Mister Deals

Dollar Deals at Culvers have begun!

2010-05-12T11:12:00.000-07:00

Culvers is by far my favorite fast food restaurant. If anything, I feel bad even including it in the fast food category, it's tastes too good for that label!

So, of course I just love it when they run sales there! Every summer they have "Dollar Deals" where for a week at a time a different item on their menu will be only $1! I just got an email that right now you can get a single scoop waffle cone for only $1.

This is a nice treat, but the Dollar Deal that I look forward to is when their famous Butter Burgers go on sale for only $1. I'll be keeping a lookout for that one!

- Mister Deals

PS Check out the full email below:

Free 7up!

2010-05-05T13:21:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Money Saving Mom, I just found out about this sweet coupon for $1 off of 7up. This can easily lead to free 7up, if it goes on sale for $1 - or if you can double the coupon at your local grocery store. Print your coupon now, before they are all gone!

http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?bt=vi&tqnm=zc5nbyx78709297&o=62674&c=SU&p=poJm63MV

- Mister Deals

Frugal Tip of the Day: Save Money on Gas - Ride a Bike!

2010-05-03T13:04:00.000-07:00

Now that it has warmed up in my cof the woods, I have been so excited to get outside and enjoy the nice weather. One thing I always do during the spring and summer months is reduce the amount I drive my car for short trips and errands. Whenever I can, I walk or bike instead of taking the car.

If you are used to driving everywhere, this may seem difficult at first. But, I bet if you try it, you will be pleasantly surprised. I know I was!

For me personally, I can walk to some places downtown, like Walgreens and the Post Office - which are two places I go to at least once per week if not more often. I'm always getting register reward deals or mailing out items I've sold on ebay or amazon.com, and now by walking to the post office instead of driving there, I'm saving money, helping the environment, and staying healthy!

For grocery shopping, it might be not be practical to walk: the store may be too far away, or in a location that is not pedestrian friendly - not to mention: how am I going to carry all these bags home? I may be frugal, but I am not about to push a shopping cart all the way home! haha.

So, for most grocery store trips I have still been driving, but I have now challenged myself to use the bus on my next trip to the grocery store. I have some bus passes that I didn't use up last summer, so it's basically a free ride for me. Even if it wasn't free, a round trip on the bus would cost less than a gallon of gas right now(just remember to ask for a transfer card - that gets you home for free!).

Enjoy the weather!
-Mister Deals

Swagbucks - Worth It!

2010-04-30T07:56:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of "points" programs on the web that promise you prizes and benefits beyond your wildest dreams - and most of them never seem to pay off in reality. Well, I can now officially say that swagbucks is actually worth the small amount of effort it takes to get setup and use it.

First, Sign Up (click this banner, note that I get bonus points for referring you):

Next, I highly recommend setting swagbucks as your homepage. If you are a die-hard Google user like me, it might be very difficult for you to make something other than Google (or iGoogle) your home page, but I am telling you it's the best thing. For one, their homepage has a search box at the top that you can use to do Google-ish searches. Technically, it combines results from Google and some other search engines. They present the results a little differently than Google, and in general I don't like the search engine as much as I like pure Google searches - but, it's worth it! Even if you just do a few searches each time you open your browser, you will start winning a few Swagbucks here and there, and before you know it you will be able to cash them in!

The final thing you "need to do" (in my opinion), is add the swagbucks toolbar. Now, I can tell you, I hate toolbars. I generally use the Google Chrome Browser, and I love how simple the UI is. I have sat down at other people's computers and literally cringed at the site of their Internet Explorer browser with 5+ toolbars that took up almost half of the screen! Aghhhh! So, here is what I did: I installed the toolbar on Internet Explorer. It's the only toolbar I have installed, and it's still not my primary browser, but just by having it, whenever I do happen to open IE, I usually get a few free swagbucks. I'm not kidding, I just launch the program and there is a pop up telling me I got 3 Swagbucks. And I'm like "Cool, thanks!" Having the toolbar also gives you access to messages from "TSG" which are generally time-sensitive bonus codes that you input on swagbucks.com and receive more swagbucks.

How does it work?

Mainly, you just use their search engine and you will randomly win Swagbucks, which are points that you can accumulate and then cash in for real prizes. My favorite thing to do is cash them in for Amazon.com gift cards. A $5 gift card is 450 Swagbucks. If you only use swagbucks rarely, like I do, it will take about 4-6 months to get to that level. $5 in 4 months may not sound like much, but I try to look at it this way: how much time did I actually put in to this, 10 seconds here, 15 seconds there, if it's even 20 minutes total over the 4 months, I'd be shocked. My point is, for almost no work at all, you are getting $5 free every few months. And, if you really work at it: get referrals, take surveys, etc (there are a lot of ways to earn free points) then you can earn a lot more!

Watch for Codes!

One of the best ways to get extra swagbucks is to enter bonus codes on the swagbucks.com homepage. The codes come from various sources: their twitter feed, facebook updates, blog posts, the toolbar, etc. There are some other coupon bloggers who will also post when there is a new swagcode out and tell you where to find it, so the easiest way to get the codes is the just keep reading your usual blogs, assuming one of them is an active "swagernaut." (Yes, the folks at swagbucks.com have about a million swag- terms, pretty silly, but it makes it a little fun :)

- Mister Deals

PS my swagbucks referral link: http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/misterdeals

Great Rolling at Walgreens this Week (4/25/2010 - 5/1/2010)

2010-04-29T08:32:00.000-07:00

This is a great week to stock up on women's shaving cream and feminine products at Walgreens! There are two "Free after Register Reward" deals going on that create a very easy rolling scenario. In each case, the product is on sale for $2.99 and you receive a $3 register reward. So you basically go back and forth, buying one and then the other and paying with your register reward each time. Note that you also have to buy a cheap filler item (I suggest a Nestle candy bar, on sale for 39 cents this week), to bring the pre-tax total above $3. Your first transaction will cost $3.15, but each one after that you pay only 56 cents OOP per transaction.

Example:

Transaction 1
1 Skintimate Shaving Cream $2.99

Total = $3.15
+receive a $3 Register Reward

Transaction 2
1 Stayfree Maxi Pad $2.99
1 "100 Grand" candy bar $0.39
Use $3 Register Reward

Total = $0.56 OOP
+receive another $3 Register Reward

Transaction 3
1 Skintimate Shaving Cream $2.99
1 Butterfinger candy bar $0.39
Use $3 Register Reward

Total = $0.56 OOP
+receive another $3 Register Reward

Repeat transaction 2 & 3 as many times as you want (or until they run out of the product!). These are both items that are not going to "go bad" so stock up now, and never pay full price for shaving cream again! If you don't want to use candy bars as your filler items - check out the clearance racks, or grab some Ramen noodle which are also 39 cents.

- Mister Deals

PS Yes, my first post in almost a year is about feminine products. Does this triumphant return mean I will be blogging regularly? I don't know, but you know what they say: "A journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step." and, as always "Be the change you want to see in the world." I'm going to be frugal - blogging or not :)

8 lb Fresh Fruit for about $1.50 @ Target

2009-08-12T20:42:00.001-07:00

Mrs. Deals pointed out this deal to me at Target (also seen on Money Saving Mom ). For anyone who thinks that couponing only works for cereal and toilet paper, take a look at this (sorry for the poor quality camera phone pic - it's my only option right now!)

You can print off Target Web Coupons for $0.50 off Bananas (1 lb or more) and $1 off Apples (1 lb or more). If you are really lucky, you're local Super Target will have Apples on sale for 0.99 / lb, which would make it possible to get them free.

At my Target, the small Granny Smith apples were priced at $1.29 / lb, so with the coupon, they were only $0.29 for a pound of apples. Lucky for me, 3 of these little guys came out to exactly a pound. Literally, 2 of my receipts say "1.00 LBS" one was 1.02 and one was .99, but my cashier still happily took the coupon.

