an Ace in the Hardware

Now, this is a bit of a strange one, but Ace Hardware, yes the hardware store, actually has a pretty good rewards program. If you sign up at their store, they'll give you a handy dandy rewards card (can someone please come up with a better way) and you just scan it every time you make a purchase. The purchases give you points, etc... etc... etc... The thing is you actually get rewarded for having their card. At least every other month they are sending me coupons or 5 bucks off some purchase. Now, here's where it gets good. Ace also has a huge rebate program that's simple to use online. Most of the time the items are free or a buck. You buy those in combination with your rewards card and you are on your way to lots of great free stuff or at least cheaper stuff you need. Just make sure you sign up to receive their ad or look online each week and you'll also agree that ace is a helpful place to save some cash.

Quality and the Amish

Being frugal doesn't mean buying cheap. It means purchasing quality items (or getting them free) that are both useful and that will last. Many products out there are made extremely cheap and will break or be useless after just a few uses. The Amish are known for their quality. Both their food and their furniture are amazing. While you can not use the term inexpensive to refer to the cost of their products. They are a great quality product for what you are paying for. In fact, they will probably outlast or at least look immensely better than any other product you purchase somewhere. Plus, their furniture is made of real wood, which is practically impossible to find anywhere at this point in American culture. So, I recommend that if you want to save some money, purchase from the Amish, you usually can find somewhere within a few hours drive and you'll probably only have to buy one of that particular product in your lifetime.Enjoy.

Buy For Christmas ... in August?

I know, that seems ridiculous right. But, I'm serious. If you start thinking about Christmas, Birthdays, any sort of gift buying day early, you'll almost always save money, plus you'll have it done way beforehand and not have to worry about it. And that my friend is what WhatTheFrugal.com is all about.

Coca Cola Ties The Score

Since we're on the topic of soda, we might as well take a minute to look at Coke's reward program. They call it mycokerewards and have been doing the same program for quite a few years now. Which has worked out very well for my pockets. Basically, on 20 oz bottles, 2-Liters, 12 and 24 oz can packages, etc.. most Coke products have a code. You go to mycokerewards, sign up and put those codes into the system, then after you collect so many points, you can cash them in for free items. I've been able to get multiple gift cards to places like Sony, TGI Fridays, Nike, and Napster. They offer magazines and a ton of other stuff, too. Some of which is good and some of which is crap. So, start collecting points and remember to always collect coca-cola.

One Box Two Box, REDBOX Blue Box

If you haven't heard of Redbox, you're in a for a treat, and if you have, then read on for some helpful tips. Basically, for those of you who don't know what Redbox is, it's a vending machine that lets you rent DVD or blue-ray movies for $1 a night. I know, you're probably saying, "Wow, a buck, that's cheap." Well, WhatTheFrugal.com says, "Not Cheap Enough!". So, here's the deal, there are a few "free" promo codes you can use in combination with your credit card. (They use your credit card as your membership card.) The codes are: DVDATWAG, DVDONME, BREAKROOM, DVDKROG and REDBOX. You can also sign up for codes via text on your phone and search for other codes online. Anyways, these codes work only once per card. They basically give you one free rental. Awesome, Right. Well, it gets better. You can use these codes on any credit card and you can use as many different credit cards as you want. Redbox also recognizes Visa prepaid cards as acceptable cards, so you can use those in combination with these codes too.With all those different cards and codes, it should take you a while before you have to actually pay $1 for a movie rental. So, just sit back, relax and enjoy your free movie and feel free to send me some popcorn for all that cash I just saved you.

Pepsi Hits A Homerun

In the past I've received "free" stuff from returning bottle caps, entering codes from bottle caps, etc... and the "free" items have always had a big logo plastered on them, which makes them nice house wear, but not something you'd wear out in public. Well, recently PEPSI did a promotion on collecting and matching certain bottle caps and returning them for a MLB (Major League Baseball) hat of your choice. I figured that I'd receive a hat that had a MLB team symbol (not the one I'd choose) on it and also would have a big PEPSI label plastered on the side, but instead I got a fairly decent hat with the team I chose and no PEPSI logo whatsoever. Great job PEPSI, I know no one will know that I'm wearing a hat from you, but I do and now, the people reading do also. Keep up the great job not promoting yourself.

Who Ya Gonna call ... Feit Electric

Yes, Feit Electric. While they might not have anything to do with ghosts, they definitely know how to make a consumer's day. I recently purchased this package of light bulbs which says they'll last for around 4000 hours and also won't corrode. Well, it only lasted for about 1000 hours and then corroded. So, I promptly gave them a call and let them know what happened. They then sent me a free package of light bulbs. Very nice customer service. Great job Feit Electric.

Big Boy Knows Free Stuff

Many places, including Big Boy Restaurants, offer free kids meals. The biggest thing is to just ask what the stipulations are. This morning I was able to make my daughters day by taking her to her favorite place to eat. She loves Big Boy's breakfast bar because she can eat whatever and however much she wants. I love it because if you purchase an adult breakfast bar, you get a kid's (5 and under) breakfast bar free. Not only saving money, but making a little kid's day. Awesome. Thank you Big Boy. Thank you.

