Richard.Fisher/Flickr
Get a free rubber stamp from Vista Print when you pay for shipping, which starts at $6.31.
Classic customized photobooks are on sale Picaboo by 30% off through May 30, 2010.
The Gymboree circle of friends sale knocks 30% off your bill through May 16, 2010. In stores and online!
Get a free toothpaste sample from Arm & Hammer when you share some personal info.
Today through Saturday your entire purchase at Michaels is 20% off with this coupon, plus you can get 60% off custom frame orders at Aaron Brothers.
Today only! Get an extra 10% off all sale items at Piperlime.
Use this online grocery delivery coupon to get free shipping and $5 off your first order at Safeway or Vons.
Get a full-sized bottle of free shampoo or conditioner from Suave Professionals. For a limited time only!
Check out all the coupons and deals on my WalletPop blog.
Cathy at Chief Family Officer shared four hot grocery deals this week at Ralphs, which faces $256,000 in fines after an undercover investigation found the chain was overcharging customers. The chain was slapped with similar fines in 2008 and 2009. Does that make you want to shop elsewhere?
Tropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice on sale for $2
Use $1 off 2 Tropicana Pure Premium or Trop 50 from 4/25 Red Plum coupon insert
Or use $1 off 1 Trop 50 from 3/14 Red Plum
Final price: as low as $1
Oscar Mayer Lunchables on sale for $1.25
Use $1 off 1 Oscar Mayer Lunchables Lunch combinations from 3/21 Smart Source (expires 5/16)
Final price: 25 cents (the sub varieties may be producing $1 catalinas)
French’s Mustard on sale for $1.49
Use 50 cents off 1 from 3/21 or 5/9 Smart Source
Final price: 49 cents
Kingsford Match Light Charcoal on sale for $9.99
Use $2 off meat when you buy Kingsford Match Light Briquets 12.5lbs
Final price: Get $2 off meat
Check out the rest of Cathy’s deals at Ralphs. Do you use these weekly coupon matches at Ralphs? Please let me know in a comment so I can decide whether to continue featuring Ralphs deals. Thanks!
I walked into Rite Aid Saturday armed with a $25 gift card (that I earned for transferring a prescription) and a determination to stretch my spending power. Working off my list, the weekly flyer, and coupon matches I found on Hip 2 Save, I paid $21.66 for eight items that retail for $42.70, including tax. That’s a 49% discount!
Here’s how I did it:
1. Made my list in order of priority: toe nail clippers, mascara, vitamins, freezer bags, cereal
2. Watched 10 minutes of Rite Aid videos ads to earn a $5 off $20 purchase coupon. Each video is 15-seconds to 1.5 minutes and you earn 1-2 points per video. You get the coupon when you accumulate 20 points.
3. Printed a $2 off coupon for Post cereals, which were buy one get one free. Each box was $4.99 but with the coupon and sale I paid $3 for two boxes!
4. Spotted a buy one get one free sale for Rite Aid vitamins and stocked up on Vitamin C, wiping $6.49 from my bill.
5. Bought one item off my list – a bag of Skittles – that was $.50 (orig. $.88). I’m saving them as a treat for my flight Thursday. They were certainly cheaper than airport candy prices!
6. Put freezer bags, mascara, clippers in my cart. Wished I had looked harder for coupons for freezer bags and mascara.
The last time I went on a coupon matching binge, I saved 60%. What is the latest super deal you got?
One of the downsides – or perhaps you think it’s an upside – to growing your own food is funky fruit. Check out this lemon I found in my backyard!
It reminds me of a neti pot, hehehe. This lemon’s bizarre shape made me realize that so much of the food we consume is picture perfect. You would NEVER see something like this for sale at Albertsons. Shoppers expect “normal” looking produce, which means a lot of food must get thrown away, which in turn raises prices. So if you knew buying a lemon like this would contribute to lower prices, would you take it home?
emrank/Flickrs
Borders has two coupons – one for 40% off CDs and another for 33% off list price books. Both expire Thursday, May 6, 2010.
Good news for coupon clippers! Shortcuts.com now has printable coupons.
Are you considering joining Costco? New members can get two months to Costco free when they join by June 30, 2010.
Woot woot! Starting this Friday frappuccinos at Starbucks are 50% off during “happy hour,” which is 3-5 p.m.
