What Not to Buy at the Dollar Store-Wrap Up

What Not to Buy at the Dollar Store-Wrap Up

I've had a lot of fun this week during my series of 
If you missed any of the posts you can catch up with the 
original post
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Did you learn anything new?
Today, I'm going to wrap up the series with the most popular items that my readers have been commenting on.  I have appreciated all of the comments and have learned a few new things myself!
Most of these will be items to buy, so get your lists ready and make some notes.
Pregnancy Tests: Snag it
{these are pretty cheap too}
The Dollar Store has really accurate pregnancy tests
Several of my readers have told me they saved a lot of money buying these tests
They really are more accurate than some of the brand name tests you can pick up for $15 a piece.
Don't believe me?
Compare them with other brands here

Glow Sticks: Snag it
Kids like glow sticks
{these glow sticks are just as cheap}
Crayola explosion gear: Snag it
Yesterday, I stopped in and found that our local store got a shipment of Crayola Glow Expressions kits.
They had sand art, glow stick kits (with 40 glow sticks included), and glow paint.
I snagged some to put in the kids Easter baskets.
Such a great deal since they are currently selling on-line for $10-$15 a piece.
Puzzles: Snag it
I give my snag it seal of approval on puzzles, but only on puzzles under 150 pieces.
There are many big name character puzzles that would cost you much more at the regular store.
I found that anything more than 150 pieces gets flimsy. 
So stay away from the 500 piece puzzles.
Also, the board puzzles made for toddlers should be avoided.
The pieces just don't fit together well and are just plain frustrating.
If it's made by a big name company like Marvel or Disney, snag it, it will make for hours of fun


Glitter Glue: Snag it
Tales of a Trophy WIfe said she buys the glitter glue. 
It's great for projects with kids who want a little sparkle without having the mess of glitter.
Cuz as my husband says, glitter is the herpes of the craft world.


Sunday Paper-Snag it
You can't find the Sunday paper cheaper than $1.
I think this is THE best deal at the Dollar Store if you clip coupons.


Reading Glasses-Snag it
jjflamingo said... 
                 another awesome snag are the reading glasses. they are $5.00 and up everywhere else.
I don't need these yet, but I hear they are a great deal

Helium Balloons-Snag it


Quick Eraser (Fake Mr. Clean)-Snag it
I love Mr. Clean magic erasers.  Like love them so much I would marry them.
They clean and erase spots so much better than I ever thought possible.  So when I saw this knock off a few years ago I had to try it.
Love it!


Furniture Polish and Window Cleaner: Snag it
Both things I use often, both things worth picking up
Windex does not corner the market on window cleaner and Pledge doesn't either


Sun dishwashing liquid: Pass
This stuff is so watered down that it's cheaper to buy the name brand


Potted Meat: Pass
I'm pretty sure potted meat is never a good idea
also, any "meat" at The Dollar Store-gross!


Bobby pins: Pass
Honestly didn't know anyone could screw up bobby pins
but they did.
Don't bother
try these instead


Crayons: Pass
There is something to be said for Crayola.  They have crayons figured out.
These are just waxy and yuck


Bubbles: Snag it
I buy these by the armful during the summer
Cheap, big and full of fun


Petroleum Jelly: Snag it
Several of you mentioned that this is something you pick up at the Dollar store.
We still have a jar of it from a few years ago, and it works great.


Foil Pans: Snag it
Lots of you commented on how you stock up on foil pans at the dollar store.
As you can see they have a HUGE selection and variation of sizes.


Gift Bags: Snag it
Out of all of the comments, most of you told me that you pick up your gift bags at the Dollar Store.
I don't buy bags often but there have been times when my supply has been running low and I have picked a few up.


I'm not steering you wrong with the items I gave my "snag it" seal of approval on.
And of course, if I gave it a "pass" buy at your own risk.  I warned you!

I'm always surprised at some of the new things I find at the Dollar Store.
It's always an adventure.
Have fun shopping!

