Tax free couponing fun in Oregon!

Ok, so I have a confession to make - I have become unbelievably cheap while learning to coupon.  I once put back 2 Scrubbing Bubbles Shower Sprayer refills ($6.99) at Target because even though I could get them totally FREE with coupons I had with me, it didn't seem worth it to pay the $.66 tax on each one.  Now, dear fellow coupons, before you laugh, my reasoning was sound:
1. I had enough bottles already to keep my family's showers sparkling clearn for months to come
2. I didn't just want to donate a refill container and count on someone happening to have a starter sprayer lying around to attach it to.
Later a friend (who doesn't coupon) told me that sounded just crazy - after all, it was only $.66!  Oh well.  And you know what?  A week later I score 6 Shower Sprayers for Better Than Free AND used the overage on them to pay for other stuff I was buying.  That's the day I ended up with a cartful of goodies and a negative total at Target before tax.  After tax I think I paid $3 and change for over $100 worth of stuff, then I was able to donate 6 sprayers!  Glad I didn't spend the $.66 the week before. :)

All of that to say I do occasionally think, as I read other blogs where they declare that a bunch of stuff at Walgreens or Rite Aid is "free" that week, that I wish we didn't have such outrageous sales tax here so more stuff was a little closer to free after tax for us!  Soooooooo, since I was headed to sales-tax-free Oregon last week I thought I'd make good use of the recent Schick coupons and Walgreen's RR deals.  The result (done in 5 transactions so I could get the RR on each razor):

5 Schick Hydro 5 razors (on sale for $7.99)
5 Schick Hydro shave gels (on sale for $1.49)
= $47.40
used (5) $5/1 Hydro razor SS 8/8
used (5) free shave gel when you buy a Hydro razor
OOP = $14.95, plus receive 5 $2 RR (one for each razor)
= $4.95

If I bought it all at home it still would have been a PRETTY good deal at $9.45, but saving an extra $4.50 (and getting to use up some of my about-to-expire RR doing it) made my vacation just the tiniest bit funner!  LOL!  I'm not the only one having fun couponing, right?  Ladies?  :)

FREE Bic Soleil disposable razors at Walgreens!

I stumbled on this deal tonight while searching for something to spend my about-to-expire Register Rewards on in a rather dull Walgreen's week.  Since these were FREE they didn't help me with my RR problem, but they were fun to get for nothing!  Walgreen's has these on sale this week Buy One Get One 50% Off which works nicely with some recent coupons

Buy 2 Bic Soleil disposable razors 3 or 4 ct, any of the Soleil variety  $5.99ea (Soleil Bella is $6.99)
Use Bic Disposable Shaver BOGO Free (up to $6.99 value)  from SS 8/1 (exp 8/29)
Use $3/1 Bic Disposable Shavers 3, 4 or 8pk  from SS 7/11 (exp 8/22)
= 2 FREE

Note: you'll want something else to absob the couple pennies of overage so the register won't beep.  If your cashier tries to make the 50% off one the BOGO Free one you can politely point out that it should work on the full price one you're purchasing.  I double-checked with the manager who checked me out at my store and he said yes, that should be clear to all the cashiers. :)

Happy shopping!

Cheez-Its $.50 at Walgreens!

I think this is an unadvertised Register Reward - or at least I didn't see it in their ads and haven't seen it on any blogs yet, but there was a yellow RR shelf tag on them at my store (Mill Creek, WA).

If you printed the $1/1 coupon from the Cheez-Its FB page a couple weeks ago grab them and head to Walgreens!

Buy 2 Cheez-Its (2 for $5 sale)
Use 2 $1/1 coupons
Pay $$3, get $2 RR wyb 2 Cheez-Its
= $.50 each

Nivea for Men - Better Than Free at Walgreens

So you've probably already seen the money-making scenario on Nivea Active 3 bodywash at Walgreens. However everywhere I've seen it based it on using a $3/1 coupon from Red Plum on 5/2 or 4/25. Well since I just stared couponing and maybe you did too, we don't have those coupons saved!

