The Art of Couponing: Back into Super Saving Action

You haven't seen me post one of these in a while, mostly because I've seriously been so busy we haven't even really been shopping. My mom has been taking on more of the feeding responsibilities because my niece and nephew are still around. But, since the online class is now over I decided to put my little coupons back into action. Note: I've still been clipping, just haven't been using.

So let me share some of the highlights from tonight's shopping trip.

@CVS:

Tonight's Out of Pocket cost was: $3.73

Yes. You read that right. I paid $3.73 for 2 Oral B toothbrushes, Tampax Pearl Tampons (get over yourself squeamish boys) and chocolate! PLUS: I earned $4 Extra Care Bucks. That's like a profit of 27 cents ha!

How I did it? Well, I had $3 ECB to use by 7/6 or else they expire, I used a B1G1 Oral B toothbrush coupon, I got a free chocolate coupon just by stopping at the coupon printer in store, I used a $1off Tampax Pearl, and the Toothbrushes+ Tampons had ECB deals. All in all a savings of 78%.

@Publix

All this can be yours for the price of $9.74

Above you see: Ritz crackerfuls, French's mustard, Viva paper towels, Mueller's pasta, 2 rolls of Reynold's non-stick wrap, Mahatma rice, Playtex tampons, and Breakstone's sour cream blends! All for under $10. The grand savings total was 64% off.

Let me go over a couple of the big deals:

Reynolds non-stick wrap, regular $4.39

On sale B1G1 so it's $2.19

Used a .75 off coupon to pay $1.44 a roll; that is a savings of 67% Not too bad. You can ALWAYS use this stuff.

Viva Big Roll paper towels, regular $3.00

On sale B1G1 so it's $1.50

Used a .50 coupon that DOUBLES to $1.00 off at Publix to pay .50 for one roll; that is a savings of 83%

Mueller's Pasta, regular $1.45

On sale B1G1 so it is .72

Used a .55 cent off coupon to pay .17; that is a savings of 88%

Please tell me I have persuaded some of you by now :)

Some of the best sites to help you are:
Southern Savers
Coupons Make it Free
20 Something Saver

Eleven in 11: Evaluating May

Where is this year going so quickly? Each day seems to zoom by! May was an incredibly busy month for us and I hardly had time to blog. But, let's see how we did.

The breakdown:
1. Volunteer opportunity- Check! I am now an advocate. I am also interested in volunteering for the libraries in town. A dear friend of mine is a librarian and I know he busts his for his patrons. I'm a little saddened by what I've read recently about the funding for the libraries in town, so my philosophy is to always be part of the solution, and not just someone who complains. We'll see.
2. The weight loss one- Ugggg. I have hit a plateau, however, I'm not gaining. Which is good. I'm maintaining the net loss of 33 lbs. Part of the problem is that I'm no longer tracking points as strictly. But, also, I've slacked up on the gym. We have a good incentive though for me to press on and finish my ultimate goal. This fall we are going to NY for a family member's engagement party! 
3. Plan and take honeymoon- We went to Amelia Island. Collectively, Tim and I decided that we simply didn't ever have a honeymoon. While the trip was a FABULOUS trip, it just wan't a honeymoon. We missed the boat 3 years ago, and it isn't something you can just have 3 years late. It's ok though, we still loved vacationing! You can see our recent trip photos from here and here.
4. Trying four new recipes- I think we managed to do it this time:

• Parmesan Parsley Chicken
• Roasted Red Ranch Potatoes
• Cube Steak Rollups
• and another roasted red potatoes recipe, only this time tried a French Onion mix

5. Blog three times a week- Only had 12 posts, but again...we were kind of swamped.

6. Student loan- Check!

7. Savings!- Check! 

8. Read 52 books- I bought another book, this time Chelsea Handler's newest release...but I've still only made it through the introduction...

9. Facebook birthdays- I really am reconnecting with some folks because of this!

10. Visit 12 new restaurants- Koreana was soooo yum! I highly recommend!

11. Etsy- I think I'm going to use Fridays as a crafting day. Did I mention I now work 4 days a week? Yay! 10 hours is a little rough M-Th...but having 3 day weekends is a blast!

I hope many of you are getting to take some time off this summer to do fun things. I want to go to six flags at least once. Any takers?

The Art of Couponing: BIG Deal Update

So, I just had to check in for a minute and tell you about an amazing deal at CVS right now. I just bought TWO bottles of clean and clear brand body wash for 99 cents + tax! Yes, that is over 92% off. I think I'm converting to purchasing more household products at CVS...

Here is how I did it:
This week at CVS (until April 2), I bought 3 pepsi 12-packs for $10 and got $2 Extra Care Bucks back to use on another purchase.
Tonight, I walked in with that $2 ECB & a coupon from the Sunday paper (you can probably track it down online) that was for Buy 1 Get 1 Free clean and clear body wash.
Until April 2, CVS has clean and clear body wash on sale for 2.99.
When you combine the 2.99 price, B1G1 free, and $2 off you end up with .99 plus tax.

So instead of paying 11.98 plus tax, I paid .99 plus tax.

The Art of Couponing...

So, I've been inspired. I want to learn the art of couponing. Especially when I hear these grand stories of how people get $100 worth of stuff for a dime. If you have any tips or suggestions please feel free to comment.

Currently, I'm following a friend's blog, Jaclyn's Couponing Journeys and I've read a lot about Southern Savers. 

Another friend recommended I join inbox dollars.

It sounded a little weird at first, but I'm giving it a try. I don't use it to play games or whatever. I don't even fill out all the crazy surveys that ask you for your address. What I am interested in are the features that allow you to earn cash back for using coupons you print there, and the online shopping cash back. One of their stores is Express and Tim and I purchase online there once or twice every few months. They give you 4% cashback. I can see that as being somewhat productive. I'll let you know how it goes.

One good tip I've been using for a long time now is this: sign up for newsletters. Create a separate email JUST for email offers. Especially with clothing stores like Express, NY&Company, The Limited, Bath & Body Works, Victoria's Secret, etc etc etc. I log in to that email anytime before I go to shop and print away the savings.

So yeah, let's hear those tips!