any couponers here?Any advice on how to get organized?

[w8liftinglady]

I love when I save -but I have a problem getting my coupons organized...all suggestions appreciated!

[demgurl]

1. Use a binder.....

Find a cheap binder at the Dollar Store or back to school clearance. Also buy baseball card sheets. They should also be at the Dollar Store. Put the baseball card sheets in the binder and attach little tabs you make from paper and tape onto them. The tabs will be categories such as 'dairy', 'beverages', 'spices', etc...... Now you put your cut coupons in the individual card holder spaces and you will have them organized according to category AND you will be able to see everything you have.

If this is too big a project and you want to work your way up, go ahead and find a coupon organizer caddie at your Dollar Store.

I hope this helps.

Christina

[knitter4democracy]

2. I got a great organizer at Meijers.

It's a folder with labelled pockets small enough to fit in my purse. I found it on sale (all organizers were on sale that week), but maybe you can find something similar?

[stuntcat]

3. I have a system

I've made it up over the last years so it might not work for everyone

I use three envelopes, flap-up.
the 1st holds stuff that's for the house - cleaners, paper towels, zip-locks, air fresheners, kitty litter.. it's where battery coupons go, or ones for post-its or pens.
the 2nd holds anything that's for bath/body stuff - shampoos, lotions, razors, toothpaste. also medicine & vitamins.
the 3rd holds food coupons, including the cats' food.

It can still take an hour to sort through it all and the food envelope has like 100 coupons in it right now but this is what I've figured out works for me. Our Giant receipt says we've saved $1,000 this year from our coupons and the Giant club together! So today my printer's breaking down so I guess that's where some of it will go :cry: I get a new printer for Christmas maybe, whoopty do.


(but also! - I don't ever leave the house with them. I only take the ones for what's on my list. It's not portable, my Coupon System :) )

[Wednesdays]

4. I use a check organizer...

the kind that's wallet sized and has 12 dividers for each month of the year. You can usually find these at your typical office supply store.

I designate each of the dividers for each aisle of the store I usually shop (your store is likely set up differently, so you would need to adjust accordingly). Here are my categories:

February -- Salad dressings, pickles, peanut butter, jelly, honey, bottled juice (and the like)
March -- Canned meats, canned vegetables, soups, Mexican, Chinese, other ethnic foods that are non-perishable
April -- Coffee, tea, candy, cereal, pancake syrup
May -- Flour, sugar, baking ingredients, spices
June -- Pasta, pasta sauces, rice, dry beans
July -- Health and beauty aids
August -- Cleaners & household products such as toilet paper, paper towel, plastic wrap, paper plates & cups, etc.
September -- Bread, crackers, cookies, soda, room-temperature snacks
October -- Frozen products
November -- Refrigerated (meats, dairy, etc.)
December -- Miscellaneous (most often things like coupons for batteries and restaurants go here.)

"January" is intentionally left empty 'cause while I shop, I pull coupons that I'm about to use out of the other sections and store them there. That way, I don't have to hurriedly hunt for them while I'm at the cashier, and I don't have to carry a fistful of loose coupons all over the store. :)

I go through all the categories about once a week to purge outdated coupons as well as add new ones.