July 2007 Archives

LUV this new magazine from Consumer Reports called ShopSmart. A brief preview of the Aug/Sep issue offers these savvy tips:

Buy airline tickets on Wednesday morning because that's when Delta, American and all the rest cut prices for any seats that have not sold on flights in the next 10 days.

Spot items on eBay that have been recalled, like car seats and strollers, by first checking www.recalls.gov.

Don't fall for designer rip offs by sniffing out the fakes. You can't tell just by the price. Fakes are getting so good that some are being sold at full price! So ask for extra pictures to ensure the seller actually has the item on hand, look for words burried in the description like "inspired by" which means the item is a fake. Pay with your credit card. You'll have a better chance of getting money back than if you pay with cash or check. If you use PayPal, link it to a credit card, not your checking account. Look for a phone number (and make sure it works) and address on the seller's info. Seals of approval by watchdogs like the BBB or BuySafe are good signs, too.

(not actual pool)

We still have a few weeks of summer vacation and the thermometer shows no signs of mercy. But most places are sold out of kiddie pools, says a colleague with a young swimmer at home. Except for Kmart in North Hollywood, apparently. They have the rigid plastic ones that don't require you to huff and puff and blow the thing up. $8 each! It's a secret sale so you won't find it on their web site or in the weekly circular.

Visit them at 13007 Sherman Way, North Hollywood, (818-764-0250). Other locations in Northridge, Simi Valley, Valenica, and Burbank.

Until Aug 4, Staples offers 12% off using this printable coupon. Just in time for back to school!

Get 40% off at Reebok, Rockport, and Greg Norman Outlets with this coupon. Good thru Aug 19!

Locations at Camarillo outlets.

SmartBargains has dropped their shoe prices even lower. Now the summer shoes are 40% off!

I liked this flat side with jewels by White Mountain for$80 (orig $63). Uh oh, just checked the fine print. Only one pair left in size 9! Too small for me.

Also saw a cute Nine West platform with carmel-colored leather straps for $21 (orig $83). Only 3 sizes left! Doh!

Tons more good stuff on the site.

Buy one item $10 and up at Borders and get an extra 30% off this coupon. So if you haven't picked up the latest copy of Harry Potter...

Thanks to SlickDeals.net for the discount!

Locations in Canoga Park, Northridge, Sherman Oaks, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Burbank, Valencia, and Glendale.

Just heard T-Cup Couture, a pet boutique dedicated to the smaller paws in life, is opening at Westfield Fashion Square in Sherman Oaks. Wonder if they'll have grand opening sales to celebrate?

If posts are a little light Friday and Monday it's because I'm in New York visiting friends. Was reminded of a great deal on the bus from the airport when I saw a man with a cart selling icees, wonderful treats that come in a paper cup and leave a stain on your tongue ((different than Italian ices and the brand ICEE) . When I was in college they were $.25! Such a deal for something so tasty and refreshing in this hot and humid and humid climate. Do they have icee carts in the Valley?

Am salvating over this post about The Shoe Rack on BargainsLA:

"Shoe diva’s will love a super new source, The Shoe Rack. This manufacturers distribution outlet carries mostly in season and some last season women’s shoes that you see at better department stores like Macy’s and Nordstroms at 50%-80% off the original retail."

...

"Most styles run $19.99-$29.99. Regular boots can run upwards of $49.99 but you get the picture. You can easily duck outta here with 3 pairs of shoes for under $100. How’s that for retail therapy?"

Visit The Shoe Rack at 10122 Mason in Chatsworth. 818.882.3442

Trader Joe's is going to replace the Long's Drugs that closed on Ventura near Canoga a few months back. Apparently there's a sign outside that says so, tho I haven't driven past. Not sure why the company told me that WH was NOT in their near future, but since they sell Tofutti Cuties, it's all good.

Any word on an opening date?

Westfield Topanga and Fashion Square are starting this new thing where you can check what's in stores before you drive down to the mall. You can either purchase then thru the retailer's online store, or have a salesperson set them aside for you to pick up at the mall.

Check this link to try it at Fashion Square
or Topanga.

Saw a massive 20% to 50% sign across the storefront of Wheel World on Ventura in Woodland Hills, east of Fallbrook. Many of their bikes are on sale, and they have a "continuous" rack of marked down clothes, an employee said.

Location also in Culver City.

eBags.com says it has more than 28,000 on its site, including 96 backpacks on clearance. I like this lime CalPak Rebel for $22.49 (orig $55), above, or this Burton Reverb Pack, below, for $50 (orig $70).

