Yes ladies and gentlemen, coupon clipping works.

My wife went to a workshop about 3 months ago that a regular mom does every few months around the neighborhood. The cost for the workshop was 25 bucks. My thought was what the hell, we probably burn 25 bucks breathing, so try it. I was frightened of what she would really spend at the workshop, but what the hell.

Well, it was the best 25 bucks we ever spent. This lady showed her how to get and organize coupons, get manufacturer coupons, where to go on the internet to get more coupons, and then how to stack them with BOGO offers to maximize profits.

So now we eat around what is BOGO at the store and what we have coupons for.

Some of the big deals -

My wife shops at CVS when there are extra care bucks for certain items. She keeps recycling the extra care bucks - and we started there with a 25 dollar gift card from CVS for transferring a scrip from Walgreens. To date we have spent only 38 dollars of our money but have purchased almost 300 dollars worth of merchandise.

This past week, Publix had $50 BP gift cards for $40 with a $25 purchase. She broke the purchases up so she could get 4 gift cards. The total was 328.00, but after subtracting BOGO's store coupons, mfg coupons, and the $40 off for the gift cards, she spent only 181.00. Basically, we got a weeks worth of groceries and two months worth of gas for 181.00.

What we have figured out is that by scoping out the coupons and sales we do much better than BJ's or Sams Club etc.

Lastly, it has changed the way we spend money. Unless we have coupons, we don't buy it anymore - we wait. This goes for almost everything - including eating out.

Couponing really works. I am amazed at the results, and it is saving us a ton of money. Stacking offers is the key - revolving home menus around what is BOGO, and combining that with manufacturer and store coupons (keeping in mind that most stores accept competitor coupons), and making sure that we buy it when it is on sale, not just when we have coupons (usually the stores raise the price when the coupons are featured in the Sunday paper).

I think for this month we fed a family of 4 for a little over 150 dollars. That's including toiletries, etc.

Whao. I gotta do this. But then i would have to buy a newspaper. ha !

If you like to eat out, you need to register with restaurant.com. I'm often able to pick up $25 gift certificates for $2-3. Local (non-chain) restaurants, too.

if you are new to couponing, check out http://www.thegrocerygame.com/

It's a few $ to join, but she lists the deals at your local grocery & drug store & the coupon saving you can have on top of it - as well as stacking plans, ECB, RR, etc.

My neighbor's jaw was on the floor for hours when she saw my grocery bill drop from over $200 to $51 after coupons & BOGO's

cool. thanks for the links

From "name that boat" to coupons to- this place never ceases to amaze..

What does BOGO mean?

Buy One, Get One (usually "buy one get one free," but not always.)

Buy one, get one (free)

Quote:

From "name that boat" to coupons to- this place never ceases to amaze..

it's what bears have to resort to during bull runs.

We don't go out to dinner unless it's in "the book" as my wife calls it.
It's the "Dine Out" book.
Couple hundred pages of mainly local restaurants, almost every coupon is BOGO.
We buy it for $20 through son's Scout Troop.
Half the money goes to his personal troop fund for trips, so it really only costs us $10.
Use it one time and it has more than paid for the 10 bucks.
Generally good for a full year (starts in november each year).
Essentially, can eat out in restaurants that are everything from fast food to 4-star for 1/2 price all year for a $10 outlay up front.

I personally recommend hotcouponworld.com

And yes, it does work. I've been doing it for years. This month I got the following deals:

Marcal facial tissue, reg $.75 at commissary; coupon $1/1; free plus .25 overage...I got 200 boxes, so won't need tissue for about 4 years:-)

Glad straws, found coupons on ebay for $1/2; they have them at the commissary for .40 each. So, free plus .10 overage per box. I'll end up with about 50 boxes of those as well.

Kroger: cheese on sale for $1.49 (8oz block kraft cheddar & mozz); I had coupons .50/1, doubled to 1.00/1. So each block of cheese was $.49...I got 30 blocks & have them in the freezer.

Kraft slices same deal as above (but 12oz size).

Steamfresh veggies, on sale for .99 bag, coupon for .50/1, doubled to $1/1, got 50 bags for free.

I can never find good bread coupons; but it is just as well because I'm making fresh bread daily for about .60 cents.

Last month I loaded up on free or almost free Franks hot sauce, mustard and ketchup and tomato sauce (usually about .80 a 15oz can; on sale for .49, had coupons for .45/3, doubled to .90/3; so each can worked out to .19 cents each.

