$4.12 for Everything-- How??

So, everyone on Facebook asked "how did you that?!" Yes, I spent $4.12 on everything, and better yet, I got $5 back (in ExtraBucks to use at CVS next time)--I will explain in detail below :) I shopped at CVS and Kroger.

1st Stop was CVS (in my last post I explained my plan to return and buy the Crest rinse, so this continues that post really)

Crest rinse 500 mL (6.99 reg.) special was buy $10 worth, receive $5 Bucks back
Crest rinse 278 mL (5.99 reg.) (included in above special)
These were full price, so my 20% off regular prices CVS coupon [from the 4/14 Sunday paper ad] worked to take off $1.39 and $1.19 respectively. My final price (pre-coupons) was $10.40

(2) Tums 150ct (5.49 reg.), but these were on clearance for $1.37 each
(1) Always Radiant liners 128ct ($9.99 reg.) and they were on clearance for $1.99!

Subtotal for these 5 items: 15.13 (retail value of 33.95)

Coupons used: (MQ=manufacturer coupon)
(1) 20% all items regularly priced (from CVS ad 4/14)
(2) $1.50/1 Crest rinse (MQ from P&G brandsaver 3/31)
(1) CVS coupon for $2 off any $10 toothbrush, toothpaste or rinse purchase (from CVS coupon machine)
(1) $1.50/2 Tums products 24ct or higher (MQ from Smartsource sometime in March)
(1) CVS coupon for $2 off any stomach relief or digestive health purchase (Tums did count)
(1) $1.50/1 Always Radiant product (MQ from the inside of a pack of Charmin last year)

This made my new total $5.88 ($5.13 plus .75 in tax)
I 'paid' with a $6 ExtraBucks rewards from my last purchase at CVS (see last post ) and yes, I am considering this completely free money because remember I only paid a cash total of $9.12 last time and received $16 back, so the $6 was completely free :)

AND I received $5 in new ExtraBucks from my purchase of Crest, woohoo!

Now, on to Kroger:

1/2 gallon Kroger skim milk (2.09 regular, this was the price)
1.5 QT Turkey Hill all natural ice cream (reg. 4.49, on sale for 1.99 with purchase of 5 qualifying items)
1 dozen Egglands Best Cage-Free/Organic brown eggs (3.19 reg., this was the price)
2 Gillette Fusion ProGlide Men's shave gel (reg. 4.35 each, sale 1.99 with purchase of 5 qual. items)
2 Gillette Fusion ProGlide Men's shave cream (reg, 4.34 each, sale 1.99 w/purchase of 5 qual. items)
6 Brut Men's deodorant (reg. 2.45 each, on sale for $1 each)

My pre-tax subtotal was $21.23 with a Kroger retail value of $41.85

Coupons used:
(1) $1/1 Turkey Hill all natural ice cream (MQ from paper a few weeks ago)
(1) $0.50/1 Egglands Best Cage-Free/Organic dozen (this doubled to $1 off, MQ from paper back in February)
(2) BOGO Free (up to 3.99) Gillette Men's Shave Prep (from P&G Brandsaver 3/31)
(6) $1/1 Brut Men's deodorant

This brought my pre-tax subtotal down to $5.25. I used a '$2 off your next purchase coupon' (from my last trip, for buying the Scrubbing Bubbles), so my new total was $3.25 with a tax of $0.87 so I paid $4.12 in cash.

In total yesterday, I spent $4.12 in cash at Kroger and $6 in ExtraBucks at CVS, and received $5 ExtraBucks back. $4.12 for $75.80 in product (a savings of 94.5%). Not bad, and I'd say one of my personal bests :)

CVS 4/15 What Actually Happened

Here is my actual transaction at CVS tonight. For the most part, there were no snags, and I am very pleased. I did not get the Crest Rinse because like a rookie, I accidentally left one of my Crest coupons at home (I had taken it out in preparation and left it there, doh!)--anyway, I will be going back to get the Crest rinse (for free!) probably tomorrow. Other than that, here's how it went:

