Welcome to CouponAllies!
We are glad you stopped by. If you're interested in saving money, you're at the right place. Hopefully, you will learn something about "couponing" that you didn't know before and it will help you save money... and, maybe make some money! Surprised? Good.
We are stay-at-home moms that are "working" to save money for our families. It's actually a lot of fun! I'd much rather let the manufacturer's pay for some of my toothpaste, toilet paper and snacks and spend my money on other things for my husband and kids. Wouldn't you?
Well, if your answer is Yes, keep reading.
Manufacturer's issue coupons for all sorts of things. In the last 18 months I've used coupons for the typical things, like toothpaste and food items, but I've also used them to get postage stamps, meat, free Victoria's Secret panties, free candles, make-up, more gum and candy than I need, and all sorts of other things. To be honest, I have been pleasantly suprised what deals you can do with a little thinking and effort. And, it's all out there for us to find!
First...
You have to have coupons and more than 1 of each coupon to maximize your savings and/or money-making effort. I often have 20 of each coupon but you might not want/need that many. We recommend at least 5 though.
Money-making? Yes. Many stores issue "coupons" at the register from a little machine called a Catalina machine. When you purchase certain items in their store, the manufacturer rewards you with a Catalina coupon or Register Reward as some call them. They are often $1, $2, $5, $8 in value and you can "spend" them on pretty much anything in the store. There are a few restrictions, like dairy and U.S. Postage Stamps, but for me, it's easy to spend them since I have four kids. Birthday presents and Christmas presents and friends gifts are always coming up so if nothing else is needed, that's where these get "spent".
The good old-fashioned newspaper is the best source for coupons. The coupons are usually grouped together, but not stapled, in the newspaper with all the ads. They are issued almost every Sunday of the year. The 2010 schedules are HERE for RedPlum (RP), HERE for SmartSource, and HERE for P&GbrandSaver, but are also listed below. The inserts that are included in most Sunday papers are the Smart Source, RedPlum, Procter & Gamble's P&GbrandSaver, Unilever, and General Mills. Often there are also coupons in the Sunday Parade magazine and American Profile magazine.
2010 Schedule
January
3 -- 2 SS (New Year, New You), 2 RP
10 -- SS (New Year, New You), RP
17 -- SS (Big Game Extravaganza, Super Bowl Savings Spectacular)
24 -- SS (Big Game Extravaganza, Super Bowl Savings Spectacular), RP
31 -- SS (Big Game Extravaganza, Super Bowl Savings Spectacular), RP
February
7 -- SS (Heart Smart), RP
14 -- RP
21 -- SS, RP
28 -- SS
March
7 -- SS, RP
14 -- SS, RP
21 -- SS (Easter Seals), RP
28 --2 SS (SmartSource Green), RP
April
4 -- NO INSERTS (Easter)
11-- SS, RP
18 -- SS (SmartSource Green), RP
25 -- SS, RP (RMHC Themed Event)
May
2 -- SS, RP
9 -- SS (Summer Blastoff)
16 -- SS (Summer Blastoff), RP
23 -- SS, RP
30 -- NO INSERTS (Memorial Day)
June
6 -- SS (Children's Miracle Network), RP
13 -- SS, RP
20 -- SS (Easter Seals), RP
27 -- SS, RP
July
4 -- NO INSERTS (4th of July)
11 -- SS, RP
18 -- SS
25 -- SS, RP
August
1 -- SS, 2 RP
8 -- SS (Back to School, Back to Savings), RP
15 -- SS, RP
22-- SS (Back to School, Back to Savings)
29 -- SS, RP
September
5 -- NO INSERTS (Labor Day)
12 -- SS (Diabetes Smart), RP
19 -- SS, RP (RMHC Themed Event)
26 -- SS, RP
October
3 -- SS (SmartSource Pink), RP
10 -- SS, RP
17 -- SS, RP
24 -- SS, RP
31 -- SS, RP
November
7 -- SS (Children's Miracle Network), RP
14 -- SS , 2 RP
21 -- SS, RP
28 -- NO INSERTS (Thanksgiving)
December
5 -- SS, RP
12 -- SS, RP
19 -- NO INSERTS (Christmas)
26 -- NO INSERTS (New Year's)
Now you know when they'll come so make a plan to acquire them. There are several ways to acquire coupons. Of course, I'm about FREE if at all possible, but that's not always possible. So, here's a few ideas:
- Subscribe to the local newspapers... don't limit yourself to the one that is closest to you. Other newspapers in your area may have better and more coupons issued. Keep in mind that manufacturers don't always issue the same coupon in every area. Often they are regional and they are going to get the best bang for their buck. I personally do not subscribe to the paper because I want more than one copy of Sunday's paper and I don't want the rest of the week's papers. I'm often buying more anyway when I know there's a good deal, so I buy mine at Giant Eagle where I also get FuelPerks on the purchase (more on that later). Our local newspapers are the Cleveland Plain Dealer, The Akron Beacon Journal, Canton's The Repository and The Massillon Independent.
