Couponing - Where to Start

If you are new to couponing and don't know where to start, I would suggest to go to CouponMom.com and download her wonderful book "Cut Your Grocery Bill In Half" and her other books.

This is how I got started; it's easy. It's a great manual and it explains just about everything you need to know.

Once you understand the savings game and you follow frugal savings blogs you will be in on the game. Following blogs will keep you update on all the great savings.

Northwest Coupon List

Do you ever read other sites and see the coupons they have listed and wonder if you received that coupon? I have.  Coupons vary from region to region.  So it was great to find this complete list of Northwest  coupons from Happy Money Saver and Meri.  Thank you to the both of them for this great service. This list will show you the date of the insert and when it expired. I have referenced it several times.  It's also easy to print out.

2011 Coupon Schedule.

2011 Coupon Schedule

January

1/2: 2 Smart Source, 2 Red Plum, General Mills
1/9: Smart Source,  Red Plum
1/16: Smart Source,  Red Plum, Proctor & Gamble
1/23: Smart Source, Red Plum
1/30: Smart Source,  Red Plum

February

2/6: Smart Source
2/13: No inserts (Valentine’s Day)
2/20: Smart Source, General Mills, Procter & Gamble
2/27: Smart Source,  Red Plum

March

3/6: Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble
3/13: Smart Source,  Red Plum
3/20: Smart Source,  Red Plum
3/27: Smart Source (2 of them), Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble

April

4/3: No Inserts (Easter)
4/10: Smart Source,  Red Plum
4/17 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
4/24: Smart Source,  Red Plum

May

5/1: Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble
5/8: Smart Source,  Red Plum
5/15: Smart Source (2 of them),  Red Plum
5/22 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
5/29 : No Inserts (Memorial Day)

June

6/5 : Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble
6/12 : Smart Source
6/19 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
6/26 : Smart Source,  Red Plum

July

7/3 : No Inserts (Independence Day)
7/10 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
7/17 : Smart Source
7/24 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
7/31 : Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble

August

8/7 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
8/14 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
8/21 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
8/28 : Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble

September

9/4 : No Inserts (Labor Day)
9/11 : Smart Source, Red Plum (2)
9/18: Smart Source,  Red Plum
9/25: Smart Source,  Red Plum

October

10/2 : Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble
10/9 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
10/16: Smart Source,  Red Plum
10/23 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
10/30: Smart Source,  Red Plum

November

11/6 : Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble
11/13: Smart Source,  Red Plum
11/20 : Smart Source,  Red Plum
11/27 : No Inserts (Thanksgiving)

December

11/4 : Smart Source, Red Plum,  Procter & Gamble
11/11: Smart Source,  Red Plum
11/18 : No Inserts  (Christmas)
11/25 : Procter & Gamble

WinCo's Price Tags

Here is a little information on WinCo Foods green and yellow tags.  The green tags are the sale items - Extra Savings and the yellow tags are their everyday low prices.  So look for those green tags!! You will see them on the shelves below the products.

More ways to save money

There are some great sites out there providing us with lots of savings.  They seem to be popping up everywhere.  I enjoy buying these money saving coupons. Yesterday I picked up the $50 Gap coupon for only $25.  There is also a 1/2 price coupon for one of my favorite restaurants right now; $50 gift certificate for $25.  Some of these sites are daily specials (change daily), so I check on a regular basis. They have helped me save so much money. It's really hard for me to go to a restaurant these days if I don't have a coupon.

Groupon.com (look for your city)

Mobba.com (look for a city near you)

Seize the Deal (look for a city close to you, some are online stores)

Restaurant.com (sign up go receive their promotion codes)

 Just Pay Half (Tri-Cities, WA)

Two for Tuesday (Tri-Cities WA)

Grocery Savings Tracker by The Coupon Project

Thank you to The Coupon Project for this free download. A reader wanted to know how I track my spending so I thought I would post this spreadsheet again.  I made a couple changes to mine and you can too.  When I calculate my Winco savings I use a 25% discount because that's normally what you will be saving shopping at Winco versus other big name stores.

Using Printables at Safeway, Richland WA

 I go to the Safeway in Richland WA when I am shopping their sales.  They will take internet coupons but I found out today that they will not take any printable coupons that you can receive free items.  I did know this policy but I didn't think it applied to B1G1 and it does, nothing for free.  I was trying to use my B1G1 Nabisco 100 calorie snack coupon (from Nabisco facebook) and they wouldn't take it. It worked for other bloggers but not for me shopping in Richland, WA.  I'm sure Albertson's will take it so I will have to check on their prices.

So nothing for free (at all) with printable coupons at Safeway in Richland, WA.

Tips to help make your grocery shopping successful

We all have our own way of shopping and know what works for us, but getting new ideas is always helpful.

