It's been very fun getting back into couponning, and we are already building up our stockpile again.
Here is a great example of how to combines sales with coupons and store promotions to save money.
I found out from the CVS sales ad that if I scanned my CVS card Sunday-Monday, I would get a coupon for $4 off any purchase of $20. That's $20 BEFORE coupons, so that doesn't mean $20 will come out of my pocket.
CVS has a sale on FiberOne granola bars this week, 2 for 5. That's a decent sale, even compared to Walmart. To reach twenty bucks, I need to buy eight boxes. I went online and found several .60 off 1 or .50 off 1 coupons. I also had two $1 off one coupons I clipped from the two boxes I bought Sunday with my $5 ECBs.
I found eight coupons for each of my eight boxes, then went to CVS and scanned my card to get the $4 off coupon.
I bought eight boxes of granola bars, plus an Unreal bar, because they were .75, with .75 back in ECBS for my next purchase.
My total was just a little over 21 dollars. I used my $4 off coupon, which made it $17. Then, I handed over my coupons for the granola bars, and after those, my total was about 11.70 for eight boxes of granola bars and a very yummy Unreal bar, plus I have .75 cents off in ECBs for next week.
Add this purchase to my purchase from yesterday, and I got ten boxes of granola bars, an Unreal bar, and six Milky Way bars for $12.50. I love granola bars, so we will eat some this summer, and have some left over for school.
Any coupon you use will save money, but combining them with sales and promotions is what makes things very cheap.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Pets like Saving too!
I have the world's most spoiled pets. Kitten alone has a box crammed full of toys. She also eats very good kitty cat canned food (Iams ProPlan, Merrick, Fancy Feast), etc. I am not, however, going broke feeding and spoiling the critters.
Petsmart accepts coupons, and they also give out some great coupons. They frequently have tearpads in the cat and dog food aisle for free cans of food.
For example, a few months ago (before we got Kitten, actually) there was a 5.00 off of a five pound bag of Authority cat food, which sold for 5.99. There was also a tearpad coupon for two free cans of cat food when you bought a bag of dry food. I had enough coupons to do this three times, so I got three bags of cat food and six cans for 2.98. I bought them with the intention of donating them to the shelter, but they just sat at the top of my fridge (I know, bad lady) until we adopted Kitten, and now she eats them.
But not just that. Our Petco (which also accepts coupons) has a table next to the checkout lane. They offer food that is close to, but has not reached, the expiration date. Again, the food is not expired, it is just close to it, usually within a month. I bought Kitten Fancy Feast cans for a dime. I have also been able to get her Merrick cat food for forty cents. The main ingredients in Merrick are lobster, shrimp, tuna...!!! I just check the food when I open it for quality assurance (look, smell, texture) and we are good to go. She loves it, and she's a very healthy kitten. You can't really stockpile it, because the expiration date looms so close, but if you live close by a Petco, just swinging by once a week to snag the savings is worth it.
Walk around the store. Our Petsmart and Petco have had crazy clearence sales on toys, grooming, or bowls. I bought Kitten expensive toys for $1, $2, $3...
You also never know when you'll run into a crazy deal. Ferret food is usually $15 for a 6lb bag, but they had it on clearence for $4. I bought all of them, and now we have a three month supply for the price of one.
Petsmart accepts coupons, and they also give out some great coupons. They frequently have tearpads in the cat and dog food aisle for free cans of food.
For example, a few months ago (before we got Kitten, actually) there was a 5.00 off of a five pound bag of Authority cat food, which sold for 5.99. There was also a tearpad coupon for two free cans of cat food when you bought a bag of dry food. I had enough coupons to do this three times, so I got three bags of cat food and six cans for 2.98. I bought them with the intention of donating them to the shelter, but they just sat at the top of my fridge (I know, bad lady) until we adopted Kitten, and now she eats them.
But not just that. Our Petco (which also accepts coupons) has a table next to the checkout lane. They offer food that is close to, but has not reached, the expiration date. Again, the food is not expired, it is just close to it, usually within a month. I bought Kitten Fancy Feast cans for a dime. I have also been able to get her Merrick cat food for forty cents. The main ingredients in Merrick are lobster, shrimp, tuna...!!! I just check the food when I open it for quality assurance (look, smell, texture) and we are good to go. She loves it, and she's a very healthy kitten. You can't really stockpile it, because the expiration date looms so close, but if you live close by a Petco, just swinging by once a week to snag the savings is worth it.
Walk around the store. Our Petsmart and Petco have had crazy clearence sales on toys, grooming, or bowls. I bought Kitten expensive toys for $1, $2, $3...
