Angela from Frugal Living Northwest with her trusty box o' coupon.
Today marked day three of the June Food Stamp Challenge, and was a lot of fun. Why? Because Angela from Frugal Living NW and I got together for a meeting of the minds. Okay, okay, we ate scones, chatted and hit up the nearby Walgreen’s so that Angela could demonstrate her couponing prowess.
For those not in the know, Angela runs a blog that rules the couponing culture here in the Pacific Northwest, and if there’s a deal to be had, it’s in her website! She also teaches couponing classes at area libraries and churches.
I really wanted Angela to show me her couponing system, which is a plastic file folder with sections for different categories for foods as well as the different stores. It’s big, but not so large that it wouldn’t easily fit in the front part of a grocery cart. (Even with a baby in place!)
I live just a few blocks from a Fred Meyer, so Angela called up a fellow couponista to inquire about any screaming deals, but sadly there were none to be had. However, I’m also walking distance from a Walgreen’s, so we loaded her adorable son into the stroller and hoofed it on over. Angela had me sign up for a Walgreen’s Register Rewards card. She then walked me over to the tooth care aisle, where she pressed a couple of coupons in my hand which turned the Reach brand dental floss into freebies and the toothbrushes to 50¢ apiece. (We use Sonicare brushes at home, but it’s good to have regular toothbrushes for guests and traveling.)
Cool. Can’t criticize free dental floss!
Sadly, our playdate ended while we still still in the midst of interesting conversation. However, we have vague plans to get together again, maybe even hit up a couple of my favorite thrift shops. I look forward to it, as I kept thinking afterwards of more questions I should have asked her.
So thank you Angela for enlightening me to the next level of couponing, it was super fun and interesting! And your baby was the cutest guy ever! Sorry about the baby noggin vs. coffee table incident.
Katy Wolk-Stanley
“Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without”
P.S. I did buy a few more Granny Smith apples in the afternoon, otherwise I didn’t buy any more food. Note that there is a link above that chronicles the amount I’m spending on food this month. Hover your mouse over the “June Food Stamp Challenge” link above and it will magically appear.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Okay, how do you double coupons? I’ve heard about it, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen it advertised at a store? Do you have to ask?
Some stores do, I have found that most in my area, WI, don’t. Inquire at the service desk about what days, how many coupons they will double, up to what amt, other conditions and exclusions.
Here we only have 1 store that will, its only on WED, you can dbl 5 coupons only and there are several other conditions that need to be met. For me, it isn’t enough incentive to do so, as I can still get groceries elsewhere much cheaper. But many people say they can get double or even triple coupons on just about everything. I have yet to see a store do that.
If you live in Michigan, Meijer stores, Busch’s, VG’s, and several others just double the coupons as long as it is under $0.50.
I couldn’t see the secret link at the top. 🙁