Many beginning couponers often ask me where I find my coupons. The easiest place to start is with the inserts in the Sunday paper. They typically come out every week (the exception is holiday weekends) and a preview for the coupons that will be in the inserts for the upcoming week is posted on Wednesdays at Taylortown.

Look into getting a subscription to your local newspaper. I was able to get one for an entire year for $40. That is much less than it would cost me to get it at the store each week. If you have a 99 cent store in your area, some of them also carry the Sunday paper!

Here are some other places where you can find coupons:

*Online: There is a link on the right side of the blog where you can print coupons. Some other places where you can print coupons from are: smartsource.com, couponmom.com, couponbug.com, and coolsavings.com.

Be sure to check manufacturer’s websites. Look for a “savings” or “special offers” link. Many of them offer printable coupons for their products.

On Hot Coupon World, they have a coupon database where you can search for various products and it will tell you what coupons are available for different products and where you can find them.

*Blinkie machines – Blinkie machines are the machines you will find in stores that have the blinking red light and spit out coupons. Most of the time, these coupons are not store specific!

*On the packaging of the actual products – Some products have a “peelie” coupon on the outside that can be peeled off and used toward that purchase. Many products also have coupons on the box or inside the box.

*Tear pads – Tear pads are coupons that are typically found on displays of products in stores. They are sometimes also found on the doors in the refrigerated or frozen foods sections.

*All You Magazine – this magazine is found only at Walmart and contains a number of coupons. The cost at Walmart is $1.77 per issue, but you can usually find subscriptions for $10 for one year or $20 for two years through school fundraisers. This link will tell you how you can get a discounted subscription:

*Trading Forums – the two I use most often are the forum on Trading Mamas and the forum on Hot Coupon World.

*On eBay – Some of my favorite “sellers” are kalamazooclipper, lisajanet81, dans-katys-coupons, and forever_johnson. If you are buying coupons through a seller on eBay, be sure to check feedback. I typically only buy coupons there with a “Buy it Now” option. Also, make sure you look at the shipping costs.

*Through coupon clipping services – I have been using these more lately because the shipping & handling from many eBay sellers has become outrageous or it’s just too difficult to win the auctions for coupons on eBay. The services I have used are:
The Coupon Clippers
Coupons & Things by Dede:

The Coupon Clippers is based in Florida and Coupons & Things by Dede is based in Texas (so if you’re in Texas, shipping is super fast, but you have to pay sales tax)

One of the biggest questions I get asked by people is….how do I start couponing? The easiest answer, of course, is to start buying a Sunday paper and clipping the coupons from the inserts. The question that always follows that response is, “How do I know what I should keep? Should I just keep everything or just coupons for the stuff that I need?”

From my experience, most people who start couponing are probably already on a budget. In an effort to save money, they have probably been buying a lot of store brand items because it seems like this is the cheapest way to go and if you are not using coupons, it probably is. They don’t coupon because they don’t think there are many things that they would use coupons for.

Since I have started couponing, I have become a lot less brand loyal (I still have my favorites of course, and my husband has certain brands that he will only use). I have also been able to try a lot of products that I would have never purchased before because I thought they were too expensive. For example, I am now hooked on Tide and All laundry detergent, but I would have never purchased either one of those brands before my coupon days because of the cost.

So…..as you start couponing, my suggestion would be to start thinking about what coupons you would really use. Spend some time looking through your pantry and your refrigerator and your bathroom cabinets. Make a list as you go of the items that you use and be willing to set brand loyalties aside (once you have been couponing for awhile, you will learn the sales cycles and you can stock up on your favorite brands, but in the beginning, it helps if you’re willing to try some other brands). In one way or another, you can pretty much find a coupon for most items that you use (we’ll get to that later!)

Here are a few tips on coupons:
*BOGO (buy one, get one free) coupons are GREAT to have. Many times, the stores will have a BOGO sale and if you combine the store sale with your BOGO coupon, both items will be free.

*If your stores double or triple coupons, lower amounts are better (.35 or .50) because you can get things for free when the stores have 10/$10 sales.

*If your stores don’t double or triple, the higher dollar amounts are better.

*If a coupon comes out for an item that you use regularly, try to get multiple coupons. Chances are it will be going on sale soon and you can stock up.

I belong to several trading sites, so I have created a “wish list” for coupons I will use. I am sharing it here because as you look at it, you might get ideas. I have been able to find coupons for all of these items.

