SAFEWAY week of 9/30-10/6

Here are some of the best freebie/money maker deals that I see this week at Safeway:

Kleenex on sale .99

Buy 3 Kleenex, Get $3 Catalina. (Thanks Frugal Living NW)
Be sure to look for the following UPC code on your boxes:  
0 36000 28110 1

Buy 3 Kleenex on sale $.99 each (110 ct boxes) = $2.97
Use $.50/3 coupon (-$.50) from 8/2 SS insert (expires today so you HAVE to go today for this deal) You can then double this with a Safeway Doubler (-$.50).
Pay $1.97 OOP, Get $3 Catalina (remember this is what spits out of the register after you pay)
FREE with $1.03 overage after coupon & catalina

You can roll this catalina into a second transaction (or more if you want to take up the line).

          Transaction #2:

         Buy 3 Kleenex = $2.97
         Use $.50/3 coupon (-$.50) from 8/2 SS insert and doubler (-$.50).
         Buy $1.03+ worth of additional product
         Use $3 catalina from transaction #1
         Pay $0+ OOP, Get $3 Catalina
         FREE with $3 overage after coupon & catalina

*If you don't have this coupon it's rumored there are blinkies on the shelf for .50/3 but they don't double. You would still have .53 cent overage though. This is great too if you can't make it to the store today!



Chinet Plates or Cups on sale $2 with weekly ad coupon (limit 4)
Buy lunch plates and use the $2/1 coupon from 8/9 SS insert (expires Sept. 30) so you would HAVE to go today in order to get this deal. Stack this with one of the Safeway doubles (found on the inside of their ad in yesterday's Bend Bulletin). It will double up to -$.50
FREE with $.50 overage after coupons & double

If you pair the two scenarios above (Kleenex and Plates) your OOP cost would be $1.47 for the first transaction and you would receive the $3 catalina.

Bend Bulletin--$10/$50+

Today in the Bend Bulletin you will find a coupon good at Safeway for $10 off a $50 or more purchase. I have yet to determine if this price is before coupons or after. If anyone knows, let me know!

Coupon terminology

When I first started clipping coupons I was so confused by some of the terminology. Below are just a few. Leave a comment if you can think of some I missed and I'll add it to the list.

BLINKIES = In Store Coupons that you pull from the blinking box
TEAR PAD = A pad of coupons or MIR near a product or on display
PEELIE= Coupon you peel off package  
BOGO/B1G1 = Buy One Get One
$1/2 = Take $1 off the purchase of 2.
CATALINA = Coupon printed at register after purchased
DND = Do Not Double (Some coupons have this lang)
DOUBLER =  Coupon that allows a manufacturer coupon to double in value
FAR = Free After Rebate
MIR = Mail in Rebate
OOP = Out of Pocket
RR = Rebate Rewards (Walgreens)
STACKING = Most stores allow multiple use of coupons – manufacturer’s & in store coupons.
GM = General Mills Newspaper Insert
K = Kellogg’s Newspaper Insert
P&G = Proctor & Gamble Newspaper Insert
RP= Red Plum Newspaper Insert
SS= Smart Source Newspaper Insert

How do you keep all those coupons organized?

There are many methods you can use to organize all those coupons you'll acquire. I will highlight three: envelope/box system, binder system, and accordian system.  What method do you use? Leave a comment!

1. Binder System:
Because I have little kids that like to "help" mommy coupon, I choose to use the binder system making it almost impossible to dump them all over the floor. Though this takes a little more time, it's what works best for me. I purchased a binder, 3 packages of baseball card holders, and 18 dividers. This is great to keep little hands from tipping over a box or rummaging through envelopes. It also allows me to easily flip through all my coupons when I see a sale on an item in the store that wasn't mentioned in the ad.

I use the following dividers (though I am going to add a few more)
~Drinks
~Snacks
~Cereal/Bread
~Baby
~Cleaning
~Dairy
~Feminine Products
~Health/Beauty (I want to break this one out)
~Dessert
~Paper Products
~Soups/Sides (again, I want to break this out)
~Condiments
~Meats
~Dinners
~Produce
~Other


When I'm clipping coupons I make sure to clip as close to the edges as I can so they will fit easily in to the binder. However, sometimes I do have to fold them (where it can take a little more time). One tip that I JUST learned (I've been clipping for a few months now and only just realized this) is to sort out your coupons before putting them in the binder. That way you have all your same types together and can just slip them in instead of hunting for each section for every coupon.


2. Envelope/Box System:
Make an envelope for each category I mentioned above (or create your own categories applicable to your family). Store each coupon in the envelopes, then store the envelopes in some sort of a box, like a shoe box. You can't see your coupons very easily but it doesn't take as long to file them.

3. Accordion File System:
Choose between a large file or a small, wallet sized file. Label each divider. Clip and store. There are pros to both the large size (you can store whole coupon inserts without clipping them unless you need them) and the small size (really easy to take with you in to the store). This is the fastest way to clip and organize your coupons, though it can take more time in the store to sort through your files if you find a great deal and aren't sure if you have a coupon to match.


Regardless of the method you chose, you should begin collecting copies of store coupon policies. This is especially handy when you get a cashier that doesn't know what they are doing. You can whip out the policy and show them.

Also, I go through all my coupons 2x a month to pull out any that have expired. Usually they'll expire around the middle of the month and the end of the month. I weed them out on the 30th and the 15th.

Another thing I would suggest carrying with you is scissors...and a calculator!

How to use those coupons you're collecting

When you use coupons it's important to know each store's coupon policy. (I will post more of that later).

