Works-For-Me-Wednesday: Coupons The Easy Way!

I’ve never been a big fan of coupons. I guess it’s because I never knew how to use them effectively. And they always seemed to be a messy jumble.

And y’all know I can’t handle that kind of disorder. It drives me crazy.

The savings just didn’t seem worth all the time, energy and effort I had to devote to clipping, searching, organizing, etc.

Enter Heather at NWADeals.

Heather is a real live friend of mine who started couponing like a madwoman last year. She started a blog a few months ago to update everyone on the deals she was finding, and well, it’s exploded into NWADeals.net.

Heather can tell you where to find the coupons, how to get stuff for free, where the deals are, how to shop, and even shows you what she gets on her own shopping trips! Don’t worry if you don’t live in our area – a lot of the savings and deals she features are nationwide.

She spoke at a luncheon I attended several weeks back and brought her coupon organizer with her. I was in awe. I knew that if I could have my coupons organized and have help in figuring out how to use them, I could do this thing.

And since I’ve started couponing in just the past few weeks, I’ve gotten some awesome deals – with Heather’s help, of course. I’ve gotten stuff for free, paid just a few cents for other items, and even made a little money with rebates.

Each week, I’ve saved anywhere from $10-$20 by using coupons.

Yes, I said $10-$20.

It’s still a learning process, and I’ve had to change the way I think about and shop for groceries, but I think it will be a very good thing for my grocery budget and the hungry tummies around our house.

I’ve found that clipping everything at once is the best method for me. I print the ones from the internet whenever I find them, then stick them with my notebook until I’m ready to clip.

I usually clip my coupons on Sunday afternoon while I’m outside watching C play. So I stuff them all in a plastic envelope until I am finished (and to keep them from flying away).Then, I organize and put them into my notebook.

Here’s a couple shots of my coupon organizer. It’s a baby version of Heather’s.And for the printable coupons, I’ve found that I can cut them on the paper cutter I use(d) for scrapbooking. I can cut out two pages at once, so it speeds things along.

Having help with couponing definitely works for me. Head on over to We are THAT Family for more Works-For-Me-Wednesday tips!