Steve & Barry's

I have never been to a Steve & Barry's until today. The one in Champaign, up by Sam's Club is closing down this weekend. I went to see if they had any good shelving they were getting rid of for a great price (for our garage), but instead I found some great deals on kids clothes.

Everything in the store is 4/$5

(or $2.98 each if you buy an amount that isn't a multiple of 4, but that would be silly)

(unfortunately, it doesn't include shelving)

I really had to restrain myself, but if want to stock up on baby shower gifts or need some clothes, it's a great buy! They have clothes for all ages and genders, but I mostly stuck to the baby stuff because my time was limited. No promises on the grown-up clothes. You might have to do some digging to find the sizes you want, but for the price, it's definitely worth it!

Pictured above are a few of the things I got: some baby boy gifts and matching spring/summer dresses for the girl cousins on my side of the family!

Back in the Grocery Groove-- My Highlights for the Week

Here are my grocery highlights:

Meijer (through 11/22)

Green Giant Steamers $.89

Idahoan Mashed Potatoes $1
**$.40 off Idahoan Mashed Potatoes =$.60

Pillsbury Sweet or Crescent Rolls $1.25
**$.35 off Pillsbury Crescent Rolls =$.90
**$.35 off Pillsbury Sweet Rolls =$.90

Cool Whip Topping $.89

Philadelphia Cream Cheese $1.25
**Catalina Deal (prints a coupon for money off your next order): Buy 5 -- get $2, Buy 6 -- get $3, Buy 7 -- get $4... time to stock up and freeze cream cheese!

County Market (through 11/22)

Campbell's Cream Soups $.50

Imperial Margerine 1lb $.49

County Market Butter 1 lb $1.99

BirdsEye Steamfrech veggies $1

Jet Puffed Marshmallows of Marshmallow Creme $.99

County Market Apple Juice 64 oz $1.50


Schnucks (through 11/25)

Freshlike or Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggies $1
**$1.00 off 2 bags of Freshlike Veggies =$.50/bag

Pillsbury All-purpose Flour 5 lb $1.50

Pillsbury Cake Mix $.50

CVS Deals (through 11/22)

Duracell Batteries are the hot item this week, so if you need to stock up on batteries, check out this deal:

Spend $20 on Duracell batteries, get $15 in ECBs (use like cash on your next order).
AA and AAA 8 packs, C and D 4 packs, others $5.99
AA and AAA 16 packs, C and D 8 packs, others $9.99

You can use your $15 ECB on Thanksgiving weekend at CVS to get lots of things free (you'll get more ECBs back).

Skippy peanut butter 2/$3

Scrubbing Bubbles $2.50
- $2.00 off Scrubbing Bubbles =$.50

Windex $2.50
-$2.00 off Windex = $.50

Pledge Furniture Polish $2.50
-$2.00 off Pledge = $.50
(Let me know if these printables do or don't work for you... I printed them over a month ago and don't know if this url is still good.)

Also, if you haven't scored you free-after-ECB toothpaste, pick up a 2 tubes of Crest Pro-Health toothpaste (look for it in the monthly ad by the store entrance).

That's all that interested me. See if you find something great in the CVS ad!

Walgreens Deals (through 11/22)

Chex Mix $.99

- $1.00 off Chex Mix (print 2)= FREE

Skippy Peanut Butter 2/$3.00

I didn't find much else that I was interested in. Check out the ad and see what you find!

The Coupon Clippers

While the best way to get coupons is for free, there are times when investing a little money in coupons will save you more in the long run. One way to do that is with The Coupon Clippers. They buy lots of Sunday papers (yes, the entire paper) and clip all the coupons, then charge a handling fee for their efforts (coupons themselves cannot be bought and sold). You pay anywhere from $.05 to $.30 for each coupon (from what I've seen), pay a $.50 administrative fee (covers credit card/PayPal fees), and pay for the stamp. Some coupons have a minimum order (must order 5 of this coupon), others have a limit (can only order 10 of this coupon). You also must have a $3 subtotal (before shipping and administrative costs) before you check out, meaning the least amount of money you can pay is $3.92 ($3 order, $.50 admin fee, $.42 shipping).

