Archive for November, 2010

$50 Worth of Groceries From Dormzy For $25 + Free Shipping & Cashback – Today, 11/30 Only

Tuesday, November 30th, 2010

Dormzy

Here’s an effortless way to save money on groceries: Groupon is offering a deal today only where you can purchase a voucher good for $50 worth of groceries from Dormzy for $25. To get this deal, go to Groupon and login or register, and select Lexington, Kentucky – since the deal they are offering is online, residents of any state may purchase the Groupon. Groupon will become available on December 2nd and is valid until September 2nd, 2011. Shipping is included to continental US. You can also shop through Ebates to receive 3% back on your Groupon purchase – which I completely forgot when I placed my order, d’oh! Never heard of Ebates? Click here to read my article “How I Save Money With Online Rebates” for more info.

Dormzy carries a wide selection of groceries, from food to household and beauty items. The prices appear to be reasonable, so this is a quick and easy way to save $25 on your weekly groceries – without even leaving the house!

Deal scenario: I just read a great deal scenario over at Bargain Briana, where you can use this Dormzy credit to purchase $50 worth of P&G products, and then submit it for a $20 rebate – making your total out of pocket after rebate and cashback less than $5! Click here for more info.

Thanks, JANE4Girls!

Video: Planning a Frugal Wedding, Part Two

Tuesday, November 30th, 2010

Planning a Frugal Wedding

As I mentioned previously, Jai and I are participating in “The Love Story” online reality show. A few weeks back, I posted a link to part one of my “Planning a Frugal Wedding” video series, where I discussed some of my hints and tricks for saving money on wedding supplies. The second half is now up, and in this episode I discuss how product reviews and garage sale items are helping me cut costs as I plan our big day. Click here to watch part two of “Planning a Frugal Wedding”!

My Latest Amazon Order: Dress & Lip Gloss for $2.94

Monday, November 29th, 2010

This Sunday, Jai and I are going to have engagement photos taken in Portland for a review on Contest Corner, which will also be filmed for The Love Story. We’re very excited! This week, I made a list of things that I needed to buy before the photoshoot – I wanted to get a new dress for the pictures, and re-stock on some cosmetic items. Beauty and apparel purchases can really add up, so I started brainstorming ways to save. I ended up utilizing two Amazon gift cards to greatly reduce the cost of two items. I had a $20 Amazon gift card which I was sent as payment for a review that I wrote (This is as good as cash to me, so it’s well worth my time to write a quick blurb in exchange for a gift card!), and a $5 gift card which I earned via Swagbucks. I’ve mentioned Swagbucks before – they are a search engine that I have used for years (pre-coupon days, even!), and they reward you for using them by randomly awarding you “Swagbucks” that you can redeem for prizes, such as gift cards. With these two gift cards in tow, I headed over to Amazon to see what I could pick up.

It never occurred to me to look for clothes on Amazon, but they actually have quite a large selection! I wanted a cute, flirty dress to wear in the pictures, and this dress by Alki’i fit the bill and was in my budget at $19.99.

Alki'i Dress

I used the remainder of my balance to pick up this Plump Lips lip gloss for $7.95, and paid a grand total of $2.94 out of pocket.

Plump Lips

I still have a free trial of Amazon Prime thanks to the “Amazon Mom” program, so I received free two-day shipping on these items – so they will arrive just in time for the photoshoot!

Amazon Order: November 29th, 2010

Click the thumbnail above to see a screenshot of my receipt

$45 CSN Gift Certificate Giveaway – Ends 12/14

Sunday, November 28th, 2010

CSN Stores

As promised, I have another great CSN giveaway for you! CSN Stores are offering one lucky Super Coupon Girl reader a $45 gift certificate to use on their site. If you’re not familiar with CSN, they are a network of over 200 online stores. With so many specialty stores to choose from, you can find almost anything, from counter height stools and furniture for the home to fitness equipment to toys and games.

I’ve worked with CSN on many different reviews, and I’ve gotten some great things with the gift cards they have provided me with. My last purchase from them was a brand new crock pot, a tea kettle, and a digital meat thermometer, for which I spent $5.48 out of pocket after applying my gift code. They have all manner of cookware and kitchen appliances, so it’s a great place to buy all sorts of practical home necessities – and now that we’re in the thick of the holiday season, a gift certificate from CSN could be a great way to cut costs on your Christmas shopping. That’s why I’m so excited to give a $45 gift code away to one of you!

