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Creatively Frugal Postage
What creative strategies do you use for saving money on postage --
either when shipping something to someone else or when having something
shipped to you?
"As
regards postage, here in Australia, I have checked out with the Post Office, and it is perfectly
legal to re-use unfranked stamps. I collect these and use
sticky-tape if necessary to bung them on the new envelope. I
have a great love for re-using envelopes, by the way.
See if the organization with whom you deal most of all can send
you reply paid or let you know of their reply paid address.
.." ~ Leonie
Editor's
Note: Please note that reusing uncancelled stamps is illegal
here in America.
"I just discovered a fabulous
deal. Dollar Bank, a 150-yr institution in OH and PA, now offers an
online checking which pays 10 cents every time you use your debit
card as a credit (requiring a signature) and offers 5 cents for each
bill paid online. So.....aside from the postage money you save, they
PAY YOU for using their product! They even give you 50% discount on
the purchase of your checks. A definite WIN/WIN deal!" ~
Roseanne
"I have to ship most of the
gifts I buy my family, since they live in another state. I often
give them books, CDs, and DVDs as gifts, since if I plan ahead, I
can ship them USPS Media Mail, which is much cheaper than even
Parcel Post. Cards and other correspondence need to be mailed
separately, though. Also, I recently had thank-you notes to send to
my aunt and her young daughter. I put both cards in one envelope to
save a stamp." ~ Laurie
"Concerning
reducing the cost of postage, we pay a couple of our bills
(gas & electric) at our local Discount Drug Mart
drugstore. In the beginning it used to be a free
service and like everything else, they have increased the
price, first to 10 cents, now to 25 cents, but it's still
cheaper than paying 39 cents for a stamp! Plus, we
only have to go to one place rather than two to pay the
bills, saving on gas." ~ Becky
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"Here are 2 BIG money saving ideas I use regularly.
1. When I send my business mail/packages I usually send it U.
S. Priority Mail for 2
reasons. I have found it gets better handling care,
gets there faster, and many times only costs 30 to 65 cents more in
postage......but did you know in almost every post office location they
have (2) displays. One display is for priority packaging
that is FREE. This display includes postal labels you can
print on your computer (or hand write), and assorted sizes of mailing
boxes and different sizes of envelopes. I have found that this small
difference in postage is a significant savings over buying my own
labels, envelopes, and boxes. (Example, recently at Walmart a box size I
needed was 3 boxes for $4.65= $1.55 each) When you figure in the
increased postage my cost was .65 cents for their FREE box. Just look
for the display the next time you buy stamps or ask a clerk.
2. I use padded envelopes when possible but when mailing
a box; many times a extra filling is needed to keep items from shifting,
etc. Peanuts and other similar fillings have to be stored and can be
reused (when you receive them) but they are messy. I use
balloons! They are inexpensive to buy, easy to
store, a air filled balloon weighs less than peanuts and it is a
colorful surprise. I can blow up one or 2 balloons
personally to the size I need or borrow my husbands air compressor if I
have several orders to fill. Right now you are probably thinking about
round ones......and they work fine.....but I use the long ones they make
animals out of because they are so easy to tie together in a balloon
circle. If you need to do a lot.....it is easier on the fingers."
~ Sylvia
Editor's Note: Thanks to these readers for taking time to share
their ideas!
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