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CVS Scenarios for the week of 2/7

February 6, 2010 by

If you are new to shopping at CVS and would like some tips, check out this article here.

Starting on Sunday (1/17), you can double your quarterly ECB earnings! The way this works is that you earn 4% instead of 2% on any CVS brand items that you purchase and $2 instead of $1 for every two prescriptions you get filled (valid through 3/15/10). Enter your Extra Care card number here or print this coupon here and use it at the register on your next visit.

Tag your reusable bag: Buy a Greenbag tag for $.99 at the register, get $1 ECB every 4th visit – limit 1 use per day, per household

If you haven’t already, register your CVS Extra Care card here and you should receive a $4 off a $20 purchase coupon in your e-mail. This also registers you to receive other e-mail coupons!

FREEBIES:

*Buy Listerine or Reach Total Care, Advanced Clean, Arctic Mist, Reach Total Care floss, or Reach toothbrush (2-4 pk) – $3.99, get a $2 ECB (limit 2 per household)
BOGO free Reach dental floss (up to $3.99) – 1-3 RP2
BOGO free Reach toothbrush (up to $3.99) – 12-6 RP
$1/1 Reach dental floss – 1-3 RP2
$1/1 Reach toothbrush – 6-14 SS, 6-21 SS, 10-18 RP

SCENARIO:
Buy 2 Reach dental floss – $3.99/each

Use BOGO free coupon (should deduct $3.99)
Use $1/1 coupon

Spend $2.99 OOP, get a $4 ECB
Final price = better than free after ECBs/coupons!

SCENARIO:
Buy 2 Reach toothbrushes – $3.99/each

Use BOGO free coupon (should deduct $3.99)
Use $1/1 coupon

Spend $2.99 OOP, get a $4 ECB
Final price = better than free after ECBs/coupons!

*Schick Quattro Titanium – $8.99
MIR – free Schick Quattro Titamium razor or Schick Quattro Titanium Trimmer (up to $11.99) – 2-7 SS
Final price = Free after MIR

*Valentine photo cards – $1, get a $1 ECB (limit 1 per household)

ECB DEALS:

*Buy Align probiotic digestive care – $28.99, get a $5 ECB (limit 3 per household)
$5/1 Align probiotic – 2-7 PG
Final price = $18.99 after coupons and ECBs

*Spend $15 on Excedrin products, get a $7 ECB (limit 1 per household)
$1/1 Excedrin Menstrual Complete – 12-13 SS
$.75/1 Excedrin 20 ct or larger – 1-3 SS
$1.50/1 Excedrin (80 ct or larger) – 1-3 SS
$1/1 Excedrin printable
Final price – varies

*Buy Garnier Nutritioniste Moisturizer and Cleanser (PSA $5.99), get a $5 ECB (limit 1 per household)
$2/1 Garnier Nutritioniste Moisturizer – 1-10 and 2-7 RP
$1/1 Garnier Nutritioniste Cleanser or Moisturizer – 12-6 RP

SCENARIO:
Buy 1 Garnier Nutritioniste cleansers – $5.99/each

Use 2 $1/1 coupons

Spend $9.98 OOP, get a $5 ECB
Final price = $4.98 after coupons and ECBs

*Buy Gillette Fusion razor – $8.99, get a $4 ECB (limit 1 per household)
$4/1 Gillette Fusion razor – 2-7 PG

SCENARIO:
Buy 1 Gillette Fusion razor – $8.99

Use $4 coupon

Spend $4.99 OOP, get a $4 ECB
Final Price = $.99 after coupons/ECBs

*Buy any Halle fragrance (PSA $12.99), get a $5 ECB (limit 3 per household)

*Spend $15 on Maybelline, get a $5 ECB (limit 1 per household): Maybelline Great Lash – $5, Maybelline Lash Stiletto – $6.50, Maybelline Dream liquid mousse foundation – $8, Maybelline Age Rewind foundation – $10
$1/1 Maybelline Lash Stilleto Voluptuous – 2-7 RP
$1/1 Maybelline mascara – 1-10 RP
Final price – varies

*Buy CVS Omeprazole magnesium – $14.99, get a $2 ECB (limit 1 per household)
Final Price = $12.99 after ECBs

