So You Want To Be A Couponer?

     In recent weeks, I have been posting pictures to Facebook of my coupon, shopping trips.  Every time I post an image, I have people ask me to teach them how to "Coupon".  So, I decided this would be a good place to get you all started.
     I started using coupons when my husband was out of work.  I HAD to find a way to save a large amount of money each month.  Many of our expenses were not negotiable.  I had seen, like you, that using coupons could really change my monthly grocery budget.  So, I decided to try it out.  My first few months were confusing and sometimes frustrating.  Very quickly, I figured it out and changed our monthly grocery budget from $800 per month to $400.  Once I knew how much I could save, I was hooked! 
    Over the years, I have had times when I used coupons a great deal and times when I did just a little.  No matter which way I go, I am saving money, sometimes a little, sometimes alot.  You have to know that couponing takes some time.  It can take a lot of time or just a little, it all depends on you.  Also, ANYONE can do it...you just have to want to and commit the time and effort.  The only reason someone CAN't do it is because they don't want to put forth the effort.
     Currently, I do most of my couponing at Target.  Target has a number of great ways to save and prices seem to be about the same (there is some difference) across the country.  Totally Target is a great blog I read each week to find my deals and to learn new ways to save.  I thought about typing out all the details of everything I do, but realized that was silly.  It is already all spelled out in the blog and you simply need to head over there and start reading.  I will, however, tell you the main tools I use to save money at Target. 
     Each week, I head over to Totally Target, usually toward the end of the week (this gives a chance for lots of deals to be posted) and scroll through all the posts for that week.  The blog is great, because the posts tell you exactly what you need to make great deals.  This is what I look for in the posts:

DEAL IDEA: Buy 4 Wonka Classroom Exchange Card & Candy Kits ($2.99 STARTS 2/2) = $11.96
-$3 off Seasonal Holiday Dept. purchase of $10 or more  Target Coupon x2/13
-$3.50 (use two $1.75 off 2 Wonka, Nestle Crunch Candy & Card Kits
= $5.46 for 4 or $1.36 each after all coupons

     This tells me, in black, what I am going to buy and what the regular price will be.  In red, it tells me which Target coupons to use and where to find them, in blue, it tells me which manufacturer coupons to use and where to find them and then in green, it tells me the final price I will be paying. As I peruse the blog, I copy the deals I like and paste them into a word document, so I have a simple list to use.

     As you look through the blog, you will see a whole lot of different coupon sources.  I use three main ones:  Target coupons (printable and mobile), manufacturer coupons (from the newspaper and printable) and the Target Cartwheel App.  (The Totally Target blog has a "Search" box on the top right.  You can search for any one of these savings sources and the author has written great posts on how they all work.)

     Once I make my list, I click on the links to print my coupons, I cut my coupons out of the weekly coupon inserts (from the paper) and I add everything I need to my Target Cartwheel.  I then head out and look for my deals!

     A few things to remember:  since every store is different, there are always things I can't find in my store and prices do vary regionally.  This can be very frustrating at first, but do not give up.  The available savings are still huge!

    I recommend just starting with one or two deals at a time.  Since there are so many pieces, it is common to feel nervous while trying to hand your cashier all your coupons.  So starting with just one or two deals will help you to see how it all works together before you have a huge stack of paper coupons, coupons on your smart phone and your Cartwheel.  Here is a deal that starts on Sunday for you to try and if you don't eat cheerios, donate them!  Or, if you have kids getting ready for Valentine's day parties, try the deal I listed above!  I would love to see pictures of your success!  Please feel free to ask me any questions you think of?

DEAL IDEA: Buy 3 General Mills Cheerios Boxes ($2.50) = $7.50
-.75 off With purchase of two General Mills cereal items Target Coupon x2/23
-.34 (use 5% Off General Mills Cereal (excl. Individual/Cup Sizes) Target Cartwheel x2/8
-$1/1 General Mills Big G Cereals any Box any flavor zip 77477
-$2.50 (use B1G1 FREE Box of Cheerios Cereal Coupon HERE
= $2.91 for 3 or .97 each after coupons & cartwheel

I have written many posts on my coupon experiences, on this blog and at www.survivingthisazeconomy.blogspot.com! 

