You’d Better Pay For That!

Don’t be shy to return things for the sake of a better 
deal! 

So my sweet little girls are signed up for ballet! And yes, I shopped around for months and months, both for a cheap deal and a class that would host the both of them since they are only a year apart. I did finally find a solution to my ballet dilemma, Elegance Dance in Everett! I really hit the jackpot with this studio, as it’s 7 minutes away from my house, takes my 1 ½ and 2 ½ year old toddlers, annnnnnd is 30 dollars a month each! And no Registration Fee! What a steal! Thank you LivingSocial (plus if you buy your groupons on days that they have 10 dollar off deals, it brings the price down to 25 for that first month!), granted the price will go up to 40 a month eventually, but that’s still cheaper than everywhere else I’ve encountered!

What I didn’t take into consideration when I was shopping around was how quickly I would now need 2 leotards, 2 pairs of pink tights, and 2 pairs of ballet shoes! So then came crunch time! I scurried around my local consignment stores searching for the items in question, and I was able to acquire one leotard for $3...but just that, only one. So then I hunted at JC Pennies for tights, because I recalled that they always carry them for $2 a pair, but they were sold out! I scouted Amazon.com and eBay for deals on ballet uniforms, but to little more avail than a price to beat! I shopped at Target, Fred Meyer, Sears...and on...finally I stopped by Petticoat Junction, the official dance supplier in my area, and alas, they had the items I needed in stock, and for a couple dollars cheaper than anywhere else.

The problem was after everything was said and done, the total came to 68 dollars! I just couldn’t stomach that setback, that is a wardrobe in our house! So I happened to be at the mall, playing at the free playplace (I love mall fieldtrips!) when I noticed that Payless was having a BOGO (Buy One Get One…) Half Off Sale!!! Annnnnd, I always have Payless Coupons, because I am a member (and you should be too! It’s worth it!). So we stopped in! We were able to get two pairs of ballet shoes for $24!!! Our previous price on shoes was 20 a pair! We saved 16 dollars! They also had tights there for $4 a piece, but BOGO brings that down to $3 a pair if you buy one for each girl right then.

Then I checked out Target’s online clearance...which I do from time to time, and lo and behold they had a lovely leotard! (And still do! Check it out here!) It is half the price I was looking at for a leotard from Petticoat Junction! Plus, if you’re a REDCard holder, a debit card only usable at Target that links directly to your bank account, you get 5% off and free shipping! Because the thing is, even though we checked the physical Target location by our house, they don’t always have the same clearance items there as they do online.

Now that we are coming up to the new ballet season, Amazon and eBay have new listings that should make your ballet uniform CHEAP!

Check out these used slippers! More Sizes From This Seller!!! Cheapest I've found for slippers, obviously, an even better steal than what I was able to scrounge up! Sizes 7, 8, and 9!

So our new grand total:  41 dollars for alllllllll of it!

Happy with my savings, I trudged back to Petticoat Junction for the return. Normally I do a “walk of shame” up to the cash register, because I feel guilty that I can’t afford the products I just bought. But this time was different, I saved a whole 27 buying thriftily! THAT is something to be proud of! Sure, a little more time would have yielded even better results from my lovely consignment stores, but this savings was nothing to be ashamed of! You should never be shy to return things for the sake of a better deal, even if it’s only a couple dollars! Sure it would be more gracious to do the tremendously thrifty shopping ahead of time, but hey, we are all human!