forward to lots of adorable Christmas presents from my new toy!!

P.S. I have no association with the company I purchase my Cricut from, nor are they offering me anything for providing this link but I am really happy with my purchase and feel that a Cricut is well worth a $50 investments something to play with so get yours from CricutMachine.com . Please note their order processing  gets backed up from their awesome sales, and they ship FEDEX ground from Utah, so it’s gonna take a bit for it to come, but your savings and patience is well worth it!

If you have any questions please leave a comment and I’d be happy to answer them!

I did well this weekend at Old Navy for Give&Get, total was $96 total discount was $73, and considering $40 was a dress and some jeans, I got A LOT of stuff.

I also by some miracle bought 3 pairs of jeans and two silk tops at  the Banana Republic Outlet  without trying anything on (super long line and 3 dressing rooms) and it all fit even the jeans! The special prayer I said when pulling on the jeans is available upon request. The normal jeans were $20, $23 (Same as Old Navy even with the 30% off I'd like to note!), and trouser style were $40. The tops were kinda pricey but I liked them at $31 and $22, total was $149.

Prices on the polyvore are the current website prices, a lot of the stuff was on clearance in store, and combo'd with the 30% to reach my the price I paid.

Old Navy by Pinkprada featuring a print dress

Old Navy Womens Ruffled Flutter-Sleeve Dresses $20.66 Cute and comfy. Jazz it up with a bright sweater.
$30 - oldnavy.gap.com
Print dress »

Old Navy Womens Lightweight V-Neck Tees $6.65
$15 - oldnavy.gap.com
Long sleeve t shirt »

Old Navy Womens Lightweight Floral-Print Tops $9.79 Not really me, but why not branch out.
$20 - oldnavy.gap.com
Summer tops »

Old Navy Womens Embellished Tanks $3.84
$10 - oldnavy.gap.com
T shirts tank tops »

Old Navy Womens Embellished Tanks $3.84
$10 - oldnavy.gap.com
T shirts tank tops »

Old Navy Womens Lightweight V-Neck Tees $6.25
$15 - oldnavy.gap.com
Long sleeve t shirt »

Old Navy Women's V-Neck Tees $5.25
$7.50 - oldnavy.gap.com
Short sleeve tee »

Old Navy Womens Denim Leggings $17.50 Not sure about the Jeggings thing, but went ahead and got them due to the sale.
$30 - oldnavy.gap.com
Denim leggings »

Old Navy Womens Tie-Belt Oxford Shirtdresses $6.28 Cute for next year.
$13 - oldnavy.gap.com
Old Navy »

Old Navy Womens Crochet-Trimmed Camis $4.19 Wasn't sure if I'll actually wear this but at $4.19 I won't feel guilty if I don't.
$15 - oldnavy.gap.com
Old Navy »

Old Navy Womens Light Heather Gray Shelf-Bra Camis $3.50
$8 - oldnavy.gap.com
Cami bra »

Old Navy Women's Shelf-Bra Camis $3.50
$8 - oldnavy.gap.com
Old Navy »

For those of you still in school I saw this posted on Consumerist (remember them, blog pick of the week last week?) Well with a .edu you can get a free year of Amazon prime which is basically always free shipping on anything actually sold by Amazon. Pretty Cool! So join below and start getting your stuff fast!

Click here to get Free Amazon Prime for Students

I think I need these super hair clips  like my hairstylist has since I no longer have to pay dreaded shipping!

Via [The Consumerist]

Each week I pick a blog from collection of 203 Google Reader Subscriptions and showcase a blog I love.

The Blog: Consumerist.com
The Feed:  Full Feed

Who are they: Consumerist has been recently purchased by Consumer Reports from Gawker media, this was a great move for Consumer Reports as they provide up to the minute "Consumer Reports" style information. They post a lot but it's all very interesting and well written.

What they talk about: At Consumerist you'll find posts on anything and everything business/customer service related. You'll find letters people have written about absolutely horrific service, you'll find people reporting amazing customer service for just the tiniest of issues. They post bargains and money saving ideas, along with how tos. Check out their "Topics" page as I feel it puts it best. 

