Pleiades Bee

Recently, I’ve become a coupon cutter. I’ve always enjoyed a bargain, the hunt for a deal, the satisfied feeling of paying little for something nice (barring homemade goods, of course). This is a story about my best deal yet—

—pearl earrings. Andy and I have bought a couple things from Rogers Jewelers—our wedding rings, a ruby necklace and a gold ring for my mom. Apparently this was enough for the company to send us a $50 gift certificate in October, the month of our anniversary. I read the certificate numerous times. It didn’t say a minimum purchase was required. So, on a rainy day, I loaded Sophie into the car determined to take advantage of some missing fine print.

I had my wedding ring cleaned while I looked around the store. I’d been wanting a pair of simple, everyday pearl earrings. I found some, but they looked big (and expensive). So I asked the clerk if she had some smaller ones. She did—4mm with 14K-gold posts. I noticed the price tag said $65.

I hesitated, wondering if they would really let me use a $50 gift certificate for a $65 item. The clerk must have thought my hesitation was debate, so she lowered the price to $54.

I showed her the gift certificate. She read it. Her boss read it. Her boss’s boss read it. No one could find a reason not to let me use it. Total price? $4 and some change.

I love coupons.

“A man in love is like a clipped coupon—it’s time to cash in.” —Mae West