2 (1 on each card) Colgate MaxFresh toothpaste (not in my original post, but I forgot it was the freebie deal this week--the Magic CVS coupon machine printed a coupon for $2 off any one, which was $3, I paired it with a manufacturer Q of $1 off any one to make it free). We got two because Andrew also has a CVS card, and the coupon printed for every cardholder :) Certainly, I had two of the Colgate manufacturer Qs. Andrew's card also printed a $1 off any $3 toothpaste/mouthwash/toothbrush or deodorant purchase. Since his Colgate was originally $3, he was able to use the Q. Yes, I know he was already getting the Colgate free, but since CVS coupons stack (or, can be paired for greater savings!), we threw in a travel bottle of Garnier conditioner for .99. His coupon for $1 off any $3 purchase made the conditioner free. He paid .19 total in tax on the conditioner and toothpaste.

For everything below, we did one transaction on my CVS card. I used the 20% coupon from the front of this week's CVS ad (my final price gives the 20% off)

4 Simply Venus 4pack disposable razors @ 8.49 each. Remember the spend 30, get $10 deal? Well, 8.49x4= 33.96. We then got this down to: 27.17, then used two BOGO coupons which DID take off 11.99 each :) so, 27.17-11.99-11.99= 3.19 total for all four (pre-tax) We received 10 Extra Bucks for this.

2 Crest 2.7oz toothpastes, each 2.67. For buying each one, we received a total of 6 extra bucks (3 Bucks for each one) and we also got 20% off each, so we paid 2.14 each (I did not have a manufacturer Q for these, as all of the Crest Qs only work on anything over 4oz. Spending a total of 4.28 to get $6 back was worth it to me, even without the coupon)

2 Pantene Shampoo/Conditioner (These were 2 for $6, and I used a coupon for BOGO, which took off 6.99--so yes, this made both free, and gave me .99 overage!)

1 Revlon eyeshadow (was 5.79, I used a manufacturer Q for $1 off, and a CVS coupon machine coupon for $3 off any Revlon item)

I combined the Revlon with 2 Almay makeup removers (these were 6.49 each--I know, I thought they were 4.99 each regularly in my earlier post, but I still got a killer deal so got them anyway) Also, the Almay was BOGO 50% off, so one was 6.49 and the other was 3.25. I used two $4 off coupons and one CVS coupon for $3 off $15 in cosmetics (remember the Revlon? It put me over $15). In total, I paid .53 for both makeup removers and one eyeshadow.

The value of everything I bought was: $75.43 (this was pre-card, pre-coupon, pre-tax). My 20% coupon took off 7.94, and my CVS and manufacturer coupons took off 49.97. My subtotal was 6.31, and I paid 2.81 in tax (yeah...) so I paid $9.12 and received $16 back in Extra Bucks!!

Like I said, I will be returning for the Crest rinse deal which should cost less than $4.50 oop, and give me $5 back in Bucks. I will be using Bucks I received above to purchase the Crest.

Plans for the week-- CVS 4/14-4/20

I have not done these yet, but plan to do so over the week. I thought I would share the deals I plan on doing so I can show how it would be done beforehand. Since there are so many other sites/blogs to give you infinite numbers of possible deals, I only want to post the ones I want to get :)

CVS:

Almay Cosmetics are currently on sale--buy one, get one 50% off. The make-up removers are 4.99/pack and I plan to buy 4. I will do this the following way:

Buy two at 4.99 each (9.98 total) and two at 2.49 each (or 4.99 total). The total so far on cosmetics is 14.97. I have a CVS coupon for $3 off a $15 cosmetic purchase. I will add an item for less than a dollar (likely a Wet-n-Wild eyeliner for .50) to get over the $15 total.

My total would be about $15.50, and I would use the following coupons:

1 CVS Q for $3 off (from the magic coupon machine in CVS)
2 Almay Qs for $4 off any one item (from yesterday's paper, it expires 4/28)
1 Almay Q for $5 off of 2 items (from coupons.com)

This will give me $16 off..and I had a $15.50 total. So, if they adjust it down--I will pay taxes only. IF they do not adjust it down (and CVS rarely does!) I will get $16 off, so I might throw in a candy bar for free, but then still pay tax. In all, 4 free makeup removers and something else :)

I also plan to take advantage of a few Extra Bucks deals on items I want.