Bananas worked out pretty good, although it was a lot harder to hit the 1 lb mark dead on. I split up 2 bunches of six into my four transactions, and found that 3 bananas would weigh anywhere from 1.1 to 1.15 lbs, and 2 bananas rang up as only .68 lb. To my surprise, the cashier let that one fly too, so even though the 2 bananas only cost 38 cents, she still took off the whole $0.50 coupon (the overage came off of the 32 cents I should have paid for the apples) and I ended up having a total of only 20 cents for that transaction!

The total of all 4 transactions was:

.43 + .20 + .50 + .40 = $1.53

Total Haul:

4.01 lbs of Small Granny Smith Apples (12 apples)
4.20 lbs of Bananas (2 bunches = 12 bananas)

I hesitate to say "OOP" though, because I used a target gift card (one of many we received as wedding gifts), so as far as our weekly budget goes this was a completely free shopping trip.

I can't wait to try whatever Mrs. Deals makes with those apples... yum!

- Mister Deals

Shopping for basics at TJ Maxx

2009-08-10T18:48:00.000-07:00

Almost out of vanilla & wanting some sesame oil, Mrs. Deals stopped at TJ Maxx today to scope some prices.

Since a 2oz bottle of McCourmick Vanilla costs around $5 at regular price, we decided to look for alternatives, especially with Thanksgiving time far away (Vanilla goes on sale around 50% off at this time of year). For us it is important to buy real vanilla versus imitation, and as a result we know it would take a good chunk out of our regular weekly budget.

This week we are starting with $30 for shopping & only plan on spending a little at Walgreens and Target, to make up for the cost of staples.

Anyway, onto the TJ Maxx shopping trip:

(2) 4oz bottles of Madagascar Vanilla 5.99 each

(1) 16.7oz bottle of Organic Sesame Oil $4.99

Total out of pocket: $16.97

Rainy Day Blog

2009-08-09T18:26:00.000-07:00

It's been quite rainy here lately and by the looks of this weather map, we're not out of the woods yet:

I did get a little wet when I went out coupon hunting this morning, and I blame the weather for why I could only find a few extra inserts this week - apparently people don't go to Starbucks to read the Sunday paper when it's pouring outside!

Other than that, this was a pretty good week, and I did some nice rolling at Walgreens:

Transaction 1:

(8) Jiffy Peanut Butter on sale 2/$4 = $16 (+get $10 RR)
Used:

(4) $0.75/2 coupons = $3 off total

OOP = $13

and received $10 RR for buying 8 Jiffy's

Transaction 2:

(1) 10 pack of #2 Pencils = 19 cents

(1) Gum Toothbrush = $3.49 (+3.50 RR)

(1) Walgreen's Children's Activity Book = 99 cents

(1) Vitamin Shampoo = $3.99 (+4 RR)

(4) Crest Expressions Toothpaste 4/$10 = $10 (+$5 RR)

Tax = 1.03

Used:

(4) $0.75/1 coupons = $3 off total
$10 RR from Transaction 1

OOP = 6.69

and received a total of $12.50 RR

Transaction 3 (a repeat of transaction 1 plus some fillers)

(8) Jiffy Peanut Butter on sale 2/$4 = $16 (+get $10 RR)
(4) 10 pack of #2 Pencils 19 cents each = $0.76

Used:

(4) $0.75/2 coupons = $3 off total
$12.50 RR

OOP = $1.30

and received $10 RR (again!) for buying 8 Jiffy's

Walgreen's Total OOP for the week = $20.99

Plus, we have a $10 RR to use this week!

The only other shopping I did this week was a very small trip to Copps:

(1) bunch of bananas $0.49/lb = 1.24

(2) Quaker Quick Oats on sale $1.28 ea = 2.56

OOP = $3.80

Total OOP for the Week = 24.79

(plus we have 1 remaining $10 RR)

We were hoping to stay more under budget, like $20 instead of $25, because we know we need to stock up on some kitchen basics, but it didn't happen this week. Last week, we did stay under $20, so that extra $5 savings will be used this coming week to give us a $30 budget. Mrs. Deals is already working on some deals to see just how far she can make that go... until then, stay dry! :)

- Mister Deals

July 25 to August 1st

2009-08-02T22:41:00.000-07:00

So for this week Mrs. Deals & I finished up our remaining "Giving Honeymoon" with the purchases of some toiletry items at Target (Johnson & Johnson, Destin) and at Copps some Tuna Helper (27), 5 Mighty Dog Dog Foods, Snack Packs (4 for free), 6 Wet Ones, 10 Poptarts (They were cheap, so we went with it--usually we opt for cereals), and a few other small items (I don't have the full list in front of me, I've been visiting the in-laws this weekend and left my receipts behind).

For our personal shopping trip we remained under our $25 budget, but did spend right around $20.

We got:

2 Milks Free after two store coupons at Copps

15 Cans of Tuna .50 each after coupons at Target

2 Tide Stain Remover Bottles .99 each after coupons at Copps

6 Tide Single-Loads Free after coupons at Target

4 All 2-Load Detergents Free after coupons at Target

Grapes 1.29 at Copps

6 Back to Nature Mac & Cheeses Free after coupons at Whole Foods

2 Flintstone Vitamins $7 after coupons at Copps

2 Smart Waters Free after Coupons at Copps

in addition our earlier purchases of envelopes and candy at Walgreens came out to .72

All in all, our total came out to just under $20.00 (somewhere between $18.50-20.00)

We are hoping to save some extra money from this week and this coming week to stock up on some staples we are running low on (Vanilla, Flour, Sugar, Powdered Sugar). Since we don't want to dip into future grocery funds (and then end up spending $25 later on anyhow), we want to make sure we are staying a little bit below budget (~$5 for a few weeks) so we can have that money to spend already available.

So, despite my find of 16 copies of ads this week (Found an awesome truck stop at the in-laws) and the great deals at Walgreens, we are limiting ourselves to three transactions with around $18 out of pocket expense with a $10 RR to use next week and we are picking up around $3 of items at Copps--2 Oats and 1 bundle of bananas).

This post is rushed I'll admit, hopefully once Mrs. Deals school year begins we will have more of a structure established so fitting in posts won't be as difficult!

Mister Deals

Fiber One Yogurt

2009-07-31T09:28:00.000-07:00

zero guilt snacking

Make snack time a treat for your taste buds and your waistline
50 calories + 0 grams of fat + 5 grams of fiber = zero guilt
Four delicious flavors — Strawberry, Vanilla, Peach, Key Lime Pie

Mrs. Deals is signed up for General Mills pssst Program to try out new products! Fiber One yogurt is our all-time favorite, so I was excited to learn we have a few coupons now for trying out their new yogurt with even fewer calories. Since we have both been trying to eat healthier, this will be a great snack to have around the apartment.

With this particular promotion we will be mailed coupons and also have access to share some online with friends and family--pretty awesome!

To sign up for this program just head over to pssst.generalmills.com and hopefully they match you up with a great deal soon!

-Mister Deals

(I will be updating about our weekly shopping today or tomorrow, so keep an eye out for that)

Walgreens Results: Nice haul for 72 cents

2009-07-28T19:07:00.000-07:00

To follow up on the Walgreens deals I was planning yesterday: I couldn't wait to get my free candy bars, so yesterday I ran out and picked up my candy bars: 10 for only 17 cents!! To get the rest of the items I hit the stores again today - my local one on the way to work for 1 transaction, then another on my way home after work for 2 more quick transactions.

