Holiday Shopping For "Him"

Ok, Ladies...are you looking to get the perfect gift for the man in your life? or maybe an unique gift that he would truly appreciate?

So many men are into their 'toys'...fast cars, motorcycles etc...They buy a new toy and instantly start upgrading it or add accessories. You know I am right about that. Even my son does this...

Turbochargerpros.com has a way that your man can get instant gratification by upgrading the horsepower in their vehicle. Whether it is a VW supercharger or an audi turbo...whatever model vehicle they might own, the parts are available at this website.

If you are not sure what part he may need, you can call 800-923-0413 or visit their website around the clock for help purchasing the correct part needed.

Will the Current Economy Affect Your Holidays?

Well, I started my Christmas shopping this month and I am almost done. Stuck on a few ideas for Mom and my brother. They are always the hardest to buy for. They have everything!

I noticed I am paying attention to the sales more than usual and taking advantage of specials buys. Money is tighter now, not only due to the economic situation we are facing, but also because I've been home recovering from my back surgery.

I'm not just buying gifts because they cost less. I'm looking for the best deal on an item I want.I'm proud of myself for spending half the amount I spent last year (so far) and to be honest, my selections this year are even better.

I also don't buy online until I look for those online coupon codes I have posted about before. Believe me, don't pay for anything until you check out if there are coupons for the store you are buying from. There are coupons for just about every store, so don't think there aren't offers out there. There ARE! I have saved SO much money this way. If you are looking at an item from Amazon, or Best Buy or even JC Penneys...just enter store name + Coupons in your browser and you will see a list of codes available. Do this with every store you intend to purchase from. THe savings will add up.

There are also sites showcasing Black Friday deals expected. The deals are crazy good, so don't do any shopping until you check out the best deal for the item you are looking for. Why spend more, right? Get the best value for your money.

I had a poll on this site in October. My question was: Will the Current Economy Affect Your Holidays? According to my readers responses, most of us are feeling the affects and will spend less.

71.4 % said they WILL spend less this holiday season
28.6 % responded they haven't thought about the holidays yet

I am thinking that when the 28.6 % of the people start thinking about the holidays, they will indeed spend less.

Have you started your Holiday shopping and if so, do you find you are spending less?

Decorative Tiles For Your Home

Have you ever considered using decorative tiles in your home? There are many creative uses for them. I have seen beautiful Kitchen backsplash tile, fireplaces outlined with tile, walkways highlighted with tile, kickbacks of stairs decorated with tile, tiles hung on walls and even tile murals in entrance ways.

Decorative tile provides added value to your home and uniqueness. I have found a place that is quite impressive to purchase unique tiles for a variety of uses. Jerusalem Pottery offers hand painted tiles that are glazed and fired to last a lifetime. They have been in the decorative tile business for 85 years and are one of the last remaining places in the world where you can find Armenian ceramic tile.

Aremenian tile is a style of hand painted pottery and ceramic tile making founded in Jerusalem in the early twentieth century. Although you can find Aremenian tile in other places, they are usually imitations, lack the quality and are mass produced. One way to tell the difference between an original and an imitation, are the brush strokes on the back of the piece. An original will also have the signature of the Karakashian family on the back.

At Jerusalem Pottery you will find an assortment of beautiful decorative tiles, unique designs, themes for murals and the classic Arememian designs. Their tiles are richly colored and will stand out in any room.

If you are thinking of adding tiles to your home, check out their site before purchasing elsewhere.

eBay To The Rescue

I know you are all familiar with eBay and I was wondering how many actually use their site?

I really never used Ebay to shop for anything before. Surprising I know...

My son had used eBay to sell items and he was completely satisfied with his experience. He made a ton of money selling sport related items.

The other day while putting on one of my favorite perfumes, I realized the bottle was just about empty. I wear this perfume mostly in the spring/summer. It's a perfume I had bought from MaryKay awhile ago and I know they don't make it anymore.I always see advertisements for eBay and decided to take a look.

To my surprise I found several sellers offering this perfume. I placed a bid and in the end I won. For $6 and a few bucks for shipping, I'll be receiving a full bottle of my favorite perfume. What a bargin!


