confessions of a couponaholic

5/8 Smartsource Insert

2011-05-05T15:56:00.000-04:00

Target John Frieda deals!!!

2011-05-05T15:52:00.000-04:00

Total value of items: $54.69
Total OOP: $11.69
Target gift card back: $5
Total trip value: $6.69
That's $1.11 each!

Did you get your P&G coupon inserts this Sunday? If so you can get this great deal!
Go on over to Target.com and print off two $5/1 Hair color coupons and/or 2 $3/2 John Frieda hair care products
Combine these with (2) of the the $5/1 hair color and (2) or (4) of the $3/1 root awakening coupons to get the same deal as me!

Here's the deal breakdown:

This week at Target if you buy two of these hair colors, you get a $5 gift card back!

(2) John Frieda Foam Hair color ($23.98)
-2 $5 Target store coupons ($13.98)
-2 $5 mfr coupons ($3.98)
+$5 Target gift card
= $1.02 money maker!

(4) Root awakening shampoo/conditioner ($23.96) (I got bottles with 33% more in them!)
-2 $3/2 Target store coupons ($17.96)
-4 $3/1 mfr coupons ($5.96)
= $1.49 each!

5/1 couponing deals!

2011-05-02T00:53:00.002-04:00

Stores purchased at: CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid
Total price of items: $97.16
Total OOP: $16.70
Total Rewards back: $29.54
Total trip value: $-12.84!

Why was the OOP so much higher than normal?
I have recently moved to a new area, so now I have a Rite Aid drug store in my area, and will be able to purchase deals from there! This week, the OOP was so high because I had to invest into my +UP rewards there (like RRs or ECBs), but the OOP is sure to go down soon as I will be able to roll over those +UPs instead of paying OOP!

Here's the breakdown of the deals...

Walgreens:
Gilette Fusion Proglide razor: on sale for $9.89
-$5 mfr coupon
+$5 RR back
= $0.11 money maker!

Noxzema Razor disposable 4pack: on sale for $3.99
-$2 mfr coupon
+$3 RR back
= $0.99 money maker!

8 Reach toothbrushes: on sale for $0.99 ($7.92)
-4 $2.00/any 2 Reach mfr coupons (these had to be adjusted down $0.02 each)
= free!

2 Rimmel bronzer: on clearance for $2.89 ($5.78)
-2 $2/any 2 Rimmel product
=$1.78, or $0.89 each!
basically, the only thing at Walgreens I had to pay for was the Rimmel bronzer and sales tax!

Total w/sales tax: $3.46 OOP w/$8 RR back, or $4.54 money maker!

CVS:
Colgate Max White: on sale for $2.77 ($5.54)
-2 $1 mfr coupons
+ 2x$2.77 ECBs
= $2.00 money maker!

Bic Soleil Shimmer reusable razor: on sale for $6.99
-$3 mfr coupon
+$3 ECBs
= $0.99!

Nivea & Eucerin products, spend $15 get $5 EBs
This deal wasn't the best, but i love Nivea chapstick and am running out, so I decided to go for it. After I got home I realized I could have saved $1.50 more with a Nivea coupon I had.
3 Nivea Chapstick ($3.39x3 = $10.17)
1 Eucerin Daily Moisture lotion = $6.99
-3 $1 mfr coupon (Nivea)
-1 $1.50 mfr coupon (Eucerin)
+$5 ECBs
= $7.66, or $1.90 each (I used some old ECBs to cover some of this)

Total w/sales tax: $5.28 OOP w/$13.54 ECBs back, or $8.26 money maker!

Rite Aid:
This was my investment week, so I bought what I could get the best +UP rewards back for
4 Crest Toothpaste: on sale for $2.99 each ($11.96)
-2 $1.50 mfr coupons
-2 $1 mfr coupons
+$8 +UP rewards
= $1.04 money maker!

Total w/sales tax: $6.96 OOP w/$8 +UP back, or $1.04 money maker!

week of 5/1 previews!

2011-04-29T11:52:00.001-04:00

Coupons:

Smart Source #1

Smart Source #2

Ads:

5/1 P&G Preview

2011-04-26T02:26:00.000-04:00

4/25 Shopping deals!

2011-04-26T02:18:00.001-04:00

This week I bought a few items that weren't as good of deals as I usually look for, but were great items so I couldn't resist buying them. There were some great deals though too! The items shown above plus two Dove men's deodorants were the items I purchased this week.

Altogether, my OOP was $13.33
Total savings: $54.48
Total RRs & ECBs back: $20.00
Total trip value: $-6.67

Here were some of the more outstanding purchases:
CVS:
Dove Men's deodorant is on sale this week for $0.99
Coupled with coupons for $1.00 off, they were free!

Blink tears eye drops were on sale for $7.99
-$1.00 mfr coupon = $6.99
+$7.99 ECBs back = $1 money maker!

Walgreens:
Stayfree maxis are on sale for $2.99
-$1.00 mfr coupon = $1.99
+$3 RR
= $1 money maker!

Luster Toothpaste on sale for $4.99
-$1.50 mfr coupon = $3.49
+ $4 RR
= $0.51 money maker!

Trident Vitality gum on sale for 2/$2
-BOGO free coupon
-$0.50 off 2 store coupon
= $0.25 each!

great new printables!

2011-04-20T22:30:00.002-04:00

Coupons.com has some great new printables out!

Personal items:
$1.00 off Opti-Free ReplenISH solution, 10 oz.
$4.00 off Mederma Stretch Marks Therapy
$0.75 off any Clear Eyes product
$1.00 off (1) Garnier Brusher Cleanser
$1.00 off (1) Garnier moisturizer or cleanser
$2.00 off (2) Reach toothbrushes
$1.00 off any Reach floss
$2.00 off renu fresh or renu sensitive multi purpose solution
$2.00 off Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine blow dry perfector kit
$1.00 off select Listerine mouthwash sizes
$2.00 off 2 Nivea lip care

Hasbro Games:
$4.00 off Electronic Scrabble
$3.00 off Connect 4
$4.00 off Monopoly Electronic Banking game
$3.00 off Elefun game
$3.00 off Sorry! Sliders game
$3.00 off Cuponk game
$3.00 off Operation game
$3.00 off Bop it game
$3.00 off Gator Golf
$3.00 off Bop it! Bounce game

Food:
$0.55 Ball park product
$0.25 Hungry Jack pouch
$0.50 Parkay product
$0.55 Wonder loaf
$1.00 Sara Lee Deli
B2G1 Athenos Greek Yogurt

Household:
$1.00 12 pack or larger Scott bath tissue
$1.00 4 pack Scott naturals
$1.00 Comet bath spray or cream
$0.25 Comet powder
$1.00 (2) Glade fabric air and odor eliminators

And others!

