Here is a FANTASTIC article that I found over on The Krazy Coupon Lady that I think can benefit all savers out there! :) If your not saving a "extreme" amount please don't be discouraged as its NOT the norm!
“I’ve been watching TLC’s ‘Extreme Couponing’ and I can’t help but feel discouraged when I don’t save 90% on every one of my shopping trips.”
The first and most important thing to remember is that the shopping trips you see on TV are NOT typical. As a past participant, I can vouch that these excursions are often the biggest and longest that most of us have ever done (before or since!). Hours and hours of planning go into them, and it just isn’t feasible to do on a regular basis. The great majority of my shopping trips are small runs to the grocery or drug store (but what cameraman wants to follow me to Walgreens to watch me get free floss, toothpaste, and a bottle of shampoo?).
Remember that this is a reality television show. You would never watch Survivor and say, “Hey! How come I’m not on an uncharted island every week with only a machete, a canteen of water, and a pound of rice?!?”. Same applies here. Just because you’re not filling 5 grocery carts full of stuff and paying under $20 weekly should NOT have an effect on your self-esteem as a couponer! The show wants to display what is possible with coupons, not typical.
Here at The Krazy Coupon Lady, we aim to save 50-90% on our overall bill of groceries and personal care items. The biggest cuts in our bill come from buying our personal care items at the drugstores. We will always need to go to the grocery store and buy bread, milk, eggs, produce and protein, many of which do not have regular coupons. But that’s okay– we save money where we can! We buy produce in season, freeze bread, cheese & meat when they go on sale, and stock up on items when the prices are rock bottom so we don’t have to pay full price when we run out.
Drugstores will help you cut your bill drastically. When you no longer pay over $0.50 for shampoo, deodorant, household cleaners, razors, or body wash, you’re saving a ton! And free toothpaste, toothbrushes, and more occur monthly at each of the national drugstores– CVS, Rite Aid, and Walgreens.
To get amazing deals on anything, it’s all about timing. We collect coupons from our multiple Sunday newspaper inserts and wait for the items we have coupons for to go on sale. Sales run in cycles, so buy at the best times and stock up.
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