Free shipping and free returns.

Every Saturday night at 8pm catch a free movie in Woodland Hills' Warner Center Park on Topanga just north of the 101. The schedule is here. Coming up this Saturday is Young Frankenstein, followed week after by E.T.! Sounds like a wonderful spot to have a picnic dinner with friends.

Sponsored by the Valley Cultural Center.

Linens-n-Things has a bunch of "back to college" sales, including an 11-piece pizza kit for $15. With one of their 20% coupons, which you can find in every nook and cranny of my house, it's just $11. (I hear LNT and BBB accept each others coupons). The set includes a pizza stone, cutter, server, two oven mitts, two filled spice containers, a sauce scooper, and three cheese-grating thingies.

I make pizza all the time at home and it's a cinch. Get dough from Trader Joe's for $1 and let it warm up a little before you smush it and toss it into a rough circle. (I set the oven to 400 and let it warm up on that.) Lay the dough on the stone, which hopefully you have sprinkled with about a tablespoon of corn meal. Otherwise, this sucker may not come off the stone. Spread a *little* red sauce on top, more than 3 tablespoon will make it really gooey - in a bad way. Then put on your preferred toppings (mine are garlic, peppers, and pepperoni), then put on thin slices of mozzarella. With the cheese on top everything gets bubbly. Cook for 15 minutes. Start to finish is no more than 30 minutes, unless you are a real klutz in the kitchen, in which case it'll take 45.

The Valley Indoor Swap Meet has tons of good deals, I'm told, including Hooked on Handbags, which is at 6701 Variel Ave. in the northwest corner of the Eton Building.

According to their web site all their bags are new. Their stuff is overstock from Macy's, Bloomingdale's, and Robinson's-May, and they even have a few designer bags from Burberry, Coach, Dooney & Bourke, Kate Spade, Michael Kors, and Fendi. Oh la la!

There's a patch of thrift stores on Sherman Way and Owensmouth in Canoga Park that I've been eyeing. The most visible, Out of the Closet, smelled just like a stale closet stuffed with possibilities. Saw a black Victoria Secret purse for $5 and a $6 stainless steel teapot. Ice cream dishes were $1.

Next door Thrift Town was a bit neater and the clothes were in better shape. At the back of the store I found a brown suede Inc. jacket without a price tag. Marigold lining was in perfect condition and the jacket was only slightly worn in. Asked the owner how much it was and nearly choked at the answer. Five dollars = major score.

The military surplus store the Knife Trader was a few doors down and everything seemed authentic. Pick up a plastic canteen for $3.49, ranger hat for $29.95, or a very heavy flak jacket for $165. A whole wall of military pins and ribbons offered cool trinkets for $3.95 each.

Across the street the Council Thrift Shop (of the National Council of Jewish Women of LA fame) had decent original artwork (saw a female nude for $90, or was it $190?) but prices were a bit high for me. Also saw a few silver trays, many books and shelves of LPs.

Also nearby are the Workboot Warehouse and C&C Pet Food and Suplies For Less. Goodwill is around the corner on Owensmouth.

I set out to check out Garden Wok's $5.50 lunch and was pleased with the food but not as much with the price, which totaled $7.

Garden Wok on Reseda Blvd in Tarzana is all vegetarian and has a number of lunch choices for $5.50 that include tea, brown rice, soup or spring roll, plus an entree. I had eggplant with basil, but what came was spicy eggplant with bamboo shoots. The server also brought me wontons instead of a springroll. But all was very tasty, even the clear corn-and-tofu soup. Portions were also good.

With tax the bill was $6, plus a $1 tip brings it to $7, a bit over my goal of $5. Still, the food was good and fresh. Read other reviews here.

Closed Monday.

Don't know what birthday Nordstrom's is celebrating and I don't care. The deals are good and they end Aug 5.
Matisse mini-heels in textured silver, black, red and brown are $60 (orig $90). Designer shoes on sale too. Men's Ike Behar dress shirts are $90 (orig $135). In Savvy, People's Liberation pixie jeans with cute half-stars on the back pockets are $147 (orig $220).

A good chunk of the store is on sale at the Topanga mall, and nearly all departments appeared to have at least a few items discounted (not sure about cosmetics and designer handbags, tho). Nordie's says this is their biggest sale of the year, so wait not longer!

Nordstrom's also at Glendale Galleria. Note, Rack stores not part of sale.

