Back To School Sales Aren't Just For Kids

You don't have to have children to take advantage of the back to school sales that are starting to crop up or the summer clearance sales going on as well. You may be in the mindset of barbecues, vacations and lazy days but now is the time to take advantage of the bargains to be found.

CLOTHES: If you are purchasing items for your children, consider purchasing just the basics for the first weeks of school. In our area, school begins in early August when the temperatures are still hovering near 100. I combine sales and clearance items to purchase shirts and shorts and a few pair of jeans in case the temperature drops unexpectedly. Combined with what is in my Next Size Up box, I'm usually set until early to mid fall. These sales are a great opportunity for the adults to stock up as well. I can always find great values on tops, khakis, cute accessories and shoes.

SUPPLIES: This is a great time to replenish your home office supplies. Paper, pens, ink cartridges, you name it and it is on sale. Go ahead and refill your office supply closet. Every place from the big box stores to the office supply places and dollar stores are offering up the lowest prices available. Once I get stuff for the kids, then I load up on everything the house needs: sticky notes, tape, Sharpie markers, paper clips, envelopes, the list is endless. I'll be set until next year. When my kids were too young to go to school, I would stock up on construction paper, spiral notebooks, colored pencils, paint, tape, glue sticks, markers and crayons at rock bottom prices. Those things saved our sanity on many, many rainy days.

HOME: The sales will be huge for the College Stuff too. Now is the time to get the dorm sized refrigerator for your office. It is also a good time to replace kitchen supplies, linens, laundry baskets and the like. Clearance beach towels make great bath towels because they are huge, absorbent and just fun to look at. I also look for things like plastic forks and spoons for the kids' lunchboxes. Who cares if they are red, white and blue?

KITCHEN: All summer goodies are on sale now and are perfect for school and work lunches. Look for non perishables such as peanut butter, single serving  snack packages, lunch meat (can be frozen), individual soups and crackers. You can find plenty of things that will fit in your desk and stave off the hunger until your lunch hour.

End of summer and back to school sales can be a useful tool for you to restock your home and closet without having to spend all your hard earned dollars. Just do yourself a favor and actually deposit your 'savings' into your savings.