Why they're worth reading: Let's face it everyone needs to be more careful with their money in this day and age, and Consumerist is a great way to stay informed.  Plus their "Morning Deals" posts are easy ways to find bargains as well.

I have several friends venturing into this exciting phase of life, so this post is for them.
For those without any little one's on the way, find unique shower gifts for less!

I was very surprised how many Mom and Baby private shopping/sample sale sites their are out there so here they are with my very amateur reviews =)

Check out other great bargain sites by visiting my "Favorite Bargain Shopping Sites" page.
Private Shopping Sites

Zulily.com
When I looked they even had nice looking strollers for half off which I would assume is very good amount off for baby stuff, and the extra stroller shipping was just $5. They seem to be one of the biggest sites.


Totsy.com

A mix of kid and mom stuff. At the time of this post they had sunglasses for mom, some kids clothes and bikes. I like that on the main page they tell you the max percentage off, so you can decide if it's worth the click. They plant a tree for each purchase if that's your sorta thing.


TheMiniSocial.com

They have a lot of sales going on at the time, primarily clothes and green toys, some decor stuff. Decent but no extreme percentages off it seems to me, they don't post the percentage off which is annoying for a "bargain site". They mark some stuff as final price which is helpful. Their logo is just darling though.

Other recommended sites I found, no sign up required:


http://www.mamabargains.com/
Kind of similar to Woot.com one item on sale a day, heavily discounted.


http://www.babysteals.com/

http://www.kidsteals.com/
Same concepts as mamabargains.com and woot.com


Kids.Woot.com
Mainly cheap toys from the most sucessful one day sale company Woot.

If you haven't tried Restaurant.com and eat out you're totally missing out.

They have great restaurants doing it in Nashville, as well as the DC area that I've used it at personally.
Not in Nashville or DC, well they have restaurants across the country.

Favorite things about Restaurant.com:

• Various denominations
• Constantly adding new restaurants
• Don't expire for a year.
• Very decent terms on most compared to other deals out there. (The best terms you'll find are $35 minimum for a $25 certificate, some have bumped that number up which is disappointing.)
• Great way to test out a new place, or go someplace nicer for less.

Tips:

• Read and know the specific terms for the restaurant (most don't include alcohol)
• When buying them look at the menu to determine what denomination works best for your household
• Have fun trying new places.

Hello Kirsti's Nashville Favs:

• Southern Bred
• Bronte Bistro at Davis-Kidd

So give it a shot, this weekend is a great time to buy since all their prices are slashed 70%!

I'm also posting this as a page on HelloKirsti.com for easy reference and updates. These sort of sites are popping up like wildfire, I'll keep the page current with what I think is worth shopping.

I'm well known among my friends as a great bargain hunter, here's some of the ways I do that online.


Percent Back on Purchases Sites

Use http://evreward.com/ to find out which program offers the most back on where you're shopping, then join from the links below.

There are others but ebates and bigcrumbs, and Bing cashback are my favorites, plus they tend to be the largest percentage.


Deal Sites


Local Deals

A daily discounted gift certificate or service from a local business in your area. I've gotten lots a great stuff from cake decorating classes to discounted museum tickets from Groupon.


Half off at least gift certificates for your Metro area.


Fashion & Home

One of the original "invite" shopping sites.


Lots of stuff, one of my favorites.


Home decor stuff, pretty pricey still, but very cool stuff.


Tons of stuff, lots of different price levels

Others I'm not as crazy about but you might like:


This one is very trendy and lesser known designers it seems.



What I like about Beyond the Rack is they ave a good mix of high end but also some more "normal" brands at great prices, the best of both worlds.


Ideeli has gotten a lot of press, I don't really like how they have a pay for early access program, but I guess it's a smart business move. They do get good stuff, and have a lot of sales going on.


Lots of stuff, sadly can't sort items within a boutique, like that they have a "last call area" Good brands available.


This site is cool because they have a wide variety of stuff, it's a nice design as well, plus they have various email options so you know about the sales but aren't bombarded



Sample Sales right from the "sets" might be cool might be lame


Less sales going on, but that makes it easier, plus they go as high as 85% off which more than most.


They go up to 90% off and have last call reductions