What I bought for $0.98 OOP

2011-04-20T18:37:00.003-04:00

2 Bottles of Listerine

5 Reach toothbrushes

6 Reach dental floss

Total price of items: $42.35

Total OOP: $0.98

That is a 98% savings using no ECBs

I got all of the items for free, and only had to pay sales tax.

This week at CVS select products are on sale 5/$5
(you do not have to buy all 5 to get the discount)

I used 6 $1/1 floss coupons, 2 $2/2 toothbrush coupons, 1 $1/1 toothbrush coupon, and 1 $2/2 listerine coupon! (Many of these coupons can be found at Coupons.com)

Hoarders and Extreme Couponing

2011-04-20T14:59:00.002-04:00

Hoarder's Room

Have you ever seen the show Hoarders?

What about Extreme Couponing?

If you've seen both shows, you may know where I'm going with this.

Now I am definitely pro-couponing, as I have obviously evidenced with the creation of this blog. But sometimes when I come home from a couponing haul, I start to feel like a hoarder instead of a couponer just saving money.

Sometimes it seems like couponers are just organized hoarders.

Extreme Couponing Stockpile

In all honesty, I'm sure there is a little bit of the same emotions behind both for many people. There is this sense that the future is uncertain, and by holding onto our things that we can prepare for the future and find security in knowing that we will at least have all of the things or food that we might need were anything bad to happen.

But isn't there also a burden to having so much "stuff"? While it may feel good to know you have enough toothpaste and cereal saved for the next three years, where is the line between stewardship and faithlessness? Where is the line at which these good intentions go wrong?

Lately I have felt challenged to hold my possessions with a loose hand instead of a tight fist. Wouldn't it feel better to keep couponing, get the joy and the thrill of a good deal, but then add to that the joy of giving it away to those who can't afford to spend even the small out-of-pocket amount you spent?

At Christmastime, wouldn't you love to be able to fill five boxes for Operation Christmas Child with the amount of money that you used to spend on just one box? When a collection comes around to donate supplies to a work team or to your camp or church, wouldn't you love to be able to give 5x what you used to? That is what this is all about.

It's not all about security, it's not all about having more money to spend on yourself, and it's not all about holding onto your possessions with a tight fist. Yes, the Bible does talk about storing up food like ants for when the cold weather comes (Proverbs 30:25), but these creatures live in community and store up for one another and work together.

I'm not sure exactly where this tug on my heart is taking me quite yet, but I have a couple of ideas. I will keep you all up to date as it all becomes a little more clear to me how this is going to play out in my own life. For now, I challenge you to consider the motives of your heart. Decide what stewardship means to you, and we'll go on this journey together and see where it takes us.

No coupon inserts next week 4/24.

2011-04-20T12:57:00.002-04:00

Sunday Coupon Preview has announced that there are no coupon inserts in next Sunday's paper! Now before you get too upset, there is something that you can do! First of all, you can still purchase a paper if you like getting the paper ads. If you want to save some money, though, I will be posting where you can find all of the ads online.
If you need your coupon fix: Print online!

Remember, there are always the online pages you can go to to print coupons if you like to add to your collection every week. Red Plum, SmartSource, and Coupons.com are great places to go. In addition to that, search for coupons for products that you like! Often I will search the Dove, Ban, Neutrogena, U by Kotex, and other websites just to find their promotional coupons.

If you find your coupon holder overflowing: Hope for great deals this week!
A lot of weeks I find myself clipping great coupons, but getting no good deals in the paper. Maybe this will be a week that we can use some of those coupons for great products that we've been clipping but haven't been able to use! Stay posted, this week I'm going to list any great deals that I find.

Still are missing your scissors?: Maybe this is the week to order your All You subscription!
If you can't wait for your first one to come in the mail, head out to Walmart! Magazines at Walmart are 10% off, so you can get lots of great coupons for just $2.25, and a great magazine to read too!

Sunday shopping! 4/17

2011-04-17T18:17:00.003-04:00

Today I got these items at Meijer and Walgreens.

I also got a 6 pack of Scott paper towels that are not pictured.

Totals:

Total Price of Items: $41.78

OOP: $9.20

RR back: $4

Total trip value: $5.20

Deal Breakdowns:

Walgreens:

Scott paper towels were priced at $5/6 rolls

-$2.50 mfr coupon from Walgreens Catalina ($2.50)

-$1.00 Walgreens store coupon

= $1.25

2 Colgate 360 toothbrushes

on sale 2/$6

-2 $1.00 mfr coupons (from March All You)

-4 RR back

= free!

Head & Shoulders

On sale BOGO 1/2 off

-1 BOGO free manufacturer coupon

= $2.75 for 2

Total price of items: $24.31

Manufacturer coupon savings: $15.99

Wag advertised savings: $3.73

= $4.59

+4 RR back = $0.59 trip value!
that's an 82% savings!

Meijer:

Ban deoderant: $2.82 x 4 = $11.28

- BOGO free = $5.64

- 4 $1.00 mfr coupons (found attached to deoderant) = $1.64

or $0.41 each!

Lysol 4-in-1 All Purpose Cleaner

2 @ 3/$5.00 = $3.34

- $1 off 2 mfr coupon

= $1.17 each!

Total Savings = $12.86! or 74%

4/17 meijer preview

2011-04-15T14:35:00.000-04:00

4/17 Smartsource Preview!

2011-04-15T13:23:00.000-04:00

4-17 CVS Preview!

2011-04-14T13:07:00.000-04:00

4-17 Redplum Preview!

2011-04-14T13:03:00.000-04:00

sunday at walgreens!

2011-04-10T16:11:00.001-04:00

Total price of items: $32.69
Total advertised savings: $8.79
Total coupon savings (including $6RR): $16.97
Total OOP: $6.93
Total RR back: $6
Total trip value: $0.93!
Total OOP savings percentage: 79%!

4/10 Walgreens & Meijer Previews

2011-04-08T17:23:00.000-04:00

4/10 Smartsource Preview!

2011-04-07T22:25:00.002-04:00

CVS run 4/7

2011-04-07T22:14:00.002-04:00

I found a couple more deals at CVS this week and ran right over to get them!

John Frieda Collection root awakening shampoo and conditioner

Two G-U-M eez-thru flossers packages

Total price of items: $21.34

- 2 John Frieda mfr coupons x $2 = $17.34

- sale price discounts ($6.36) = $10.98

- previous ECBs = ($6.00) = $4.98

Total OOP: $4.98

Total ECB back: $5

Total trip value: $-0.02

what deals are you all out there getting?

week of 4/10 CVS ad!

