Works for Me Wednesday...Save Your Receipts!!

I'm not necessarily a "name-brand" girl. I do, however, like good quality things. My motto is pay more now, pay less in the long run. Most of my children's clothes come from Gymboree and Hanna Andersson (since they wash so well...you can literally have them forever!) and if they're damaged in some way from normal wash and wear, you can return them for store credit as long as you have your receipts. (Did you know LLBean guarantees every piece of clothing...for life??!! And that's why most of my and my husbands digs are from there!!!) My philosophy goes for furniture and bedding as well. I made a rather large purchase at Bed Bath and Beyond back in early spring. I bought a Liz Claiborne bedding set. We're talking the whole sha-bang...throw pillows to match, extra shams, etc. (We had gift cards to use...that's the only reason I went "all out"!!!) So, this fall when I was changing out our spring-summer bedding for our Down Comforter, I followed the manufacturers instructions to wash it. I have a large capacity washer, so it wasn't necessary to go to the laundry mat. Lo and behold, I took out the comforter to hang to dry and the whole corner was shredded. The fabric just gave way and stuffing was all over the place. I was devastated.

I still had the receipt and the packaging (the big plastic zippered bag it came in), so I packaged it up and headed back to the store. (Hey...at $400 for the set, it shouldn't have fallen apart!!) I showed the manager and she agreed but said they no longer carried it...it was clearanced at the end of the summer. Good thing I had my receipt!!! We got full credit for the bedding set. (I couldn't keep all the throw pillows and shams without the comforter they matched!) So these nights I'm enjoying new micro fleece sheets, and awaiting a new mattress memory foam topper (hoping to avoid having to purchase a new mattress...oh, our aching backs!!).

Moral of the story??: Be organized. Keep receipts in one place (and remember where), and categorize them by store. I had absolutely no intention of returning my beautiful Liz Claiborne bedding. At that price, I was sleeping in it forever! But under the circumstances, saving my receipts Worked for Me! Had I not had it...the store credit I would have received? $89 bucks! A big difference compared to $400!