Now I know I'll be using eBay more often. If you are a buyer or seller on eBay, has your experience been a positive one?

If You Broke It, Lost It, Need It Cheap, Or Just Can't Find It Anywhere Else, Find It At eBay!

A Surprise In The Mail

My niece/goddaughter is a year and half and she is just a delight. She has brought new life to the family.

Of course my brother and sister-in-law constantly take pictures of her (how can you resist!) and try to share them with us when ever possible.

Today I received a wonderful surprise in the mail. My sister in law had gotten custom Photo Cards made and sent them to the family (and her friends)...'just because'.

What a great idea! I know my other family members were probably just as happy about receiving this surprise in the mail as I was. It sure brought a smile to my face.

I called my sister in law and she said she went to cardsdirect.com and easily ordered the customs cards. I went to the site because it got me thinking how I could use this photo card for business and use my logo or business card on the front. I was impressed at the quality of the card.

I don't have a way to show you what my card looked like, but here's the card. I took this off their site..of course mine had my niece on it. This card is sure to be a keepsake.



Cardsdirect.com offers a huge assortment of cards and photo cards to choose from:
Business Greeting Cards, Anniversary Cards,Birthday Cards, Congratulations Cards,Get Well Cards,Sympathy Cards,Thank You Cards,Thinking of You Cards Welcome Cards,Assortment Packs,All Occasion Cards,Photo & Custom Cards, Custom Greeting Cards,Photo Calendar Cards,Photo Holder Cards and Holiday Cards.

You don't pay for personalization or the custom verses and shipping is a flat $5.00. I think it's a good deal.

Next time you are sending special or holiday cards, you might want to surprise someone with a photo card and bring a smile to someones face...

Shopping for My Gift

My son's Mother's Day gift to me was a gift of my choice. He wasn't sure what I wanted or needed, so he said that since I have been doing alot of online shopping while I have been home, to buy something I wanted.

Soooo, going straight to ShopWiki.com, I knew I would find something I wanted, plus find a good deal. By the way, if you are not familiar with ShopWiki, this site shows you ALL the best stores and their
online shopping directory lists all the categories, offering the best deals. You can also view products by the wiki guides: by occasion, by holiday or recipient.

You're probably aware of those online shopping sites that when you search for an item they give you a result listing of some stores. Those stores probably have paid for advertisement, but ShopWiki shows you every store on the web. That makes a big difference when you're shopping for the best price.

Anyway, I'm planning to have a Forth of July party, so I want to buy a volleyball set, so my family and friends can participate in an activity and have some fun together. I found numerous listings and only spent $24.99 (s/h was only 5 bucks), so I can buy some more!

Now to buy something for only me...I always wanted a hammock to relax on lazy summer days and catch some sun. To my surprise, the listings in
Home & Garden showed me a deal I couldn't pass up. I was alittle concerned about the shipping costs, but for $10, I'm finally going to have a hammock.

ahhhh...can't wait! Thanks to ShopWiki and my son, I'm going to enjoy my gifts for sure.

Make Money with an Online Store

While browsing through the blogsphere, I find many people are writing about the opportunities to make money online. There's also much talk about working from home, so one can stay and care for the family or just for the simple reason that people would rather be home making money than going to work for someone else.

I know the possbilities are endless and we just need to put forth effort and make our ideas reality by just going for it. What holds us back from taking a chance?

One idea I see mentioned is to set up an online store. One might think this is hard to do and complicated. Once set up though, the 'store' can pretty much run itself when using user friendly shopping cart software and having the tools to be successful.

Are you an ebay seller or already selling products online? Why not take your item(s), create a store, complete with a shopping cart and have everything in one place?

AshopCommerce provides just the right solution and happens to be a leading provider of US hosted shopping cart software.Their shopping carts are already OPTIMIZED, so you'll be in the top of the search engines. If you are not so familiar with how to set up an online store, Ashop provides templates, which make it extremely easy for you to get your store up and running.

