Ahhh....Use What You Have month has ended! I made it through without purchasing one single ancillary item! It was boring, yes, but possible! Which is good, since 2009 has officially become Use What You Have Year! Yes, dear readers, along with thousands of others country wide, TCA has been (or will be, rather) affected by the recent lay-offs. It won't happen until around September, but we've begun the essential belt-tightening! We're very lucky that we've had advance notice that DH's job will end. It gives us time to prepare that many others have not had. Let the Coupon Clipping begin!
There's some sort of calm peacefulness that comes over me when clipping coupons. Well, until the cats start playing with the newspaper. I wasn't able to find a pre-made organizational system that worked for me, so I made my own! I bought a $2 brag-book style photo album and redecorated it with some Amy Butler paper. The book has labeled sections for Food, Household, Toiletries and Store Specific coupons. I keep them sorted by expiration date and it's so helpful to be able to flip through the pages and not have coupons go flying everywhere! I can see each one clearly and have easy access once I get to the cashier.
No one really wants to have to clip coupons, but it's essentially free money! Who can pass that up? 2 tips I have are:
1. ONLY clip coupons for things you already use! That way you don't get sucked into the advertising for things you wouldn't normally purchase.
and
2. Use something pretty to organize your coupons! If you love it, you'll be much more likely to use it.
I have learnt to seek my happiness in limiting my desires, rather than attempting to satisfy them.
~ John Stuart Mill























