feeling thrifty

Goodwill.
The land of "just the shoes I was looking for" at a price point of $5 or less.  So, both last year and this year, I found myself in need of some fun closed toe shoes for work.  In both situations, I dropped into Goodwill with hope, but mid-level expectations.  And in both situations, I walked out with cute shoes in hand.

 Last year, the black and white pair cost me a whopping $4.99, didn't hurt my feet after three days and have become one of my favorite pairs of heels ever.
This year, I found the brown pair and they were a perfect match for my needs.  Though I don't love them quite as much as the others, I found them on a day they were 50% off and after handing the cashier $2.50, they became mine.



I guess you could say that the thrift store is a shoe in for my business in situations like this.  Bahaha.

TOTAL SPENT: $2.50
TOTAL SAVED: $2.49 (and so much more when retail is considered)

january

Time for a little recap of the month. 
This project got off to a bit of a disorganized start.  I really didn't do much in the way of comparing ads and coupons.  I also didn't put much effort into keeping track of savings (some receipts aren't very helpful) and my shopping trips were a bit random. Honestly, I haven't even organized my coupons yet! 
Despite my lack of organization and focus, a lot of positive things happened. 
1. I maintained a healthy food budget.
2. I got back into the habit of being more aware of what I am buying.
3. I got back into the habit of using coupons.
4. I ate out a few times and didn't feel guilty about it.
5. I saved money!

In addition to the specific instances I mentioned this month, I saved another $13.00 (and it may have been more) on various items with both coupons and sales. 
And now (this is the fun part) we total up Januarys savings:


TOTAL SAVED: $40.23

a steal of a cereal deal

So, a couple of weeks ago, I was in Fred Meyer picking up a few things and discovered Moms Best Naturals Cereals.  I was hoping one of my favorite Kashi cereals would be on sale, but while I was looking for it, I saw the price on Mom's Best, which was $1.49.  After scanning the box and noting the cereals used whole grains, had no artificial flavors, saturated fat, hydrogenated oils or hfcs, I grabbed a couple boxes to try.

At home, I gave myself a little pat on the back because the cereals were delicious and $1.49 is a great deal, as any cereal lover knows.  I looked up the company online and discovered a $1.00 off coupon for two boxes.  Score!
The next time I was in the neighborhood, I stopped back at Fred Meyer for a couple things and was looking forward to two more boxes for $2.00.  Unfortunately, there were only a few boxes left, but it was because the store had added an additional incentive to the sale:
Buy 10 boxes and save $5.00, making the boxes $0.99 each!
I left the store without cereal that day, but noted the dates of the sale and eventually came home with 10 boxes for $0.89 each.

TOTAL SPENT: $8.90
TOTAL SAVED: $21.00-$26.00 (need to make note of original price next time)

While writing this blog, it has come to my attention that I might be able to print more coupons and use one for every two boxes purchased, making the cost $0.49 each rather than $0.89.  We shall see if I have time to try before the sale ends.  Either way, its an awesome deal and I am stocked up on yummy cereal!

cleaning and cards at the counter

A fabulous thing happened last night during my trip to Target.  There were three things on my shopping list:
1. Dish Detergent
2. Laundry Detergent
3. Birthday Cards
I walked into the store with two coupons.  One was $.50 off a target brand household item.  The other was for $1.00 off All laundry detergent.  I quickly found the dish detergent and then, to my delight, I discovered the larger bottle of All detergent was not only on sale, but had a coupon of its own stuck on the bottle.  That was another $1.00 savings! After grabbing a container of greek yogurt (on sale for $1) and a few $.99 cards, I headed to the checkout.  As I pulled out my target card (another 5% savings) and got ready to pay, I found a coupon sitting at the checkout.  $2 off 3 or more greeting cards...and I had three!  When all was said and done, I...
SPENT: $10.60
SAVED: $6.14