Ok I made two good runs this morning. Too many people are out there snagging up the deals on Sunday!!! I still was able to find a few things though. I had a giant list for Walgreens but not everything was in stock.
CVS Deals:
Ritz Crackfuls- FREE with instant coupon out of the Magic Coupon Machine...just scan your card and see what you get! Value of $2.50
Dawn Dish Soap, 9 oz bottle, Retail $1.77, on sale for $0.99, add $0.50 MF coupon = $0.49 (x3)
Herbal Essence Shampoo/Conditioner, Retail $3.99 on sale $2.99, add $1/2 MF =$2.50 each (ECB of $1 each)
Crest Complete Toothpaste, Retail $2.49, add $1 MF Coupon =$1.49 each (ECB of $2 each)
Then I added $5 ECB from last purchase.
Grand total was $4.74 and $6 of ECB printed out for next time. Total saved was $18.43. Retail $19.77. Savings of 88%! And looking back I had $2.99 more in ECB that I didn't use!!! I could have had almost 100%!!! And the clerk even said WOW when she saw my coupons back!
Monday, September 12, 2011
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Great coupons this week!
So I've scooped out this weeks newspaper coupons...you should grab at least 2...well worth it. Plus I have a big list for Walgreens! This week the three big stock up items are toothpaste ($0.99 a tube), Dawn dish soap ($0.49), and Bengay ($0.99). I'm going to have to get there early tomorrow before work because these deals will not last long!!!
Friday, September 2, 2011
Deal of the week
Ok so today I got some good deals, but the best one was Revlon nail polish for 27 CENTS! Retail price of $4.43. Target had a pretty coral color on sale in the clearance isle for $2.27. Add a $1.00 Target coupon and $1.00 Manufacturers coupon out of the paper...final total $0.27....Awesome deal! If there was other colors I might consider going back with the same deal...but one will be just fine. That's 94% savings!!! I only ended up with a 40% overall savings on my whole transaction. But I got stuff I needed (cat litter, swifter duster, mayo) and had $15 in coupons!
Other good deals include:
Masterpiece BBQ sauce .99 sale plus .50 MF = .50/bottle (I picked up 4)
Duncan Hines cake mix or icing .99 with store coupon, MF coupons (b2g1) and ($1 off) = $1 each (x5)I have some birthdays coming up!
Crest toothpaste $2.99 sale CVS, add $1 MF & $1 ECB (for next purchase) = .99
My couponing may be thrown off with the holiday. But there is a Walgreens in Kirksville now....have a safe a wonderful weekend everyone!!!!
Other good deals include:
Masterpiece BBQ sauce .99 sale plus .50 MF = .50/bottle (I picked up 4)
Duncan Hines cake mix or icing .99 with store coupon, MF coupons (b2g1) and ($1 off) = $1 each (x5)I have some birthdays coming up!
Crest toothpaste $2.99 sale CVS, add $1 MF & $1 ECB (for next purchase) = .99
My couponing may be thrown off with the holiday. But there is a Walgreens in Kirksville now....have a safe a wonderful weekend everyone!!!!
Thursday, September 1, 2011
My personal shopping reflection
So I've started to listen to the Krazy Coupon Lady (KCP) podcast and I really enjoy it. I recommend it to anyone wanting to learn more about all of this. Joanie (one of the hosts) was on TLC's new hit reality show "Extreme Couponing". I do have to admit after watching a few episodes I was inspired to pay more attention to coupons and go for those large percentage of savings. Today I reflected on my shopping style and how it has evolved over the last year.
I have always have loved a good bargain and sought out sales. I also have also always loved Hy-Vee (I worked there in high school and even won the College scholarship). So I guess from my years of working at a grocery store I feel at home there. Now I've always been one o hold out for a good clothing sale and happy to wear clothes for years if I like them. But as for grocery shopping I haven't been so good over the years.
At first my approach was "it's food-you gotta have it-there's no good way to hold out for a good sale! I'll spend what I spend but try to save a little by buying generic" That approach made my weekly grocery bill for 2 around $150. I love to cook, I love to eat it was easy to spend. I didn't like my totals but didn't really worry much.
Then I came into a rough patch where I really had to watch my money because I didn't have much left over each month. So I started watching what I bought in groceries. That was the only bill that I hadn't put a budget on. After about six months I was really good at knowing what a good price was. I had started to watch prices and take note of what sale price versus regular price was. I also quickly realized that just because it has a flashy sign that says Sale doesn't mean it's a good sale. A sale could be ten cents off or a dollar and ten cents off! And there's a big difference. And bigger sizes are not always cheaper when you calculate it out. I often use my cell phones calculator to check price per ounce. So with this method I would try to lightly stock up on items we used a lot that would stay good until I could use them. So if it was on sale for at least 50 cents off regular I would buy two so I had one in reserve. I also tried to stock up when things were on sale and not just because I liked my pantry being full. I also started meal planning at the beginning of the week for what I had in my cabinets so I wasn't wasting anything or buying everything needed for the meals each week. This kept me from buying regular priced items as much out of letting my stomach do the shopping. This method reduced my grocery bill quite a bit. I was spending about $80-$100 a week.
