To celebrate my 200th post I’ve made a video tour of my coupon binder! I hope you like it!
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If my voice didn’t scare you away then please let me know what you think!
Do you have any questions about my binder? How do you organize your coupons?
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Here is an awesome 50¢/1 Skippy Natural Peanut Butter with Honey Printable Coupon! If your store doubles coupons then you will probably be able to get some really cheap peanut butter with this coupon! You could also combine it with the 75¢/2 Skippy Peanut Butter Target Printable Coupon if your Target carries this variety. Share [...]
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I love seeing other’s coupon binders
I organize mine in a binder, too, only I do them by categories… like “baking” then I have these subcategories: ingredients, doughs/mixes, spices. Or “toiletries” then I have “femenine” “deoderant” “shaving”… Thanks for sharing!
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Thank you so much for posting this! I love to see how other people organize their coupons. I have mine in a binder, but I don’t actually clip them until I’m planning to use them. I keep them in a folder sorted by date they were issued. Any that I receive in the mail, peelies, etc. I keep in a separate place. Maybe I’ll try the baseball sheet idea though! That sounds easy enough!
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WOW! I’m amazed! I’m only about 2 months into collecting coupons and just keep the whole set that comes in the paper. I’ve heard of using binders, but could picture how it was done. You have done an amazing job, super organized. The video has helped me to get an idea of how I can now start my own. I’m having so much fun with all this and I love to organize so I’ll have to make that one of my projects… after the craziness of the holidays. Thanks again for doing such a wonderful job, on the binder and the blog!
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Thanks for all the sweet comments! I really do love my binder. I stopped keeping up with it for a few months and just filed my inserts in a box. I was going crazy! So, I started the binder back up and I’m so happy I did! It makes shopping for deals SO much easier! There are so many different ways to organize coupons (and I’ve tried A LOT of them! lol) and I’ve found that the binder is what works best for me!
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I think you have an awesome system going there! I used to use a binder but when I started to get 10 and 20 of each insert a week, the holder pockets just were not big enough. I think I might post mine on my next “what the heck do I post today” days lol Thanks for sharing, it is alwasy fun to see other peoples systems!
Toni-Lynn
GroceryPriceBooks.com
@Holly_GPB
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I like your idea for the coupon binder. I do mine by insert, but your way makes lots of sense to me.
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Thanks for sharing your vlog Stephnaie. Figuring out a way to manage coupons seems to be the only hard part to couponing. Thanks again for sharing.
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Neat idea and helps me out. I have been doing this between 3-4 weeks and am needing something better than the system that I have. I think I will be trying to implement this into my couponing! Thanks!
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I want to start this system but I am having trouble finding a good binder. Where did you get yours? I love the pockets. Also why did you decide to organize alphbatically instead of by category? Thanks for posting the video.
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fourboymommy,
I got my binder years ago so I don’t remember where I got it. If I had to guess I would say I probably either got it at Walmart or an office supply store like Office Max.
I chose to organize alphabetically because it just made more sense to me. I just get easily overwhelmed by some things and I wanted to keep it simple. This way I didn’t have to figure out all the different categories and then figure out if a cereal bars coupon goes in the cereal category or the snack category!
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I did a binder for a while, but it seemed a little tedious to make them fit in those little pockets. Do you try to collect multiples of the same coupon? If so, do you put all of the same coupon in one pocket?
Maybe I will get my binder out and try again.
I also have started keeping a database of all my coupons. When I get a new batch, I sit down and log in all the ones I think I will use. In that same database, I have columns for sales. That way as I log in a sale, I immediately see if I have a coupon for that item, because it is going in on the same line or “record” of the database as the coupon for that item. Does that make sense? Of course it is pretty time consuming.
So with the binder, how do you match up your sales with your coupons?
Thanks, Kathy
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Kathy,
I get multiple papers, usually 4-6, and the multiple Qs fit fine in the pockets (though it does make my binder pretty fat, lol).
I use HotCouponWorld.com and afullcup.com for their coupon databases. When I see something on sale, ie Birds eye vegetables, I will search their database with the term “birds eye” and it will give me a list of all available coupons for birds eye vegetables. It makes my job SO much easier!
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OM! You have made my job of coupon-ing So much easier. I started slowly the past couple of months and it paid off. I saved $97.00 on a total of $216 w/tax (prior to my stack of coupons). Your site has made it easier to understand the how too’s of coupon 101. Now I am able to stock up on freebies
Yay! Thanx Steph!
Jennifer ~ Nashville ~
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Jennifer,
That’s awesome!! Congrats on your savings! Glad I could help!