You also never know when you'll run into a crazy deal. Ferret food is usually $15 for a 6lb bag, but they had it on clearence for $4. I bought all of them, and now we have a three month supply for the price of one.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Losing Weight and Saving Money
It's the first of the year, and many of us have started our New Year resolution to be healthier. Plus, some of you smart people have been eating healthy all along. It is a common thought that coupons are only for junk food, and if you want to be healthy, you have to pay more and can't coupon.
Well...it is true that organic, etc costs more, but you CAN coupon. There are frequently coupons for soymilk, SmartBalance products, cereal, vitamins, medicine, LOTS for yogurt, some organic products, etc.
Plus, right now, there are lots of coupons on http://www.coupons.com/ for diet and healthy foods. Here are a few examples:
Save $1 off one box of Kashi bar
Save 40 cents on six Yoplait yougurt
Save $1 on Arrowhead Mills Breakfast Product (they have whole grain and gluten free!)
Save $3 on after 10 Weight Watchers Smart Ones Product (combine this with the Target coupon for $3 off ten, and you can save $6 off!)
Save $1.50 Atkins Day Break products
Save $1 on one Kashi Go Lean Crisp cinnamon crumble cereal
Save $1 on two Nabisco snacks (you can get Wheat Thins or other whole grain crackers)
Save 75 cents off any one bag of Crunchmaster crackers (they have whole grain)
If you are diabetic or watching your blood sugar, Coupons.com also has a coupon for $10 One Touch Mini meter and $4 coupon for the test strips.
Target has the following coupons on their website. **Denotes a Target-only coupon, which can be stacked wtih a manufacturer coupon for even better savings
**Fifty cents off two Kashi items
**$1 off Kellog's Special K item (shakes or meal bars)
**Save $3 off 10 Smart ones frozen entrees
**Save $1 off Morningstar Farms frozen food items
**Buy One, Get One Free Multipack PowerBar nutrition item
**Save $2 off with the purchase of two 4-pk Dannon Activia yogurts
Save $1.25 on any two Glucerma Mult-Pack Bars of shakes
Another way to save money is to check out some of the amazing free websites for tracking calories. I used to pay to be a part of the Weight Watchers online program. It's a good program, certainly, but Livestrong is essentially the same thing, and it's FREE. Livestrong also has a special feature for tracking your food AND your blood sugar levels. Another friend uses SparkPeople, and I believe that is free as well.
I used to buy cookbooks with ideas for healthy recipes, but then I realized I had the internet. Google healthy recipes. There are a 25.7 million results. Narrow it down for a low GI diet, low-carb, low sugar, high protein, etc. Or...low GI diet recipe with chicken. It's much more time efficient to use Google than leafing through cookbooks.
If you prefer a cookbook, try looking for used ones online at Half.com.
This spring, we are talking about having a garden. It'll be a way to get my indoors butt outside and moving around, plus, hopefully we will have lots of fresh veggies to eat! :)
Here's to a new year of healthy, frugality, and hopefully more posting on my part!
Well...it is true that organic, etc costs more, but you CAN coupon. There are frequently coupons for soymilk, SmartBalance products, cereal, vitamins, medicine, LOTS for yogurt, some organic products, etc.
Plus, right now, there are lots of coupons on http://www.coupons.com/ for diet and healthy foods. Here are a few examples:
Save $1 off one box of Kashi bar
Save 40 cents on six Yoplait yougurt
Save $1 on Arrowhead Mills Breakfast Product (they have whole grain and gluten free!)
Save $3 on after 10 Weight Watchers Smart Ones Product (combine this with the Target coupon for $3 off ten, and you can save $6 off!)
Save $1.50 Atkins Day Break products
Save $1 on one Kashi Go Lean Crisp cinnamon crumble cereal
Save $1 on two Nabisco snacks (you can get Wheat Thins or other whole grain crackers)
Save 75 cents off any one bag of Crunchmaster crackers (they have whole grain)
If you are diabetic or watching your blood sugar, Coupons.com also has a coupon for $10 One Touch Mini meter and $4 coupon for the test strips.
Target has the following coupons on their website. **Denotes a Target-only coupon, which can be stacked wtih a manufacturer coupon for even better savings
**Fifty cents off two Kashi items
**$1 off Kellog's Special K item (shakes or meal bars)
**Save $3 off 10 Smart ones frozen entrees
**Save $1 off Morningstar Farms frozen food items
**Buy One, Get One Free Multipack PowerBar nutrition item
**Save $2 off with the purchase of two 4-pk Dannon Activia yogurts
Save $1.25 on any two Glucerma Mult-Pack Bars of shakes
Another way to save money is to check out some of the amazing free websites for tracking calories. I used to pay to be a part of the Weight Watchers online program. It's a good program, certainly, but Livestrong is essentially the same thing, and it's FREE. Livestrong also has a special feature for tracking your food AND your blood sugar levels. Another friend uses SparkPeople, and I believe that is free as well.
