Saturday, February 13, 2010

It Worked For Me: Stop Throwing Money in the Garbage!


It's the weekend which me means COUPON time in my house! I have been able to save SO much money couponing and matching them with the stores deals that when I share the savings with my family they think I am crazy! I am talking toothpaste and lotions for free, Kotex pads for .50 cents, coffee creamer for .50 cents and the list can go on. My sister has been begging me to teach her...well, really just tell her where to go as she claims she can't map it all out the way that I do.

So first things first...where do I find all these coupons on this little adventure/hobby of mine?

Here's what I've found so far.....

NEWSPAPER ~ I just signed up to receive our local newspaper on Sundays only. It's fairly inexpensive to do it this way, especially considering the savings I will be getting. Each Sunday there are 1, 2 or sometimes even 3 coupon inserts. In my research so far, I've heard that you should buy a newspaper for every member in your family. So, I have 6 in my family, so I should get 6 papers because that's SIX times the savings. I'm going to start out with one and ask around there may be a friend or family member who will give you their inserts if they aren't going to use them.

I also found a place where you can get a discount on your newspaper subscription, CLICK HERE to check it out. For me it is quite a bit of savings for the first 6 months and then it bumps up to normal price. Not bad!

ONLINE ~ I have found many websites that offer FREE printable coupons, but these are the ones that I've found, so far, to be the best. There are plenty more sites, but I'm trying to save myself time by going to the best ones. I will definitely be adding to this list more as I do more research.

www.coupons.com
www.redplum.com
www.smartsource.com
www.boxtops4education.com
www.retailmenot.com (Great for online promo codes)
www.upromise.com (And you save for college)

MANUFACTURER'S WEBSITES ~ This is a biggie! If there are some specific brand names that you like, go to their website and sometimes you might be surprised to find a coupon right there. Try International Delight Creamer to get a .55 cent coupon (that doubles at most grocery stores!). Also, FREE SAMPLES! Like the one that you can get from Pearl Tampax.

EBAY ~ Yes, I just said EBAY! There are tons of grocery coupons for sale there. Now, it is against the law for people to actually sell coupons, but they can charge a fee for their time to clip them. I was able to get 20- $3 off diaper coupons for $1. Also, most coupon Ebay sellers will ship for free or cheaply. This is a great way to get coupons for a specific item that you want to stock pile on, use on a regular basis or the store is having a mega deal and you want to match it a coupon you don't have. Look for coupons under .99 cents, so that they double! Make sure to check expiration, you don't want to only have 2 days to use them. Make sure you check the sellers details, do they ship asap and are they reputable.

STORE ADVERTISEMENTS ~ Lots of times there are coupons in the different advertisements for different stores (ie. Target, Walgreens, Rite Aid, etc.). You would find these in the mail, in the newspaper or at the actual store. Also, a few places post coupons online!! Such as Target, Walgreens, CVS.

THE MAIL ~ I was pleasantly surprised to find a bunch of grocery coupons in my mail just this weekend! In the past, I've considered these junk and would have tossed them, but now how could I? It's like money in my pocket that I would be throwing in the trash!

PRODUCT PACKAGING ~ I was amazed to find coupons already in my pantry! Some companies put coupons right on the packaging of the food items that you already use.

MAGAZINES ~ I'm not talking about coupon magazines. I'm talking about regular ole magazines (ie. Everyday w/ Rachael Ray, Family Fun, Country Living, etc.). I love ALL YOU magazine, they also have coupons on their website.

Wow, that is a lot of places to find coupons! Just think, that I've been throwing away all of these things all these years! I am seeing coupons in a whole new light these days. They are like free money. I now save my receipts to calculate my savings at the end of the month. What to do with the extra money? For us, right now that is, I can just get more with the money budgeted for groceries BUT this could be a great way to start a savings account. Take the "savings" listed on each receipt and move it over to savings, you can collect enough for a family vacation or add to a college fund.

Do you have any coupon resources that I haven't already mentioned here? I would love to hear 'em!

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