The New York Times just had a story about how gas prices are skyrockting, but that's not the case in the Valley. Prices at the pump have been slipping a few pennies here and there. Find the best prices at Los Angeles Gas Prices.

Prices have dipped below $3 at places like Costco (membership required) and Arco (cash only). But regular stations have good prices too: Valero in Van Nuys (Victory and Woodman) has $3.02, Thrifty in Northridge (Reseda and Napa) has $3.03, United in Van Nuys has $3.03.

Don't settle for paying more!

A new Target is opening today at the Glendale Galleria. But it doesn't officially open until Sunday, so it's sure to be empty aisles if you drop by before then!

The three-level Target is by JC Penney's. Phone number (818) 334-1400.

Tired of wearing the same dress to weddings? SmartBargains has a creme-colored strappless number from Robin Jordan that looks perfect for weddings, especially if you pair it with a shoulder wrap or pashmina. For $32 (orig $118.00)

Caveat: 12 left in size 6 only.

Sprint has a few generous cell phone plans through their employee referal offer.

500 anytime minutes = $30
1250 anytime minutes = $50
2500 anytime minutes = $100

The plans include unlimited nights and weekends starting at 7pm, domestic long distance, and unlimited Web/Data Access. All you need is the email address of a sprint employee, which can be found by googling @sprint.com.

Osh has some great sales now as part of their Dollar Days sale, which lasts thru Aug 1. Bet a lot of this stuff will set out, though.

Get a 4 foot bamboo tiki torch for $1. You know you could spend a LOT more on these at Smith and Hawken or Crate and Barrel.

Thirty foot rope is $2. Plastic 18 gallon containers with lids are $5 (I've seen much higher at Staples). Gardeners can replenish or add to their herb gardens, three for $7 (for the 4 inch plants).

Locations in Canoga Park, Van Nuys, Thousand Oaks, Granada Hills, Burbank, and Santa Clarita.

Here's a round up of back to school deals:

Clothes:
between Fri, Aug 3 and Sun, Aug 5, get an extra 25% at Camarillo outlets . One sale that looks good is at Sketchers, where they are offering 50% off a second pair until Sept 1.

Target has kids' school uniforms cheap: shorts ($9) and pants ($11) in khaki or blue, and short sleeve polos ($6.50) in six colors.

Supplies:
Office Depot has $.99 packs of pencils, buy two get one free Mead notebooks, $.25 comp books and 12-packs of Bic pens for a quarter. Some limits on how many you can buy per customer. Locations in Woodland Hills, Northridge, Van Nuys, Sylmar, and Simi Valley, Tarzana, Studio Vity, and Encino.

RiteAid is selling a free (after mail in rebate) Pentel automatic pencil and retractable pen with a coupon from an insert in your local paper. Expires July 26!

Walgreens has 100-packs of paper clips for $.19, rulers for $.19, and three-subject notebooks for $.79. Ten-pack of mechanical pencils is $.59.

Staples has 2-pocket paper folders for a penny each. A nickel will get you either a dozen eraser heads, a ruler, or 8 pencils.

Clearly, the stores are putting certain basic items on super sales. But watch out for other items because that's where they'll getcha!

I've been on the purse hunt for a few months now, and just spotted these super cute totes for $20 at Mervyns of all places. Dickies has three in the ad, a black pinstripe, polka dotted, and star-pattern, and Jansport has three that are also nice but not as cute. Check 'em out!

Another great tip from BargainsLA. Every Tuesday Baskin Robbins sells its $2 scoops for $1. Brilliant!

Caveat: gotta buy between 6 and 10pm and get the 4oz size. Locations in Woodland Hills, plus West Hills, Canoga Park, Winnetka, Tarzana, Reseda, Northridge, Chatsworth, Encino, Granada Hills, Van Nuys, Simi Valley, Sherman Oaks, North Hills, Panorama City, Arleta, North Hollywood, Westlake Village, San Fernando, Sun Valley, Studio City, Burbank, Glendale, and Santa Clarita. So basically, everywhere.

Lids.com is having a major sale. Get hats for $5 each, or buy four for $12 with the code LIDS4f12.

I like this $5 plaid conductor hat from Drew Pearson, and I saw a cute Superman Knit cap for kids. There's also a classic Dodger's cap from their "authentic collection" that is $15 (orig $30).

If you need a bottle of vino to go with your summer BBQ or beach jaunt, Bev Mo has a good selection of 90-point wines (out of 100 points, as judged by Wilfred Wong of Bev Mo) for sub-$10.