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This is sooo funny!!! I have been organizing my coupons this way too!! I saw your video and just laughed! I took my sons Pokemon card sheets (baseball card sheets), 5 plastic dividers with pockets, a zippered pouch (for my pen & scissors), paper to write my grocery list, and a large binder. I also made a cute sheet to slide in the clear front sleeve of the binder that says Amber’s Coupons. I did my sections for organizing a bit different. Food, Personal (makeup, toiletries…), Household (cleaning supplies), Dog, & Medicine (vitamins & otc meds). This works well with me. Thank you for having this site, it is awesome!!!!
Amber
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Amber,
The binder makes coupon shopping so much easier! I just wish it didn’t take so much time!
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Stephanie,
I have to go upstairs and listen to your explanation of your binder! I’ve started this 2 months ago and got the binder idea from a TV report about couponing. I was lucky to have all the supplies I needed to start – a binder, platic page covers and a large set of photo holder pages for a binder with 3×5 pockets. I divide by category (frozen, paper products, etc) and have about 2 of these pages per section. Each photo pocket is for a particular month to help with discarding out-of-date coupons. I’ve begun to paperclip like items together within that month’s pocket (paper towels, tp, trash bags, etc) to help with impulse buys at the store. It’s a rule that the note book goes in the store every time and sits in the kid’s seat. Here in NE Ohio, only one grocery store accepts Internet coupons and no stores double over 99 cents, so there are limits on what a couponer can do. But we spent $49 dollars yesterday and got another $16 of goods free with coupons, so we are doing better than not doing this at all. I follow the Coupon Mom’s online booklet on how to improve the deals on our coupons, but all of this has to be a serious hobby to make it work. We were already of the “storage” mentality when we began. We keep a pantry in our finished basement and a freezer full of vacuum sealed food in the garage, so we were ready for this next step. I can’t wait to learn more at this site! Thanks, Stephanie!
Carol
Akron, OH
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Can I say wow I am amazed by your book if you saw mine I looks like it exploded with very little organization. I love your idea I am going to try something like it. Luckily I have a good memory of where I ‘ve seen coupons last my bill was $81 and I got it down to $42 but wit hyour organization I think I could do much better. I am so greatful for the idea thanks again. I also have found other info on site useful!
Nikki
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Great way to organize.
I started the binder method back in the late 90′s and boy has that method taken off and others using a version of it too.
Glad you are saving with coupons!!
Have a wonderful day!
Laura
formerly known at LWMSAVON
The Coupon Binder Method Creator
http://laurawilliamsmusings.blogspot.com/2007/07/lauras-couponing-and-refunding-hints.html
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Hi- I love how you do organize your coupons. The alphabatizing ALL of them makes sense to me too.
One thing that I would like to know… When you get new coupons… lets say you have…
Alavert in the first slot, Aveeno coupons in the second slot, etc. Now what do you do when you get a coupon for Act. You don’t move all your coupons do you? This is what is keeping me from doing the binder right now. I’m afraid I would be too anal about keeping everything in alphabetical order.
Or do you just keep all the A’s together and then all the B’s together, etc?
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Chelle,
Goodness no! That would be way too time consuming. I just keep all the A’s in the A section in no particular order. I usually only have to flip through a page or two before I find the Q I’m looking for.
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Thanks for sharing this. I’m starting to get more sophisticated with my couponing, and your guide and this video are inspirational!
I’m really shocked by how many you have! I don’t have quite a selection, but I’m building it! I have a couple of tips in response to your video I would like to share:
1) My local library (Portland Oregon) has free classes on many subjects, and I’m taking a Couponing class later this month. Maybe yours does too.
2) I find a lot of great office supplies (some brand new!) at the Goodwill and other thrift stores. Check there for super cheap binders, which can be very expensive new.
3) We stopped subscribing to the local paper to cut our monthly expenses, but I get the Sunday newspaper coupons from my office, which does take the paper. If I didn’t take them, they would just end up in recycling.
Thanks for sharing – I really enjoy your newsletter. (And there’s nothing funny about your voice! We all sound funny to ourselves!)
~Lizzie in Portland, Oregon
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Stephanie,
I have been couponing for years and try to have a coupon for everything on my shopping list but there are things that we buy that I know I have a coupon for at home. Right now I have three plastic shoe boxes filled with coupons, number and on an excel spreadsheet. I am going to go with a binder system now and was not sure how to organize them…I like the idea of alphabetic so I dont have to think where is that coupon. Thank you for that idea.
Deb ~ Buffalo NY
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Stephanie,
About a year ago our youngest child was diagnosed with celiac disease and we switched to a gluten-free diet. I began menu planning at a whole new level, for me, at least. However, even after several months with menu planning, I found our grocery bill, was taking up a huge part of our budget. I tried planning our menus around naturally GF foods as much as possible. I compared prices on-line and at local stores for the GF foods we needed to buy. Our grocery bill was still high.