2011-04-07T11:34:00.000-04:00

meijer super saturday sale 4/9

2011-04-07T11:17:00.000-04:00

Click the image for a link to the ad for this Saturday's savings!

great walgreens U by Kotex deal!

2011-04-06T13:21:00.002-04:00

This week at Walgreens, select U by Kotex products (18pk tampons, 50-60pk liners, and 14-18pk pads) are on sale 2/$7 with 3RR back. Combine this with two $1 printout coupons found here to get two boxes for $1 each! (To print out two coupons, just hit the back button on your browser after the first prints). Remember, this is a great opportunity to use your other RRs to cover the OOP expense and pay little to nothing! Just remember that if you use your RRs you will have to have a cheap filler item. Keep reading to see how my deal looked--

Original price: $4.79 x 2 = $9.58

Sale price: 2/$7

-2 mfr coupons @1.00 each = 2/$5

+3 RR back = $1.00 each!
Total OOP: $2.76
RR Back: $3
Total Trip value: -$0.24

I rolled over one of my Colgate $3 RRs from this week, so I had to purchase a filler item. The cheapest thing I could find was $0.25 sale price silly bands you see sitting on top of the boxes. This made my total savings from this trip to Walgreens $11.32!

4/10 Red Plum preview!

2011-04-06T13:07:00.000-04:00

couponing in six steps.

2011-04-06T01:32:00.000-04:00

Here are the quick and easy steps to couponing if you don't want to read through the whole long blog posts and read from each individual store. Maybe if you look and learn here first you can get the easy tools to be able to figure out all of the more specific details later. Go to the lingo page for any words or abbreviations you don't know.

1. Buy a Sunday newspaper. Maybe two or three if you like the coupons.

2. Look in the ads for deals. Find items that are a certain percentage off, BOGO, or that offer rewards back for purchasing the certain items.

3. Find coupons that match up for the products found from #2.

4. Go to the store and buy the items that are inexpensive or even money makers.

5. Stack all the deals and coupons you can so that you can have the least OOP possible. Remember at Walgreens you cannot have any more manufacturer coupons than you have items in your order. Register Rewards count as manufacturer coupons.

6. "Roll over" RRs and ECBs from week to week, to limit your OOP as much as possible. (Use your RRs and ECBs to buy items that offer back RRs and ECBs)

Remember, even though this is the basic premise, each store has more specific details. Those can all be found in the page tabs above.

"why do you need all this stuff?"

2011-04-05T19:43:00.001-04:00

Sitting in the student center at school, a girl I know came up to me and said she read my latest blog post. We started into a conversation about the merits of couponing, and what you have to do to get started when she asked, "But why do you need all of this stuff? What are you going to do with five tubes of toothpaste?" I started to answer her but then realized that others may have this question as well, and my answer is two-part.

First, the concept behind stockpiling is that you buy things now at a cheaper price, so that you never have to pay full price for items that you will use anyways. Would you rather get toothpaste for free this week, or possibly even make money on it, or would you rather pay anywhere from $2 to $5 for it a month from now when you run out?

Second, couponing is a great way to give back. By using wisdom in how we spend our money and make our purchases, we can give even more to others. What I can get with $5 couponing to donate to a homeless shelter or to my church is so much more that what I can get going into a store, even a discount store, and paying full price. Just because you have more than enough of an item isn't an excuse to not buy a great deal and give to those who have less than us.

Basically, it all boils down to this. Couponing is learning to be wise with the money that we spend. Just as the tagline to my blog says, "how to live richly by spending wisely." Our money goes farther and can be put toward even greater uses when we learn the techniques of couponing and stockpiling. So get out there and build up your stockpiles so that you, too, can earn money buying way too much toothpaste so that you can give to those who need it more than you.

this week's deals.

2011-04-05T17:12:00.001-04:00

sorry to have left you a couple days into the week without a post! i actually drove home for my graduate school interview, so life has been busy and hectic. but of course i still had time to clip my coupons and run out to the stores. here are the deals i got at CVS and Walgreens this week!


all of the items i got this week

Totals:                                                               Total price of items: $70.79
2 Crest Pro-Health toothpastes                         OOP: $11.90
2 Colgate 6.0 oz (MaxWhite & MaxClean)     RRs and ECB back: $16.99
1 Colgate Pro-Clinical                                    Total trip value: $-5.09!
2 Pantene conditioner & 2 shampoo               = 84% OOP Savings
3 Dawn dish soap
1 Complete contact lens solution
2 Oral-B 3D white toothbrushes


CVS: 2 transactions

Here's the breakdown on the CVS deal:
For the first transaction, I got the toothpaste, brushes, and Pantene.
Pantene was on sale for 2/6.97
-2 mfr coupons @$1.50 each = $3.97
ECB back = $2
= $0.98 each!

Crest ProHealth Clinical toothpaste was on sale for $3.49
x2 = $6.98
-2 mfr coupons @ $1.00 each = $4.98
ECB back = $4.98
= free!

Oral-B Toothbrushes were on sale for $2.99
x2 = $5.98
-2 mfr coupons @2.00 each = $1.98
ECB back = $1.98
= free!

In total I had $8.50 ECB to roll over to cover the initial OOP for the items above, so my total OOP on sales tax and overage was $3.79. I also got back $9 total in ECB.

Transaction #2:

Complete contact solution was on sale for $8.99 ($1 savings)

- 1 mfr coupon @$1.00 = $7.99

ECB = $8.99

= $1.00 money maker!

Walgreens: 2 transactions

Next I went to Walgreens, and used two transactions so that I could get the Colgate RRs twice. This only works at Walgreens because they don't track what you buy by using a rewards card. (The prices below do not entirely reflect my OOP because I had $4 RRs on the first transaction and $2 RRs on the second)

Here's the breakdown of the Walgreen's deal:

Transaction one:

3 Dawn dish soap ($5.97)

On sale for $0.99 (x3 = 2.97)

-3 mfr coupons x $0.25 = 2.22

= $0.74 each!

Pantene Conditioner and Shampoo

On sale at 2/$7

-2 mfr coupons x $1.00 = $5

RR back = $2

= $1.50 each!

1 Colgate Max Toothpaste

On sale for $2.99

-1 mfr coupon x $0.75 = $2.24

RR back = $0.75 money maker!

1 Colgate ProClinical

On clearance for $1.29

-1 mfr coupon x $0.75 = $0.54!

I then used some of my RRs that I got in the first transaction to cover some of the OOP for the second transaction:

1 Colgate MaxWhite

On sale for $2.99

-1 mfr coupon x $0.75 = $2.24

RR back = $0.75 money maker!