Transaction 1

(2) Hunt's Tomato Sauce (39 cents each w/ In-Ad coup - .75/2 coupon = 3 cents total)

(4) Scotch Bubble Mailers (39 cents on sale - 3 x .50/1 coupons = 6 cents total)

(2) Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil (99 cents each - 2 x 1/1 coupons = negative 2 cents total)

Tax = .19

Total OOP = $0.26

Transaction 2 (basically the same as #1, but without the Tomato sauce)

(4) Scotch Bubble Mailers (39 cents on sale - 3 x .50/1 coupons = 6 cents total)

(2) Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil (99 cents each - 2 x 1/1 coupons = negative 2 cents total)

Tax = .19

Total OOP = $0.23

Transaction 3 (exactly the same as #2)

(4) Scotch Bubble Mailers (39 cents on sale - 3 x .50/1 coupons = 6 cents total)

(2) Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil (99 cents each - 2 x 1/1 coupons = negative 2 cents total)

Tax = .19

Total OOP = $0.23

Total of all 3 transaction = 72 cents !

Now I have a plenty of bubble envelopes to ship out ebay items in, and some tomato sauce and aluminum foil to donate.

Funny side story, when I was a teenager I started an aluminum foil ball - it eventually was bigger than a basketball, though much more oblong... imagine a giant potato wrapped in foil, that's basically what it looked like. Buying the aluminum foil today got me thinking, "How big could I have made that if I knew I could get aluminum foil for free at Walgreens!" haha, I'm sure Mrs. Deals is glad that I don't have any current ambitions to find out :)

- Mister Deals

Walgreens Deals I'm excited about

2009-07-26T14:41:00.001-07:00

So, after looking through the ads for today (I found 12 Redplums, 12 Smartsources) I can see a few great deals that we will stop and do while shopping this week.

This week MARS candy bars are .49 with in ad coupon, paired with the $1/2 in today's Redplum this makes for FREE candy. For Wisconsin readers: this coupon is found in the Milwaukee paper, but not in the Wisconsin State Journal.

The trick to taking advantage of this coupon is presenting the manufacturer coupon first, then the in-ad coupon. For me this will equal 10 free candy bars.

The other great deal I noticed is Scotch brand shipping products--envelopes on sale for .39 cents. Paired with today's Redplum coupon for .50 off any Scotch packaging supply this equals a free product. Since I have 12 coupons and I want to avoid the register beeping, I plan on buying 4 envelopes and using 3 coupons for each 4 purchased. This would break down to .06 for all 4 envelopes, but make my transaction run a little smoother and in total I will walk away with 16 envelopes for .24, which will come in handy for shipping items I am selling on ebay.

Happy Couponing!

Mister Deals

Return of Mister Deals: Giving Honeymoon

2009-07-25T16:45:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe about 3 weeks has passed by without a new entry--life really gets busy at times. Since I haven't filled everyone in for my last three weeks of deal huntings, I can summarize it very briefly:

Last weekend I had the pleasure of marrying my lovely bride, Mrs. Deals. So, for the two weeks previous to the wedding we purchased almost no groceries. I say almost none because for the grill out before the wedding we purchased buns.

Since this left most of my average $25/week budget free and to celebrate our wedding, Mrs. Deals & I enjoyed a few evenings out to dinner...so we didn't really end up saving any money.

This past week I took a few days off from work and we had a local honeymoon themed with the spirit of giving. This included my first ever trip to Aldi, some Target deals, a local Health food store, Walgreens, and of course Copps.

Since we were so frugal in our wedding planning and were blessed with so many lovely wedding gifts, we didn't feel quite right about keeping such good fortune to ourselves. We set a budget of $250 to spend this week, with the idea of giving everything away. For people who don't spend more than $25 a week usually, this was hard. We are actually still just under $200 spent, but we are waiting until this Wednesday to pair it with a sale on Tuna Helper at Copps.

A short summary of things we purchased:

At Aldi:

48 cans of Tuna .59 each

36 cans of Vegetables .49 each

12 Spaghetti Sauce 1.09 each

48 Ramen Noodles .15 each

At local health food store:

48 Organic Baby Foods $36.00 (kind of high, I know...we don't really have a history of buying baby food... yet ;)

Walgreens:

School Supplies (10 free bic highlighter packs , several folders, a lot of #2 pencils, 4 packs of papermate pens, 2 free Gel pen packs)

Target:

School Supplies: Glue, 56 note books (.15 ea), and 50+ boxes of crayons

4 Similac Formulas .84 each (HUGE savings with rebate checks)

Baby Bottles

2 Baby Cereals

32 Babyfoods (Earth's Best & Gerber) ~.64 each

Copps:

14 Skippy Peanut Butters $1.20 each

8 Gerber Babyfoods $2.00 for all

17 Beechnut Baby Foods $1.65 for all

27 Beechnut Baby Cereals .50 to .75 each [One store had only a few of the type on sale left, but they said they were fine with what we were doing & brought out a box from the back of a different flavor for us to use]

Overall this was a learning experience on the prices of baby food, it was shocking on how high the prices were--and how much they varied from store-to-store (Sometimes over twice the price, which seems inappropriate for a product meant for babies).

The deals this week were not so hot at any store, but since we had the time we thought we would explore around some different stores and spend the money as best we could!

As the next week of deals begins, you can expect more posts from me, Mister Deals

Free Chocolate Friday

2009-07-03T07:53:00.000-07:00

Just a friendly reminder, this week you can still register for free chocolate from Mars (There is a limit of 4 per household during this promotion).

Head over here to sign up & enjoy!

I Got Paid to Buy Cheerios! $14 for $1.88 OOP

2009-06-25T18:57:00.000-07:00

Wow, I am really amazed at the deal I got at Copps this week. I don't usually get this excited about a deal... ok, maybe sometimes ;) but this deal is really amazing!

It's one of those times when several good deals combine to make a truly remarkable, unprecedented deal! Here are some of the factors that contributed to it:

Cheerios deal at Copps: buy 6, get $10 off instantly plus 2 coupons for a free gallon of milk
Those great $1/1 and $1/2 coupons that general mills has been emailing to me
Double Coupon day at Copps, which makes each of those $1 coupons = $2 off

Here are the 2 transactions I did:

Transaction 1

(6) Cheerios 14 oz ($3.49)

(3) Dan Active Yogurt 4-packs (on sale for $2/each)

Total before coupons and instant rebates = $26.94, which is good, because it's above the $25 needed for coupons to double!

Coupons applied:

$10 off instantly for buying 6 cereals

(5) Doubled $1 Cheerios coupons = $10 off

(3) $1/1 Dan Active coupons = $3 off

Total Coupons = $23

OOP = $3.94

But wait, there's more! I also received back (2) "Free Milk Coupons" Something that was not advertised is that the Milk coupons, which say they are good "up to $3.50" actually take $3.50 off of your total when they scan. So, for the milk I buy, which is $2.59, that means a free gallon plus 91 cents overage!

Final cost = -$3.06 (3.94 - $7 in future savings)

Transaction 2

(6) Cheerios 14 oz ($3.49)

(5) Pepsi products 12 packs ($3.99 or $1.77 when you buy 5)

Total before coupons and instant rebates = $40.89

Coupons applied:

$11.10 off instantly for buying 5 Pepsi products

(1) Buy 4 get 1 Free Pepsi coupon = $1.77 off

$10 off instantly for buying 6 cereals

(5) Doubled $1 Cheerios coupons = $10 off

Total Coupons = $32.87

Tax = .49

OOP = $8.51

Again, I received 2 more Free Milk Coupons, so another $7.00 in future savings!

Final cost = $1.51 (8.51 - $7 in future savings)

Total for both transactions = -$1.55 I literally got paid to shop this week!

With a deal this good, I just wish I had more cheerios coupons so I could have done it some more.

Another way to look at this deal, not that it isn't amazing enough already, is to just look at the cost of the cereal, which ended up at $0.94 for 6 boxes, so $1.88 for both transactions, and yet I got back $14 in coupons. In other words, General Mills just paid me $1 per box for buying Cheerios. Now that's my kind of job!

