Since I have one more month of work I'm getting a little anxious about being down to one income. I have no problem giving up cable, internet, trading in my iphone for a cheapo phone,and shopping for baby girl instead of myself, etc so we can have more money for the baby. But at the same time I think there is more I can do to cut down on spending and enable us to save more money.
I have a few friends who do the extreme couponing. These friends post their loots on facebook, 300 bucks worth of stuff for 3.00. What!! How is that possible? How do they do that? And can I learn? So do any of you coupon? Any favorite blogs or websites that give away coupons or are cheaper to buy stuff through. Fill me in..Please!!!
I don't do extreme couponing because it takes a LOT of time. I still use coupons, but with the time I was spending trying to figure out coupons with sales and all that, I could have been working a part-time job.
ReplyDeleteI recommend hip2save.com She posts weekly deals for the drugstores and Target. And she also posts random good deals and freebies :)
I need this too! I'll check back to see responses!!
ReplyDeleteGood luck! The only things I spend money on are books and food. Oh, and JCrew and Garnet Hill....
ReplyDeleteI'm taking a workshop about couponing today on base! I was so excited to see our new station in VA offered it. I'll let you know how it goes!
ReplyDeleteI love coupons. I check out www.retailmenot.com to see if there are any coupons on websites I may be shopping on.
ReplyDeleteI have been wondering this to...i cant wait to see the responses
ReplyDeleteI don't take couponing to the extreme because it takes so much time, but here are my tips:
ReplyDeleteGo to these 3 main sites, smartsource.com, redplum.com, coupons.com (those are the ones I know are legit) and print the coupons that you'll use - even if you don't need it that week. You can print multiple copies of coupons. You can normally print a coupon 2x from each site, so you can end up with 6 of one coupon. Then, I go to southernsavers.com in addition to the store (Bi-Lo) and look at their weekly ads. I compare the coupons I have to what is on sale that week. My general rule is that if it isn't on sale, I don't buy it that week unless I HAVE to have it (ie. milk). Technically, you're only supposed to use one copy of the coupon per item you buy. For example, if you have $.40 off one, you can only use one coupon. But, you may have $.40 off one and $.60 off one for the same item. Those are technically different coupons, so you can use both of them at once. With cereal, I commonly find that you'll have a coupon for $1.00 off two. Since you'll be buying two of the item, you can use two of the $1 off two coupons. You can combine these with a $.75 off one coupon, and since you're buying two boxes, you can use two of those as well. So, for two boxes of cereal, you'd be using 2 $1 off two coupons and 2 $.75 off one coupons. Make sense? If I haven't lost you yet...
I find it really helpful to have a coupon organizer that you take with you to the store. Certain things go on sale at different times throughout the month, and the majority of coupons are good for at least a few weeks or so, so if the item you need to buy isn't on sale, and your coupon doesn't expire for a few weeks, hold on to it until you find the item on sale.
Just remember that certain stores (like Bi-Lo) automatically double coupons under $.60. So if you have a $.60 off one coupon for pasta and a $1 off one coupon for pasta, not only can you use both because they're technically different coupons, but that $.60 coupon will automatically be doubled at the checkout.
(Sometimes you can get a really nice cashier who won't pay attention, and I've been able to get away with using three of the same coupon when I only bought one item. :-X A lot of stores won't let you do that, though. You just kind of have to play it by ear.)
I hope all this helps, and if you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me.
Be careful with coupon.com I've heard from several friends that they have gotten a virus from that website.
ReplyDeleteI used to be crazy about cutting coupons, but I have found that those coupons (for the most part) are for stuff I normally wouldn't buy. I plan meals in advance and make things from scratch. I try to find recipes that require limited items and that are based on fresh items. Prepackaged items are were you are spending the money. I also don't buy snack foods or junk of any kind. You'd be surprised at how easy it is to make some things yourself (ie. peanut butter). It's amazing how far you can make a budget stretch on food when you cut out the useless spending. However, it all comes down to what works for you and your husband. Hopefully you can find ideas out of all the comments you will get!! Good luck.
ReplyDeleteI don't coupon. Buying what you need, meal planning -- those things save me the most money. And generally, I buy generic which there are no coupons for.
ReplyDeleteI wish I was more frugal too :-( I have recently decided to put my obsession with Saks aside and start Forever 21-ing it...and I actually love it!
ReplyDeleteGreat blog!
<3 Megan
http://www.suitcaseandstilettos.com
southernsavers.com is a lot of help BUT like PP says its time consuming and i like the convenience of 1-2 stores max. meal planning and writing a budget for sure!! giving every penny a place and stick to it no matter what!
ReplyDeleteCheck out DaveRamsey.com for money management info. :o) I <3 Dave Ramsey!