Ashop wants you to be successful and provides a user manual plus online chat help for any questions, problems or concerns you may have. Guaranteed securely hosted and they alert you to any fraud. There are too many positive features of this company to outline in this post, so by going HERE you can read for yourself what they offer. I found their rates are very reasonable compared to other companies offering ecommerce software.

Right now, Ashop is offering a free trial, with no credit card necessary to participate. This way you can test drive the online store and see if it's for you. This really is a chance for you to make your idea reality.

Taking a chance is what it's all about...you'll never know if you will succeed if you don't try. Go ahead...make some money with an online store.

Eliminate Scratches with Invisible Shield

I came across this interesting product called Invisible Shield. This is a strong, film like product that prevents scratches on gadgets and electronic devices, plus an array of other equipment.

It was first used in the military to protect helicopter blades, so it must be pretty tough. It's uses now include protecting scratches on iPods, computer screens, watches, cameras, cell phones and any other device/screen you want protected.

It seems easy to apply. Peel off the invisible shield from the backing and then spray the film with shield spray and apply to your device. The instructions say you can remove this shield if you desire and it also comes with a lifetime warranty. For more detailed instructions, click here

This invisibleSHIELD video on YouTube shows the strength of this product.

What do you think? I wonder if it protects eyeglass lenses? Between those and my watch, I'm always scratching them.

Wall Clocks Need Feeding?

When I'm feeling out of sorts, I find to absorb my negative energy, I am either cleaning the house or redecorating. Today was one of those days and I wanted to spruce up the house on this dreary, snowy day. Since I have been in the market for a wall clock for my living room, I took today to find one that will fit in perfectly with my "tuscan" home decor. I never realized the huge assortment of wall clocks available to me, but I believe I finally found one at an affordable price.



It's a Seth Thomas Naples wall clock. What an appropriate name, right? Brown rattan and black wire with decorative scrollwork. It actually matches a large painting of a Tuscan scene I have hanging on the wall. This small purchase will make me feel so much better and at the same time, have my living room finally pulled together.

I found this piece at 1-800-4clocks.com. I was impressed with the inventory presented, which included Howard Miller Clocks.

While on their site, I clicked over to their blog. I am addicted to blogs! I found many interesting and informative posts related to clocks. One post especially caught my eye, which is why I named this post... Wall Clocks Need Feeding. The post was titled 'Grandfather Clock Care and Feeding: Wall Clocks and Mantel Clocks too!'
I was not aware that grandfather clocks or even wall clocks need regular maintenance and oiling (feeding). This was an informative post which listed the time intervals for maintenance and explained how feeding will help your clock keep accurate time.

Want to learn more about clocks? Click HERE to visit 1-800-4clocks.com

For The Men: A Valentine's Gift Hint

It seems Valentine’s Day is on everyone’s mind right now. At work I’ve over heard the men asking each other…what are you buying your wife? and the women saying, I wonder what my husband/boyfriend is giving me.

If I can stick my two cents in….I loved receiving the strand of pearls my (former) husband had bought me. Pearls are classic and timeless. I still get compliments when I wear them.

Over at Amazing Pearl you can receive a deep discount and they are now running a 10% off special just for Valentine's Day.

There are many types of pearls: freshwater, cultured and akoya.

Akoya Cultured pearls are the most sought after because of their luster and nearly perfect round shape. This makes it easy to match if buying a necklace and want bracelets and earrings to go with it. Usually white or cream colored, but you can find them with a hue of rose or silver.
They are cultured in the Pinctada fucata martensii, also known as the akoya oyster.
Amazing Pearl buys directly from the most reliable pearl farm in China.



Freshwater pearls seem to be more affordable and range in color: white, black, pink and lavender. A necklace can cost from $65 - $96. Amazing Pearl offers matching bracelets and earrings as well.

If you make a purchase at Amazing Pearl, you will receive free US priority shipping, the best value, high AAA and AA+ quality, free appraisal that comes with a Certificate of Authenticity and an elegant gift box for presentation.

Whether you may consider a gift of pearls for Valentine's Day or another special occasion, be sure the woman in your life will appreciate it.

You can learn more pearl facts here.

What was the best Valentine's Day Gift you received?

