“I haven’t bought pens, notebooks or other office supplies anywhere else since I discovered dollar stores,” says Marlene Alexander, founder of the blog DollarStoreStyle.com. “You can also outfit a child with basic school supplies for about half the cost of shopping anywhere else.
Kerry Taylor, founder of the blog Squawkfox.com, says parents can pick up paints, brushes, construction paper, stickers and other art-project essentials for a buck a pop. “Dollar stores also have a wide variety of scrapbook supplies and crafts to help satisfy a child’s creative urges,” she says.