Coupon Methods Revealed and some Target Steals

After spending hours getting my binder ready I made my first trip with it to Target. At first I was a little embarrassed to have this giant binder with me. I would stand in each aisle FOREVER looking at all the coupons I had try matching them with items I thought might be cheap.

I realized I was becoming the person that just buys an item because I had a coupon for it, so I told myself that I needed to only look at items that were on markdown prices. I ended up with a few steals, but it took me twice as long. Here is what I learned:

• Don't buy it just because you have a coupon. Unless the coupon is nearing its expiration date and you know you'll use it, don't buy it yet!
• Organize your binder into SMALL sections. I had a bathroom/personal hygiene section and it was over 20 pages full. I needed to have one for toothpaste/toothbrush, femine hygiene, body wash, shampoo and conditioner and makeup section. Probably even more than just those. The smaller the sections the easier it will be to find what you are looking for.
• Expect less preparing time, but longer shopping time,
• I would NEVER take my one or two year old shopping with me while using my binder.

In the essence of what problems I ran into I also saw some benefits:

• Many more people come up and talk to you about what you are doing. I have never had that many people curious about what I was doing.
• You do find some great deals on things that were put on clearance and you have your coupons for.
• It can be a nice feeling to know that you have all your coupons in ONE place. I felt super organized and put together.

Here are some of the great deals I found last night, some were well advertised others were not.

Gillette Fusion Razors $7.94 and WYB2 you get a $5 Target gift card. I used 2 $4.00/1 coupons from 2 of the previous Gillette Fusion razors I had bought making the total $7.88. Or you could use the $2.00/1 from RP 8/16. Then I used my Buy a razor get a FREE shampoo from P&G 8/2 and a buy a razor get a FREE body wash coupon from P&G 8/2 . The shampoo and body wash were normally both $3.99 and I got them for FREE. So after factoring in the gift card I spend $2.88 for 2 razors, one body wash and one shampoo!!!!

The bags of Starburst were on sale for $2.29. I used 2 $1.00/1 coupons to get 2 bags of regular flavored starburst for $1.29, but you can also use the Flavared Starburt coupon to get 2 bags of Flavared Starburst for the same price. Mine just didn't have anymore left.

A package of 4 disposable Shick Quattro for Women razors were on sale for $5.99 and I used my $3.00/1 coupon from SS 8/16. That means I only paid about .75 for a razor.

I bought some Sally Hansen nail polish that was on sale for $2.69 and I used my $1.00/1 coupon from RP 8/2. That lime color just looked so tempting!

Herbal Essence Conditioner was on sale for $2.69. Not nearly as great as a couple weeks ago at Smiths, but as I was clipping for my binder I found a lost coupon! I used the get a FREE styler when you buy a shampoo or conditioner coupon from RP 7/26. That made them each $1.39. The coupon expires 8-31, so I figured I probably wouldn't get a better deal, but I know I wanted to use the coupon.

I found a couple Tide 2x laundry detergents that were on clearance for $3.98. I used my $1.00/1 coupon from P&G 8/2 and bought them for only $2.98. That's a great deal!

Here was my favorite find! I didn't end up buying any, but the Norelco clipper/shaving products were on sale. They also have $10/1 and $5/1 coupons in SS 8/16 and there is another $5/1 Target coupon here. These good make for some awesome steals!

Dove Deodorant was on sale for $3.29. Use this $2.00/1 coupon and this $1.00/1 Target coupon and you have deodorant for only pennies.

Remember that Targets sales run from Sunday to Saturday, so some of these deals are only good for a couple more days.