Savings Calculations!

I decided to take all of my totals and add them up to see how much i have saved. This is not including restaurant coupons and or clothing and maybe a  few grocery trips. Either way, here are my totals!

All trips together retail- $5,115.52

Total spent -$ 713.61

Total Saved From July 17th 2010 - April 5th 2011 - $ 4,401.91

That's 86%  savings! 

Thats in 8.5 months! 

There are people that spend $400.00 a month!! 

I love Couponing! =0-P

My Current Stockpile

People often wonder how long it takes to create a stockpile. My answer? Not long at all. I started couponing 3 years ago and had an awesome stockpile! I could probably feed and take care of  my family, keep us all clean and even the house clean  for a year for free! Well, september 10th 2010 i got it ripped away from me in a fire. I had NOTHING. not one single product that i worked hard for. Not one coupon, not one cent, Hell, i didn't even have a shoe! I was so grateful to be alive and have my family by my side.  I didn't worry too  much because i knew i was not going to give up and i would pick it right back up and start again! That sunday, I bought all 10 of my papers. Rebuilt my binders. And here is my *small* next to what i had but growing stockpile of non edibles.... 

Nothing is Free....right?

A lot of the times people will become afraid to sign  up for free samples. The first things they think are


A. I dont want them having my address

B. I don't want a lot of junk mail in my inbox.

& C. Whats the point of signing up for these, nothing is free, doubt they will come.


Well,

A. Yes, they do get your address but i promise no one will be knocking on your door! If anything, its great that these companies have your address, they sometimes send out some high value coupons throughout the year! If it was not safe, i wouldn't be giving out my address or my mother and grandmothers! & I would not be giving you guys the links to sign up for them!


B. Yes,  95% of the time they will send newsletters and "junk" mail. This is why I have a separate email that i use when i sign up for stuff! This way my personal inbox, stays personal.


C. I have nothing to say to this, but i do have something to show for it....Heres my "Travel box" Which is where i put all of my samples and when i go away, i'm set!!

And that's that! Now sign up for those freebies!!!

New Printing Feature!!

I have now added A print/PDF feature!! I had a great suggestion to make a way so that you all can print a Shopping list, well I will be starting to make individual store posts and matchups soon, as well as the Drugstore Highlights for the week. If there is a specific post you would like to print or download to print at a later time, this is what you do...



1. At the bottom of each post, there is a green button that says Print & PDF. Click on that!


2. It will bring up a separate window with all of the content from that specific post.


3. You can either go ahead and print it or you can even edit it. If there is a specific deal you know you will not be getting, all you have to do is click on the picture or matchup and it will remove it from the list. once you are done, you can click on either Print or PDF. Once you do that, you are ready to go!


 Hope everyone can enjoy this feature! If you guys ever have any suggestions, feel free to contact me on the contact form over on the right! Thanks so much!

Coupon Classes Now Available!

Interested in a couponing class? Ready to get into the race to savings? Fill out the form on the right hand side with your choice of class and I will personally contact you to set up a date and time! Can't wait to hear from you!! 

Class Sign Ups 12 NOON EST. !!

FORM WILL BE READY AT NOON SHARP! REMINDER ONLY THE FIRST 10 PEOPLE WILL BE ABLE TO ATTEND THIS CLASS, AFTER THAT THE NEXT 10 WILL BE ABLE TO ATTEND THE FOLLOWING CLASS ON MARCH 18TH! YOU WILL BE NOTIFIED IF YOU ARE ONE OF THE FIRST 10!


PLEASE, CHECK BACK AT 12 PM EST. AND FILL OUT THE FORM IF INTERESTED! THANKS EVERYONE!






About the Class...




- YOU WILL NEED A USTREAM ACCOUNT IN ORDER TO ATTEND, PLEASE MAKE THIS BEFORE YOU SIGN UP. YOU WILL NEED YOUR ACCOUNT NAME ON THE FORM.


- This class is to teach you all about couponing and saving money. I will show you how to knock off  30%- 90% off of your bill! Somes even 100% !!! ( yes it's possible!! )


-It is a virtual class, you will be able to see me and you will be able to chat with me through a chat box.


- First Class starts on Monday at 7 PM, if you can not attend at this time please contact me and we can figure something out. I am here to help afterall!


-First Class is FREE, If you wish to continue with the classes, it will be $5.00


- If you are one of the first 10 people you will receive an email letting you know you've made it! Once you know that you are part of the first 10. You will then receive an email once again on  Monday Morning with the Ustream Class link and Password! You WILL need the password to get in.