I used to buy cookbooks with ideas for healthy recipes, but then I realized I had the internet. Google healthy recipes. There are a 25.7 million results. Narrow it down for a low GI diet, low-carb, low sugar, high protein, etc. Or...low GI diet recipe with chicken. It's much more time efficient to use Google than leafing through cookbooks.
If you prefer a cookbook, try looking for used ones online at Half.com.
This spring, we are talking about having a garden. It'll be a way to get my indoors butt outside and moving around, plus, hopefully we will have lots of fresh veggies to eat! :)
Here's to a new year of healthy, frugality, and hopefully more posting on my part!
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Water, water everywhere: Target gift card deals
Each store has its own benefits and drawbacks, but this week I am loving Target.They run promotions where you get $5 giftcards when you purchase certain items. There is no limit to the amount of gift cards you can earn, at least not that I have noticed. You can either do separate transactions and roll your gift cards over to reduce the out of pocket expenses and use them that day, or you can use them for the next time you go, OR you can also give them as stocking stuffers or appreciation gifts.
You are not allowed to use them on the same transaction. For example, I cannot buy ten Vitamin waters and use the gift card I earned buying them to pay for them.
Target had Vitamin Water, buy 10 and get a $5 gift card this week. The waters were 1, so after the gift cards they would be .50. They also had a deal where if you bought 2 of the $5 Vaseline lotions, you earned a $5 gf. I had coupons for buy one Vaseline, get a smaller size free. My Nana and daddy use lotion a lot, so I had already planned to get them some as part of their Christmas baskets.
I had planned to do separate transactions to reduce my OOP, but the line was busy, so I just decided to do one big one.
I bought:
2 of the larger Vaseline lotions
2 of the smaller ones
20 Vitamin Waters
Used (2) BOGO Vaseline coupons
OOP: $34, received $15 in gift cards.
I took the Vitamin water to my car and decided to go back and get some more with my gift cards.
Went back and got 20 more of the vitamin waters, and they also had some of the 1 liter SOBE waters on sale for .88. They weren't part of the deal, but that was a good price, so I bought those.
Went back in line, and split the transactions. Fiance met me in the parking lot to hang out, so I just had him do the second transaction (and carry the water to the car! :) ). I bought:
10 Vitamin Waters
4 Sobe waters on sale for .88
Used two $10 GC
Paid ...3.67 maybe for the Sobe waters
Received another $5 GC.
Fiance bought
10 Vitamin Waters
Used two $5 GC
Spend $0 OOP, and received another $5gc
SO, we bought 2 large Vaseline lotions, two small Vaseline lotions, 40 Vitamin waters, and 4 large Sobe wates for about $37 dollars, AND we still have a $5 gc left, so $32 altogether.
The razors and Snuggle you see here are from a Walmart trip.
So, Target's gift card promotions are great, and even better when you can use coupons with them as well. Remember that Target will allow you to stack one Target coupon and one manufacturer coupon for an item as well.
You are not allowed to use them on the same transaction. For example, I cannot buy ten Vitamin waters and use the gift card I earned buying them to pay for them.
Target had Vitamin Water, buy 10 and get a $5 gift card this week. The waters were 1, so after the gift cards they would be .50. They also had a deal where if you bought 2 of the $5 Vaseline lotions, you earned a $5 gf. I had coupons for buy one Vaseline, get a smaller size free. My Nana and daddy use lotion a lot, so I had already planned to get them some as part of their Christmas baskets.
I had planned to do separate transactions to reduce my OOP, but the line was busy, so I just decided to do one big one.
I bought:
2 of the larger Vaseline lotions
2 of the smaller ones
20 Vitamin Waters
Used (2) BOGO Vaseline coupons
OOP: $34, received $15 in gift cards.
I took the Vitamin water to my car and decided to go back and get some more with my gift cards.
Went back and got 20 more of the vitamin waters, and they also had some of the 1 liter SOBE waters on sale for .88. They weren't part of the deal, but that was a good price, so I bought those.
Went back in line, and split the transactions. Fiance met me in the parking lot to hang out, so I just had him do the second transaction (and carry the water to the car! :) ). I bought:
10 Vitamin Waters
4 Sobe waters on sale for .88
Used two $10 GC
Paid ...3.67 maybe for the Sobe waters
Received another $5 GC.
