"Do you have a teacher discount?"

It's my new favorite question.

You could say I am a thrifty shopper. Like anyone, I love the thrill of a great clearance rack find and I peruse the aisles of Arc's and Saver's on almost a weekly basis.

I have this odd fantasy that I will be wearing a skirt every day of the school year. No pants. No capris. Just skirts. So my summer goal was to build my teacher wardrobe in the cheapest of all possible ways. As the dog days of August are quickly winding down, I can accurately proclaim that my goal was accomplished successfully.

I purchased 18 skirts this summer. Only 1 was purchased at full price (and that was the turquoise skirt from The Limited that landed me my job). My total estimated expenditures = approx. $100.

I bought in bulk at a store called TurnStyle in Roseville. It's like Plato's Closet for the 18+ crowd. There are many around the metro area, and all have surprisingly affordable deals on quality, name brand clothing, and an abundance of adorable skirts. I also made some great discoveries at the Richfield Arc's Value Village and Bloomington's Savers. I also found a very cute Vera Wang skirt (seen below) on the Kohl's clearance rack for $4.99. Here is just a taste of some of my fabulous finds for teaching:








It's a good thing I am easily attracted to bright red "SALE" signs because I am also a self-proclaimed Shopaholic. It's a hobby of mine right up there with scrapbooking, cardmaking, and writing.

I have learned in the past few weeks that many great retail stores really appreciate teachers. Perhaps they recognize (more so than our government) that we work pretty dang hard not necessarily for the paycheck, but because we love what we do. And that deserves a special discount.

So lately, as I purchase my new cardigans, school supplies and classroom decorations, I've been asking at the check-out counter, "Do you have a teacher discount?" Surprisingly, most of my already favorite stores do! So I thought I would compile a list of the stores/promotions for all my teacher friends out there. These are only the ones that I have discovered, so please, comment and let me know if you have any discoveries of your own:

(Most are 15% off your entire purchase)
Michael's
Joann Fabrics
BestBuy (educational software only)
Borders (20% off!)
Barnes & Noble
The Limited
New York & Company
J. Crew
The Apple Store
Ann Taylor Loft

OfficeMax also has special promotional days (I unfortunately missed out on it this year) where you receive 30% off all you can pile into a recyclable shopping bag.

I also visited a warehouse in Bloomington called Companies to Classrooms which offers FREE donated teacher supplies to teachers in the Bloomington and Richfield school district. Luckily my roommate (ahem...my mother) is the new Technology Integrationist for Richfield Public schools, so I dragged her and her coveted Richfield Teacher ID to the huge warehouse chalk-full (no pun intended...or was it?) of teacher goodies. I snagged 6 plastic assignment sorting trays, a handful of post-its, a slightly used laminated Shakespeare poster, and some other miscellaneous supplies. All free.

It's nice to know that people do appreciate teachers and that companies support our positions in society.

So what is the lesson of the day? Never be afraid to ask for the teacher discount.