Wednesday - Grocery Ad Day!

     Well now that our coupons are all organized and ready to be used, the challenge is where to use them and when.  This is where a strategy is important.  All of us have clipped a coupon or two to use at the store saving a couple of dollars.  However, when you come up with a strategy, you may use 20 or 30 coupons and begin to see some serious savings.
     The idea is to use coupons when an item is on sale, therefore, maximizing savings.  Then, buy three of that item at that crazy, low price so you do not have to buy it again until it is on sale again and there is a coupon again.  You will begin to notice that coupons repeat about every four weeks and items go on sale every six weeks.  So if you stock up on an item at today's sale, you will not have to buy that item at full price again...because you will stock up, using your coupons, every six weeks. 
     If this is your first time couponing, I would suggest starting with one grocery store this week.  If you are one of my friends in Arizona, I highly suggest checking out Coupon$ense.  In my opinion, it is by far the best resource you will find.  There is a monthly fee, but it is soooo worth it.  It saves you tons of time and energy.  You can read more about why I love it here.  If you are not in Arizona or just do not want to pay at this time, I have listed my favorite couponing blogs at the bottom of this post.
     Since today is Wednesday, it is time to make a list.  You have your coupons all collated and organized, so now you need to gather the weekly grocery ads, a notebook and a computer or tablet and start searching for the best deals.  I would suggest taking a few minutes to get familiar with one of the blogs first, look around, view different posts, see how that blogger lists the current deals.  Then, pick one store, let's say Safeway.  Get on each blog and look for their most recent post for "Safeway Coupon Matchups or Deals" for this week.  Most of the blogs I have listed will tell you what is on sale and for how much, what coupons are available, printable and newspaper and then tell you the final price you will pay.
     As I go through the list, I write down the things that I think are a GREAT deal, I really like free the best, but under $1 always gets my attention as well.  On the list, newspaper coupons will be listed like this:  $1/1 Colgate Toothpaste RP 8/25/13.  You will notice the "RP 8/25/13"  This tells you which date the coupons came out and which set to find them in.  Since your coupons are all organized so nicely, after you make a list of all the items you are interested in, you can easily pull out the insert you need, cut all three coupons at one time and put them in a coupon, purse organizer or an envelope for your store.  Then, take your list and all your coupons and you are ready to go! 
    The blogs can be a bit overwhelming with tons of information, that is why I suggest starting with only one store.  As you are more comfortable with the whole process, adding stores will be simple.  I also suggest you go to each store's website or facebook page and print their coupon policy.  They are all different and it will help you to know what the store's rules are.  I also take the ad with me, just in case I cannot find an item.  So check out the blogs below and dive in!  I would love to hear about your first shopping trip!  Check back tomorrow where we will venture in to Couponing At The Drugstores...they are bit tricky, but huge savings are found in them!  Of course, as you get started, if you have any questions, please just ask!

Arizona Blogs and Resources:
Coupon$ense
Cents'able Shoppin

Washington Blogs:
The Coupon Project
The Thrifty Northwest Mom

Anywhere Blogs:
Fabulessly Frugal
Krazy Coupon Lady
Couponing To Disney

Each of these blogs is also on facebook and if you Like their pages, you will see deals in your news feed all day!

Monday - Coupon Organization

     One of the quickest ways to get frustrated couponing is to have a mess of  coupons everywhere!  I primarily use the coupons that come in the Sunday paper, so today we are going to get them organized!  I DO NOT cut out all my coupons and put them in binders.  I absolutely do not have time for that.  I keep my coupon inserts intact and file them in a bin labelled for each week, as you can see below.

  
     I bought the bin and the folders at Walmart for about $8 total.  On Sunday evening or Monday, I pull all the coupons from my Sunday Papers.  There can be anywhere from 1-6 inserts in the paper, so make sure to pull them all out.  There are a few different inserts you will see throughout the month.  There are Redplum (RP) inserts, Smartsource (SS) inserts, P&G (PG) inserts and occasionally, a General Mills (GM) insert or additional Redplum or Smartsource inserts.  At the top of each set you will see the name of the insert and on the spine, you will see the dates.

