Richmond Bargains Blog

Ben Franklin is having Snowy Days Sale, with 25% off everything in the store through Jan 11, and 50% off custom framing.

Printable coupon for 40% off list price of any one item at Borders (free membership required), valid through 1/6

Once Upon A Child is having a $1 clearance sale on selected fall/winter apparel.

Donate $1 to “Cones for Kids” at Friendly’s, and receive 5 coupons for free kids cones and a $5 off $25 purchase coupon. Valid through February 13. Cones for Kids benefits Camp Friendly’s and Easter Seals.

If you’re a coupon clipper, you won’t want to miss tomorrow’s Sunday paper, with 3 SmartSource and 2 Valassis/RedPlum inserts! Take advantage of Walgreen’s $.99 newspaper price to stock up on extras. You can view a list of the upcoming coupons here at Taylor Town Preview.

There are a number of shindigs going on around town, but I haven’t found much that meets the “$5 or less” free/cheap criteria. The biggie that does:

Carytown New Year’s Eve 2009 ($2) - If you want to ring in the new year mingling on the streets of Carytown with masses of other Richmonders (20 thousand of ‘em), this is for you! There will be bands, beer gardens, and the ball rising at the Byrd.
*7pm-12:30am

New Year’s at Sine ($3 cover after 8pm) - Come ring in the New Year - twice! We’ll toast 2009 at midnight in Ireland (7 p.m. our time) and again when the clock strikes 12 at the pub. Watch the ball drop in person outside in our Patio Pub (covered and heated) or inside at Times Square via satellite TV. Plenty of food, fun, beverages and live music by Broken Monday! Broken Monday will be releasing their new CD “Somewhere In Between” and playing inside starting at 9:45. TJ the DJ will be playing all of your favorite songs on the covered patio with a Ball Drop at midnight.
*6pm-1am, Sine Irish Pub, 1327 East Cary Street

Also don’t miss free coffee at Sheetz between 4pm New Year’s Eve and 4pm New Year’s Day.

Make any purchase at Chick-Fil-A on New Years Day (Jan 1, 10:30am-6pm), and receive a free chicken biscuit on your next breakfast visit.

Richmond locations

There will be no free events post this week, partly to give me a holiday, but more a function of the fact that there is almost nothing to post about. We get to make our own fun

I do plan to shop a couple of after-Christmas sales, because now through January is my favorite time of year to pick up bargains. Here’s an About.com article with some tips on shopping the post-holiday clearances.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

I mentioned some of these last week, but have more to add to the list and it’s worth a post-

Hallmark at Regency Square closing January 24. Everything except Christmas cards is 50% off (including Yankee candles, ornaments, etc.) Also, there’s a printable coupon for “Buy 1, Get 1 Free” cards at any Hallmark store (exp 12/24).

KB Toys Stores. Merchandise is 40 or 50% off, and will go lower after Christmas. Richmond locations are at Regency Square Mall (754-0647) and Chesterfield Towne Center (379-2281).

Harold’s in the River Road Shopping Center, phone 282-0882. Everything is 50-60% off, with an additional 20% off one top of that.

CWD Kids Outlet at 2033 Huguenot Rd (Phone 272-5010)

Hoover Sales and Service store at 9018 W Broad St (Phone 747-8249)

Linens ‘N Things Stores, with discounts currently in the 40-60% range. Richmond locations:

Westpark Shopping Center
9819 West Broad Street
Glen Allen, VA 23060

Chesterfield Marketplace
1345 Carmia Way
Richmond, VA 23235

Get a free 8×10 print from Walgreens with code FREEGIFT, through Saturday 12/20. Choose in-store pickup.

Borders has a printable coupon for 40% off the list price of one item, valid through 12/21. Coupon requires Borders Rewards membership (free).

If you’re heading to the mall, check out this list of printable apparel coupons from about.com. Some have expired, but it includes Aeropostale, Macy’s, Sears, The Limited, and more.

Get 80% off dining certificates from Restaurant.com through 12/22, with promotion code SANTA. This is as cheap as they get. Plus shop through FatWallet for 25% cash back!