Be sure to factor everything in when you decide if ordering coupons is worth it. I have to already know what I'm going to use a coupon on before I am willing to make an order. This means it's either an item we are loyal to and will be buying anyway (say you only buy Huggies), an item that I know is on a good sale in the coming weeks (did you know that you can peek at Walgreens and CVS ads for the coming weeks?), or an item that I can almost guarantee will be on sale in the coming weeks. I especially watch for coupons I can use on items with a rebate (you get a reabate on the price before the coupon) or items with special deals (free after ECB at CVS, for example).

Saturday morning is when the new week's coupons are available to order, though you can view them the day before (under Tracker). Some of the coupons go pretty fast.

Here's an example of what I'm planning to order tomorrow:

$1.00 off Steamers @ $.12, limit 10
so 10 coupons for $1.20
**I can guarantee that Steamers will go on Sale for $1 before the coupon expires in January. That means you can get 10 bags of steamers for $1.20 (not including the admin fee and shipping)**

$.40 off Skippy peanut butter @ $.08, limit 10
so 10 coupons for $.80
**I am already planning on stocking up on PB when Skippy is 2/$3 next week at both CVS and Walgreens, so I know I will be able to use these coupons and save $3.20 ($4 - $.80)(not including the admin fee and shipping)**

I'll need to find another dollar's-worth of coupons to meet the minimum, but even with these two coupons it is worth it for me.

If you're planning on making an order this week, I would recommend coupons for Thanksgiving weekend at CVS (many things are free after ECBs, so coupons will make for a profit). Also, there is a coupon for $1.00 off Sure deodorant that will work great in conjuction with an EasySaver coupon at Walgreens the week of Nov 23 (=free deodorant plus $.50 overage). I already got these coupons for myself, my mom, and 2 sisters all at the same time.

I know this can be confusing, especially if you're just starting. Please comment or email me if you're having trouble. I am happy to help!

Thanksgiving Weekend Plans for CVS

There are lots of items that are FREE after ECB (Extra Care Bucks, printed at the bottom of your receipt to be used like cash on your next transaction). Of course CVS is hoping that you'll go out and buy a bunch of these in one transaction, then end up with a bunch of ECBs that you'll either forget about or come back and use on ridiculous regular prices. We're smarter than that, right?

I'll show you my plan that only requires $3 (and some change) out of pocket, will get lots of free things (toothpaste, shampoo, razors, lotion, tampons, chocolate, etc), and will finish you off with over $15 in ECBs (which I will show you how to wisely use on good sales in the future).

Before I begin, I will warn you that my plan includes several coupons. I don't get the paper, but I occasionally order coupons at The Coupon Clippers when I know that the money I save/earn will be lots more than I spend on the coupons. (I was going to explain about The Coupon Clippers here, but it was getting long, so I'll explain it in my next post.) In this case, the coupons minimize the number of transactions necessary to keep the out-of-pocket minimal and rack up the ECBs. I planned this scenario to do with my mom and sisters when I'm home for Thanksgiving. I ordered the coupons for all 4 of us and it came out to $2 of coupons per person. Not bad!

FREE after ECBs that I used in my scenario (see Ad Scan for more)
Colgate Total Advanced toothpaste $2.99 (earns $2.99 ECB) limit 2
Aussie shampoo, conditioner, styler $2.99 (earns $2.99 ECB) limit 2
Hershey’s King Size candy $1.00 (earns $1.00 ECB) limit 1
Johnson’s softlotion $5.69 (earns $5.69 ECB) limit 1
Gatorade G2 20 oz. $1.49 (earns $1.49 ECB) limit 3
Bic Soleil razor $5.99 (earns $5.99 ECB) limit 2
Garnier Nutritioniste towelettes 25 ct. $5.99 (earns $5.99 ECB) limit 1
CoverGirl Smoothers pressed powder $5.99 (earns $5.99 ECB) limit 1
L'oreal lip gloss $6.99 (earns $6.99 ECB) limit 1

Deal from Weekly ad
Playtex tampons 18 ct $3.99 (earns $3 ECB) limit 1$.99 after ECBs

MY SCENARIO
I rounded things up a penny for typing and reading ease ($3.99 = $4)

Transaction #1
1 Soleil razor $6 - $3 coupon = $3
= $3 oop, earn $6 ECB

Transaction #2
1 Soleil razor $6 - $3 coupon = $3
1 Aussie shampoo $3 - $1 coupon = $2
1 Hershey candy bar $1
=$6 pay w/ ECB from T#1, earn $10 ECB

