By Julie Smart for Ideas That Spark

I always shop early the day after Christmas to get the best selection. Some stores will heavily discount items right after Christmas to get rid of merchandise quickly, while other stores will hold off on significantly slashing prices for a few days in hopes of selling items at a higher price. When shopping, don’t forget to check out grocery stores and craft and drug stores; I sometimes find a lot of marked-down items there.

Before I go shopping, I make a list and call around to each store to ask how much of a discount they are taking off of merchandise. This way, it saves me a lot of time and I know exactly where to go. Keep in mind that each store location might give a different percent off. I am really looking for stores that have marked down items up to around 75 percent.  

Shopping online is another great way to find after-Christmas deals and bargains. I recommend visiting your favorite store’s Web site and signing up for e-mails from them. When you do this, the store will often send special printable coupons, online coupon codes and sales information to the e-mail address you provide. Follow them on Facebook and Twitter, too, for even more “insider” deals.

If you’re looking to stock up on holiday decorations for next year, check out freecycle.org or craigslist.org. As people take down their holiday decorations, they often want to give them away or sell them cheaply so they don’t have to store them during the year.

Finally, check the toys section in every store. When I do this, I am always thinking about birthdays and baby showers that will come up in the coming year.

Julie Smart is the mother of five wonderful children and a blogger at couponsavingfamily.com