*Buy Nabisco Triscuit, Wheat Thins, or Ritz – 5/$10, get a $3 ECB (limit 1 per household)
$1/1 Nabisco crackers – 1-24 SS
$2/2 Nabisco printable

SCENARIO:
Buy 5 Nabisco crackers – 5/$10

Use 2 $2/2 printables
Use $1/1 coupon

Spend $5 OOP, get a $3 ECB
Final price = $2 after coupons/ECBs

*Spend $10 on Nivea products, get a $5 ECB (limit 1 per household)
$5/2 Nivea body lotion – 1-3 RP
$2/1 Nivea body lotion – 1-3 RP
$2/1 Nivea body wash for women – 1-3 RP
BOGO free Nivea lip care – 2-7 RP
$1/1 Nivea, any – 2-7 RP
Final price – varies

*Buy Olay ProX Skincare, get a $5 ECB (limit 1 per household)
Free Secret deodorant when you buy any Olay Pro-X product -2-7 PG
Free Quench Body lotion when you buy any Olay Pro-X product – 2-7 PG
Final price – varies

*Spend $10 on Organic Roots, Just for Me, Soft & Beautiful, Motions or Fantasia products, get a $5 RR (limit 1 per household)

*Spend $15 on the following P&G products, get a $5 ECB (limit 1 per household): Pantene or Gillette hair care – 2/$7, Olay Complete – $8, Olay Complete Defense – $13, Gillette body wash – $4, Clairol Perfect 10, Gillette/Secret/Old Spice Clinical Strength – $8, Gillette Venus razors – $9
$2/2 Pantene – 2-7 PG
$2/1 Gillette body wash – 2-7 PG
$2/1 Venus Embrace Spa Breeze – 2-7 PG
$4/2 Old Spice Pro Strength – 2-7 PG
$1/1 Gillette deodorant – 12-27 PG

SCENARIO:
Buy 4 Gillette body wash – $4/each

Use 4 $2 coupons

Spend $8 OOP, get a $5 ECB
Final price = $3 OOP after coupons/ECBs

SCENARIO:
Buy 2 Gillette Venus razors – $9/each

Use 2 $2 Gillette coupons

Spend $14 OOP, get a $5 ECB
Final Price = $9 OOP after coupons/ECBs (it’s like paying $4.50/razor!)

*Buy Pepsi 12 pk, 12 oz cans (selected varieties) – 4/$11, get a $2 ECB (limit 1 per household)

*Buy Secret, Old Spice, or Gillette deodorant – $3.99, get a $1 ECB (limit 2 per household)
$1/1 Gillette deodorant – 12-27 PG
$1/2 Old Spice deodorant – 12-27 PG
$.25/1 Secret deodorant – 12-27 PG
$50/1 Secret flawless – 1-17 PG
FREE Secret Flawless WYB 2 Old Spice Red Zone deodorants – 12-27 PG

SCENARIO:
Buy 2 Old Spice Red Zone deodorants – $3.99/each
Buy 1 Secret Flawless deodorant

Use $1/2 Old Spice coupon
Use FREE Secret Flawless WYB Old Spice coupon

Spend $6.98 OOP, get a $2 ECB
Final price = $4.98 after coupons/ECBs ($1.66/each)

*Buy Sean John Unforgivable or I am King fragrances (starting at $29.99), get a $5 ECB (limit 3 per household)

*Spend $20 on University Medical AcneFree or WrinkleFree, get a $5 ECB (limit 1 per household)

BOGO FREE DEALS:
*Almay makeup
*Campbell’s or Swanson soup (PSA $1.49)
*Cheerios (prices start at $4.49) – limit 6
*Colgate (4.2 oz, cavity, baking soda & peroxide) – limit 4
*CVS Pharmacy batteries
*CVS Pharmacy vitamins, minerals, herbals
*Kleenex facial tissue
*Kodak Powerflash disposable camera
*Maxwell House coffee
*Photo books
*Right Guard Xtreme, Sport, or Dry Idea
*Russell Stover chocolates (prices start at $8.99)
*Sweet ‘N Low packets

OTHER DEALS:
*Hershey’s or Mars – 2/$5
*Pepperidge Farm goldfish – 2/$3 – $.75/each after coupon
.75/1 Goldfish printable

