The couponing thread

[Bannister]

That's just stooopid! Heck, we even took home the leftovers when we went ti IHOP last week for Pancake Day and got our free short stacks.

 

[Bannister]

My wife doesn't just get together with friends, she actually goes up to strangers in the store, if she sees them carrying their coupon binder.

Recently when Target had their $5.00 off blu ray coupon, I was buying Inglourious Basterds and the guy behind me was too. I had that coupon and a manufacturer's coupon and he was like, I wish I had some of those. I had an extra $5.00 one, so I just gave it to him. I have gotten some crazy deals on blu rays combining coupons and in store promos.

 

[barryo]

My wife doesn't just get together with friends, she actually goes up to strangers in the store, if she sees them carrying their coupon binder.

But yeah, I definitely agree about the marrying up part. She just called, in fact, to tell me that she got a BOGO on london broil. Time to get the barbeque out of winter storage!

i laugh (with admiration) at the whole process they have.
its all planned like a military mission, dozens of phone calls, exchanging intel, planning where they strike first, etc etc.

and then afterward dividing the spoils of war....

i get exhausted just watching the whole thing go down but i admire them for it & it makes me feel great that she is saving us money.....& thats always a good thing........

 

[galactiboy]

I've often thought about doing this, but never really knew where to begin. This will be a new goal... we spend about $500 a month on groceries for the 2 of us; I'd be stoked to chop some of that down.

And it sounds like it could be a good activity to work on together.

 

[Bannister]

I don't know if other grocery chains do this, but in Texas, HEB always has some kind of meal deal going, where you buy one product and get 4 or 5 other things free with it. Those are also some good money savers.

 

[RoboDad]

I've often thought about doing this, but never really knew where to begin. This will be a new goal... we spend about $500 a month on groceries for the 2 of us; I'd be stoked to chop some of that down.

And it sounds like it could be a good activity to work on together.

It really is. But don't get me wrong, it does take some time. It isn't like you can spend 30 seconds clipping a couple of coupons and get the big savings. But it also doesn't take a HUGE amount of time, once you get it going. My guess is that we spend about 20-30 minutes a day averaged out over the week. But given the choice between saving those 30 minutes and saving a boatload of money, I'll take the money .

 

[Darth Waller]

I don't know if other grocery chains do this, but in Texas, HEB always has some kind of meal deal going, where you buy one product and get 4 or 5 other things free with it. Those are also some good money savers.

The closest HEB near me is always packed, so much so that I don't want to shop there. I heard another one is going to open up nearby in June.

 

[grphyx1]

I LOOOOOOOOOOVE coupons, I clip from the sunday paper and go to www.wow-coupons.com for coupons in my area. trust me my last supermarket trip I save over $131.00, and don't get me started on the can can sales with coupons, I scream like a b!%ch when they have those. and I have my coupon case labeled

 

[hairlesswookiee]

Another thing that gets me is people who won't eat leftovers from a restaurant. They prefer to just waste food.

I've never done that. I always ask for a box to take stuff home. If anything I get hungry later and finish my meal. Lol...sometimes I ask for a box when they bring the food.

 

[Bannister]

I've never done that. I always ask for a box to take stuff home. If anything I get hungry later and finish my meal. Lol...sometimes I ask for a box when they bring the food.

I have done that before when I am trying to lose weight. I get that extra food out of my way first so I am not tempted to eat it.

 

[The Ween]

OK, so there are many of us who are trying to find ways to tighten our belts and save money in these tough times. One of the techniques for saving money, LOTS of money, is becoming "all the rage" around the US - couponing. Clipping coupons out of the ad inserts in the newspaper, and printing even more directly from manufacturer web sites, and then combining those coupons with advertised sales.

My wife went to a class (yes, they have CLASSES for this stuff ), and came home totally energized to try it out. Well, over the years we've tried various couponing techniques before, but never really saw that much of a savings on our grocery bill. However, it seems apparent to me that retailers and manufacturers are more motivated than they have ever been before, and they are actually working together to make some incredible deals available to consumers.

Now, before anyone says anything, let me just say that, because of our previous experiences, I was as skeptical as I could possibly be going in. But now that I've seen our grocery bill for the past two weeks, I am sold on the idea.

It does take some work, and there is a small amount of "lead time" where you don't get as many great results as you would like, but once things get rolling... wow.

We did our shopping on Monday and Tuesday of this week (you do have to shop at multiple stores to get the maximum deals), and brought home $275 worth of groceries, and paid a total of $90 for it. And I'm not talking about stupid things we would never eat or use, I am talking about the same products we always have bought, just a LOT cheaper.

Anyone else out there doing this yet?

I do couponing, but there's no way I can sit and scope out every single thing that I get on the coupon sites and manufacters sites. I just go on couponing sites and clip coupons from the flyers in the Sunday paper. Our store doubles coupons and triples them once in awhile.

None of the stores in my area will let you double up on coupons. You can't use more than one coupon per item.

 

[The Ween]

I am amazed that people are just doing stuff like this now. My parents used coupons all the time when I was a kid. I remember stores used to do double and triple coupon days. I can't tell you how many grocery items they have gotten for free because of coupons combined with sales. I can't buy anything without making sure I am getting the best price, because I learned from watching them all the time. It's kind of sad that people actually have to take classes for this sort of thing.

We always have done this and I've done it for years myself. I think the classes are for to get the most out of things on the internet.

I don't like having to sign up to all those manufactures sites though. I get enough emails already!

 

[The Ween]

Another thing that gets me is people who won't eat leftovers from a restaurant. They prefer to just waste food.

OMFG........I know! I've seen people buy a ton of food, eat alittle bit, then just leave it sit there! I should've just moved to their table and ate their leftovers for free instead of ordering! I see this all the time and it drives me crazy! I can sometimes make 3 meals out of my dinner because the portions are so big.

 

[The Ween]

I've often thought about doing this, but never really knew where to begin. This will be a new goal... we spend about $500 a month on groceries for the 2 of us; I'd be stoked to chop some of that down.

And it sounds like it could be a good activity to work on together.

www.smartsource.com

www.coupons.com

www.couponmom.com

Just google coupon sites. There's alot of them.

 

[Mesa]

I used coupons for the first time in YEARS a couple weeks ago. Not only did I save something like $15 on a $100 grocery trip, but it really helped me figure out what to buy.

Things are tight now for everyone, and I have no problem being frugal. I'm not cheap, I like the good stuff, but if I can save, why not?


Edit: I just cut the ones I get in my junk mail or free sunday paper delivery.

 

[Bannister]

OMFG........I know! I've seen people buy a ton of food, eat alittle bit, then just leave it sit there! I should've just moved to their table and ate their leftovers for free instead of ordering!

I saw someone actually do that once. I was at a Bennigans and the service was really slow. These women at a table near mine decided to start eating the practically untouched leftovers at another table.

 

[RoboDad]

I think my wife took this to the next level today. She just came back from the grocery store with $97 worth of food, and paid...







wait for it...








are you ready?








$2.73

 

[Entropy]

Sweet.

I used a couple coupons and in store specials and they paid me $.70 to take away 2 bottles of Listerine.

 

[MadCow]

A buddy of mine does this and it amazes the ____ outta me. He'll come home with a car FULL of groceries and pays no more than $10. A few times he's actually come with MAKING money on it.

I really really really want to learn how to do this...

 

[RoboDad]

Sweet.

I used a couple coupons and in store specials and they paid me $.70 to take away 2 bottles of Listerine.

Cool! We got a similar deal on apple juice last week. Five cans of concentrate, a few coupons, and we pocketed $4.20 for our trouble.