1. Children. Of course we all know that when we bring our children to the store it will cost a little more.   Keeping them busy helps. Have each child help get things off the shelf and put in the basket.  I also like each of them to look at the prices and compare. Have them make their own grocery list; fruit for lunches, meat for sandwiches, items for their favorite dinner, etc.  Go over their lists before going to the store so you stay within budget. For older children give them their own budget for their list and teach them how to bargain shop - great life lesson. I budget in for a few extras for them to pick out; I tell each one they can pick out something that is about $1 or they can pick out a snack from the bulk food. That seems to work well because they only need a small amount to make them feel that they received something special and normally it's less than $1 each.
2. Coupons. Clip the coupons you plan on using and add it to your grocery list so that you have them ready. Also take the store's flier in with you so you can reference it when you need to.  The flier also comes in handy if you have to pick up a rain check.
3. Staples. Shop your staple/pantry items first. These are the items you need and they are probably the majority of your list.
4. Dairy. Next the dairy section. Here's where you will pick up your milk, butter, yogurt, and eggs.  These are still a staple items and it's still pretty easy at this point to keep to your grocery list.
5. Meat/Cheese. Now that you have most of your staple items you can shop for your meat and cheese. Stock up on one or two meat items that may be on sale. Maybe pick up a deli meat that may be on sale.  Watch your budget here; it's easy to go over in this section.  When meal planning I normally plan with the meat that is in the freezer. When I'm grocery shopping I'm picking up the meat that is on sale, not necessarily the meat that I have planned in my menu for the week. Otherwise you may be selecting items that are not on sale.
6. Produce. Your basket if filling up so shopping in the produce aisle now is perfect so they don't sit at the bottom of the basket. Every once in awhile I let the kids pick out something new to try.
7. Frozen and Packaged items. You have all your dairy, meat, cheese, and produce it's time for the cereal, cracker, and frozen food items. If you have the children with you I would tell them your expectations before going down these aisles. I tell each one "you can pick out one box of crackers". For the cereals you should be picking these up when they hit their lowest sale price; if you need to purchase them at full price I would stick to one or two boxes until you can get them on sale. Frozen/convenience items can be pricey so by filling up your cart with all the other items and saving this towards the end might help from grabbing too much.
8. Bakery. Who needs the cakes, pies, donuts now that your cart is filled and ready for check out? Grab the bread and head for the checkout stand.

Changing the way you shop will take time to get used to and creating a new shopping layout is hard sometimes, but give it a try and see how it works.

How do I do it? WinCo Sale Prices

Many of you have asked how do I get my WinCo numbers and make a price sheet.  Well it's really the old fashion way.

I have a spreadsheet that I add the coupons to when I receive them in the Sunday paper.  I found that it's less frustrating then using the information from Sunday Coupon Review because we don't receive everything listed and I would get so mad when I would go to get a coupon and then realized another part of the country must have received it and we didn't. I take my spread sheet into the store and find the item and right down the price.I also write down the items in the Value Aisle.

I talked to the manager and he told me that prices change all the time but the majority is on Thursdays. So on Thursdays (sometimes Sundays) I go to WinCo, do my shopping, write down the prices and check to see if any has changed (which they do all the time) and then go home and update my Google Spread sheet.

I know people see me and wonder what I'm doing. If you are at the Richland, WA WinCo on Thursday afternoons and see a coupon lady writing down numbers that's me! Say "hey are you the coupon lady?" I see several people on a regular basis. It's a lot of fun.

It takes about about 1 1/2 hours to shop and write down numbers each week (at the same time I gather the prices for my $5 dinner recipes).  For so many years I wanted to see a WinCo Flier but I never thought I would be the one to put one together.  I am happy to be able to help so many people save money. My guess is WinCo shoppers save about 25% and when you add coupons we save even more.

I do shop at Albertson's and Safeway as well; but for only their sale items that I know are cheaper than WinCo due to the fact that they are running a promotion. The majority of my shopping is done a WinCo.  Our Richland WinCo is very nice and clean.  I have been shopping there since it has opened.  The Kennewick store is not as nice as the Richland Store.

It's my understanding that the WinCo prices should all be pretty similar, there might be a few cents difference but they should be pretty close.

That's how I do it. Match up coupons and type it up. Nothing fancy.

Thank you for the letters of appreciation that makes it so worth it to know people appreciate it.

How to Shop at Walgreen's - couponers 101

Common Sense with Money put together a great article on how to shop at Walgreen's.  This is wonderful for any beginner to study and a refresher for the rest of us.  When I first started couponing, Common Sense with Money was my favorite blog for Walgreen's and still is.


Go to Common Sense with Money's How to Shop at Walgreens.