Fiance bought
10 Vitamin Waters
Used two $5 GC
Spend $0 OOP, and received another $5gc
SO, we bought 2 large Vaseline lotions, two small Vaseline lotions, 40 Vitamin waters, and 4 large Sobe wates for about $37 dollars, AND we still have a $5 gc left, so $32 altogether.
So, Target's gift card promotions are great, and even better when you can use coupons with them as well. Remember that Target will allow you to stack one Target coupon and one manufacturer coupon for an item as well.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Target Mobile Coupons
So, if you have read my other posts, you know that at Target, you can use one Target coupon and one manufacturer coupon per item, which can add up to some great savings.
You can print the Target coupons here.http://coupons.target.com/
However, there are OTHER Target coupons you can get on your phone! They are Target mobile coupons. Sign up at the website, and you will receive coupons to your phone via text message. This is the only way to get these coupons; they cannot be printed online. You can use them along with a manufacturer coupon, just like other Target coupons. Just open the text message, and get the link. Then, the cashier can scan your phone and get your coupon! I used mine twice this weekend, and it works in Danville!!
Sample deal!
Coupons.com had a manufacturer coupon for 5.00 off a Transformers toy of 5.99 or more. Target mobile sent me a coupon for 5 off any Transformers toy of 9.99 or more. I was able to get a 9.99 Transformers toy for FREE.
They also had $2 off any two bags of MMs pretzels. They were on sale for 2/4, and I also had a coupon for 1 off, so I got two bags for 1.00.
So, be sure to sign up for those coupons! You can also use each deal in each text message once, but they will send you two a month. I went on Friday and used my coupons for the Transformers toy and the MMs, and then went again Sunday and got another toy (and some other things).
Happy saving!
You can print the Target coupons here.http://coupons.target.com/
However, there are OTHER Target coupons you can get on your phone! They are Target mobile coupons. Sign up at the website, and you will receive coupons to your phone via text message. This is the only way to get these coupons; they cannot be printed online. You can use them along with a manufacturer coupon, just like other Target coupons. Just open the text message, and get the link. Then, the cashier can scan your phone and get your coupon! I used mine twice this weekend, and it works in Danville!!
Sample deal!
Coupons.com had a manufacturer coupon for 5.00 off a Transformers toy of 5.99 or more. Target mobile sent me a coupon for 5 off any Transformers toy of 9.99 or more. I was able to get a 9.99 Transformers toy for FREE.
They also had $2 off any two bags of MMs pretzels. They were on sale for 2/4, and I also had a coupon for 1 off, so I got two bags for 1.00.
So, be sure to sign up for those coupons! You can also use each deal in each text message once, but they will send you two a month. I went on Friday and used my coupons for the Transformers toy and the MMs, and then went again Sunday and got another toy (and some other things).
Happy saving!
Piggly Wiggly deal on Campbell's Soup!
Piggly Wiggly has extended their deal on Campbell's tomato and chicken noodle soup. They are 10/5, with a limit of 10, making them .50 each. I had two .40 off 4 coupons, making mine 4.20, or .42 cents each. That's about as cheap as you will find those anywhere.
Sad note: PW in Danville (the one near Cane Creek, or the airport, depending on how you orient yourself) does not accept internet coupons.
Nothing else spoke to me at PW, but you can check out their deals at http://www.idigthepig.com/
Sad note: PW in Danville (the one near Cane Creek, or the airport, depending on how you orient yourself) does not accept internet coupons.
Nothing else spoke to me at PW, but you can check out their deals at http://www.idigthepig.com/
Good deals at Farmer's this week!
Farmer's has a few sales worth mentioning.
Hamburger Helper is on sale 10/10. There have been several coupons in the papers the last month for .75 off 3. Remember that Farmer's will double up to one dollar, so the coupon becomes 1.00 off 3, so you get them 3 for $2, or .67 each.
Green Giant frozen boxed vegetables are on sale 10/10 as well, and with a .60 off 3 coupon, which doubles to 1.00, you can get the same deal as the HH, .67 each.
Hunt's spaghetti sauce is 10/10, and the Ragu is still 1.25, which is a really good buy if you have a coupon. I used one ;ast week for .75 off of two, which doubled to 1.00, so I got two for 1.50, making them .75 cents each.
Select Dawn dish soup is 1.99, and with a .50 off coupon, it is only 1.00 when doubled.
Progresso soup is 4/5, and there are several 1.00 off 4 coupons on http://www.bettycrocker.com/, http://www.progresso,com/, and www.coupons.com , making them 1 each.