It’s There For The Taking

Have you ever been in line at the grocery store and watched as the person in front of you saved $20, $30 or even $40 dollars using coupons? The cashier spending minutes scanning coupon after coupon after coupon...

I have and it made me want to do the very same thing. Anyone living paycheck to paycheck can attest to watching every penny coming in and going out. Imagine saving money each time you shop. The grocery store, drugstore etc....The savings you incur can be applied to something else…bills, more shopping, gas…

I know many people who buy the Sunday newspapers just to clip coupons, but are they really saving enough to make a difference? If you add up the cost of the papers, are you coming out ahead?

Free Online coupons is like receiving Free money. You can search for the products you normally use and print out the coupon corresponding to that product. It doesn't get much easier than that.

At MySavings.com, you can search through literally hundreds and hundreds of products from various stores. From grocery stores, department, electronic, health and beauty. All your favorite stores are there. You can also print out coupons for your favorite restaurants.

Printable grocery coupons,online shopping, articles, comparison shopping. You get it all at MySavings.com and then some. Free stuff is there for the taking.

The site is quite easy to navigate and updated daily to bring the newest deals, offers,freebies and coupons to you. You can expect to receive money saving tips at the customer forum and the opportunity to receive free samples of products. You can ‘try before you buy’. Today's free specials include: K-Pak Hair Repair, Yoplait Kids Yogurt, download Burl the Squirrel Activity Book and a 13 moon pocket calendar.

The Categories are:

Newest Additions,User Favorites,Audio, Video & Media,Automotive,Babies, Kids & Moms, Beauty, Bath & Makeup,Blog & MySpace,Books & Booklets,Career & Business,College & Students,Companies Only,Downloads/Software,Food & Cooking,Free Games,Fun Freebies,
Graphics & Fonts,Health & Wellness,Home & Garden,Internet Services,Miscellaneous,
Mobile Phone,Office Supplies,Other Free Sites,Pets & Animals,Teachers,Webmaster

Another way to benefit from MySavings.com is the opportunity to receive coupon codes. These codes are not only to receive discounts on products, but to receive special promotions. If you currently shop online, you can use one of the coupon codes for free shipping. That’s a savings in itself.

Try it out and see how much extra money you have at the end of the month.

Act Fast To Get Your Tickets

Have you ever been disappointed when you couldn't get tickets to your favorite sporting event or see your favorite band?

My special friend's daughter wanted to see Hanna Montana so badly. This is an extremely hot ticket I came to find out. Frankly, I wasn't even aware who Hanna Montana was, but I was schooled on her and the show. I felt so out of touch! It seems these tickets are sold so quickly and now we're the ones left feeling disappointed because we couldn't get his daughter the tickets.

I just now came across a site that makes it easy to find tickets for all events right on their site. This saves time in searching. I wish I knew about this sooner. We might have had a chance in locating Hanna Montana tickets for our area.

Save your self the time and disappointment by going to
WeGotYourTickets.com - Sports, Concerts, & Theatre Tickets first before searching through countless other sites.

NFL Fans: I noticed they still have Super Bowl tickets available.

Corporate and Hostess Gift Ideas

Looking for Gourmet Gifts this Holiday season? I think I finally came up with the best idea for gifts for my associates and co-workers. I was having trouble coming up with the perfect solution.

Now that I found Delightful Deliveries, I not only found delicious gifts for my
business associates, but also for hostess gifts. When invited to a holiday party, I wanted to come up with something different this year. I didn't want to bring the usual candle or knick knack. Gift baskets that include gourmet foods, cookies and wine is a much better choice.

Delightful Deliveries also provides free shipping, so I not only save time by ordering online, I save money too.

I came across a press release that states Delightful Delivers was named one of the Hot 100 Websites by a leading Industry magazine, so I feel secure in getting great products and complete satisfaction. See Below:

DelightfulDeliveries.com Recognized as Hot 100 Retail Website

Internet Retailer Ranks Website Among Best in Nation for 2008

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DelightfulDeliveries.com, the premiere Internet Gift Retailer and America’s #1 Gift Basket Website, today announced it has been named one of The Hot 100 Retail Websites for 2008 by leading industry magazine, Internet Retailer. The Hot 100 list represents the best of what retailers are doing online, highlighting innovation and setting the standards in online for what the rest of the industry should be doing.

