Last Minute Christmas Gift Ideas for Him and Her
We only have a few shopping days left before Christmas and this is crunch time. It is the exact point where most women finish their shopping and the the men begin their shopping. (at least it is in my house) So, is it too late to get great gifts on sale for Christmas in Chicago?
The selection is getting low, but there are a lot of great sales at most of the major stores in Chicago at 50% or more off most gifts. This is probably the only time of year that it pays to be on the email marketing lists for online stores. They keep sending out coupon codes daily for free shipping and extra discounts and promotions to help people feel like they are getting a good deal this year with the recession, and so that they still buy all the stock in the stores that won’t be wanted at all after December 25th.
The stores that have promotional coupon codes going out all the time that you can sign up by email for are:
Macy’s – a wide variety of items are marked down, but not everything. If your favorites are not marked down, skip it. Daily emails let you know what the free shipping or discount code are today.
Old Navy – their clothing is really low priced to begin with and with extra sales and discounts, it is really affordable to stock up if you have kids.
JCrew, The Gap & Banana Republic - They mark down certain colors only, so if you want the tricky colors to coordinate like yellow, orange or purple you are in luck. If you want black or navy blue, it’s still full price. This is seriously annoying and I feel like boycotting these stores sometimes because it is so unfair.
Crate and Barrel & CB2- home furnishings aren’t as important to buy in a recession, and C&B knows that. They have had more on sale than usual but everything is still expensive. C&B is still good for those gifts you really have to impress with, like bosses and in-laws.
Kohl’s & JC Penny - get 50-60% off on most clothing right now but some items are already sold out. Like winter boots. Have fun trying to find any of those. And those portable outdoor wireless speaker sets. Really popular this year and sold out everywhere.
Sears (they even have layaway like the old days) check out the deal of the day and the 70% off sale. Craftsman tools still make great gifts for dad, grandpa and brothers.
Best Buy – Some electronics are marked down, but not everything. Get grandma and grandpa that converter box they need for the digital TV signal coming in February if they haven’t already gotten one.
The Premium Outlets in Aurora, IL also have sales offering discounts on their already low outlet merchandise prices. The trick is to go in the morning though since the afternoons are really crowded and there is no parking. Maybe go as a group and carpool so you only have to bring one car? Or have dad drop you off and pick you up?
