Stretching your budget - Buying what's in season

The best way to stretch your budget for produce is to buy what's in season:

Vegetables in Season for August:

How to get the most out of your grocery trip

How to get the most out of your grocery trip:

9/21/13 Easy Ways to Save Money Around the House

So if you are like me, your electricity bill has a "season".  Season meaning when it's intensely high and about 4 times what it is the opposite half of the year. Mine happens to be summertime, living in a place where it can get to 120 degrees in July and August.  After purchasing a "new" home (built in 1945, 2650 square feet) recently and suffering a $600.01 electricity bill, I have had to find new areas of savings in my life.  

There are ways to soften the blow of an electricity bill, for instance, like signing up for an equalizer billing plan (aps.com) which does not save you money in a year, but levels out your bill so you pay similar amounts each month rather than (like me) $600 in July and $85 in December.

Although equalizing out your payments may benefit most people, what we really need to focus is on the amount of electricity we waste each day.  

Here are some ideas on how to save money every single day of the year:

7/21/12: A Coupon A Day: Amy's

Introducing a new, frequent blog post: A Coupon A Day

There are many ways to obtain coupons: newspapers, mail, newsletters, coupon websites, manufacturer websites, Facebook, etc. but what happens when you want a coupon from a company that doesn't publicly display coupons?

Easy: give them your opinion and be rewarded for it. I have had a lot of success with this and would love to show you how easy it is. Just email one company a day, and start reaping the benefits!

I will be posting a link for a company's website on a frequent basis. Click the link, email a compliment (be specific, don't just say "I like your products"...single out a product that you really like of theirs) and DO NOT ask for coupons, because they usually just say right now we do not have any coupons available. If you give them a compliment for their product, they are more likely to reward you for being a valued customer.

Here is an example of a compliment:

I just wanted to thank you for providing such amazing products! I am a vegetarian, and have been for my entire life . It can be frustrating finding food that my family enjoys, but after discovering your food line, it has been a lot easier! I absolutely love your organic seaweed chips, they are my favorite! They make it simple for me to be healthy, while still being able to enjoy snacks. Thanks again for being awesome!


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First Company for A Coupon A Day:

Amy's Kitchen
-Organic, Vegetarian products

Click here to give them a compliment!



















***Please be patient. Sometimes companies will email, some will physically mail coupons or thank you letters, and unfortunately, some won't send anything.

7/15/12: Let's Share: Counterfeit Couponers!!!

I don't know if you've heard of this yet, but three women in Phoenix, AZ (I live there!!! ahhh!) have been arrested due to suspicion of being involved in a massive counterfeit coupon ring.

Here's the link to the abc news article


I posted this because I think all of us couponers need to be aware of these scams.

6/2/12: The Frugal Frannie

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5/24/12: Let's Share: Organization

Sometimes it is difficult to keep all of your frugal finds in order. Here are a few ideas on how to stay organized:

1) Create a separate email address just for email clubs, coupons, special offers, etc. --this way you won't have to "weed out" emails against your personal information i.e. banking, business, pictures, etc.

2) Create a separate Facebook and/or Twitter account from your personal one for special offers -- you will keep all of your friends this way (who may get annoyed with continuous facebook feeds of you liking random businesses) and you will easily be able to spot deals on your newsfeed

3)Keep a binder or some kind of organization device to place your coupons --- organize them by store, type, or when they expire

4)For your freebies: set aside a drawer or box where you will put every freebie you receive -- that way you are able to know exactly where they are when you need them for traveling, unexpected guest, etc.

5)Your time - set aside a specific amount of time for your coupon/deal quest, whether it's looking through the newspaper, internet, or trading with friends. You will find that you will have time to coupon, and also have a lot more time to do the things you love. I would suggest 30 minutes/day or an hour every 2 to 3 days.

6)Shopping trips- when you are finally ready to make your purchases, make a list of what you are going to purchase, put stars (or something) to indicate what you have coupons for, list both the retail price, and the after coupon price. Know the layout of the store beforehand, and write your list in order of the layout --- you won't be going from end of the store to the other for every item this way.

5/10/12: Things to Do: On The Cheap

Things to do (On the Cheap) Follow @FrugalFrannie


Take a hike (great for a weekend activity!)
-Chances are, there is a nice mountain, or hill, within a short drive or bike ride of your current residence. Why not put on some shoes, shades and sunscreen and enjoy the beautiful outdoors? Don't forget your water and hat too! Hike before 10am to ensure you do not get overheated.
********Here is a website that lists every trail you can imagine in your area*********

Explore downtown (great for a date!)
-Whether you live in one of the top ten most populated cities in the United States (like me!) or a smaller town, why not spend some time downtown? Take a stroll through one of the parks downtown which tend to attract performing musicians. Window shop stores you love...and check out ones you haven't given a chance... Make a game of who can get the most people to say hello to them... or keep track of how many people are wearing the color orange.... the possibilities are endless when you are surrounded by such a diverse population... Splash in the public water features (only if it's legal!) and cool off at the end of a day....

