How to Use Store Sales, Coupons, and Rebates to Get the Best Deal On Appliances

When we started renovating our home-turned-office-to-our-home we decided early on that we would try to avoid cheap/temporary because in the end it can definitely end up costing more. It isn't always possible, but we like to think of it this way, "Okay, $5 toaster is crap, $50 toaster is amazing but not necessary. $30 toaster is rated/reviewed well." Then (and this is important) we get a coupon and then if we can, we combine that with a sale for the deepest savings. Then we check for rebates, see if floor models are available for purchase, and check for defects that might give us more money off. The stars don't align themselves when it comes to sales, you have to do the work!

1. Research which stores near you are generally cheapest for your appliance, or offer price matching, and then begin researching those stores constantly. Check websites and sale sections in store often; their websites will often show you what is in stock at your particular store.

2. Start early. I started months before needing our fridge because I knew Lowe's/Home Depot would delay my shipment for a long time, so I wouldn't even have to store it. There are certain times of the years particular brands roll out new models and the old ones go on sale. Ask store associates if they know when this happens for their store.

3. Scour clearance sections and look for floor models. 
Don't be afraid of a floor model, especially if your store doesn't even plug their models in. We snagged our fridge as a floor model that had never been plugged in and received an additional discount for it! Sure, it has been touched by a million hands, but so has every other thing we touch while out in public. Disinfect and enjoy the savings.

4. Pay attention to holiday weekend sales.
Labor Day scored us an automatic 10% off of our appliances as this is the standard home improvement store sale. It clears out old inventory for newer models and everything was game. Everything from Martin Luther King Day to President's Day can snag you good deals on appliances. Black Friday is more tech geared but there can be good deals. Again, ask around in your local stores!

5. Look for rebates.
There is a rebate section for all appliance selling stores on their websites. Lowes' had a sweet tiered rebate (rebate section of Lowe's website) going where if we bought two of their appliances we got $100 back, and if we bought 3 we got $200. It took a couple months to get the check but it was easy savings!

6. Look for scratches.
I forgot to mention this but when we bought our floor model, I mentioned the big scratch across the front (it was five inches long and ultimately I don't care about that kind of thing but it was a new fridge...) our salesperson overheard me mention it and took another 10% off for the defect! Which brings me to...

7. Never be afraid to ask for a deal, just be nice!
No one is going to think you're being cheap (and if they do? Who cares!) if you show a bit of indifference and then say, "Are there any deals that could get the price down a little bit? Rebates? Coupons?" A good salesperson is happy to work with you! And that brings me to...

8. Find your sales person. 
There's an episode of King of the Hill where Hank is teaching his son Bobby to have a salesperson for everything, "This is my car-guy, this is my appliance-guy." I actually do that! I will ask questions I know the answers to in order to size up my sales people and see who I can trust with info later on. Do some research, ask some basic questions while browsing to a few different people, then go straight for the one you like the best and make them your person. Look for someone willing to help you and who seems knowledgable and professional, not just friendly. Our sales person when we bought a washing machine recently made sure to personally call and hop on the internet to price match for us.

9. Coupons, man! 
We signed up online with Lowe's a while back and they send us great coupons. Sometimes $10 off of $50 but often $50 off $300 which is obviously helpful with appliances. Sidebar: If we know we're doing a project soon and have a $50 off of $300 but only need $100 in supplies, we might go ahead and buy some things we know we will need and usually do not go on sale (nails, wood, etc.) in order to use it.

10. Is Stainless necessary? 
This is something I didn't realize at the time and am starting to think about more for our next set of appliances, which will hopefully be in 8 million years. Stainless looks clean and polished and industrial, but I really like white. The newer finishes of white look incredibly good and futuristic with the LED lights and modern styles; white isn't what it used to be. It is also quite a bit cheaper, sometimes saving you $200 or more. Black looks nice as well. Our stove is a double-oven (the top is a mini-oven with normal two-rack oven separately beneath it, and there's no broiler) glass top and was FREE from a friend of the family redoing their kitchen. They rarely cooked so it was in pristine condition, but it is white. It doesn't bother me at all and sometimes I wish my other appliances were white to match!

Our Receipt: 

$1,636.00 Whirlpool French Door refrigerator (On sale from $2,036)
- 10% Labor Day Sale on all appliances at Lowe's) 
- 10% additional for 5 inch scratch
- 10% for floor model
- $50 ($50 off $300 Lowe's coupon mailed to us) 
- $66.67 (1/3 of the $200 rebate for buying 3 Whirlpool Gold appliances)
______
= $1,075.97 (roughly, plus taxes)

I made a selection of a fridge, hood-microwave and dishwasher that were all within our budget but were very good quality. It was what we would have purchased without dealing with sales/coupons/rebates. Our three appliances would have been 3 different brands, not as nice, and a side-by-side fridge, which isn't what I wanted at all. In the end, we actually spent less money on my higher end Whirlpool Gold appliances with rebates and discounts than the sensible list.

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Painted Cabinets with Masking Tape Stencil Tutorial

There is a large office with cubbies for building plans in our house that I knew was perfect for a craft room. The walls, like most of the house, are a wood paneling so the room felt very dark and small despite being quite substantial in size. In addition to painting the walls white, I knew the cabinets needed a little perking up as well. The problem was that I didn't want to sand and paint or stain every bit of the wood, so I decided to just paint the doors. So that they wouldn't look unfinished, I needed to incorporate the wood tone on the painted doors themselves by using kind of a reverse stencil. 