Less than $5 = More Great Target Savings

2009-06-15T16:45:00.000-07:00

Target is quickly becoming my favorite place to shop. Especially now that I have been going there for a few weeks, I feel like I know the store - I can find items easily, and when I can't I can always find a friendly "Target Team Member" to help me out. This makes my shopping trips quick and easy - like today. My fiancee helped me put these deals together last night, and today after work I just popped in, grabbed all the items, and only checked out once - I separated my items on the belt and asked them to bag it together but ring it up separately. The cashier was happy to do so, and it saved me a lot of time from having to wait in line again, or worse - go and reshop to get the items for the second transaction.

Here's the breakdown:
Transaction 1

(1) Kraft Salad Dressing -$0.11
sale price 1.89 minus (2) stacked $1/1 coupons
(1) Kashi Waffles $0.29
sale price $1.79 minus (1) $1.50/1 coupon
(1) Degree Deodorant $0.47
sale price 1.97 minus (1) $1.50/1 coupon
(2) A1 Steak Sauce $0.99 each
regular price 2.99 minus (2) $2/1 coupons

Total = $2.63 + tax (a whopping 3 cents)

OOP = $0.00 ! (thanks to the Target gift card I got last time)

Transaction 2

(1) Kraft Miracle Whip $0.14
regular price 2.14 minus (2) stacked $1/1 coupons
(1) Degree Deodorant $0.47
sale price 1.97 minus (1) $1.50/1 coupon
(2) A1 Steak Sauce $0.99 each
regular price 2.99 minus (2) $2/1 coupon

Total = $1.59 + tax

OOP = $0.00 *used gift card again :)

So, for less than $5 I'd say I did pretty good. The deodorants will get donated, possibly to our service men & women overseas, or to the usual food pantry. The A1, dressing, and Miracle Whip will be used for our bachelor/bachelorette party. And the waffles? Those are breakfast! My fiancee and I just love them - not sure what we'll do when they aren't 29 cents any more. I guess it will be time to invest in a waffle iron :)

- Mister Deals

Copps Shopping Trip 2

2009-06-14T21:00:00.000-07:00

(6) Wacky Mac ($0.25)
(4) Honey Maid Graham Crackers ($2.50)
(2) Ritz Crackers (1.75)
(6) Tuna Helper ($1)
(6) Clif / Luna Bars (FREE! plus $0.12 overage)
(2) Wheat Thins (FREE! plus $1 overage)
(6) Colgate Toothpaste (FREE!)

Total OOP = $12.98

Almost everything in this shopping trip (except for the toothpaste, which will be donated) is going to used as part of the combined bachelor/bachelorette party we are having a couple of days before our wedding. We are going to have a big meal for everyone, and by buying things now at the best possible prices, we are saving a ton of money. We're planning to do a big post about it soon to tell you the whole menu and how little it all cost!

- Mister Deals

Free Chocolate

2009-06-12T08:40:00.000-07:00

Hershey's is running a promotion where you can register for free chocolate. The limit is one per person/per Friday and throughout the promotion there is a limit of four coupons for a household.

https://secure.realchocolate.com/default.aspx?ar=1

So head to this link and fill out your form fast (you have a five minute limit for filling it out).

Also, I would recommend bookmarking this site so you can come back to it easily next Friday!

-Mister Deals

Copps Shopping Trip 1

2009-06-10T11:32:00.000-07:00

Due to my recent traveling, I haven't really been buying a lot of groceries; however, this week I am planning to spend right around $50. Usually I would be okay with missing a week, but with the upcoming wedding there are a few items we still need and planning this far ahead allows me to find great deals on most of the products. With a majority of my kraft coupons expiring today, I knew it was a use them or lose them situation, so I decided this month it was worth going over the weekly allowance. I know I won't have time for deal hunting during the weeks surrounding the wedding, so to prevent a store run where I end up paying full price for a meal to serve a large group of people, my fiancee and I sat down and planned out a rough menu (I'll post more about that later). Overall, this week is filled with a lot of staples for ourselves and party hosting, along with a few items pegged for donation.

Transaction 1:

(2) Fiber One 4-pack Yogurts 2/$4.00 minus a B1G1F coupon so $2/2

(2) Land O' Lake Butter $2.50 each (No coupons)

(1) Ritz Cracker $2.75 minus a $1/1 coupon doubled so .75 cents

(1) Wheat Thin $2.50 Free after purchasing the Ritz

(4) Colgate Toothpastes .99 cents minus (4) $1/1 coupons doubled so -$4.04

(9) Tuna Helper Box Meals $9.00 minus (3) .75/3 coupons so $6.75

My total came out to $10.60 and I used a $7 gift card from a previous promotion

Paid out: $3.60

Transaction 2:

(1) Ritz Cracker $2.75 minus a $1/1 coupon doubled so .75 cents

(1) Wheat Thin $2.50 Free after purchasing the Ritz

(1) Puffs Plus Tissue $1.25

(9) Dawn Pure Dish Soaps $2.50ea minus (9) $1.50/1 coupons so $9.00

(8) Pringles $12 minus (4) $1/2 coupons doubled so $4.00

The last 3 lines were a part of the P&G promotion, which gave me $10.00 back for a future meat purchase. I plan to use this during next weeks sales.

Total came to: $16.33

Transaction 3:

(9) Tuna Helper Box Meals $9.00 minus (3) .75/3 coupons so $6.75

(6) Colgate Toothpastes .99 ea minus (1) $1/1 coupon doubled and (5) .75 ea so $0.19

(12) Clif/Luna Bars .88 ea minus (4) $1/3 coupon doubled so $2.56

Total: $9.77

My total out of pocket for these 3 transactions: $29.70

And I got back a coupon for $10.00 off for a future meat department purchase (I'm planning on chicken breasts)

**I also got .40/gal off of my next fill up, which saves me about $5.60 (I need to do fill up before I go in for more deals tonight, so I can rack up more savings for the next time)**

A picture will come later, I just wanted to take some time out to post this deal.

Best of luck with your own deal hunting too!

General Mills Cereal Brands on Sale at Copps 5/$10

2009-06-08T17:19:00.000-07:00

Once again Copps grocery store has General Mills cereal on sale, this time the sale price is even better: 5 / $10 (last time it was 4 / $10), but note that it is limited to 5 per transaction. I stopped in to see which varieties are actually on sale at my Copps, and what they are regularly priced at:

Reese's Puffs 13oz ($3.69)
Wheaties 10.9oz ($3.35)
Chocolate Lucky Charms 12oz ($3.39)
Oatmeal Crisp Almond 17oz ($3.85)
Oatmeal Crisp Raisin 18oz ($3.85)
Multi-Grain Cheerios 9oz ($3.39)
Cinnamon Toast Crunch 12.8oz ($3.19)

As you can see, these are an ok deal at $2 per box. On the other hand, if you have some good coupons for any of these varieties and can double them, then it could be a great deal! Personally, I am going to pass on this deal, as I don't have any matching coupons. Of course, it is much easier to pass up considering I just got so much cereal a few weeks ago for 50 cents per box or less.

Hope this post is helpful to my fellow Copps shoppers :)

- Mister Deals

Money Making Travel Tips

2009-06-07T05:22:00.000-07:00

I've been really neglecting this blog lately - and this week I have been out of town on business, so I once again thought I would not get around to posting about the great deals I have picked up lately. However, I discovered something on this trip that really surprised me and I just had to share it.

You can literally make money on business trips... without lying or cheating on your expense report!

1. Earn $5 per day by making your own bed. Starwood hotels (like Westin, Sheraton, W, Four Points, etc) have a program called "You Tidy - We Treat." They way it works is that if you decline housekeeping service for the day (by hanging their special tag on your door the night before), they give you a $5 coupon good towards any of the hotel's dining services. You can do it for each day, except the day you check out, so I managed to rack up $15 in savings this week, which I used to buy my breakfast yesterday.