A reminder that Linens ‘N Things stores are closing, with discounts currently in the 40-60% range. Richmond locations:

Westpark Shopping Center
9819 West Broad Street
Glen Allen, VA 23060

Chesterfield Marketplace
1345 Carmia Way
Richmond, VA 23235

Also closing are the CWD Kids Outlet at 2033 Huguenot Rd (Phone 272-5010), and Hoover Sales and Service store at 9018 W Broad St (Phone 747-8249)

If you’re in the market for a Butterscotch Pony or Kota the Dinosaur, I’ve heard they can be found in-store at some Targets, Walmarts, and Toys R Us’ for $100.

When you order wine in a restaurant, you are ordering an experience. You are paying the Chef, owner, waitstaff, landlord, cleaning crew, et al. You are supplementing the glass breakage costs.

And, you will pay anywhere from two times the wholesale price of a bottle of wine to four times its wholesale. This means if you can buy your favorite pinot noir for $10 in a retail shop, that same bottle will cost anywhere from $12 to $24 (or more) at a restaurant, with an average cost of $18 for the bottle if you live in RVA.

In this week’s Richmond Wine Stock column on Richmond.com, Genevelyn Steele offers some tips on getting the best value when ordering wine at a restaurant. This includes avoiding wine by the glass and the least expensive bottle on the menu. She also endorses Enoteca Sogna for having lower-than-average wine markups.

It’s an interesting insight into restaurant business rationale for pricing their wines. Check it out, and be sure to share any tips or stories you have!

FRIDAY

The Hunt Family Fiddlers (free) - Come see Virginia’s own Hunt Family Fiddlers! Their holiday show keeps everyone entertained with great diversity, featuring fiery Celtic dancing and fast fiddling. Song selections include themed music from The Nutcracker, a special Trans-Siberian Orchestra tribute, and other popular Christmas traditionals. A miniature Elvis even shows up to sing “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”! Call for reservations: 328-4491.
*6:30 pm, Henrico Theatre

Jingle Bell Jamboree (free) - Blue Sky Puppet Theater presents Santa’s Workshop in a unique performance of wacky characters and holiday music. For ages 2-5 w/adult. Call 501-5809 for reservations.
*10-11:30 am, Dorey Recreation Center, 7200 Dorey Park Dr

Live Sky/Sky Watch (free) - Winter Solstice: Find out about the shortest day of the year at this interactive planetarium show (6 pm) Join members of the Richmond Astronomical Society on the front lawn as they share their telescopes for a look at the night sky (weather permitting, 7 pm)
*6pm, Science Museum of Virginia

SATURDAY

Theatre IV: A Christmas Carol (free) - Perhaps the best loved holiday story of all time, Theatre IV’s adaptation of Dickens’ classic is particularly suited to children and features a magnificent score by Jule Styne, the composer of Broadway’s immortal Peter Pan, Gypsy, and Funny Girl. All the joy, sentiment, and meaning are here without being too scary for young audiences. Call for reservations: 328-4491.
4 & 7 pm, Henrico Theatre

SUNDAY

Miracle of Christmas - Live at the Zoo (free) - You are invited to join with us as we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ through a live re-enactment of the Christmas story featuring animals from the zoo. The twenty minute pageant will be presented 3 times each evening. Live music before and after each pageant will be provided by local churches and performing arts groups. After each pageant, the cast and animals will be available to meet and take photos. Refreshments are sold at a nominal fee to benefit local charities.
*7:00, 7:45 & 8:30pm, Metro Richmond Zoo, 8300 Beaver Bridge Road, Moseley (behind Grange Hall Elementary School off Hull Street Road (Rt. 360) in Chesterfield County)
Repeats December 22 & 23

If you’ve used Kroger’s Pharmacy Rewards program, you probably received a letter in the mail recently notifying you that it is being discontinued, effective 12/31. Kroger had been offering “$5 off your next purchase” coupons for every 5 prescriptions filled using your Plus Card. So if you have any prescriptions to fill, do so before the 31st if it’ll earn you one last reward coupon.

I’m sorry to see Pharmacy Rewards go, because I’ve gotten some good mileage out of it. However, the program termination letter did include a $5 coupon “as a thank you for your continued patronage.” I’m not sure the good folks at Kroger Mid-Atlantic thought it through, because even while the coupon states no reproductions, it is begging for abuse by being printed in black and white on one-sided letter paper!