How to Make Your Own Coupon Binder

For all those couponers out there, we all know that in order to successfully be frugal, save money, and use coupons to their fullest, we need to stay organized. You need to ensure you use coupons before they expire, use coupons at particular stores, and use coupons for particular brands. So most couponers have found a great way to stay organized – by using a coupon binder! Here we are going to teach you how to actually make your own coupon binder:

What you’ll need:

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• 1.5” or 3” binder
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• Multiple sheets of plain white computer paper
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• 5-10 clear sheet protectors
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• 20-30 baseball card protectors/business card protectors

Instructions:

1. You will be using the plain white computer paper for the category labels and you can design the category labels however you want. You can just put their titles such as Baby coupons, Food, Household, etc. or you can put images – use your imagination! You can also print off these pre-designed category sheets http://www.4shared.com/office/QzWOQ0A_/KeepingLifeCreative_Coupon_Bin.html

2. Place each category paper into the sheet protectors.

3. Put about 5 sheets of baseball card protectors in between each category.

4. Done and ready to start couponing!

In order to stay organized and get the most out of your coupons, you want to ensure that you properly keep track of your coupons, their expiry dates, and of course to save even more money, use coupons when the product is already on sale.

Hopefully you enjoyed this do it yourself project and don’t forget to check back to Coupon-Smart.com daily for freebies, samples, Target coupons, and coupon codes.

3 Ways to Save Money This Halloween

I know – you’re probably thinking “why on earth are you bringing up Halloween already?!”. But the truth is, Halloween will be here before we know it and I’ve always been a huge believer in preparing WELL in advance! So here are five strategies for you to start thinking about to SAVE money on Halloween 2012:

1. Halloween Costumes

Of course you can make your children’s Halloween costumes from scratch, but if you prefer to buy them already made (I’m guilty of it too!) – you can get these costumes at much cheaper prices now compared to when you go to purchase them in October. You can search Halloween Express and Spirit Halloween to search for your kids dream Halloween costume!

2. Halloween Candy

For those of us who live in the suburbs, we all know how much candy we go through on All Hollows Eve! So the best way to save money on Halloween candy is to purchase baby coupons and go to your local bulk foods store and buy candy in bulk when they have certain sales.

3. Halloween Decorations

This is my favorite part of Halloween! I love decorating my house and having the kids help out! Usually for Halloween decorations I go and raid my local Dollar General AS SOON as they begin to sell Halloween decorations (usually they put out the decorations on sale in September).

Halloween has been one of my favorite times of the year not only because I love the gorgeous autumn colors changing, but also because of the fun and excitement of Halloween! Hopefully these tips help you in cutting back your expenses this year. For more tips and tricks for saving money, visit Coupon-Smart.com and you can also purchase the Target coupons for this Also be on the lookout for Halloween coupons that we’ll be beginning to post in the next few weeks! 

5 Family Activities to do on Labor Day Weekend

Even though school has already started for most people, I’ve always considered Labor Day Weekend as the final kick off of the summer and the beginning of the school year. So I always like planning out something frugal for the final weekend!

1. Camping

Who doesn’t love packing up and heading out into the wilderness for the weekend! My kids love camping and it’s always something I’ve loved doing too! The great thing about camping on Labor Day Weekend is that its not extremely humid (like it was in July and August!) so you can enjoy a great outdoors weekend with the fam!

2. Local Festivals

Check your city’s website for local activities taking place, because most of the time there are festivals, events, and family activities going on for Labor Day Weekend. These festivals are usually either free, or very low cost to get in and you can make it a whole day event with the your little ones.

3. Go Swimming

This maybe the last nice weekend to take your kids to your local swimming park and let them enjoy swimming outdoors before the temperature drops. You can pack up a picnic, and make a whole day out of it you can do all these thing by purchasing target coupons.

4. Go Hiking

Going hiking is not only a great outdoors educational experience for your young ones, but it’s also great for getting some fitness! You can go to your local state park or national park and hike through the trails. Ensure to bring a first aid kit, lots of water, snacks, and fruits so you can get a good day event out of your hiking excursion.

5. Plan a Family BBQ

Now that the summer is over, most people are going to start getting into a busier routine and that includes your extended family. Why not throw a big family BBQ for Labor Day, but most of the time that’s the last time you’ll see them until Christmas gatherings begin. You can make it a very basic BBQ by just grilling up some hamburgers, or turn it into a potluck so that not all of the work falls on you! Don’t forget to use up some of your baby couponsto save your hard-earned money on prepping for the BBQ! .

How To Stop Wasting Food

Unfortunately in North America, wasting food has become a large problem in our society. In fact, 1.3 BILLION tons of food is wasted around the world each year. This is so unfortunate because there are so many countries in the world that have people dying everyday of starvation. So are some tips on how you can stop wasting so much food (and money!):

Stick To Your List

When you are grocery shopping, and you see a great sale, so many people buy the product just because it’s on sale. However, you should refrain from this. Before you go grocery shopping, make a list and STICK to that list and take some target coupons. Don’t get side tracked on the stores sales of the week because that causes you to buy unneeded food.

Use Leftovers

I hear of so many people who throw out whatever food is leftover from dinner and it makes me cringe to hear this! Not only are you wasting valuable food, but you might as well just throw away your money too! When dinner is done and there are usable leftovers, put them in a plastic container and you or someone in your family can take them to work the next day for lunch.

Plan Your Meals

Usually on the weekends, I have a meal plan in mind for the week and I precook my food. If you plan out your meals for the week, you are able to determine what you need and how much of it you’ll need. If you will purchase some target couponsthen this will help to eliminate waste.

