Coupon Savvy Is Back?!

After quite many years off me writing this blog, many things have changed in my life, for one i don't live in GA, USA.... I live back home in the UK with my lovely hubby and my beautiful little boy. Its been a big change to my frugal living i experienced in the USA as coupons arent that readily available here, but ive been doing my best to still use coupons and get the best savings i can! So im hoping to keep updating with my savvy savings!

Easy Entertainment For Free!

I know how it is...its a rainy day and the kids are in the house, and driving you crazy! There is only so far that coloring books and crafts will go! Its the same with my nieces! If you have a Library in your town, go by and register and get a library card (im sure they are free, mine was) Most librarys have more than just books! Our library has tapes, vhs videos, and dvds too! Im allowed to take out 4 dvd movies at a time for free! Better then paying when its not on a 'free redbox dvd' day! I have 3 or 4 days to watch my movies before they have to be returned!



My nieces Lauren & Sarah also enjoying reading so I regularly get about 10 books that I think they will like and we will sit down and read to each other (or in sarahs cause, she reads what she thinks is there! lol) we have so much fun and in the end, the girls are usually mellow and ready for a nap!
The Library is also great for books too. The library I attend, has books in a back room that are donated by the public. They sell them for sometimes 10c and I always find several that Myself & My nieces enjoy.
I stumbled across the author Sophie Kinsella recently. The new movie 'confessions of a shopaholic' is based on her book! After the first I decided to read another and then another. Now im hooked and Im on my 5th book of Sophie Kinsella's! Her stories are based in england (im english so i guess i relate to the characters!), Her books keep me reading, they are quirky, fun, but are about regular things that happen in everyday life, if your a mother/wife in need of a few minutes a day 'get away' Sophie Kinsella's' book are great to get into! I also love the fact that instead of paying $20 for the book I can always go to my library and get it for free!

Saving Money Without Using Coupons!

So I know im always saying how I save money with coupons, but you can really save money without using coupons as coupons are not available for everything! Sometimes there is little stuff that you need personally and through the house that you just have to have either for everyday life or to decorate your house. Me... being frugal... lol I try to find a cheaper version but with a little work just as good. Here are my finds for today.

1-I really needed a tripod, just a small one as im always taking photos for my blog, or hotcouponworld, showing what great deals I get! At walmart I would at least pay $10 for a small tripod for my digital camera. With a little waiting and looking around I found one at Dollar Tree for just $1. It works just as good and holds my camera just fine!




2-I have seen the cute little wooden signs around, with the sayings Faith Family Friends, and can cost a lot. But I didnt want to pay much! So with a little imagination and time I made one myself. I found one at Dollar Tree for just $1 and painted it to match my bedroom colors. I can always re-paint it if i ever change color schemes and it only cost me $1!




3-I was looking around for a mirror. I found one fairly cheap at walmart for about $4. I just needed it big enough to were I could fix my hair in front of it. I found a black framed mirror big enough for my needs at Dollar Tree for just $1. If I wanted to I could paint the frame or add little touches to make it personalised but i liked the black as it went with my bed (black frame). Here it is shown with my 'faith' sign resting on it.




4-Myself & my Sister-in-law decided to visit Walmart to pick up a few items, while I was there I picked up some Valentines Day cards for next year for my nieces! They were clearanced out for 60c each! What a bargain! I also got 4 bags of Valentines Chocolates for just 25c each.






5-As my closest friends and family know, I love angels! although I havent been needing any more angels Im always on the lookout for items I really like for cheap. I found this Birthday card at a local thrift store for 10c! I have seen this photo online before and is one of my faves. I intend to put it in a frame matching my decor (will cost only $1) for a cheap picture for my wall! You would never know it was a card!




6-I Love my nieces! I also love my photography. I made my own piece of art for under $4. I had the middle photo of my niece Victoria from her prom photos. I decided to take my other 2 nieces to the park and get some creative photos of them. We had so much fun & I got so many good shots (im not some fab photographer! just learning with a 10mp digital camera!) I took them to Walmart and had Lauren & Sarahs photos printed in the same 'sepia tone' as Victorias Photo..(made by a pro!) I found some simple photo frames that matched my decor for just $1 each (4x6). I think my nieces are beautiful and a great way to spend under $4!!

