Greeting Cards, a good Dollar Store buy:

Holiday
Birthday
Wedding

$0.50 a card can't be beat.

Quick and easy goody bags for parties (kids and adults), cleaning supplies, and Halloween, Easter, Valentines and other holiday candy. Last year I did Valentines' goody bags for a class of twenty four first graders for eight dollars and two teacher's gift for four dollars more!

To save money, you can also go to Costco, Sam's, etc. and split up food and costs with some neighbors.

Danger from LEAD,
If you check the CPSC web site for Recalls, you will see that the Dollar Tree has frequently sold mdse that does not meet US law for lead. If you buy craft supplies, charms or jewelry, make sure that children don't put items in their mouths. Make sure that people wash their hands after contact, and don't allow food to intermingle.
Danger from Contamination
Health and Beauty aids might be exported from another country. They might have been "dumped" by a major retailer because of contaminiation. I think the toothpaste with melamine contamination was sold at Dollar Tree.

I bought a plunger there when I moved into an apt with sketchy plumbing. It was by far the best buck I spent! :)

I buy lots of varieties of mailing labels there. They also have bubble wrap envelopes for shipping which I stock up on whenever I am there. I also buy 3M brand scotch tape ( the dollar store brand sucks with regard to tape).
As you said, I tend to stock up on wrapping paper - usually the white tissue paper which can be used all year long inside gifts and gift bags.

Some of the beauty supplies found at the dollar tree are amazing deals. While the Dollar Tree in my neighborhood often times stocks discontinued drugstore items (Revlon, Covergirl, etc.), they also have some decent quality off brands. In particular, the LA colors eyeshadows (with mixing medium, they can rival MAC shadows!) and the Aziza foundation. I even ran into a dollar store that once stocked discontinued L'Oreal Feria haircolor!

There's also some good health deals. I used to buy those big generic bottles of Tylenol PM there, in lieu of Lunesta. Also, as I'm sure many of you already know, the dollar store pregnancy tests are a perfect equivalent of the $13 dollar ones you buy at Target.

My local dollar tree also has a frozen food and cooler section. Pay close attention to the expiration dates, and realize that these items are usually better deals if you're single (whereas I could buy a 24 pack of eggs cheaper somewhere else, the $1 four pack of LOCAL eggs I can buy at the dollar tree is a fantastic deal if you're a college student). I also found the coffee filters and the occasional snack to be a great deal as well.

I survived off dollar stores (but mostly the dollar tree) throughout my first two years of college. Although I did run into credit card troubles due to tuition and rent, I could not of survived buying basic necessities anywhere else.

/end rave

http://InvestRequest.com says not only do you save on many bargains, but you also save money from time saved by shopping there vs. the big box stores...

I used to buy my Pepsodent at the dollar stores until I read this:

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/toothpaste.asp

It is easy enough to find it for a dollar or less elsewhere anyway.

I also saw a tv news report on staying away from buying BATTERIES (name brand or not) from dollar stores as they had a higher rate of leaking when they did their test to see if they lasted as long as ones bought elsewhere.

Our dollar store doesn't have much in the way of food other than candy & snack type stuff but one thing I do buy there is the GRAHAM CRACKERS for a dollar. I never see the generics go less than 1.99 around here and Nabisco usually goes on sale for 2.49-2.99. They taste exactly the same and are identical in every way on the ingredient/nutritional label as the others. And they are made in the USA. I eat a lot of grahams...it is my comfort food.
:-)

I second the comment about gift wrap and gift bags!

I have found their can openers to be dangerous and difficult to use.

The one I bought required extreme effort to actually open a can, inflicting damage on both (leaving bent cans and often jagged metal edges exposed) the can and my body.

After a couple months of tortuous use, the thing broke apart and I was glad to be rid of it.

The $1.97 can opener from Walmart has worked flawlessly for me ever since.

Every year around Christmas time, I make it a point to go to Dollar Tree for stocking stuffers, etc. It's also a great place to purchase picture frames and kitchenware!

