Rainbow was having Double Double Daze which means they will double up to 10 manufacturer's coupons. I don't normally shop at Rainbow because I feel like they're prices are to high to begin with, but they had some pretty great store coupons which can be combined with the manufacturer's coupons that are being doubled. So I set to wrk this morning around 10:30 figuring out what I was going to get, what the best deals were and finding all the coupons I needed. Here is where I spent the next several hours.
Notice the two computers (this does not include the desktop that was also on)..that gray USB cord got quite a workout going from the printer to one computer to another and another then back again! I spent about an hour trying to print coupons from my Mac laptop but the only ones that worked were the Target coupons (and even those it would only print half of). Everything else printed TINY :( After a lot of struggling and some yelling (at no one) I drug out our ancient, giant PC laptop.
I had to print one coupon at a time but they were finally the right size and I got all the ones I needed! I looked through the online ads on the Mac laptop because the PC is about as slow as molasses.
Eventually I made my way to Rainbow and Target with my lists and coupons! Notice my Rainbow list is twice as long as the Target one. I ended up with 1 bag from Rainbow and five from Target! A lot of what I wanted to get at Rainbow was either already gone or not a good enough price even with a doubled coupon.
Rainbow was frustrating for me because I never shop there so I don't know where anything is. Plus I was nervous about all my coupons working. It took me FOREVER to find the stupid shampoo! It was nowhere near the other health & beauty stuff :( I finally had to ask a manager who was stocking shelves. He laughed and admitted that it was in a totally awkward place and said customers always have to ask where it is...this doesn't seem like a very good business plan to me...but anyway I finally found what I needed!
The retail value of what I purchased at Rainbow was $29.38 and I paid $15.22 which means I saved $14.16. Almost half!
Next came Target. I love Target :) I spend far too much time there but I know where everything is! I had already been to Target twice that week so I knew they had several $5 gift card deals which is one of my favorite things! My list was short but complicated!
I needed to buy 4-8 Dove items to get $5-10 in gift cards and I had 8 coupons. HOWEVER, there were about 20 different items with all different prices that I could purchase for this deal. LONG Story (and a LOT of calculating) short...I ended up with 4 Body Washes and 4 two-packs of deodorant. $34.60 worth of product and after coupons and gift cards I paid $15.60 or $1.30 for each item.
Then came the shaving cream. I got 5 cans, 2 of which were free, paid $2.09 each for 3 of them, had $2.05 in coupons which in the end means each can cost me $.84.
Next was the Garnier Fructis Shampoo and Conditioner. They were $2.99 each and I had $2 worth of coupons for each of them so I only paid $.99 PLUS I got a FREE travel size shampoo :)
And then there were the vitamins! I take 2 Vitamin D pills a day and I go through a lot of bottles a year so finding a deal on Vitamin D always makes me happy! I usually end up getting the Nature Made brand because they have a rewards program! Target had a special for buy 3 Vitamin D and get a $5 gift card. I had 3 coupons so in the end I got each bottle that originally cost $4.89 for $2.22.
I got a few other random things and used my two $2 gift cards that I got free through Shopkick, plus another $1.50 coupon.
I ended up doing 6 transactions so that I could use the $5 gift cards right away instead of bringing them back for my next shopping trip. I had to tell three different people who came up behind me that I was doing lots of transactions and they all thanked me and found a new checkout lane ;) The cashier was SO nice and helpful!
After all was said and done I got $131.60 worth of stuff (including my Rainbow purchase) for just $66.53. A savings of $65.07!! Just short of 50%! $60 still seems like a lot but I have to remind myself that the majority of what I got is health & beauty stuff which is typically more expensive.
There you have it! If you made it all the way through this I applaud you! I can't wait to do more couponing...now I have to go clean up my dining room floor...Here's everything I got!
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