Currently, buying $10 of Crest Pro Health rinse gives me $5 Extra Bucks back. It is regular price this week, but the paper ad had a 20% off all regular priced items coupon. I will use this when buying the rinse. The rinse is 5.39 regularly (for 500ml), so if I buy 2, it will put me over $10. Once I use the 20% coupon, my total will be 8.63. I will then use two $1.50 off a Crest rinse coupons (from the P&G Saver 3/31) and will pay out-of-pocket $5.63 (and taxes) and get $5 back.

Also, there's a deal on Gillete shaving items where if you spend $30, you get $10 back. You're thinking $30??? Sounds like a lot, and it is. I will definitely NOT be spending that much. Remember I have a 20% coupon? I will of course be using that, and a combination of other coupons to get the total down.

I will spend $30 pre-tax on the following items:

4 Simply Venus Disposable Razors (at $7.89 each, regular price) which will total $31.56 (over $30, right!)

I will use the following coupons:

(2) Buy one, get one free Venus Disposable Razor (up to 11.99 value)--side note, most of the time CVS automatically takes off the "up to" price, so if this goes well, I will actually get 11.99 off two times :)

Since the items are full, regular price, I will also use the 20% coupon

My pre-tax total was $31.56, and my after coupon total will be anywhere from $9.47+tax (if the coupon ONLY takes off 7.89 for each..the actual price) or $1.27!!(and what I'm hoping will actually happen!)
--Either way, I will get $10 in Extra Bucks so, essentially, I will make money on the transaction. In scenario A, I will only get back what I paid, but scenario B would be amazing and give me over $8 in FREE money.

Since I can only use one 20% coupon with my CVS card, I will actually be combining the above transactions so paying either ~$15.50 total, getting $15 back or (if it goes well!) will pay ~$6.50 and get $15 back! I also currently have $1 in Extra Bucks so I will use that when I check-out.

If I want to spend some of my new extra bucks, I may buy 2 tubes of Crest 2.7oz toothpaste at $2.67 each and receive $6 in extra bucks from that purchase. I am unsure if that is regular price, or sale price, but if it's regular price, I will just add those to my first (in that case, only) transaction and spend either $21, or $11 and get $21 in Bucks back.

Hopefully, this will all go down like I plan. Sometimes you have to go to two different CVS stores because they are out of something or whatever, but if you want the item at an awesome price, it's worth it. The Almay  for example is not going to give me any Bucks back, but will be FREE with all of my coupons, so why not? And, I use make-up remover....and the razors I can donate, and like another one of my posts suggests, stockpiling when you get items free is always a good idea (which is why I like to get something like makeup and Crest mouthwash free whenever I can).

Any questions? What do you plan on doing this week?

A Little Backtracking...

I wanted to pause from the "breakdowns" of my deals for a moment, and share some knowledge I think would benefit anyone who wants to begin to coupon.

I was just asked about many of the popular (or even not as popular) coupon sites and their tendency to ask for so much personal info. Is the benefit of savings worth it? Well, I gave my honest answer: I only look at a couple of sites regularly, and those sites DO NOT REQUIRE personal info. If you want to 'sign up' as a member (for free) and join in any discussions or savings forums then by all means, join! I am a member on krazycouponlady.com, but as for others, I simply view the webpage like any other website. The only personal info they ask, if you join, is name, email, and I believe zipcode so ads will be tuned to you (but, Facebook does this too! and they already have way more info!)

