Coupons - Chicago,IL

I bought one of those little accordian style folders at Target for $1 and put labels on them. Very convenient and small.

Depending on the volume you intend to do with couponing, I have found a manila file folder system that has a folder for each letter of the alphabet. Then I file all coupons by the brand name - ie Pillsbury, General Mills, etc.

I too do the coupon blogging and have found when a "super" deal is going on it will be a group of many products from the same manufacturer. Then I go through the blogs and the ads each week and pull the coupons, make the list and go to the store.

Pillsbury products can be all over the store - and I always found that categories (frozen, dairy, dry goods, etc.) could be confusing. A product could fit more than one category.

I hope it helps

I keep restaurant coupons organized alphabetically in a little ABC expander file, and keep it in my car. I just keep grocery coupons in an envelope, in the car, and go through them for 3 minutes in the Wal-Mart parking lot to see what I want to use that day. I agree with the other poster....too much time spent on coupons is more time than they are worth!

Welcome to the world of bargain shoppers... some may call us cheap or laugh at us. I like to think of us as smart & laughing all the way to the bank.

Last week, I paid $2.29 for $26 worth of stuff I needed at Walgreens; the lady behind me was shocked. My line is "that's how I can afford to stay home with my children" - seriously if I went back to work I would spend more due to lack of time or be very crabby from lack of sleep!

Okay now to business - check out jillcataldo.com - she gives classes at libraries all over Chicago area. Mashupmom & mummy deals are great local websites as well. Couponmom.com gives a good overall.

Like all said keep your inserts. I believe I just responded to a post on this part I went to Target $ spot and bought several accordion standard paper size folders where I file them. Also I bought several small ones where I keep the coupons I use most often. I don't like it too bulky so I started with one for dining and one for groceries ... then I split groceries - one for true groceries & one for more of the HABA - health & beauty aids as well as random stuff like batteries - running into Wags/Target grab the HABA only typically and Jewel/Dominicks both.

Before I go to a store I prepare using jillcataldo/mashupmom/mummy deals/ads/what I need - so I cut coupons for any deals I don't typically cut, and pull all out. I put them in an envelope organized by store if I am going to more than one.

The coupon organizers - I theoretically shouldn't need to bring... however, if I have a few minutes to shop the end caps/clearances - I love to pull it out and find some special deals. I remember finding unadvertised Listerine & Smart Rinse on clearance at Target and not only having great coupons, but getting a $5 give card for every 3... a product I use a lot of... so total bonus! Another deal I got because I had my organizer with this past week.. I got what I thought was a great deal on ground turkey buy 1-16 oz, get one free at $5 less 2 $.75 coupons ($1.75/lb - whse club price is $1.93).. then found another brand with 20 oz packages marked down to $1.99 that I had $.55 & $.50 coupons off ($1.18/lb)... tacos, meatloaf, meat sauce & chili will be aplenty in my house...

I tried the baseball card album - too big, too much time to manage is what I found. Then I tried not cutting at all... but I missed the thrill of finding those unadvertised deals or just for when the kids go hey mom we just finished all of our X when I am at the store. So I find my way (for now) to be a happy medium.

I am confident that you will find the best way to meet your needs as well.

Happy shopping!
M.

I go through the flier and cut out the coupons for any products my family uses, or new ones I want to try. I keep them all in a ziplock bag. When I'm ready to head to the store, I go through the pile and pull out the coupons for the things I plan to buy that day and make sure they aren't expired. Period. I have too many other things going on in my life to make time to "organize" coupons.

Another way is to file the inserts by date. When you're ready to shop, make a list of the items you plan to buy, then go to a website like coupontom.com and do a search for that item. It will list the amount, date of circular and which circular to find it in, and then you can cut it out.
I find mashupmom.com to be the easiest website for coupon matchups. She usually posts by Wednesday or Thursday, giving you the whole week to go shopping.

I concur with the other two posters. I have an envelope or ziploc bag to store the coupons. The only organization I do is to put coupons for the same product together. Before going into the grocery store or while scanning the weekly circulars, I pull out the coupons for what I'll be buying and may organize them by aisle. (I still bring the ziploc bag with me in case I need it.) I also have a separate bag for restaurant and non-grocery stores...Bed'nBath, Macy's, Kohl's, etc. Just because the coupons are stored in a lovely lay out doesn't mean you'll save anymore money. For me, the quicker, the easier, the better. Happy $aving!

I usually keep my coupons in my purse, in a small envelope so they are ready to use at a moments notice. I write a list of the coupons on the outside of the envelope organized by expiration date. Then when I do my weekly grocery list (I make my list the same time I sort through the weekly flyers in our paper.) in my grocery book (to keep it all together) I also go through the flyers, pull out the ones to use that week and paper clip them to my book. All in all it helps me keep it all together. I especially find that when I do make my sales list I mark it down by store and price that way I don't forget anywhere and if I'm in another store that has a competative sale because many big box stores do that I can compare which is cheaper!

Good for you for being responsible with your money and using all the savings methods available!