Couponing To Prepare!

Hello there, everyone -

I'm new (posting, that is) to this forum but have been lurking for a bit. I've recently taken up a couponing hobby, and it is saving us loads of money but better than that, helping us prepare for emergencies.

For example, I have oodles of stored food, cleaning supplies, toiletries, medicines etc. purchased at only a fraction of the cost...I couldn't have done this without using coupons. The right coupon paired with the right sale can mean items for pennies or even free.

In the last 3 months I've picked up free toothpaste, toothbrushes, Stagg chili containers, cereal, cold medicine, shampoos, etc - this has enabled me to accumulate a stockpile of dozens of boxes of cereal, toothpaste etc.

My point is to those on a budget who want to prepare, couponing is a great way to do so. I wouldn't have been able to accumulate my stockpile without using coupons paired with sales - and this is stuff that we'll use as a family anyway, even if disaster doesn't strike immediately.

I've enjoyed reading all of your posts!

~A

Hello there, Dreamer - Nice to meet you!

I get my coupons only from the Sunday papers - and any major paper in your area will carry them. What you're looking for is two coupon inserts titled "Smart Source" and "Valassis" - once in awhile they also have Proctor & Gamble inserts.

I used to think that coupons were a complete waste of time, because most of them had brands/items that I didn't buy for one reason or another - cost of item, etc. I thought it was cheaper to hit the dollar store or to buy generic - boy was I wrong!!

Stock up on a few weeks worth of coupons - I buy 3 Sunday papers weekly, and save the inserts - get them from recycling bins, friends, neighbors etc - and then look for the items to go on sale within 2-6 weeks at your neighborhood grocery and drug stores.

For example: I saw a post on here where someone bought Ragu pasta sauce for $1 a jar on sale - I was able to get the same product on sale + using coupon for $.25-50 cents a jar. My spare bedroom is loaded with stuff, all through pairing coupons. Items I've gotten for free in the past 2 months:

50 bags of Malt-O-Meal Cereal, 75 tubes of toothpaste (Aquafresh and Colgate), 50 toothbrushes, 100 boxes of Stagg chili, 40 containers of hair shampoo and body wash, etc.

I wouldn't have been able to do this without couponing - and in times like these, this serves as a double blessing - not only help in emergency situations like the flu epidemic that may be coming, but similar disasters as well as times of financial hardship.

I'd be happy to share more info with you if you'd like - it'll help all of us trying to prepare on a budget!

Oh - I also order coupons from coupon clipping sights. For example, if there's a hot deal on a particular product (meaning it's free for me at the market or drug store), I can order it from a clipping service. You can't technically sell coupons, but you pay them for their clipping time (whatever they want to call it, LOL) and this way you can select the amount/type of coupon that you want.

My family freaks at my stockpile - they think it's crazy and when you mention Avian flu etc. they label you extremist - until the women start raiding the toiletrie stockpile like a bunch of locusts. LOL

~A

Hello there Libby, nice to meet you!

I belong to a couponing site - they send you a list of sales for your area every week, and which coupon to use it with in order to get maximum savings. This costs me about $10 a month, but there's a Walgreens list that is free for anyone who wants to log on and check it out.

(For anyone who has a Walgreens or CVS in their area, they are gold mines!)

It's funny - looking on the couponing website, most of the moms joke that they are already way prepared in terms of food, medicine and toiletries that they have stocked every day of the year. This is true...but I look at it this way. By couponing and maximizing savings, three things are accomplished for me: 1. Saving on our grocery budget 2. Stockpiling various food and toiletrie items for emergencies and lean financial times 3. Most importantly, taking the money saved from the grocery bill and using it to purchase emergency supplies not covered by couponing. I also take additional savings to apply towards bills etc - but last time I checked, I couldn't get general survival items just by using coupons! So this is my money used towards true "emergency" supplies, and I (hopefully) won't wreck myself financially by doing so.

Like I said, it's nice to meet everyone!

~A

Yes, I also coupon and have a large stockpile for free or cheap. I am lucky to have a double coupon store that doubles 1.00 coupons, alot of states do not have access to double coupon stores (FLA is one of them). For a complete list of stores that double state by state, you can also purchase/trade coupons from people go to www.mycoupons.com and go to the TOT (tips of the trade) board it will list all free items for the week at major grocery stores and drug stores, there is also a coupon trading board where you can buy coupons, also has other deals boards. I am currently getting:

Armour chili .15 a can, Tidy Cat litter .19 a bag, Malto Meal Oatmeal .39, Stayfree pads 1.67, Johnson & Johnson shampoo & lotion free, Kraft cheese .59, Hunts tomato sauce .02 can, Degree deodorant free, Cottonelle wipes .59, and the deals vary from week to week. After a certain amount of time most things you use are stockpiled. The problem with this is that it has to be done over time and we may not have that much time. Couponing is not for everyone it takes a special type of person.

Hello there, Penham :)

I forgot to mention something - for the 2 months that I've been couponing, I've accumulated over 200 protein bars - all different brands, all of which were FREE. The coupon inserts in Sunday papers regularly feature these coupons for various brands of protein bars - buy one get one free, $1 or .50 off, etc. I've combined them with sales at Safeway and such to get free protein bars - which take up little space as compared to the 80 boxes of cereal (LOL) and are nutritious, and will last awhile for us if need be. Plus, I use them anyway, so it's not as if I'm accumulating stuff that we'll only use in case of dire emergency.

I know that stockpiling takes awhile, but start NOW with coupons - and see how much you can gather up in a relatively short amount of time. When you buy your Sunday papers, don't just buy one - buy 4 at a time - get inserts from neighbors etc - that way when a sale hits for an item that you can store (pasta, beans, tomato sauce, canned fruit and veg, etc) you don't just buy one item on sale - you buy a bunch and therefore maximize your savings.

~A