Friday, December 21, 2012

{ Coupon Database is up and going! }

Thanks to some major help from a blessed friend - Beth (Powdered Plum) - the coupon database that I have been working on for the past day and a half is finally up and going! Beth wins all the prizes! :) (Also, go check out her blog by clicking her name above!)

Just click the tab at the top of the page labeled 'Coupon Database' and you're on your way to finding every available coupon. The database is updated regularly to remove expired coupons and it also tells you all available information about the coupons (i.e., date, insert location, etc.)

I'm going to play with the colors to make it a little easier on the eyes, but I am certain I want it to match the colors of the blog. 

If you have any questions or notice something is off, please let me know!

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

{ KitchenAid Mixer for $152?! }

I am happy to report that I am officially a graduate of the University of Louisville with a Bachelor of Arts in History, concentration in Humanities. I am extremely excited and relieved that I will not have to write any more research papers, lug around tote bags full of library research books and not study for any more tests! The ceremony was very beautiful and of course we took loads of pictures in which I cannot wait to see.

As a result, I am looking forward to posting on a more frequent and better schedule for this blog. I appreciate the patience while I worked through my last semester!


Anyway, on to the real point of this post:

Yes! You read the title correctly! I finally was able to buy myself a KitchenAid mixer in the color I've always wanted - Green Apple. If you are interested in how I was able to get a $450 mixer for $152, read on!



I read about the deal on one of my favorite blogs I love called Couponing to Disney. The original post about the deal can be found here. However,  I guess you could say I modified the deal just a smidge. Instead of getting the smaller 4.5 quart mixer only in white for $100, I went ahead and got the bigger 5 quart mixer in the color I wanted for a $150. Combined Black Friday sales, the awesome Ebates website and coupon codes snagged me this really awesome deal!

First off, if you do not have an Ebates account you will want to go ahead and sign up now - especially if you are still doing your Christmas shopping online! This website is accredited by the Better Business Bureau and the way it works is that stores pay Ebates to direct people to them. Ebates receives a commission from your purchase(s) and then turns around and gives you a percentage back. There are numerous stores that give you cash back, and I actually just received a check from Ebates yesterday for my mixer. A total check for $31.77! I highly recommend you sign up for an account and get started on saving even more money - you can even receive a $10 gift card or a $5 cash bonus when you do! Sign up for an account.*

Once I had my Ebates account set up, I searched for Kohl's, which was the store offering this awesome deal. At the particular time I did this deal there was an offering of 10% cash back for Kohl's (normally about 6%). Next, I clicked on the orange "Shop Now" button which generated a new window and started my 'tracking ticket'. This allows for Ebates to give you your cash back. If you decide to close the browser window or shop from a different browser window other than the one you opened the tracking ticket with, IT WILL NOT give you your cash back. The window you opened your tracking ticket with has to be the one you make your purchase through. 

I found my mixer that already had all of the attachments with it and added it to my cart. It was originally $449.99, but Kohl's had it on sale for $349.99. When I added it to my cart, the price dropped to $314.99 ($35 off). I used the coupon code BLACKFRI for 15% off, bringing the price down to $267.74 (or another $47.25 off). I had to pay $7.50 for a shipping surcharge and $16.51 in tax, making my out of pocket grand total $291.75. Now, here comes the fun part!

I received $75 in Kohl's cash to use on a future purchase, so the $291.75 was now down to $216.75. I submitted a $30 rebate which brought the total down to $186.75. With my 10% Ebates cash back on the $291.75 total, I received $29.00, bringing the total down to $157.75. I also received a $5 Ebates bonus in lieu of the $10 gift card, so my actual 'cost' for the mixer was $152.75!

The $30 rebate through the KitchenAid company also allowed you to get a free subscription to either Food & Wine or Travel + Leisure magazine. I went with Food & Wine. :) 

I understand that this is quite a bit of information, so I hope that if you have any questions you will not hesitate to comment or contact me. I cannot wait to post about the next deal!

Kayla.




*Please note that the link to sign up for an Ebates account is my referral link. Signing up for an account means I receive a $25 bonus from Ebates for my first referred sign up, and $5 for every sign up after that. All opinions of Ebates are 100% my own and I was not paid. You do not have to use my referral link if you do not want to, although it would be greatly appreciated ;).