31 comments

Stacey Mowery said...

Rachel, I have been following all week your posts on What not to buy at the Dollar Store. I have been shaking my ahead in agreement most of the time and surprised at things I have missed at our store. I couldn't think of anything to add until last night when my daughter lost a screw in her glasses and I remembered seeing a glasses repair kit there right after I had spent $4 on one at the drug store. I have not had need to buy this kit, so can't say for sure it is a snag, but the price is right!! :)

Artsy VaVa said...

This was a great series of posts! Thank you for sharing. There are a few things I might have bought without your advice!!!

Anonymous said...

Awesome series!! And SO right on with your snags and passes! Very informative, I enjoyed it a lot. Thanks so much!
Lynn @ Scrapity Anne

Unknown said...

This is so helpful and so true. I am so tweeting to my followers right now. Thanks for sharing!

PaperVine said...

This was a really fun post to read!! I woud like to add cardstock to your list - you can pick up some great card-stock in pads form - perfect for making cards and a fraction of the price from the craft store!
Lowri :-)

Debbie @ OtRD said...

I was just at the dollar store the other day wondering how they can sell all this stuff for only $1!! Great info, so glad to know about the dish soap!

Shiloh said...

This is a great idea for a series. I never knew about the pregnancy tests. We'll have to keep that one in mind.:)

Andi said...

Absolutely love this! And very good to know about the dish soap. I usually only use Dawn but have often wondered about this one. I was just turned on to the furniture polish and I love it. Oh and the gift wrap is great!

erika said...

I love these lists but I would offer one more.

My 99c Only stores have been offering some Disney and Marvel reusable bags. These are not the flimsy ones that come for Halloween, but the ones you actually can reuse.
I find all the Mickey ones and use them for my 2 year old's "go bags" for toys and books when we have to go to the doctor's office or elsewhere. I have found similar bags at the Disney Store upwards of $5 or MORE! Even Walmart has them for about $4-5 so 99c is a STEAL!

Kimberly said...

Great post, thank you very much! I agree with most of your snags, but there are a couple that i've found weren't such great deals after all. It turns out that the glasses tend to break very quickly. There are no springs and the screws fall out easily. Also the puzzles tend to have a design flaw in which the pattern is too repetitive and pieces fit together in the wrong places--oops!

Randi~Dukes and Duchesses said...

Great post ... thanks for the info! I've wondered about a few of those things before. I sure hope my dollar store carries the Crayola stuff!

Jill @Two Yellow Birds Decor said...

Those are some awesome ideas!! Thanks for the tips for what not to by as well! I love this series you did! Thanks for sharing at Thursday's Temptation.
Jill

Linda F. said...

Love this series of posts! How many times to go to the Dollar Store (I live less than a mile from 4!) and stand staring at items, wondering if I dare! I need to make a list from these to carry with me! Thanks!

Erika said...

One of my favorite 'dollar store' items are the mesh bags. One of the stores near us (I think Dollar Tree) has green ones in the auto section- I use them as an alternative to plastic bags for grocery shopping. They are light weight and washable.
They also have the tightly woven laundry zipper bags --those are great for keeping kids little things together.
- my parents buy their cards there.
- we rarely go to movies, but when we do, we let the kids get some candy from there.

Pass - pretty much ALL of their toys, generic tylenol (you can get a much better deal buying Target's generic version), crayons

Abbie said...

This is such an awesome, fun idea!

Super-useful too. Just letting you know I'm featuring you today on Feature Friday FREE-FOR-ALL!

~Abbie

Allison said...

Great post! This is great info!

Aimée Dillon said...

I we t to party America to get various colors of tissue paper. Mistake $2.50 per package and they were small. Dollar store has variety of colors, and sparkly confetti ones- plus they had longer paper and more of it -rawr!!!! I just buy white now and paint, spritz or stamp my decorating on it.

Dandelion Mom said...

