Have you ever watched "Extreme Couponing" and thought, that's cool but... ?
Ever heard a friend tell you about her find at the grocery store and wonder how you missed it?
The point of this blog is to tell you about the deals I'm finding in real time. I'm not going to go on and on about finding something for cheap two weeks ago. That deal is dead! HOWEVER, in order for you to get anything out of this set-up, there are a few things you'll need to do so that you can get the same deals I'm finding.
First, get your hands on a Sunday paper (I, myself, get the Oregonian on Monday morning...Safeway carries it most of the week.). The circulars that I cut out of are RedPlum and SmartSource, and then of course any good coupons from the store circulars. Believe me, you will always make your money back and then some!
Next, fire up your printer! Online coupons are a must! A lot of coupons I will print off as I need them throughout the month, but it's very important that you print off the bulk of your coupons on the first day of the month, because they only release so many and the good ones are usually gone within a week. SO, if you're reading this it is not too late to print off your coupons for the month of July. Eventually I will have a list of my favorite websites, but for now make sure you check out pillsbury.com, coupons.com, redplum.com, smartsource.com, mycoupons.com, grocerycoupons4u.com or just google "Printable Coupons", check out the sites, and add any that look good to your favorites.
A few tips for online printing:
- Print ANYTHING that you think you might use and print as many as the computer will let you (usually two or three) even if it's not a brand you normally use, particularly because it's usually too expensive. Believe me, I'm not picky about brands if I can get it for 19 cents! This amount of printing will seem excessive at the time, but at the end of the month you will find that you've used most of them.
- You will find that many websites offer the same coupons. This can sometimes work to your advantage. For example, our family eats GoGurt like it's going out of style. This is a coupon that runs out early every month, so I go to every site that offers it and print off as many as I can. Without fail, it goes on sale during the month and I stock up when it's extra cheap with all of my coupons. If it doesn't ever go on sale extremely cheap?? Well, then I am still paying less than I normally would have for a product I was going to buy anyway. (Hence LESS-THAN-Extreme couponing....I don't have to get everything for free!) When doesn't the multiple website thing work to your advantage? Some websites monitor your printing among any site that uses that particular printing add-on, so it can track your print limit and you're stuck with that two or three.
- Go through the store ads and see what's really cheap, particularly with a store coupon. I will then google "______ Coupon" and see if they have any manufacturer coupons to add to that deal. Sometimes I'm successful, sometimes I'm not...but it only takes two minutes, so it's worth a try!
- You will find that online coupons are typically worth a little less than the ones you can find in the paper. So for that reason I especially don't waste my time with "fluff" coupons (i.e. something that I rarely see for less than $4 and its coupon is only worth 40 cents or a coupon for 25 cents off when you buy 3...stuff like that)
- You will find that many sites (particularly brand sites) will ask you to register before your first time printing. It's painless, usually just your name, age, and e-mail. Keep in mind that they will send you an occasional e-mail, so if you're picky about your e-mail clutter I might suggest having a separate e-mail that you give out to sites like that (I don't, but it seems like a good idea).
Finally, it will be important for you to know if you can follow along with my blog based on the stores where I shop. The deals I will share will be at: Fred Meyer (Kroger), Safeway (Vons), Walgreens, RiteAid, Bi-Mart, K-Mart and possibly SavALot (I haven't ventured into that store yet). I will be interested to see if my "interstate" friends can get the same sales!
Does this seem like a lot? Believe me, it's NOT! I fit it into my routine with two young children, working on my masters, church work, and the normal day-to-day stuff, like my current obsession with "Lost" on Netflix (I clip and organize my coupons while I watch). If less-than-extreme couponing sucked up a bunch of my time, I definitely wouldn't be taking MORE time out of my day to blog about it. :)
So, if you're game to follow along with my deal finding and want to follow the steps above, welcome to less-than-extreme couponing! This will be fun!!
