The NH Mirror - A reflection of local women

The queen of thrifty

Coupon savings worth the effort

NH Mirror/Kelly Pearson

Buying in bulk can save you a lot of money.

By KELLY PEARSON

This summer has been a whirlwind. Not only have I taken my money-saving schemes to new heights, I’ve also met a few coupon geeks along the way. I have to admit, it’s nice to know there are people as thrifty as I am, and even better to know that some are more obsessed than me.

Our summer started off as it always does – with my birthday. If it wasn’t for my husband, I may have just slid through this year without even acknowledging it. At the beginning of May, I started my same song and dance, reminding him that I didn’t need (or want) anything for my birthday. The truth is that I’m completely into “it’s the thought that counts” gifts, and what he got me was the best present ever.

My husband signed me up for a class with The Coupon Mamas, two New Hampshire moms who share their knowledge of couponing and shopping with those looking to stretch their budget. He was excited when he came across the video of their interview. While he laughed at the similarities between these women and me, I sat in amazement. They brought using coupons to a whole new level.

Within the first 10 minutes of their Couponing 101 class, I was amazed at these two entrepreneurs. Not only were they sharing their gift with us, they had made a business out of it. I tried quickly to calculate how much they would make at $25 a person but stopped, realizing they were making money from doing something they loved. That is so great.

After leaving the class, I decided to improve my coupon collection. I needed to stockpile as many coupons as possible. The best deals come when you have multiple coupons for the same items. I found a fabulous blogger at www.wickedcooldeals.com that matches up online coupons with sales for the week.

This is perfect: Print out the coupons (usually only two per computer) and when the item goes on sale, you can buy a bunch at cheap prices or free. I’ve done this over and over again at Shaw’s, which doubles any coupon up to a face value of 99 cents. I put this to work with 75 cents off Cheerios that got doubled to $1.50 off a $2 box of cereal (on sale, of course).

The best thing was that General Mills was running a special where you got a $5 off coupon if you spent $25 or more on their items specified in the Shaw’s circular.

What they don’t tell you is that they use the original price (not the sales price) and they don’t take off if you use coupons. In this scenario, I bought seven boxes of cereal (original price around $4 each) on sale for two for $4. I use seven 75-cent-off coupons that get doubled to $1.50 at Shaw’s, making each box of cereal only 50 cents. My total is $3.50, and my purchase qualifies for the $5 coupon off of my next purchase that spits out at the cash register.

I love getting stuff for cheap or free. I took advantage of this deal many times and have enough cereal to feed an army. Thank you to all of my coupon friends that have helped me take my thriftiness to the next level. I hope this inspires you to save more on your grocery trips.

Online coupon resources

www.thecouponmamas.com

www.wickedcooldeals.com

www.shaws.com – click “Weekly Internet Coupons”

www.target.com – click “Grocery Coupons” on bottom of page

Kelly Pearson is a freelance writer who lives in Pembroke.