It's Going to Get Extreme!

Extreme Couponing.  Thanks to TLC this term is now part of our pop culture vocabulary.  Not many people haven't heard of the 200 tubes of toothpaste or 150 cans of coffee drinks that people are getting for pennies (if anything at all!).  While I think that most people find that kind of consumerism pretty over the top, I also think that couponing is now widely accepted and spread over all economic classes.

That said, I decided to take up couponing.  I've started kind of small and am slowly working myself up to as extreme a level of couponing as I (or my husband or our pantry) can allow myself!  There are several great resources out there.  My two favorite are www.southernsavers.com and www.moolasavingmom.com.  Both are geared at couponing in grocery stores primarily in the south but also include national chains such as CVS, Target, and Walmart.

Like I said, I started out pretty small ($10 savings here, $40 savings there) and am working my way up.  This week was my best by far! 

Our local grocery store, Harris Teeter, (which for my northern readers is 100 times better than the Giant Eagle), was having a Super Double event - all coupons up to $1.98 were doubled!  I spent several days planning my strategy and ended up making FOUR trips to HT within the weekend.  I also made two trips to CVS (my first time) and had some success there too!

The overall totals look something like this:
Total value of items purchased: 282.16
Total spent: $72.07
% Saved: 74.5%

I'm not going to list everything I bought but here is a little sample:

 

4 boxes of Honey Bunches of Oats (Free)   
2 boxes of Tampax Pearl (Free)
2 cartons of Smart Balance Milk (Free)
Pretzel M&M's (Free)
8 lbs of chicken for $8
4 boxes of whole wheat pasta
4 boxes of Rice-A-Roni
4 bottles of Pantene Pro V ($0.75 each on average)
4 Cover Girl eye shadows
4 Nivea lip balms
100 oz of Tide for $7.99
Hair gel for less than a $1
4 12 packs of Charmin
4 Seattle's Best coffee for $3.50 each

 If you have thought about couponing but haven't tried it yet, you really should.  It's pretty easy and the amount you can save is awesome!  I'm hoping to save enough money this year to put toward a mini anniversary trip for Darrin and me!

Can you believe we've been married for four months?!?

Have you tried couponing?  What's your biggest savings to date?  Any tips for your fellow readers?  I'd love to hear what your success have been!  Leave a comment and let me know.