Darrell Sapp, Post-Gazette Shoppers returned in force yesterday to Ross Park Mall. Click photo for larger image.

They came in search of bargains. They came wielding gift cards. And they came bearing presents that they couldn't take back to the store fast enough.

"I pretended like I loved it," said Cathie Gaudio of an automatic playing card shuffler that her brother gave her for Christmas.

But by noontime, Ms. Gaudio, of North Fayette, was in Kaufmann's in the Mall at Robinson, returning not only the shuffler, but also a hot pink suede jacket from her husband.

She was one of thousands of shoppers who packed area malls yesterday, many of whom had Monday off work for the Christmas holiday.

At the Mall at Robinson, teen clothing stores were the busiest, practically bursting at the seams with customers.

Inside American Eagle Outfitters, one teenager broke out her cell phone after becoming approximately the 40th person in the checkout line, just to let someone elsewhere know how long the line was.

At Hollister Co., another clothing store popular with teenagers, a line more than 35 deep snaked through the store, stretching nearly all the way to the entrance.

Ms. Gaudio, who comes to the mall at least twice a week to exercise, thought the crowds yesterday were about half what they were for the day-after-Thanksgiving shopping rush.

Kaufmann's, which set up additional express registers, was packed early in the day with people holding $10 off coupons valid only before noon.

For many, redeeming the coupon meant waiting in line for upward of 20 minutes. Ashley Norman, 26, a Miami resident visiting family in Weirton, W.Va., said the wait was worth it. She saved $10 on a pair of black stiletto BCBG boots.

"I don't like to pay full price for boots, so this was successful," she said.

From Kaufmann's, Ms. Norman was on her way to redeem a gift card at Banana Republic.

Retailers were encouraging customers like her to spend gift cards immediately -- generally, companies can't count gift card purchases as sales until the cards are redeemed.

On the windows of the Gap, a not-so-subtle sign read: "Instant Gratification: Use Your Gap Giftcard."

In Kaufmann's, Ms. Gaudio's husband, Pat Gaudio, used a mall gift card, as well as the $10 off coupon, on a pair of pants that he had been tracking before Christmas. He was pleased to see that the price had dropped post-Christmas.

Despite the "50 percent off" signs displayed in stores throughout the mall, other customers didn't see much of a price drop.

"It doesn't seem much different than before Christmas," said Ms. Norman. "It seems like they started early this year."

Rebecca Shalhoup, 25, didn't see many bargains either, so she stuck mostly to business: redeeming and returning. She bought underwear with a gift card at Victoria's Secret and headed to Express, American Eagle and Aeropostale to return clothes that didn't fit.

Initially, she said that she was in the mall Monday because she had to work Tuesday. But her friend, Jason Pelc of McDonald, admitted that they get a perverse pleasure out of shopping the day after Christmas.

"As much as you hate it, you kind of enjoy the crowds," he said. "It's not so desolate."