My Best Black Friday Deal Ever + Black Friday Trends That May Surprise You

This is a Fashionista Event and a promotional item was provided to me by Coupons. com. Hosts for this event are Still Blonde after all these Years and ModlyChic. 

Momma Told Me: Always keep the receipt.

Our family has never been great at gift giving. I come from a long line of  'regifters' and December 26th 'return line swappers.' In fact, growing up, there were few gifts ever given without a return receipt firmly taped to the box. I recall the boots, received by Momma from my grandmother, were promptly brought back to the store and exchanged for some sweaters on deep clearance in after Christmas markdowns. Let's face it, finding the 'perfect' gift for one person, say for a birthday is hard enough without the swarms of crowds and confusing barrage of seasonal advertising- so it's understandable the crowd mentality, as a whole is a little crazed when you factor in the proportion of events this time of year.

As frugal as Momma is, I was raised to be a Black Friday shopper. We'd bundle up, after our post turkey coma nap and head out around 3 AM to hit the early store sales. I'm ashamed to admit I grew into one of 'those' people myself. As a young adult I would often plan my entire week around staking out the biggest deal prospects, and even spent 3 days camped in front of a Best Buy in 2005. We'll ignore that at 19 years of age I had absolutely no value for me time, and consider this 'score' my best Black Friday deal ever, as I walked out of the electronics department (one of the first 5 in line) with a brand new XBOX 360 system bundle for just a penny.

However, my days of sleeping in front of retail establishments are long over; I have less and less time to plan tonight's dinner let alone orchestrate a complicated assault on mall seasonal sales.Regardless, I've been finding some of the Black Friday Articles on Good Stuff fascinating, with an informative look at the shopping habits of the modern consumer during this phenomena of an annual event. Naturally, with the growth of my generation, the Millenials, Cyber Monday is appropriately poised to take the place of this beloved nationwide past time, Black Friday, which has become a holiday in itself. Have you ever taken time off of work to hit a Black Friday sale? Personally, I find the appeal of shopping online from work, or the comfort of my own home, on Cyber Monday a big relief.

Surprisingly there is only a 10% margin of spending difference for modern consumers shopping Black Friday versus Cyber Monday sales, and with specials such as FREE Shipping and extended return periods I find myself wondering how long the retail chains will be able to hold out with brick and mortar sales. The Good Stuff cites that Southern U.S. states spend ore on average than the rest of the country during Black Friday events, where as the Midwest tends to spend more during Cyber Monday. But are the bargains simply so steep that the average spending (a whopping 60% of Americans shopping on Black Friday) only spend $100 or less- or is this a sign that trends are leaning more in favor of inline Cyber Monday sales? Be sure to check out Black Friday Articles on The Good Stuff for more thought provoking stats.

Whether you have all of your holiday shopping done *cough- like me cough* or are planning a brutal assault on post-holiday sales, this coming week- we can all agree a little extra cash goes a long way this time of the year. Coupons.com is one of my main sources for savings in store and online when it comes to stocking up and gifting, and they're hosting the mother of all sweepstakes with their Coupons.com Black Friday Giveaway running now through 11/28/2014. Head on over now and give their wheel a spin for your shot at daily instant prizes and the $10,000 grand prize! All entrants will also gain access to special discounts from brand name sponsors like Osh Kosh B Gosh and Jo-Anns crafts!

What was your best Black Friday, or Cyber Monday deal ever?

What Daughter Says: It's the thought that counts, not how many hours you spent in line trying to save on something!