Kmart Doubles

Well I found out that my kmart were having super doubles, for you that dont know, they double coupons up to and including $2.00. I try to go to every event they do as i know i can get a lot of things for free. I got the following for $28.60, should have been $112.40!!






I also recieved the following kmart coupons...
(2) free $10 giftcard with new or transferred prescription
$5.00 off merchandise purchase of $50 or more
$2.00 off fresh produce purchase of $5 or more
$2.00 off fresh bakery or seafood purchase of $5 or more
$2.00 off fresh meat or deli service of $5 or more
$1.00 on one uncle bens boil in a bag rice
$3.50 off your next order (which the cashier used on my second order)

Yayyy for kmart doubles!!

Missing from these photos are 1 bag of halls cough drops and 3 20oz bottles of coke.

Shopping Day!....

Well I havent updated for a while and 3 days ago me and my sister-in-law went to go do the rounds with my coupons and here is how we did!

First Store: Ingles
I got 16 Progresso Soups for $8 and 2 cans of tomatoes for 40c (after coupons)


Second Store: CVS
I got all this for a total of 17.58 using coupons and ecb's.


Third Store: Kroger
I got a bunch at kroger, I got all this for $49.70 should have been $150.84!!


Fourth Store: Rite Aid
I only found a few items of what i had listed but i had great savings!
I spent $1.78! cost without coupons? $33.76!!


Fifth (and final!) Store: Walmart
I cant find the reciept but i paid a little over $10 for all of this!


I got a lot of stuff and saved a lot of money!

Ingles Triples

I havent updated in a while... just been going through moving house and trying my best to get through christmas.

Ingles has had their triple coupons and i have never shopped them before, so i thought i would try them out.

I had a fab trip to, my first time doing the triples!

I wasnt sure as to how they were going to work it out, i wasnt sure if my store would go by the '3 per $10' rule. But they didnt!

Me, hubby and my brother-in-law went, (never take 2 guys together that are friends! lol they aggrivated me all the way round! singing dancing )

Anyways, I got a great haul, they know me so they knew i was going to use a bunch of coupons.

It was supposed to be $197.64 before coupons and i ended up paying $71.24!!
yayy me! thanks to hotcouponworld for posting the freebies!!

I ended up with 4 people around the register, me, hubby, BIL, 2 cashiers, and manager all waiting to see if dh's estimate would be right lol

This is what I got:

4 captain crunch cereal
gallon arizona tea
5 chex mix bars
10 boxes rice
2 small coffeemate powder
6 cans sloppy joe sauce
4 cans glory veg
3 quaker rice snack
6 pasta sides
2 martha white muffin mix
3 betty crocker cookie mix
3 sweet sue white chunk chicken
3 frenchs spicy mustard
3 frenchs mustard
3 pks apple & eve juice drinks
pk 3 musketeers snack bars
pk trident gum (3)
2 betty crocker brownie mix
6 hunts tomatoes (various types)
3 rotel tomatoes
jar prego spaghetti sauce
4 frenchs worcestershire sauce
vlasic dill pickles
5 heluva good french onion dip
2 6pk trix yogurt
1 kleenex antivirul tissue
3 pks bic lady razors
2 small boxes gain detergent
V05 conditioner
1 salami lunch meat (clearance)
4 bar-s hotdogs
3 green giant steamers with sauce
10 birdseye steamfresh
1 eggo chocolate chip pancakes
3 eggo bakeshop swirls
1 hot pocket subs
1 bag red delicious apples

I got all that for $71.24! below hubby's estimate!
my regsiter reciept was about 6 foot long! lol

Needless to say everybody was shocked at how much i saved, and they all told me i needed to shop for them too!

I actually had fun this trip! lol

Thanks for the help hcw!

20 ways to save on groceries

I recieved a free copy of womans day today and these top tips were in it.

20 ways to save on groceries

1) SHOP ALONE!
Too many hands make for long register receipts. Kids and husbands often coerce you into buying more than you want to, especially junk foods.

2) BUY ONLY WHAT YOU NEED!
Most people load up on tomatoes, zucchini and peppers, put then in the fridge and then forget about them. Plan menu's before you go, and buy only a few days worth of fruit and vegetables. You'll be suprised how much money you save wheny ou stop throwing stuff away

3) SUPERSIZE!
The best neat prices are on large cuts, so have the butcher cut a large roast into steaks, stew meat, and a small roast. Ground meat is usually cheaper in family-size packs; you can repackage and freeze it. Check the freezer section for large bags of poultry and seafood too.

