Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Be Observant and Save

Good morning from a hot and humid Indiana.  My goodness you could have cut a square of weather out of the atmosphere at 7AM this morning!  It is a muggy, muggy day.  Thus I will be working inside as much as possible today!
Hope you are all staying cool.

Today I want to comment about just being a little observant and looking around the stores can save you money.  It really happens in more ways than I will be showing, but take a moment and look around.  You won't be sorry.

Many of you have Kroger stores or affiliates.  If not - check whatever store you have to see if they have a reduced price section for fresh produce.
Kroger has a rack in each produce department with bags of produce for .99 a bag.  I check it out before buying any produce.
I can't begin to tell you how much I have saved, looking and purchasing from that rack.  My goodness, I have bought bags with 4 huge bell peppers for .99 - when just across the aisle single peppers are selling for ,79 each!  I buy the peppers and either freeze or dehydrate. 
I recently bought some potatoes.  It is just me and I don't necessarily need 5 or 10 lb. bags!  They will go bad before I can use them.

I got this bag of 6 potatoes for .99.  Perfect for me.
I keep the bags (which are just tied shut on one end) - pull off the tags and then use them for packaging any other fresh produce I buy, instead of using the plastic bags.
I have found onions, peppers, potatoes, grapefruit, oranges, lemons, etc. all for .99 a bag.

I am an olive lover!  They are sure expensive.  I recently realized how I can get them cheaper!  I had picked up a jar of olives in the pickle/olive section and then went on shopping.  I was in the ethnic aisle and looked up and there were olives.  Jars almost twice the size of the one I had - and for less than half the price!!!!  Well you can guess which one I actually purchased!
The small jar was store brand and a little over 5 oz. for almost $4 (this is one I had purchased before).  The large one is almost 10 oz. and was $2.39.  Well - duh!!!!
Now if I ever make it back down to Sam's I will get myself a huge jar - but that is quite a drive and I don't go hardly ever.

A while back I was looking for antiseptic wipes at the store, and as many have noticed - they weren't to be found.  Well, they weren't to be found where we usually look!  I looked in paper products and cleaning section and nothing.  I just HAPPENED to walk to an area of the store that has a clearance shelf and the baby supply department was there.  I just glanced over and what did I see?  Antiseptic wipes!!!!  I would never have thought to look there.  There were plenty of containers of wipes there and the price was right.

I am a lover  of different types of bouillon.  I like the dry types (powders), not the kind that is wet and has to be refrigerated after opening.  I have family that love ham flavored bouillon and the place that I have always purchased it in bulk - no longer carries it.  It is a must for us in green beans and soup beans and many other things.
I have found Ham seasoning packets before at the Dollar Tree - but it seems now most of what they carry is tomato/basil and chicken.
I always look in the seasoning aisles at every grocery I go in - haven't had much luck.  Again, I was in the ethnic aisle and what did my eyes spy????  Ham seasoning!!!  Yes indeed.  I snatched up several of them to add to Christmas packages.  There are several small packets in a box, and generally one is what you need for a nice pot of beans.  Not measuring - no mess.  The best part is they were 1.29 a box!
The chicken bouillon was found there as well.  It was 1.29 a box and in the seasoning/bouillon /stock aisle the same size package of chicken was 2.49!!!!  That is just crazy.
I like the tomato/chicken mix they sell as well - although I rarely find it.  I use my dried and ground tomato skins for that.

I have purchased Masa flour in the Latino section for almost half the price that it sells for in the baking aisle.  INSANE!!

It is amazing how just walking an aisle or two over can save you money.  I don't understand why things are cheaper in the ethnic sections - but they generally are.  This girl has learned to look there first for most things and save money!!
This is why ethnic stores are fun to go in.  You can find so much for a  better price.
Spices are always cheaper at specialty stores - as are rice and dry beans.

Another heads up - I have been seeing lots of people on FB talking about how WM stores are getting rid of their #10 size cans of veggies and fruit.  Many have posted that they are getting them for $2 a can and some have even posted $1 - that is for those giant cans!  Sure could come in handy for that prep and stock-up pantry.
You might want to check it out if you are around/in a WM.

So there you have my lesson for the day!  LOL. 
LOOK around and OBSERVE - it can surely save you money.
Be frugal my friends!

19 comments:

  1. I love those 99¢ produce bags from Kroger as they can really save you money. I never thought to look for the olives in the ethnic aisle, but you can be sure I will do that now. Thanks for the great tips, Cheryl.