Transaction #3
1 Aussie shampoo $3 - $1 coupon = $2
1 Garnier towelettes $6 - $1 coupon = $5
2 Gatorade $3
=$10 pay w/ ECB from T#2, earn $12 ECB

Transaction #4
2 Colgate $3 = $6 (maybe $1.50 less with printable, buy something for $1 if using coupon, already used mine)
1 CoverGirl Powder $6 - $1 coupon = $5
1 Gatorade $1.49
=$12.50 pay w/ ECB from T#3 +change, earn $13.50 ECB

Transaction #5
1 Playtex tampons $4 - $1 coupon = $3
1 Johnson’s softlotion $5.69 -$1 coupon = $4.69
1 L'oreal lip gloss $7 - $1 coupon = $6
=$13.69 pay w/ ECB from T#4, earn $15.69 ECB

Make adjustments depending on the items you will use. If you're new to this, I'd be happy to help you organize them into transactions that will minimize the out-of-pocket. Just tell me what you want to get and what coupons (if any) you have. I think it's fun!

Free Snapfish PhotoBook-- Just Pay Shipping

Snapfish is offering a free 20-page 8.5 x 11 inch photo book with a custom cover for a very short time. You still have to pay shipping (which I believe is $6.99), but I would say it's still a fabulous deal and would make a great Christmas gift.

I know it's kind of late notice (I've been behind on blogging this week), but if you sign up for your coupon by tonight at midnight and then have your photo book all put together and ordered by Sunday night, you can still take advantage of this offer. Can you guess what I'm working on today?

UPDATE: You will now have until Saturday Nov 22nd to finish your book (so many people responded to the offer that the site is being really slow now). If you haven't signed up for your coupon you can still do so tonight!

$40 in Change = $50 in Gift Cards

Coinstar has a promotion through December 7th:

Convert $40 in change into a gift card or eCertificate and you can send away for a free $10 gift card or eCertificate to the same location.

Check out Coinstar to find the locations around you and what gift cards are available at each location. Once you have entered your zip code, click on the yellow gift icon under each location to find out what gift cards are available. If there is one where you'll be spending $40 anyway, then go check all the dresser tops, couch cushions, and purses for spare change and make $10 on this offer. A form will print out at the bottom of your receipt for you to fill out and send in to receive your gift card. Check here for details on the offer. Oh, and there are no fees when you opt to have your change converted to a gift card or eCertificate!

Thanks Liz!

Walgreens Deals (through 11/15)

Kellogg’s Cereal (Smart Start, Mini Wheats, Raisin Bran) 4/$10
earns $2 RR (to use on next transaction) which makes it like 4/$8
Use $1 off coupons is you still have them from a while back. I saw some Mini Wheats coupons on my sidebar just a little bit ago. I have several for $1 off Smart Start (which usually doesn't go on sale for $2), so I'll be using those.
=4 for $4 after coupons and RR

Royal pudding 4/$1 (with in-ad coupon)

Betty Crocker frosting $.99 (with in-ad coupon)
-$.55 off Betty Crocker frosting
=$.44 after coupon

Carefree Pantyliners $.99 (with in-ad coupon)
-$.50 off any Carefree product
=$.49 after coupons

Kotex (pads, tampons, liners) 2/$6
earns $1 RR (to use on your next transaction) which makes it like 2/$5
-$1 off Kotex pads (2), $.75 off Kotex tampons, liners (2)
= 2/$3 after coupons and RR

There are several other good deals on baking items. Check out the Walgreens ad and see if there's anything else you need.

REMEMBER: You can't have more coupons than items, so just make sure to count before you checkout. If you need more items, try the pudding (it's $.25 each and one in-ad coupon works for up to 8)

CVS Deals (through 11/15)

St Ives Body Wash $3.99 (earn $ 3ECB) limit 5 (THROUGH MONDAY)
- $2.00 off St. Ives (coupons is for St.Ives Elements, but it works)
=FREE + $1 overage after coupon and ECB

Fructis shampoo, conditioner, or styler $2.99 ($2 ECB) limit 1
=$.99 after ECB

Palmolive$1.49 ($1 ECB) limit 5
=$.49 after ECB

Listerine Agent Cool Blue Tinting Rinse $3.99 (get $3 ECB) limit 5
-$1.00 off Listerine coupon
=FREE after ECB and coupon

Glaceau Smart Water 1 liter $1.59 ($1.59 ECB) limit 1
= FREE after ECB