The Molly Crew is part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew, and focuses more on books and products for the home. As part of the Molly Crew, I was given the opportunity to review the book Couponing Made Simple, written by Christi The Coupon Coach. I love saving money and using coupons, so I was excited to read this book!
First, let me share my experience with couponing. My Mom used coupons when I was little, so when I got married that's what I did. The difference is my Mom just used coupons-she didn't check what was the better deal, or what was on sale that week. Therefore, she didn't have big savings from coupons. For years I've matched coupons with the weekly ads. Then about five or so years ago, I discovered stacking coupons and what a huge savings that can be. I'm not an extreme couponer, but I consistently get at least 35%-65% off our shopping receipts (but sometimes much more!). Lately, with lots of craziness in our household, I've not been as diligent as I should be and our finances reflect that. Reading Christi's book was just the boost I needed to get going again!
Christi wrote this book to help real families save real money. This isn't going to make you an extreme couponer like on the TV show. Think about it- if a family of four that spends $700 per month on food saves 60%, that is over $5000 per year saved! Even 30% savings would save them approximately $2500 per year-that's a lot of money!
In Couponing Made Simple, the author goes through her system step-by-step. She also covers many other topics, such as where to find your coupons, couponing ethics, and lots of helpful tips. There are many black and white pictures in the book, which are helpful. Her two main rules are: Buy on Sale and Stack Coupons!
As an experienced couponer, I wasn't sure if I would learn anything new from Christi's book. Well, I sure did! Besides renewing my excitement over couponing, there were tips she gave that were new to me. One of them was weighing pre-packaged items, such as bags of potatoes or apples, to get the most for your money. What a great idea! A huge help is Christi's favorite online coupon sites on her website. These sites will help you find the best deals!
My method of couponing is the binder method, and Christi uses the box/file system. I've decided to try out her method, as sometimes the binder seems really cumbersome. So far, the jury is still out on which system I like better. I'm going to stick with Christi's method a little longer before I make my decision.
This is a picture from my biggest savings to date: 99%!! The retail price on the products was $83.87, and I paid $0.99!! We were stocked up on hair products for quite a while!
Couponing Made Simple is available for only $18.00 for paperback and just $4.99 for Kindle. Visit http://christithecouponcoach.com to purchase and learn even more from Christi. Christi's wealth of knowledge is useful for brand-new couponers, experienced couponers, and everyone in between!
No comments:
Post a Comment