Believe it or not, I've been couponing since I was a teenager (I use to think coupons were like real money) and only recently stopped buying things simply because they were cheap with a coupon. For instance, with coupons and a sale, I routinely could find boxed pasta dinners for .25 to .50. How could anyone pass that up? The trouble is that my husband hates them and, of course, they are usually loaded with sodium and other arguably bad things.
Mary Hunt, a financial guru, says that the most expensive food is the food you throw away. For me, that applied to a lot of things I got for free or near free with coupons. Once I developed a master pantry list, I realized that most of things I need/use regularly are things for which coupons are rare. Consequently, couponing is no longer a big part of my grocery saving strategy. Now, I rely more heavily on store brands and store sales. That being said, I still find coupons to be good for toiletries, cleaning supplies, diapers, some canned goods, dry pastas, and cereal. (We tend to be pretty brand loyal for many of these things.) For our family of 3, I aim to spend no more than $75 a week for food and sundries. Even with my reduced level of couponing, I am able to make it most weeks.
|