Thursday, April 23, 2009

ABC's of Coupons

This is a picture of the zipper binder that I keep my coupons in. I'm a coupon clipper, but I am by no means the Queen of Coupons. You know those you see on TV who buy a cartload of groceries and only pay $4.62. That just never happens to me, but I try my best to match up coupons to sales. I take my binder with me to the store if I come across a good deal on an item and I can quickly check for a coupon. I have a Kroger near my house and usually shop there. They double coupons up to .50. So a .50 coupon will become a $1.00 off and I like that.



Now for a peek inside the binder. I have an alphabetical listing of general products in the store and the aisle they are on if I get stumped and can't find something. Next I have an alphabet index that I use. I have tried various ways of organizing coupons over the years and found that by filing them by the first letter of the product name made it much easier to find when I'm in the store.



I use baseball card holders to put my coupons in. I try and make sure the product name and the expiration date is easily visible. It requires some creative folding sometimes. Wal-mart carries the baseball card holders.


In the back of my binder I do have a few tabs that I use frequently and place a variety of different products in them. ie. Pillsbury, Kraft, and paper products and soap/detergent. I'm usually not brand loyal with paper products and soaps/detergents. I buy what is on sale and what I have a coupon for.

I will admit that it takes some time to keep this organized and occasionally I'll fall behind with the "stuffing" part. But over all this binder system has saved us quite a bit of money over the years at the grocery store and drug store.

Also, another tip: If you have a coupon organizer put your name and phone # on it or in it.
I've had the store call me and tell me my binder was there. I had left it in the cart I used and at checkout they had bagged my groceries in the cart in front of me.

18 comments:

Betty said...

Looks really organized! :) We don´t get coupons down here! :(

Tricia said...

I use coupons for a while and then stop. great idea on how to organize the coupons.

C. JoyBell C. said...

WOW!! :) :)

hee hee hee!!

You and uncle Daniel would really get along well!!

Ha ha ha!

So organized and everything!!

Cicero Sings said...

We don't have the coupons like you do in the states. The odd coupon but not many.

Allison said...

wow! that is brilliant! I'm hoping that my life will be more organized when we move back to the states and start fresh...

Jodi said...

Wow! You are organized! I am impressed! I have wanted to do something like this with my coupons for a while. I'm going to give this a try.
I always seem to find the ones I needed when I get back home...

Tiffany said...

Wow! I'm impressed! I coupon,too - but I'm not that organized. I do, however, have a system that works for me right now - although I might be inspired to make a few modifications now that I've seen yours!

Caroline said...

Yes, you are the Coupon Queen...at least in my eyes! I have envelopes that the kids helped me with, but then I forget to take them...When I grow up I want to be just as organized as you!

Caroline

Alicia said...

I use to do my coupons just like that and then we lost the stores who really give the double deals. I keep thinking I should go back to that method because it worked so well. I just have to really research a bunch of stores and that seems to take time.

Berni said...

You are organized. We generally get the fliers when there is only a couple of days to go before the end of the sale and we are not going into town so we told the post office to stop putting them in the box. We used to get so many of them that the post box was jammed full.

clarissa said...

Well I'm impressed. I think you are a coupon queen. I coupon some, but our local store gives a 10% senior discount, and I count that as couponing. lol
Aunt Clarissa

Keeper of the Skies Wife said...

I will never be that organized with my coupons. Mine are shoved in a ziploc baggie that is about 10 years old and in my purse.

Girl are you OCD?!! Sorry, I had to ask! :)

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Hi Joy, Thanks for visiting my blog. I am enjoying yours since I clip coupons also. I don't have as fancy a set-up as you do--but I keep my coupons by categories (meats, paper goods, etc.) I clip them together with a large paperclip and keep them in a coupon book. Works well for me.

We too are Kroger people although we also go to Walmart for certain things. Kroger has great specials. I get all of our vitamins there BOGO with additional coupons.

Our Kroger also take expired coupons -so that is good since I save things for a long time ---and when Kroger's puts them on sale, I use the coupon then. Kroger's also offers double coupons up to and including 50 cents. AND--since we are much older than you, we go on Wednesdays for an additional 5% off (every Wed.) for Seniors... SO---we do quite well.

Walmart doesn't take expired coupons --but they do allow price comoparison. If I take a newspaper from another grocery store who is offering something on special, when I go to Walmart---they will give me the item at the sale price. That also helps.

Well---I've gone on too long. Come back to my blog and I'll come back to yours.

Are you in the Woodlands or Conroe or Kingwood or Spring????? I don't know much about that area--but I know it's grown up like the Clear Lake area has.

Hugs,
Betsy

Grace said...

Hi Joy, I enjoyed reading this post. I clip coupons, too, but I don't buy things just because they are on coupons, I used the coupons because they are on what I regularly use and bought. :)
Have a blessed Sunday.

Becky said...

I am amazed, that is all I can say. Maybe someday...

stephanie j. said...

I LOVE your binder! I have a relatively humble little accordion file that fits in my honkin' big Haiku purse. You are an inspiration! I think I'm going to re-think my couponing...

Pricousins said...

That's what I need! someone sent me this link on Twitter, thanks for sharing this!

Anonymous said...

WOW Joy! Thanks for sharing your coupon info. That is quite a set up you have going on. Hopefully I can try to find time to organize myself like that. I've been a coupon clipper before but found that the money I saved was not worth my time for clipping. I'm going to try it again with the grocery shopping game and see if it works out. Thanks for sharing! I may ask for more tips in the future. And by the way, nice blog!