Couponing
BUT, BEFORE BUYING NEWSPAPERS . . .
I make sure there will be coupons in the newspapers by going online to . . .
2009 Coupon Schedule (so you know when the SS, V, and P&G inserts will be released)
http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=980677
ALSO, if I want to see the coupons in advance, so I can decide if to buy 1 newspaper or 20 newspapers,
I go online to . . .
View list of coupons that will be in Sunday's paper in advance (this is for 11/8/09 coupons)
There will be a new thread in the forum at SlickDeals.net each week. Just scroll through slickdeals.net and you will find it.
http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1619949
Finding the Sales Ads BEFORE the newspaper hits the stands !
At this link you can see scans of the ads and they also list what items have a coupon available to match up with it for a great deal.
TONS of GREAT information at SlickDeals !
http://slickdeals.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=38
I go through all the newspapers, pulling out the Smart Source, Red Plum, P & G, and any other coupons that may be included.
I also pull out all the store sales flyer ads that I am interested in. Sometimes even the ones I am not interested in.
Publix has a 1 cent coupon (buy $10 of stuff, get 1 Publix item at $ 0.01) Sunday only.
Michael's has 40% off coupon to be used that week.
JoAnn's has 40% off coupon to be used that week.
Wal-green's has store coupons that can be used in conjunction with a manufacturer's coupon.
Rite-aid's has store coupons that can be used in conjunction with a manufacturer's coupon.
Sometimes, Office Max will have a paper bag with a coupon for 10% off anything you can fit in the bag.
Sometimes, other stores will put store coupons in their sales flyers, that can be used in conjunction with a manufacturer's coupon.
Plus, I pull out one copy of the free newspaper's TV guide and the Comics.
(I have heard of people who have used the comic/funny pages as free gift wrapping paper. Haven't tried that.)
After you have pulled out ALL the pages/items you need, stack up what you don't need and take them to your newspaper recycling container at the school. (I have heard of people pulling newspapers out of the recycling container to get the coupons out of them, but I have never been able to stomach the idea or been brave enough to try it. Fear of mice, bugs, police, etc.) lol
Organizing your coupons
Some people keep their Smart Source, Red Plum, P & G's intact and put the newspaper date on the front, then file them away until The Grocery Game or some other person tells them it is time to use it. Saves a ton of time now, but I think it may take more time later and I like to be able to see all my coupons and have access to them, sometimes I even take my whole binder to the store. Clearance items, with a coupon on top, can mean free.
If you want to keep the inserts whole, here is a video on how one woman organizes hers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijdZR8eh1g8&feature=related
But you have to decide what works for you. What works for one person, may not work for another. To each her own.
I cut out all the coupons and organize them in my coupon book.
I separate all the types of coupon packs, then pull all of the Smart Source's together, pull out identical pages from each, then staple on each coupon. Make sure not to staple on the bar code or the expiration date. I try to staple in the upper right corner if possible. On top of the photo of the product sometimes works good. I make a stack of these pages, then cut them out after I have ALL the pages stapled. While watching TV, supervising homework, or waiting on the car riders at school. (If there are two pages that are folded, I staple all I can, then tear the pages apart, and finish stapling the hard to reach coupons.) ((WATCH OUT. Two pages are sometimes a continuation with a coupon that is both on the left page and the right page. Pull those aside to do more carefully))
Some people do not cut out all the coupons. I do. If I do not need it, SOMEONE else will need it, and I like to share if possible.
Here is a video I found of a man who buys a TON of newspapers. He cuts his out similarly to me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snFVId-gUXE&feature=related
Here is a lady who cuts them out this way too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7QMhrDqxQY&feature=related
The following video link shows a coupon book similar to my own, except I use Photo sheets and mine is zippered. I fear dropping my book and coupons flying everywhere !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feLNNwU90ec&feature=related
I love this lady's binder with handles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rn3R-_jfrIw&feature=related
I have 2 coupon binders. I just had too many coupons and categories to fit into one binder. Probably because I get 5 newspapers & clip all the coupons. My binder zips up and has a few handy pockets & organizers. Some binders even have a handle or a shoulder strap.
In my binder I keep a pen, scissors, calculator, and my store cards, Kroger, CVS, Ingles, etc.
I also keep my CVS Extra Care Bucks and any store gift cards.
To hold my coupons, I use Photo sleeves. These are like sheet protectors that are divided into 3 sections. One on top and 2 at the bottom.
