Coupon Party

This week I had the opportunity to attend a coupon party. Even though my week was crazy busy, I decided to go since I'd been wanting to check one out for a while. Here's the low down...

First, gather all coupons you're not going to use, as well as your coupon organizer and a pair of scissors. These are essential to making the most of the coupon party.

When I arrived at our coupon party, there was a stack of coupon flyers in the middle of the table that was up for grabs. Pretty much, we just sorted through and picked out what we wanted. I also found it helpful to let others know if I was looking for something in particular (yogurt coupons), so that if they found one they weren't going to use, they could pass it along to me. When couponing, it helps if you're not brand specific, so that you can make the most of the coupon good-ness. However, if you are, the coupon party is a great way to accumulate doubles or triples of things your family likes. (It saves you from having to buy an additional paper each week.) We were able to stock up on Yoplait coupons, as well as Pepperidge Farm cookie coupons (woohoo), among other things. I also found this to be a nice way to get a hold of some coupons I hadn't seen, since we get the Winston Salem Journal, while others get the Charlotte Observer.

The coupon party was a great way to get tips from others on their couponing methods, such as the Grocery Game and Southern Savers. It was also neat to see how other people organized their coupons. One person used a small photo album, another the baseball card holders, another just a binder with sheet protectors with the inserts in chronological order. For more on my couponing methods, check out this post, and those tagged with "coupons". I also found out about some great local deals, like "friending" Stick Boy on Facebook for daily and weekly deals. Too bad I missed out on the free cookie and coffee this week there! We also gathered up expired coupons to send to troops, who can use them on the bases for up to six months after the expiration date. I also shared that the Watauga Humane Society takes animal food coupons, so that's another way to share the wealth.

Probably the best thing about the coupon party was the chance to meet others in the community who are like-minded about savings. It was a nice way to meet some new moms, other gals who don't have kids yet, and get to share some dessert and grocery savings strategies. So, kudos to Amanda for organizing the coupon party this month! I'm hoping that I can attend again next month.

Have you found a local coupon party to attend? Maybe you can start your own to learn more from others, and at the very least, enjoy some social girl time. Here's to living and saving green, the party way!