My Strategy

Last weekend I took a trip back home to California, and while I was there my mom wanted me to help her with her couponing.

I got her a coupon file for her birthday (lame I know, but it’s what she wanted!!) and I clipped a bunch of coupons to fill it. We organized the coupons and decided the best way would be alphabetically.

I showed my mom how I prepare for a shop, and now I’m going to share it with you.

First, I gather all my coupon inserts and weekly ads together and clip all the coupons that I think I might use. I always save the inserts because I might end up using a coupon that I didn’t think I’d use when I originally clipped the coupons.

I browse through all the weekly ads for each store and circle the good buys and things that I need. If I have a coupon for it I write “coupon” next to it so I remember to match them.

The best deals are the ones where you can use both a store coupon and a manufacturer’s coupon. I always either staple or paperclip these together so I remember to use both and get the best deal!

Next, I write a quick list per store and paperclip the coupons that I want to use at each store to the list. Now, it’s pretty ridiculous to go to multiple stores to do your weekly grocery shopping, so I usually pick one store (the one with the best deals) to do my big shop at. If I happen to be in the location of another grocery store sometime throughout the week, I’ll pop in and get just what I need and leave.

Always keep your eyes peeled for sales that weren’t advertised. Earlier this week, I found my favorite crackers on sale for $1.88 with a $1 off 1 coupon attached to the box. I scored big time!!

Just by doing these simple things and taking just a few minutes to prepare for a shop, I manage to save between 40 and 60% each time I go to the store. You don’t have to be an “extreme couponer” to save money. Just take a few minutes to prepare and stay organized!

See, it takes no time to save a dime.

xoxo

Lauren

Lauren's Fabulous Finds #9

Target:

Although Target does not let you double coupons, Target does let you combine their coupon with a manufacturers coupon.

Target coupon for $1 off Metamucil. Combine this with $2 off coupon for a total of $3 off.

Target coupon for $1 off 2 Always or Tampax items. Combine this with 2 $1 off 1 pack of Always Infinity OR $1.50 off 2 Tampax OR $3 off 2 Tampax Pearl.

(All mentioned coupons were found in Sunday June 5th's coupon inserts)

Walgreens:

Walgreens has some great coupons in their June 2011 Savings Book found in store. These coupons can be combined with sales and manufacturers coupons! This book also has coupons for Walgreens brand items, which are already cheaper than name brand items.

Nature's Bounty Vitamins and Nature Made Vitamins are both buy one get one free. There is also a coupon in this week's paper for $1 off each one. You can use 2 coupons since you are buying 2 bottles. That's but one get one free, plus $2 off. 

There is a Walgreens coupon for Ban Deoderant under 2.6oz for $1.49. There are coupons in this week's circular for $.75 off the solid. (Limit 4)

Chex Mix is on sale for 3/$3.99 with an in store coupon of $.99 off 3 bags. This makes each bag $1 and I had a coupon from a while back for $1 off 2 bags. That's 3 bags of Chex Mix for $2. 

Kroger:

Hormel Chili is on sale for $0.89 each (regularly $1.29), when you buy 5 participating products. Plus there is a coupon for $0.55 off 2 cans. That makes each can only $0.62.

All Brand Detergent is on sale for $2.99. There was a coupon in this week’s circular for $1.00 off each bottle. That makes each bottle $1.99 compared to $5-$6!!

Minute Maid refrigerated cartons are again on sale for $1 each.

Trop 50 juice is on sale for $2.88. There is a coupon online at www.coupons.com for $0.50 off each, which doubles to $1 off each bottle. That brings it down to $1.88 per bottle.

Kroger also had some delicious strawberries on sale for just $1.25 for 1 lb!!

Albertsons:

I’m really liking Albertsons right now for the following reasons:

1. They have a coupon on their website where if you register you get a coupon for $5 off your next order of $25 or more. Then, you can refer up to 5 friends to register and they get the same coupon. For each friend that you refer that registers, you get an additional coupon for $5 off your next order of $25!! Those savings can really add up!!
    
2. They double coupons, including online coupons, up to $0.50 and they triple coupons, including online coupons, up to $0.39!! They do limit the amount of coupons you can use to 4 coupons per like item (Tom Thumb only allows 1 per item). That means that if you buy 5 boxes of Cheerios, you can use 4 coupons. (Make sure you check the coupon policy at your local store.)

Albertsons is having a Crazy 8’s sale from 6/1/11-6/7/11.

1-dozen large eggs $0.88

2 liter Coke/Dr. Pepper sodas $0.88

Fuze juice $0.88. Combine this with the coupon for $1 off 2 and each one will only be $0.33!!!

Knorr Rice Sides, Rice-a-Roni, Pasta Roni $0.88

Fresh Express 12oz Salads $0.98

Cherrios (and some other cereals) are on sale for 2/$3. www.coupons.com has a coupon for $0.50 off each box, which doubles to $1. That means each box of Cherrios is only $0.50!!!

Nesquik Chocolate Syrup is on sale for 2/$4. There was a coupon this week for $0.50 off 1 Nesquik product, which doubles to $1. That means each Nesquik product is just $1!