A bottle of Ch Ballan-Larquette '05 Bordeaux, which scored 90 points, is $10 (orig $46). Another 90-pointer, the Contrada Sauvignon Blanc '06 is $7 (orig $43).

Locations in Canoga Park, Van Nuys, Northridge, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Valencia, and West Hollywood.

This coupon will knock $100 bucks off your purchase of $500 or more at Kevin Jewelers. Thru July 31.

Locations at Westfield Topanga, Glendale Galleria, Northridge Fashion Center, Palmdale, Valencia, and Ventura.

Free food is one of life's true pleasures. Thru Aug 31 with this couponget a free junior hand-scooped yogurt cup or cone at TCBY. That means a free, tiny treat.

Locations in Thousand Oaks (The Oaks and Overbrook Plaza) and Glendale, Pasadena and Camarillo.

BargainsLA
recommends Sharp Image for discounted designer clothes for him. Try to find this gent a pair of paints! But seriously, BargainsLA says Sharp Image is where "in the know well dressed guys shop." For clothes, not chair massagers and electronics! Apparently their prices are 50% to 90% below retail.

Visit them at 8515 Santa Monica Blvd. in West Hollywood, CA 90069. 310.659.8215

Whoever though $3 a gallon would be considered a "good" gas price? It's not really, but who wants to take the bus? South of Ventura prices have jumped to $3.29 in Encino and $3.27 in Sherman Oaks according to Los ngeles Gas Prices. But by driving a short ways, you can find much lower prices. Costco on Sepulveda in Van Nuys has $3.03, as does Arco on Victory in Van Nuys.

If you're closer to the west Valley, Valero on Sherman Way in Reseda has $3.07. So does Mobil on Saticoy in Reseda.

It's confirmed. The chic and cheap retailer H&M is opening at the Westfield Topanga mall Thur at noon. Gift cards between $5 and $200 will be passed out to the first 100 folks in line. Some day-of specials too. I'll be wearing my reporter hat to write about it for the Daily News, but will keep an eye out for specials to post on the Bargain Hunter!

Keep an eye on competitor Zara, on the other side of the mall near Nordie's on the second floor. Wonder if they will be having some "look at me too" sales??

SmartBargains.com has summer shoes for 30% off, including the above Tommy Hilfiger Constance Tie Up Espadrille for $20 (orig $60).

This pair of silver Steve Madden thongs is $35 (orig $100).

Returns accepted within 30 days with packing slip and if goods are in original condition.

God I love the non-iron shirts Brooks Brothers makes. They are actually telling the truth when they say you don't need to iron them! Just hang them up when the dryer buzzes and you're set. No need to steam your self silly, or rack up a huge dry cleaning bill.

Now BBs non-iron stuff is half off. Visit them online or at the Camarillo outlets.

Wine.Woot.com has an offer for four bottles of Francis Coppola reds for $46. I've enjoyed some decent bottles, tho I remember paying about $10-$15 a bottle so is $46 that good of a deal? Remember to check wine woot's chat room on this product for more info.

Their entrees may not win over everyone, but the tacos at El Torrito are delish. And on Tuesday's, grilled steak, chicken or carnitas tacos are only 99-cents between 4 and 10 pm. Caveat: gotta sit in the bar area, not the regular seating.

Get a happy hour margarita for $3.95 and half price appetizers, plus all the chips and salsa you can eat.

Locations in Burbank, Northridge, Woodland Hills, Oxnard, Palmdale, Pasadena, Sherman Oaks, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, and Valencia.

The wonderful folks at SlickDeals.net spotted this one: RalphLauren.com has polo shirts (for $24.50, orig $95) and other items 30% off with the code RL30. Enjoy!

Sign up for the first time at Costco before Sept 1 and get a $10 Costco cash card. Annual membership is $50. Fill out this form and bring it in for your tenner. Remember, ya gotta be a senior.

One per household.

The sun was puttin' on such a show on my lunchbreak that I came back to the air-conditioned office early. Imagine that! On my way back I saw a woman keeping herself cool with a parasol, which is really just a fancy way to say umbrella. Still, it beats slathering yourself with sun screen!

The one above can be had for $16 at Great Parasolz. Most of theirs are much more pricey. Eparasols.com has lower prices, but almost all of their $5.95 parasols are sold out. Their $10.95 Cranes Thailand Parasol , below, is available.

Summer sales keep rollin' in. Get up to 60% off at Land's End. This pink nightie is $40 (orig $68). Shop online or request a catalog.