Money Maker at Walgreens!

Did the weekly shop tonight and got Sure deodorant for free and then applied for a $2.50 rebate!

Using the in ad coupon plus a coupon from the 1/24 SmartSource the Sure for Mens is Free. Look for packages that have a Try Me Free sticker on it. Then you can apply for the rebate good up to $2.99. Or if you can't find the sticker- go to www.trysurefree.com. Print the rebate out and send in for a moneymaker!!

Coupon 101: Quick little Walgreens to roll and see how it works

Here's a little, easy and quick Walgreens roll to do this week.

Buy 2 Wet Ones (40-pack) at $2 each, Get $1 Register Rewards
Get 2 $1.50/1 Wet Ones printable coupons (create 2 different email sign ups)
Free after Register Rewards, the 2 coupons you printed and the in-ad coupon from this week's circular.

Lindsay Olives--$0.99 each after in-ad coupon
Use $1/2 Lindsay Olives printable coupon
$0.49 each after coupon

Just so you understand, you do 2 transactions. Buy the Wet Ones first and get your Register Reward. You're using $3 in coupons on 2 40 count pack and getting $1 back in Register Rewards so you're spending $1 out of pocket plus tax.

Then you buy the 2 cans of olives, you have 1 coupon for $1 off 2, your in-ad coupon plus the RR. You should just pay tax after everything goes through.

I'll try the deal tomorrow and let you know. But a quick simple, printable example to see how easy you can "roll" the RRs at Walgreens.

Working the deals at Walgreens this week!

I put together an interesting deal to spend very little out of pocket and get free items at Walgreens this week.

Shop1:
Buy 1 ThermaCare Heat Wrap (there's a printable here) and get a $2.49 Register Reward.
Pay $1.66 and get $2.49 back

Shop 2:
Buy 2 Triaminic Medicine using 2 coupons from 12/6s
Buy 2 Geisha Mushrooms or Mandarin Oranges which are .50 each with in ad coupon
Use the 2 coupons plus the register reward (remember you need as many items as you have coupons which the register takes RRs like they are a coupon thus the oranges thrown in)
Pay $5.23 (we have 7% sales tax) and receive a $5.00 RR

Shop 3:
Betty Crocker Warm Delights (printable at coupons.com) plus in ad coupon
4 Lubriderm Lotion
4 Aveeno Lotion Both have coupons in 1/10S
Or mix and match Lubriderm, Aveeno and Roc products to get up to $30 before coupons
Use coupons and $5 RR and your total should definitely be under $10
Go to coupons.com and print out the J&J Beauty For All Ages form for a $10 rebate when you spend $30.

So you do all three- you've spent very little out of pocket to get all these great products!

Walgreen Deals this week

Here's what I plan to purchase at Walgreens this week:

Skintimate or Edge Shave Gel Buy 1 and get $1 RR at checkout.
Sale Price: .99 Coupon: 4/26S (for Skintimate) OR 5/17S (for Edge)
Final Price (after RR) .24 or 88% off
Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaner- BOGO
Sale Price: $1.40 Coupon: 4/26S Final Price: .90 or 68% off

So here's how you make the RR work to your advantage.
Buy the Skintimate Gel and get your $1 RR
Next transaction- buy 1 Lysol toilet bowl cleaner and a filler- let's say a pack of gum.
Use your coupon and RR so you are only paying around .25 or so for both. You need 2 items to be able to use the coupon and RR.
Next- buy the Edge Gel if you have that coupon and get your $1 RR
Finally- repeat the Lysol deal and another filler if you have another coupon for the Lysol.

Remember- I'm learning this new system too but this is the scenario I'm going to try this week. I haven't done it yet so if I understand the new system- this would work and you would get 2 shave gels, 2 toilet bowl cleaners and 2 fillers for under $3.00.

I'll get Mike to do the deal tomorrow on his way home from work and I'll post how it goes.

New Policies at Walgreens concerning Register Rewards

As you know by now, Walgreens has suspended their Easy Saver Rebate Program. There appears to be an increase in their Register Rewards but after speaking with a manager- they are not going to be treated just like cash like ECBs at CVS.

What we encountered was if you have a Register Reward and want to use it to buy an item that you have a coupon for- the system treats the RR as a coupon and you have more coupons than you have items.

For example, say you had a $2 RR and wanted to buy toothpaste that was on sale for $3.99 plus use a coupon for $1.00 off. System won't let you use both. But you can add to your purchase a cheap item like a pencil, a pack of gum... called a filler. It should let the transaction go through.

It worked for us but I'll keep posting as this new system is coming together at Walgreens.

Walgreens 101

We had a great shop at Walgreens today so I decided it's time to do a post about how to shop at Walgreens.

First some terms to get familiar with:
ESC- Easy Saver Catalog
ESCs can be found in a display as soon as you enter the store. They are small catalogs just a little longer and wider than a dollar bill. They contain the rebates for the month and coupons for various items.
In Ad Coupon- These are coupons included in each week's sale circular. When you use CouponMom.com to generate your Walgreens list- she will not only match the manufacturer coupon to the item but also indicate when you need to have an in-ad coupon to get the best price.
RR- Register Rewards
RRs are just like ECBs and they print out after your purchase. CM will let you know when an item will generate a RR. RRs can only be used one at a time for each purchase.
WAGS- A common abbreviation for Walgreens on deal posts.