Of course, a free or nearly-free meal is great, but what's even better is that because I am on a business trip, my employer will reimburse the cost of my meals. So, I will actually get paid back the $15. It's like getting a mail in rebate for an item that was free w/ coupon :)

I'm afraid that some could argue that it is a moral dilemma: if the meal is $20, and I have $15 in coupons, and put only the remaining $5 charge on my credit card, what should I ask my company to pay back? $20 or $5? For me it's easy, and I offer this as a counter example: If I were to pay for my meal with say $15 in cash and $5 credit, I would certainly expect the company to pay me back for the whole $20. What if I had a gift card for $15, and used that? I still consider that to be my money, and if my employer is going to pay me back for the total cost of the meal, then my method of payment is irrelevant.

Not to mention, I had to make my own bed everyday! So I really feel I earned the $15 ;)

2. Vendor Giveaways. If you are going to a trade show or a conference, you know that vendors will be giving away swag: pens, candy, stress relief balls, hats, etc. And all this stuff is great, but I can tell you that my favorite vendor at this conference was the one who was giving out $10 Starbucks Gift Cards! Of course it was limited to 1 per person, and the catch was that you were supposed to watch a demo of their product, but when I stopped by, their booth was so swamped they just handed me the gift card. Needless to say, I will be keeping my eye on this vendor at future shows. And hopefully more vendors will wake up to the fact that I have already enough pens and key-chain-flashlights :)

Well, that's all for right now, I certainly plan to share some more travel tips in the future, but it is Sunday morning, so right now I have some coupon collecting to do! I'm excited to see what coupons Charlotte, NC has to offer today.

- Mister Deals

Walgreens 5/17-5/23

2009-05-22T19:45:00.001-07:00

So this week I started fresh without any built up Register Rewards, but came out with some pretty good deals.

I didn't have a very clear cut plan with my rolls this week, mostly due to running into missing items from my planned rolls and an unexpected coupon for $5 off of a $25 purchase becoming available. Since I needed to have a high out of pocket for this transaction, I grabbed a few empty ink cartridges and took those in for refills. Luckily I had also gotten back my first gift card from the Easy Saver program, which allowed me to pay a little less out of pocket.

In the end I had a fairly high out of pocket of: $37.99.

However my Register Rewards total for future use is: $13.50

So the final cost is: $24.49

And my personal final cost is $18.49 (after subtracting $6 for things I bought for the in-laws)

Considering I was paying $20 for the ink refills alone, I think I did pretty good.

My take-away:

(5) Edge Shaving Gels (1 missing from photo, hey I needed to shave and it was handy) ($1.99 - .75 cent coupon, got back $1 RR)

(2) Mitchum Deodorants ($1.99 with in-ad coupon)

(1) Dry Idea Clinical Strength ($5.99 -$2.00 coupon, got back $5 RR)

(4) Right Guard Clinical Strength ($5.99 - .75 coupon, got back $5 RR)

(6) Colgate Visible White Toothpaste ($4.50 - $1.00 coupon, got back $4.50 RR)

(1) Pencil (filler) ($0.10)

(1) Bayer Quick Release (2.49 - $1.50/1 coupon)

(2) Black ink refills ($20)

(5) Ramen Noodles ($0.29 cents each)

(1) Red Candle ($0.49 cents)

(1) Crackers ($0.59 cents)

(8) Kraft Mac & Cheese) ($0.52 cents each after in-ad coupon & B3G1F coupon)

(2) Aveeno Lotions + (1) Aveeno Suncare ($6.82 after using 3 $2/1 coupons)

(1) Aveeno Travel Kit (FREE)

How far can $50 go?

2009-05-22T19:42:00.000-07:00

This week there was a great sale on Kelloggs cereal, and I thought it would be a great chance to use up the various $1/1 Kelloggs coupons I had. We had a lot of coupons, so my fiancee and I decided we would go all out. We set a budget of $50, and worked out a series of 8 transactions. We couldn't believe our eyes at the results:

That's what 54 boxes of cereal look like.

Most of the cereals were on sale 4/$10, some were on clearance for only $1.89. With doubled $1/1 coupons, and some $1.50/1 coupons (Mini Wheats on box coupon), plus $5 off next purchase for every $20 of qualifying items (Kellogs Cereals (52), Huggies (2), Hellmanns Mayo (2)), resulted in final costs of $0.25 - $0.50 per box.

On top of the cereal we also got:

(16) Smuckers Toppings (10 Free, and 6 for $0.50 each)
(6) Colgate Toothpaste ($0.11 Money Maker: 89 cents - $1 coupon)
(2) Cascade Rinse (Free after coupon)
(2) Hellmanns Mayonaise ($2 after $1 off coupon)
(2) Ritz Crackers ($1.75)
(2) Wheat Thins (Free w/ purchase of Ritz)
(2) Huggies Bath Products ($1.50 with $1 off coupon)

Not Pictured:
(12) Steamfresh Frozen Vegetables ($1 each, plus $1/3 coupon)
(1) Bagelfuls ($2.19 plus $1 coupon)
(1) 3 lb bag Fuji Apples (99 cents w/ rain check)
(1) bunch Bananas ($0.49 / lb)
(2) Digiorno Flatbread Melts ($3.19 each, plus $1.50/1 coupon)
(2) gallons Milk ($2.69)

and:

The coke was on sale 4/$8.88, we picked them up for my soon-to-be in-laws, as well as a few other items (the Hellmanns and half of the Smuckers).

Our total out of pocket was = $49.76
The items for my in-laws = $25

Our Personal Total = $24.76

In case you are wondering how 2 people could ever eat this much cereal, or where we could even store it, we actually are only keeping 10 boxes of cereal for ourselves. We are giving the other 44 to a local food pantry, along with the Huggies baby products and the 6 toothpastes. It amazes me that giving to others can come from such a low final cost, with time being the real investment in taking advantage of these deals.

I know a lot of other couponers out there are very giving, and I would like to hear other ways that you are giving in your community. Please share your stories by leaving a comment below, so I can gain inspiration from your ideas.

- Mister Deals

Diapers and WalMart

2009-05-22T19:39:00.000-07:00

So, this week I left my camera with my fiancee, thus I also left with her the pictures of last weekends deals.

So, here is a delayed post about deals we got at Walmart:

(12) Boxes of Mini-Wheats ($.50 each after on-box coupon & Walmart's $2 sale)

(4) Kraft BBQ Sauces (FREE after $1/1 coupons)

(3) Kraft Dressings ($0.09-$0.59 after $1/1 or $1.50/1 coupons)

(1) Dole Pineapple Canned Fruit ($0.22 after coupon)

Total cost: $7.69

After Walmart we stopped quick at the local Walgreens to pick up some diapers, which were on a B1G1F(buy one get one free) sale. Using a Walgreens coupon, we picked up both packs for $4.00 total. These are going straight to donation, but it felt like something worth picking up at such a low price.

Overall the deals went by very quick, we knew what we were looking for and were in and out of stores fairly quickly.

