Ace's Tips on Becoming Cheap

I am back from two weeks visiting family and friends a few states away. They love hearing about my couponing adventures and wanted to know more. While chatting, I gave them some of my tips but realized, there was so much more to my grocery shopping prowess that I didn't have a chance to share. For me, my grocery deals aren't just about putting together coupons and sales, the real savings comes from combining my grocery shopping skills with other habits. Here is a list of basic things that I found made a difference in the amount of money I spend.

• Become a coupon collector. You see a coupon, take it. I get coupons from the Sunday paper, packages of products I use, displays in stores, cash register coupons, Fred Meyer's coupon exchange basket.
• e-coupons are my new favorite thing. With these, you register your store card online and load coupons to it. I have read that if you can't find your store card, you can call customer service and they will tell you the membership number. If you shop at Safeway, you can go to their website and find the links to the e-coupons and sign up. Otherwise, try shortcuts.com or cellfire.com for other grocery stores. In my case, I have been able to use the e-coupon with a paper manufacturers coupon.
• Pay attention! When you go to the store, look around and see if you can find any coupons up for grabs. Or, check the store ad before shopping, maybe some of the items on your list are on sale or have in-store coupons. In my case, yesterday while wandering around the Safeway, there was a soda display that said enjoy a free soda on us. I took it to the register and didn't even have to give them my Safeway card or do anything else, it was that easy.
• Keep your coupons organized. You have to experiment to figure out what system works best for you and what level of organizing you can handle. We have one of those plastic, accordion coupon books that is alphabetized. Plus, a file folder for coupons that we have extra or just to store clipped coupons that haven't been put away, yet. Every couple of weeks I sort through the book to take out any coupons that have expired. This system does take some time since I clip the coupons, sort the coupons, and put them in the book. But, it's what works for me. I am not always great at keeping the coupons organized or in one place. Last week while I was gone, apple juice had gone on sale. With the sale and coupon, I could get the juice for free. Z knew where the coupons were and he made the ridiculous number of grocery shopping trips it sometimes takes to use all the coupons. When I came home, I started organizing somethings and found eight more coupons. No more free apple juice because the sale was over and the coupons were expiring that day.
• Find a coupon blog for your area. I enjoy figuring out the coupon deals at my local stores but I do read an area blog in case there was something I missed. When you're first getting started with serious couponing or are super busy, the blogs are a great place to start. The Pacific northwest has quite an abundance of writers. I tried looking for coupon blogs for my family in the Rocky Mountain region but I didn't have much luck.
• Keep your pantry well-stocked. This takes some time and is an investment. I know a number of different meals I can make just from things in my pantry and freezer. Not having anything to eat at home is no longer an excuse to go out to eat. There will be posts about pantry recipes.
  
• Keep your pantry organized. I have written a little about this before. It doesn't matter how little you paid for something when you throw it out because it is expired.
• Watch the cash register screen while checking out. Make sure you are charged the correct prices, especially on produce, and make sure they scan all your coupons.
• Print coupons with discretion. There are lots of sites where you can print coupons, including Red Plum, Smart Source, and manufacturer websites. We use them sometimes but very rarely. Printer ink can be expensive and you can end up printing a bunch of coupons that you don't use.
• Rebates. Keep an eye out for available rebates. In this case, you have to spend money and wait to get it back. The rebate is for the price of the product before coupons. We have done our share of rebates. Just watch for the check in the mail and don't accidentally throw it away.
• Clearance racks. Keep an eye on clearance items. Try to use coupons with these items.
• Free samples! I learned about the power of free samples from some friends who had a closet full of free samples they had accumulated. There are plenty of websites that list places to get free samples. And, often times, there are coupons included with the sample.
• Pack your lunch, instead of eating out. Find items you like that will keep if you don't eat it that day.
  
• Learn to eat out more cheaply. I will share more about this later.
• Measure your pasta! A serving of pasta is usually about 1/2 cup dry. When cooked and on your plate, it doesn't look like that much food. What most of us put on our plates is usually two or more servings. When you measure your food, you're not only making it last longer, you're not overeating as much.
• Find staples you like and figure out multiple ways you can use them. Some of my favorites are millet, rice, couscous, pasta, split peas, lentils, bulgur, beans, and assorted flours. I would suggest going to a bulk section and seeing what kinds of grains and legumes are out there. See something that interests you, get enough to make a meal, and try it out. Buying in bulk is great because you can get as little as you want. I would add quinoa to the list but I'm too cheap to buy it.
• Don't buy microwave popcorn. Make it yourself on the stove top. Popcorn kernels from the bulk section are pretty cheap. I'm sure there are millions of different ways to make popcorn but this is what I do. I don't have an airpopper but if I did, I would be a very happy camper. I would be able to make popcorn that I could pack in my lunch. Stovetop popcorn doesn't keep very well, eat it while it is fresh. I start with a high-sided pan or sauce pan with a lid. I add a little oil, probably about one tablespoon (just a rough guess) with the heat around medium or a little lower and add 1/4 cup of popcorn. 1/4 cup is a pretty substantial bowl of popcorn for one person. I swirl the kernels around occasionally. Once they start popping, move the pan more frequently and take off the heat when the popping stops. Yummy!
• Be a smart grocery shopper. I spend a lot of time window shopping at the grocery store. I have suggested this to a lot of people and always hear, "Oh, I don't have the time" and so on. Well, I spend the time and I don't spend the same amount of money as you. We usually go to the store on the first day of the weekly sale with the coupon organizer to see what is on sale and what coupons we can match up. We will buy groceries we want or need later in the week when we have had a chance to think about if we really need that item or not. Or at least, all the grocery stores have their weekly ads online. Take a look through them.

I have a whole lot more tips and suggestions on how to be cheap and make the most of your grocery shopping adventures but I will leave those for later.