4/3 meijer ad preview

2011-04-02T01:35:00.000-04:00

click the image to see the 4/3 meijer ad preview!

week of 4/3 ad sneak peeks!

2011-03-31T22:59:00.002-04:00

For those of you like me who don't like waiting until Sunday to see the ads...

check out these links to CVS and Walgreens for next week!

smartsource 4/3 coupon preview

2011-03-31T02:24:00.001-04:00

click the link to see the smartsource coupons coming this sunday!

taylor's shopping trip

2011-03-30T23:27:00.005-04:00

My friend Taylor who I recently taught to coupon went out to the stores today and this is what she got. She shopped at CVS, Kmart, Walgreens, and Meijer to get all of these items

Total price of items: $78.44

Total sale price savings: $10.36

Total coupon savings (including in-store and manufacturer): $49.58

Total OOP (with sales tax): $21.74

RRs & ECB back: $15

Total trip value: $6.74!

That's a before-RR&ECB savings of 73% and after-RR&ECB savings of 86%!!!

My favorite part of her deal:

Physicians Formula had a ECB running at CVS for buy any makeup item, get $7ECB back.

Well, Taylor bought this concealer for $5.99, and got paid $1 to take it from CVS!

k-mart trip!

2011-03-30T23:14:00.001-04:00

This week kmart has a super value coupon for its Shop Your Way Rewards members (this is just one of those value cards you can sign up for in the store). The coupon is BOGO free for all selected Infusium, Pert, Got2B, LA Looks, or Dep2 shampoo, conditioner, stylers or treatments.

I separated these deals into two transactions so that the "get one free" would take off one of the Infusiums and one of the got2bs (instead of 2 got2bs because they are the cheaper items)

Here's the deal I got:
Infusium: $7.29 (x2 = $14.58)
BOGO free: $7.29
-$5.00 off coupon from All You
= $2.80 out of pocket (with sales tax) or $1.40 each!

got2b: $5.49 (x2 = $10.98)
BOGO free: $5.49
-2 x$2 off coupons from All You
= $1.87 out of pocket (with sales tax) or $0.94 each!

vistaprint.

2011-03-30T14:15:00.001-04:00

I love this company! I have been ordering a lot of the paper items for my wedding from here. They're great about letting you edit their designs, and I haven't found better prices anywhere. I've ordered postcards, stickers, return address labels, envelopes, business cards, and so many other things!

A lot of the time you can get free shipping too!

Dove printable men's coupons!

2011-03-30T00:53:00.005-04:00

Go here to Dove's website to find these coupons and print!

find one more men's printable here!

or for the women, here's a free sample!

walmart.

2011-03-29T23:00:00.004-04:00

There are just a few things that are unique about Walmart's coupon policy. They do not offer any Catalinas, special rewards, or bucks back. If you want to read the full coupon policy, you can find a pdf download here.

If you don't want to read the whole policy, or may get confused and not understand some of it, I am going to give a rundown on some of the highlights of the policy.

What kind of coupons does Walmart take?

1. All clipped manufacturer's coupons that say "Manufacturer's Coupon" on them, have a valid remit address, a scannable bar code, and a valid expiration date.

2. Internet coupons that say "Manufacturer's Coupon" on them, have a valid remit address, a scannable bar code, and a valid expiration date. Any printed BOGO coupons must have a specified price on them.

3. Other store's Catalina Coupons for dollar/cents off of a specific item (Not RRs or ECBs). Must say "Manufacturer Coupon" with specific item requirements, a valid remit address, a scannable bar code, and a valid expiration date.

4. Competitor's in-store coupons for a specific item at a specific price, with a valid expiration date. BOGO coupons must have a specific price listed.

5. Bottle cap coupons.

So I can't use my ECBs and RRs at Walmart, even though they say they take Catalinas? Walmart does not accept these coupons. It is still possible to get deals at Walmart with Catalinas though, because a $1.50 off (of a specific item) coupon may go further at Walmart than, for example, Meijer (The same item may cost more at Meijer).

What other coupon deals does Walmart not take? Walmart does not double or triple coupons, take percentage off coupons, BOGO coupons without a specified price amount on them, or printed Internet coupons that require no purchase (getting an item for free).

Will Walmart allow overage on coupons? YES! They also now say in their policy that any overage will apply to the other items in your cart or will be refunded to you.

As a note--this policy has just recently been updated, so if you want to use any coupons from other retailers or receive overage, i would suggest you print out the coupon policy and take it with you.

meijer.

2011-03-29T17:21:00.003-04:00

Here's another lesson about how to coupon at a great store! Remember the different kinds of deals you can get (stacking coupons on top of advertised savings, or pairing coupons with clearance items). In addition to that, Meijer has their own special program! Keep reading after the mperks program to read about Meijer Catalinas.

One of the best things to know about Meijer is their mperks program that you can sign up with through your cell phone. This is their online program that enables you to clip Meijer in-store coupons that you can stack with manufacturer's coupons to get great deals! From time to time they also have some coupons for fresh produce, $$ off your general merchandise order, and % off your order coupons!

Here's what you do:

1. Go here and sign up using your cell phone number.

2. Once you have signed up and signed in, browse through the pages of coupons to select the coupons that you think you may use (You don't have to print anything, so sometimes I just go through and select every coupon!)

3. Once you have clipped your coupons, you can click on the blue "Your Clipped Coupons" button to see what you have selected.

4. If you would like a print-out of your coupons, you can select the blue "Print Your Coupon List" button.

How to redeem your coupons:

Click here to see instructions with images for how to redeem your coupons at the register.

1. At the register, before you insert any money, choose the mperks button at the bottom of the screen.

2. Input the cell phone number that you used to clip the coupons.

3. Your coupon amounts should instantly come off of qualifying items!

Frequently asked questions:

1. Can I use mperks coupons more than once? No, these coupons are only redeemable once.

2. Can I use mperks coupons on multiple items in the same transaction? No, the coupon amount will only come off once for the listed amount of a product.

3. Will Meijer use my cell phone number to text me? Yes, but in my personal use of the program I have received very few texts, and the texts that I have received I have appreciated (One text told me to go clip a coupon that was $5 off any item $5 or more, and I got a set of measuring cups I had been looking at for a while!)

4. How often does Meijer post new coupons? Coupons are posted weekly, and refreshed on Mondays.

Meijer Catalinas.
Meijer doesn't have as many Catalinas as places like CVS or Walgreens, but they do have their own deals from week to week that show up. Go to Saving Addiction's list of Meijer Catalinas to see what special deals are running each week.

Just in case you have any more questions, you can look to the bottom of this page to see Meijer's full coupon policy.

P&G Coupon Preview!

