Seasonal Stock-ups

It's well known among bargain-hunters that stocking up when items are at their lowest prices is a great way to save money in the long run.  With so many holiday sales and bargains descending upon us, I thought it would be helpful to run through some of the items on which you might want to stock up during the next few weeks.  Here are the top ones that came to mind:

Baking supplies - I can't believe some of the great deals lately on flour, sugar, baking mixes, and other speical baking items like chocolate chips and evaporated milk.  Perishable baking supplies like butter and eggs are also going on great sales.  With items like flour and sugar, stock up as much as you can.  These will likely be the lowest prices you'll see until next Christmas!  You can also freeze butter for ages.  Eggs, of course, you can't really preserve, but they last for weeks in the fridge.  You can also make lots of simple, frugal egg dishes while you're busy getting ready for the holidays!

Canned soup and broth - Between the high-value printable coupons and BOGO and other sales, it's pretty easy right now to get premium canned soups for my target price of under $1.00/can. We love soup during the cold weather and really all year, and there are really no deals on it in the summer.

Turkeys and hams - If you have the freezer space, stock up on bunch of these for roasts and soups for months!  There won't be any lower prices!  Even if you don't have a ton of freezer space, you could buy several of these spread during the next few weeks, cook them, and use some and freeze the rest of the meat or broth.  Or cook a turkey and use the meat and broth in a number of dishes and soups throughout the week to save both time and money.

Toys - Of course, there are tons of sales on toys from now until Christmas.  It's hard to say exactly when the very best deals are, but you'll likely run into some definite stock-up worthy sales at some point.  Try buying extras for upcoming birthdays during the year.  However, save a little money for after toy clearance sales after Christmas.  The selection will likely be very limited, but the prices will be rock-bottom.

Photo gifts - Since these are obviously popular Christmas presents, all the online retailers like Snapfish and Kodak Gallery will have tons of specials on personalized photo gifts in the next few weeks.  Think ahead to other occasions for which you might want a special gift like this, and order them now.  Or maybe it's time to finally print some of your digital prints or get them made into a photo book!

Fall, Halloween, and Thanksgiving items - The stores can't wait to get rid of this stuff so that they can focus on Christmas decor.  Look for prices as low as 90% off now and in the next couple of weeks.  For decor, I've had good success with the clearance at CVS, Target, and Michaels.

Anything I've missed?


Frugal Fridays are at Life as Mom.

PS - My giveaway for the book Jantsen's Gift is still going on here.