FRUGAL SHOPPING TIPS (coupons, sales, techniques)

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

Do you have some Frugal Shopping Tips to share? Ideas or information about coupons, sales, stocking up? Have you discovered a great store, a great website, a great bargain? This thread is for everything (and anything) having to do with the topic of Frugal Shopping Tips!

[cronewitch]

I am planning to buy diapers, lots of diapers to donate to charity. I am looking for coupons and sales that are everyday low prices.

I just started looking but it looks like you can sign up for BabiesRUs and they will send coupons.

Amazon has a enrollment program

Costco has everyday low prices

Name brands have websites like Pampers and Huggies

I don't know anything about the babies being donated to by the charities so not interested in if they are better for chubby or thin babies. They claim to need size 4 and 5 all the time. I wouldn't mind an enrollment in a diaper of the month club or something that shipped to the charity.

Quality should be average, not bad or deluxe so any name brand like Kirkland should do. It is for homeless babies living in shelters so cloth isn't really an option.

I am waiting until after the holidays to get started so just gathering cost data now and might set up new email just to get coupons to handle the diapers coupons.

[gawgagranny]

Crone, what a wonderful idea! Happy bargain hunting!

[joynerk]

Crone, from experience diapers are always expensive! However, you can find more coupons for some than others. What I try to do is watch Costco's mailed coupon book, and stock up when they have a coupon in there. Also sometimes Amazon has good deals.

Good luck!

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

Crone, that's a great idea. I think there are some free parenting-type magazines that you can sign up for, that may also come with coupons. But I will keep my eyes open for diaper sales at national chains, and I will keep my eyes open for diaper coupons for you, too.!

[joynerk]

My favorite store is Publix!! They do BOGO and you can use a coupon on both the one you buy, and the free one. They also will accept a store (or competitor) coupon in conjunction with a manufacturer's coupon. So on a good deal you can use 4 coupons for 2 items (and they double manif coupons up to $.50) and it really knocks down the price!

I've been building up a stockpile over the past year and will use the "free" items in the bogo to go straight to stockpile. In addition to having a huge store of food now, I've probably spent 30-40% less throughout the past year.

I'll an avid fan of Iheartpublix.com which helps match up sales with coupons and lets you keep up with all the deals!

* I know this is fairly "elementary" for the scope of this board, but everyone starts somewhere!

[cronewitch]

We don't have Publix here. I don't really do coupons since I buy generic and on sale and am rather lazy.

[cronewitch]

I found a site named diaper bales that has diaper seconds at as low as 29cents a pound for the ones that have a lower percentage of usable diapers. You could get 700 lbs at a time but they wouldn't be in cute little packages. Sizes are assorted so you would need a place to sort and package them for handing out to clients. Don't think the charity I have in mind would want to do the work or have the space.

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

I wonder how many diapers are in a pound? They seem pretty bulky, but light weight.

[cronewitch]

The bundles were about 5 cents a diaper where on Amazon the least is about 12 cents. But these are seconds so not perfect and the worst might not have tabs to close them. A frugal broke woman who was desperate would use them with rubber pants or duct tape them on but often charities only want perfect things.

I was thinking at one point of opening a baby charity for poverty stricken families like a club with meetings in a small rural town when I retire. Then I could shop for specific babies and stock a little food bank with baby food, diapers, wipes maybe hand out Angel Food type deals for families and toss in a bonus pack for the babies. Then you would know the parents would appreciate the help and not just throw away the seconds that didn't have cute cartoons on them.

[zippy478]

I've diapered three kids using a variety of brands and for my boys, I was a Pampers snob. I found those to be the best in terms of leaks and such. However, for my girl, I'm using the Members Mark brand from Sam's Club. I get a lot of bang for my buck. A box of about 150 goes for $30ish if I remember right. If you don't have a membership/don't want to sign up, I've also found that the off brands sold by WalMart and Target are comparable and are typically a non-decorated version of the brand names. .

I've found that typically even with a coupon, I still save more per diaper using the off brands than using the brand names unless it's a coupon attached to a sale price.

I know some people have success with diapers.com and I think that might solve your diaper of the month club because you can set it up for automatic delivery if I remember right. It might be worth checking out and lots of times they have good deals. I've never used them but I've heard good things about them.

Good luck and what a great idea!

[cronewitch]

I thought of an old trick I used back in 1966 when I was young and poor. Shopping without money or any other means of buying anything. I would walk to the city from the top of the hill I lived on maybe a mile to the city then all over the city shopping. If I found something I couldn't live without I had to walk all the way back up the hill. Back up was at least twice as far as down the hill so when I got home to get my money I was tired. Walking back down, back to the store and carrying my prize up the hill made me often decide I didn't want it that bad.

Yesterday I had the day off so had my oil changed, tires rotated and recall item fixed so had time to kill. I walked to a store and shopped then walked back to my car. I have a bad ankle and it hurt really bad when I got back. I couldn't buy when in the store because no car. Nothing seemed worth driving to the store and walking in the store again. I drove to another store but didn't buy anything there either so came home and took a long nap.

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

Cronewitch, that's a GREAT idea. I need to do more "shopping" on my bicycle ~ that should really help eliminate unnecessary purchases!