Craft room cabinets before (entrance is to the right, you can see the door knob)

The cabinets are twice as deep as kitchen cabinets since there is a cubby area in the room directly behind it. 

Step 1: Take the doors off the hinges, remove all hardware and gently wipe down with fine grit sand paper to knock the shine off. Clean dust off twice, once to remove dust and again to fully clean, using rubbing alcohol or a household cleaner/wipe. 

Step 2: Using a ruler or L, decide how far from the edges of your cabinets you want your rectangle and make pencil marks as a guideline. I did 2 inches in from the edge all the way around. 

Step 3: Next, lay down four pieces of masking tape (one for each side) according to your marks to make a large rectangle. If you have made several marks 2 inches in along each side, you should be able to lay the tape down straight, using those marks as your guide. I lay my pieces down from edge to edge, and just leave the 2 excess pieces that aren't part of my rectangle that you see on the right, because it will be cut off when I make the rounded corners. 

Step 4: In the photo from Step 3, you can see that a white opaque square is created where the two pieces of masking tape overlap. Using this as your guide, take a piece of masking tape and lay it down so that the top edge goes across the corners of the small square on a diagonal. The one in the photo is a little bit off, but I fixed it later.

Step 5: Lay another piece of tape down immediately after the first. Overlap it just the tiniest bit to create a good seal so that paint doesn't seep through. Just try to keep this piece as straight and parallel to the first piece you laid down as possible. 

Step 6: Using a cup as your guide, cut away the excess from the piece you just laid down to create a curve, placing the cup as close to the inner edge o the last piece of tape you placed down as possible. To ensure that this curve is even and straight, pay attention to where you lay the cup. If you move it too far to the left or right, you will see how the curve would be uneven, so just move it around until it looks as even as possible. 

Step 7: Do the same thing to remove the outer corner of the rectangle, creating another curve that is 1 inch from the edge first cut you made, so that the entire curved piece you see in the photo above is 1 inch wide, the same width as the tape you are using. Cut away any excess including the two wings from the initial rectangle you made. 

This is what the finished taping process looks like. You can now apply stain or paint. If you don't want to fully sand your piece, consider Minwax Polyshades, a tinted polyurethane that works just like applying a stain and then polyurethane, but will dry on even unsanded surfaces because it doesn't soak into the wood or require rubbing off like stain does. Use a brand new  foam brush if you choose this method. I find it leaves the fewest bubbles. 

Step 8: I chose to use Olympic glossy paint in a light slightly aqua blue color, and my favorite Teflon Shur-line brush. Apply one generous coat (slightly thick) then lightly run the brush over the surface from end to end in quick sweeps to even out the surface. While the paint is wet, I used a clean Exacto to slice into the tape and pull it up. Be careful when you do this, and have a paper towel, plastic bag, or newspaper to stick it to as you go to keep it from falling back onto your painted door.

Voila! 

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Laziness Rewarded

We have been without lighting in the living room (and weird foyer type area we have yet to come up with a name for...) and kitchen area for well, since we first demoed that room. I saved what seemed like a thousand and one options for the island lights, going back and forth between pendants, a chandelier, or island light fixture. I was pining away for this beauty:

It is currently $156 (and that's down from $195 when I first saw it) at Lighting Universe

So, unhappy with my other options because I knew I just didn't love them quite as much as the little guy up above, I didn't want to settle until I found something cheaper that I loved just as much. Months later—as in, tonight—I was walking around Lowe's when I spotted this little Allen+Roth gem: 

$49.97 at Lowe's! 

It is actually a lot brighter, identical to the pricier one in tone. I actually prefer the slightly more lax wave of the silhouette in this one. It came with three bars so we can easily use just one bar for our low ceiling house. We are using two over the island. 

Sometimes, laziness is rewarded. Well, maybe it was my stubbornness. Either way, I'm quite pleased with myself. 

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Getting the Most From Craft Store Coupons

I love craft stores like Joann Fabric and Crafts, Michaels, or Hobby Lobby. I love them even more when they're like Joann's and they let me stack multiple competitor coupons together with their own for big savings. But sometimes, even with all that stacking, I have leftovers. I will either give my coupons to other customers who end up looking at me like I'm crazy because it is a Michael's coupon and we're in Joann's... or I buy things we need around the house that craft stores also sell to maximize my savings.  I compiled a little list for you.

Ideas:
- vanilla, butter, or almond extracts for baking
- food coloring or sprinkles
- parchment paper
- wrapping paper
- a pack of Thank You cards or notes
- Wilton baking pans
- office supplies like Post-Its, pens, or Sharpies.
- batteries! they're never on sale!
- candles and candle holders
- birthday or holiday gifts for children like craft sets or Crayola Wonder products or K'Nex
- stock school supplies early
- stock ribbon and baskets for gift giving around the holidays
- check the cash wrap area for things like tumbler cups and insulated Starbucks-style travel mugs
- cookbooks
- books in general!
- a snack, gum, candy, or beverage at the checkout
- paper plates and disposable party wear for barbecues
- picture frames
- a really nice, new glue gun (this seems silly but I've only ever bought cheap ones)
- a nice pair of scissors or pinking sheers
- Goo B Gone
- a bulletin or white board
- spray paint
- refrigerator magnets
- contact paper
- staple gun and replacement staples for reupholstering
- 3M command strips or hooks
- tweezers
- duct tape
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