Till next time,

-Mister Deals

General Mills and Kellogg's Cereal on Sale at Copps: 4 for $10

2009-05-17T20:21:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but I have gotten my hopes a few times when a grocery store puts "selected varieties" of cereal on sale, only to have them dashed when I get there and none of my coupons match up. So, tonight when I passed by our local Copps, I decided to stop in and jot down all the cereals that are on the 4 / $10 sale. Here is the list:

General Mills
Cheerios 14oz
MultiGrain Cheerios 12.8oz
Cinnamon Toast Crunch 17oz
Cocoa Puffs 16.8oz
Golden Grahams 16oz
Total Cinnamon Crunch
Trix 14.8oz

Kellogg's **may also give you $5 Catalina when you buy 8**
Apple Jacks 17oz
Corn Flakes 12oz
Frosted Flakes 23oz
Fruit Loops 17oz
Pops 17.2oz
Raisin Bran 20oz
Raisin Bran Crunch 18.2oz
Raisin Bran Extra 14oz
Rice Krispies 18oz
Frosted Mini Wheats:
looked like all of the flavors, here are the specific ones I saw:
Blueberry, Strawberry, Cinnamon Streusel, Maple Brown Sugar,
Bite Size,Honey Nut, Chocolate

Cascadian Farms
All varieties (as far as I could tell)

Post
Trail Mix Crunch - Raisin & Almond

I hope this is helpful for some - please leave a comment to let me know if I missed any, or just to say hello :)

Amazing Target Savings!! (5/14)

2009-05-14T19:04:00.000-07:00

25 Items for less than $4!!

After work today, I stopped at Target and did 4 transactions. This was probably my favorite trip to Target yet, for several reasons, but the highlight was meeting a fellow Couponer! We were both in the Salad Dressing aisle, checking out the deals on the Kraft Dressing and Mayo. She was very friendly. We chatted about the deals we were getting, and ran into each other several times while we were shopping. During one of our meetings, I mentioned how I was having trouble finding the Wheat Thins Toasted Chips, so she gave me 2 of her coupons (a clipped BOGO & a Target printable coupon) so I could get 2 boxes of regular Wheat Thins on a great deal. What a kind gesture!

Each of my transactions were pretty similar, all together I got:
(8) Kraft Salad Dressing
(6) Kraft Mayonaise
(4) Nabisco 100 Cal Chocolate Pretzels
(4) Hershey Bliss Bar
(2) Wheat Thins
(1) Kashi Waffles

The out of pocket costs were:
Transaction 1: $2.94
Transaction 2: $0.99
Transaction 3: $0.02
Transaction 4: $0.00

Total out of pocket = $3.95

I used a combination of coupons on almost every item, making most of them free, the items I actually paid a little for were the Kashi Waffles and Wheat Thins (both on transaction 1).

Copps 5/13 Double Days!

2009-05-14T18:06:00.000-07:00

My Copps trip this week really did not turn out as planned... but it was awesome!
As you can see, I didn't get any cereal. It turned out that I didn't have enough coupons for the cereals that were actually on the 4/$10 deal. So, I scrapped that plan, and just got some free BBQ Sauce and Kraft Dressing in the morning. Later, my fiancee and I came up with 2 new transactions for Wednesday night. Here are the results...

Items Purchased:

(13) Kraft BBQ Sauce (Free, plus some were -$0.16)
(13) Kraft Salad Dressing (Free)
(11) Creamette Pasta ($1 each)
(2) Dreamfields Low Carb Pasta (-$1.51)
(2) Edy's Ice Cream (2/$5)
(2) Windex Antibacterial Sprays (-$0.80 each after M.I.R.)
(4) V-8 Tomato Juice ($0.80 each)
2 lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast ($3.69)
(1) Strawberries ($1.50)
(2) Dawn Dish Soap (Small size $0.25 each)

This was the total haul from all 3 transactions (including my morning trip on the way to work, which is when we discovered the secret money making flavor of Kraft BBQ Sauce.

My totals were:

Transaction One was: $0.00!! (was briefly Negative 16 cents)

Transaction Two was: $15.19

Transaction Three was: $8.45

The great thing about these deals are the extremely low out of pocket when I take into account $10 of the cost are items for my soon-to-be mother-in-law (I'll deliver her groceries to her this weekend) which makes my out of pocket $13.64.

Tomorrow I will be sending in two mail-in-rebates for the Windex, which will be a savings of $6.58.

When this is accounted for my final cost is: $7.06!!

The coupons I used are as follows: (Doubled Coupons marked with *)

*(2) $0.40 Windex
*(4) $1 V-8 Tomato Juice
*(2) $1 Dreamfields Pasta
*(2) $0.50 Dawn Dish Soap
(13) $1 Kraft BBQ Sauce
(13) $1 Kraft Salad Dressing
(2) $2 Catalina Coupon (from Kraft)

Kraft BBQ Sauce-For an even lower price!

2009-05-14T08:50:00.000-07:00

I had some awesome transactions yesterday at Copps (I didn't get any cereal, but came up with something new), but I will post more about that later.

I just wanted to give a heads up that at Copps (any maybe elsewhere, can't confirm) a new flavor of Kraft BBQ Sauce is ringing up at .84 cents! This is much lower than the $1 sale price advertised and it might be on a special promotional deal elsewhere too.

The flavor to look out for is: Teriyaki Sesame Ginger, it'll have a "New Flavor" tab around the top.

If you have the 75 cent coupon from the 5/3 insert, this could be a perfect use. But, if you print the $1 off coupons from kraft.com, it makes it Free or possibly a $0.16 Money Maker!

The way I discovered this was during a small checkout at Copps yesterday morning, my total rang up as -$0.16 (yes, NEGATIVE 16 cents). The cashier didn't know what to do, so she called over a manager to take care of it. She changed my last $1 coupon to only take $0.84 off, so I ended up with a total of $0.00, and I literally paid nothing out of pocket for the 8 items (BBQ sauce and dressing) I was buying. When I told my fiancee about it, she was able to figure out which item it was that gave me the extra discount, so when I did the rest of my transactions, I got as many of them as possible, and because I was buying other items, I did not lose the overage this time.

I recommend checking out Target or Walmart to get this BBQ sauce with your coupons, as the Copps deal may have already ended.

If you don't have the $1 printable coupons, check out this post from Money Saving Mom.

Hope this helps!

Mr. Deals

Copps Wednesday Double-Day Deal Plan

2009-05-12T20:19:00.001-07:00

It's that time of the week again. The grocery store I shop at, Copps, has double coupon day every Wednesday, so naturally I only shop there on Wednesdays (except for the occasional gallon milk on a Sunday morning). If you are not a Copps shopper, let me explain their rules for double day:

You have to ring up at least $25 (before coupons, tax, etc)
Only your first 5 coupons are doubled
They only double coupons up to $1, and only up to the full amount of the item.

Now that you know that, here are the deals I have planned out for tomorrow

Transcation 1

(8) General Mills Cereals (on sale for $2.50)

+ 8 GM Cereal coupons (5 of them will double) for a total of $11.25 in coupon savings

+ plus you get a $4 off next order coupon when you buy 8

(3) Kraft BBQ Sauce (on sale for $1, free after $1 printable coupon from KraftFoods.com)

(2) Kraft Salad Dressing (on sale for $1, free after $1 printable coupon from KraftFoods.com)

OOP = ~$9 + tax

Receive = $4 off next check out

Final Cost = $5 + tax

Transaction 2

(2) Post TrailMix Crunch Cereals (on sale for $2.25)

+ $2 off 1 internet printable from SS

+ Doubled $1 off 1 clipped from previous sunday paper

= only 50 cents plus tax for 2 boxes of cereal!!