However, there is a $1.50/1 Nivea Men's product coupon in the Safeway June coupon book. You can use that to still make the Walgreen's Nivea Active 3 deal Better Than Free!

Nivea Men's Active 3 bodywash - $5.99 + tax = $6.56
Use $1.50/1 coupon
OOP cost = $5.06
Get Register Reward for $6.00
Actual Cost = $-.94

Have fun!

Better Than Free!!!

In the last couple few weeks since I started couponing I’ve posted on Facebook about some pretty amazing deals I’ve been getting and more than a couple ladies have contacted me asking for details. I thought I’d share my purchases at Walgreens this week to give you a concrete example of how you can get stuff for BETTER than free! Yes, I am actually getting PAID to shop sometimes!

Here is a photo of what I’ve bought this week


A few points to keep in mind as you read the below:

1. Register Rewards (RR) are coupons that the Catalina machine prints out when you finish a transaction. (The Catalina machine is the little machine next to the one that prints your receipt.) Register Rewards is just Walgreens' specific name for a Catalina, at other stores they’re just called Catalinas.
Catalinas (RRs) are a credit that a manufacturer gives to you when you buy specific products. They will say something like “Save $5 Off Your Next Shopping Order Over the Value of Coupon.” That means that if you spend at least $5, you can use that to take $5 off your total bill.

This is what a Walgreens RR looks like:


2. I count RR as credit towards my total purchases because they really are unrestricted money I will spend on my next transactions in the next week or two, especially since Safeway now has the official policy that they'll accept any Catalinas from any store.

3. I’m still not a huge believer in Mail-in-Rebates though many coupon-ers have now assured me that they pretty much always receive these rebates eventually (e.g. if it says 4-6 weeks, it will likely take 6 weeks to come). For this reason I do NOT count Mail-in-Rebates as a credit towards my total purchases because frankly I’m not really sure yet that I will ever get that money! LOL!

I have noted them at the end, though, so you can see how Better Than Free can become Much Better Than Free if this whole Mail-in-Rebate thing actually pans out! :)

4. Most deals you will see on other coupon blogs and sites only figure total cost before tax. Because we unfortunately live in a state with near-the-highest sales tax rate in the nation, I am actually figuring mine WITH sales tax – 9.5% to be specific since that’s what I pay at most places around here (different cities can vary slightly). I’ve called out the price and tax for each item separately so you can see.

With all that in mind, here is what I bought at Walgreens this week:

Schick Hydro 5 razor - $7.99
Used $5 coupon from paper 6/13
Each Item Total = $2.99 + $.76 tax = $3.75
Received $4.00 RR for each razor
Purchased 5 razors total
PAID = $18.75
RECEIVED RR = $20.00

Listerine Whitening - $5.99
Used $3 Walgreens in-ad coupon
Used $2 manufacturer’s coupon printed from internet
Item Total = $.99 + $.28 tax = $1.27
PAID = $1.27

Neutrogena Makeup Remover wipes - $5.99
Neutrogena Face Wash Bar - $2.61
Neutrogena Face Wash Bar - $2.61
Used $1.50 off any Neutrogena item x 3 (one per item)
Total = $6.71 + $1.06 tax = $7.77
PAID = $7.77
RECEIVED RR = $10 (for buying 3 Neutrogena items)

Total paid for all items above = $27.79
RR received = $30.00
Real cost for items = $-2.21

And with rebates figured in it gets even better. I’m submitting the following:

Schick Rebate = $7.99
Purchase a Shick Hydro Razor and receive a rebate of the full purchase price up to $10.99.

Listerine Rebate = $10.00
Purchase ANY Listerine Whitening or Rembrandt product and receive a free $10 prepaid debit card

So, if you figure in the rebates, assuming they come (do I seem pessimistic enough?) Then buying all the items pictured above will actually have MADE me $20.20!!!

Amazing, huh?