Last week, I received a $10 off your next purchase coupon for buying select General Mills products, which is still going on this week, but the GM products aren't on as good of a sale. Remember, that the way to really get the best deals is to match the coupons with the sales to maximize savings. I can save my GM coupons for another day and save more money.
There may be some good deals on meat, but I am not a good judge on that. Check out the full Farmer's ad at http://www.farmersfoods.com/.
Here is what I got from Farmer's this week:
6 Hamburger Helper boxes (2 .75 off 3 coupons, doubled to 1.00 off)
6 Green Giant vegetables (2 .60 off 3 coupons, doubled to 1.00 off)
4 Progresso soup (1 off 4 coupons)
2 Dawn liquid soap (2 .50 off coupons, which doubled to1.00)
2 Pillsbury cookie dough packages (.50 off coupon on the cookie dough, doubled to 1.00)
2 La Creme coffee creamer (I had a BOGO coupon)
I also used my 10 off coupon, making my purchase $10.47.
The other 14 dollars of my shopping trip came from the Cottonelle from Walgreens ($12 for 4, using Walgreens coupons, manufacturer coupons, and RR), and the four 2-liters of Pepsi Max from CVS (2.00 total, .99 each, used two 1.00 off two coupons from the Pepsi insert on 10/2)
Also, in an earlier blog, I said that there was a Farmer's in Danville. There ISN'T, but there is one in Martinsville. There is also a Kroger, about two minutes away from the Farmer's. Too far for my SoBo peeps to drive, but if you live in Danville, and there were good sales at both Kroger and Farmer's, it may be worth the drive.
And a final note, Farmer's will no longer accept internet coupons (such as those printed off of coupons.com) for amounts over 1.00. This is not a huge blow because most food coupons are under 1.00 anyway.
Happy shopping!
Hamburger Helper is on sale 10/10. There have been several coupons in the papers the last month for .75 off 3. Remember that Farmer's will double up to one dollar, so the coupon becomes 1.00 off 3, so you get them 3 for $2, or .67 each.
Green Giant frozen boxed vegetables are on sale 10/10 as well, and with a .60 off 3 coupon, which doubles to 1.00, you can get the same deal as the HH, .67 each.
Hunt's spaghetti sauce is 10/10, and the Ragu is still 1.25, which is a really good buy if you have a coupon. I used one ;ast week for .75 off of two, which doubled to 1.00, so I got two for 1.50, making them .75 cents each.
Select Dawn dish soup is 1.99, and with a .50 off coupon, it is only 1.00 when doubled.
Progresso soup is 4/5, and there are several 1.00 off 4 coupons on http://www.bettycrocker.com/, http://www.progresso,com/, and www.coupons.com , making them 1 each.
Last week, I received a $10 off your next purchase coupon for buying select General Mills products, which is still going on this week, but the GM products aren't on as good of a sale. Remember, that the way to really get the best deals is to match the coupons with the sales to maximize savings. I can save my GM coupons for another day and save more money.
There may be some good deals on meat, but I am not a good judge on that. Check out the full Farmer's ad at http://www.farmersfoods.com/.
Here is what I got from Farmer's this week:
6 Hamburger Helper boxes (2 .75 off 3 coupons, doubled to 1.00 off)
6 Green Giant vegetables (2 .60 off 3 coupons, doubled to 1.00 off)
4 Progresso soup (1 off 4 coupons)
2 Dawn liquid soap (2 .50 off coupons, which doubled to1.00)
2 Pillsbury cookie dough packages (.50 off coupon on the cookie dough, doubled to 1.00)
2 La Creme coffee creamer (I had a BOGO coupon)
I also used my 10 off coupon, making my purchase $10.47.
The other 14 dollars of my shopping trip came from the Cottonelle from Walgreens ($12 for 4, using Walgreens coupons, manufacturer coupons, and RR), and the four 2-liters of Pepsi Max from CVS (2.00 total, .99 each, used two 1.00 off two coupons from the Pepsi insert on 10/2)
Also, in an earlier blog, I said that there was a Farmer's in Danville. There ISN'T, but there is one in Martinsville. There is also a Kroger, about two minutes away from the Farmer's. Too far for my SoBo peeps to drive, but if you live in Danville, and there were good sales at both Kroger and Farmer's, it may be worth the drive.
And a final note, Farmer's will no longer accept internet coupons (such as those printed off of coupons.com) for amounts over 1.00. This is not a huge blow because most food coupons are under 1.00 anyway.
Happy shopping!
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