Play at the playground (great for a silly mood)
-Visit your local park with a friend, a sibling, a significant other, or just by yourself... swing on the swings.... slide down the slides.... build a sand castle...play tag.... be a kid again!

Attend a free public concert (if you feel like bobbing your head)
Check out your local newspaper's website for free concerts. The Arizona Republic has a ton in the free section **click here for their website**

Have a potluck (if you are hungry and feel like being social)
A great money saver --- make your favorite dish, invite all of your friends to do the same... almost free party (you may have to clean though...sorry, hee hee) Here are some free recipes that are healthy for you.

Craft time (if you are feeling artistic)
You probably have a ton of craft supplies around your house, even if you don't know it yet! Scissors, glue, tape, paper, markers.... evaluate what you have, check the internet for easy crafts to make, and get your craft on!
Here is a great craft that only requires a few pieces of tissue paper and ribbon on Youtube
**tissue paper flowers**

Have a dance party (if you feel like getting your groove on)
Invite friends or just dance by yourself.... get an account on pandora.com (free streaming music), add music you like to your pandora station, and get your groove on. You could combine this with your potluck party as well to make the ultimate cheap party.

5/5/12: FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER!

Awesome news! You will now be able to access all of my posts via Twitter!

Follow me:

Follow @FrugalFrannie

List of Coupon Sites

Here a handful of coupon sites to check on a weekly basis (if not more regularly):

Target

Mambo Sprouts

Smart Source

Red Plum

All You

Coupons.com

Cool Savings

Safeway <---you have to sign in to see coupons

Retail Me Not ***for Online Shopping Coupon Codes

Ideas on how to save money:

1) Subscribe to your local newspaper. I was able to subscribe to my local newspaper for $1.00/week, and receive both Wednesday and Sunday papers. Sunday papers are crammed with coupons!

Subscribe to more than 1 newspaper to achieve even more savings. For instance, if your local grocery store is having a Buy One Get One Free Sale for a 12-pack of String Cheese ($4.00 each), and you have two papers, which each have a $1.00 coupon for a 12-pack of String Cheese , you will end up paying $2.00 total for two 12-packs of String Cheese!

2)Peruse various internet coupon/grocery sites for weekly coupon deals to print out.

i.e. coupons.com, smartsource.com, redplum.com, target.com, safeway.com

3)Can't find coupons for your favorite product? Email or write the company telling them how much you love that product. I've had luck with getting coupons out of more than half I write to.


4) Sign up for your favorite brand's website newsletter or e-club. Chances are, they will send you weekly or monthly offers. Restaurants are really good about giving great deals via their e-clubs.

I would also suggest Liking their Facebook page for additional offers.

5) Stockpile! When you have multiple coupons for a non-perishable product, and/or a company is having a sale for a product, buying a ton will help get you through until the next time it goes on sale. Just make sure you have the space for these products first, you don't want your friends/relatives to submit you to the show Hoarders.


6) Check Weekly Grocery Store Flyers for SALES. Make your grocery store list based on what is either on sale, or a reasonable price. If one store doesn't have good deals on what you need, make an additional grocery list to another grocery store that has sales on those items. The goal is to NEVER PAY RETAIL!!!


7) Purchase your Fresh Produce at Natural Grocery Markets (i.e. Sunflower Market, Whole Foods, Sprout's). They usually buy locally grown produce, which cuts down on their costs and in turn, are able to pass the discounts on to you.

8) As for clothing, furniture, appliances, etc. Check out last chance stores like Ross or Pay Less Shoe Source for great deals. You can also go to thrift stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army for even cheaper finds. Craiglist is also awesome for free or cheap furniture, etc. (That's where I got my almost brand new couch!)

9)Don't like the idea of buying used or last season's merchandise? Sign up for department stores newsletters, charge cards to get additional savings (just make sure you pay these off every month to ensure the maximum amount of savings), or check for early bird specials. The best time to shop at department/mall stores for clothes, etc. is during various holidays and seasons. They buy bulk of certain products that will go fast, and are able to present reasonable prices to the consumer. Stock up on wardrobe essentials during Back to School season, Labor Day, President's Day, Fourth of July, etc.

10) Shop at Outlet stores! Find great deals on popular items at a fraction of a department store's price.


And of course, check out http://thefrugalfrannie.blogspot.com/ for great deals! My blog is not intended for the extreme couponer who buys 100 cans of cat food for 20 cents total, even though they don't have a cat. I created my blog to showcase deals that I am actually interested in pursuing, not saturating the site with deals on worthless crap that I would never need or use.

Arizona Grocery Stores Coupon Policy Link

Here is a great resource for all my Arizona readers:

http://www.livingthedomesticlife.com/coupon-policy-az/

She wrote to all of the Arizona Grocery Stores and they emailed her back with their policies. These are more of guidelines versus set in stone policies because as most of us know, grocery store coupon policies are constantly changing.