The sites I frequent: 
Krazycouponlady.com
TotallyTarget.com
Iheartthemart.com
coupons.com
smartsource.com
save.com

As for coupon sites, I use coupons.com , smartsource, and save.com (which was formerly Redplum). I get 95% of my coupons from my Sunday papers, and a small percentage from magazines we subscribe to (long before I couponed)--side note, magazine can be a great place for really awesome coupons! I just got a Buy One Get One Free coupon in Cosmo for Pantene (once I use this coupon, I will certainly share how I used it). Personally, the internet coupons that I do get--mostly come from Target.com and many of those are only for use at Target, but they do have manufacturer Q's and they can be very good. Target, Smartsource, Coupons.com and Save.com all require you to download a 'coupon printer' to your computer. This does not require any personal info, but it is a download which takes up minimal space on a computer. Remember, there is a max of 2 downloads allowed per coupon on these websites, so I have a download on my desktop and my laptop (this is also why those sites do not work on library or school computers, because the computer needs to supported software). It is harmless, and millions of people every day use the coupons from the internet. It only has to be downloaded once, and it simply does its magic every time you print from those sites (it's not like a program you have to open).

If anyone else has questions, please do so! I am beginning to get a feel for answering them and posting about them :) My savings and deals are not big secrets and I am completely happy to share about them (why would you hide ways to save people money???) Comment and/or ask away!

Kroger-Buy 5, Get $5 off sale! and Food Lion 4/13

First off, I apologize for not updating/sharing sooner. I was recently asked if I would post on Sundays once I know the 'deals' of the coming week. Yes, I think I can manage posting potential deals or possibilities you may find, but sometimes I really do just happen upon a good deal. Like anything else, sometimes there is just an amount of luck involved in being in the right place at the right time. Hopefully though, most of these posts can be duplicated if you want or try :)

Okay, Kroger #1 (we did go to two Krogers to find the cleaners...)

Until April 20, if you buy three Scrubbing Bubbles brand cleaners (at Kroger or Food Lion, though I think Target would work too) you will get a coupon for $2 off your next order.

Scrubbing Bubbles Cleaners  were on a "Buy 5, Get $5 off" sale at Kroger. The kitchen cleaner with Fantastik was 1.49 (price with buying 5 items) and with a $1 coupon, found on coupons.com, it was .49 per can. To use all of my Scrubbing bubbles coupons, I had to break into two transactions. I bought one kitchen cleaner in each transaction (Kroger was almost out of this particular one, so I could only buy the cheapest one twice, bummer)--I added two bathroom cleaners to the first (toilet gels were 1.49 each after a Manufacturer coupon for $2 off two) and another two foaming cleaners to the second (.99 each after MQ for $2 off two). To round out the first of the two 5 item orders, I bought a box of Lucky Charms for .99 (1.99 on the sale, and used a coupons.com coupon for .50 off, doubled!) and a jar of Bertoli pasta sauce for 1.49 (no coupon, but what a sale! since it's usually over $3...). The second 5 item transaction was completed with two Skintimate shave creams (on the sale, they were 1.64 each but I used a buy one, get one free coupon from coupons.com and this actually took off Kroger's regular price of 2.64--this equals .64 for two cans, or .32 each!).

So far, transaction #1: ~$6, then used a $2 coupon I had from a previous week, so made my OOP $4, and got $2 back

Transaction #2: $3.26, but used $2 from first trans. (so I paid $1.26 and then got $2 back)

I did have another 5 item transaction, which included a 6 pack of Snapple tea (on the sale for 3.99, coupon from my Kroger booklet for $1.50 off--2.49, regularly 7.49!), two tubes of Crest (on sale for 1.69, used two $1/1 coupons, or .69 each, reg. 3.69), and two Gillette men's shave gel (on sale for 1.99, usually 4.49, used a Procter and Gamble Buy one, get one free coupon which took off 3.99--the max the coupon would allow, so paid nothing for both!)--

Transaction #3 included the above and two boxes of San Giorgio pasta at .50 each (on sale for $1, used a coupon for $1 off two from my Kroger coupon mailer), two cans of Del Monte peas (sale for $1 each, used a .50/2 coupon which doubled, so made them .50 each) an Asian spice mix (on Manager's special for .39 and I had an .80 off one coupon--which did go through in full so gave me .51 overage, yes!) and 4 Knorr pasta sides (regular price $1 each, used a coupon for .50/2 (doubled to $1!) which made them .50 each. Personally, these are cheap already, but I like them for lunch so I buy them frequently, especially when I can get them cheaper.