DelightfulDeliveries.com, a privately-held company, with one of the largest and most unique selections of gourmet gifts, ranked alongside larger sites such as Dell, Nike and Amazon.com, by building its award-winning site on selection, functionality, speed and the complete customer experience. A recent re-design has improved the customer’s shopping experience to make holiday gift-giving easy and enjoyable, including rating and reviews, behavioral recommendations and free shipping offers.

“We are extremely honored to be recognized as a pacesetter in online retailing,” said Eric Lituchy, Founder and CEO of DelightfulDeliveries.com. “We pride ourselves on using the latest technology to make gift-giving fun and easy. Being named among the best in the nation validates we are succeeding in our efforts to deliver the best possible customer experience.”

In addition to making Internet Retailer’s The Hot 100 list for 2008, DelightfulDeliveries.com was recently recognized by Inc. Magazine as part of its Inc. 5000, which highlights the fastest growing private companies.
DelightfulDeliveries.com offers over 2000 unique and delicious gifts from America’s best brands to the finest boutique shops. Consumers can easily shop the site by gift or food category, occasion, type and best-seller. Corporate gift-givers can choose from hundreds of customized gourmet treats.

For additional information, and to see a complete selection of gifts available, visit www.DelightfulDeliveries.com.

About Delightful Deliveries

DelightfulDeliveries.com is an award-winning website that began in 1998 and quickly established itself as one of the premier Internet gift retailers. Its mission is to bring great products to gift-givers, while providing world-class service. The company selects its offerings from a broad variety of fine food gift products for consumers and for corporate gifts, and gathers them in one place to make the selection process quick and simple.

What do you bring the hostess when invited to a holiday party? I would like to hear your ideas...

Save When Shopping Online

I recently posted about shopping online and using online coupons. Below is one comment received:

From anonymous boxer~

Hello.... I'm here from Beth's "community". I am a huge online shopper and take pride in how much I can get done with a few clicks of the mouse. I DIDN'T know of these online coupons.

Well, with the holidays approaching, I thought I'd write another post letting you in on a site that will save you money using online coupons.

In my town here in New Jersey, you can't even go into a store without already seeing Christmas decorations or related items for sale. It's not even Halloween yet! I must admit that I've already started my shopping (I'm almost done) and saved myself some money (and time) using these coupons.

At couponchief.com you will find up to date coupon codes and all the resources necessary to save yourself money and time. Just think how you won't be standing in long lines, surrounded by cranky shoppers. This will allow you to do what you want, when everyone else is sitting in traffic and spending hours looking for the best deal or sale to save money.

There are literally hundreds of stores at couponchief to choose from. Are you looking for electronics? Try Best Buy. Their coupons range from 5-20% off to $50 off selected digital cameras. If you're looking for a variety of items and one stop shopping, I always shop at Target. I can get anything from books, pet supplies,clothes, CD/DVD's, linens, toys, food or bath and beauty products. The coupons they offer range from offers of up to 15% off to $5 off a purchase of $50 or even free shipping.

Happy Shopping!

Do You Buy Online?

I love to shop and when I find a coupon that saves me money, I am even more thrilled. I have been doing a lot of buying online since there doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day to physically go to the store.

My son's birthday is coming up and I found a site that offers Coupon Codes to a large number of stores.
I was surprised to see that the coupons offered were to many stores I am already familiar with. The site is updated daily, so I know I am getting the most current offers.

I wanted to shop for some fleece and thermals for the cold months coming up. He works outside, so he'll appreciate these. At Kohl's, I found everything I was looking for and the coupons offered varied from 10 to 15% off to saving if you use your Kohl's charge or free shipping on every item in the men's wardrobe catalog.

I feel good knowing I saved money and it only took about 10 minutes of my time to do it. Now I only have to wait for the package to arrive, wrap the gifts and I'm done. Can't get any easier then that.