4) DIY AND SAVE!
While the marinated roasta and chicken breasts in the meat department may look tasty, you pay a high price for all that liquid and seasoning. Instead, soak chicken breasts or inexpensive cuts of meat in lemon juice or Italian salad dressing for a few hours before cooking, or freeze in plastic freezer bags with some marinade. Instead of buying chicken nuggets, bread your own chicken strips to cook or freeze for later.

5) DONT OVER-PURCHASE!
Just because an item on sale will save you money doesnt make it worth buying dozens. Limit yourself to a reasonable number of boxes, bottles or cans of any one item in your pantry, fridge or freezer at a time. Many products expire before you'll ever you use them, and stores typically run sales on specific items periodically, so you can replenish later. A lot of people shop for a snowstorm when its really not necessary.

I DISAGREE WITH THE ABOVE!! IF YOU CAN STOCK UP ON ITEMS LIKE CANNED GOODS AND STUFF THAT YOU GET FREE OR VERY CHEAP I SAY GO AHEAD! AS LONG AS YOU KNOW YOUR GOING TO USE THEM BEFORE THEY EXPIRE I SAY GET AS MANY AS YOU CAN. THERE HAVE BEEN MANY TIMES I HAVE LIVED OF MY STOCKPILE FOR AT LEAST A MONTH!! ITS WORTH IT!

6) SAY SO LONG TO SNACK PACKS!
Single servings of cookies, chips, crackers, and juice may be very convenient, but they're no value on a volume basis. If you buy sandwich bags or use small containers to create your own snack packages, not only will you save money, but you'll also have more control over how much- and what- your kids eat.

7) WEIGH YOUR CHOICES!
When purchasing pre-bagged produce, such as apples, oranges, or potatoes, put several bags on the scale to find the heaviest. Sometimes they can vary by as much as a pound.

8) GO GENERIC!
In many cases, generic and store label food and household items are identical to or as good as name brand products. Cereals, crackers, chips, napkins and paper towels are usually dependable and cost 20 to 30 percent less; stick to name brands for ketchup and pasta sauce.

9) COMPARE COST PER POUND OR COST PER UNIT!
Be sure to check the unti cost. Sometimwa the 'economy' size isnt always the best bargain, especially when a smaller size is on sale.

10) MAKE FRIENDS WITH THE BUTCHER!
Ask him what day of the week and time they stock the "reduced for quick sale" area. You'll get substantial savings, sometimes $2 a pound or up to 50% off.

11) CHECK OUT THE CHICKS!
A roasting chicken is merely a large fryer, relabeled and sold at a higher price. Dont pay more for a different label; find the biggest fryer for roasting.

12) THINK AHEAD!
Proper preperation can turn would-be waste into a fresh new meal. If your family never finishes that last third of lasagna, for instance, cut out a third before serving and freeze it.

13) INVEST IN A SECOND FREEZER!
You'll save big on meat by stocking up on specials.

14) SHOP WITH LEFTOVERS IN MIND!
Some foods are perfect for an encore performance the following day, especially if you can present them differently.

15) LEARN WHEN TO LEAVE LEFTOVERS BEHIND
Not all meals are as appealing on day two, so dont buy more than you can eat in one sitting. For instance, fish or dressed salad just isnt good the next day, so buy and prepare just what you need.

16) COUNT ON DISCOUNT AND CLEARANCE STORES!
Merchants such as Ocean State Job Lot or Big Lots frequently offer cut price groceries and paper products.

17) VISIT PRICE CLUBS WITH A FRIEND!
Take a supply of boxes, bags, and resealable containers, and split purchases that you both want, especially items like fresh fruit and spices.

18) BUY THE WEDNESDAY PAPER!
Thats the day newspapers typically include a food section where supermarkets advertise sales.

19) CUT CORNERS ON CLIPPING COUPONS!
Check out websites that offer printable manufacturer coupons. (to find type "grocery coupons" into your search engine)

20)STOCK UP ON LOCAL, IN-SEASON FRUITS AND VEGGIES!
Markets may import ou-of-season produce from outher countries, but the price usually reflects the airfare. If you're going to cook the items, then freezing in-season produce saves you money.