Here are two free movie coupon codes for Blockbuster Express kiosks. One expires today!
Fight your spring and summer colds with this Emergen-C coupon for 20% off vitamin packets.
Check out all the coupons and deals on my WalletPop blog.
Cathy from Chief Family Officer shared four of her best grocery matchups at Ralphs this week. Price are with coupon doubling. New to coupons? Check out my post on coupon clipping basics. If you want to take advantage of these deals, make sure to save the coupon inserts you receive in the mail or with your Sunday newspaper. Here’s a great suggestion for how to handle coupon organization.
Cliff Mojo Bar on sale for $1
Use $0.50 off 1 coupon from Spring Mambo Sprouts booklet (look for one in the mail, at Sprouts stores, or at Ralphs)
Final price: FREE
Daisy Sour Cream on sale for $2
Use $0.50 off 1 from 3/28 Smart Source coupon insert
Final price: $1
Mission Flour Tortillas on sale for $1.50
Use $0.75 off 1 printable coupon
Final price: 50 cents
Tropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice on sale for $2.38, buy two
Use $1 off 2 Tropicana Pure Premium or Trop 50 from 4/25 Red Plum coupon insert
Use $1 off 1 Trop 50 from 3/14 Red Plum
Final price: as low as $1.38
Check out the rest of Cathy’s grocery deals at Ralphs.
Cathy at Chief Family Officer shared her top five deals and freebies at Ralphs this week. The final prices assume you can double coupons. New to coupons? Check out my post on coupon clipping basics. If you want to take advantage of these deals, make sure to save the coupon inserts you receive in the mail or with your Sunday newspaper. Here’s a great suggestion for how to handle coupon organization.
Dannon Activia 4-pack for $2
Use the $1 off 1 coupon for Dannon Activia 4, 8, 12 or 24 pack coupon from 2/28 or 3/28 Smart Source newspaper insert
Final price: $1
Wesson Oil or Pam Spray for $2.50
Use $0.25 off 1 Wesson coupon from 3/28 Smart Source coupon insert
Or use $0.35 off 1 Pam coupon from 3/28 Smart Source
Final price: as low as $1.80
Country Crock Spread for $1
Use $0.40 off 1 coupon for Shedds Country Crock Spread from 3/7 Red Plum (expires 5/2) or printable coupon (FireFox or Internet Explorer)
Final price: 20 cents
Tabasco Hot Sauce for $1
Use 50 cents off 1 Tabasco Sauce coupon from 4/25 Smart Source
Final price: FREE
Capri Sun for $1.88
$1 off 1 Capri Sun Sunrise products from 4/25 Smart Source if included in sale
Final price: 88 cents
See all of Cathy’s grocery deals and freebies at Ralphs.
juan23for/flickr
By Mike Barclay of 10centsworth.com
If taking a few minutes to implement organization habits saved you money each day, would you take clutter more seriously? I’ve come up with two categories of organization that have made my life easier and saved me money.
Filing
I started filing my coupons by expiration date. I’m always forgetting where I put the coupons, and when I find them they’re already expired. As far as saving money goes, we know that using coupons is one of the easiest way to save when buying fast food or groceries. What is so difficult about having a filing container where you can keep track of coupons? If you know where they are and when they expire, chances are you’ll use them.
I’ve heard it from my Dad and from personal financial blogs that there is value to saving your receipts. Grab a file folder for each month of the year, save all the receipts, and then highlight the date so it’s easy to see before you toss them in. You might not be an accountant or know every deduction you could be taking, but saving the receipts will help whoever does your taxes figure out where you could be getting a big tax check when April 15th rolls around.
Time Management
Time is money, right? Then why do we spend so much “money” aimlessly? For example, the other day I drove to Walgreens, Walmart, Costco and Smiths. I did it two ways. The first involved driving from memory without advance planning. When I finished the trip, I’d driven 34 miles. Then I went back to the starting point, and mapped out a route using Google. I could have done the same route in 20 miles! My car gets roughly 20 miles to the gallon, so I could have saved 3/4 of a gallon, or about $2 at the average national gas price of $3. Driving that much extra every day adds up to wasting about $14 a week or $728 a year.