Transaction #3 totaled: $7.60, then used $2 from above trans.--so we paid $5.60 but see below :)

Side note, the Knorr Pasta/Rice sides printed off a coupon for $1 off my next order! This was one of those "bonus coupon moments" where I was surprised at check-out. This made me ask Andrew to run back and get 8 more since I still had 4 coupons for .50/2. We then did two quick transactions in the self-checkout--only 4 of the Knorr sides in each trans. since the coupon stated "no more than 2 identical coupons per transaction". Each of these printed off a $1 coupon :) I paid $2 out of pocket (OOP) for 4, then received a $1 back, woohoo! The first one I used the $1 from the first Knorr purchase, so I paid $3 for 8 of them and got $2 back waiting for next week's trip :)

In all, we paid $13.86 at Kroger, for $78 worth of groceries and cleaners, and like I said, we have $2 good for next time :)

                                                                                                                                                                    

Now, our trip to Food Lion was simply to see what deals were possible. I had seen their ad in the paper on Wednesday (April 10) and wanted to check out the Buy 3, get $3 off instantly sale. They had an ad for Febreze and Mr. Clean that seemed decent. I found this and found a wonderful closeout on Finish Dishwasher tablets. See below:

Buy 3, get $3 off--we bought a Febreze Set and Refresh (was 2.79, but with sale it came down to 1.79, then I used a $1/1 coupon or, .79!--these are usually about 3.50 at Food Lion, Kroger and Target), we also got a Febreze car clip (Andrew really wanted this because they are really good--anyway, it was the same price since I also had a coupon for $1/1 of this, too.), finally--we got a box of Mr. Clean bathtub erasers--they are reg. 3.99, sale made them 2.99, then down to 1.99 and I had a .50 off coupon (remember, unfortunately Food Lion does not double...)

The Finish was tagged on closeout at 2.20 a box (the 20 count box, they had PLENTY of these left and this should be the same closeout in all FL stores), and these were originally 4.49 each. I had three coupons for 1.25 off, which made these .95 per box--awesome, since we use these for the dishwasher and they are definitely not off-brand or 'cheap' items.

Food Lion was not a big trip, but I felt successful! We paid $6.20 for $24.50 in very practical products.

Remember, Food Lion ads run Wed-Tues, so this sale is still running. I am pretty certain that many of the Kroger "5" sales will still be on for at least a week more, since Kroger is beginning to lengthen their sales cycles and make them longer. Apologies if some of the good deals are not still included.

Summary today: Paid a little under $21 for $102.50 in product, savings of ~80%

Everything we bought is good for at least a year, and I will be donating the shaving cream. Plus, I can spring clean for practically free :)

CVS 3/31 and the Beauty of Stockpiling

So, recently I uploaded a photo to my facebook with a deal Andrew and I got at CVS on Easter. This sale is still running until 4/6 and the coupons I used are (mostly) still available. If you do not have a CVS card, I would highly recommend you get one. I just got over $4 in Extra Bucks just for shopping (it's 2% back on everything, except government funded things like Medicaid, Medicare, etc--and no, I did not ACTUALLY spend over $200 to earn $4.50--it takes your pre-coupon totals--score! Also, CVS had a coupon printer machine in the front of the store where they print you CVS coupons--these coupons combine with manufacturer coupons (sweet!) so definitely get a card or remember to use the one you already have!)

Since I linked the photo, I did not want to re-post it but here is the breakdown of our two transactions (I will also explain why many times you need to do multiple transactions in a store)--

Transaction One:

-Clear brand Shampoo-FREE (value 6.99 each-we got 2) (FREE this week because CVS coupon machine prints out a "4.99" value coupon off of any Clear brand shampoo--we got two because Andrew has a separate card--yes, you can sign up for multiple cards in your household, but this is the one he had from home)--Andrew just rang up his at a different register really fast, only one was on my card

-Almay Mascara and Almay eyeliner- 5.98 combined for 2 (on sale for 5.99 each, used a $5 off any 2-print this coupon from Coupons.com)  Any time you print from this site, there is a max of two prints allowed on any computer. I have a desktop and a laptop so I can usually print 4 altogether. Occasionally, some coupons have a max of one allowed per computer-bummer.)
        -This week, CVS offers a special when you buy 2 Almay products, you get $3 Extra Bucks back for a future purchase)--so, our total was 5.98 with $3 back, on makeup I actually use and love (limit 1 reward per card)