- I will have an admin who will boot anyone who is in the class who was NOT originally one of the first 10. Let's keep in 10 at a time, and let's keep it clean guys!


If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact me, on the contact form on the right of the page! Thank you!

REMINDER* Class sign ups TOMORROW!

Just a reminder!! It's about that time again! I will be doing my next set of classes next week! Sign ups start again TOMORROW! After that, the next class will be in 2 weeks!  I will have 10 spots available each round so when i add the post to sign up, please email me your info! If you dont make it through this class i will send you an email to make sure you can attend the next class! Thanks everyone!

FAQ 2/14/11

Hey everyone! I wanted to make a post answering questions that i get pretty often. As always, if anyone has any questions, please feel free to shoot me an email at sweeteasternsavings@yahoo.com!


1. When did you start Couponing?


I started Couponing when i was 18 years old.




2. HOW did you start couponing?


Well,  I had a baby at 18 and I never wanted to be one of those girls that have babies at a young age and ask their parents for help and or money or depend on them for whatever other reason. I wanted to find a way to make our money stretch as far as possible. I never wanted to have to ask for help. One day i realized how much money was going into all of these little items that everyone needs, like soap 8.00 for a pack, shampoo 4-5.00 a bottle,etc. I KNEW there had to be a way that we didn't have to pay that much for things like that. What i first decided to do was buy store brand everything. We did that for a few months then realized we weren't really saving much money at all by doing that! The store brands were only change less than name brand products. I knew i had to find another way, then it hit me...COUPONS! I first was a little nervous about what people would think if i were to turn to coupons. I figured people would look at me like im just "Lazy & Cheap" blah blah blah. I still gave it a chance and within 2 weeks i had about 12 packs of diapers, lotions,razors,soap,cosmetics galore for only about $40.00 out of my pocket! I was hooked! I started to not give 2 craps about what people thought about me. If anything i was SMART!  I always knew coupons could save you a dollar or two but I NEVER thought i could get so many products for FREE or dirt cheap! I started looking online for coupons and found printable coupon sites and forums where people did stuff like this and  it all happened from there! Now, 3.5 years later I'm in love with couponing, I am now what you would call a "super couponer",Its become like a full time job, I  have a Stockpile, ( Food & Non food!) I have two binders Filled to the top with coupons and i NEVER pay full price for anything! I save over $6,500 a year! I will never need to buy deodorant, toilet paper, shampoo, soaps, baby products or anything like that again! Not only that, but  I now get diapers for $3.00 or less instead of $9.00- $20.00 a pack. Couponing has become such a big part of me and it's something i will never stop doing. I cringe to the thought of paying full price for something!  Okay, i really could go on and on about couponing, so i will just save that for another post! 


3.How do you get so many coupons?


Multiple Papers!! The rule of thumb when starting out is to buy as many papers and the number of members in your family....


ex. you, your spouse, 2 kids= 4 papers a week


Once you get the hang of that, buy as many as you would like to start a stockpile, but please start small!


As for how many I get...i always get between 5 and 10 papers a week, on a really really good week i will get 25. ( I do NOT pay 1.75 for each or else that wouldnt be saving money! LOL)


TIP: Sunday Papers are only 1.00 at Dollar Tree! So if you have one, that's the place to be! Also, ask any family member who read the paper if you can have their inserts.


4. How do you store your coupons?


Me? I store my coupons in a coupon binder i made and into a File holder..... see my post  HERE for pictures and a step by step about how i do it!


There are many other methods out there! Even for the busy people out there! ;0)




5.  I get overwhelmed when keeping a binder, do you have any tips?


Yes.. take a break...find another method that suits you! I will make another post with other methods to store your coupons! But seriously, when you feel like everything is too much, take a deep breathe and just take a break for a week or two!




6. What do you do when there is no stock at a store  on the items that are on your list?


RAINCHECK RAINCHECK RAINCHECK!  Rainchecks usually give you 30 days to buy the product at the sale price thats written on it.  Rainchecks can be amazing as long as the product comes back in stock before the  coupon for that product expires!




7.  What store or stores do you frequent?


I am a RiteAid & CVS girl for sure! As for Grocery stores, I frequent ACME, GIANT, Wegmans, Bottom Dollar Foods.  


