Here are my notes from our Enrichment class we did on saving money: (I added a few ideas of my own as well)
Subscribe to up to 4 Sunday newspapers so you can get multiple
coupons. If you live in Utah, I have a neighbor who can offer you a discounted price on this AND you get a visa gift card you can use anywhere if you do more than 2 papers. The more papers you buy, the greater your gift card amount. I like to keep my coupons organized in a binder with baseball card holders. In the front I also have my Best Prices Sheet which I made by going to a few stores and writing down the prices of items I normally buy. Now I know where to buy what for the best deal and when the ads come out, I know if it's really a sale or not. Great sites that tell you where and when to use these coupons in conjuction with grocery store sales are:
http://www.pinchingyourpennies.com/ They have a Utah forum with Screaming Deals.
http://www.grocerysmarts.com/ use code: g84clh You can find printable coupons here as well
http://www.utahcityguide.com/new/guru/index.asp for Utah’s Grocery Guru’s weekly deals
*Did you know you can
stack store and manufacturer coupons on one item?
At Kohl’s you can also stack their “15% off” with “$10 off any $20 purchase” coupons which recently came out in the mail. (They expired now but do this a couple times a year - we go to the clearance section at the end of season and with the coupons, it almost feels like stealing: $2 for a tee or $6 for a jacket, then use the coupon... you get the idea)
Walmart will price match other stores advertised prices. Great if you only want to go to one store. I do this almost every time I go to this store. Half of the items are usually the same price or a better deal. It helps to be organized when you go to checkout.
Catalinas are coupons that print out at the register. You can use them on your next shopping trip.
For free/almost free
Prescriptions consider using the gift cards for transferring prescriptions. These are found in Target ads, Smiths, as well as other stores.
Beer companies are offering amazing
rebates on various items. Some end up being totally free. And the best part is you don’t have to buy the beer! You can find these on posters on end caps of the grocery store aisles or in the beer section. They are on tear pads. Most of them are located at Smiths or Albertsons. They come and go but summer and holiday seasons are a great time to look for them.
Clothing: ShopKo and Sears have a Kid-Tough Guarantee on their store brand of kids clothing. If they wear out, just take them back and get the same size item. Sometimes you have to save the receipt so be sure to check out the details at each store. Great for boys who wear out the knees in the pants and even better if you have more than one of the same gender child. ie: 11 year old wears out the size 10 pants, go back and get them exchanged and now your 8 year old has new pants! Consignment or
Thrift stores are also a great place to get a good deal on gently used clothing. Also, it's a great way to recycle. Whenever we travel down to Arizona, I try to stop at the shops down there. $2 for shirts, $5 for shorts/pants.
Garage sales are even better and you can usually barter down the prices. Our neighborhood does an annual garage sale every June so everyone waits till then and it is packed! A realtor does the advertising for us in the paper and offers a pod afterwards that you can fill with your leftover stuff which is then donated to Deseret Industries.
For a great deal on fresh, local food think about joining the
Community Food Co-op. In Utah, you order before the middle of the month and get your fresh local food the last Saturday of every month. It helps a great cause. Google it to find out more. You have the option of picking up your food at a location closer to you if you join a team.
Entertainment: At the library, you can place holds on new books and movies and watch them for FREE. If you can't wait that long, try the $ theatre. Ours just changed their day to Wednesdays. Another free way to watch movies is to go to
http://www.insideredbox.com/. They used to have weekly Monday codes for a free movie but during the summer they will be changing to monthly. Entertainment books are great for buy one, get one free offers.
Boondocks offers $12 Tuesdays in the summer. Some local attractions offer free days thanks to ZAP (Zoo, Arts, Parks tax). If you plan on going somewhere frequently (like the Children's Museum or Zoo) it might be worth your money to get a yearly membership. Better yet, tell the grandparents it would make a great gift for Christmas/Birthday gift!
With all the money you save, you can maybe even go to Paris! That's what my neighbor is doing! I think I'll buy more scrapbook supplies (with a coupon of course)!
