How to Buy Everything You Want and Still Have Money Left Over

With cost of just about everything going up (just in time for the holidays! YAY!) I have really been good about using my coupons lately. Smart shopping is just the way I was raised. I love to shop. My mother loves to shop. But my mother always taught me that when you go into a store, the first thing you look at is the clearance rack. Then, you look at the normal sale rack. Then, and only then, do you look at the "regular price" stuff, and only to see what you need to watch for when it goes on sale. Occasionally I get a little good-natured ribbing from friends, family, and coworkers about my obsession with a good sale, but the majority of the time, I am not at all embarrassed to be frugal. So it should be a surprise to no one who knows my shopping philosophy that I have become a coupon lady. I love a good deal, and I work in nonprofit so obviously I am not bringing home the big bucks. And, I'm a Leo so I love to boast about trips to the store where I get $40 worth of groceries for less than $10. :) Recently, I have had several people ask me how I learned the secrets to my shopping strategy, so I thought I would make a little blog post and share.

One of the biggest ways to see the difference in sale/coupon shopping is with your groceries and household items, so that is the perspective I will use for this blog, though you can apply the same tips to anything (ex-I love Ann Taylor Loft, but only shop the extra % off clearances and/or use the coupons they send me in the mail). Here are my best tips if you would like to get started with "couponing":

1. Pick your favorite stores and product brands and sign up for their e-newsletters. They will send you the weekly circulars and coupons. This way, you can work on buying only what is on sale. Also, sign up at the printable coupon sites:
www.coupons.com
www.smartsource.com
www.redplum.com
These "re-set" at the first of every month-this means, new coupons are available and previous offers will be available to you again if you already printed the allotted number of times on your computer (you can print each coupon 2-6 times each month depending on the site).

Also, get the Sunday paper for the coupons-CVS sells them for $1 so I get 2 copies each week which only costs me 25 cents more than buying 1 at the gas station like I used to do. Hard-core coupon ladies will tell you to buy 4-6 copies but being a one-woman household, I don't need THAT much stuff.

2. You have to have a plan. Since I am single, it is pretty easy for me to be more flexible about meals and cooking because I don't have to do it everyday, but I do try to go into the week with an idea of 2-3 dishes that I have the ingredients on hand to cook. If you have 2+ people in your home, do a weekly meal plan and make a list of everything you need, figure out what you already have, and what you need to get. When you are getting ready to go to the store, make your list based on the sale flyers for your store and go ahead and get your coupons ready. Try to create meals around what you have on hand and what is on sale at the store each week. Sticking to your list will help cut down on those evil "impulse" buys! You can be flexible; if you get to the store and there is a great deal on chicken and you were going to buy ground beef, maybe your beef tacos will become chicken tacos instead....you get the idea.

You do have to spend more time shopping, but since I enjoy it that is not a problem. I generally hit Publix, Harris Teeter, and CVS once every week to get the deals I need. I will throw in a Walgreens, Kroger and/or Target visit once every couple of weeks too. Some people go to every store 2-3 times a week to take advantage of a deal multiple times but my time is more valuable to me than that-I try to stick to my once per week shopping schedule, a lot of times over my lunch break. The Harris Teeter by my office has an elevator, a cart escalator, AND a Starbucks, and since I am easily amused shopping there feels like a weekly treat rather than a chore.....but if you are not like me, that's OK, you can hit your one favorite grocery store like you usually do and going in with coupons, a list and a plan will still save you some money.

3. Know your "rock-bottom price" for the items you buy the most. To get a good deal, you have to know what a good deal actually is on a certain product, and since the same item may have a different price at every store in your area, you need to know what you are willing to pay. When things hit "rock bottom" stock up. Buy as many as you have coupons/space for, and by the time you are out there will be another sale. If you end up with too much of something, consider donating the items to a food pantry or women's shelter. (I bought Target brand baby wipes with a coupon I got in the mail for$3 any target brand purchase-wipes ended up being about 10 cents a package. I donated them to a United Way drive going on at the office.)

Buy One, Get One or "BOGO" sales are usually a good starting point for finding items at "rock-bottom" prices. That's basically 50% off, and most stores ring each item up at half price so if you only need one, you get it half off. If you can get an item half off, plus a coupon (and bonus if you are at a store that doubles coupons!) you end up walking away with a great deal. Case in point-last week Publix had Ronzoni Healthy Harvest Pasta (the whole wheat kind) BOGO. Coupons.com had the printable coupons for $1 off 2. They rang up at .60 each, plus I got $1 off every two I bought (I printed that coupon about 4 times) which made them .20 each. I got 8 boxes of pasta for a little over the cost of ONE at regular price. And I won't have to buy any more for MONTHS-and by the time I am getting low, I know there will be another sale. Which brings me to the next point.....

4. Combine coupons with store sales for the best value. Sometimes, you get things FREE this way! Or for pennies like my pasta example above. This is how you really create a difference in your budget. You will probably want to do a little research on each store's coupon policy before you get up to the register. Some stores will limit the number of coupons you can use, some won't accept competitor coupons but some will, etc.

5. Find a website that matches up the best deals in your area and sign up for their newsletter. If you live in Nashville, www.faithfulprovisions.com is a good local one. It covers all the stores I typically shop and shows which items are the best deal based on sale price + coupons. It also has some great resources if you are new to clipping coupons-my favorites are the coupon insert schedule, so I know when I need to buy the paper, and the "lingo" list so you can interpret the list of deals as they use all kinds of abbreviations.

6. Set a limit for how much you want to spend each week. Because really, there are so many good deals you won't be able to get them all. Prioritize-for example, even if pasta goes on sale again in the next month, I won't be buying any because I don't need it. I think the Faithful Provisions lady does $40/week, and I believe she feeds a family of four and that includes all household items like soap and cleaners, as well as personal care like razors and shampoo. I'm not that good! I aim for $30 week and it is just me! But I do buy a lot of fresh produce and there are not as many coupons for those so I really watch sales closely. And I am a product junkie-if there is a new hairspray/lipgloss/etc and I have a coupon I have to have it! If you can get a really good deal, I think it is ok to break the budget every once in awhile. But generally, have an overall monthly budget and even if you go over one week try to cut back a little the next.

A couple of other sites worth checking out/signing up for:
www.southernsavers.com They have a "best prices of all" section which is handy if you are looking for a good deal on a specific item

www.coupongal.net Has a separate section for Retail coupons and Restaurant coupons

http://thekrazycouponlady.com/10-days-to-become-a-krazy-coupon-lady-day-1/
A "10-Day" series on how to become a coupon king/queen-although you can scroll through all ten days in about 20 minutes. She has some GREAT tips on learning your rock bottom prices, how much to buy, what to only "buy" when its free, etc.

The first time you get a receipt where you saved more than you spent, you will love the satisfaction your get from saving money and getting great deals. Happy Saving!