CSN Stores

One Super Coupon Girl reader will win a $45 one-time use gift code to CSN Stores! This gift code can be redeemed at any of their 200+ stores. Entire promotional amount must be used on first purchase. Please note, the gift code may not be applied to shipping, but CSN’s shipping rates are reasonable (Click here for detailed information), and they also offer free shipping on a great deal of products.

Here’s how to enter:

1. For your first entry, just leave a comment on this post! Anything goes – tell me your weekend plans, daydream about what you might buy if you’re the lucky winner, or just say hello!

Want extra entries? Do any of the following, and leave a separate comment for each one:

2. Link to this post on your blog, then come back here and leave me the link!
3. Write about this on Twitter, then come back and leave me the link to your tweet! One Twitter entry per person. You can use the button at the bottom of this post to tweet with one click!
4. Post my button on your website – just copy and paste the following code, and let me know where you put it:



Rules, regulations, and other important stuff:
Giveaway ends on December 14th at 11:59 PM, PST. Winner will be chosen the following day via Random.org. Winner has 48 hours to respond to my notification email, or a new winner will be chosen in their place. Giveaway is open to US residents. CSN Stores are providing the $45 gift code for one lucky winner in exchange for this coverage on my site. I am also being provided with a separate gift code so that I may choose a review item for Contest-Corner.com.

Coupon Funded Menu Corner: Cooking With Ground Beef

Saturday, November 27th, 2010

Coupon Funded Menu Corner

Thanks to the deals I got at Safeway last week, I had lots of versatile ingredients on hand which I’ve been able to use in many meals. The day after my shopping trip, I split my big package of ground beef in half and used it to make both taco meat and hamburgers.

Hamburger patties

First, I combined half the meat with chopped red onion, seasonings, and an egg. I then formed the meat into 8 balls (since we had 8 buns!) and flattened them with a plate to make patties. I cooked these on my George Foreman Grill and had a delicious batch of burgers in minutes!

Hamburger

I topped the burgers with ketchup, mustard, swiss cheese slices, and lettuce from the boxes of free salad I got in the mail. We enjoyed a couple of burgers for lunch, and then refrigerated the rest of the patties for later meals.

Burger cut in half

For the taco meat, I browned the other second half of the ground beef in a frying pan and then placed it in my brand-new slow cooker! I’ve been wanting a crock pot for some time, and I had a gift card for CSN Stores because of a review I’m working on for Contest Corner, so I was able to get a brand new slow cooker, a tea kettle, and a digital meat thermometer for $5.48 out of pocket after applying my gift code. I’ve mentioned previously how much I enjoy working with CSN, since I’ve gotten so many useful things for cheap or free – so I think you’ll be excited to know that there is another gift card giveaway in the works for my loyal readers, so you can snag some bargains too. Stay tuned this weekend for your chance to win!

I’m new to cooking with crock pots, but I love it so far. Normally, you can cook the raw meat right in the slow cooker, but the general consensus seems to be that ground beef is better browned in a pan first, to keep grease out of your meal. I was also getting a late start, so I didn’t want the meat to be undercooked!

Taco meat in the slow cooker

I didn’t have any packets of taco seasoning on hand, so I took some inspiration from this recipe and added a ton of spices to the meat to make my own. I threw in garlic salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, turmeric, taco sauce, and even a little curry powder. I also found a packet of red pepper flakes from Pizza Hut in my fridge – I keep Ziploc baggies filled with leftover fast food condiments! – so I added that as well. I threw in chopped red onion and the last lone baby tomato from our garden, 1/2 a cup of water, and left it to cook on low for a few hours.

Taco dinner

When it was time to dish it out, I pulled out my handy taco holder – isn’t it cute? It fits the taco shells and condiments all in one! For toppings, I set out shredded cheese, more lettuce from the salad mix, and – you guessed it! – taco sauce packets from the fast food condiment bag!

Taco station

The tacos were delicious, and made several meals – there’s a lid that fits on top of my taco holder, so it was super easy to store and serve the leftovers. Yum yum!