Now in May I got inspired to pay attention to coupons. I had played around with some online but wasn't real impressed with what I was finding. Why buy brand name with a coupon and still spend more than an store brand that is just as good? And most of the coupons I saw were for 35 cents off 2...that's not really a sale price. But what I was missing was 2 big things: Sunday paper coupons and the concept of holding on to coupons to match good sale prices. So the TLC show inspired and educated me to look into that. My grocery bill now is sometimes only $40 a week! Other weeks are a bit bigger if I'm stocking up, but never over $75. I feel bad spending 50. Sometimes I go to more than one grocery store or make multiple trips (real good deals have limits per visit...I just come back), but I leave with a 50% savings so if I'm already I town why not make the extra trip to save a lot? And I am super careful to buy only things I will use and stockpile only up to 3 months worth on food. (health and beauty items is longer but that's a different post). Now TLC has jaded people with their show to think that saving 90% at a grocery store is possible. Well it is only possible if you have found 15 items that you can almost get for free (which is possible) and then finding coupons to buy 50 of each item. I don't need more than 5 of any deal!!! I only buy one set of coupons (2 if it's super good) and find recycled for the rest. If I'm lucky to find a free deal, hopefully I'm lucky to find several coupons in the dumpster. Otherwise I'll watch my sales flyers and match my coupons for a reasonable stockpile that saves me a lot of money!
I have always have loved a good bargain and sought out sales. I also have also always loved Hy-Vee (I worked there in high school and even won the College scholarship). So I guess from my years of working at a grocery store I feel at home there. Now I've always been one o hold out for a good clothing sale and happy to wear clothes for years if I like them. But as for grocery shopping I haven't been so good over the years.
At first my approach was "it's food-you gotta have it-there's no good way to hold out for a good sale! I'll spend what I spend but try to save a little by buying generic" That approach made my weekly grocery bill for 2 around $150. I love to cook, I love to eat it was easy to spend. I didn't like my totals but didn't really worry much.
Then I came into a rough patch where I really had to watch my money because I didn't have much left over each month. So I started watching what I bought in groceries. That was the only bill that I hadn't put a budget on. After about six months I was really good at knowing what a good price was. I had started to watch prices and take note of what sale price versus regular price was. I also quickly realized that just because it has a flashy sign that says Sale doesn't mean it's a good sale. A sale could be ten cents off or a dollar and ten cents off! And there's a big difference. And bigger sizes are not always cheaper when you calculate it out. I often use my cell phones calculator to check price per ounce. So with this method I would try to lightly stock up on items we used a lot that would stay good until I could use them. So if it was on sale for at least 50 cents off regular I would buy two so I had one in reserve. I also tried to stock up when things were on sale and not just because I liked my pantry being full. I also started meal planning at the beginning of the week for what I had in my cabinets so I wasn't wasting anything or buying everything needed for the meals each week. This kept me from buying regular priced items as much out of letting my stomach do the shopping. This method reduced my grocery bill quite a bit. I was spending about $80-$100 a week.
Now in May I got inspired to pay attention to coupons. I had played around with some online but wasn't real impressed with what I was finding. Why buy brand name with a coupon and still spend more than an store brand that is just as good? And most of the coupons I saw were for 35 cents off 2...that's not really a sale price. But what I was missing was 2 big things: Sunday paper coupons and the concept of holding on to coupons to match good sale prices. So the TLC show inspired and educated me to look into that. My grocery bill now is sometimes only $40 a week! Other weeks are a bit bigger if I'm stocking up, but never over $75. I feel bad spending 50. Sometimes I go to more than one grocery store or make multiple trips (real good deals have limits per visit...I just come back), but I leave with a 50% savings so if I'm already I town why not make the extra trip to save a lot? And I am super careful to buy only things I will use and stockpile only up to 3 months worth on food. (health and beauty items is longer but that's a different post). Now TLC has jaded people with their show to think that saving 90% at a grocery store is possible. Well it is only possible if you have found 15 items that you can almost get for free (which is possible) and then finding coupons to buy 50 of each item. I don't need more than 5 of any deal!!! I only buy one set of coupons (2 if it's super good) and find recycled for the rest. If I'm lucky to find a free deal, hopefully I'm lucky to find several coupons in the dumpster. Otherwise I'll watch my sales flyers and match my coupons for a reasonable stockpile that saves me a lot of money!
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