Spend $25 on these P&G products, get a free 8 pk of Duracell AAA or AA batteries: Charmin – $9.99, Pampers – $8.99, Clairol hair color – $5.88, Clairol Herbal Essences – $2.88, Crest – 2/$5.98, Tide or Gain – $5.99, Bounce or Downy – $5.99, Dawn – $.99
$1.50/1 Pampers Diapers or Pants; Pampers Easy Ups or Trainers – 2-7 PG
$.25/1 Charmin – 2-7 PG
Free Clairol Herbal Essences styler when you buy Herbal Essences shampoo/conditioner/styler – 2-7 PG
$.75/1 Crest toothpaste – 2-7 PG
$.50/1 Gain – 2-7 PG
$.35/1 Tide – 2-7 PG
$1/1 Downy liquid fabric softener – 2-7 PG
.50/1 Downy dryer sheets – 2-7 PG

SCENARIO:
Buy 2 Pampers – $8.99/each
Buy 2 Clairol Herbal Essences (1 styler) – $2.88/each
Buy 2 Dawn – $.99/each
Buy 1 Duracell batteries

Use 2 $1.50/1 Pampers coupons
Use Free Herbal Essences styler when you buy shampoo/conditioner coupon

Spend $19.84 OOP

*There is a spend $50 (this is BEFORE coupons) on P&G products, get a free coupon booklet rebate offer in the 2-7 inserts. I got this coupon booklet last year and it was AWESOME!

The following scenarios are for people who are new to shopping at CVS and have few (or no) ECBs to start with. (These are just ideas….you do not have to follow this exact order and you can skip some items if you do not want/need them): $34.96 in merchandise for $4.98 OOP, $1 ECB left to spend

Transaction #1:
Buy 2 Reach floss or toothbrushes – $3.99/each

Use BOGO free coupon
Use $1/1 coupon

Spend $2.99 OOP, get a $4 ECB

Transaction #2:
Buy 1 Gillette Fusion razor – $8.99

use $4 manufacturer’s coupon
use $4 Reach ECB

Spend $.99 OOP, get a $4 ECB

Transaction #3:
Buy 5 Nabisco crackers – 5/$10

Use 2 2/$2 printables
Use $1/1 coupon
Use $4 Gillette ECB

Spend $1 OOP, get a $3 ECB

Transaction #4:
Buy 1 Gillette deodorant – $3.99
Buy 1 Gillette body wash – $4

Use $1/1 Gillette deodorant coupon
Use Free Gillette body wash WYB Gillette deodorant coupon (2-7 PG)
Use $3 Nabisco ECB (they will have to adjust this down to $2.99)

Spend $0 OOP, get a $1 ECB

If you have a $4/20:

SCENARIO #1:
Buy 2 Gillette deodorants – $3.99
Buy 4 Gillette body washes – $4/each

Use $4/20 CVS coupon
Use 2 $1/1 Gillette deodorant coupons
Use 2 FREE Gillette body wash WYB deodorant coupons
Use 2 $2 Gillete body wash coupons

Spend $5.98 OOP, get a $5 ECB (spend $15 on P&G items, get a $5 ECB promotion) and a $2 ECB (for deodorant)
Final price = better than free after coupons/ECBs!

SCENARIO #2:
Buy 5 Nabisco crackers – 2/$10
Buy 2 Reach toothbrushes or floss – $3.99/each
Buy 1 Gillette deodorant – $3.99
Buy 1 Gillette body wash – $4

Use $4/20 CVS coupon
Use 2 $2 Nabisco printables
Use $1/1 Nabisco coupon
Use BOGO free Reach coupon
Use $1/1 Reach coupon
Use $1/1 Gillette coupon
Use Free Gillette body wash WYB deodorant coupon

Spend $6.98 OOP, earn a $3 ECB (Nabisco), $4 ECB (Reach), $1 ECB (Gillette)
Final price = better than free after coupons/ECBs!

SCENARIO #3:
Buy 1 Gillette Fusion razor – $8.99
Buy 2 Reach toothbrushes/floss – $3.99/each
Buy 1 Gillette deodorant – $3.99
Buy 1 Gillette body wash – $4

Use $4/20 CVS coupon
Use $4 Gillette razor coupon
Use BOGO free Reach coupon
Use $1/1 Reach coupon
Use $1/1 Gillette deodorant coupon
Use FREE body wash WYB Gillette deodorant coupon

Spend $6.97 OOP, earn $4 ECB (Gillette razor), $4 ECB (Reach), $1 ECB (deodorant)
Final price = Better than free after coupons/ECBs!

