A Lot About Nothing

This has got to be my most “productive” shopping trip to the U.S. yet! I haven’t been shopping in Downtown Buffalo in about a year (I usually opt for tax tree Pennsylvania), but I didn’t want to drive too far this past Saturday. This time I followed my own advice and didn’t forget my shopping list at home. I planned out all my stops ahead of time (Walden Galleria area) and visited the store’s websites beforehand to check out all the sales.

JCPenny has a great After-Christmas Sale going on: 70% off all gold jewelery. I wish I had a few extra bucks with me or I would’ve bought a pair of white gold hoop earrings on sale for $150 (from $500). I picked up a nice white gold cross pendant with a cubic zirconia for $90 ( reg. price $299.99). Burlington Coat Factory (one of my favourite stores to shop at in the U.S.) had some great deals as well. Scored this amazing Kathy Van Zeeland handbag for $44 (reg. price $89). Best of all I finally found the medium-length wool winter coat I’ve been looking for all season. Guess how much? $49.99! Spending 45 minutes browsing through the wide array of coats on all those racks in Burlington Coat Factory was worth it! It fits me so well, and I copped a scarf for $2.99 to match. On the way out my eye caught this gold-coloured fitted jacket for $15.99 so I snatched that up along with an adorable baby outfit for my mommy-to-be friend of mine . My sister got this cool, reversible JLo winter jacket for $79.99.Border’s Bookstore is another favourite of mine. Got myself a large photo album and a beautiful Bible for $3.00. Payless Shoesource (the only store which carries my size) was good to me this time around. I finally found the pair of black pointy-toe pumps I’ve been looking for for ages! Only $16.99! Steve and Barry’s had everything in the store going for $8.98 (2 for $15), so I picked up two cute t-shirts. Marshall’s had some good deals on clearance clothing. I got several long sleeve T’s and sweaters for under $30.00.  Bath & Body Works had great deals.  Got a bunch of lotions, creams, body sprays and soaps, all for under $25.  They smell soooo good!

So as my brother, sister and I were driving back into Canada I urged them to organize all their receipts, total them up and keep them handy. As I reached customs the female CBSA officer asked me the usual questions: Where we were from in Canada, where we were during the day, how much we spent and what we purchased. We told the truth and were waived through (she didn’t even ask for our I.D.). We didn’t have to pay any taxes or duties on our purchases. We had left Toronto around 8am and got back home by 6pm.

So almost $300 later, I think my trip to the U.S. this time around was definitely worth it!

I think this year was the first of many that I didn’t feel my usual drive for Boxing Day shopping. Which is good, because I ended up saving a lot of money.

Usually, I gear up every December 26th and head to a mall like the Eaton Centre, Yorkdale, or Orfus Road, but this year the deals really didn’t get me. I did manage to pick up a few things. Got Super Paper Mario from Zellers for $34 (which I recently found out was actually $10 cheaper, so I may have to go back for a price match). Picked up Wii Play which comes with an extra Wii Remote for $39.99 from Superstore (reg. $59.99). Finally got myself the Star Wars Trilogy (Episodes 4-6) for $28, and picked up a couple sweaters from Winners because they had an extra 25% off all clearance items.

If I had the extra cash (and a larger place) I probably would’ve purchased one of those LCD or Plasma TV’s that were going on sale at Futureshop/Best Buy for up to $1100 off the regular price. I did participate in Future Shop’s online Boxing Week sale though (on December 24th). Got Scarface/Spy Games for $24.99 (Scarface is regularly $60) and a Sandisk 2GB USB Drive for $16 (over $50 off).  The site was so bogged down with visitors that the online check out didn’t work properly until 3 hours after the scheduled start time.

Turns out that I’m making a last minute run to the border tomorrow (actually in 5 hours, I should really get some sleep), because I wanted to see what type of post-Christmas Day deals they have down there. Stores like Macy’s, JCPenny and Burlington Coat Factory have “After Christmas” clearance sales of up to 70% off. So I’m just heading down to Buffalo for 1/2 the day, so I’ll keep you informed about what deals I score!

Okay, I promised to update you on my shopping trip to the States that I went on back on the 24th, so that’s what I’m doing (even though it’s a little late ).

I got some amazing deals, and I’m planning on heading back there again before Christmas, b/c not heading my own advice, I forgot my shopping list at home and forgot to pick up some things I planned on purchasing State-side.

The drive down there was good. We left Toronto around 5am and reached the border around 7. Virtually no line up, so we ended up waiting only 5 minutes for customs to check our citizenship. Then it was off to Erie, PA (Millcreek Mall specifically). Reached the mall around 8:30… great selection of parking spots. First stop was Burlington Coat Factory. I love this store. I saw a nice coat there, but opted to window shop a little more to find the right one. Got a nice pair of dress pants for $7. Marshalls had some great deals as well. I bought myself a gold leather Calvin Klein belt for $15 (regular price $45). Also got a BCBG Max Azria white, sleeveless, turtleneck sweater for $10. Guess what the original retail price was? $110!!! Picked up another sweater as well for $7. Got a software tutorial book I wanted at Borders for $40 (over $70 here). Picked up some Revolon makeup at Big Lots for $2 (I paid $10 for the same thing here in Toronto!) We then stuffed our bellies at Wal-Mart Supercenter (love their $8.99 mixed chicken buckets!).