And while we’re on the topic of kids and errands; have you ever wanted to be in two places at once? What if you could? Well, not you physically, but what if you could get two things done at once? Barter with your neighbors! If you’ve both got kids, carpool with them and swap for something else. Maybe you take care of their dogs while they drop the kids off at the after-school activities. My hourly rate is around $10 an hour. If I had to walk the dogs (30 minutes) and then take the kids to their after-school activity (30 minutes) I’m spending a full hour, or $10 of my time. If this happens on a daily basis, that $10 becomes $70 in a week’s time. If my neighbor and I agreed that I would take her kids to the activity and she’d take care of the dogs, suddenly I’ve cut my losses in half and can spend the other half hour on something that’s productive.
Between these two examples, I’ve shown you how to save $100 on a weekly basis by planning and organizing your time more effectively. Everyone’s schedule is different, but if you get into the habit of organizing your time, you’ll start to notice your days are more productive and you’ll see the savings in your bank account as well.
What do you do to use your time effectively?
Cathy at Chief Family Officer sent me these four freebies and deals at Ralphs this week. For her full list, see the link below.
Mentos Gum $1
Use $.55 off 1 Mentos Gum from 2/21 Smart Source coupon insert
Final price: FREE
Bumble Bee Seafood $1
Use $.55 off 1 Bumble Bee Premium Tuna Pouch 2.5 or 5 oz from 2/21 Smart Source
Final price: FREE
Vitaminwater Zero $1
Use $1 off 2 Vitaminwater or Vitaminwater Zero from 4/11 Smart Source
Final price: 50 cents each when you buy 2
Haagen-Dazs or Skinny Cow Ice Cream Cup $1
$1 off 2 Skinny Cow Cups printable (FF or IE)
$1 off 3 Skinny Cow, Haagen-Dazs, or Edy’s Cup from May All You
Final price: as low as 50 cents each when you buy 2
Read all Cathy’s deals and freebies at Ralphs. Thanks, Cathy!
khawkins04/Flickr
Get 33% off the list price of any one item with this Borders coupon, good through April 22, 2010.
Take home a free roll of Reynolds 100% recycled wrap when you pair this high-value $1.25 off coupon with a sale.
Get 30% off at Ann Taylor and Ann Taylor Loft during their friends and family sale. It ends Sunday, April 25, 2010.
Get 70% off at Restaurant.com through Thursday, April 22, 2010.
Through April 25 Dairy Queen Blizzards are buy one get one for $.25. That’s practically a 50% off your total Blizzard purchase!
These coupons and deals are from my WalletPop blog. Check back later today for a huge list of Earth Day freebies, discounts, and deals!
By Mike Barclay of 10CentsWorth.com
hipsxxhearts/flickr
How many times when growing up did you hear, “Eat everything on your plate. There are starving people in Africa”? If it was anything like my household, it was almost daily. Interestingly enough, I recently had my own paradigm shift about food waste. What started out as “I don’t have the money to toss out food I don’t eat” has turned into a realization that none of us do!
Statistics show that Americans throw away about 25% of the food we prepare. That amounts to about 96 BILLION pounds of food tossed into a dumpster (video). The food service industry (restaurants) estimate that 4-10% of the food they prepare is wasted before it gets to you. That’s a lot of food! “There’s a huge disconnect,” says William Rathje, a Stanford archaeologist who ran the University of Arizona Garbage Project for years. “People don’t pay attention to their food waste because it goes straight into the garbage or disposal. It’s not like newspapers that stack up in the garage.”
According to the USDA, the average weekly amount spent on food for a family of four using a low cost plan (we’ll go with kids in the age range of 6-11) is about $170. That breaks down to about $24 per day. Remember that earlier stat that 25% of the food prepared in America is wasted? What’s a quarter of $24? $6. A family of four is essentially throwing away enough food for an entire person each day!
So how do we get that 25% waste down to zero? Recycle it! The most obvious option is just not to throw it away! If you have leftovers, think of ways to reuse them. Make sure they’re in a clear container so that you can see what’s in them, and try your best to keep them up in front. You’ll have a better chance of not forgetting about them that way. And who says you need to eat the same dish four nights in a row? I found a great site for leftover recipes that lets you plug in the main ingredients and populates a bunch of recipe ideas. (See BargainBabe.com site review here.)
Ripened fruit? No problem! Toss them in a blender with ice and make smoothies.