(10) Creamette Pasta (on sale $1 each)

(2) Kraft BBQ Sauce (on sale for $1, free after $1 printable coupon from KraftFoods.com)

(3) Kraft Salad Dressing (on sale for $1, free after $1 printable coupon from KraftFoods.com)

(1) Windex Antibacterial Spray

+ free with MIB rebate from 5/10 SS

+ $0.80 money maker with doubled 40 cents off 1 coupon in same ad (5/10 SS)

(2) Dawn Dishsoap (on sale for $1, plus 2x $0.50/1 from P&G "Home Made Simple" booklet)

Total: $13.49 + tax

Use $4 from first transaction, now

OOP = $9.49 + tax

Mail in Rebate = $3.29

Final Cost = $6.20 + tax

Transaction 3

(1) Gallon of Milk

(1) Strawberries (on sale $1.50 per carton)

(1) 3 lb bag of Apples ($0.99 with coupon clipped from this week's Copps ad)

(1) bunch of Bananas

(2) Edy's Ice Cream (on sale 2/$5)

(1) 2 lbs boneless, skinless Chicken Breast (on sale $1.89/lb)

(2) Dreamfields Low Carb Pasta (BOGO plus doubled $1 off internet printable coupon)

(1) Windex Antibacterial Spray

+ free with MIB rebate from 5/10 SS

+ $0.80 money maker with doubled 40 cents off 1 coupon in same ad (5/10 SS)

I am leaving this last transaction open ended, as I may or may not work in a few more items:

more Kraft BBQ Sauce & Salad Dressing (Free with printable coupons)
4 Sally Hansen Nail Polish - I want to get these for my fiancee (because I have a bunch of $1 off coupons from the K-mart Spring Savings booklets), but I will have to see if they are a good deal or not when I get to the store.

My plan is to do the first 2 transactions in the morning before work (I'm glad Copps opens at 6am!) and then do the 3rd one on my way home. I'll be sure to update my blog tomorrow night so you know how things turned out :)

- Mister Deals

At Target: 35 items for under $9 OOP!!

2009-05-06T20:11:00.000-07:00

Today I took a break from work and headed over to Target. I completed 4 transactions and got a bunch of great deals. Pictured below is most of my loot; however, I accidentally left a few bags at work (I took in a few bags which contained yogurt & forgot them several hours later when I headed home).

My 35 items purchased:

(6) Easy Macs (Free)

(3) Bliss Bars (Free)

(2) Planters Nuts ($3 each)

(2) Quaker Bars (50 cents each)

(7) Kraft BBQ Sauce (.24 each)

(3) Chex Mix (Free)

(2) Fiber One Cereals (Part of Promotion)

(2) Fiber One Mocha Bars (Part of Promotion)

(1) Fiber One Toaster Pastry (Part of Promotion)

(7) Fiber One Yogurt 4-pack (Part of Promotion)

I started with a $5 gift card from the previous Special K promotion and ended with money still on another gift card.

Coupons I used (LONG LIST):

(3) Buy One Get One Free for Easy Mac (Manufacturer)

(3) $1/2 Easy Mac (Target Coupon)

(3) $1 off Bliss Candy (Target Coupon)

(2) $1 off Planter's Nuts (Target Coupon)

(2) $1 off Quaker Products (Target Coupon)

(1) $1 off True Delight Bars (Manufacturer)

(1) $1 off Omega Three Bars (Manufacturer)

(7) 75 cents off Kraft BBQ Sauce (Manufacturer from 5/3 SS)

(3) $1 off Chex Mix (Target Coupon)

(2) 75 cents off Fiber One Cereal (Manufacturer)

(2) $1.35 off Fiber One Mocha Bar (Manufacturer)

(1) 50 cents off Fiber One Toaster Pastry (Manufacturer)

(1) 50 cents off Fiber One 4-pack Yogurt (Manufacturer)

(3) $1 off Fiber One 4-pack Yogurt (Manufacturer)

(2) Buy One Get One Free Fiber One 4-pack Yogurt (Off of Fiber One Cereal's box) ($2.28 value)

Total Value of Coupons Tendered: $35.68

With store sales, total savings: $45.79

Paid with 3 $5 gift cards (one from Special K promotion, 2 from Fiber One promotion) and $8.94 out of pocket. (If I would have been a little more organized, I could have used up one more $5 gift card and had $3.94 out of pocket).

If you consider the 3 new $5 gift cards as savings the true savings value is: $60.79.

Most of this out of pocket reflects the cost of the two planter's products ($6), which I bought one for my use and one for my future father-in-law. I'd call this a pretty sweet deal!

I also did my weekly grocery store trip tonight (double night) where I had planned on getting yogurt, but after realizing the great deal on the Fiber One products I ended up cutting that one off my list. You can't beat the price of free!

Free KFC Grilled Chicken - Thanks Oprah!

2009-05-05T08:39:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to avoid fast food - for the sake of my budget, and my weight - but KFC's new promotion has caught my eye:

Thanks to Oprah, you can print a coupon online for a free two-piece Kentucky Grilled Chicken Meal.

Print the coupon here right away before they run out! After the coupon has printed, you can close the window, come back here and follow the link again 4 times for a total of 4 free meals!

For more info, check out the Oprah blog.

- Mister Deals

Free Samples-Reasons to Take Advantage

2009-05-04T20:16:00.000-07:00

Many different brands offer free samples either through a store (ex. Walmart) or through their own website. These are valuable in the fact you get to sample new products, but also for the coupons that may come with the free sample.

One easy way to find these deals is to bookmark Walmart's free sample site (click here to go there). There is a new sample of Cottonelle toilet paper, so make sure to take advantage!

Just this week I received a free sample of Total cereal (Cranberry Almond) and a sample size Dove Deodorant in the mail. The Total came with a coupon, which I plan on using at some point! So, not only did they give me a product for free, I now know I like it and when I find a good sale I can pick up some more at a near-free price!

Another positive: The coupons that come with the samples often have far off expiration dates! While most coupons usually have a 1-3 month range period, the coupons in samples are usually good for over a year. This insures that I can really take advantage of a good deal when it comes along.

And if you are ever on the fence about whether to sign up for a deal or not, remember you can always donate the item if you decide when it arrives that it really isn't something you are interested in. Since the stockpile of deodorant is quite high already for both my fiancee and I, I plan on just tossing the sample in with the bag for donations.

Hope this is helpful!

-Mister Deals

Less than $5 Out of Pocket for 24 items @ Walgreens

2009-05-04T19:28:00.000-07:00

On my way to work this morning I stopped at Walgreens again for 2 quick transactions.
Transaction 1
(20) Assorted ConAgra Products ($0.50)
(1) Colgate Sensitive Toothpaste ($4.50)

Used:
(1) $6 RR from Magic Erasers
(4) $1 off of 4 cans (Hunts / Pork & Beans)
(1) $1 off Colgate Sensitive Toothpaste

Out of Pocket = $3.99 (including tax)

Received:
$4.50 RR from Colgate
$3.00 RR from ConAgra

If you consider that the Colgate was $3.50 (with coupon), and I got a $4.50 Register Reward, it was a "Money Maker." Meaning, I literally got paid $1 to buy it today.

The remaining out of pocket: $3.99 - $3.50 =49 cents

So, for 49 cents (including tax) I got 20 cans of ConAgra products (Tomato Sauce, Pork & Beans, and some Chicken Broth), a 95% savings!

Transaction 2
(2) Swiffer dry refills ($4)
(1) Swiffer wet refills ($4)

Used:
(1) $4.50 RR from Colgate
(1) $4.50 RR from Listerine
(1) $3.00 RR from ConAgra

Which made the total, before tax = $0.00 !

All there was for me to pay was the tax, 66 cents.

On top of that, I received:
$2 RR

... and I just sent off my mail-in-rebate for a $5 debit card from Swiffer.

My out of pocket for the day was less than $5, and I now have $7 to use towards future purchases.

Important note though: "If you don't mail your rebate, your deal won't be as sweet!" What works for me is putting the rebate together as soon as I get home from the store. It's too easy to lose a receipt or forget to send it in after you have put it off for a few days.

My Walgreens Deals May 3rd, 2009

2009-05-03T17:57:00.000-07:00

After gathering all of my coupons this morning, and checking out some of the coupon blogs, my fiancée and I planned out some deals for the week, and then I headed off to Walgreens.

So far I have done 3 transactions, and I am planning on doing 1 or 2 more.

