My Shopping Rules Made Easy With Retail Me Not #RMNChallenge

Last week I was doing a phone interview with a national newspaper (because I’m fancy like that) and we were discussing how Feisty Frugal & Fabulous came to be. The story isn’t anything spellbinding – I was a stay-at-home mom trying to figure out how to save our family money and was continually emailing my friends and family with the deals, sales and promotions I’d find. I eventually started posting them on a blog, because it was easier for them to check in daily or weekly rather than me email them. That blog turned into what you see today, and turned into me on the phone with a national newspaper. Funny how life works, sometimes!

I have a few shopping rules that have stayed with me through the years; Never pay full price for clothing, always utilize rewards programs, and never check-out online without ensuring you are either being rewarded for your purchase or have found an online discount code. Websites like RetailMeNot.ca are essential for all families regardless of how much you spend or how many kids (or pets!) you have.

I agreed to be part of a fun challenge among a few Canadian bloggers – spend $250 at retailers found on RetailMeNot.ca, and see who saves the most with their savvy shopping! Fun, right?  I shopped for myself, my kids, and the family as a whole and walked away with a ton of new items and the sweet satisfaction of saving a ridiculous amount of money thanks to RetailMeNot.ca!

I shopped twice at Old Navy online!  First, I found this info on RetailMeNot.ca highlighting at Everyday Steals at Old Navy. Everyday Steals, as the name implies, are deals that are always at a fabulous price at Old Navy on essential items for the whole family. Without Retail Me Not, I wouldn’t have popped over to Old Navy. While we all know stores like Old Navy have deals often, a nudge reminding you that you can save up to 40% shopping is what I needed to click on the site that day.

Then, I discovered that these amazing Pixie Ankle Pants were part of Everyday Steals too! They were on sale for just $20.00, from $39.98.

Next, I visited The Children’s Place, because of this deal at RetailMeNot.ca! Among the four items I purchased were two piece pair of pajamas, regular $24.95 that I got for $6.64, two pairs of capri leggings that were regular $12.95 for $7.00 each, and these kitten print leggings (because cats are *so* for 7 year olds, right?) for $12.23 regular $24.95The sales were crazy good – so good that I spent $32.87 and saved a total of $46.93! How? It’s so simple!

I remembered that my girls needed Easter dresses, so I wondered where I could find some adorable ones at a reasonable price. After seeing this coupon for $10 off when you spend $50, I knew Carter’s would have exactly what I needed, and I was right! My total before taxes was $53 meaning I could use the coupon code provided at RetailMeNot.ca (once you click on the offer, the code is revealed) and only spent $43!

I browsed at the various offers outside the clothing category at RetailMeNot.ca because I knew the site had a multitude of deals for everything Canadian families use. My eyebrow raised when I saw an offer for SiriusXM Radio. We purchased a new vehicle in October with 6 months of free SiriusXM radio and it was coming to an end. I had not decided if we should continue our subscription because the price was pretty expensive, $175.89 for an annual subscription.

Imagine my excitement when I discovered a code for your first year of Sirius XM for $75! Could it be too good to be true? You can see from the thumbs up that people had some success with it (I love this symbol to help  determine if a deal is worth investigating further). So, I clicked on the offier and followed the instructions to redeem. Of all the offers that day, this one was the one that took the most work, but it was minimal. I just had to go to my vehicle and figure out my radio’s code, enter it on the website, and I was set up in no time and my Visa was charged the correct price! Amazing!

Retail Me Not Savings =

Old Navy for Me
40.00 spent, 29.88 saved

Old Navy for the Kids
54.50 spent 36.64 saved

Sirius XM
75.00 spent, 100.89 saved

Children’s Place
32.87 spent, 46.93 saved

Carter’s
43.00 spent, 18.00 saved

Total: $245.37 spent, $232.34 saved!

And, because I wanted to ensure that I was being authentic to you, my readers, I have all my receipts saved to share! The winner of the #RMNChallenge gets a $250 Visa card to celebrate with, so I’m ensuring I’ve got all my receipts covered (I could have loaded my cart with even larger fabulous deals, but would you know if I didn’t click the check-out button? That’s no fun!)

To share more fun, I have a $100 Visa Gift Card to give away to one of my readers so you can check out RetailMeNot.ca and have some fun being a frugal shopper too!