Frugal Living........

[BDG]

Would like to see a thread like this.
Where we could all share our tips on how to cut back.
I will go first.
One of the biggest expenses I had to list on my debt schedule
was for grocerys. I live by myself, but do have my child 1/2 time.
I was allotted $350 a month for that.
Now my OLD way of shopping, that may or may not have been enough.
I used to decide on said day what I wanted for supper and then drive to the
store and get ingredients. Not only burning extra gas, but each of these
trips could easily burn $20 grocery money, as I was hungry already
and everything looked good.

What I am doing now:
I plan my meals in advance I plan 4 weeks at a time. Note what I need.
Organize my shopping trip. Read sales flyers. Use coupons. Also know your
local dollar store......big savings there. Other things that help save money
at the store.....go early in the day, lots of times you can find the marked
down, just about to expire meats on sale. Try to go alone. Avoid bringing
the kids if at all possible, they are distractive and dont have to deal with
"gimme gimme gimme" It will save you money.
Make sure you are not hungry when you go.
I can get by on 4 weeks for me and 1/2 time child for around $175 for 4 weeks.
Might have to make a mid month trip for more milk and fresh fruits and veggies.
I know I can still improve on my system.

So what do you guys do?

[jennordhavn]

I have started shopping the loss leaders by looking at the online sales ads for Safeway and Raley's and buying things we normally use in bulk when they are on sale. By doing this I have plenty of cereal, oatmeal, diet soda, juice, toaster strudel, pasta and pasta sauce to last us at least a month, and there is always another sale before I run out. I shop at Winco for all my other groceries as they are the cheapest around me. I also use coupons if I can find them for items I buy regularly.

I also started buying some toiletries and medicines/vitamins at Walgreens by looking at their weekly ads and using their rebate program. I also stock up once every few months at Costco on toilet paper, detergent, tampons, etc. I always use a coupon now for pull ups (hoping to have my DD2 potty trained soon) as I can print $2 off coupons online. I combine this with the best price I can find that week and this has saved me a ton. I also check the clearance racks before I buy anything and if I shop online (which is very rare) I try to find a discount code or at least free shipping.

[Willy13]

The local food pantry can have a lot to offer. It's a great place to get breads, deserts, snacks and sometimes fruits and veggies and all for free. It depends on how they are set up in your area. Often the stuff we get is the more pricy stuff that we could not afford normally. It's basically day old or close to expiration stuff but all still good. The only thing is it gets a bit depressing as you see first hand just how bad it is for some people in this country and the crowd has been getting steadily larger in recent weeks. Luckily they are still pretty well supplied.

I rarely buy major brand foods unless they are on sale. The Great Value Walmart brand saves us tons.

If you have BJ's wholesale near you (Like Costco), make sure you download and print their coupons from their website. They are not always the same as the ones in their coupon book and you can usually print and use two of each coupon.

We never shop at just one place. We always travel a circular route and hit all the places with the bargains. I rarely buy anything at full price unless it is a cheap store brand.

[Flamingo]

Coupon clipping and searching online for coupons. It's a bit time consuming but if you want to basically get a full grocery order for almost nothing it it well worth it. Get the weekly circulars for the stores in your area and also compare prices at your local Walmart. Utilize coupon circulars in your Sunday paper, in magazines, online or via a group of friends who swap them. Compare with the weekly ads. Go to the stores giving double coupons and having items you need on sale that match your coupons. Also watch for buy one get one free items and if you have two coupons and you use both of them, even one for the free item. I can usually save anywhere from $25 to $50 on a weekly $100 order, including pet food.

Dollar stores also work for shampoo and other household cleaning items but major grocery stores are getting smart and lowering prices to like $1.09 for some items and if you have a $.25 coupon for that item, and it is doubled, you do way better than at the Dollar Stores.

Just takes some time and practice and I understand coupon groups are organizing all over the country doing this now and I've been doing it for years - LOL!

[hgpotter]

Ohhh coupon clipping! I'm a CVS-a-holic! I've managed to really utilize their Extra Care Buck program to the point where there are times I could walk out with about $150 worth of stuff for less than $5.

A great resource for all kinds of shopping is hotcouponworld.com. There you can find flyers sometimes weeks in advance and where to find great online coupons.

AC

[krielly]

There is a section of this forum entitled "Smart Personal Financial Insights"

http://www.bkforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=19