So Much to Learn!

I've been reading http://www.krazycouponlady.com/ & I love how easy the step by step for beginners is! And that it's cleaner, less ads than http://www.couponmom.com/. But I like the couponmom system better, where you save the whole insert & don't cut the coupons out till you need them. Saves cutting & filing all those coupons you won't actually use. And I don't want to lug around a huge binder. Just bring with me the ones I need for that trip. However I can see the advantage of having them all with you in case you see a clearance item or something you know you have a coupon for. I also like the couponmom database much better.

Anyway, I read all the beginner stuff on thekrazycouponlady. I was trying to find out if I should print all online coupons right away, or just as needed, but they may be gone by the time I need them. I couldn't find anything helpful, so I finally joined the forum on couponmom & asked the veteran couponers. It's a half & half (same with whether to use the binder system or save entire inserts). So that didn't help! I decided to print all the coupons I would use because I know they'll be gone by the time I see a sale. If I don't find I'm using them, I'll stop printing. I better start refilling ink rather than buying expensive new ones! ;)

And since I now have a ton of coupons from online & other sources besides the paper inserts, I really need to organize! My little coupon organizer from the dollar store is packed & I can't find anything in there. I happened to be at OfficeMax yesterday & I bought a big fancy binder! (My camera died & I got a gift card to replace it & ended up getting a cheaper camera so had extra $. woohoo!)

So I'm going to do both, save inserts by date, but file everything else in a binder so I can see it all.  I just need to get card holders to put in the binder. 

The most helpful thing I've read is to slow down! Don't get overwhelmed. I don't need to hit every sale. Stockpiling takes time & bigger savings come with time. Especially after I've got a good stockpile, then I won't need to buy as much each week. And there will always be more sales! Also, learn one store at a time. So I'm staying focused on Riteaid & Safeway until I have them down. Then I'll add CVS & Walgreens, etc.

Also, I found out military families can use expired coupons! So I will mail the expired coupons to the military. You can look it up on http://www.thekrazycouponlady.com/.