2011-03-29T16:14:00.000-04:00

This coming Sunday's paper will have a P&G insert--my favorite!

Click the image below to see what great coupons will be coming in the 4-3 paper

tips and tricks.

2011-03-29T00:41:00.000-04:00

1. For those of you who love magazines--buy them on Amazon! You can get subscriptions for a fraction of the price you can even on the subscription cards. Remember All You subscriptions to get great money saving tips and awesome high value coupons!

2. At Walgreens--remember, you have to have at least one item per manufacturer's coupon that you use (Register Rewards count as manufacturer's coupons). If you have too many items, purchase a simple filler item!

3. Print coupons online at Redplum.com, Coupons.com, and Smartsource.com

4. Never let the cash register get to a negative amount! Always pay something out of pocket. This is just simple etiquette, so that the stores aren't paying us to take their items.

5. The front page of any ad contain some deals that the store will actually lose money on to sell to you--these are generally your best stock-up prices. This is helpful when buying items like paper towels and toilet paper. When they appear on the front of the ad, pull out your coupons and stock up!

6. Watch the clearance racks! You can get great deals by adding your coupons to these items, and pay little to nothing out of pocket.

7. Never photocopy online printable coupons! The store will not get reimbursed for these items, because the coupons do not have unique bar codes.

8. Stack in-store coupons with manufacturer's coupons on the same item--sometimes you can even get overage and even make money on these deals!

9. If you think you have too much in your stockpile, but see a great deal, DONATE! Homeless shelters, your church, different local ministries--all of these are places that can make sure that toiletries and other items get to people that need them.

10. Start small, one store at a time. Get the hang of one place, one type of deal, one transaction at a time. You'll catch on in no time.

great Meijer deal!

2011-03-28T00:53:00.000-04:00

Go here to print a $1 off one package of U by kotex, and use at Meijer this week!

They are on markdown for $1.03, so you can get this item for 3 cents plus sales tax!
This is a great first deal to help you get the hang of couponing.

The deal gets even better!
This week a Catalina deal is running at Meijer:
Buy 2 U Kotex products get $1 OYNO
Buy 3 U Kotex products get $2 OYNO
Buy 4 U Kotex products get $3 OYNO

cvs deal.

2011-03-27T22:30:00.000-04:00

For this deal, I made my purchases in two transactions in order to save money by using EBs that I got from the first transaction to use on the second.
First Transaction:

Halls Cough Drops: $1.99 (x2 = $3.98)
Sale Price: $1.87 (x2 = $3.74)
- 2 $0.50 coupons ($2.74)                        I used $5 RR that I had from a previous trip to
Price after ECB: $0.74                             cover the OOP on these items.
                                                                  Original Price of Items: $8.22
Skintimate Shaving Gel: $3.49             Total Coupon Savings: $1.55
- 1 $0.55 coupon: $2.94                         Total Advertised Savings: $0.24
Price after ECB: $0.44                            Total spent OOP: $0.88
                                                            Total ECB Back: $4.50
Second Transaction:

For the second transaction, I used the $4.50 ECB I got on the first transaction.
Clean&Clear: $4.99 (x2 = $9.98)
Sale Price: $2.99 (x2 = $5.98)
-2 $2 coupons: $1.98

Physicians Formula Mascara: $9.99
ECB Received: $7.00
Amount after Rebate (Found on Mascara tube): -$7.00 money maker!

Original price of items: $19.97
Total sale advertisement savings: $4.00
Total coupon savings: $4.00
Total ECB savings: $7.00
Total Rebate savings: $9.99
Total trip value: $-5.02

meijer deal.

2011-03-27T22:01:00.000-04:00

This week at Meijer Ponds products are BOGO Free
Here's the deal I got:

Original Price: $5.39 (x2 = $10.78)

Price After Free Item: $5.39

-2 $1.00 coupons: $3.39

walgreens deal.

2011-03-27T21:53:00.000-04:00

(2)

(3)

(4)

This is the deal I got at Walgreens this week! Look below (1) to see all of the items that I purchased. The three images to the right will show what deals from the ad that I used, and what coupons I paired with them.

Here's a breakdown of the deal:

Bic Soleil Razors: $5.99 each (x2 = 11.99)
BOGO 1/2 off: $8.99
- 2 $3 coupons: $2.99 (print here)

Colgate Total: On sale for 2/$6
-2 $1 coupons $4.00
-RR ($4.00) = $0.00

Ban Deoderant: On sale for $1.49 (x3 = $4.47)
-3 $0.75 coupons: $2.22

In order to use all of the coupons I had and the $5RR I wanted to use on my order, I had to purchase a filler item. This week I bought the Scotch envelopes because I use them to ship my Amazon orders and they were on sale for $0.99.

(1)

Original price of items: $34.35
Total Walgreens in-store coupon savings: $2.50
Total Walgreens sale advertisement savings: $9.98
Total coupon savings: $15.25
Total amount spent out of pocket (with tax): $6.62
RR back: $4.00
Total trip value: $2.62

what to do on sunday!

2011-03-27T12:27:00.000-04:00

Sunday is coupon day! Anyone who wants to try to start getting some deals, start now! Here are the steps that you should take.

1. Go buy a paper! You can get them at gas stations, Walmart, Meijer, drug stores, or anywhere else with a news stand. Remember--for those in multiple-person households, buy one paper per person in your household. For others of you, buy one paper and look through it. If you find that the coupons are high value or things that you think you might buy, go ahead and buy a second or third paper. Sometimes to get better deals, you may need multiples of a coupon (Buy One Get One Free deals, for example). Or, if there is an especially good deal, you just may want to get the deal more than once!

2. What will I find in the paper? There are two things in the paper that you need to be aware of for couponing. The first is the store ad inserts. The ones I usually pay most attention to are Walgreens and CVS. The previous two posts (CVS and Walgreens) will tell you how to shop at these two drug stores. I also will look in other ads (Target, Walmart, Meijer...all depending on the area you live in) to see if any specials or sales will match up well with my coupons. These stores do not have any special savings like ExtraBucks or Register Rewards, so couponing there just involves matching sales with manufacturer and store coupons.

In the paper you will also find any of four coupon inserts. The four coupon inserts are as follows:

1. Smart Source (SS)
2. Red Plum (RP)
3. General Mills (GM)
4. Proctor and Gamble (PG)

Not every insert is in every Sunday paper. PG inserts usually come out around the first Sunday of every month. SS and RP are the most common inserts, and appear in nearly every paper except for around holidays. GM has the fewest inserts, and it is harder to guess when they will be in the papers.

