Inside the Covers of My Bargain Binder
Folks are always stopping me when I go shopping. See, I am a rare sight. I shop with a huge three-ringed binder. You can find me flipping through it on almost every aisle I go down. It is my best shopping buddy, and I hardly ever leave home without it, because you just never know when you will come across a good sale! It keeps me organized and helps me routinely save more than 50% off my shopping trip totals. I spend about 3 hrs every week clipping and organizing the coupons in this binder. It helps me plan out my shopping trips to have this binder on hand when I pore over the weekly circulars to get the best bang for my buck.
Some of you have asked me how I organize my deals. Many people have stopped me in stores to ask questions about my binder and how to coupon. I am going to let you take a peak inside how I organize my Bargain Binder.
- First you need a 3-ringed Binder. The zip kinds are great for keeping everything together. I use a regular school kind that doesn't zip. This is just purely because I got a whole bunch of these on sale for less than 50 cents each at back to school clearance sales. If you go the cheap route like me, you want one that has a clearview front so that you can easily slide in your shopping list to view while you shop. I use my binder so much, I am replacing it every few months. Once I go through the small stockpile I have of these cheap ones, I am going to swap to a zip one too.
- Get a large pack, or even a couple large packs, of Baseball Card Protector Sheets. You will use these to store your coupons in your binder with. Essentially, you will put one coupon type in each sleeve. IF you put more than one coupon in one spot, make sure you put the coupon that expires FIRST on top so you don't miss the chance to use any coupons. For example, if you have two 75c off one Betty Crocker cake mix coupons, you could put them both in one protector sleeve, just put the one that expires first on top so you can see it and will use it first. *some folks have said they find these at their local Dollar Trees. I have never seen baseball card protector sleeves at my Dollar Tree. :( But, you can get these at office supply places, and even Hobby Lobby. Take a coupon with you and make these a good deal! Hobby Lobby routinely puts out a 40% off one item coupon. Use one of these on your protector sheets!
- Subject Dividers are a must. Coupons are only good if you use them. And you can only use them if you can easily find them. Having protector sheets making your coupons easy to view is worthless if you don't have the sheets organized by some system of your choosing. Use the dividers to organize the coupons the way you will easily see them. Some people organize alphabetically. Some organize by store aisles if they shop in one store faithfully. You have to pick a way that works for you. If you have more than, say, 5 different categories, I suggest making a table of contents sheet for the very front so that you can refer back to it. I divide my Bargain Binder by having a section for: Target Store Coupons, Grocery Coupons, Non-Food and Household Coupons, Baby Related Items Coupons, CVS Store Coupons, and Restaurant and Retail (like Gap or Ruby Tuesday) Coupons.
- I use School Report Page Protectors in my Bargain Binder to hold all the large coupons that don't fit in a baseball card protector sleeve. The larger, cardboard coupons or even Formula checks work well in these. Also, I use more page protectors as a "dumping place" for all the coupons I clip that I think I wont need or use. Sometimes a random rebate offer that could be a money maker turns up for coupons I have in what I call my "coupon morgue". Keep these rotated though, by going through them every few weeks and tossing the expired ones.
- To work the rebate deals, you need a Folder. Any folder that can snap into the binder works fine. Just print, clip, or slip the rebate forms into your folder so that you can have them handy when you shop. This way you will know what you need to purchase to work any given rebate offer. *Remember, most rebates consider the cost of the rebate items as the pre-coupon amount. Also, many rebates want the original cash register receipt, not copies. Keep this in mind when you shop and break up a transaction if you need to so that you can keep the receipt of the non-rebate items. Read the fine print of your rebates.
- A place for your printed out Official Store Coupon Policies. You can use the same folder you use for your rebate deals forms to store your coupon policies in. You want to definitely carry these with you. Not all clerks, cashiers, or even managers know the official policy as well as you do! One friend even highlights the pertinent part to minimize the time she has to stand there while the employee scans the policy.
- (Optional) A Pencil Case that can clip into your Bargain Binder. If you make a detailed plan of action before you go to the store, you can put all the coupons you plan to use in that shopping trip into such a case. Then, you have them ready to go and can make a quick(er) run by just grabbing that case. I still suggest bringing your Bargain Binder too. Again, you never know when you might find a clearance item or sale that would make an item free, "if only you had the Bargain Binder with you".
- Remember the Freebies Coupons/Vouchers. They need a place in your Bargain Binder. A zip pencil case might keep them together. Or a plain envelop tucked into your Binder pockets. Or maybe you add a new category to keep all these straight... However you want to organize these, do NOT forget about them!
- (Optional) A Cool Bag to carry your Bargain Binder and Circulars in! I made a canvas tote at VistaPrint. I love it. OF COURSE, that's because it says "Coupon Couture- Lahni" on it! And, yes, I got it during a freebie sale and only paid shipping for it!
Spending on average 3 hrs a week planning, clipping, and organizing saves me more than $70 a week.