Need More Coupons? Purchase them from Coupon Clippers

I ordered a bunch of coupons today from The Coupon Clippers. I normally purchase them every 6 weeks or so. I purchased $35.70 worth of coupons for $4.95. I really like the convenience of ordering only the coupons I need and use on a regular basis. I love being able to buy multiple coupons. This is a great service for people that don't receive the paper or would like to purchase additional coupons.  I have been using them for about 2 years now and have never had a problem.

Making a Grocery List

There are so many ways to make up a grocery list. I have finally mastered my grocery list. I wanted to talk about how I make up my grocery list for the week. I'm sure everyone does it a little different, it just depends on what works the best for you.

I can shop at several different stores due to my work location, kids' school location, and home.

• Throughout the week I make a shopping list of the things we need or are totally out of. This list will be a WinCo shopping list. This is where I do the majority of my shopping.
• Wednesday I grab all the store fliers and find all the great sales (prices that are less than WinCo). I will make a list for each store. I will attach my coupons to my list (remember you want to try to match coupons with the sale items). Then for the next week I carry them with me so I can swing into the store during lunch, before I pick up the kids, after picking up the kids, or on my way home.
• Wednesday night I finalize my WinCo list and attach my coupons. I shop on Thursdays while I gather my information for my weekly WinCo Sale Prices.
  
• Thursday I do my WinCo shopping, I try to stick to my list and budget.
• Sunday I normally make up my Walgreen's list and stop in when I can during the week.

I plan my menu according to what I have stock piled, sometimes buying a few things to make a complete meal. I will talk about my meal planning in another posting.

Let me know how you come up with your shopping list. Anyway you do it, sticking to a list and budget is always the best.

"I would like a rain check, please"

Right now is a good time to talk about Rain Checks since the big Quaker sale at Albertsons. I picked up my rain check.

A rain check is a great way to help you to avoid losing out on a great sale.

• Always bring in the stores sales flier. Sales clerks can't keep up with all the sales, so having it ready helps everyone out.
• When your sale item is out of stock many stores will give you a rain check (voucher) for the same item, same price when they get the item in stock. They do have expiration dates so watch for those. Normally they are 30 days.
• Let the clerk know that they were out of stock and you would like a rain check. Show them the flier. Attach the rain check to the flier. Keep them together until you use your rain check; keeping your flier will help if there is any questions about the rain check.
• Rain checks will not be handed out if the advertisement states "quantities are limited to stock on hand" or something like that.
• Something I do is hit the sale early, buy the item; then go back towards the end of the sale and if they are out get a rain check . You can use it within 30 days and it gives you a chance to stock up on the coupons that will go with that item. This works great when they put a limit on how much you can buy.
  

Walgreens: the Ins and Outs

If you are new or just need a refresher course on the ins and outs of Walgreens The Coupon Connections NW has a great article. Click on over to Coupon Connections NW.

Do Your Coupons Expire 1/31?

Several coupons expire 1/31. Check your coupons so you don't miss out on a great deal.

As you go through your coupons to see what expire at the end of the month set them in 2 piles.

1. Items you purchase on a regular basis and need soon.
   
2. Items you would only buy if you were to add them to a sale price or a doubler, and items you don't need in the three weeks.
   

Coupons in pile 1:

• prioritize them
• separate them between this weeks shopping and next weeks shopping to control your budget.
  
• If you can't use all the coupons don't worry about there will probably be more soon. Don't overspend just to use your coupons.

Coupons in pile 2:

• Hang on to them just in case you find them on sale in the next couple of weeks.
• When the weekly sales come out check them against your pile 2. If they expire that's okay, you don't want to buy things just because you have a coupon.
• After they expire you can recycle them or send them to a military family. Sending them to a military family might help you from purchasing things you don't need. Military families can use them up to three months after expiration date.

This system helps me, I hope you might find it useful.

Coupons - Binder or Not to Binder?

Should you use a binder for your coupons or not?

I have used a couple different coupon methods. When I was in the beginning couponing stages I used the basic file style coupon holder (below). That seemed to work really well for me because I could pull them out of the slot and just look through them really quick and it fit in my purse.

As I became a passionate coupon shopper I had seen people using the binder method and I thought, "Wow, I need to step up"; so I had my big heavy binder with all my coupons, sorted by date and coupon insert. But the problem for me was when I seen an item on sale that was not on my already prepared list I would have to sort through all the inserts. Then it would totally frustrate me knowing I had seen a coupon, then I couldn't find it.

So I moved to the baseball card type binder, cutting out all the coupons putting them in their individual slots. That seemed to take some time. It looked really nice and I could flip through the pages pretty easy. Problem here is that I would have to remember to take my binder in with me everywhere and leave it in the car. I was tired of carrying a heavy binder.

Now I'm back to the "old school" coupon book that I can throw in the purse and take it everywhere. The only difference is that I have two now. A grocery book and a Walgreen's type book.