Frequently asked questions:

Do you really do multiple transactions at your stores?

In the past, I usually had $20-30 ECB on hand, so I didn’t have to break up my transactions as much as I did when I first started, but now that I am starting over, yes, I am doing multiple transactions. If you are doing multiple transactions, I recommend that you let the cashier know up front that is what you are planning to do. If there are several people in line, let them go in between your transactions. This gives you time to clip your ECBs and get prepared for your next transaction.

My store was out of all the freebie items first thing this morning. Can I get a raincheck?

This all depends on your store. I have contacted corporate about this before because some stores in my area give rainchecks and others won’t. According to corporate, this is up to the individual stores.

I bought the wrong item or I bought the RIGHT item and my ECB didn’t print. What can I do?

If you bought the right item, show the store clerk your ad and your receipt. They should be able to manually print your ECB at the store. If they don’t know how, you can call customer service and they can add one to your account that will print within 48 hours (you have to wait 48 hours from your purchase time to do this so they can “see” your transaction in their computer).

If you bought the wrong item and didn’t receive ECBs, you can do a return and purchase the correct item. If you paid using ECBs, they will have to give you money on a gift card.

Filed Under: Scenario Sunday Tagged With:

Get your coupons from the 2/7 inserts NOW!

February 6, 2010 by

There are some GREAT coupons that will be coming out in the 2/7 inserts. You can get them now from My Coupon Hunter and I recommend getting some of these soon because they will go fast.

Here are the “hot” coupons I see this week: (the full listing is here by date and insert)

GENERAL MILLS

.50/1 Betty Crocker frosting (expires 4/30/10) – if your grocery stores double coupons, you should be able to get some cheap or free frosting!

$.25/1 Progresso Light soups (expires 4/3/10) – if your grocery stores triple coupons, this will be very cheap!

$.50/1 Nature Valley Sweet & Salty Nut Granola Bars (expires 4/3/10) – if your grocery stores double coupons and you wait for a sale, these will be super cheap!

$.40/6 Yoplait yogurt cups – there are usually loadables at cellfire.com and shortcuts.com to pair with this and if your grocery store doubles coupon, it means that you can get super cheap yogurt!

PROCTER & GAMBLE INSERT

.25/1 Bounty towels or napkins (expires 3/31/10) – the single rolls go 10/$10 at the grocery store about once a month – if your grocery stores triple coupons, you can stock up on paper towels!

.75/1 Crest toothpaste or liquid gel (expires 3/31/10) – if you need to stock up on toothpaste, there should be plenty of CVS and Walgreens deals to help you stock up!

$4/1 Gillette Fusion razor (expires 3/31/10) – these will be $.99 after coupon and RR at Walgreens all month and there is a CVS deal this week as well! These will go quickly, so if you need razors, you’ll want to jump on this coupon!

$1/1 Gillette Fusion shave gel (expires 3/31/10)

$2/1 Gillette body wash (expires 3/31/10) – this is a high dollar coupon that wil probably match up with CVS/Walgreens deals (or you can get the smaller bottles at Target for pretty cheap if not)

FREE Herbal Essences styling product when you buy shampoo, conditioner, or styling product (expires 3/31/10) – this will probably match well with deals at CVS or Walgreens down the road

FREE Olay body wash when you buy any Venus Embrace or Venus Breeze razor (expires 3/31/10) – if you plan to stock up on razors, I’d get this one, too!

$2/1 Venus Embrace Spa Breeze System razor (expires 3/31/10) – this has a long expiration date and especially since we’re approaching “spring break” you should be able to get some good deals on razors that are paired with ECB and RR deals at Walgreens and CVS – the Venus coupons don’t come along very often so if you love their razors, I’d try to stock up!

RED PLUM

$1/1 Garnier Fructis Shampoo, conditioner, or treatment (expires 3/15) – there will likely be deals at CVS and Walgreens to pair with these

$1/1 Quaker Instant Oatmeal (expires 3/31)

SMARTSOURCE

.50/1 Birds Eye Steamfresh vegetables, rice, or pasta (expires 3/7/10) – these are 10/$10 fairly often, so if your stores double coupons, this means FREE vegetables!

