Where do we get all this stuff?? I’m getting ready to make our fourth trip to Good Will this year. It’s not like we buy a lot, so where do all these things come from?! Actually, I know where it comes from this time. I’m still buying stuff off our registry, 18 months after we were married.

Back then, one of the things we registered for was a medium sized pot and pan set. Even though we cooked a fair amount, I wasn’t sure what we would need. At the time we were using two hobbled collections of assorted pots. Neither of us could tell you what each pot’s original function was, or what the size, other than “big”, “not so big” and “wish it were bigger.” We weren’t exactly sure which pots and pans we would actually use, so we registered for a starter set. Now that we’re cooking together, when ever we discover we need something else, I would add it to the registry and wait for the 20% coupon. Anything that we think we want goes to the registry.

I love lists. There are many pros with keeping around the registry. I keep track of items I am considering buying, which makes comparison shopping easier. When a coupon comes in, we purchase the item we want the most. It’s a good way to curb impulse buying. We have only the pots and pans we need, which is great when space is a premium in our kitchen. Bed, Bath and Beyond has a 10% off coupon to complete your registry. 10% is fine, but 20% is better.

It appears that the line of pots and pans we registered for is being dropped from both the store and the website. The whole line is now on sale for 20%, and still eligible for the 20% coupon (effectively 36% off). Sweet! If only we hadn’t bought the griddle just two weeks ago, we could have saved an additional $6. I’ve been searching online, but it doesn’t look like they’ll price match themselves. Bummer.

I would have never noticed the sale on pots and pans if we didn’t have the registry. I just happened to be on it when I noticed a pot previously listed as a $99 pot was listed for $79. The website didn’t say anything like clearance or reduced price, which surprised me. Normally stores don’t shy away from the big “S” word (“sale”). Everyone likes a good sale. It wasn’t until we were in the store and all the products in the line were marked down 20% that it was clear what was going on.

So we finished off the pots and pans. All two of them. At this point, we have pretty much everything we want. Only a few odds and ends remain. It only took us 18 months to do it, but we got it at all at least 20% off.

Posted in Shopping | Tags: Bargain Hunting, Registries