Organizing your coupons

Well I spent part of the weekend clipping coupons.  For the most part I clip them all since I have quite a few friends that share in my passion and we like to trade or give each other the ones we don't use.  There are many different views and ways to organize and store coupons.  I personally like to use the plastic Check holders.  They're fairly cheap to get at Walmart or Target; ususally around a buck or two.

I used to keep them all in one and divided them by category.  I decided to try a new system recently, two coupon holders.  One for Food items organized alphabetically by brand name and one for non-food items organized by category (hair, teeth, face/body, drugs, paper good/storage...).  I have found this to be the easiest solution since most food items are grouped by brand.

After work today I'll sit down with my local store flyers and see what coupons I have to match up with the sales.  I make lists by store and attach the coupons to each list so everything is handy.  I was only shopping at Giant Eagle for a while but realized that I was missing out on a lot of savings at other grocery stores, so now I shop at a few stores.  I try to hit them all on the same day, heading to the furthest one and working my way back home.

I'm going to start making spreadsheets with prices and deals to post here so you can see how I decide what to buy and when.

Hope you all have a wonderful Monday.

Lori

What is this thing called Blogging?

It seems like everyone is blogging nowadays.  I considered it a few years ago and even set one up, but never posted.  I wondered, Lori, what could you possibly have to say that other people would want to read about?  Absolutely nothing.


I do find myself being a wealth of  useless information.  Knowing a little bit about many things.  I do a little crafting, a little beading, a little reading and love to shop (and get a bargain). 


I've been a Stay-at-Home Mom since 2003 when our son was born. I became a first time Mom at age 38 and we moved from Long Island, NY to Rockville, MD when Jake was a mere three weeks old.  But that's a whole story for a later date.


I think starting this blog has stemmed from the feeling that I should share what I've learned about shopping and saving.  As a casual couponer and bargain shopper, I had to kick it into high gear when my Husband (Bob) lost his job in February of 2010.  Bob was not so big on coupons, really didn't see the value in the effort and time it took to do the couponing.  He wasn't involved in the day to day spending, budget and bills, actually he had no clue as to what any of the utilites cost.  Until I showed him the fruit of my labors; a grocery store receipt with the total percent I had saved.  From that point forward he was on board.