I see this is wrapped but wanted to add another pass item is the address labels you can print yourself. They unpeeled in my printer and tangled around and pulled apart the inside of my printer causing it to be ruined. It took a year for the insurance claim to pay us back. NOT worth saving a few bucks here!

A Snag would be bar soap, especially if you make your own laundry soap, they have various scents I really like for laundry.

Shelley Sellars-Smith said...

Love this post! I love the Oxygen cleaner at my Dollar store. It works great just like oxyclean. I also think the dish soap is a pass. I stick with Dawn. Thanks for posting!

Shelley S

Shelley Sellars-Smith said...

Love this post! I love the Oxygen cleaner at my Dollar store. It works great just like oxyclean. I also think the dish soap is a pass. I stick with Dawn. Thanks for posting!

Shelley S

patt said...

in my opinion, the reading glasses are very flimsy...it's the frames. Also I made the mistake of trying to clean the 'lens', with hand sanitizer and they melted! Other cheesy items were the closet lights that are battery operated, the cover has to be fiddled with incessantly to go on or off, and the self stick stuff on the back is weak. Snag items would be good quality candy from time to time.

cameraparts said...

I disagree with the bobby pins. Those are my favorite ever. I bought a pack of 500 from Sally's, yet I prefer my dollar store pins.

cameraparts said...

I disagree with the bobby pins. Those are my favorite ever. I bought a pack of 500 from Sally's, yet I prefer my dollar store pins.

Kim (Randominities) said...

I disagree with the reading glasses. They are not worth a dollar. They are very cheap plastic and the lenses look a bit cloudy after cleaning and use.

Big Lots, however, has Foster Grant reading glasses for $3.50 which is a great deal. Foster Grants usually start around $20.

Unknown said...

Some hair ties are pass I bought hair ties at a dollar store almost all broke and had no elastic in them my cats now use them as toys now

Jilliene Designs said...

I'm a Dollar store connoisseur myself and I agree with your 5recommendations. I also buy things like toothpicks, plastic storage boxes and bins, glue sticks, glass stones, nightlights, personal fans, hand sanitizer, pocket tissue packs, toothbrushes, epson salt, ace bandage and gauze, packing tape (thats a hit or miss), hand sweeper and dust pan, those plastic wrap covers with elastic like shower caps, and one of my favs is the placemats!! Great blog. I'm a follower now and look forward to many more great articles.
www.jillienedesigns.blogspot.com

Jessa said...

I do remember buying a couple of 500 piece puzzles that were awful. The pieces were bent right out of the box and none of them fit together tightly. Puzzlebug, however, is quite nice. While I wouldn't recommend them for a small child, they're great for adults who like jigsaws.

I do a lot of cleaning with baking soda and always buy it at the Dollar Tree. Ours usually has it for 2/$1 and sometimes even 3/$1. I also keep an eye out for canned soups, vegetables, and fruit. Sometimes I find name brand items such as Campbell's and Del Monte for 2/$1. OH! And Assured Antiseptic Mouth Rinse... It works and tastes like Listerine only it's so much cheaper! Love it!

Ellen said...

I know this was written a couple years ago, but I wanted to say - don't buy reading glasses at the Dollar Tree. I have tried them several times and every time they are just not right - warped or something - must be seconds. I do buy them at another local dollar store and they are great there. Just a warning from this end at least. Thanks for sharing.

Se Tami said...

My husband loves the Pear brand soap. He has very oily skin and this soap does a good job of drying it out.

Anonymous said...

I love buying my readers and my family members do also and the ones who didn't before quickly learn why we do. It not a problem to put glasses all over the house, in your purse, car etc.

SLK said...

Love your posts and agree with almost all of it - my one item that I LOVE to 'pieces' are the 500 piece Puzzlebug puzzles. We have over 30 of them and my son and I have done them all a couple times each. They are fantastic to do while watching tv or relaxing. I don't find them too thin at all and so far the only missing pieces are the ones we've lost ourselves (how does that happen?).

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