I also just found some good coupons .25/1 van camps baked beans. I got 100 of those. Just waiting for a doubles or triples sale at Harris Teeter or Kroger to use them:-)

I wish I could find some Motts apple juice coupons....Its on sale at Kroger's right now for .99 cents each...still a decent deal...I'll probably get about 15 of them.

Rebates are good too.

The problem that I have found with coupons is that most of them are for prepared foods of which I use almost none.

But the coupon lady Jill Cataldo or whatever her name is all over it.

Here is her website:

http://www.supercouponing.com/

Psgirl, most coupons are junk. The key is to find the good ones. And if they are good or not depends on the stores available to you. Example, $1/1 coupon for Mission tortillas is not a good coupon for me; but $.75/1 IS a good coupon for me. In the first case, at HT, I'd end up paying .49 for a bag of flour tortillas; but HT doubles up to .99 cents; so the .75/1 coupon would double to $1.50 & the tortillas would be free. So I'd rather have the lesser valued coupon.

I haven't paid for shampoo, conditioner, toothbrushes, toothpaste, dental floss, baked beans, steamfresh veggies and mustard in years. These are basics. My grocery bill went from over $650 a month, down to about $150...for a family of 5.

Most coupons I throw out. In the Sunday paper, with 50 coupons, I might only find 2-3 good ones. The rest get tossed. Then I go to ebay & buy more of the ones I will need for deals.

I love couponing. Its like one great big math problem:-) Free is good; but free with overage is the Holy Grail of couponing:-) Its the thrill of the hunt and the added bonus of saving money while doing it. Win-win:-)

You buy coupons on ebay????

What the hell is wrong with you people. Your not helping the economy at all doing this. How is obama going to pay for our health care if you don't spend more money. Go get a VELOC on your car and buy buy buy. You aren't even Americans are you. Just think of the children. sheesh. just kidding.

Technically you can't buy or sell coupons. So, the coupons on ebay are free...what you are paying for is the service that someone provides by getting the coupons and clipping them and mailing them to you in lots of 10 or 20.

What I wouldn't give to know someone in the newspaper business, so I could get some extra inserts on Sundays. I used to go to a retirement home every Sunday night at 7pm (for 2 years), and go through their newspaper recycle bin. I'd end up with 10-15 of each insert per week. Until some old bitty decided it wasn't fair & the residents should have first dibs. I talked to a friend that lives there since & she says noone every takes them, they just get dumped in the garbage.

Its less hassle to get them on ebay. You just have to scrutinize the costs per coupon carefully & I include the cost when determining how much I saved.

So something like this on Ebay?

http://cgi.ebay.com/20-KOHLS-5-OFF-COUPO....

More like this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/20-Coupons-25-VAN-CA....

http://cgi.ebay.com/20-Coupons-for-0-75-....

http://cgi.ebay.com/10ct-Free-or-1-1-Mar....

Damn, those are good coupons Lemon! I don't typically look for dept store coupons. Used to get Lowes or Home Depot, but now (at least the ones in my area) already give a 10% discount if you show a military id.

Alright so... for the baked beans you'd wait for a double coupon sale and then buy all of 'em at once?

Can you use 20 coupons at once for the same product?

Go to Starbucks on Sunday mornings. They have tons of papers.

Ok this thread needs a bump. We should post good deal sites like the restaurant.com posted above or other places we can save money. Thanks for the info!

Depends on the store Lemon. From experience, I know that in April/May, baked beans tend to go on sale for 3/$1 at most stores. My Krogers "supposedly" limits to 5 like coupons per visit, but in reality, I gave them 10 each of various coupons last month & the cashier didn't bat an eyelash. HT limits to 3 like coupons, but you usually squeeze in four w/o a problem. I don't go out of my way, but if I have to pass by the store anyway, then I'll swing by. Usually I don't get so many coupons at once anymore. But we go through alot of baked beans & thats the best coupon I've seen in 3 years. Even if I'm stuck getting them at Food Lion (doesn't double), still only works out to .8 cents a can after coupon...plus .05 for the price of the coupons...so .13 cents each.

Hewy Wakeup, any reputable coupon vendors on ebay you would like to share?

Also, for all of you in Florida and Georgia: http://www.southernsavers.com is also a good site, especially makes you aware of the stacking deals...

And as Wakeup said, we haven't spent a dime on soap, shampoo, toothpaste, none of it in 2 months and we have plenty in stock.