3. I have my paper--what do I do now? I usually start with the coupon inserts so I know what to look for when I go through the ads. Especially for those of you who are just starting out, these and any coupons you print online (find places to print coupons online here under #1 "Where to find coupons") are all that you are going to have for now to find deals. After looking through the coupon inserts to know what is there, go through the ads for the stores. Look especially at RRs and ExtraBucks, BOGO (Buy One Get One) sales, and other markdowns. See what products you use have deals and coupons to match. Then go to the store and get those deals!

4. What do I do if I get a really good coupon but there isn't any deals in the ad for that product? Hold onto your coupon! Don't get so excited to use your coupons that you go to the drug stores when there isn't a sale. Usually you will end up paying more than if you just bought the item full price at a cheaper store like Walmart. Odds are that the item will go on sale sometime before your coupon expires. If it doesn't go on sale before the coupon expires and the coupon is for an item that you need, find whichever store carries the item for the cheapest and purchase it there. Another option is to use your RRs and ExtraBucks to purchase the item.

5. Try to have fun! Don't get too overwhelmed if your deals don't work out. Some weeks there just aren't any good deals on items that you really want. Hold onto your coupons, and try something next week.

If I find any good deals today, I will post them and let you see how it works, or some other options of some deals that you can try.

cvs.

2011-03-26T20:51:00.000-04:00

The first thing to know about shopping at CVS is that you need to sign up to get one of their ExtraCare Cards. This card is just like one of those savings cards you sign up for at the grocery store, and will be your best friend in helping you to get lots of deals. You can sign up for it and receive one instantly in the store, or you can go here to read some overview and FAQs and create an online account to have them mail you an ExtraCare card.

1. What does the ExtraCare card do? Your ExtraCare card enables you to get the deals that you see in the weekly ad. It also tracks what deals that you have gotten that week, so that you can not go over the posted limit. It also enables you to get ExtraBucks.

This picture may be hard to read, but this is the bottom of my receipt. It lists the YTD savings vs. Spendings, and then your status on the different deals that appear in each weekly ad. Your ExtraCare card tracks all of these deals. The receipt will show when you have reached the limit on a certain deal, or how much more you need to spend on a certain item until you reach the ExtraBucks reward level.

(2)

2. What are ExtraBucks? ExtraBucks are a coupon that prints out on the bottom of your receipt. There are two types of ExtraBucks deals: (1) Spend a certain $ amount and receive a certain $ of ExtraBucks or (2) Purchase a certain item and receive the listed $ of ExtraBucks back. These pictures show what ExtraBucks ads look like.

(1)

For ExtraBucks deals like (1), the amount spent needs to be the amount you pay after coupons. This doesn't mean that you shouldn't use your coupons, but that you should use your coupons and buy more items if you want to do one of these deals.

What is nice about CVS ExtraBucks, is that since your card tracks how much of a certain item you have purchased, you do not have to purchase all of the items in the same trip.

3. When do ExtraBucks expire? ExtraBucks expire four weeks from the day that you print them.

4. What if I don't want to spend all of my ExtraBucks in one transaction? All ExtraBucks must be spent in a single transaction, or you will have to forfeit the amount that you do not spend.

5. Can I get ExtraBucks past the limit stated in the ads? Since your ExtraCare card tracks how much of each deal you purchase, you can only purchase up to the limit stated. You will not receive any ExtraBucks for items that you purchase beyond the limit.

6. What else can my ExtraCare card do? One of the fun things that ExtraCare cards can be used to do is print out extra in-store coupons. At every CVS (usually in the front) you will find a red kiosk that, when you scan your ExtraCare card, will print out extra in-store coupons. These vary based on person to person and are different each day when you go into the store.

ExtraBucks printed at the bottom of a receipt

7. What kind of coupons can I use at CVS? You can use ExtraBucks, manufacturer coupons, and in-store coupons at CVS. For any individual item, you can use (1) manufacturer's coupon and (1) in-store coupon, up to the value of the item. Any coupons that go above the value of the item will be marked down, you cannot get any overage (If you have a $2 coupon for an item that is only $1.50, the coupon will need to be adjusted down). For ExtraBucks and in-store coupons, you must only use those printed out that were issued to your own card, or the register will beep and the coupon will not go through.

8. Do ExtraBucks count as coupons? At CVS, ExtraBucks are redeemed more like a gift card than a coupon. You can use as many of them as your transaction allows, and do not have to purchase "filler" items.

9. How many coupons can I use on Buy One Get One Free deals? You can use up to two coupons (one per item). If you have a manufacturer's coupon that is a Buy One Get One Free, you can also use that and receive both items for free!

10. What do I do if my Internet coupon will not scan? CVS will not allow manual overwrites for Internet coupons that do not scan. This is a part of their coupon policy to avoid coupon fraud.

Remember, the best deals come when you combine deals that you find in the ad with manufacturer coupons and other in-store coupons. Getting ExtraBucks and using them to get more ExtraBucks is also a great way to save money at CVS.

Start small! Don't get overwhelmed, and don't try to do too much on your first CVS trip. Get a couple of deals, get the hang of it, and you'll learn in no time.

walgreens.

2011-03-26T18:12:00.000-04:00

So here we go--our first post about how to coupon at a specific store. You may want to start here by reading their coupon policy, and then I'll help flush out some of the finer points.

1. Reading the ads. When you get a Walgreens ad in the Sunday paper, there are several things that you are going to see. You will see Walgreens store coupons that can be cut out and used, sales and weekly specials, and indications of what items and amounts to purchase will get you Register Rewards. The most important thing to do when reading the ads is to remember what coupons you have, and how they can match up to the deals that are in the ad.

In-Ad Coupons

Weekly Special Example

2. Kinds of coupons. There are three kinds of coupons you can use at Walgreens. Regular, manufacturer coupons (found in Sunday papers, magazines, etc.) Walgreens store coupons (found in the ads, in the pamphlets at the entrance to the store, at the beauty counter, etc.) and Register Rewards (RRs).

3. How many coupons can I use per purchase? You may use up to (1) Manufacturer coupon and (1) Walgreens store coupon per item that you purchase. Register Rewards are technically manufacturer coupons (look to #8 for more information).
*An important note here--When giving the cashier your coupons, give the manufacturer coupons first, then Walgreens store coupons. The reason why is the cash registers do not like "overage" or coupons that cost more than the price of the item, but if you give the manufacturer coupon first and the store coupon second, the coupons should go through just fine.

4. So what are Register Rewards exactly? The technical term for register rewards is a Catalina, which is the brand of machine that they print out from. These are those little grey machines you may see up at the cash register, that spit out coupons or in-store deals. Walgreens will run specials each week in their ad that if you buy a certain amount of a product (a dollar amount or number of items of a certain brand, or sometimes just one certain advertised product) you will get a coupon that you can use on anything in the store. These usually expire within two weeks, so make sure to spend them before they expire! (The picture below is my most recent RR!)

