Extreme Couponing

[atlmama0927]

Thanks for all these insights! I never thought about all the costs associated with clipping the coupons. I used to work for our newspaper here and never thought for a second how valuable alllll those unused inserts were! Those coupon ladies probably got them out of the dumpster at the insert plant! You are right about the processed food, as well. Eating a cheap diet full of preservatives and all those refined starches is sure to be offset by high medical bills in later life! And I never thought about how unethical it is. Im a big believer in karma, I mean, I dont even fill my free water cup up with soda and get mad at my husband when he does. I usually buy generic, and I LOVE costco and buy in bulk. Ill stick to that. Much easier. But I will try to save a few bucks here and there with coupons that come my way and- use them correctly

I think that blog kind of summed it up, myfrugalnfunlife!

[myfrugalfunlife]

Originally Posted by atlmama0927 I hear ya! I have just been put on bedrest and (depending on what my doctor says tomorrow) we may hire a nanny. If we have to go this route- I figured, what better to do with my time then figure out how to save money to balance out the cost of hired help! It certainly looks like a job though.

I used to be an extreme couponer, and many times I would drive all over town to 4-5 stores every day, to get all the 'deals'. It seriously is like a full time job.

[2queens&1princenmyhouse]

I find that it's easier to look for specific coupons that I need instead of collecting a bunch that I won't use. A few weeks ago DH told me he was about out of razors. I went on ebay and searched "gillette razor coupons" and it came up with some. I bought 20 B1G1 free coupons for $3.xx. Then I watched the Wags ads. The next week, they had B1G1 half off, so I went in and bought 18 packages of razors (and didn't clear the shelves b/c that annoys me). Retail it would've been around $115 before tax. I paid a little less than $27, so counting the coupons it was about $30 for 18 months (at least) worth of razors. I do that with toothpaste/toothbrushes, zyrtec, excedrin migraine, DH's body wash, clif bars, and rice milk.

Oh, and I still have several of the B1G1 razor q's if anyone needs them. I gave a few away, but still have 6 or 7. PM me if you want them.

[justjacqueline]

I actually do this...but not extreme. I only buy things we will eat. It would be nice to donate but I have a FT job, and 2 PT jobs and would never have time do dedicate that much time to extreme couponing. Plus, I refuse to bring 25 packs of candy home...are you kidding me? If it's not healthy, it's not going in my buggy (besides chips!) LOL or a few peices of chocolate. But you get the point. I can usually do 40-50 worth of food for $20ish and that feels incredibly rewarding!

[mommytoallgirls]

I highly doubt anyone could extreme coupon while feeding your family healthy, fresh, NATURAL food. The stuff those women buy is junk! Plus, it's border line hoarding to "buy" 300 things of deodorant just b/c you got it free. Really?? Do you (or your ENTIRE extended family) need that much deodorant/toothpaste/toilet paper/etc?? Greed is an awful thing.

[3sweetboys]

Just wondering...those of you who do coupon, is the thing on the P&G Brand saver coupons new that says limit of 4 like coupons per shopping trip? I had never noticed that before a couple of weeks ago.

[MaBacon]

I really think there isn't much difference between that show and hoarders, except it's a bit more organized. I agree the time/money spent on finding the deals and coupons isn't worth it. I tried to do it one time since we had walgreens just down the road, I stocked up on so much shampoo I'm still using it 4 yrs later! I can't imagine going in everytime they had a sale like that and stocking up. We have no stores here that double anyway, and none of the stores that have the really good deals or reward cards.

And it is mostly for processed junk food. Now I just look for coupons on things we'll use which isn't much since we don't buy processed stuff. If I do need good coupons (like for Almond milk for DS since it's all he can drink) I will go to ebay and pay the $1-2 for a lot of 20 of them.

Oh and I've been on bedrest with all my kids, there's no way I could have extreme couponed during it!

[madebymommy]

I feel the same way - the idea of extreme couponing is all WOW!!! FREE STUFF!! but they really don't include the costs associated with couponing like that. Plus, as most of you have said, I try to stay away from frozen/processed stuff as much as I can, and there are no coupons for fresh meat/produce!

I'm also a HUGE fan of generics. We do most of our shopping at Aldi, and now that summer is here, we will be hitting up the farmer's market frequently.

And yeah, I definitely see some of these people as having hoarding-like tendencies that they fulfill by extreme couponing, and that's still not healthy!

[smashncakes]

Originally Posted by 3sweetboys Just wondering...those of you who do coupon, is the thing on the P&G Brand saver coupons new that says limit of 4 like coupons per shopping trip? I had never noticed that before a couple of weeks ago.

I think it is new...I've been getting them for awhile now and only recently noticed it.

[hunnabee]

I like to coupon and have a small binder but there is no way to save that much money for me because I like specific brands and all natural cleaners etc. When you extreme coupon you can't really be brand loyal. I find that I can save an average of maybe 15$ per week but that is because I try to stick with shopping for the basics and avoid processed foods and also our stores do not double. I agree with what others have said that a lot of coupons are for junk food. The typical things that work with our shopping list and usually have coupons are

1. kraft natural cheese
2. greek yogurt
3. cottage cheese
4. egglands best organic or cage free eggs
5. breads (it is harder to find the whole wheat)
6. canned or frozen fruits and veggies
7. pasta
8. spaghetti sauces
9. newmans own or marzettis salad dressings
10. juices
10. toilet paper

once and a while you can find seventh generation or burts bees coupons and those are great. My advice is to only stick with what you know your family will use because some of the people on those shows only seem to stock up on sports drinks, candy, soup, and tons of disposable items like paper towels