Plastic Jungle Expands Discounts on BIG Purchases: Read One Customer’s Story

Michelle — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 21:46:31 +0000

Step by step, a Plastic Jungle fan shows you how to save $100s by combining discounted gift cards, coupons, and rebates.

It is fair to say that most households have wish lists. From house to house, these lists can be as diverse as the inhabitants. You could be pining for fresh electronics (new TV or gaming system), or home improvements or furniture, or maybe a special accessory, such as a pricey designer purse or a pair of shoes. Often, wish lists develop when you move into a new space, as our Plastic Jungle fan, Marcy B., relates.

In her letter, Marcy B. outlines how she went about saving big on renovating her window treatments in her new home. She explains that it wasn’t a matter of combing the Internet, or paging through Val-Pak coupons, but a matter of patience and a small amount of planning.

Thanks to marketing and promotions, all shoppers get the idea that we could save big, but jumping the hurdle to map out the steps can be a stumbling block.

Her letter explains her simple process, step-by-step:

Dear Plastic Jungle:
Thank you for helping me save more than $500 on a purchase I recently made at Home Depot!
My husband and I had planned to invest in blinds for our house this year, and were pleasantly surprised to have spent less than we budgeted on higher quality blinds than we planned on buying.
How we saved BIG…
(1)  Last year my husband and I started talking about the design and feel we desired for the blinds.
(2)  At Home Depot we discovered a modern style of blinds that we loved.  When we looked at the price, we noticed there was a special 20% off manufacturer sale.  At this point, the cost was not in our price range, until…
(3)  I called the store and spoke with a manager about stacking a coupon with the sale.  The manager said I could.  I wrote down his name and immediately…
(4)  I went on eBay and bought a 10% Lowe’s/Home Depot coupon for $1.50 (shipping + handling included).
(5)  That same night, I went on PlasticJungle.com and purchased enough Home Depot gift cards (for 7% less than face value) to cover the purchase.
(6)  One week later, I received the coupon and gift cards and physically went to Home Depot to purchase our blinds.  We saved 20% through the manufacturer’s sale, 10% with our coupon, and 7% with our Plastic Jungle gift cards.
In total, we saved $595.11 (33%) on our BIG purchase!
I cannot thank you enough for helping us save BIG!
With sincere thanks,
Marcy

You are welcome, Marcy! : )

Marcy's Living Room Before the New Blinds

Marcy's home with her new blinds. Success at a discount!

As it turns out, Marcy is also a guest contributor for a parenting site: MamaModerne.com, and she wrote up her story as an article, “Saving Big on Big Purchases”. Check it out for more details on how to save when it comes time to pull out that wishlist.

What’s on your wishlist?

Consider the following categories. When you’re dealing with a wishlist, it’s OK to be greedy. Writing out what you want might help you prioritize your wants and needs. (Well, that sounds like another blog post!)

Consumer Electronics: get gift cards from Best Buy, Kohl’s, Target, Walmart, Sony Style, Apple Store, Office Depot, Staples, JCPenney

Home Improvement: get gift cards from Home Depot, Lowe’s, Ace Hardware, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Target, Bloomingdale’s

Furniture: get gift cards from Crate & Barrel, Williams-Sonoma Home, JCPenney, Macy’s, Walmart, west elm, CB2

Designer Apparel & Accessories: Zappo’s, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Bergdorf-Goodman, Tiffany & Co., Burberry, Coach

Pick up any of the above gift cards on Plastic Jungle’s Buy Gift Cards page.

Get thinking, and let us know if you’ve got any strategies for saving with discount gift cards.

How to Check the Balance on Your Crate & Barrel Gift Card or Crate & Barrel eGift Card

Michelle — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 06:59:39 +0000

One of my favorite product catalogs is the Crate & Barrel “Best Buys” catalog and I was lucky enough to have one delivered just last week. Tons of great deals on simple, stylish housewares abound… hey, check it for yourself: here’s a link to the online Crate & Barrel Best Buys flipbook.

Housewares oh-so-chic: The Hills' Lauren Conrad and Lo Bosworth Shop at Crate & Barrel at The Grove, Hollywood.

While Crate & Barrel is in the same brand family as CB2 and The Land of Nod, none of the gift cards or egift cards are interchangeable or transferable to the other stores. Check the Crate and Barrel Gift Card FAQ page for the latest on gift card interchangeability or any questions regarding gift card terms & conditions.

Crate & Barrel Deals

Saving money at Crate and Barrel is easy: On the website, you can click through to the Crate and Barrel Outlet which offers deals daily. (SAVINGS IDEA: in the Outlet menu, see the first choice, which is 50% off or more. Yowza!) The Crate and Barrel Special Offers page features sales and offers direct from choice manufacturers (right now including All-Clad and KitchenAid), and don’t forget to check the Crate and Barrel Sale tab, too. Sign up for the Crate and Barrel email newsblasts on the Crate and Barrel homepage and you’ll get first crack at fab sales, special offers, and promotions. Purchase a discounted Crate & Barrel Gift Card or eGift Card right here on Plastic Jungle and compound your savings.

Check the Balance on Your Crate and Barrel Gift Card

Not sure how much is left on your Crate & Barrel Gift Card?

Here’s how to get that done:

Online: go to the Crate & Barrel Gift Card Balance Lookup page

Phone: call 800-606-6458

In Store: bring your card to the register of any Crate & Barrel retail or outlet location

Once you know your balance, you can safely sell or trade your Crate and Barrel Gift Card or Crate and Barrel eGift Card on Plastic Jungle. At Plastic Jungle, you can also trade your Crate and Barrel Gift Card for an Amazon.com Gift Card and even fund your PayPal account.

To know how much your Crate & Barrel Gift Card is worth in exchange on Plastic Jungle, on the main page, click “Sell Gift Cards” at the top of the page. Look up “Crate & Barrel”, enter the gift card balance you’ve just acquired, and you’ll see instantly what your gift card balance is worth in cash or trade.