Buy Proper Food Storage Containers

Of course we all want to buy the $1.00 plastic containers at the DollarTree, but if you are able to, you should invest in a glass container set as these actually keep your left over foods fresh longer than the plastic containers, not to mention that they are much safer for reheating your food.

3 Ways to Save Money at the Movie Theatre

We all love going to a movie with either friends, family, or a date . It’s always fun to go see a movie that you’ve never seen before, spend some time with friends or family, and of course, have some snacks! However, because the movie theatre industry has become such a monopoly they also raise those prices and a simple movie night can turn into a very expensive night out! For a family of four (2 adults & 2 children) it can cost the following:

2 Adults $25.98 (2 x $12.99)

2 Children $17.98 (2 x $8.99)

$43.96 ***This is WITHOUT food!

So I’ve done the research to find the absolute best strategies for you to save money on your movie nights whether you are going with a friend, a group of friends, or your whole family! By purchasing target Coupons, Have some tips that I missed? Comment below!

Go on “Cheap Night”

Most movie theatres feature a “cheap night” (it’s usually Tuesday). This “cheap night” is usually about 50% off the regular price. Cheap night is Tuesday at Empire Theatres, Cineplex, and Cinemark. AMC Theatres doesn’t appear to have a cheap night, but they do offer some great discounts randomly on tickets and food. Their August deal is 50% off Combo 1 or 2 http://go.amctheatres.com/august-combo-coupon. Regal Cinemas also does not offer cheap nights, but offers many great discounts on food and tickets randomly. They also offer $2 Candy Monday, $2 Popcorn Tuesday, and Regal Value Days randomly where you can get great discounts on tickets.

Bring Your Own Concessions

Food and drinks at the movie theatres can run up to a fairly hefty bill, so bring your own! I usually pop up some popcorn, go to the DollarTree and grab some bags of candy for the kids, and bring cans of pop or coffee . You can honestly save yourself $30 to $50!

Sign Up for Movie Rewards

So many people think purchasing target Coupons are scams, but the truth is they are designed to reward those movie-goers who frequently attend movies. AMC Theatres offers a program called AMB Stubs™, Regal Cinemas offers the Crown Club, and Cinemark offers a weekly email program where they send you exclusive discounts and offers.

Top 5 Couponing Strategies

Couponing can be a fantastic way to save money and cut back on household expenses. However, it’s not nearly as easy as you think it would be. Many people attempt to try couponing not realizing how difficult it is and they quickly become aware that it’s a difficult task to endure. Here are my top five couponing strategies that I teach to anyone trying to get into the hobby of couponing:

Learn Your Coupon Sources

A few decades ago the only place you would be able to find coupons is in your local newspaper but now couponers have access to printable coupons thanks to Coupons.com and Coupon Network, online coupon codes, and mobile coupons. We have a huge variety of where we can find coupons, so lets utilize it!

Organize Your Coupons

You won’t get anywhere with couponing if you don’t get yourself organized. You should find a binder and organize your coupons by date. Most coupons have an expiry date so that’s what you need to go by so you don’t waste a coupon.

Buy in Bulk

One of the best ways to utilize Target coupons is to buy your products in bulk. When the product is on sale and you have coupons for it, take advantage of that and buy the product in large quantities.

Give Up Brand Loyalty

If you are someone who is “loyal” to particular brands, than couponing is not for you. A couponer is aiming to do one thing and one thing only, save money. If you only buy products from a certain brand, than it doesn’t matter if you have coupons for other brands or not because you wont use them.

Only Buy What You Need

When many people start couponing, they literally just starting purchasing any products that they find coupons for – this is defeating the purpose of saving your money. It’s great that you have a coupon for a particular product, but if you are never going to use that product than you just wasted that money. So before you go plurging on all types of products, just ask yourself “Will I actually use this?”.

Hopefully these tips will help you the next time you’re couponing at your local grocery store. And remember the best time to go to the grocery store when you’re going to use grocery coupons, Target coupons is early weekday morning when it’s quiet and you don’t have to worry about long line ups at the stores.

5 Tips for Saving on Your Summer Vacation

Tis the season for summer vacationing! We all love taking a little road trip, jetting off somewhere, or taking a staycation, but vacations can also be hard on your budget. Here are some tips and resources that will help you cut back on your vacation expenses and keep you on budget.

Restaurant.com

Of course when your traveling with your family, you don’t usually have time to prepare home cooked meals so you usually end up eating out most of the time. Eating out for three per day for 3-4 people can soon add up to a very hefty bill. So check out Restaurant.com for coupons, ecoupons , target coupons and daily deals on restaurants that you can use while your on vacation to save.

Citypass.com

If you are going to one city in particular, you can search for a city pass. These are great! Basically, you purchase the city pass and you usually have access to multiple events, things to do, and attractions. It’s a great way to help you save hundreds on tickets and passes that you would buy individually.

Expedia.com

If you are required to fly to your destination, try to book as far ahead in advance as possible so you don’t get hit with a larger than normal plane ticket price. Expedia.com is one that I use quick regularly as it basically provides me all the search results for all flights and then I can choose the cheapest. However, there are other websites as well such as Hotwire.com, Orbitz.com, Kayak.com, Travelocity.com, and Priceline.com

Groupon.com

I’m a HUGE fan of Groupon and if I’m going to go on vacation to a particular city, I always sign up for email alerts from Groupon for that city. Again, a great way to get great deals that allow you to do more while on vacation.Groupon has attraction deals, restaurant deals, shopping deals, household coupons and entertainment deals on a daily basis.

AirBNB.com

This is a fairly new up and coming website that allows home owners to post their home, condo, or dwelling as a vacation rental for vacationers to save money. You can view their profile, owners get reviews from past renters, and these owners usually charge a fraction of the price that you’ll end up spending on a hotel.