Dollar Tree Pitfalls

I notice that a lot of my acquaintances shop at dollar stores thinking that they're saving vast sums of money, but I'd like to caution people against making that assumption. Yes, these all-things-for-a-dollar stores seem like they can't be beat, but you've got to look at quality and quantity before making the decision to buy. At my last trip to the Dollar Tree, I made several purchases and wanted to review them here.

1 can of black olives - Cheaper than Lindsay Olives by around 60-70 cents per can, but the taste was mildly floral and the texture mushy. Waste of money.

1 jar of green olives - Cheaper than Lindsay Olives as well, but the taste was just bad. It was olive-like but really salty.  Waste of money.

1 package of pocket sized facial tissues (Minnie Mouse design) - Pretty good deal here. Kleenex has pocket sized facial tissues priced over 4.00. Their pack comes with 8 versus the Dollar tree's 6, but it still makes this a good bargain.

1 container of Dial deodorant. 1 container of Lady Speedstick deodorant. Both are roll-ons. Both work well. Both were a dollar. However, each one was 1 fl oz or more less than my Suave. Which, if I remember correctly, costs me about 1.68. Verdict: it's still a decent purchase, especially if you like those brands. However, I'll stick my Suave.

1 package of State Fair corn dogs. Two per package for one dollar. When I opened that package up, I had to give a little giggle. Inside were two of the tiniest corndogs I'd seen. Not as small as the Krystals cornpups, but not that much larger either. Verdict: Well, two of those could make up one State Fair dog. You get 5 or 6 of the regular ones per box for less than 4 dollars...so I'd say this is a pass. Plus, Publix sometimes has SF corndogs on their buy-one-get-one sales, which would drive the price down to around 2.00 per box of 5/6.

1 Tin of smoked mussels. Very tasty. No grit. The little metal tin was fully stuffed with these plump little beauties which I hate on saltines with a bit of hot sauce. Verdict: will buy every chance I get.

1 Cheese grater. Cheap as anything but it works. I had found some at thrift stores, but they all had rust on them. Yuck. And the ones in the regular stores all began at around 10.00. So I'm happy with this purchase.

Steak knives. Also super cheaply made. Small too. More like a paring knife with a serrated blade. However, it slices through meat very well, and that's all I want it to do. Verdict: happy with purchase.

For me, this experience has driven home the fact that these dollar stores do have good deals. I love to get greeting cards and party supplies there. Gift bags are an awesome deal, and sometimes you can find really good bargains on boxes and bags of name brand candy (though be sure to look at the servings size to make sure you're getting as good a deal as you think). However, I was disappointed with almost all of my grocery purchases and will be very selective in making future grocery decisions in these types of stores. Because despite saving some money here and there, I also "lost" three dollars.