You Can't Keep A Good Cartridge Down

Quick Tip: Staples now has an Ink Cartridge Recycling Program. You get 2 bucks  back in staples rewards when you recycle any ink or toner. Might as well get something for it if you're not going to use it.

The Skipper Enjoys Curly Fries?

So, Arby's and the Detroit Tigers have teamed up to offer one awesome deal. If the Tigers manage to hit 3 home runs in a game, then for 24 hours after that game you are able to get a free small curly fries from Arby's. All you need to do is go here and then click on the day they hit the home runs. Print the box score and bring it into Arby's. The fries are amazing and the fact that there is always a chance at getting them free is pretty sweet. Here's hoping the Tigers get some major hitters.

Sobe Happy And Get Them Free

So, Sobe is doing a promotion on their website that allows you to play an instant win game. You can win all sorts of things, but you always at least win a buy 1 get 1 free coupon. While in itself, that could be a great deal. I like to get a better than great deal, so if you take that coupon in this week to your local Kroger, pick up 2 Sobes, you will get them both absolutely free. Yup, free. So, not to shabby of a deal, plus you can play the game once daily, so feel free to get your Sobe on.

Return of the Staples Dollar Menu

This week at Staples, one of the offerings is a $1 dollar 2GB USB Flash Drive. Not too shabby I say, but beware the fine print. Apparently you need to have a Staples Reward card in order for you to actually get the price that is advertised. So, if you think you are going to do an online rebate, like every other staples free or cheap item on the page, you'd be mistaken. So, sign up for a Staples Reward card, pick up the Flash Drive and then they'll send you a check of some sort in the mail. Bring on the waiting.

A Michigan Scanner Darkly

In Michigan, we have a law that is referred to as the UPC Scanning Law. It's actually quite interesting and it definitely works in our bargain hunting favors. Basically, it comes down to this. If you buy an item and it's price tag says one thing, yet they charge you more than that marked price, you can get a small reward. Here's the catch. If you realize that they charged you more while you are at the cash register, they can price fix it right there and charge you the correct amount, there by not paying you the reward. You still get the item at the price listed on it's label, which is still saving money. Awesome. But, if you don't "catch" it until after you've paid and left the line, then you can take it to the service desk and they will fix the items price and are also supposed to give you an "I'm sorry" reward for charging you incorrectly. There are a few items that don't require this reward, but not many. While I won't go into the details of how much you get, basically they can give you between 1 and 5 dollars per specific item. More recently though I've realized that stores tend not to pay this reward. I'm not sure whether they just don't know about it or if they just figure you don't. So, now I've at least given you the ammunition if you want to pursue using this law, just be careful, if you utilize this law too much, the stores just might start pricing things correctly.

Think Outside the Bun, Use Coupons

So, Taco Bell like every other fast food chain out there has an e-mail club, and occasionally they'll send you useful coupons. Well, they recently sent me a coupon to try their Frutista Freeze for free if I purchased anything on their menu. So, I gladly purchased a cheesy double beef burrito for myself and got a Strawberry Frutista for my wife. There by satisfying my hunger pains and scoring brownie points all in one fall swoop. I knew fast food couldn't be all that bad for you.

Say Hello To My Little Friend ... Clearance

Ah, the joy of Red Tags. Wait, you're not familiar with them. Well, let me introduce you. Clearance, this is Bargain Hunter. Bargain Hunter, this is your dream come true. Most stores have a clearance section, the key is to find it. In that section, many times it's located on the ends of isles or somewhere in the back of the store, you have a chance of finding an awesome treasure. But, buyer beware, clearance can also mean crap, so always ask yourself if you need it or if it's really a deal. With clearance, sometimes it pays to come back later, many times it will get marked down again. If it's something you're not really sure about, you can always buy it and return it later (just make sure you can before you purchase it) and save your receipt. So, look for clearance items, they're a great way to get great things really cheap.

A Few Good Men at a Staff Meeting

Yes, you can even get free stuff at a staff meeting. I'm not talking about knowledge either. What I'm talking about is food, yes food. Stop and think about it. On occasion, there is food there. I know that most times we can't look past the fact that we have a meeting to go to. But, I say, change your perspective. Repeat after me, "FREE FOOD", again, "FREE FOOD". There, now stop dreading that ever present staff meeting and look forward, OK, maybe not look forward, but hey, stop dreading them. I mean if they're going to go through the trouble to provide some stale cookies or 25 cent bottled water, or if you're lucky, some day old bagels. By golly, enjoy it and maybe you'll even learn something along the way.

Simple Tip: Check Receipt

Whenever you purchase something, make sure to check your receipt before you leave. Know what you're supposed to be paying for the item and make sure you paid what the product is supposed to be, whether it be the marked price or the sale price. Items are sometimes marked incorrectly, but you are supposed to pay what the price tag says. Items also tend to be on the wrong shelves, so make sure you're grabbing the correct item. Have an ad with you at all times, this will help if you need to question something or show the cashier. You can also check the bar code on the item to the bar code on the shelve to make sure you picked up the correct thing.