IPs (Internet Printed coupons):
Fast Fixin’ chicken: http://www.fastfixin.com/fanatics.php?section=4&catid=4
these go 10/$10 all the time making them free

Colgate Fresh Burst Max or Total toothpaste: http://offers.e-centives.com/siflo/r…NjlmYTI5ZjY%3D

Other ISO:
100 calorie packs
Advil (good on Cold & Sinus products)
Arm & Hammer laundry detergent
Baked Lays/Baked Ruffles
Betty Crocker fruit snacks
Blue Bell ice cream
Bounce dryer sheets
Bumble Bee tuna
Bush’s baked beans
Carnation Instant breakfast
Cascade 2in1 action packs
Cattleman’s BBQ sauce
Charmin tissue
Cheez-It Baked Snack Crackers, any
Chef Boyardee (good on ravioli, regular cans or microwaveable, not “big bowls”)
Cheeto’s
Chicken of the Sea tuna
Claritin (Good on “D”)
Clorox ReadyMop items
Colgate
College Inn (can be used on broth)
Cool Whip
Cottonelle tissue – OK for now
Crest
CVS – $/$ purchase (from mailers)
Daisy sour cream
Dawn Power dissolver spray
Dawn dish soap
Degree deodorant
Diet Coke
Dole canned fruits
Dole bagged lettuce/salad mixes
Dreyer’s ice cream (or Edy’s)
Edge shave gel
Eggo’s
Electrasol gel packs or 3 in 1 gel tabs
Excederin (good on any)
Fantastik cleaners
Fresh Express bagged lettuce or salad mixes
Frigo ricotta cheese
Gatorade
Gillette deodorant
Gillette Fusion razors/blades
GM/Kelloggs cereals (off 1 or 2)
Green Giant canned vegetables
Gymboree store coupons
Healthy Choice meals (good on frozen entrees)
Hefty/Gain trash bags (*any brand of trash bags is OK)
Hellman’s mayo
Herbal Essences
Hidden Valley Ranch (good on packets as well)
Hormel chili
Hormel Cure 81 ham
Hormel pepperoni
Hormel bacon bits
Hormel canned chicken
Huggies Clean Team
Huggies diapers
Huggies Pull Ups
Huggies Little Swimmers
Hunt’s snack packs
IAMS dog food (especially good on Natural line)
Jello (good on Jello or pudding)
Jif peanut butter
Jiffy mixes
Johnson and Johnsons
Juicy Juice
Kellogg’s cereals
Kellogg’s pop tarts
Kellogg’s fruit snacks
Ken’s marinades
Ken’s salad dressings
Kraft cheese (good on any or on cheese slices)
Kraft dressings
Kraft Macaroni and cheese
Kroger catalinas (LMK)
Lawry’s marinades
Lean Cuisine meals
Libby’s canned vegetables
Lipton sides/seasonings
Lunchables
Luvs diapers
Lysol toilet bowl cleaner
McCormick’s seasonings/packets (good on any)
Mission flour tortillas or wraps
Motts
Mrs. Bairds bread
Nabisco (good on Wheat Thins)
Nature Valley granola bars
Old El Paso (taco sauce, taco seasoning, beans, enchilada sauce)
Orange juice (Minute Maid/Tropicana)
Oscar Mayer hot dogs
Oscar Mayer lunch meat
Pace picante sauce or beans
Pampers diapers
Pampers wipes
Paper towels (preferably Bounty or Bounty Basic)
Pasta Roni
Pepperidge Farm goldfish
Peter Pan peanut butter
Pepsi
Pharmacy coupons that include a gift card when you sign up for a new prescription (esp. CVS, Kroger, Target)
Philadelphia cream cheese
Pillsbury Grands biscuits
Pillsbury crescent rolls
Pledge dusters
Prego
Pringles
Progresso soups
Purel
Purex laundry detergent
Puppy treats (T-Bone, Snawsomes, Puperoni, Milk Bone, etc.)
Quaker granola bars
Quaker rice cakes
Ragu
Reynolds crockpot liners
Reynolds release wrap
Rice a Roni
Ro-Tel
Rosarita refried beans (or any other brand of refried beans!)
Sara Lee bread
Sargento cheese
Schepps milk
Schick razors (good on blades, too)
Scrubbing Bubbles
Skippy peanut butter
Skinny Cow (good on milk or on the ice cream bars)
Skintimate shaving gel
Smucker’s Uncrustables
Sun-Maid raisins
Swansons broth (good on beef or chicken broth)
Swiffer dusters
Target store coupons (LMK what you have, CRTs work, too!)
Tide
Totino’s, Tony’s or Red Baron pizza
Tostitos
Tyson fresh chicken (.50/1 or $1/1)
Van Kamp’s pork & beans
Velveeta Shells & cheeseVelveeta cheese
Weight Watchers frozen entrees (good on Smart Ones)
Weight Watchers – I can use all kinds of stuff (the yogurt/smoothies/candy/muffins/etc.)
Wine tags good on meat or chicken, produce, cheese (NWPN)
Wishbone dressings
Ziploc bags