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Sale, sale, sale!  This is the four-letter word that often triggers a rush of serotonin in my brain and the brains of fellow shoppers. 

There are also two other words that peek our attention: free and money

I, along with many others, have found a way to replace some of the stress of everyday expenses by embracing those three magical words of sale, free, and money.  

It is my desire to share how a group of gals in our community are relieving stress and saving money.  Are you ready to hear how we do this? 

C.o.u.p.o.n.i.n.g!  Have you ever couponed before?  I’m sure most of us have redeemed one coupon in our lifetime, but did you know that manufacturers also offer sweet deals in order to gain new customers?  

Then sweet deals can be made sweeter with a mixture of additional manufacturer coupons, store coupons, store sale, and/or store rewards.  Together, these additional savings can often lead to getting items for free or even get “paid” to buy them. 

This awesome mixture allows ALL four of these coupon-savings-methods to be applied while purchasing one item.  Not sure if you knew that. 

If you have kids, or even a messy husband, you know the pain of seeing caked on toothpaste around the sink.  I call that mint-flavored-money going to waste.  Since we can’t completely diminish waste, we can learn how to cut down on costs.  

Let me explain what you just read:  for example, if a store has a sale on a specific brand of toothpaste, two for $6. There is a paper coupon called a manufacturer coupon offering .50 cents off each product. Since you are buying two, you can use two .50 cent coupons. The store is also advertising $3 in store rewards when you buy two of this brand of toothpaste. Also, when you check your rewards account, there is a store coupon for $2 off any $6 purchase of any toothpaste. You would be able to apply all of these savings to this one transaction to make both tubes of toothpaste absolutely free! Here is the breakdown

So on this transaction you would pay $3, but the store rewards would be $3 making these free. Those store rewards are essentially like store gift cards. You can use them on anything in the store. Once you get started, the savings keep stacking up. Rewards can be used in store to pay for other items that will earn you more rewards, making the amount you are paying out of pocket less and less. This is called rolling rewards. Above is an exact scenario that I used just last week!  Couponing takes patience, coupon knowledge, and coupon vocabulary, but once you get started, the savings are worth it! Did you know that you can use a coupon on clearance? You can!!!

Every penny counts for something, so why not save on everyday household necessities like detergent, and razors?  I hope you had fun learning what can be done.  I’m off to save some money…

Rebeca Valdez