Paper Flower Bouquet

I have been wanting to try making some paper flowers as a spring decoration for the past month.  I was recently asked to make a centerpiece for a relief society dinner at my church.  (Relief Society is all the women 18 and older, and we meet together at church each week, and then have activities during the month.  I love it! Oh, and by the way, it's part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)  

This was the perfect motivation to make paper flowers.  I think it was meant to be, because the past week, Silhouette had all their shapes on sale for half off, so I bought a variety of 3d flowers.  (If you are interested in which ones I used, leave a comment and I will let you know).

I thought this is cute for a spring/summer decoration as well as a Mother's Day gift - the flowers last forever!

I painted a mason jar white and wrapped a piece of burlap and tied a white bow around to hide the floral foam inside.  Each flower is hot glued to some thick floral wire.  I hid most of the floral wire with a pearl bead.

I am loving this, and am excited to get some new spring-y decor up!

Craft Fair

Today is my very first craft fair! I am really excited and will have an etsy shop opening soon a well as a new look! So check back soon!

My Couponing 411

Want to learn to coupon?  I am no expert, but I have made some posts to help you get started! I like couponing because it is a great way to stock up on items for less and it is lots of fun!  If I won the lottery, I would still coupon!  Just because I love it so much!

I started couponing a couple of years ago and then stopped (I don't remember why), and recently got back into it.  Couponing was very overwhelming at first, but I feel like I am getting the hang of it now. It used to take me so long to get ready, but I have figured out a system that speeds up the process for me.

So here is a list of links of the posts I have written.  I will most likely be updating them because there is a lot of information.  Leave any questions or suggestions in the comments and I will respond there/try to improve things!

Where to Find Coupons

Organizing Coupons

Preparing for the Shopping Trip

My Coupon Binder

Coupon Binder Categories

Here is a list of my coupon binder categories.  Feel free to use mine if you want or make your own, there are lots of possibilities!

• Candy
• Drinks
• Pasta
• Sauces/Dressings (Salsa, Salad Dressing, Syrup, Dips)
• Easy Meals (Tuna Helper, Microwave Meals, Boxed Potatoes)
• Soup
• Fruit & Vegetables (including fresh, frozen, and canned)
• Snacks (Fruit Snacks, Granola Bars, Nuts, Popcorn, Pudding)
• Crackers (Crackers, Chips)
• Cereal
• Baking (Frosting, Cookies, Oil, Peanut Butter, Crusts, Jello, Pudding Mix, Sugar, etc.)
• Breads (Bread, Pillsbury Biscuits, Rhodes Rolls)
• Dairy (Milk, Yogurt, Cheese, Creamer)
• Meat (Lunchmeat, Eggs, Sausage)
• Frozen
• Medicine (Medicine, Vitamins)
• Pet
• Baby (Diapers, Wipes, Creams)
• Hair (Shampoo, Conditioner, Stylers, Colors)
• Bodywash (I also put handsoap in this section)
• Feminine (Pads, Tampons, Washes)
• Razors
• Deodorant
• Toothcare
• Eyecare (Contact Solution, Eye Drops)
• Makeup (Face Lotion, Makeup, Chapstick/Lipstick)
• Lotion
• Fresh Air (Candles, Air Fresheners
• Storage (Dishes, Ziploc Bags)
• Paper (Toilet Paper, Paper Towels, Wipes)
• Household (Batteries, Board Games, random things...)
• Cleaner (Bathroom and Kitchen, Dishsoap)
• Laundry

Organizing Coupons

There are a few ways to organize coupons that I know of.  There is the "Filing Method," "Clipless Method" and "Binder Method."  With each method, you may also include a coupon-insert list of the coupons for each week.  This is my favorite place to get one.  (The coupon website I look at has a printable list.  I live in the northwest, and my favorite couponing site is Fabulessly Frugal.)

Filing Method

The Filing Method utilizes manilla folders.  Each week, you create a new folder for each coupon insert (Smart Source (SS), Red Plum (RP), and Proctor & Gamble (P&G)) that includes the date and name of the insert.

Binder Method

The Binder Method is where you clip out all the coupons each week and put them in baseball card protector sheets.  The coupons are categorized so it is easier to find the coupon you are looking for.  If you are interested in making your own, I have a little tutorial here.

Clipless Method

The Clipless Method is a mix between the Filing Method and Binder Method.  Each week you would take the inserts and put them in 8.5" x 11" sheet protector and write the date on the front.  The sheet protectors are organized in a binder.

There are pros and cons to each method.  I have tried the Clipless Method as well as the Binder Method.  I prefer the Binder Method. It does take time to clip coupons each week, but I think it makes couponing go much smoother.  (Different people prefer different methods.  You may have to try different ways to see what works for you.)

Here is a link I found that goes more in-depth with each method.

Where to Find Coupons

There are a variety of ways to get coupons:

Newspaper

My personal favorite is my subscription to the local newspaper.  Some newspapers offer deals to couponers.  My local paper does.

I get 5 Sunday papers as well as a daily paper for around $20 per month, which is a lot cheaper than buying them from the newspaper dispenser.  So each week I get 5x each coupon insert.  I live in the northwest and also get Albertson's Double coupons some weeks (more info later in the post).

Online

There are also websites that allow you to print coupons.  My favorite is coupons.com.  You can print each coupon twice per computer.  So if you have 2 computers you can print 4 coupons.

Clipping Service

Another way to obtain more coupons is a clipping service.  That means someone else cuts out the coupons for you to buy on ebay or other website.  This comes in handy when you want to buy a large quantity of items (like they do on Extreme Couponing).  I personally haven't tried this before, but have heard that if you do this it is a good idea to call the store manager to make a special order so they have enough of the product for you.

Double Coupons

Albertsons puts "double coupons" in the newspaper also.  These are my absolute favorite!  That means I can double a $1 or less coupon, taking up to $2 off of an item.  Most of my sweet deals (freebies) come this way!  (I live in the northwest, and I'm not sure where else these are offered.)

Preparing for the Coupon Shopping Trip

I write a 2-week meal plan so I know what to buy before I make my coupon list.  That way, if there are things on sale that I need, those become priority items.  I shop every other week for actual groceries, but coupon shop every week.  I am always on the lookout for items that would be good for food storage as well as extra hygiene items.

Here is an example of my meal plan:

Each week I check my favorite coupon websites to find the coupon matchups (what sales + coupons are a great deal).  I write down what I want to buy (under each store) along with the price, coupon to use, and what the price will be after coupons.  I also write the quantity of each item that I want to purchase.

a: store underlined b: product to buy (I write the quantity in the left margin) and coupon to use below c: cost after coupons

As you can see in the example above, the first store I wrote down was Albertson's. I bought Purex detergent which was on sale for $2.99.  After the coupon it was $1.99.

After I write down my list like this, I pull the coupons out of my binder and organize them in a small expandable file, which makes things easier when I get to the store. That way, I have the coupons I want to use all in one place.  I still bring my binder in just in case I find a different deal.

I have found that if I am prepared a couple of days before the actual shopping trip, the stress of shopping is drastically reduced.  When I first started couponing I would wake up early and try to get everything ready before I went.  I ended up anxious, frazzled, and exhausted by the time I was ready.

Have a plan before you go and how you would like each transaction to be (Albertson's only allows 3 doublers per transaction).  It won't always work out perfectly, but having an idea helps out a lot.  I try to arrive at the store within a few hours of opening so I can get the deals before they are gone.  If the item is gone, ask for a raincheck, but just make sure to go back before your coupon expires!

I frequently check fabulesslyfrugal.com for deals and I also like thekrazycouponlady.com and iheartthemart.com.