5 Back to School Saving Tips- DIY Sundays

For today's DIY Sundays it is my pleasure to present a GUEST POST from Nadia Jones. This post kick starts my 100th posts celebration. I hope you find this beneficial.

Glitterfy.com - Back to School Glitter Graphics

With summer over, you’re probably scrambling to buy all the right supplies for your kids in time for the first day of school. And if you’re like most parents, you’re looking to buy the best quality products for your kids with as little damage as possible done to your wallet.  Here are five easy to follow tips that’ll help you save money while you prepare your little one for the new school year.

Look Online First

Often you can buy a good deal of your child’s school supplies without ever leaving your house. Sites like Amazon.com feature clothing, school supplies, and textbooks all at discounted rates. Amazon.com compares the store price products to their price so you can see just how much money you’re saving. Often the savings on these retail sites exceed 50%!  If you plan ahead, you can order all your supplies well before the back to school season starts.  Also be sure to join store email lists to hear about the latest deals. Retail sites will often send coupons and insider tips to discounted material through their email lists, so join the retail lists of retail stores near you and start saving!

Budget Yourself

Take a good hard look at your finances and determine the amount that you can comfortably set aside for school shopping. Don’t overstretch your funds school shopping simply because you can find most supplies at low prices. Once you’ve drawn up a healthy budget, do everything you can to stick to it. If you stick to your budget you’ll be less likely to impulse buy. If your child wants the next trendy new (and expensive) thing for school and you can’t afford it, simply tell them that it doesn’t fit in the budget and move on.

Start Early

You’ll find that you’re less stressed when you shop early. Whether you’re shopping online or not, people tend to be more level headed about their purchases when they don’t feel rushed. If you start early you can shop in easy to handle spurts: one day you look for uniforms, another day you check out the bargain-priced notebooks. While you might miss the back to school sales, you can take your time shopping around for the best deals in town and skip out on the huge crowds.

Recycle

If money is really tight, don’t hesitate to shop at second hand or thrift stores. These stores regularly have high-quality clothing sold to them simply because they no longer fit the owner. You’d be surprised to find that the variety in thrift stores runs from every day clothing to high-dollar uniforms. Also keep in mind that those supplies leftover from last year—unused notebooks, stray writing utensils, etc—work just as well as newly bought materials. Use what’s left around the house and save your money for more important items.

Always pack a lunch for your child

This tip is a classic that always works to keep school spending low. Schools offer lunches that can be costly, and many of them don’t even serve food for a balanced and nutritious diet. Take charge of your children’s diet (and save some money in the process) by packing them healthy lunches that cost a fraction of lunches served at the cafeteria. Pack plenty of fruits and vegetables and avoid sugary drinks and snacks.

Author Bio:

This is a guest post by Nadia Jones who blogs at online college about education, college, student, teacher, money saving, movie related topics. You can reach her at nadia.jones5 @ gmail.com.