Brownie

I also made some sweets last weekend. I had some cake glazes that I was reviewing for Contest Corner, so I made a pan of tasty brownies using this Paula Deen recipe. I adapted it by using margarine instead of butter and omitting the mint chips and frosting.

Shopping Trip, November 19th

Friday, November 26th, 2010

I did a big stock-up on groceries last Friday in order to take advantage of some great coupons. We got a flier in the mail from Safeway that was filled with coupons for totally free Safeway-brand products, along with other nice savings, including a coupon for $10 off a purchase of $50 or more. I only needed around $20 worth of groceries, but since I had the $10 off $50 coupon, I decided that this would be a perfect time to save by stocking up on some extra supplies that we always need anyway.

Safeway trip, November 19th

Total spent: $47.33
Total before coupons: $93.74
View receipt

Got:

.40 lbs of Millstone coffee – regularly $3.84, used a coupon that was on display in the coffee aisle for $1.00 off any Millstone purchase of half a pound or more, which doubled; final price: $2.34
1 bottle of ketchup – normally $2.49, used a free product coupon from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: Free!
2-lb bag of powdered sugar – normally $1.99, used a coupon for .50 cents off from the Safeway “Big Thanksgiving Coupon Book” which I found in the store. Final price: $1.49
1 bottle of ranch dressing – price: .99 cents
1 box of jumbo taco shells – normally $1.89, used a free product coupon from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: Free!
1 jar of pasta sauce – normally $2.29, used a free product coupon from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: Free!
1 box of fettuccine – normally .99 cents, used a free product coupon from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: Free!
Two 11.3 oz canisters of Foldgers coffee – normally $5.29, I used two $1.00 off peelie coupons, found on the products; however, looking at my receipt now, it appears that only one was deducted.
1 box of Barilla pasta – regularly $2.49, used one free coupon from last month’s Vocalpoint offer. Final price: Free!
Two 24-packs of bath tissue (double rolls, equivalent to 96 regular rolls total) – regularly $10.99 each, used a store coupon from the weekly sales flier to bring the price down to $8.88 each – final total for both: $17.76
80 count box of Bounce dryer sheets – regularly $3.99, used a $2.00 off coupon, which doubled; final price: $1.49. My Grandma saved this coupon for me – she cut it out of the packaging from another product that she bought.
Two one-dozen cartons of eggs – regularly .99 cents each, used this printable coupons for .55 cents off two dozen, which doubled – final price: .93 cents for both cartons. FYI: I just found out that the fine print on the Safeway doubler coupon now excludes Internet printables – I was not aware of this at the time. Safeway has been making a lot of frequent changes to their coupon policy, so it can be hard to keep up with them sometimes!
1 package of Swiss Cheese slices – regularly $2.99, used a coupon for $1.50 off from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: $1.49.
8 oz bag of shredded cheese – regularly $2.49, used a coupon for $1.50 off from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: .99 cents
1 bottle of Coffee-Mate – regularly $2.99, used a coupon from the weekly sales flier to bring the price down to $1.99.
1 gallon of milk – price: $1.99
5 Michelina’s frozen dinners – regularly $1.00 each, used a coupon for $1.00/5 which came from another Safeway booklet that was in store last month (These are the coupon booklets that are blue and are marked “Over $70 in savings”). This coupon doubled, making the final price: .70 cents each.
1 InStyle Magazine – price: $3.99. I bought this because The Love Story is mentioned in this month’s InStyle, but as it turned out, I grabbed the wrong issue – it’s in the December edition, but the one I bought was November’s issue. Although the new issue came out last week, our local stores haven’t gotten their shipment in yet, so I am eager to see it!
1 24-count bottle of Advil – regularly $4.49, used one free coupon from last month’s free offer. Final price: Free!
1 8-count bag of hamburger buns – regularly $1.29, used a coupon for .50 cents off from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: .79 cents.
1 package of ground beef – regularly $11.52, used a coupon for $3.00 off from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: $8.52
1 bag of Fresh Express salad – regularly $1.49, used a coupon for $1.00 off from the flier which Safeway mailed to us. Final price: .49 cents