When you have items that qualify for rebate- it is so easy to collect online with your receipt. Just always keep your receipt and I always come straight home, put the receipt by the computer and enter that night so I don't miss out on a rebate. Not getting the rebate and paying for the item up front won't benefit you at all! Go to www.walgreens.com and scroll down about halfway of the home page. Click on Easy Saver Rebates. You can view the rebates for the month in Adobe if you click on the left, "Click this month's tally sheet." If you have a receipt you are ready to claim, click on "Claim Rebates." Click on Start/Add Receipt. Now, select the rebates you purchased on this particular receipt and click Continue. All you have to do is enter the Receipt Reference Number which is located at the top of the receipt and called RFN#. When finished, click Save Receipt and you are done! Just keep adding receipts during the month. Super easy and only takes a couple of minutes to complete!

You have two options on how you would like to collect your rebates. You can just let the duration of the rebate period run out and they will mail you a check very quickly after the rebate duration. Or you can ask for a Walgreens gift card and get a 10% bonus! You just need to let Walgreens know you want to take that option before the duration period ends. If you already have a gift card then you can give that GC's number online and they will download your amount. You will receive an email that the amount has been added.

One thing to remember is that you can only claim once so don't complete the month until you know you've done all the deals you want to participate in.

The best way to optimize your savings at WAGS is to do small shops, doing any purchase that will generate a RR first. That way you can use the RR to purchase the next items so your out of pocket cost for rebate items is minimal. I've going to post my shop next so I can show you how we did it and everything we got for about $6.00 when we get our rebate back!

Let me know if you have any questions or if there is anything you want me to elaborate more.
Walgreens is fun and you can get great stuff for next to nothing!

Q&A: Using Multiple Coupons on a sale item

Thanks for all the great comments and questions! It's nice to know people are reading.

Q: I am still trying to learn this. So if I have 3 coupon circulars from the Sunday paper and let's say I have three different coupons for $.50 off shampoo. Would I have to buy 3 of the same shampoo in order to use all three coupons?

A: Yes, you would use all 3 coupons on 3 shampoos. But, you are buying this particular shampoo at a rock bottom price or getting it for free. You only use a coupon when the price is at it's lowest or if you need the item. But with stockpiling and buying multiples- you only buy when you are at the lowest price. Buy a couple and they will last you until the sale cycle comes back around and the rock bottom or free price is available again.

For example, Walgreens has Pert Plus shampoo on sale this week for $3.49. There is a coupon for $2.50 off in the Easy Saver Catalog. This catalog is available as soon as you walk in the store on a display along with the sales circular. It's a little larger and wider than a dollar bill. You find that coupon, get the product plus you have a coupon from the Smart Source coupon insert from 10/19/08. It's for $2.00 off but since the new price after the Easy Saver is .99 cents- the register will adjust the coupon down to .99 cents or the cashier can adjust. It is their policy to do so and I've never had a problem. (knock on wood) So Pert Plus is free this week! If you had 3 coupons from the paper then you just need 3 catalogs since this one does state 1 item per Easy Saver coupon. Some ES coupons will work on multiples- just read the fine print.

Have the cashier ring up the item, have your catalog ready on the right page for the bar scan and then present your newspaper coupon.

Don't think this sounds complicated. When you generate your CouponMom.com list for Walgreens, it tells you where to find the newspaper coupon, that you need the Easy Saver catalog coupon and that you get the product for free.

Sometimes I'll buy all 3 at once or to keep it simple- Mike goes by 3-4 Walgreens almost everyday. We find it easier to just stop in and buy 1 at a time since it's not out of the way and wasting gas. This obviously wouldn't work if you don't go by Walgreens everyday. Wasting gas and trips plus your time will not justify the savings or FREE! Hope this helps!

NOTE: This deal is different than most with the price being .99 cents and the newspaper being such a high dollar amount. We are going to "test" this deal tomorrow and I'll post tomorrow night how it worked and if there were any problems. There shouldn't be but I'd feel better that I knew exactly how it went. I'll follow up tomorrow!

Using competitor's Prescription Gift Card Coupons at grocery stores

A lot of people don't realize that you can cash in these coupons at Kroger and Publix!

I'm talking about the $25-$30 coupons in the drug stores' sale circulars and mail outs for a new or transferred prescription. So when you come across one, save it... especially with flu and cold season right around the corner. Just keep the expiration of the coupon in mind.

Kroger will download the amount to your Kroger Card and Publix will give you a gift card. This is a great way to save even more on your weekly groceries when you combine this "free" money with coupons!!

And, you can transfer refills around to use the coupons. Just keep track of where you've used it and keep in mind that if even if this is a "new" prescription on a medication that you've had filled before, it won't count.

Why Southern Coupon Belle?

Well, honest... most of the names I would have chosen are taken. Every name imaginable including those with Mom, Queen, Coupon, Mommy, Savings etc. are taken. But I like the name I chose!

I finally decided to sit down and create a blog so I can help the people that ask me all the time how I save so much money each week. I've emailed it to so many folks and that's a lot of typing!! Plus this allows the reader to see how it works and puts the whole process in one place.

Each week, I'll list the hot deals I found for Kroger, Publix, CVS and Walgreens. I also plan to post freebies you can get in the mail and tips to getting started in couponing.

One thing I plan to do that I haven't seen on similar blogs about the deals is review the free or close to it products that I have bought that are new to me. I'll let you know what I think and if it's free or a moneymaker- should you keep it or put it in your gift or charity pile!

Thanks for reading and I hope to help everyone out! Be patient as this will take awhile to get everything out here that I want so check back often!!