I like being able to cut out the coupons, put them in their stacks as I'm cutting, then I grab them and put them in their slots in my books. Easy. I can still match my coupons up with sales, I just look under my category rather than a date.

I really think it totally depends on your personality, your lifestyle, your time, etc.

For some great ways to organize your coupons to go Frugal Coupon Living; she has a great article.

Having Trouble Printing Coupons?

Happy Money Saver has posted this wonderful posting helping you print your coupons. It's great information. I have two browsers installed on my computer and I use both.

I would suggest to print this posting out and file it with your coupon information, it may come in handy sometime.

Thank you Happy Money Saver for the great article.

Successful Shopping at WinCo Foods

I have been shopping at WinCo for years and I wanted to share with you some tips on how to save at WinCo. (just a reminder WinCo doesn't pay me to shop there - I wish. This is just my advice to help people save money).

• WinCo shoppers need to know prices and when the items are at their lowest. WinCo changes their prices on most items about every couple of weeks. They will hit the lowest about every 2 or 3 months. Dairy and meat products change the most. Milk and eggs stay about the same. I have seen prices fluctuate from $1 to $3 on one item. The chicken strips I normally buy are about $3.98 - $4.98, this week they were $7.98. I won't buy them until they come down in price. It will probably be a couple of weeks, then I will start stocking up.
  
  
• Start a price book. For the items you normally buy start a price book. You can take it in the store and write down the prices or do it at home from your receipt. After a couple months you will really start to know your prices. Now, swing into another store and take a look at the prices of the items you normally buy. You won't believe the difference. The one item I can't believe is Tillamook cheese 2lb block. Albertson's and Yoke's will sell them for $9.99 and at Winco it's normally $5.98. This is a staple item for us and I can't image spending $10 for something we go through all the time. After you know your prices you no longer need to keep a price book. I really thought I new prices until I started one; I was amazed. Now I know the lowest prices off the top of my head.
  
  
• Know when to stock up. Now that you are keeping a price book and know your prices, stock up when items hit their lowest. Use your freezer and pantry. When items hit their lowest grab about 4 to 6 weeks worth. Some of the things I stock up on is Ball Park Franks (~$2 stock up) and Tillamook Udderly Chocolate ice cream (~$3.38 stock up). I have a freezer in our shop so I will stock up and keep them in the extra freezer. WinCo normally will keep their prices for a couple weeks so you have time to stock.
  
  
• Coupons. WinCo in Richland, WA takes printables, some of the others don't. Ask the manager if your store takes them. Coupons can really lower the prices when you shop at WinCo. I was picking up Yoplait Plus Yogurt for $1. They were on sale for $2 and I had a bunch of $1/1 coupons. I know when you only have $3 in coupons you think why bother? Well I look at my cart and see something that is $3 and I figure I got that for free. Or look at the overall price I paid for that item, like my yogurt for $1. I purchase coupons from The Coupon Clippers on a regular basis. That way I have several coupons of the items I purchase on a regular basis. This is great for the WinCo stores that don't take printables.
  
  
• Your receipt. WinCo's receipts don't really help you to know how much money you really saved because they don't list sale prices. That does bother me because you don't feel like you saved much; but my suggestion is take a field trip to another store like Albertson's and write down the prices of the items you just purchased at WinCo. You will be totally shocked on how much money you saved just shopping there. I can leave the store with a cart full of groceries for $75 and at Albertson's I would have spent about $130 or more.
  
  
• Shopping at other stores. I shop at Albertson's and Safeway for the sales that I know are cheaper than WinCo due to the promotion they are holding and the coupons I have to go along with the promotion. Such as this week at Albertson's I will use my doublers on: Goodnight pull ups $9.99, $1/1 coupon and use the doubler = $7.99, M&M's 2 for $4, $1/1 coupon with a doubler = 2 for $2.

I hope this information will help you out. You can also apply this to any store your shop at on a regular basis. In the beginning of learning how to shop smart it takes a little time but once you have these basics down-pat it becomes second nature.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Purchasing Coupons

If you haven't purchased coupons before, it's a great way to receive only the coupons you use on a regular basis without buying several newspapers.

Today I purchased:
dog food, Dove Beauty bar, Mars candy bags, Oscar Mayer Deli meat, and pizza coupons for $4.03; the coupons are valued at $24, which saves me then $20.

I use TheCouponClippers.com , I have been using their service for over a year and I'm very happy with them. Give it a try.

New to Couponing?

If you are new to couponing and don't know where to start I would suggest to go to CouponMom.com and download her wonderful book "Cut Your Grocery Bill In Half" .

This is how I got started; it's easy. It's a great manual and it explains just about everything you need to know.

Once you understand the savings game and you follow frugal savings blogs you will be in on the game. Following blogs will keep you updated in and in the know.