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    1. The .99 bags are fantastic!
      Glad to help - make sure to look up and down, sometimes they are on upper shelves!

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  2. I have gotten the green olives at the Dollar Tree before. They sure are yummy. And yes ethnic anything is less expensive. Check out the spices in the cellophane packages. And Goya is a wonderful brand.

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    1. I haven't seen green olives at our Dollar Tree - black ones yes. I will pay more attention.
      Yes, those cellophane bags of spices are great deals. I have seen them at a lot of specialty stores.
      I like Goya everything. Their products are good quality.

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  3. Sounds like you have found some great deals in the ethnic section.
    Since we live in a college town with lots of international students, I have tried experimenting making different cuisines. We have found that we love Korean BBQ and I actually like curry now that I can make butter chicken.
    All this to say that I wander the aisles of the Asian market wondering what are some of those strange things. I buy garam masala and gouchujang and Sriracha. ;)

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    1. Neat that you experiment with other cooking methods. I love wondering the Asia or Mexican stores and looking around. So much to chose from and so inexpensive.

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  4. I buy kefir for between 69p and £1.19 a litre in the International Store. In the supermarket 500ml is £2 and it is not the good stuff. They add sugar and flavourings. Money Saving Expert website had a forum discussing which aisles were best value. The ethnic and baby aisles are usually the best. We don't have Kroger but the bigger supermarkets have a reduced section and at certain times I have had great bargains.

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    1. I can't believe it took me all these years to figure out that ethnic and baby departments were cheaper!!! It is amazing what you can find if you give yourself a little license to roam!

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  5. One of the best deals that I have found is the WM brand baby shampoo. It is the best by far for removing oil and cleaning hair. It gets my hair squeaky clean. Definitely a great value for .98. Parents choice tear free shampoo. It's the yellow one. I always use this one for a while when my normal ones don't seem to work anymore.

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    1. Well I will sure look for that sometime when I wonder in WM. I don't go very often, so next time I will look. I have used watered down Suave for years. It is a $1 a bottle and then I water it down, so it isn't so detergent. I like it, but am always up to try something new that makes my hair feel nice.
      Thanks.

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  6. Toronto is the most multi-cultural city in the world so we are very lucky to have lots of choice when it comes to various "ethnic shops" and most supermarkets will also carry items based on the neighbourhoods makeup - and yes, you can often get items for much better prices and there is a lovely variety of foods that you may not necessarily find anywhere else. Always worth checking out.
    FYI - I have recently purchased cans of hummus and Babaganoush (?) that came from Israel - very handy to have in the pantry.

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    1. I didn't know you could buy either one of those in a can! I make hummus and have made Babaganoush (?) once years ago. I love it. Sure didn't know you could get it in a can.
      Thanks for that info - I will keep my eyes open for those.

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  7. I always go in the ethnic section to have a look-see. Publix has a whole aisle of international food, not always ethnic. WM has Suddenly Salad for $1/box. I love that stuff, but usually only buy it on sale. Publix has a reduced section where I can find good bargains. I go to another small store that has several buggies of reduced boxes and jars. I finally asked the manager if he bought a warehouse full of mustard! He had two full buggies. Lots of reduced stuff is in all stores. I take time to check out the whole store, baby and ethnic.

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    1. It is fun isn't it? You never know what you may find if you take a stroll around. I love the clearance sections too. Each store has their own way of displaying clearance. Clearance is our frugal friend!!!!

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  8. You certainly have a sharp eye for finding the best buys! There is an international grocery almost within walking distance of our house. That is an excellent place to buy spices and herbs. We are headed out this morning so will check the #10 can at Wally's. Oppressive is the weather word of the day. We'll complain when the snow flies, tho. ha!

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    1. Thanks. I love those International stores.
      You better bet we will complain! Seems we are never happy!

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  9. I will sure remember this if I ever go to Krogers again...I will check that out. I hardly ever eat olives now, and I don't know why. I always like them. Always used to have them with cheese...Roger likes them on salads.

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    1. Hope it helps. I love olives. I like them on salads too and pizza. I sometimes just go in and open the jar and grab a couple!

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  10. I would never have dreamed that something from the ethnic section would be cheaper. I would have bet money they were more expensive. I will sure remember this if I am some place that has an ethnic section.

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