My CVS Trip 12/30/12

I see it has been quite a while since my last post……not my intentions at all when I started this blog.  Life gets in the way (more on this later).  BUT, we are about to approach the end of this year and bring in the new!  I plan to start being more active in posting my life as a thrifter/minimalist.  My hope is to share enough to inspire you into freeing up your time so that you may live the life you always dreamed of while still saving.

I want to start by sharing more of my fun shopping experiences using sales, coupons, and store deals.    While I am not a huge stockpiler like some extreme couponers,  I will take the time to stock up on items I use often with the hopes of having enough on hand until the next great sale.  I do live the minimalist lifestyle, so stockpiling gives me hives!  I only want to purchase that which will be used before the next deal.  And that’s, of course, if I have the room to store it.  What I like to avoid is running out of an item and being forced to pay full price on a moment’s notice.

Today’s newspaper only included one coupon insert.  BUT, it was a biggie!  P&G came out with some great coupons.  Coupled with the great P&G sales going on at just about any store you shop at, it’s a fantastic weekend to scoop up some really exceptional savings.  I stopped by CVS this afternoon to take advantage of the sale on Tide.  They were offering $10 ECBs when purchasing $30 worth of P&G products pictured in their weekly ads.   I was only able to find 3 newspapers, so I did the best I could do with the limited amount of coupons.

Here’s a recap of my trip:

(3) Tide@5.94 each (sale)

(3) Dawn Hand Renewal @.99 each (sale)

(3) Dawn @.99 each (sale)

(1) Pantene Shampoo @2/$7 (sale)

(1) Pantene Conditioner @2/$7 (sale)

Coupons Used:

(3) $1.50 Off Tide

(3) $0.50 Off Dawn Renewal

(3) $0.25 Off Dawn

(1) $3.00 Off 2 Pantene products

Between sales and coupons, I saved $24.46.  OOP (out-of-pocket) $22.74 (including tax). 

Total 54% savings (without tax)

I am happy with anything over 50%, especially when that includes Tide!!

I also received $10 in ECBs back for purchasing $30 worth of P&G products.  While some subtract this from their total bill, I will count it in my next transaction where I truly reap the benefits!  What I like to do is to roll these ECBs…..meaning I purchase items that generate more ECBs when I use this one.  The nice thing about CVS is that they will keep track for you a running total of everything you spend for the year and also keep a tally of what you SAVE!  Love this!