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Remember how I said that if I get something totally for free, it doesn't count against my no-buy? Yeah, I hauled like a sumbeotch tonight. I DID spend $7 out of pocket (mostly sales tax), BUT in two days time, I will get $10 Extra Care Bucks....meaning I actually profited $3 on this purchase. AND I bought things that have been "on the list" lately, not just "oooh, mama likey!"



Roughly $70 worth of product (sorry about the wretched lighting), and I'm actually profiting $3 on it. 

Wet n Wild Flora Collection

Revlon Translucent pressed powder

Milani white eyeshadow pencil

Garnier Spray Gel

Garnier Wave Enhancing Spray

Garnier Curly Hair Mousse

Garnier Curl Cream

3 Wet n Wild SPOILED nail polishes (one of them is white--I realized that I didn't HAVE a plain white, how nuts is that?)

3 Milani nail polishes

Sally Hansen nail polish

 
Whooaaa, holy crap! That is awesome! If I could reach through the computer screen and give you a big ol' high five, I totally would!!

 
Thanks. I hate that when I came home and started looking at coupons, I realize I could have actually done better (there are some Garnier and Revlon coupons out right now). But....this was an easy run :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 
 Nice Haul!! Great Savings!!
thumbsup2.gif


 
Teach me how to coupon, lol. I'm just getting into it and while I've got some ECBs piling up, I feel like I can do better. 

 
Originally Posted by Playedinloops /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Teach me how to coupon, lol. I'm just getting into it and while I've got some ECBs piling up, I feel like I can do better. 
There are 2 different kinds of coupons (not including ECBs), Manufacture and store coupons. Like never goes with like, so you will never be able to stack a mfgr with a mfgr, however, you CAN stack a mfgr with a store coupon.

The holy grail of couponing is stacking a mfgr with a store during a sale. That's when you'll see the most bang for your buck. More often than not though, you will only be able to stack the two. 

This does NOT mean that if you have a mfgr & store coupon for Name Brand Product that it will be less than Generic Name Product. Alot of people assume that and are in for a world of heart ache. Just because you have the two doens't mean anything. You could still end up paying more. Your goal is to know your store, let go of product loyalty (if you can) and know when a good value is a good value. Also driving from one store to the other just because it has X item on sale isn't always the best idea. You end up spending what you saved in gas. The idea is to get ahead.

This is not going to be something you are going to master overnight. You need to set up a budget (and stick to it), get familiar with your store and their couponing guidelines (for instance, the HEBs here turned all their store coupons into mfgr only coupons so no more stacking, it was a serious blow to the budget). GOBO is not always a good deal if it is on an item you are never going to use.

This requires impulse control, I'm just putting that out there. :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 
Originally Posted by Pancua /img/forum/go_quote.gif


There are 2 different kinds of coupons (not including ECBs), Manufacture and store coupons. Like never goes with like, so you will never be able to stack a mfgr with a mfgr, however, you CAN stack a mfgr with a store coupon.

The holy grail of couponing is stacking a mfgr with a store during a sale. That's when you'll see the most bang for your buck. More often than not though, you will only be able to stack the two. 

This does NOT mean that if you have a mfgr & store coupon for Name Brand Product that it will be less than Generic Name Product. Alot of people assume that and are in for a world of heart ache. Just because you have the two doens't mean anything. You could still end up paying more. Your goal is to know your store, let go of product loyalty (if you can) and know when a good value is a good value. Also driving from one store to the other just because it has X item on sale isn't always the best idea. You end up spending what you saved in gas. The idea is to get ahead.

This is not going to be something you are going to master overnight. You need to set up a budget (and stick to it), get familiar with your store and their couponing guidelines (for instance, the HEBs here turned all their store coupons into mfgr only coupons so no more stacking, it was a serious blow to the budget). GOBO is not always a good deal if it is on an item you are never going to use.

This requires impulse control, I'm just putting that out there. :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

Yeah, I've got the man+store q part down pat, and fortunately for me, target, safeway, giant, cvs, and wal-greens are all within 3 miles of my house, so gas isn't a problem. I've only been doing this for 2 weeks lol, my best score was at wal-greens last sunday. (2 lady speedstick deoderants, two boxes of tampons, a case of bottled water, and crest whitestrips for $16, but I didn't even feel like that was THAT good. Although it may be better than I thought since the white strips full price is $30). Anyway, right now I'm kind of stockpiling coupons and waiting for the right prices but I feel like my first CVS trip was kind of a fail because I spent a lot, but that ended up with me getting a lot of ecbs. It's fun though, but I'm kind of getting obsessed lol. 

 
Originally Posted by Playedinloops /img/forum/go_quote.gif



Yeah, I've got the man+store q part down pat, and fortunately for me, target, safeway, giant, cvs, and wal-greens are all within 3 miles of my house, so gas isn't a problem. I've only been doing this for 2 weeks lol, my best score was at wal-greens last sunday. (2 lady speedstick deoderants, two boxes of tampons, a case of bottled water, and crest whitestrips for $16, but I didn't even feel like that was THAT good. Although it may be better than I thought since the white strips full price is $30). Anyway, right now I'm kind of stockpiling coupons and waiting for the right prices but I feel like my first CVS trip was kind of a fail because I spent a lot, but that ended up with me getting a lot of ecbs. It's fun though, but I'm kind of getting obsessed lol. 
Start keeping a diary of items you purchased, when you purchased, the full amount and where. It'll take 6 months to a year of data gathering but after that, you will be able to start trending when sales are going to be showing up and plan your coupons better. 

