Hi, I'm 16 trying to help out my mom

[maremma374]

Hi, everyone I'm new here from California. I've been trying my best to really learn everything about couponing provided in this site. I am doing this to help out as I was not able to get a job this vacation to help my mom out. I just hope things would get better since our home is in danger of being foreclosed.

I saw some 1$ pantyliner coupons online and tried getting them at Target. It turned out to be 9cents per item but after taxes it became 18cents per item.

How come other people got it for free? Am I missing something? I don't want to be a burden and keep asking stupid questions so hopefully I learn more along the way.

Thank you and best of health to everyone. Hope you had a happy holiday season

[$Saving!]

First of all, good for you!! You're way ahead of the financial curve learning this and it will save you untold amounts of money over your lifetime too!

I'm going to make an assumption that you have watched that show, Extreme Couponing? You mentioned "how do other people get it free".

Your example of getting the pantiliners for 9 cents plus tax, making them 18 cents is very good! You have to pay sales tax, no way around it in most instances as coupons cannot cover tax.

People can get things for free (before sales tax) with the right sale and the right coupon (doubled if you have stores that double). But it's not often and don't get discouraged.

If you did watch EC, forget what you see - it's not honest or realistic. First of all, the stores ignore their own limits and policies on the number of coupons they accept for those episodes, there have been clear instances of people using a coupon for a product it was not meant to be used on, therefore getting an item free when they should not have etc.

And those episodes don't talk about how much the person shopping spent to get dozens of the same coupon etc. It's NOT a good example of couponing and leads people to believe they can replicate it when they can't as the stores will not allow customers to ignore the policies as they do for the sake of that blasted show

So, if you save 50-90% on items you do buy by watching for sales, match up with coupons, you'll be doing a GREAT job! And while you may not feel that's good enough, it's money kept in your wallet and not handed over for items you need to buy.

[Luv Savings]

You should be proud of yourself for trying to help your mom during tough times.

[maremma374]

Thank you guys for responding!!! You kinda made me cry! That was fast..

Hi $Saving, no we don't have cable so I could not watch them but that's fine! lol I actually saw an episode on Anderson Cooper the other week about couponing that was probably about that Extreme Couponing show then I searched video clips online I just saw them briefly. I saw the guy said he got laundry detergents and maxipads for free like omg and he's not even a girl.

So that's how I got into couponing.. that's interesting what you said about the show though so they're fake? wow that's not good. I saw this lady Missy on YouT*be (is this word banned from the forum? not sure so im gonna censor) and she got like a whole room full of coupon inserts. Where did she get those? I read the 101 guide and it tells me to get some from dumpster sites, recycling stations or just buy sunday newspapers... i'm kind of at a loss where to get them.

We are very bare bones down to basics with our expenses like I know I need to sacrifice a lot (I don't have those latest cellphones etc, we have platinumtel prepaid, etc) We just pay for the fundamental utilities like um PG&e,water,internet,landline and food and such.

Thank you again LUV SAVINGS and Savings for your advice!

[$Saving!]

ahhhh, yes, "missy" - she was a gem (being nice here!), major fraud in her shopping trip that was caught on video and dissected for the world to see.

Ok, never mind them

To get more coupons, free, check with friends, family, neighbors who get the Sunday paper, where the inserts are. Ask them when they're done clipping what they want, you would appreciate the leftovers. You will be amazed how many good coupons you're going to get that way! Your Mom can do the same with people at work too!

Have a file box of some sort to put your coupons in by categories that make sense to you, easy to find when you're looking for a particular coupon in your file. You can even use a shoebox or an index box, make up dividers with cardboard or old file folders. No need for anything expensive!

All your area grocery and drug stores have their ads online, so you can make your list at home on where the best deals are and make a "circuit" when you shop. I do this, I have an envelope with the list written on it, the price and the value of the coupon written next to that. I usually make one envelope per store, put the coupons inside the envelope and off I go.

That way, you plan your 'route' and you're in/out of all the stores, picking off the best deals. Shopping at one store forces you to pay more overall because one store won't have the best price on all the things you need to get.

Hopefully your stores are within a decent range of your house so that you can take advantage of many stores and what are commonly called "loss leaders" which means they get you into the store because the deal on that item is soooo good, you'll spend more than just getting that item(s)

But in the coupon world, we take advantage of those really cheap deals at several stores and save a lot more money We're not the 'usual' shoppers!

Start slow, pick of a few good deals each week and get to know the store coupon policies and what day of the week their sales start etc.

You'll do fine and remember - ANY savings with sale and coupon combined is already way ahead of the curve!

Your goal should be to only buy items on sale with a coupon to make it even cheaper. Of course some things don't have coupons such as fresh produce and milk is rare but there are coupons sometimes even for those items!

Ask all the questions you might have, that's the beauty of this website, we're hear to float everyone's boat

[Slivnfree]

Good for you! I am just learning myself and let me say that it has really helped. I have a young son and a Boyfriend and we are also on a limited buget for food. I have a few tips if you'd like.

1. find out on Sundays when the paper is exchanged for the NEW Sunday paper, If you catch the carrier they normally are only intrested in the main Paper and not the coupons insdie and would be happy to give them to you if you help loading/unloading the New and Old ones.

2. Make SUNDAY your luandry day! I mean go to your local Luandry mat and look for people doing Luandry, Most all are reading the paper to pass time and have no intrest in the coupons. Ask if you could take them if they have no use to them.

3. Find out what paper during the week releases your areas Store sales (Ours is Every Thursday) and normally they are week long sales that you can match up your recent coupons with.

4. And just remember, even though you will not have time to Meal Plan and such, think of the things your family uses the most and try to get the best deals on them. I know Safeways has a Double (Up to 4) in the Thursday paper that will match up to .50 of you coupon. so if you have a coupon on a already sale item you will get it alot cheaper.

5. Have your mom or dad get Club Cards, Safeways, Fred Meyers, to save on GAS with there GAS Rewards. (If you have one around you)

Good Luck!

[Troop1379]

Good for you. I know times are tough my 15 has asked her teacher to bring the coupons in that they do not use. If you are still in school you could ask your teacher if you can have the coupons that they don't use.

[maremma374]

Thank you Troop and Slivnfree.

1. find out on Sundays when the paper is exchanged for the NEW Sunday paper, If you catch the carrier they normally are only intrested in the main Paper and not the coupons insdie and would be happy to give them to you if you help loading/unloading the New and Old ones.
Good Luck!

What do you mean by carrier? Like if Safeway sells newspapers by the cashier ring-outs, then safeway is the carrier..?

[KmmCo]

So happy to see you wanting to help you family out! (My son is 16 too and he is getting better about asking if we have coupons for things he wants.) Learning to manage money well is a skill you will use the rest of your life.

Can you offer to help around the house in order to free up time for your mom to work a second job or do overtime? My son is a willing cook when I work extra hours and that helps out tremendously after I work a 12 hour day!

Also, my advice to you is to take advantage of opportunities that come your way to participate in free activities and such. Youth can have chances to do stuff that would not be available or cost a lot as adults. My son volunteers a lot in order to get "free" experiences. For example, helping at an airshow in order to get free admission or doing service projects at the national park in exchange for free camping. Just ask around, as there are countless opportunities and scholarships out there for teens/young adults in need.