- Purchase them at a local store.
In Cleveland (Cuyahoga County), the Sunday Plain Dealer is discounted on Monday morning to $.99/each instead of $2.00 on Sunday. Here is a list of locations that sell them at a discount. The Beacon Journal is also discounted to $.75/each on Monday. You can purchase extras at their main location in Akron. - Ask friends and family members for their coupon inserts if they aren't planning on using them.
- Print coupons from the Internet. There are several sites that are reputable. www.SmartSource.com, RedPlum, All You, Target, Coupons.com, www.bettycrocker.com, and many others. Before you can print, these sites will prompt you to download a small software program that enables you to print coupons. Most of these sites will limit you to two (2) coupons from each computer. They are uniquely bar-coded so you may NOT copy them. Most of them are also limited in the total quantity issued so if it is an item you think you will buy in the next 30 days you're better off printing it than waiting because it may not be there later.
Second...
Cutting & Organizing.
You'll need a good pair of scissors, stapler, binder, baseball card holder pages, plastic separator pages for your binder, staple remover, and several baskets (optional). A cutter is also an option. Allie uses scissors, Darla uses a cutter. It's really a matter of preference. Most of the supplies can be purchased at OfficeMax or Staples. The baskets we both use were found at Deals for $1/each. My Carl cutter came from Pat Catan's during a sale.
Once you have all your coupon inserts each week you'll want to separate them and stack the similar pages together so you can cut all the similar coupons at the same time. It helps to stack no more than 10 at a time if you're using scissors, and 7 at a time if you're using a cutter.
If you're using scissors, it's highly recommended that you staple the pages together so they don't slide when you cut. Just don't staple in the bar code of any particular coupon. Staple in the white space on the coupons.
If you're using a cutter, you don't have to staple the pages but you might want to. I don't until after I've cut them and only to keep them together for easy sorting into my binder. Since they're not stapled, I try to line them up so when I do cut them, I'm not ruining any in the stack because of misalignments in the printing process... which does happen, often!
Okay, now your coupons are cut. On to the baskets. We have small plastic baskets purchased at a dollar store. Each one is labelled as follows:
1. Dairy, Eggs
2. Meat, Ready/Frozen Meals
3. Fruit, Vegetables, Breads
4. Baby & Kid
5. Beverages
6. Soups, Sauces, Pasta, Broth
7. Cereal, Granola, Candy, Snacks
8. Baking & Other Food
9. Medicines & Supplements
10. Personal Products (Feminine products, lotion, deodorants)
11. Cleaning Products
12. Dental & Shaving
13. Paper & Household Products
14. Hair & Body Products
15. Pet Supplies
Our binders are categorized the same way. This is Allie's binder. She has an index in the front of her's with numbered tabs and I have labels on the tabs just like the categories above.
Either while you're cutting your coupons (if stapled together) or when you'r done cutting, sort your stacks of coupons into their corresponding basket. You may not want to bother with this step... you could just put the coupons into your binder. We both have adopted the baskets just to make life easier when things get busy or we get distracted. I can't always get every step done in one sitting. So, if I get them cut and in the baskets, I'm happy. I can come back later and work on incorporating these new coupons into my binder. Your binder will have to be cleaned out occasionally too as coupons expire. Allie and I figure all-in-all we both spend a couple hours on this process each week. But, it is totally worth it to take your binder with you and know you have all your coupons with you when you find a GREAT deal! No more... "Oh, I have a coupon at home for that." Now you have several.
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Thank you & Welcome!
Lesson 2 - Learning the Language of Coupons - Abbreviations
Lesson 3 - More Coupons... where?
Lesson 4 - You're Almost Ready
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