What to buy where.

BACKPACK’S BACK ALL RIGHT

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Five not-too-expensive backpacks that are totally on trend right now.

 

zara suede rucksack

 

SHOPPING AROUND | “The next thing I know you’ll be sleeping with that thing,” my husband joked recently after glancing at the Fjällräven Kånken that I’d casually flung on our bed. I know where this observation is coming from. It’s been eight months now since I purchased the mini version of this iconic Swedish backpack (originally designed in the 1970s for school children), and not a day has gone by that I haven’t used it—because it’s just that practical and unobtrusively cute.

Not a day that is until this past Monday. Read more

Boucoup de Baggu

Frugalbits Faves: Baggu & Nutribullet

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It’s never too early to be thinking about Christmas. Here are two of our favourite, inexpensive products to put under wraps for December.

Boucoup de Baggu

PRODUCTS WE LOVE | Of course we stand behind every one of the hundreds of stories we’ve produced for this website since we launched in April 2010—we wouldn’t have done any one of them if we hadn’t thought that the information would be of value to Frugalbits readers. But some of these posts have had more impact on our own lives than others—the following two, for example. —Team Frugalbits

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Swarovski Spiral Ring

The Swarovski Is The Bling Ring To Own

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With no more illustrious performer than Justin Timberlake furnishing a seal of approval, the Swarovski crystal spiral ring is now a must-have fashion accessory.

Swarovski Spiral Ring

 

CULT PRODUCT ALERT | Anyone yearning for a Cartier trinity ring or a set of Tiffany’s channel-set semiprecious stackers (both pictured below) will be attracted to the Swarovski crystal pavé spiral ring that featured prominently in Justin Timberlake’s recently released music video, Mirrors. And they’ll be even more smitten when they learn the price. Read more

Postage on Package

How To Pick Up U.S. Parcels In Point Bob

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Why pick up your U.S. parcels in Blaine, when there is a more convenient and practical way to get them.

Postage on Package

 

EASY LIKE THIS | How many times have you tried to order something online only to discover that the company you’re ordering it from doesn’t ship to Canada? In the past, I found a way around this problem by having parcels shipped to Blaine, Washington, and then traipsing over the border to pick them up (CLICK HERE for our story). Now I have an even more expedient way to retrieve them. Read more

H&M’s New Fashion Recycling Program

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First is was M&S. Now it’s H&M. Major retailers are helping to make recycling the next big thing in fashion.

Joanna Lumley Goes Shwopping

 

PERK ALERT | Shopping + Swapping = Shwopping. Last spring, major British retailer Marks & Spencer joined forces with Oxfam to offer their clientele a place to drop off old clothing inside M&S stores—and they coined the term “shwopping” to describe the idea of giving away a piece of used clothing whenever you buy a new one.

Approximately 500,000 tonnes of clothing winds up in landfills every year, and M&S is hoping to help reduce this amount by donating the worn clothing they receive to Oxfam so the charity can reuse, recycle or resell it.

This winter, H&M began a similar initiative, only their recycling program offers participants a monetary incentive. Here’s how it works: Read more

The Awesome Baggu

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Why I’m replacing my cache of nonwoven polypropylene shopping bags with ripstop models from Baggu.
  Baggu Bags

 

BUY RIGHT | It was cleanup month around here so I tackled the buildup of shopping bags that had threatened to devour my closet. I don’t know how it happened, but over the past two years I’d managed to accumulate around 50 reusable polyester and nonwoven polypropylene “billboard shoppers” (so called because they often display a company logo) in every size imaginable. These shoppers are awkward and bulky even when folded and gang-bagged, and they easily turn into an unwieldy space-stealing mess when stashed in the back of a car or cupboard.

To add insult to injury, nonwoven polypropylene bags are no better for the environment than those disposable plastic bags they’ve come to replace. Read more

Five Tips For Returning Store Purchases

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What you need to know about taking purchases that don’t work out back to the store where you got them.

Woman shopping

 

SHOPPING SMART | It takes me a long time to make up my mind about buying something so I have always tended to take things home, think about them and then return them once I’m sure they’re not right for me. I do this even more since I started shopping at stores such as T.J. Maxx  and Winners where there may be only one of something so it’s best to grab it while you can.

Here’s what I’ve learned about returning merchandise back to the store where you bought it. Read more

Shopping On The Tablet - iStock

Go With What You Know—And Other Rules For Shopping Cyber Monday Week

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Shopping online for extreme deals during Cyber Monday Week is not without pitfalls. Here’s what you need to know before going in deep for cheap goods.Shopping On The Tablet - iStock

 

BUYER BEWARE | What seems sweet on the surface, can be bitter underneath. The internet is at all times crawling with scammers, but they’re out in full force during Cyber Monday Week (like Black Friday, Cyber Monday is no longer a 24-hour blowout) when online shoppers are apt to let their guard down. Here’s what we know about cyber shopping this week. Read more

Design Sponge No-Buy Guide -M Pessaris

Here’s The Best Way To Do Black Friday Week

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Here are 11 good reasons to avoid BLACK FRIDAY and 10 no-buy gifts to pull together with all your new free time

While we would never say no to getting a great deal, we do think that unless you are in the market for something specific and you know for sure that it will be on sale at a shockingly low price, shopping on Black Friday weekend can be a colossal waste of money and time. Read more

Fall Topshop 2012

New Topshop And Uniqlo Stores Open

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Two top international fashion brands cast their nets ever wider with new shops on the west coast, one in Vancouver, the other in San Francisco.

jun-takanashi-uniqlo-fall-winter-collection-2012-2013

 

CULT SHOPPING ALERT | It’s no secret Frugalbits loves Uniqlo; we’ve spilled enough digital ink to prove it. The Japanese fashion behemoth has captured our hearts with inexpensive, well-made fashion staples such as cashmere sweaters in a dazzling colours for $50 to $89 (take that, J. Crew), barely there ultralight down sweaters and coats for $50 to $90 (take that, Patagonia) and crisply executed men’s long sleeve dress shirts for $30 (take that, Brooks Brothers). Read more