Obviously some things aren’t reusable and some food needs to be tossed. But even then, it doesn’t necessarily need to be wasted. You can easily make your own homemade kitchen composter which will allow you to save those scraps and turn them into fertilizer for plants around the house, or even your garden in the backyard.
So the next time you start to scrape your plate down the disposal, pretend it’s cold hard cash that you’re inserting down the drain, and think again.
Cathy at Chief Family Officer shared four great deals at Ralphs this week. If you’re new to coupons, read my post on coupon clipping basics. To take advantage of these deals, you’ll need to have saved the coupon inserts you receive in the mail or with your Sunday newspaper. Here’s a great suggestion for how to handle coupon organization.
Hamburger Helper, Rice A Roni or Pasta Roni $1
Use 75 cents/3 from 3/7 or 4/11 Smart Source
Final price: 67 cents each when you buy 3
Nabisco Snack Crackers or Sunshine Cheez-It Crackers $1.99
Use $1/1 Nabisco Ritz Munchables Pretzel Crisps from 3/14 Smart Source, if included in sale
Final price: 99 cents
Snuggle Fabric Softener $3.99
Use $3/1 Snuggle from 3/28 Red Plum
Final price: 99 cents
Hershey’s or Reese’s Candy Bar 50 cents
Use 55 cents/1 Reese’s Dark Peanut Butter Cups from 3/14 Smart Source
Final price: free
Check out the rest of her deals at Ralphs this week. Thanks, Cathy!
Get a free reusable bag (worth $.99) when you spend $20 by April 22, 2010 at any Fresh & Easy grocery store. Alcohol, dairy, and gift cards do not count toward the $20. Print the coupon here.
If you spend $30 by April 18, 2010, use this $6 off coupon to reduce your tab. Alcohol, dairy, and gift cards do not count toward your total.
Fresh & Easy has locations in CA, NV, and AZ. The coupons are part of Fresh & Easy’s Earth Day celebrations. The store wants to encourage customers to use reusable bags instead of paper/plastic.
Thanks, Tina!
*clairity*/Flickr
Have you noticed how incredibly cheap strawberries are right now? They are one of many fruits in season so the prices are fantastic. I’ve paid as little as $.79 for a pound! Here is a quick and easy recipe to serve fresh strawberries as a dessert or snack.
1 package strawberries, sliced into quarters with tops removed
1/2 juicy lemon, remove seeds and squeeze over berries
1-2 T powdered sugar, depending on how ripe your berries are
1 T chopped mint leaves
You can serve over ice cream if you want but they are delicious by themselves!
What is your favorite strawberry recipe?
I spent $470 in my first week of giving up credit cards, putting me on track to blow up my budget this month. Part of that was due to a pricey snowboarding trip, but a lot of it was because I had a ton of cash in my pocket. When I feel flush, I buy stuff I would not normally splurge for (coffee drinks, fancy beef jerky, drinks for others, etc).
To reverse my spendy trend, I decided to carefully plan my errands and grocery trip yesterday so I would only have $5 extra with me. More often than not, if I always have an emergency $20 bill on me, I’m going to spend it. I estimated the cost of my errands ($5 – shoe repair guy; $25 – groceries; $5 – vitamins) and put $40 in my wallet.
The shoe repair bill was actually $7, raising my awareness of my remaining dollars. My first grocery stop added up to $11.87, an insane amount for three items (hummus, cheese, and salsa). I have a tasty hummus recipe and am debating making my own.
When I arrived at the second grocery store I was hyper aware of how much money I had left over – $21.13. Having a finite amount of dollars influenced what I purchased. I bought super cheap in-season strawberries for $.99 instead of bananas, and passed on sliced lunch meat so I could buy chicken thighs and pork chops, the two most expensive items on my list.
As I put each item into my cart, I wrote down its cost. When I felt I was approaching my dollar limit, I added everything up, including tax. Having to pay close attention to – no, being controlled by my limited funds – was painful. With a credit card, I do not limit myself when it comes to food. I aim to spend about $27 a week on groceries, but if a staple is on sale or I see a good deal, I do not hesitate to overspend. With cash, I don’t have that option.
By the time I made it to the drugstore to buy vitamins, I had a little over $6 left. I could pay for the vitamins using a $4 off coupon and the spare coins in my wallet, but I walked out of the store emptyhanded. It didn’t feel right to go home penniless.