Gulden’s Mustard is on sale for 4/$5… that’s $1.25 each. There is a coupon on www.coupons.com for $0.35 off which TRIPLES to $1.05 off. That makes your grand total just $0.20!

Albertson’s circular has a coupon on the front for “Buy any 4 multi-packs of Dannon yogurt products and get a gallon of Oak Farms Milk for Free!” There are multiple coupons this week for Activia ($1 off 2 packs) and Danimals yogurt ($0.50 off 1- doubles to $1 off) that you can combine with this deal… just make sure you use as many coupons as possible and clip the coupon on the front of the circular!

Tom Thumb:

Tom Thumb is having a Mix & Match sale on over 3,000 products. You save $0.50 off each product when you buy 8 or more participating products. My favorite way to take advantage of these sales is to match every single item that I buy with a manufacturer’s coupon. This guarantees that you get the best possible price!

I can’t sit here and list every single product, but I will list some that have coupons out recently that I’ve seen:

Red Baron Pizza $3.49 + $1.00 off coupon

Pillsbury Refrigerated Breads $1.99 each + $0.40 off 2 or 3 (which doubles to $0.80)

Knorr Rice or Pasta Sides $0.75 each

Kaboom Cleaners $2.99 + $0.50 off each coupon that doubles to $1 off

All Detergent $3.49 + $1 off coupon

Cherrios $2.49 + $0.50 off coupon which doubles to $1 off

Kraft Barbeque Sauce $0.75 + $1 off each bottle (this would be a money maker, but Tom Thumb does not allow overage, but it’s still FREE)

Nature Valley Granola Bars $1.99 + $0.50 off 2 boxes which doubles to $1 off 2 boxes

Fiber One Chewy Bars $2.49 + $0.50 off 2 boxes which doubles to $1 off 2 boxes

Powerade $0.79 each

Activia 4 pack yogurts $1.49 each + $1 off 2 packs

See, it takes no time to save a dime. 

xoxo

Lauren

Lauren's Fabulous Finds #8

Normally, I never go to more than one grocery store… but since this weekend was a long weekend, I knew I’d have some extra time to go to multiple stores. I found a ton of great deals this weekend.

Albertsons:

The big size Lawry’s Seasoning Salt was buy 1, get one free. (Regularly $4.49 each). Plus, I had 2 coupons for $0.50 off one, which doubled to $1 each. So, I got 2 huge bottles of seasoning for $2.49 total. This is a savings of 72%.

Lawry’s Marinade was on sale for 2/$4, compared to $3.29 each. Plus, I had a coupon for $1 off each bottle. I got each bottle for $1. This is a savings of 70%.

Gatorade was on sale for $.79 each, compared to $1.29 each.

KC Barbeque Sauce is on sale for $0.88. There is a coupon for $1 off each bottle, and I had 2 of these coupons. The store paid me $0.12 per bottle to take it out of the store!!!

Tom Thumb now has a Super Saver Coupon for $0.88.

Minute Maid refrigerated cartons were on sale for $0.99, compared to $1.99 each.

Grande Tortilla Chips were on sale for $2, and I had a coupon for $1 off. I got them for $1 (Regularly $3.49). This is a savings of 71%.

Fuze Juice was on sale for $1 each, compared to $1.69 each. I had a coupon for $1 off 2 bottles. I got each bottle for $0.50. This is a savings of 70%.

PowerBars were on sale for $1 each. I had a coupon for buy 1, get one free. I got 4 PowerBars for $2, compared to $7.16. This is a savings of 72%.

Kroger:

Turkey Hill half gallon iced tea was on sale for $1 each (regularly $1.99). I had 2 coupons for $1 off 2-half gallons. I got 4 half-gallons for $2 total. This was a savings of 75%.

Milano cookies were on sale for 2/$4. I had a coupon for $1 off each bag. I got 3 bags for $3. This was a savings of 71%.

Rozoni Veggie Pasta is a new pasta that I’ve been looking for. It wasn’t on sale, but it was $1.99 and I had a coupon for $1 off each box. I got each box for $.99.

Walgreens:

A lot of the different makeup brands are buy 1, get the next one for 50% off. I needed new eyeliner and it just so happened that each Revlon item had a coupon for $2 off attached to the back. I got 2 eyeliners for $7.83, compared to $7.49 each!

Tom Thumb:

Rice a Roni was on sale for $1 each box.

20 oz French’s mustard was on sale for buy 1, get one free. I also had coupons that reduced the price by a total of $0.60. I got each mustard for $1.

Skippy Peanut Butter had a Super Saver Coupon for $1.69 each, which was a savings of $1.50 per jar. 

Now, you may wonder how much time it took me to find these deals... All I did was look through each store's circular and then looked through all my coupon inserts. I clipped the coupons I would need and circled the deals in the circular. It took me only a few minutes! 

When I got to the store, I browsed each aisle like I normally do and bought some other things that I either needed.

See, it takes no time to save a dime. 

xoxo

Lauren