I agree with the commenter who says if you know base prices of things, then you know what is and what isn't a good deal at Dollar Tree. They have fancy yarn skeins there (presumably bought as overruns?) from Bernat and other companies that retail for $5.

Some things, like pipe cleaners, cost about $2 at regular craft stores (same amount in package).

You can't find everything there, but there are definitely some deals to be had at the dollar store!

And I have to say there is nothing more depressing than watching Senior Citizens combing through the aisles made of stacked pallets to pick out their seven dollars of discresionary spending for the week from overpriced third world delicassees. I was in line and some old lady bought 235 dollars woth of stuff at the dollar store. Everything looked about three months away from a tag sale. That said, I'm going to the dollar store tommorrow, I need a 2009 calender.

Hi! I get the tooth gel for toothaches, same as Oragel, but only $1 instead of $7 at other stores.

The Dollar Tree has items similar to the 99 Cent Store - but in the past few months they have had GREAT deals in hair goods. I have bought fantastic hair bands that would cost $5 elsewhere for 99 cents. They have had special ones and even sequined ones for the holidays! As with all dollar stores you have to pick & choose - as some are over the top - but what a deal! Also have gotten vitamins (?) by Bayer - and lavendar spray (I am looking for more of that) and lotions for my hubby. And reading and sunglasses -

Some staples - but mostly goodies I can treat myself with - like little angel figurines - around Xmas I also got some cards - but watch it - dollar stores can be addictive - I knew a woman who called them "$30 stores" because no matter what, she spent at least $30 on a visit. When I am broke, I restrict my visits to when we have run out of paper towels, bottles of salad dressing, cleaning supplies and the like.

http://www.myfrugallife.com/blog_pamphyila.html

I work at a Dollar Tree in the southernish area of VT, and our store has the small pans. Personally they are a little too weak for my tastes, but i guess my point is as far as merchandise goes, it all depends on what distribution center your store is receiving from. Different DC's get different merch usually. Also in response to others, Dollar Tree does follow state laws according to what is sellable as far as lead levels go on products. There are a lot of things not availble in CALI stores because of proposition...65? i think it is, and VT stores are not allowed to carry the jewelry or any metal attractive to children. DT had to stop selling these items because VT state said so. So yes while some of their products may be questionable, because most is manufactured over seas, the company does abide by state laws. And as someone else said, there are other discount retailers that carry products that are questionable as well. Anything sold at a discount is usually sold that way for a reason, HOWEVER not ALWAYS because of contamination or bad reasons, a lot of times some closeout products just don't sell elsewhere. I've heard a lot of rumors about contaminated products, but whenever there is a problem with something we are instructed to pull it from the shelves, and unless your fave DT operates poorly it is pulled immediately. Also, same goes for food. I know my store is good about pulling food when it is expired, it all depends on your store's operations and how well the team does, but the food DT sells is actually very decent. A lot of it actually, from snacks to drinks (Mr Pure orange juice is SOOO good and for a freakin buck!). The cookies are good, crackers are awesome as well (especially the entertaining crackers that come in the long boxes), the pickles and other condiments are good, spices are excellent, canned vegetables are excellent, same with fruit...i guess i could go on about what's good to try to help some people's decisions but that may be a bit redundant lol. In truth most of the food MY dollar tree carries is just as good as any other more expensive brand, honest truth. As long as you check your dates you'll be fine. And a tip, if you notice your fave dollar tree with a lot of out of date food on the shelf, talk to the store manager about your concerns about it, if that doesn't work, find out the store number and e-mail dollar tree's website the store number and the issue. Their district manager and regional director will receive it directly and will be more than happy to know that their store is slacking :) Happy shopping everyone and i really hope you all enjoy your experiences at Dollar Tree!

That Dollar Tree pictured is my Dollar Tree!

I found some Sunday School decorating materials at the Dollar Tree. I work at a small church who has no budget to decorate and I can do a couple of bulletin boards for under $10.00