5. What can Register Rewards be used to purchase? Anything in the store (with a few exceptions such as prescripions and gift cards). Besides those few restrictions, they can be used just like cash.

6. Are there any tricks to the Register Rewards? Sometimes you may be tempted to buy an item, get the RRs, and then turn around and buy the product again using the RR you just got to get more RRs. This is called "rolling." For example, if you get a $2 RR on Colgate toothpaste, you cannot use that RR to pay for another bottle of toothpaste, or another RR will not print out. However, if you use RR from one product to buy another product that gives RRs, those will print out. Sometimes RRs will not roll on items from the same company, for example, buying multiple P&G company items (You can see all items that are from the P&G company here).

Another trick for RRs at Walgreens is that when the ad says something like "Buy $20 worth of Dove products and receive $10RR," you can actually use coupons to spend less than $20. The registers will calculate how much of a certain product that you have purchased based on the price before coupons. For example, you may have 5 $4.00 items, and 5 $1.00 off coupons, pay $15.00 and get 10RR back, getting you a great deal!

7. How many Register Rewards can I get? The ad will have limits placed on how many of a certain item you can get RRs for in one trip or transaction, or the RRs will not print out. For some items, you can buy two or more, but often you can only get RRs for one of the items listed a single transaction. If you want more of the listed product, you can do multiple transactions (they may not be happy with you for this) or just come back the next day and do the deal again. Remember not to try to "roll" your register rewards.

8. What kind of a coupon are Register Rewards considered? Technically, Register Rewards are a manufacturer's coupon. This is important to remember because per Walgreen's coupon policy, the number of manufacturer's coupons used in a transaction must not be greater than the number of items that you are purchasing. So if you have a coupon for every single item that you are purchasing and want to use a RR, you need to purchasea "filler" item. Filler items can be something inexpensive such as candy, or something else that is on sale that week for very cheap that you need anyways.

9. Are Register Rewards really a good deal if I have to pay out of pocket to get them? One of the concerns you may have had when reading #5 is that you don't want to have to pay $15 to get the 10RR, you would rather just be able to get $10 off of what you are currently purchasing. There is an easy solution to this. When I start couponing, I consider one week an "investment week" if I can't get any RR deals that don't require a lot out of pocket. What you can do then is take the 10RR that you got the previous week, and spend it on, for example, two items that get you 5RR each. This way, you've doubled the power of your RRs and you don't have to pay out of pocket for the next week's items!

10. How many coupons can I use for a Buy One Get One Free Deal? You can use one coupon against each item, or two items per each buy one get one free deal, so long as the price doesn't go below the value of the item. So for the sale below, if you had 2 NatureMade coupons, you could use them both so long as they don't go below the total purchase price!

Finally--don't get overwhelmed! Don't feel like you have to be those people on TV who get $300 worth of stuff for $1. Try one small deal at a time, and as you start getting the hang of it, it will be easier to get bigger and better deals. Just take it one step at a time, and you'll catch on.

types of deals.

2011-03-24T15:50:00.000-04:00

Before I get into teaching you all to shop at the individual stores, I'm going to make an attempt at explaining the different types of deals that you can get. This may start to get a little murky, so please feel free to ask questions!

One tip before I get started--when you start collecting your coupons, it can get a little confusing trying to hold onto them all. One great way to do this is to get a coupon organizer. You can buy these at Walmart or other stores like that, but if you can't find them there, you can always order on Amazon (Find cute ones here or a more simple version here with pockets that you can label however you want!). My housemate bought two coupon organizers, one for her food coupons and one for her other items. My organizer has sections like hair products, body wash, teeth products, face products, medicine, etc.

1. Markdown items + coupons. One easy way to get a good price on an item is to take your organized coupons with you to the store and check the markdown racks to see how much more you can get off of items that have been reduced in price! For example, at Walgreens right now Colgate Pro Clinical is reduced for $1.29. Coupling that with a $0.50 or even a $1 coupon could get you cheap toothpaste!

2. Coupling manufacturer coupons + store coupons. I actually just got a deal like this. On a given item, if you have a store coupon AND a manufacturer coupon, you can use both! (Look back to my last post to see what the difference is. For example, at Walgreens right now if you go to the beauty counter and pick up the Spring Beauty Guide you can find a coupon for $2 off of an Almay product. In the 3/7 newspaper, there was also a $2 off Almay coupon. This will get you $4 off one product! (Keep reading..my deal on the Almay got even better).

3. Register Rewards (Walgreens) and ExtraCare (CVS) coupons. These are coupons that run as specials that you can find in the ads each week. If you have a RiteAid or other similar stores in your area, they probably have their own version of these programs. Each week these deals are different, but the basic premise is that if you buy a certain amount of a given product, after you pay a coupon will print out at the register that you can use on your next trip to the store. I will give more specific details about how these work in upcoming posts. For example, on my Almay deal, Walgreens was running a special that if you buy any one Almay product, they will give you $5 in Register Rewards back!

4. Other sales and weekly specials. Oftentimes, stores will run specials. These will look like getting a certain percentage (%) off, buy one get one free (BOGO), buy one get one 50% off, or sometimes they will just offer a markdown of a certain dollar amount off per item. Often coupling these sorts of deals with coupons can get you a great price, especially if items are in a BOGO or BOGO half off sort of deal.

So here's the run-down on the deal I got today!

Almay Makeup Remover Towlettes

Original price of towlettes: $5.89

Sale price of towlettes: $4.19

Price after in-store coupon: $2.19

Price after manufacturer coupon: $0.19

Total out-of-pocket (with tax): $0.48

Total Trip Value: $-4.52!

coupon basics.

2011-03-23T21:55:00.000-04:00

1. Where to get coupons
The Sunday paper: The Sunday paper is where I get the majority of my coupons. On days where there are high value (A dollar or more) coupons, or coupons for products I really like, I may buy two or three papers. The people I learned to coupon from suggested that if you live in a multi-person household, to buy enough papers every week for the number of people in your household. On a good week, I buy three papers. On a bad coupon week, I usually only buy one.

All You Magazine: This is a magazine that gives money-saving tips. It also has many coupons throughout. In this month's (April) magazine, there are $75.15 worth of coupons, including several very high value coupons. Since the coupons are so good this month, I will probably go to Walmart and buy another copy (It only costs $2.25/issue at Walmart, $2.50 at other stores). I have a subscription that I purchased on Amazon.com for $20/12 months, or you can order for different numbers of months.

