okay, better late than never, right?

in my ongoing quest to keep my 2007 resolution of featuring less expensive items on this site, i thought that one way to do that might be to share some of my favorite ways to save when shopping online.

of course we all know the basics of googling for a free shipping code, but there are lots of ways to go even beyond that.

one of my favorites is something available only to subscribers to lucky magazine (which, by the way, if you aren’t, you should be – it’s only $12…so if you’re buying even 4 issues a year, this will save you money). it’s called “lucky rewards,” and it’s basically a cash back system, similar to ebates, but less spam. i also prefer lucky rewards because i think they get slightly better discounts & they tend to feature retailers that i actually purchase from. to make it work, once you’re a subscriber, you just sign up on their site (it’s free). then, if you want to get a discount, you just go to the lucky rewards site and use their site to click through to the retailer you want to purchase from. the purchase is automatically tracked in lucky rewards, and you get a credit in your account (can be instant, or can take up to 14 days) for the percentage back, which they’ll send you a check for once your account reaches a certain level. some of the deals include 10% off at shopbop, 14% off at zappos(!), 10% off at yoox (a site which, if you haven’t visited, you should..it’s like bluefly on crack!), 4% off at neiman marcus…and on and on. you can’t actually see the list of sites until you’re a member, but trust me…it’s worth your while.

for coupons, a site i love is naughty codes. they have one of the best selections of non-expired coupons for common fashion sites – they’re always my first stop on that “free shipping code” hunt, even before googling. another “old reliable” is reesycakes, which also does a great job of keeping their listings current, and also tends to feature less-known discounts (ie, the perpetual 20% off discount at active endeavors). you can find similar discount codes at toutie, esp. for smaller/indy websites like le train bleu, one of my favorites. and last but not least in this group is grechen’s closet – another place i always check before buying from “boutique” websites.

i’m horrible about remembering to use lucky rewards, but i never buy from a website without checking out these coupon sites…just imagine all that extra shopping you can do with the money you’ll save!

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