Some basic rules to go by are:

1. Use your coupons when items go on sale. Never pay full-price (especially for health/beauty products).

2. Begin to build a stockpile of items you use frequently. E.g. cereal, condiments, canned beans, etc. (More on stockpile later too). This way you aren't forced to pay full price when you run out. Rather, you can buy those items dirt cheap and have them on hand.

3. Buy the smallest size you can with a coupon. This will result in getting close to a free price for that item.

4. If allowed, stack your coupons. Use a store coupon along with a manufacturer coupon. E.g. Fred Meyer has a $3 in-store coupon for Glad Sense and Spray. You can "stack" that with the $4 off Glade Sense and Spray Manufacturer Coupon.

5. Use "doublers" when available. Some stores (e.g. Safeway and Albertsons) have "double manufacturer coupons" up to a certain value. You can double any manufacturer coupon (unless otherwise stated) up to that dollar amount. I love Albertsons for this; they usually have their doublers up to $1 whereas Safeway will double up to .50cents. E.g. Kotex pads were on sale at Albertsons this week for $3. I had a $1 coupon and used a doubler to make my coupon $2 off, meaning I only paid $1.

6. Do more than 1 transaction. Just a note for fellow Central Oregonians: I never do more than 2 at one time...I can't bring myself to hold up the line that long. Doing more than one transaction will allow you to use the maximum number of "doublers" each time. Safeway allows up to 4 doublers per transaction, Albertsons allows for 3 per transaction.

How do you get started?

Step One: Write down the top 10 things your family buys. E.g. Milk, Cereal, etc.

Step Two: Go to your top 2 or 3 grocery stores (or Rite Aid, Walgreens, etc.) and price out those. This gives you a sense of what things normally costs; that way when you see something on sale you know if it’s a good deal or not. Keep this price list to remind you.

Step Three: Buy the Sunday paper (yes, you do have to spend a little money but trust me, it pays off if you keep up with it.) At least for Central Oregon there are often sales reps for the Bend Bulletin in the grocery stores. They are usually willing to split their commission with you. What does that mean? Great deal for you! You can get the paper delivered to your door for $1.50/wk. For example, I bought a paper from a guy selling it at Albertsons. It cost me $33 to purchase for 3 months. Expense? Yes. But, he gave me $15 back in Albertsons gift cards. I was buying the paper every Sunday and every Tuesday as it was so this was already .50 cheaper AND it is now delivered to my door. Score.

Step Four: Here’s where it get’s a little tricky and tedious. Scour the ads for all the coupons and clip every coupon you think you MIGHT use. SAVE all the rest of the coupons even if you don’t think you’ll use them…(I can explain why later).  These are available in the P&G, Red Plum, Smart Source, etc. inserts.

Step Five: Purchase the mid-week paper that offers your local grocery store ads (for Bend this is the Tuesday paper). Repeat everything from Step 3. Don’t forget to clip the double manufacturers coupons too. There usually aren’t too many coupons in this paper but it gives you an idea of all the “specials” the grocery stores have currently. Not sure about any other location but the Bend Bulletin will occasionally have a $10 off $50 or more at Safeway coupon hidden in this paper (not in the ad section like everything else)--even if it appears only once a month you’ve already recouped the loss for the cost of the paper.

Step Six: Repeat step 4 and step 5 EVERY WEEK. With kiddos it can be tricky to find the time to do this. What we do is purchase a doughnut with the Sunday paper (I buy the Oregonian as well) and when the weather is nice sit on the back deck and let the kdis eat doughnuts and play outside. This gives me plenty of time to even enjoy a cup of coffee while I’m doing it. This has actually become a Sunday morning ritual.

Step Seven: Check out www.coupons.com or www.afullcup.com

These sites provide printable coupons accepted at the grocery stores. Print out any you think you will need and remember to hit the refresh or back button to print them 2x (the max any one computer can print).

Step Eight: Download the coupon printer offered via any of those sites…necessary to print coupons from online.

Step Nine: SAVE, SAVE SAVE--It’s important to be patient while building your coupon stockpile. You might not have a lot of the combinations right away.

Step Ten: Match coupons with sales and win! Your goal is build a stockpile of groceries you can pull from...this stockpile should really cost you next to nothing. For e.g. we have about 10 boxes of cereal in our pantry right now. I don't pay more than .50 a box and since expiriation dates are usually at least 6 months I stock up whenever I see a deal that's less than .50.

Why coupon?

After much prompting from friends and family about creating a blog...I gave in. Why do I coupon? Above is a picture of my purchases yesterday at Safeway and Fred Meyer. It cost $9.45 out of pocket, but I have a $10 off my next purchase to spend. So really, it's like I was paid .55 cents to take everything home.

I've heard the following comments regarding couponing:

1. It takes too much time to cut and organize coupons

True, it does take time. I found the initial start up to be the most time consuming. Now it usually won't take  more than an hour a week for me to clip and organize my coupons.

2.   You can only buy junk food with coupons

As you can see from the picture above, there isn't a single item of "junk." And, I essentially got paid to purchase those items.

3. We've all been there (meaning I must coupon because I have to)

Whether you "have to" or not, couponing is a great way to save money. Why give all your hard earned money to the store when you can get a better deal on it?

4. Don't you have to go to a zillion different stores?

Unless there is an amazing deal elsewhere I tend to stick with Albertsons, Fred Meyer and Safeway. And with the exception of this past week, will only pick 2 of the 3 of those to visit. If Rite Aid has a great money maker I will go there but otherwise don't bother. Walgreens is another great money maker but Walgreens is 20 miles away usually making it cost prohibitive.

5. And just plain "Why?" 

For me, it's fun; like a game. Where can I get the best deal? What store will pay me to buy this week? My family would rather spend our grocery money on something fun. In addition, we are currently on one income and attempting to remain free from credit card debt so it makes sense to shop frugally.