One day, I was checking out $5 Dinners website and found your website. It got me to thinking about getting into serious couponing. That was about three months ago. I am now saving 90-95% at the drugstores and about 50% at the grocery store.
I am telling you my story to let you know what a difference your website has made! Thank you!
I am trying to continue to improve on my saving! I have organized a huge binder with my coupons. I take it to the grocery with me, but I find it hard to handle in the grocery cart. It sits down too far into the child seat section of the cart. Do you or your readers have any suggestions?
Thank you so much!
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Karla,
I am so happy to hear how well you are doing in your couponing! One thing I do with my binder is, I place my purse (a fairly large one) in the child seat, then place my open binder on top of it. That way it is at the right level to browse the pages.
Good luck finding something that works for you! And thanks so much for sharing your story!
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I loved seeing your binder. I also use a binder. I had a ton of document protectors on hand so I used my sewing machine and made mine. I put paper in them & made each sheet to hold coupons on both sides. I have plain document protectors in the front that hold the sale bills for price matching at WalMart. I put a stick it note on each listing what is to be pricematched. I also use a sharpie to circle item and expiration date of salebill.
I file my coupons by store aisles. Very short dated coupons are put in envelopes & labeled then held in special pockets in front of binder. I then concentrate on them until they expire.
People are always stopping me & asking about my binder.
Thanks for sharing yours.
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Stephanie,
I was wondering where to find the baseball card holders to get my coupons organized? I looked at Walmart but couldn’t find anything.
Thanks!
Erin
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Bernadette Reply:
June 16th, 2010 at 4:53 pm
@erin, Hi Erin, I was reading your comment about not being able to find the baseball card pages. You might want to check out a sports memorabalia store, if there’s one near you. I have a friend that owns one and he provides them to me free. Once I told him what I was looking for and the purpose of the sheets, he happily supplied me with them and said to ask for more if needed.
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Erin,
I found mine near the front of the store at Walmart with the Pokemon cards.
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I can’t wait until my son is home from school so we can go to WalMart and I can get a binder! LOL – it’s amazing how this money saving “addiction” has quickly become a hobby! I used to dread grocery shopping!
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Suzanne Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 8:18 am
@Ericka, I stay home with my 4 kids while my hubby works 2 jobs(half our income goes to child support) so I think of my couponing as a part-time job, since I save about $400-500 a month it about equals a part-time jobs take home pay
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I’ve been couponing for about a month and a half. Before I got back into this I spent a lot of time searching YOUTUBE and checking out everybody’s methods. I’ve gotten so many FREE items from CVS and WALGREENS that I get pumped up about it! I’ve taught one of my sister’s how to play the game, the others don’t get it. My sister, Deb, and I can’t wait to call each other to see who can find a better deal.
I too, am using the binder method with the baseball card holders (I got mine at a comic store for .25 a page). I put mine in catagories like frozen, bathroom, pantry, etc. I used my label maker to tag each space ex: first divider FRIDGE then on my pockets I labeled eggs, butter, cheese, deli meat, etc.
But sometimes that gets confusing because a coupon can be used on multiple items such as makeup: eyeshadow, foundation, lips, nails.
I might reconsider and do mine a-z. I know I’ll use less labels and filing will be faster.
I work 12 hr shifts so I have a lot of time to organize and search for freebies!!
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Stephanie,
I found your organizing suggestions about a week ago and could not wait to get the plastic sheets. Your video made the “written” instructions so clear. We were on a road trip and I first read this idea on my I-phone so,you can understand how exicted the video was for me.
I am about to start filing those coupons. I have been using envelopes to organize and am just getting started couponing.
Thanks for your website and wonderful ideas:)k
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I was a little surprised you file alphabetically. I have been tempted to do this and wondered how it works when you get another coupon that goes in that “letter”? Do you just add it to the back of that range so you don’t have to move all of your coupons around?
Thanks for sharing!
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Stephanie Reply:
February 12th, 2010 at 8:35 pm
@Mary Middleton, The are not filed alphabetically within the tabs. So, all “A” brands are under the “A” tab, but they are not in alphabetical order beyond that.
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I made my own coupon box (this works better for me than a binder) by taking a plastic coupon organizer and cutting the bottom off so you can just expand it as much as you can and I stapled it into a clementines box from the supermarket. It works really well and when I pull out a coupon to use I have a nice little side pocket to put in in so none get lost . I sort by cataogory and try to always make my list based on the aisle layout in the store. My husband no longer complains about my couponing since I saved 393.00 on a 450.00 grocery bill. I am also fortunate that a friend works at a convenience store and gives me extra inserts every week, usually 30 copies of each insert.
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I love your binder! How do you manage the experation dates of your coupons though? That seems to be my dilema.