.40/2 Campbell’s Healthy Request Condensed soups (expires 4/30) – there usually aren’t coupons for the “healthy” soups – if your stores double coupons, you could get some good deals on cream soups, especially as it gets closer to Easter

$1/1 Hormel Always Tender products (expires 4/5/10) – pair this with a sale on pork loin and you’ll have a great deal!

$1/1 Prego Heart Smart Italian sauces – WOW! The “best” Prego coupon I can remember seeing is $1/2, so this is a great one!

$.75/1 Trident layers gum (expires 4/3/10) – if you love gum, this makes it close to free!

Here are a few “Frequently Asked Questions” I get about stocking up on coupons:

How do you know if an item is going to go on sale? I don’t want to stock up on coupons and then have them go to waste.

In some cases (CVS and Walgreens), I can look at ad scans for upcoming weeks online and get a “heads up” about what will be on sale in upcoming weeks. In other cases, I have to go off of my experiences with sales cycles. There’s not a 100% chance that these items will go on sale, but typically if coupons are coming out in the inserts, they will match up with some sale in upcoming weeks.

Is it worth it to “buy” coupons when your goal is saving money? It seems kind of counterproductive.

If you are looking to stockpile items on a budget, the best way to do this is to pair coupons with sale prices and in order to really stockpile items, you are going to need multiple coupons. I know that some people buy multiple newspapers, but that doesn’t really “work” for me because then I have the extra work of coupon up with all of that paper. Using a coupon clipping service or eBay to get coupons is more time and cost effective for me because then I’m only getting coupons for the things that I want and need and they’re already clipped!

The savings far outweigh what I spend.

For example, let’s say I buy 10 .50/1 Bird’s Eye Steamfresh veggie coupons at $.09 each from My Coupon Hunter to pair with a 10/$10 sale at my grocery store (which doubles coupons). Using the coupons, I can get 10 bags of vegetables (which are normally $1.69 at my stores) for $.90 (the cost of my coupons). I have just saved $16.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With:

Free Pampers Gift to Grow Code for Facebook fans!

February 5, 2010 by
Pampers

Have you signed up for the Pampers Gifts to Grow program yet? If you haven’t, you should! There are some great promotions that you can take advantage of!

*Join Pampers Gifts to Grow and you will also be entered to win a year’s supply of diapers!

*Enter the code FebThankYouFans and get 50 bonus points (this code expires today, 2/5)

*They also have a promotion where you earn 50 bonus points when you enter and 3 diaper codes through 2/5/10 (today). If you have unopened packages of Pampers in your stockpile, you may want to open them up and look for the codes!

*Check out this post for additional bonus codes (some may have expired already)

To learn about other rewards programs for products you’re already using, check out this post.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With:

Yes, entering giveaways really pays off!

February 5, 2010 by

If you’re wondering if entering giveaways really pays off, it DOES! I promise 🙂

This morning, when I opened my e-mail inbox, I had a pleasant surprise – I found out I won a $20 giveaway for an HEB gift card! Stephanie posted on her blog yesterday about a one day giveaway for a $20 HEB gift card on Free Sample Freak. I figured I had nothing to lose, so I’d go ahead and enter and I won, which was a nice way to start my Friday! Thanks Brandie for this opportunity!

Back in November, I was also lucky enough to win an awesome coupon binder from Misty at Budget, Bargains, and Goals!

Having said all of that, stay tuned because I’ll be posting a giveaway here on my blog later today!

Filed Under: giveaways

Freebie Friday: Kind Healthy Snacks and Chuck E Cheese Valentines!

February 5, 2010 by

HAPPY FRIDAY! I’ve already posted a few great freebies today. Here are a few more:

Today (2/5) only, get free samples of Kind Healthy snacks from your local Starbucks store. The flavors available are Fruit & Nut Delight and Cranberry Almond + Antioxidants. Details are here. It says that it’s available at ALL of their locations. I’m hoping that includes the one at my Kroger or Target stores, so I can knock out shopping at picking up a freebie all at once! 🙂

(Thanks Clippin’ with Carrie!)

Get free Chuck E Cheese printable Valentine’s cards AND each card has a coupon for five FREE tokens with any food purchase! My kids will LOVE this one!

(Thanks The Prudent Patron!)

Filed Under: freebies