AND I LOVE IT!!
I love that other people have gotten interested in it and I would love to help you save money! So this blog will be an attempt to answer those questions and more. And feel free to ask any other questions you may have by commenting, Facebooking me, or emailing me at coxnikki@hotmail.com
Why did you start couponing?
I have always been a "bargain hunter" and hardly ever buy anything unless it is on sale. I always try to wait for a great sale that makes the item I am buying 50% off or more. Yes, I shop the clearence racks and find great deals by shopping online. But, when it comes to grocery shopping, you can't go to the back of the store and shop last seasons sale..... so after watching extreme couponing on TLC, I was like "I can do that!"
Where do I start?
Just start by collecting coupons. Build up your stash and find a way to organize them that works for you. Some people file them in a shoebox, some people file the inserts by date, some people (me!) use a coupon binder. I personally file mine alphabetically. Others also organize by categories, or aisles of the store (freezer, canned goods, dairy, meat, etc). I also have 2 separate sections of my binder, one for food and one for non-food items. I started with them all together, but then I accumulated too many coupons that it got to be a lot of flipping through the pages, searching for my coupon. I also file my inserts by date, as well. Since I order whole inserts, I usually will just cut one up, put it in my binder, and put a sticky note on the back saying how many more I have and where to find them. Oh, and I use baseball card holders to hold the coupons.
And Start with just a couple of stores, or even just one. Find their coupon policy online or ask for a copy in the store and read it through carefully. And check back at least once a month to ensure it's the same. Find a couple of coupon bloggers (preferable local to you!) and read their blogs regularly. A few blogs that I follow are
thekrazycouponlady.com my favorite
tammileetips.com my other favorite!
happymoneysaver.com
thriftynorthwestmom.com
frugalchicliving.org
These fabulous ladies are also on facebook! So "like" them and you immediately start seeing the deals in front of your eyes! I also have used couponmom.com as a resource as well.
Don't try to be "extreme" on your first day of couponing. Start out small. A few items at a time. Your stock pile WILL grow! And you WILL find great deals! Extreme Couponing is not realistic. I have read many interviews of those people and they all say they have never made trips that big in their life and will never do it again...... it was simply for TV. They normally only come home with 3-4 shopping bags a week or less. So don't be discouraged if you are not bringing home a retail value of $1200!!
And there is no need to clip every coupon you see! A good rule of thumb is to ask yourself this:
Will my family use the product? Even if I snag it for free, will it get used? Can it be donated? Don’t save the coupon if you answer NO to these questions. Be an extreme couponer, not an extreme hoarder!
And if you would like, there are some groups I am sure you can find online that do coupon exchanges that you can attend, or you can mail your unwanted OR your EXPIRED coupons to military families who are allowed to use expired coupons for up to 6 months past expiration. If you need an address of where to send them, please let me know and I would be happy to give it to you!
Where do you get your coupons from?
I have quite the variety of sources. I actually don't know where to start for this question..... haha. But here is the list:
The newspaper. Know what inserts come in your paper though. Seattle Times does not get Red Plum.
Friends and Family. My mom saves my inserts, and if I go over to my dad's house, or another good friend or family, I raid their newspaper pile if they are not couponing themselves.
Dumpster Diving. No, I don't actually get into a dumpster. I go to the local recycling center and dig through (but do NOT get into) the big o bins of newspaper. I actually find quite a few most of the time. I go every Monday. I have ran into other coupon hunters and a couple people that were looking for box tops for their local elementary school. Make sure you contact your own local recycling center to make sure this is okay with them. Most of the time it's just fine, but you don't want to get accused of trespassing or something like that. I called and asked if I was allowed to take newspapers out of the bins if I wanted to. (too embarrassed at the time to admit I was coupon searching!) and the lady just kind of laughed and said "you lookin for coupons?" haha. It made me feel better that I wasn't the only one asking.... haha.
Coupon Clipping websites. My favorites are westcoastcouponclipping.com or eastcoastcouponclipping.com. West Coast one sells individual coupons, most for .05 cents each with a maximum order of 20 per coupon. They ship fast and they are based out of Tri-Cities. East Coast sells coupons also, but I use them for their insert sales. They sell whole inserts (like smartsource, red plum and P&G) for only .45 cents each, with a $2.85 flat shipping. Since a newspaper costs $2 (in my town, anyway), it is WAY cheaper, to just buy the inserts from them. They have a 5 insert minimum order. Ebay. I have not done this, but I have heard that this is also a great way to get whole inserts or individual coupons. Just be sure to check the credentials of the seller to ensure quick delivery and great reviews.
Online coupon websites. I like coupons.com, cool savings, smartsource, red plum, cellfire. There are TONS of sites out there. Check them often; they usually add new coupons the beginning of each month and also towards the beginning of the week. There is a 2 limit print per computer on most coupons, but sometimes you get lucky and can get up to 4 per computer (like I did today with a HOT coupon!). This is when having more than one computer in the house is handy!
Online Retail Websites. Sites such as Target (they have a TON!), Fred Meyer, Safeway..... have coupons on their websites. Check your local or your favorite grocery store to see if you can print some out or if you can load them onto your card. And remember that most places with allow you to use a store coupon WITH a manufacturer coupon, making the discount even deeper! This is called "stacking" in the coupon world..... :)
Contacting Manufacturers. I have not done this yet, but have been wanting to start this and I will as soon as I get a contact list organized. I have heard many others say that they contact 1-2 companies a day and tell them how much they love their product and they usually send them coupons for free items in the mail as a thank you. As soon as I compile a list of companies I want to contact and their contact information, I plan to start this!
On Products and In Stores. Keep your eyes peeled! Coupons are everywhere! They have them on tear pads next to items, they have them on products that you can peel off once at the register, they have little machines (called blinkies) that print out coupons in random aisles. There are coupon baskets at FredMeyer that people toss their unwanted coupons into. There are coupons in the weekly ads.... they are just about everywhere you look. And be sure you keep an eye out for promotion on the products as well. I recently just paid about $15 for cereal and will be getting a $20 gas card in the mail for buying them because of a promotion they were having on the box.
How much time do you spend couponing?
I personally LOVE to coupon, so I don't mind spending the time it takes to get the best deals. I spend an hour every Monday going dumpster diving, I spend about a half an hour to an hour, going over the ads (Wednesday grocery ads and Sunday ads as well...... usually just Target and Fred Meyer on Sundays). I spend about 2 hours grocery shopping every week (I take my time, though, since it's my time without my girls.... haha) and I am usually online every night looking at some sort of coupon site while my husband and I catch up on our DVR. You can spend as much time as you would like couponing. I will tell you that you will spend quite a bit of time cutting coupons at the beginning, while you stock up your coupons and get them organized. Once you have a system though, it will get easier and easier and you will be able to cut your time in half! (at least!)
I hope this information is helpful to you! My brain is overloaded at the moment with information and I am beginning to get a headache from thinking so hard, so I think I should be done for the night. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask!
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