     I choose a folder and write (in pencil) this week's date and then I collate my coupons.  Collating is a huge time saver for later, so don't skip it.  I simply open up all three of my Redplum inserts and collate the pages inside, leaving the covers intact.  By doing this, when it is time to cut out the coupons I want, I do not have to rummage through three sets, all three coupons will be right together!

      Once I have all of my inserts collated, I close up the set, write the date from the spine on the front cover of each collated set and drop them in the proper folder.  By taking this little bit of time each week, I am preparing myself for a successful and pleasant week of couponing!

     Right now, go get those papers and even if you do not have a file box or an accordian file to use today, get those inserts collated and labelled!  Tomorrow we talk about how to make your first list!  If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment, you are probably not the only one with that question!

     Also, since this is a new blog I would love to have you become one of my followers!  You can find that option on the right side of my blog where it says "Follow By Email"! 

Sunday - First Day of the Couponing Week

     Alright everyone, we are going on a journey together!  A journey to save money!  It can be a huge savings or a small savings, but still, we will be saving money!  Even if you have never "Couponed" before, you can get started today!  It does not matter if you are my friends from Arizona or from Washington or New York for that matter, the steps are the same.  This week I will guide you each day on how to organize your coupons, how to find deals and how to see big savings on the things you need everyday!  If you want to join me, start today with step one!

STEP ONE:  Go out and buy three newspapers.  

       Yes, I said three.  When we find a great item for free or next to free, we want to make sure we can get more than one of those items. When we get more than one free tube of toothpaste or razor, then we won't have to buy one at full price because about the time we are out, there will be a new coupon!  I will talk more about this later in the week!  For now, get your papers before the day is over!  (If you are in Washington, know that the Seattle Times does not offer all coupon inserts.)  Meet me back here tomorrow for Step Two!

What is Couponing and Is It Worth It?

      

About four years ago, I decided to dive into that crazy world of couponing?  I had seen little things here and there on serious couponing and I was interested to see if I could figure it all out and really save money.  I had certainly used coupons on items I purchased, but I only saved a dollar here and there.  I had also heard that many times people began to buy things they would not normally buy because of coupons and therefore, spent more money on their groceries than they would have without the coupons.  However, I had read some blogs of people who were seeing big savings and even saw a woman once pay $.14 for a whole cart of groceries...so I knew there was some piece I was missing.
     I started doing some research on couponing and surprisingly found that there really was a method to this couponing thing and along with it, some serious money to be saved.  The key things I found out were as follows:

1. The prime time to use a coupon is when an item goes on sale.  So hold on to those coupons.
2. Sales and coupons are cyclical.  Items will go on sale about every 6 weeks and coupons    come out about every 4 weeks.
3. Some items and coupons come out during certain seasons (condiments around Memorial Day).
4. When a product is new, high dollar coupons come out to entice you to try them.

With this knowledge, I was able to understand how some people were saving hundreds of dollars at the store every week.  I began to put this knowledge to good use and quickly cut our grocery budget from $800 to $300-400 per month (for a family of five).  Pretty amazing!  Not only was my bill lower, but I also began filling my cabinets and freezer!  I decided this couponing thing was definitely worth my time.
     In a very short amount of time, I was saving money and had a very modest "stockpile" of everything we used...food, toiletries and cleaning supplies.  I loved this game of going into a store and coming out with tons of stuff that did not kill my bank account.  Every time I would go into a store and get something for free, I felt like I had won...and I will say I enjoyed it.
     So in short, my method is to buy three papers each week so I have three sets of coupons.  I wait to use coupons until the item is on sale and then I "stock up" so I will not have to buy that item again until it is on sale and I have a coupon again.  Pretty simple!  I do not spend tons of time couponing...maybe an hour or two researching sales and then about 20 minutes in the store.   So is it worth it?  ABSOLUTELY!