After we were done in Erie we went on a 1 hour drive to Grove City. I wish we headed there first b/c there were even more deals! All the outlets are outdoors, so thankfully it wasn’t too cold, that we were able to visit most of the stores. The Nike Store was great. I ran out of extra spending money so I couldn’t get the nice Shox that were on sale for $39. They also had hoodies for $20. The GAP had a good sale as well. Sweaters 50% off (sooo comfy!). I finally got some BearPaw winter boots (in my size!) for $50. They are so warm!

We left Grove City around 9pm after packing the SUV with our purchases well and trying to avoid deer along the highway. We reached the Canadian border at 11ish… all nervous about our declarations.  We were waiting in the line at the Peace Bridge for about 15 minutes which wasn’t too bad.  We were honest (well, most of us were) and we had to go in to pay taxes, but it was only $20/person (we all claimed between $150-200). Ironic thing is the girl who bought the most stuff end up only paying $11 (she bought a lot of children’s clothes… so there’s no PST).

All in all a good trip! Next time I just have to make sure I get enough sleep the night before!  P.S. The Hyundai Santa Fe SUV is a dream to drive!

Geez, my body has been put through the wringer this week. As if I wasn’t still sore from my Wednesday basketball game, I just spent my entire Saturday shopping from store to store in Erie, PA. Shopping is a great workout!

I usually go on these bus tour shopping trips once a year, or so. But now that the Canadian dollar has reached parity with it’s U.S. counterpart, I may start doing cross-border shopping a lot more often.

As for the bus trip, I went with an organizer named Sandy. Very knowledgeable woman–knows where to shop and most importantly border regulations. She’s been doing bus tours for years. Round trip cost each person $45CAN. We left Toronto 6:30ish, and reached PA a little after 10am. Luckily the bus wasn’t as packed as it usually is. It was about 1/2 full so everyone got their own double-seat to crash on.

Probably the best bargain I scored was purchasing a hardcover Tupac Shakur Legacy book at Borders Books. This amazing scrapbook, complete with photos, stories and removable reproductions of handwritten song lyrics, poetry and other personal papers has a list price of $59.95CAN ($45.00US). What did I pay for it? $4-freakin-99!!! I’m telling you, I cannot believe that I got this book for that price. I was at the cash paying for my cookbooks (not that I need them, because I’m such a great cook ) and then I turned around and saw the bargain section of books on a piled display. There was the Tupac book with a red discount sticker on it for $4.99. I should’ve picked up the other 2 copies that were left (I gave this copy to my friend when I got back to Toronto as a belated birthday gift because Borders didn’t have a different book in stock). My friend who I was shopping with in Erie picked up Inside Hollywood: The Greatest Celebrity Photos from US Weekly for $4.99 from Borders as well.

Big Lots has some great deals on snack foods. I got a lot of stuff that I can add to my lunch bag when I head to work every day, as well as some spice grinders and Revlon makeup brushes ($1.50!).

At the Burlington Coat Factory in Millcreek Mall, I got this super-cute Deréon bag for $25. I wish I had more time (and money) to spend in Millcreek mall, because I saw a lot of other things that I wanted to purchase as well. Plus the Victoria’s Secret store was so tempting! I was going to purchase a sterling silver sterling cubic zirconia necklace with a cruxifix pendant, but the stupid lady in the line in front of me just had to question and double check each of her perchases with the cashier, ponder about whether to get the item or not, and then ask if she got her discount. She was taking too damn long, so I had to put the necklace back and rush to catch the bus before we headed to our next stop.

Marshalls (Like Winners in Canada) has some good stuff as well. My friend picked up a super-nice Baby Phat bag for $59. I was tempted to pick up a trendy Kathy Van Zeeland bag, but I stopped myself (that’s will-power for you!). Got some sexy gold dress sandals and knock-around flats from Payless for $14 and $9 respectively. I’m glad I did, because Payless’ prices in the U.S. is much cheaper than here in Canada–plus they actually have more of a selection of shoes in my big-foot size. Also got some hair products for my happily nappy hair at Rose Beauty and Fashion (although I wish I had gotten a flat iron).

I was disappointed this time around because we didn’t get to stop at the Wal-Mart Super Center: the last time we went to Erie, I picked up this big bucket of chicken–wings, popcorn chicken, buffalo strips–for $8! But I settled for a sandwich from Subway since my belly was rumbling by the end of my hectic day. Next time I plan on going I’ll make sure to suggest some notable stops (e.g. more mall time).

Time management is everything on these types of trips. The bus has to be back at the Canadian border at a certain time, so your shopping stops and hours are divvied up throughout the day. The tour guide will tell you how much time you have at a certain store, outlet complex or mall and then tell you to make sure that you’re back at the pick-up spot at a certain time. Of course you have some of those careless people who hold everyone up by not heading the rules and coming back late… one of these days luck won’t be on their side when they have to catch a cab to meet back up with the rest of the group after the bus leaves them!

After leaving Erie around 5:30, we got back to Toronto at 8:30pm. The borders were smooth sailing both ways. There were no line ups at customs, probably since it wasn’t a long-weekend.

All-in-all a very good trip. I spent about $200, and for all the stuff I brought home, it was well worth it (thank goodness getting back through customs was problem-free!). The next time I visit the States will most likely be for Black Friday aka a shop-a-holic’s dream–the day after Thanksgiving. But I think I’ll rent a car and drive down with my friends, so we can have more time at the stores we’d like to visit.