How does getting a $35 discount on dinner and flowers sound for Valentine’s Day? Follow these simple steps and you’ll be on your way to a cheap date!

1. Head to Ebates.com. If you don’t have an account, create one. It’s simple and easy. Search for “Restaurant.com” and use the Ebates.com link to get to Restaurant.com. This will give you 15% cash back on whatever you buy.

2. Once at Restaurant.com, select a gift certificate for a restaurant you enjoy. Use coupon code “BLOOM” to take 60% off your purchase which means a $10 certificate is just $1.60, plus when you factor in your 15% cash back the price is brought down to $1.36.

3. Look in your inbox. After completing your purchase you will receive a link that will take you to FTD.com. That link will give you a $15 credit on everything on the website. The link is good until the end of March, but you can use it to get flowers for Valentine’s Day. The bouquet to the left is just $4.99, plus there are plenty of others that are $14.99. I also received ANOTHER email for a FREE Restaurant.com $10 certificate of my choice. Now that’s an affordable Valentine’s day!

Posted under Celebrations, Good Deals, Holidays, coupons

DoMoreWithYourMoney.com announces the 2008 Shop With a Cause list. These are the top six gifts fulfilling two purposes at once: supporting Upstate South Carolina stores and supporting worthwhile causes. Starting at as little as $5, here is the DoMoreWithYourMoney.com 2008 Shop With a Cause list:

Jeans: Wear your heart on your denim with the pink J & Company jeans available at Campaign, 408 River Street in downtown Greenville. Twenty-percent of your purchase will be donated to the National Breast Cancer Foundation.  $176

Mittens: Stay warm this winter with handmade mittens. Knitted by Peruvian artisans, the mittens are available in multiple colors. Pick up your pair at Go Fish on Main Street in downtown Greenville. Your purchase will support projects worldwid that provide opportunities for the less fortunate. $15

Cards: Do more with your Christmas cards by purchasing these cards on Etsy.com. Created by a local designer, a part of each purchase goes to The Frazee Dream Center, a Greenville after school program for under-resourced children. $12

Coffee: Local coffee shop Liquid Highway serves a greater purpose than handing out a good cup of joe. Every cent of profit goes to supporting medical clinics, schools, and orphanages all over the world and right here in the Upstate. Any Amount

Shoes: Toms Shoes has given over 60,000 pairs of shoes to children in need. That’s because every time you buy a pair of Toms Shoes, another pair is donated. Purchase your pair locally at Chloe and Grace located in the McDaniel Village shopping plaza. Approx. $50

Soap: When you buy a bar of Hydromissions soap you’re doing a good thing. You’re supporting a mission to bring clean water to those who don’t have it. Based in Mauldin, South Carolina, Hydromissions has helped bring access to clean drinking water to dozens of remote areas around the world. Buy your bars of soap online or at Ten-Thousand Villages.  $5

Posted under Charitable Giving, Holidays, Style