Some people use baseball card holders/ , but most coupons are larger than baseball cards. With the photo organizer sleeves I can put quite a few coupons in one pocket. Like shampoo, all my shampoo and conditioner would go in, and there are many brands of shampoo. I put the newest coupons in the back. Thereby, when I go through my coupons to weed out the expired coupons, it is easy to spot them, they will be on top.
I also use sheet protectors for large coupons, or to hold un-filed coupons.
I use tabbed dividers to keep general categories separate. Such as, food, medicine, cleaners, personal care, paper products, restaurants & specialty stores.
Within those larger divisions are: frozen foods, snacks, drinks, candy, refrigerated items, canned goods, condiments, pet food. Shampoo/conditioner, hairspray/stying products, make-up (I separate by company Max Factor Loreal etc sales are by co), deodorant, lotion, feminine products, toothbrushes, toothpaste, mouthwash, misc. Pain relief, cold relief, heartburn relief, misc. Bathroom cleaners, laundry detergent, fabric softner sheets, glass cleaner, air fresheners, lysol, dish detergent, dishwasher detergent, etc. Paper towels, toilet paper, paper plates, ziplock baggies, trash bags, etc.
Some people use a price book, I do not. I think it is a waste of time for me. It may be helpful to others. Price books are used to list each individual item you buy on a regular basis and how much you spend each time. Eventually, you would see a pattern of when products go on sale. Too time consuming for me.
The best way to use your coupons is when items are on sale. If you use your coupons only when you need items, you won't get the best prices. If you find a good sale, and use your coupon, and buy multiple items, you will be saving your family more money and you will not have to buy the item as often. If you shop wisely and use your coupons, you may find that you don't have to go to the store as often, or maybe only for perishable items on a weekly basis. As long as you have storage space, there is no such thing as too much. There is always a group, school, or church taking up items for the needy. There are a lot of families having money/job problems. And, you probably think you do not have much storage space, but think outside the box. Under beds, under or behind the couch, under or in an end table, basement, garage, storage room, or storage building, etc. Remember, some items don't need to be kept at a specific temperature. Bottled water, cleaners, shampoos, paper products, etc.
I take my coupon book with me to catch unadvertised sales and clearance items, as well as impulse buys.
ALSO, if you are out of an item, but don't have a coupon for it, try the website below. They have items listed alphabetically with a link to sites that you can print a coupon for those items.
http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?t=836711
THE
The very best, quickest and cheapest, way I have found to find the very BEST deals
is "The Grocery Game" ! ! !
http://www.thegrocerygame.com/
You can sign up for $ 1.00 for 4 weeks. (it says free, but they do charge 1 dollar to your card to make sure you are legit.
During those 4 weeks you can sign up to have information available to you for ALL the stores that they list.
They find free products for you ! The find products for pennies and for great percentages off.
You can print their list by final price, amount saved, item description, or many other ways.
They do ALL the work for you except collecting the coupon and shopping.
And it is cheap.
Stockpiling
FIFO = First In, First Out. Use the oldest products first.
Here are several videos on stockpiling your purchases. Great advice, encouraging, educational and entertaining.
http://www.youtube.com/user/Couponbailout#p/a/u/1/77vsfVKYQcI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEOGWKUW2uY&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2kznaY_5cs&feature=related
This is extreme, but here is a canned food storage solution.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCnXfO7YMfk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wadjAWcR5M&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHYXqCMyDXk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAeS6XN_O3E&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I94pIUIFt-s&feature=related
Or Build your own - for free
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nespzEi8nKc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIz1iPm7bUc&feature=related
Bloggers who write about COUPONS and SALES !
Another place that I get great coupon and sales tips and information is blogs. There are a few blogs that I check out regularly.
Granted, some of the blogs tend to repeat the same deals and the same coupons they have found, but all bloggers do not list all the stores, so you have to find the blogs you like to follow.
Here are some of my favorites.
http://www.moneysavingmom.com/money_saving_mom/
http://www.centsible-sawyer.com/
http://www.dealseekingmom.com/
http://www.stretchingabuckblog.com/
Between all these websites and videos, these people have done a lot of the hard work for us. They have found the coupons online, found scans of the sales ads, found what weeks to buy newspapers, matched available coupons to sales to find the best deals, figured out some good organizational methods for couponing.
Now we just buy the newspapers, collect the coupons, look at the deals they suggest, grab our coupons and hit the stores !