If there are really good deals i will do...Weis, Walmart, Kmart, Target, Shop rite, Genuardis, SuperFresh, etc.  I also make sure to stop at any grocery store we don't have when im away! 


8. Do you ever feel like stopping couponing all together?


Absolutely, there are times where i feel like i just need a break but everytime i try, i just cant do it! I just LOVE couponing! 






9.  What do you do when you have trouble at the store with cashiers/ managers,etc.?


 I stay calm and explain to them what the problem is. Some people don't know their policy so i make sure to always carry each stores Coupon Policy in my binder. If they have a problem and i know i am right, i pull that baby out and bam the problem is over!  I will say i have had terrible experiences with some cashiers who automatically give me an attitude for using coupons, i've had one actually get in my face. Times like these, you ask to see a manager, if they dont do anything about it, then its time to contact corporate and guess what? I have every stores Corp. number in my phone! I will not allow someone to treat me that way! You shouldn't either!  






10. How do you know what stores take what kinds of coupons?


Go to your stores website beforehand and print out a copy of their coupon policy. On the policy it will tell you what kinds of coupons they will and will not accept. Some stores do not accept coupons at all and some will even DOUBLE them! Saweeetttt!  Some stores also do not accept internet printed Coupons and some will.... Check the website for a policy or call the customer service desk at your store!!










Have more questions? email me! Thanks!

How i organize my coupons!

I get asked all the time what i do with all of my coupons and how do i keep them somewhere where i won't forget them or lose them. Well today is the day where i will SHOW you how i do it! Enjoy! Any questions, please feel free to email me @ Qlovingmomma@gmail.com!

 First i grab 5 of the same booklets and spread them out on the table! Then i grab all of the same page and put them together into one stack.

From there i staple each coupon ( on the photo of the product, not the barcode!!!) I do this because it makes it easier for me and makes it so that i only cut once and have all the copies of the same coupon  at my fingertips and im ready to store!

3rd step, i take them all after they have been stapled and make a pile of them and put them aside for cutting and filing into my binder!

Next step, i grab all of my "extra" inserts(any other than the 5 i store in my binders)  and i do the same thing as i did with the first booklets. Put the same pages together and staple them. The only difference is, i only staple these pages once somewhere where there is no coupon. I do this so when i need them i can go ahead and cut whatever amount of the same coupon out instead of searching threw pages and pages to find each one!

After i staple them together i make 2 piles. One with the 5 booklets for my binder

and one for the coupon booklets that are going to be filed!

This is my " Coupon Booklet Filer" This is where

i put all of my extra coupon booklets!

This is what it looks like inside. I have them
sorted by date and inside that date's folder, i
have all of the coupon book "extras" that i got on that sunday!

This is the new tab i made for this weeks Coupons!

And in they go!

These are the coupons that i am going to actually cut and sort into my binder.
SNIP SNIP SNIP!

This is the last step for organizing them, i have my binder divided into
categories such as Hair Care, Facial Care, Cleaning,Pets,Baby, etc.
(I will get into more detail about my binder at a later time!)


Now as for the filer, I bet you are wondering how do i figure out where a specific
coupon is...well there is a database. As seen in the screen cap below. Lets say youwere looking for a Glad coupon because it is on sale this week. You would
start typing "Glad" and BAM a list of all the coupons will pop up! It will
tell you the source of the coupon which means which booklet and which
sunday it came out and when it expires!  In this case we are going to say
we want the 10/31 Smart source for the trash bags coupon! Let's go get it!

I would go to my file box now that i know which date, and i would go to the 10/31 folder and pull out the P&G booklet.

Then i would go through the booklet and find the Glad coupon, once i've found it, i cut out as many copies as i need of the coupon! For example i want to get 2 boxes of trash bags, i would cut out 2 of the glad trash bag coupons! 

Time to go shopping!! =) Hope this answered everyones questions!! 

COUPON JACKPOT!

I GOT ALL THESE FOR...10 BUCKS!

100 Coupon Inserts week of 8/1/10!

My Coupon Binders

There are many methods of organzing your coupons. I thought i would share my updated coupon binders to show you what it is that i use. Feel free to ask any questions you may have!



The black one is all food and the pink one is all non food. In the front of both binders, i have all of my coupon policies and a category list with subcategories under them. Then i have my club cards ( A lot of them are from stores from where i always travel to!) and baseball card holders with all of my coupons in each category. Then in the back i have my rebate forms and free product coupons! This works well for me but what works for me may not work for you. I definitely recommend this method!