Whether you have shopped all Black Friday morning long or you find it entertaining to see your friends’ Black Friday posts on Facebook, we all know that while turkey (or ham, or duck, or tofu) is digesting, millions of people across our nation find stellar deals at wee-hours of the morning on the day after Thanksgiving.

Isn’t Black Friday in November?  Yes.

What’s all the hype about?  Particularly for big ticket items, Black Friday is one of the best days of the year to buy a television, tablet, refrigerator, washer, dryer, etc.  You can make the deals even sweeter by stocking up now on gift cards for your favorite retailers including Best Buy gift cards, Target gift cards, Sears gift cards, and Walmart gift cards.

So why think about Black Friday weeks in advance?  Now is the time to shop the Plastic Jungle discount gift card inventory so you can stack Black Friday discounts later.

If you are planning to buy Bath & Body Works lotions, Wallflowers, or anti-bacterial PocketBac® sanitizing hand gel as stocking stuffers, buy discounted Bath & Body Works gift cards now.

What if the brands of gift cards I want are out of stock?  That’s okay.  Don’t fret.  Sign up for a notification and be alerted as soon as they are available again.

Seriously?  Yep.  And if you think I’m kidding, wait just a few weeks when I share last-minute Black Friday tips and you’ll wish you had stocked up on discounted gift cards well before November.

As the web’s largest secured gift card exchange, we’ve seen the volume of gift cards exchanged on our site rise exponentially in the past year (see our Plastic Jungle blog post with figures). It’s exciting to see consumers finding great ways to save money time and time again.

During the holidays, we found that the top ten gift cards purchased on our site were from versatile retailers with many product lines to offer. Clearly, we’ve got a hot market if you’re willing to sell any of these gift cards. Check the Plastic Jungle “Sell Gift Cards” page to see what your exchange value will be.

Plastic Jungle’s Top 10 Gift Cards (in reverse order)

December 2010

10. Lowe’s

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Lowe’s Gift Cards Now

9. Best Buy

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Best Buy Gift Cards Now

8. Target

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Target Gift Cards Now

7. Kmart

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Kmart Gift Cards Now

6. Lands’ End

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Lands’ End Gift Cards Now

5. Home Depot

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Home Depot Gift Cards Now

4. iTunes

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted iTunes Gift Cards Now

3. Sears

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Sears Gift Cards Now

2. Macy’s

1. Walmart

Check Plastic Jungle for Discounted Walmart Gift Cards Now

View gift cards you loved in January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, and Fall 2010.

Where do you love to shop (and save money)?

Savvy shoppers know planning ahead is a key component to achieve huge savings. To keep more money in your pocket (where it belongs) combine your gift cards savings with in-store promotions, coupons, and sales for an even more impressive discount. These cards move fast, so be sure to set up your gift card notifications to receive an alert when the gift card you want becomes available.

Most purchased gift cards in June 2010 include:

1. Walmart Gift Cards
2. Home Depot Gift Cards
3. Lowe’s Gift Cards
4. Target Gift Cards
5. Best Buy Gift Cards
6. Barnes & Noble Gift Cards
7. Starbucks Gift Cards
8. Pottery Barn Gift Cards
9. Sears Gift Cards
10. Macy’s Gift Cards

View gift cards you loved in January, February, March, April, and May.

Are you meeting your summer budget goals? Share your best savings tip to stay in the green the rest of the summer.

With the promise of spring, the release of the iPad, and home improvement projects in the works… it is no surprise to see clothing, electronics, and department store gift cards topping the charts.

Most purchased gift cards in March 2010 include:

1. Walmart Gift Cards

2. Best Buy Gift Cards

3. Home Depot Gift Cards

4. Target Gift Cards

5. Lands’ End, Sears, Kmart Gift Cards

6. Lowe’s Gift Cards

7. Macy’s Gift Cards

8. Restaurant.com Gift Cards

9. Barnes & Noble Gift Cards

10. Pottery Barn Gift Cards

How did you save money in March?  Tell us where you shopped and how you saved, and I will share where it fell on our list…