Also P&G sends a huge book of coupons in the sunday paper on a quarterly basis, so keep an eye out on those. Also check out http://www.couponmom.com/

 
Originally Posted by Pancua /img/forum/go_quote.gif


Start keeping a diary of items you purchased, when you purchased, the full amount and where. It'll take 6 months to a year of data gathering but after that, you will be able to start trending when sales are going to be showing up and plan your coupons better. 

Also P&G sends a huge book of coupons in the sunday paper on a quarterly basis, so keep an eye out on those. Also check out http://www.couponmom.com/
This is assuming you like that sort of thing. I live and breath in excel so I love putting together charts that help me out in any capacity. :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 
Originally Posted by Pancua /img/forum/go_quote.gif


This is assuming you like that sort of thing. I live and breath in excel so I love putting together charts that help me out in any capacity. :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I'm also an excel lover! I have a coupon binder and I think some charts belong in there, lol. 

 
Dang, that's awesome. Here I thought I did well with my 1 razor (w/ 1 cartridge) and 4-pack of blades + a tea for $3.

 
Bear in mind, I've been stockpiling those ECBs for a while. CVS is my go-to for drugstore stuff, even though they are more expensive than Walgreens and the selection isn't always as good, because:

1. 2% of your total spent in a quarter is returned in ECBs.

2. Every $50 in beauty purchases (BEFORE coupons) gets you $5 in ECBs.

3. On a BOGO, you can use TWO MFG coupons--one for the free/discounted, AND one for the regular price.

4. The "Magic Coupon Machine" where you scan your card usually has store coupons shortly before something goes on sale or a MFG coupon comes out for it.

5. Their clearance kicks ass--I got the Vichy double-pack serum which retails for $47 for $11.25.

6. Their store brand products are high quality--Last month, they were doing, "Buy $15 in CVS beauty products and get back $5 ECBs", which was great in and of itself, but those purchases ALSO count towards your cumulative spending total AND towards your cumulative beauty total. 

7. You can earn ECBs by doing surveys.

8. They frequently send out "$5 off of 20" and such coupons. 

Just a few of the reasons I heart CVS.

 
Originally Posted by calexxia /img/forum/go_quote.gif

Bear in mind, I've been stockpiling those ECBs for a while. CVS is my go-to for drugstore stuff, even though they are more expensive than Walgreens and the selection isn't always as good, because:

1. 2% of your total spent in a quarter is returned in ECBs.

2. Every $50 in beauty purchases (BEFORE coupons) gets you $5 in ECBs.

3. On a BOGO, you can use TWO MFG coupons--one for the free/discounted, AND one for the regular price.

4. The "Magic Coupon Machine" where you scan your card usually has store coupons shortly before something goes on sale or a MFG coupon comes out for it.

5. Their clearance kicks ass--I got the Vichy double-pack serum which retails for $47 for $11.25.

6. Their store brand products are high quality--Last month, they were doing, "Buy $15 in CVS beauty products and get back $5 ECBs", which was great in and of itself, but those purchases ALSO count towards your cumulative spending total AND towards your cumulative beauty total. 

7. You can earn ECBs by doing surveys.

8. They frequently send out "$5 off of 20" and such coupons. 

Just a few of the reasons I heart CVS.
Those are pretty good perks but the CVS stores around here look much more run down than Wal-Greens, not as clean or anywhere as pleasant to shop in. You can see the difference quite dramatically since more than a handful of them across the street from each other.

"On a BOGO, you can use TWO MFG coupons--one for the free/discounted, AND one for the regular price." You can do that anywhere, as long as there are two separate codes, you can use the coupons. I have done it for food items.

 
Originally Posted by Pancua /img/forum/go_quote.gif


Those are pretty good perks but the CVS stores around here look much more run down than Wal-Greens, not as clean or anywhere as pleasant to shop in. You can see the difference quite dramatically since more than a handful of them across the street from each other.

"On a BOGO, you can use TWO MFG coupons--one for the free/discounted, AND one for the regular price." You can do that anywhere, as long as there are two separate codes, you can use the coupons. I have done it for food items.
There are some stores out here that if the second item is free, they do NOT allow the coupon on the free item. That's one of the reasons I always check a store's policy before I go on a mad haul. For us in Phoenix, Fry's is about the most coupon-friendly grocery store. And I get what you mean about your local CVS's not being as nice as your Wags, since where my old man lives (California), Rite Aid and Wags are both nicer inside than CVS. (I kinda miss Rite Aid). Here, though, most of the CVS's are bigger and newer.

 
Originally Posted by calexxia /img/forum/go_quote.gif


There are some stores out here that if the second item is free, they do NOT allow the coupon on the free item. That's one of the reasons I always check a store's policy before I go on a mad haul. For us in Phoenix, Fry's is about the most coupon-friendly grocery store. And I get what you mean about your local CVS's not being as nice as your Wags, since where my old man lives (California), Rite Aid and Wags are both nicer inside than CVS. (I kinda miss Rite Aid). Here, though, most of the CVS's are bigger and newer.

Makes sense that Fry's is best because Giant seems to be best here and they are the same company. They even double coupons up to 99 cents EVERY DAY.

 
I know what you mean about dirty CVS's, all the ones I've been to in North Phoenix are gross. One of them even has a security guard on staff. The ones I used to work at were pretty nice though. I hated when they bought out Osco though because I had just started working at a store that had taken over for an Osco right by it and the customers are RUDE! I quit, with no days warning, after being verbally accosted by a customer who couldn't get her prescription due to a prior authorization. If that wasn't enough, being ripped by the manager about how I need to do more (I had already called about it, there was nothing more I, a lowly pharm tech, could do) to please this insane woman was the absolute breaking point. I go to that CVS now and it's an entirely new staff.

 
The CVSs in the East Valley are nice; I haven't been to the NorthSide in like, forever, since my ex-husband lives out that way. 

 

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