Easter Clearance Racks

Now that it is a week past Easter, the clearance racks are full of deep discounts.  While you don’t want to purchase candy a year ahead of time, there will be good buys on plastic eggs, dying kits, baskets, craft items, and décor.

I’m not a huge holiday buyer, but now that we have a bit more room in the budget I have begun picking up a few off-season items.  I purchased 2 of the fancy egg dying kits that were $3 each, for around $.65.  And saw beautiful $30 egg wreaths for the door marked down to $7.50!  That was tempting, but clearance shopping can either work for you or against you. 

If you pick up things you were going to buy anyway at a discount, you reduced expenditures.  If you see great bargains and buy stuff you don’t need, you are not saving any money (See the July 15, 2011 blog "Are you Really Saving Money?" for more on this topic)

My trick is to check the racks at the stores I go to anyway.  I check a couple days after the holiday to survey the selection.  It is usually 50% off.  If they have a large quantity of what I want, I do not buy it that day.  But I check back in another 5-10 days when it goes down in price again. 

I did the same thing with the boxed Valentine cards that the kids trade at school.  I bought a $1 box for the party.  Then after they were marked down two or three times I picked up 5 boxes of cards for .10 each.  I have enough cards to get him through 5^th grade! 

A few tips when buying a year ahead:

•  Only buy what you know you will use or need.  Don’t spend money just because cute!  Clearance racks can bust your budget if used improperly. 
• Make sure you store these purchases in a location that is designated for holiday items.  Otherwise you will forget and purchase things again later on. 
•  If you plan to hit the after 4^th of July, Halloween or Christmas sales, start putting a little spending money aside.  It always feels good to have cash to scoop up some great deals!