TIPS:
1. On Sunday Buy 4 Papers or you can get at least 3 delivered to your house! (hint check out my section buying Sunday Papers)
2. Buy a Binder or Folder for Organization or file system!
3. Join my blog click on the “Save Me Money” button on the right hand side. Or you can join on facebook just search for Country Saving Mommy!
4.  Read all the information on my blog right here if you’re new to couponing!  Note:  Be sure to click on underline links to read all the information!
5. Get to Know Your Store Policies my favorites are listed above, Target basics, Walgreens basics and Walmart basics.

TRICKS OF THE TRADE:
6. Be Prepared to Spend Time Planning out Deals, and in Line at the Grocery Store.
7. Make Two Shopping Lists Every Week, One for Essentials (Matching Coupons) One for Almost Free (pretty cheap lower than 50 cents or Free Items.)
8. Learn to do Price Comparisons between Stores.
9. Avoid Impulse Buying.
10. Start to enjoying saving money because really it is not as hard as you may imagine or time assuming.  Once you get the hang of it because quit easy plus you won’t spend as much time on it.  Just Relax and have fun!  You might just get addicted to the coupon bug!!

I had several readers say that they live into rural of a place to recieve the big city newspaper.  Then what you can do is order coupon inserts from these coupon clipper websites.  Each week the cost is different for the inserts.  I always suggest if you have family members  or a friend at work who live in a town that recieve the newspapers ask them if they would recieve a couple for newspapers for you.

Coupon Clippers Sites that are trustable and dependable.  (I started out using these to score many items for cheap before I had a big coupon stack!)

Coupons By Dede

Coupon Carry Out

Kuntry Klippers (located in the Midwest for us Country Folk )

The Q Hunter

Here is weusecoupons.com Coupon Scheduler for the year of 2011! Don’t forget for Holidays the paper does not recieve coupon inserts.  I had someome tell me I bought a paper no inserts where in it.  You need to look at my blog Saturday if you can to see how many papers I am buying if you forget that there are no inserts on Holidays!  Or copy this coupon Scheduler.

Why do you coupon?  Isn’t it time consuming?  Is it worth it?

I have become addicted coupons to say the less and I never ever want to go back to paying full price for anything ever again.  Couponing has really changed as I see even in the last five years when I started and tried to coupon.  Many blogs and things took off during the down turn of the economy and recession as of 2007 and on.   This article will discuss how I use coupons, why and other informational facts of couponing.

First step first let’s settle the debate about the use of coupons and is it worth it? You will find many people who will tell you, it takes to much time plus lots of energy.  They will tell you that the only way to get money is to spend time making it.  Hmm yes time is money and if you work hard at your job you will get paid for your work but the same can be said for coupons.  The more time you put into it the less you will spend and once you learn the country mommy’s saving guideline to saving you will save a lot!  More savings than any paid site like thegrocerygame.com.  To me yes coupons can be a very awesome tool in lowering your grocery bills and even more.  When coupons are used right they will have a total new effect on your pocket booklet.
Let us observe people who think people that use coupons are a waste of time. Let us think what they are thinking the first thing that they maybe thinking is, people buy products they normally wouldn’t buy. If you’re getting a product for half off many people will buy it! They are spending money they won’t have spent to buy a product they don’t need. With people who start couponing, they can start off this way and this is a number one common problem. If you start couponing please remember manufacturers don’t really care about our family budgets. The manufactures use coupons as a marketing tool that helps get their products into the consumers’ hands.
The next biggest excuse I hear from people who don’t use coupons is that they are difficult to organize, clip and use. Yes, I hear this all the time and gets old.  But hey it’s better for me in the long run because the shelves will be stacked with wonderful goodies.  Plus oh my gosh I forgot my coupons at home!’ What is country saving mommy thinking if I did that oh my gosh I left my cash at home (referring to coupons)! You have to look at coupons as a new part of your budget. The way to get coupons to work is staying organized and creating a good system that works for you.  There are a number of systems out there.  What pennies can actual buy you things today if you use coupons correctly and you can save a bundle if you know the sales patterns which are easy to find with the internet is best for you and saves you the most money.  Which system works for you!

The third thing I hear people say is that you only save so little! Trust me every penny saved is a penny earned in my book!  Right?  Did you know that the  internet has changed the game!! (not the way your mom or Grandma could save with coupons back in the day).
What I am talking about  is that if you  use a little bit of organization, coupon usage and time.  You will get the hang of coupons and can save a bundle for the rest of your life!
You’ve got to be organized.  Use the binder method or file method.  I use the binder method over the summer when I am not teaching.  I use the file method when I am working.  Both work great and the binder can take a little more time.

Quantity of coupons equal’s quality of life at couponing.  If you only clip out one coupon, what’s the use? I buy 5 to 10 papers!  Yes some people will look at you strange, but you’ve got to understand why. In order to save a lot with coupons, you’ve got to use a lot of coupons. It’s a very simple to understand.  I also get my families newspapers.

It will take you about 3 months to be fully organized with a stash of coupons.  When starting with coupons  organizing  them (soon to come pictures of my organization methods).  The last step is the most important: you need to play the waiting  game with the store  price sale cycle. When things go on the lowest low of a sale they are going to go on then it is stock up time for that item.  Don’t forget if you are traveling with coupons don’t forget that fat stash of cash at home!. You need to be patient and wait till things go on SALE!!. When you use an additional coupon savings you will get items for nearly free. It’s an amazing concept!!   Just be patient!!

How have I lowered my grocery bill and more?

My grocery bills I save about 50 percent or more each time.

My style is to be very disciplined!  That means I go with a list, I do major planning and plus I never buy something I won’t use unless it’s free! My DH would get mad if I wasted money on something cheap we didn’t need.  Warning using coupons the right way can be quite addicting, and sometimes we all tend to want to use them on items just because they are a fabulous deal.  Yes we have a set budget for coupons we set aside cash for it.

Please everyone reading my site please feel free to ask questions, learn and really get involved here. We can help each other out with saving and deals. I will help you save hundreds every month here on countrysavingmommy.com!  I love teaching people.  I can teach class starting late October 2010.  Libraries usually pay to have guest speakers so I would be free at a local library plus I do house parties and more for a fee and I can teach you if you want some one on one shopping experience with coupons.

How do I get started and what should I do next Sunday?   Do the following as I would tell my students study hard and it will pay off in the end.  Do these four things and you are on your way!!!
1) On Sunday buy at least 4 to 6 papers (make sure the coupons are inside)
2) Get organized.  Read about organizational strategies.
3) Use one coupon on an item that is on sale that you buy normally.

4) Get involved in some couponing network there are people out there who want to help out showing the new ways they learned to save.  So become involved in some coupon network and make friends!.  One Luv and goodnight.