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Stephanie Reply:
April 9th, 2010 at 2:25 pm
@rebecca wockenfuss, I don’t worry too much about expiration dates. At the end of the month I take my binder to the store to see if I can get any free trial sizes with the coupons that are about the expire. Any really good coupons like freebies and high value coupons I keep separate so I don’t accidentally forget about them.
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I love the binder idea and would like to use it but I am having the same problem locating the baseball card holders. Does anyone know of a good website where they can be purchased?
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Stephanie Reply:
April 22nd, 2010 at 5:56 pm
@Cynthia, Amazon sells them.
9 pockets: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000MKFFM6?ie=UTF8&tag=coupon101-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000MKFFM6
6 pockets: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000IKB8SA?ie=UTF8&tag=coupon101-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000IKB8SA
3 pockets: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000IKB8TY?ie=UTF8&tag=coupon101-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000IKB8TY
Hope that helps!
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Cynthia Reply:
April 23rd, 2010 at 12:22 pm
@Stephanie, Thank you Stephanie, I ordered them this morning and can’t wait to get them.
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Bernadette Reply:
July 27th, 2010 at 2:51 pm
@Cynthia,
If you have a Big K in your area.. they have the baseball card sheets there.
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I bought some sheet protectors and a binder so I can spread out my coupons easier to see. Where do you put the coupons in expiration order? I can see what you did with the categories, but I didn’t see where you mention expiration dates.
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Stephanie Reply:
May 28th, 2010 at 5:12 pm
@Debbie Young, I don’t organize them by expiration date – way too time consuming! I just stuff them in their letter section in no particular order!
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How do you know where to locate a specific coupon when the databases tell you what insert a certain coupon came from, and you have cut them out of the inserts to put in the binder? I’m wondering if you even need the database since you probably just search through the binder by alphabet or category.
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Stephanie Reply:
June 9th, 2010 at 1:10 pm
@Diane, I don’t need the database for inserts because I can just flip through my binder. But I do use the database for printables and other types of coupons that aren’t in my binder.
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Alexis Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 12:39 am
@Stephanie, You can get really cheap .25 pages with 9 pockets at comic book/gaming shops. If you aren’t used to such places, it might be a little intimidating (judging by some I’ve seen walk in), but most stores have really nice and helpful workers. Just ask for card holding pages and they’ll be able to help you out.
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Alexis Reply:
June 10th, 2010 at 12:40 am
@Alexis, oops…that was supposed to go for Cynthia… ah, well.
I’m sooo excited to go and get baseball card holders and start up a binder. I can’t wait ’til I get out of work so I can start this!
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I got myself a durable canvas binder for under 10 bucks and bought a pack of baseball-card holders (I’ll need to get a second pack, didn’t realize I had so many coupons), along with dividers and I’m so excited because I’m almost done putting all my coupons in my binder.
Thank you so much for the video Stephanie! I’m using your system of organization. I started couponing not very long ago and I’m loving it so much. It brings me such joy to save the kind of money I have been saving. Most of the people I know aren’t into it and I tell them they need to get onboard. I notice that couponing isn’t too common here in the west coast, particularly southern-west coast. I need to spread the word about couponing and couponing101.com!
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I know it is awful and unbelievable, but I gave up on couponing last year because I just got overwhelmed by all the different ways to organize coupons, printables, 1001 blogs to keep up with, RR, ECB’s, and seeing bloggers save 90% when I was thrilled with my 50%, but I think I am over myself and have decided to try this again, (with a better attitude.) It kills me to spend as much as I do when I KNOW I can spend at least half of what I am spending now. Reading some of your how-tos has been really helpful. Thanks for taking the time to do it! Let’s get our kiddos together to play! AND maybe I will soak up some of your knowledge. – Julie
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Stephanie Reply:
June 29th, 2010 at 3:03 pm
@Julie, It can be a little overwhelming so I totally understand. I take little breaks from time to time to keep from getting bogged down. When I get back into it I always feel refreshed and eager to start saving again! And I think 50% is great! Any amount you save – $1 or $100 – is blessing your family!
And we should absolutely get together!
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Stephanie-your video isn’t working…any way you can get it going again? I would love to see it
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Stephanie Reply:
July 26th, 2010 at 6:42 pm
@Karen, It’s fixed! Sorry about that!
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Thank you for posting your video about your coupon binder. I am putting one together and this is very helpful to me.
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Stephanie Reply:
August 12th, 2010 at 7:04 pm
@Renee, I’m glad! Good luck getting it all put together!
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I saw your binder and I was so glad when I looked around the house and had EVERYTHING I needed already here! Loved your concept and it’s going to really help me in my beginning voyage with couponing! Thank you!
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Stephanie Reply:
August 23rd, 2010 at 5:47 pm
@Shanae, Yay! I’m excited for you! Good luck with your new binder!!
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