Online Websites: You can also download and print coupons from online websites. NEVER PHOTO COPY THESE COUPONS. There are special bar codes on each coupon, and stores will not get reimbursed for multiple coupons with the same bar code. Good websites for coupons include Redplum, SmartSource, and Coupons.com.

From Companies: Many times there will be online ads or offers that allow you to sign up to receive coupon booklets or individual coupons. One company that often does this is P&G. These coupons are especially nice because they are often high-value, and generally have longer expiration dates.

In-Store Inserts: Individual stores, especially drug stores (such as Walgreens) will have in-store coupon booklets, in-ad coupons (the ad that comes in the Sunday paper) and website coupons. Many times these can be "stacked" with manufacturer coupons. This will be explained later.

Tear Pads: Oftentimes in front of items in a store there will be a tablet of coupons that you can tear off ad use on the items.

Sticky Coupons: These are those coupons you often find attached to an item you are about to buy.

2. Stockpiling
The goal of couponing is to buy all the items you need when you can get good deals on them, so that you never have to pay full price for the things that you use on a regular basis. I cannot remember the last time I went to the store with a list of toiletries or makeup items that I needed to buy, because I regularly watch the ads and keep a stockpile of all of the things that I know I will use. When you first start couponing you will probably have to start out paying a little more for your items that you immediately need, but once you get the hang of it, you can pay little, to nothing, to actually sometimes MAKE MONEY on the items that you buy.

3. How much to spend
So how much is a good amount to spend when couponing? Well the first rule here is never buy something just because you have a coupon for it, unless it is something you would have purchased anyways. Many people get into trouble because they cut a bunch of coupons, get excited to use them, and end up spending more money instead of saving money. It is hard to say for all items what a good price is. For things like shampoo and body wash, I try to pay at the very most $1. Toothpaste I can usually get for 50 cents or less. It really just depends on what you're buying. Like I said in the last section, you may not be able to do this when you are starting out your stockpile, but as your stockpile grows larger and larger, you will be able to spend less and less on the items that you already purchase.

4. Brands
One of the things I had to learn when I began to coupon was not to get caught up in only using certain brands. Granted, for myself, there is only one kind of contact solution that my eyes can handle so I do get picky about brands for that, but otherwise, I buy whatever I can get deals on. Sometimes I may get Pantene shampoo and other times I may get Dove or Infusium--it just depends on what brands I can find on sale. If you are not picky about exactly what brands you get, you will be able to get much better deals. Oftentimes the best deals are on brand new items that come out and the manufacturer is trying to get you hooked on their product.

5. What kind of items can I coupon for?
My blog will mainly focus on items like toiletries (Shampoo, face wash, tooth paste, razors, etc.) and makeup, because those are the items I spend most of my money on. Occasionally I may give some tips about grocery shopping but I have not had to buy many groceries since I have been in college. Those are the things that I coupon for, but basically anything that shows up in ads for stores on sale that also show up as coupons will end up getting you good deals!

6. What stores will you tell us about?
The main stores I shop at are Walgreens, CVS, and Meijer. I will give more details later as to how to shop in these stores. Many of the rules will, I am sure, apply to other stores. Stores like Walmart and Target are harder to coupon at because they do not have as many weekly specials.

7. What kind of coupons are there?
There are two main kinds of coupons: store coupons and manufacturer coupons. Each store has different policies about how these can be used, but the majority of the time you can use both a store coupon and a manufacturer coupon on the same item. For example, if Walgreens has a coupon for toothpaste, and I have a coupon from the Sunday paper for that same toothpaste, I can use both coupons on the one item. (More specific store details will be listed in a later post). The difference of the two coupons is that manufacturer coupons get billed to the company, and the company reimburses the store. For example, a Colgate manufacturer coupon used at Walgreens will get sent to Colgate by Walgreens personnel, and Colgate will give Walgreens money to cover the price of that coupon. (This is why you never photocopy an online coupon...the store will not get reimbursed, and it is basically stealing from that store) Store coupons are billed to the store itself.

7. The basic idea
The basic premise of couponing is this. From the sources listed in #1 you collect as many coupons as you think you want. Then, you compare those coupons with the store ads that come in the Sunday paper. If you have coupons that you are eager to use, but there is not a sale on them in the ads--hold onto the coupon. It is likely that before the coupon expires, it will go on sale somewhere. Once you have found a coupon that matches up with a store sale, determine how much you can save through coupons and any money that the store will give you back (usually in the form of a coupon that can be used in the store within the next two weeks or so). If it is a good deal, buy it!

I hope that this all makes sense. If it doesn't, feel free to ask any questions! More info will be to come about how to coupon in specific stores, other tips and tricks, and any more deals I get in the mean time. If you ask a question other people may wonder about, your question might even get answered in a new post!

why i am here.

2011-03-23T19:35:00.000-04:00

Ever since I went to a couponing class with my soon to be mother-in-law, I have grown more and more addicted to saving money by using coupons to buy things I would have otherwise paid full-price for. Now, every time that I get a good deal I am excited to share it with others. It encourages me to be able to tell others how I use coupons to save money. That is what I hope to do with this blog--share my couponing stories and tell others how they, too, can save money using coupons.

Couponing takes time, but it is well worth the effort. I hope to encourage anyone who reads by sharing how to shop at certain stores, how to stack coupons and roll over deals, and great places to find coupons.
For now, I will start with sharing the deal I got tonight at CVS!

Purchased:   Two 4.0oz tubes Crest Pro-Health
                   One 10.3oz bottle of Dawn dish soap
                 One Suave deoderant

Total Retail Value: $13.67
Total Expense Out-Of Pocket: $3.33
Coupons Received Back: $5.00
Total Trip Value:: $-1.67

Explanation:
The Crest toothpastes each cost $4.99 ($4.99x2 = $9.98)
They were on sale for $3.99 ($7.98)
There was an additional coupon reward for buying the toothpaste of $2.50 per tube ($1.98)
On top of that, I had two $0.75 coupons ($0.48 total, $1.48 out of pocket)
*A note of explanation here about the coupon rewards--You do have to pay the $2.50 out of pocket, but if you use these coupons on items the next week that also have coupon rewards, you can "roll over" your coupon savings, and no longer have to pay it out of pocket. For this week, I had a $4 rolled over coupon reward that went toward the toothpaste.

The Dawn dish soap cost $1.69
The dish soap was on sale for $0.97
On top of that, I had a $0.25 coupon ($0.72)

The Suave deodorant cost $1.37
The deodorant was on sale for $1.00
On top of that, I had a coupon for $0.50 ($0.50)

The three green numbers plus sales tax were then the totals I paid out of pocket!
If this doesn't make sense, don't worry yet. Just keep coming back to read more and I will help explain how all of this works better!