-Oral B complete action power toothbrush- on sale for 5.99 each (value 6.99 for brush and 9.99 for refill) and when you buy one Oral B power item you get $2 back in Extra Bucks, we bought two items, so $4 back (limit 2 rewards, so we hit the max on my card)- We used two $3 off any Oral B power product (from the Procter and Gamble insert this week, 3/31) so paid 2.99 each and got $2 back each

-Palmer's Cocoa Butter Stick (I am so excited since these are perfect for the car and chapped lips) - 3.79 each but CVS sale was Buy One, get one 1/2 off so 3.79 for one, and 1.89 for the second. I used 2, $2 off 1 Palmer's product coupons (I peeled these off a lotion in Walmart...they are called Peelies and kind of like the grail of coupon world. Yes, you can take these off and use them somewhere else..you just need a watchful eye and don't take like, all of them off every product you know?) So, 1.79 for the first item and .89 for the second :)

-CVS brand Vitamin Pops--on clearance for $2.49, I had received a $3 off any vitamin purchase from the CVS machine, so this gave me overage of .51 towards my order (bonus!)---Yes, this does happen and yes, it is completely legit! The CVS coupon just took $3 off my total for buying a vitamin product, and since the product I bought was not $3, it gave me extra money!

Also, I had a coupon for $5 off any $30 purchase at CVS (remember how cool that machine thing is? Yeah, this printed from that too---and sometimes they will email them or you can usually get them at the CVS website)---No, I did not actually spend $30, but my pre-coupon total was over $30 and that is all that mattered :)

So, my total before coupons (but using sale prices) was: $38.56 but the price I paid was $7.10 with all of those coupons and I used a $4 Extra Bucks reward I had from previous weeks--even without those, ~$10 out of pocket is pretty awesome and I received $7 back for the Almay and Oral B!

Transaction #2:

This is why you need to ring up in different orders sometimes. I used the $7 from the first order to pay for this second order.

-Crest Pro-Health mouthwash (the BIG bottle)- on sale for 4.49 each, used two, $1.50 off one coupons so that made them $2.99 each and when you buy one, you get $2 back in Extra Bucks (or $4 back in my case for buying two)

That left me about a dollar left on my Extra Bucks total from the first transaction, and since they are not like giftcards--the money has to be spent or anything left is lost. I threw in some candy to cover the one dollar, and of course I found a candy on sale and one I could use coupons on:

-Dove singles bars- 1.19 for one, and if you buy a second, it was .25. I used two, .50 off 1 coupons (from a  peelie pad in Dollar General a long time ago!) so I paid .44 for two (they are currently in my freezer!)
    -The cashier at first told me that since my pre-tax total was under $7, it would forfeit like 8 cents and I told him that was ok, but it took the whole $7 off anyway (therefore taking some off of my taxes!) so we were left with about 50 cents in tax or so.

Our total would have been $10.42 before coupons and Extra Bucks, and we only paid tax on that total! AND, we got $4 back towards our next purchase in Bucks (I am currently holding these in my big binder for next time--maybe later this week!)

I know I mentioned stockpiling and all I can say when someone asks is "why not?"--If you have the space, and something like mouthwash (which, everyone should be using twice a day, right?) can be bought FOR FREE or super super cheap, why not get it? I checked the dates, and it does not expire until May of NEXT year..so, instead of running out and being forced to pay the then-selling price (not on sale is OVER $6 a bottle!), go ahead and get it now. Stockpiling has such a bad connotation---I consider buying one or two to have on hand a 'stockpile', while I know you're all thinking about the TV show "Hoarders". Don't get that crazy lol. Also, lotion and toothbrushes do NOT go bad...so, if I can pay little to nothing for them, I will. And who doesn't like having cheap or free makeup on hand to try out or give away or keep a spare bag in their car (like I do when I am running behind).

Next up, very successful trip to Food Lion on April 1 :)