Transaction 1
(5) Febreze Noticeables Starter Kits ($6)
(20) Assorted ConAgra Products ($0.50)
(2) Pert Plus Shampoo ($2.50)

Coupons Used:
(5) $4 off Febreeze Noticeables Kits (From today's P&G)
(2) $1 off Pert Plus (Internet Coupon)
$7.50 Register Rewards remaining from last week

Out of Pocket = $17.43

Received:
$11 RR
$1 off 4 Hunt's Tomato Sauce
$0.75 off 3 Pork & Beans

Transaction 2
(1) Right Guard Deodorant
(20) Assorted ConAgra Products ($0.50)

Used:
(1) $0.75 off 3 cans Pork and Beans
(1) $1 off 4 Hunts Tomato Sauce
(1) $1 off Right Guard Deodorant
$8 RR from Transaction 1

Out of Pocket = $2.40

Received:
$5 RR (plus $3 still remaining from trans 1 = $8 RR)
$1 off 4 Pork & Beans
$1 off 4 Hunts Tomato Sauce

Transaction 3
(10) Mr Clean Magic Erasers ($2.50)
(2) Listerine Total Care Mouthwash ($4.50)
(5) Assorted ConAgra canned goods ($0.50)

Used:
(5) Buy 1 Get 1 Free Mr Clean Magic Erasers
(2) $2 off Listerine
$8 RR

Out of Pocket = $13.87

Received:
$10.50 RR
$1 off 4 Pork & Beans
$0.75 off 2 Hunts Tomato Sauce

Total out of pocket for all 3 transactions = $33.70
Remaining RR = $10.50

Final Cost = $23.20

$23.20 / $129.20

Total Savings = 82 %

Total Haul:
(10) Mr Clean Magic Erasers
(5) Febreze Noticeables Starter Kits
(2) Pert Plus Shampoo
(2) Listerine Total Care Mouthwash
(1) Right Guard Deodorant
(25) Hunts Tomato Sauce (ConAgra)
(12) Pork & Beans (ConAgra)
(8) Butterball Chicken Broth (ConAgra)

One more note: I figured out that with the remaining coupons I have for Hunt's Tomato Sauce and the Pork & Beans, I can go back for 20 more cans, pay $6 in RR and only 28 cents out of pocket (including tax!). My soon-to-be Mother-in-law said she could use some Chicken Broth, so for the 6 cans unclaimed by coupons, I know what I'll be getting ;)

Sunday Morning - Stock up on Coupons!

2009-05-03T07:53:00.000-07:00

I have a new Sunday Morning routine: Coupon Hunting

I started off the day at Metcalf's Sentry Foods - a grocery store that will give you a free Sunday paper when you spend $5 or more. I needed a gallon of milk, so after that I just had to find another item for about $2. I now had my first paper, which meant my first 3 coupon inserts for this week: Red Plum, Smart Source, and Proctor & Gamble.

Next, I stopped at as many coffee shops and diners I could find.

You can't be shy - several times I interrupted people who were reading their newspapers to politely ask if they were planning to keep the coupon inserts. For the most part, the people I ran into were happy to hand over all of the ads, which they viewed as "junk." If only they knew ;) But, 2 guys did surprise me. They were sitting on the curb outside of a Perkins, and each had a Sunday Paper. I asked them if they were "Coupon Clippers," and they both answered that indeed it was the only reason they bought the paper!

In total, I managed to find:
8 P&G
7 SmartSource
4 RedPlum

Now, it's time to plan some deals!

Quick Target Trip

2009-05-02T19:12:00.000-07:00

Today my fiancée had her Wedding dress fitting appointment. I drove her there, but of course I could not go in with her, so I popped next door to Target to pick up a few deals I had heard about.

I got:
(3) Special K cereals
(2) Special K cereal bars
(2) Kashi Waffles
(2) V8 Fusions
(1) Dry Idea Deodorant

I had printed coupons for everything except the cereal bars, but they were on sale and helped me to get the $5 Target gift card (free with 5 Special K items).

Out of Pocket = $12.72
Target Gift Card = $5

Final Cost = $7.72

While paying only $7.72 is a good deal, it could have been even sweeter if I had a few more Special K coupons.

But, I wanted to share this because it's an example of just how quick and easy it can be to save a lot money with a few coupons. I printed the coupons online, and only spent about 15 minutes in the store grabbing these items and checking out.

If you are not a coupon user yet, don't be intimidated. True, you can spend a lot time surfing for the best deals and clipping coupons from the Sunday paper, and you will be able to save a lot more, but that's not necessary - especially if you are just getting your feet wet.

By just printing a few coupons per week for items you are going to buy anyway you will start to see the savings add up. And, if you're anything like me, you will get hooked and soon be seeking out all of the can't miss deals week after week!

-Mister Deals

Rollin' at Walgreens - a first timer

2009-05-02T17:54:00.000-07:00

This past week was an exciting and new experience for me: I went "Rolling" at Walgreens for the first time. If you don't know what Rolling is, I recommend checking out www.moneysavingmom.com or any of the other great coupon blogs around the net. It's basically a way to buy a lot of items for almost no money by splitting your purchase into a bunch of small transactions, and "rolling" the rewards you get from one to pay for the next.

Here are the results from my week of rolling:

I alternated between these 2 transactions:
Transaction 1
2 Ecotrin Aspirin ($2)
1 Rembrandt Toothpaste or Mouthwash ($6)
2 Cheap Fillers (ie Ramen Noodles or random clearance items)

Out of Pocket cost = $1.51 per transaction

Transaction 2
1 Nivea Body Wash ($5)
1 Bayer QuickRealease ($2.50)
2 Fillers (Ramen Noodles or Wrapping Paper)

Out of Pocket cost = $0.47 - $0.71 per transaction

On top of the 2 basic transactions, I also got 2 Ink Cartridge Refills which each came with a $7.50 EasySaver Rebate, and a bunch of "filler" items not pictured.

Total Haul:

(2) Ink Refills ($10)
(13) Nivea Body Wash ($5) **regular price $6.49**
(1) Rembrandt Mouthwash ($6) **regular price $7.49**
(12) Rembrandt Toothpastes ($6)**regular price $7.49**
(13) Bayer Quick Release ($2.50)
(30) Ramen Noodles (Great for a quick guy lunch) (4/$1)
(2) Hallmark Gift Tissues (.39 cents) **regular price .99 cents**
(16) Low Dose Ecotrin (45 count) ($2) **regular price $3.49**
(4) Extra Strength Ecotrin (75 count) ($2.19)**regular price $8.49**
(17) Hallmark Gift Wraps (.39 cents) **regular price .99 cents**
(3) Breath Mint drops (.15 cents) **regular price .50 cents**
(1) Hannah Montana Bubble Gum Kit (.25 cents) **regular price $1.29**
(1) Yogurt Raisins ($1)
(1) Deodorant clearanced (25 cents!)
(2) Highlighters (.15 cents) **regular price .50 cents**

Total Cost before coupons and rebates: $253.42

Full Retail Price at Walgreens: $355.39

Actual Total Out Of Pocket = $43.40
Remaining Registry Rewards = $7.50
Rebates for 2 Ink Refills = $16.50 ($15 + 10% bonus on gift card)

Final Cost = $19.40

$19.40/$355.39

Total savings: 94.5%

I think I can be proud of this for a first week of rolling!

On a side note, I don't have plans to keep all of these goodies to myself. We will be passing on some of these items to my fiancées family and while I do plan on keeping a few of each (especially the ramen!) the rest will be passed on to a local food bank who are always in need of toiletries.

Also, it's worth mentioning that I visited 6 separate stores throughout the week to get all of these. At 5 out of the 6 stores, I had great experiences with helpful staff, a few even encouraged me to roll a few more times! The only bad experience was at the second store when an employee interrupted my cashier mid-transaction, and told me not to "try that again" at her store. Needless to say, I won't be returning to that location again.