So I have been clipping coupons since January and following countless savings blogs and facebook pages. I see those women who post pictures of how many free things they could get at this place and how much they saved at that place.
I have found some things... I got Up Brand Ibuprofen for $0.72, and free dental floss (not even the kind my husband uses, gave to my mom) last week at Target, and I have gotten a small Gain Fabric Softener for $0.50 and free Gain dryer sheets at Dollar General this month. Here and there, I end up finding good deals, especially at Walgreens, and Publix. But I'm still waiting for my "free groceries."
Nevertheless, I went out this morning with a mission; lists and coupons ready to go, and I ended up getting some high end name brand things for at least under $2, if not under $1. I wanted to post a picture of my items, to feel like I triumphed! :-) But also for my husband, sister and friends to see the cool (read: expensive name brand) items I got!
My first stop was Publix. I only went in for these specific items. The bakery bread was a treat for Scott (and in the eye of saving, it cost just as much as the Nature's Own we buy at Kroger). The Hunts, Tostitos, FiberPlus and Mazertti Dressing were all part of B1G1Fs, so I bought one of each and used a coupon on each one. The Barilla noodles were also B1G1F, but at $1.23, I wanted both. The Cheerios were 2/$5, plus I had a Publix coupon and a Manf coupon. Made them 2/$3!!! Now, I know I am weird, but the Excedrin was my winner today. After missing out on a not as impressive deal at Target last week (Free 20ct) I was excited to find this. $5.69, - $3 Target coupon, - $1 Manf coupon = $1.69 for a 120 count! YES!
Geographically, Walgreens was next. I also went there with specific match ups in mind. Cereal was marked really low, $1.99, plus my $0.55 coupon. Herbal Essences was $2.99 each, and I had a B1G1F coupon (plus I got $1 RR!) Colgate $0.99 after coupon... The Kleenex, nail polish and shaving cream were Walgreens ad coupons. Now, the Purex Crystals are a new item, and usually new items are on sale right away. Sure enough, it was $4.99, plus there was a high value $2 off coupon in this week's paper, plus I got $2 RRs! The Tide Stain Release was the only thing I did not go in there for, but, I had what I call "a coupon I'll never use but you never know" that was about to expire. I read it thoroughly and looked for the cheapest Tide item that qualified. This was $4.49 - $3 = $1.49. It's something I would never buy without a coupon, but I know we will use it.
Next, Kroger. I had to go to Kroger to pick up all things that were actually on my grocery list, LOL. (As much as we save with coupons, how often are we just buying things we don't normally buy because they are at an amazing price? Hello, Tide Stain Release, Purex Crystals?? More on that another day). I did not show a picture of everything that I bought at Kroger as most of it was fresh vegetables, fruit, deli meat, etc. These are the things that I matched up. The Chex Mix and the Crackers I had coupons that will expire soon for, and this week Kroger had the best deals on each. The Gain Dryer sheets were FREE at Dollar General! $2.75, and I used my last $3 off Gain coupon on them. Now, usually, the store will correct the coupon to the product amount to make it free, so I picked up the Chewy Sweetarts (yum!) so I was at least purchasing something and not just checking out not paying anything... BUT today, the cashier did not adjust my coupon, so that took $0.25 off my candy, making my total at DG $0.70.
So, TADA! Here is my savings picture for today! All of my items and what I saved! Seriously, I look at all these name brand items and smile. I am 90% of the time a generic brand shopper. Most of these things have a generic counterpart. When I added up the total cost of these things I shook my head! $90 for all this??? Really?? It's not that much stuff, is it? But when look at all that and see I only paid $39 for it all, it looks a bit more impressive!
I'm looking forward to more trips like this... and maybe some free groceries!