Bluetooth Audio Transport – Free After Rebate, Free Shipping + Cashback

Thursday, November 25th, 2010

Bluetooth Audio Transport - headset - Ear-bud

Are you in the market for a Bluetooth Audio Transport? This device works as a wireless headset with earbuds, and retails for around $50+ normally. Well, Mwave has a special offer where you can get it totally free after mail-in rebate with free shipping – and if you shop through Ebates, it will cover the cost of the stamp to mail the rebate in, too! Here’s the details:

1. Go to Ebates and login or register, then search for Mwave and click through for 2% cashback. New to online rebates? Click here to read my article, “How I Save Money With Online Rebates”, to learn all about it!
2. Once on the homepage, you should see the deal on the homepage – it’s for the IOGEAR GBMH221 Bluetooth Audio Transport – headset – Ear-bud, in case you have problems finding it.
3. Once you get to the page, sign up for their free “M” club to get the discounted price of $19.99. On the product page, you should see a link to click to download the mail-in rebate form, good for a $20 rebate on this item. Shipping is also free, and you will receive a $1 coupon towards your next Mwave purchase as well.
4. The 2% cashback from Ebates comes to .39 cents, so that pretty much covers the cost of the first-class stamp to mail the rebate in – especially if you bought .39 cent stamps!

Can’t go wrong with completely free! I picked one of these up as a fun stocking stuffer item. Be aware that this deal will probably go very fast, so if you do not see the same prices or the rebate form, then it is likely sold out.

Thanks to SlickDeals for the heads-up!

Happy Thanksgiving

Thursday, November 25th, 2010

Happy Holidays!

I just wanted to take a moment to wish all of my US readers a very happy Thanksgiving holiday today. I hope your day is filled with food and fun!

Custom First-Class Stamps For .39 Cents Each Through Midnight, November 25th

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010

Zazzle

I love it when a deal comes along right when I need it! I’m almost out of stamps, and had planned to stock up at the Post Office so that I’d have plenty for all the holiday cards I’ll be sending soon. Well, tonight I caught wind of a deal where you can get custom photo stamps for only .39 cents each! Zazzle.com are running a sale through the end of tomorrow, November 25th, where you can save $8.80 per sheet of custom stamps. Pair that with 15% cashback from ShopAtHome and free shipping, and you have .39 cent stamps! Here’s how it works:

1. Go to ShopAtHome.com and login or register. New to online rebates? Click here to read my article, “How I Save Money With Online Rebates”, to learn all about it!
2. Once you are logged in to ShopAtHome, do a search for Zazzle. You will then be able to click through to receive 15% cashback.
3. After you reach Zazzle.com, select the Custom Stamps option. Then select the small 1.8″ x 1.3″ 44 cent stamps, and add your photo and text.
4. Use coupon code THANKPOSTAGE or click through (See below) to bring the price down to $9.15 per sheet. Use coupon code FREESHIPFORU to receive free shipping on orders of $50 or higher.

Update: You can also scroll down the list of special offers listed for Zazzle on ShopAtHome and click through the “$8.80 off sheets of 20 custom postage stamps!” to receive the deal without entering the coupon code. The code “THANKPOSTAGE” is listed further down the page but it says it “may or may not” be eligible for cashback – which seems silly, since it’s the same exact deal. I would click through to get the deal just to be safe.

I ordered 6 sheets, a total 120 first-class stamps, and paid $54.90. I will receive $8.23 back in rebates, which is almost enough to buy a whole other book of stamps. This makes my final cost per sheet of stamps $7.78, or .39 cents each. I usually buy Forever stamps, because we know how often postage goes up – but a deal like this is worth stocking up on. Even if the Post Office were to raise their rates tomorrow and I had to buy 1-cent makeup stamps, I would still be ahead. Plus, I got to make super cute stamps for my Christmas cards – I used a photo that we took a few years back of a snowman on the beach, and added a festive greeting. Check it out:

My custom stamp

If you’re gearing up to send holiday cards, you’ll want to check this out! This is also a great deal for brides-to-be, since you could order special stamps for your wedding invitations. Hurry, this deal ends at midnight on November 25th!

Thanks for the heads-up, Frugal Living NW!

Winner Wednesday: BuildASign

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010

BuildASign

And the winner of the BuildASign giveaway is…

Comment number 51, susanmeep, who said: “I would love this!” Congratulations!