eShopper Forum

My daughter is turning 13 in a few weeks and I've been scouring the web for a truly special gift. She's an artist so I was thinking about getting a fun art subscription box for her. The reviews for ArtSnacks look pretty promising. The box comes with 4-5 full-sized products (usually paint brushes, paints, ink pens and pencils) as well as some advice about how to use them. There's also a little piece of candy included, which would just go wasted since I don't eat sugar and my picky kid only likes chocolate!

It looks like a fun box, but I'm not sure if the price is right for us. I'm looking for something slightly cheaper, but if the supplies are really good it might still be worth it. There are lots of other art subscription boxes, as well as a few "geeky" boxes I'm considering for her as well.

Do you get any subscription boxes for a teen? If so which do you suggest?

Tax Day might be a headache for most people, but it's also a great day of savings at plenty of stores. Did you know you can get hotel rebates, free cookies at Great American Cookies and free shaved ice from Kona? You can even save $25 on Rail Europe bookings! National Park fees are also waived today, so head over for a visit if you haven't yet.

Boston Market has meal deals that include beverages for $10.40 and Sonic is giving out half-price cheeseburgers. Cicis has adult buffets at a reduced rate and Firehouse Subs is offering a BOGO deal. There are deals for nearly every large metropolitan area and many suburban areas as well, so just google or call the place you are visiting and check to see if they have a deal going on.

What deals have you come across for Tax Day? Share them here!

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Maybe our parents' generation had the leg lamps of A Christmas Story fame, but they didn't have these adorable chickie lamps from Amazon.com. They are just $18 today and are not only rechargeable but made with eco-friendly silicone. It's after Easter but still an adorable addition to a nursery.

The site also has cool Millennium Falcon speakers available that are on sale for $41. It's amazing how many different kinds of speakers are available today and these may be my favorites!

What sales or bargains have you come across today? Share them in the chat.

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Everyone is trying to save a buck these days, and Brandless is a new store that's helping us do it. Everything at Brandless is $3, giving you the savings of a brand-free product that's not quite the savings of, say, Aldi, but may be cheaper than many store brands.

What sets Brandless apart is that many of the cheap items are organic, natural and good for you. Not only does part of your sale go toward Feeding America, but you also get free shipping on orders over $39. The store carries a bit of everything, from personal care products to food, office supplies to health items. Supplements, honey, tree-free bath tissue...it's all there and more.

Have you ever shopped at Brandless before? What did you think of the store? Tell us how it compares to other stores in the chat.

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Easter is less than a month away (and on April Fool's Day, no less, which gives you lots of chances to make it intersting this year!) and sales are already starting to run for the holiday. Between chocolate bunnies, plastic eggs and baskets, what do you need, and where will you get it?

We re-use corrugated, shredded colorful paper for our baskets each year as well as our eggs, so we don't usually have to buy much. This year our daughter is a tween and getting more things along the lines of books and stationary instead of the typical candy, but she's also wanting to hunt for eggs, just for fun.

The day after Easter sales at Target are great, but where do you get your Easter goodies for the actual holiday? Share your tips and codes in the chat.

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My aunt has always called it "TAR JAY," but to most people, Target is the place to get toilet paper and leave with $152 worth of stuff you never knew you needed... sigh. But the shoppers in the know are faring much better off since they know the secrets to shopping at the store.

For example, you might have already known that markdowns go into effect based on the day of the week, but did you know that if the price ends in .06 or 08 it's going to get marked down again? You might want to wait again for that markdown unless you're worried it will sell out!

What Target tips do you have to share? Post them in the chat below.

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Recently a bunch of parents and I were talking about the various things we never thought we'd want to buy stock in as parents. Masking tape, glitter, glue, printer paper... it all comes in handy and goes quickly when you have kids. How do you lose 24 pairs of scissors anyway?

Thank goodness for Internet bargains. Amazon.com is a great place to find gallons of glue and other deals on bulk art supplies that we desperately need for home and school projects. Today in Goldbox, for example, you can find dual-tipped marker pens for under $22, which is amazing for a 50-piece set. There is also an 80-pack of gel pens with refulls for under $12!

What great art supply bargains have you come across this week? Share them in the chat.

photo courtesy of Wikipedia