Clipping coupons

Clipping coupons isn't terribly effective for me. I do it, but it doesn't save my tons of money. We've all heard stories of people who go into the store with a stack of coupons and come out with a cartload of groceries that they paid $2 for. That wouldn't happen with my grocery list because most coupons are for processed foods or cleaners and beauty products with lots of chemicals in them.

I'm gluten intolerant, so I don't buy most processed foods- the few that I can eat are from specialty companies that don't have coupons. If I can find them, I'll use coupons for canned or frozen goods, dairy products, and paper goods. However, even for those items most of the coupons available are for over-processed, full-of-chemicals (lots of artificial flavors and colors, unnecessary sauces, etc) items, so there's only a small fraction of coupons that I can use.

So, I buy groceries on sale, generic where possible/available, bulk when it's cheaper to do so, and cook from scratch as much as I can.

I can't use mainstream cleaners because I have lots of chemical sensitivities- so I use Melaleuca products because they are kinder and gentler and don't aggravate my allergies. I also use Melaleuca toiletry products and Arbonne face products. I love the products, but there's no coupons for them. They do cost a bit more than generic cleaners or run-of-the mill toiletry products, but they don't give me migraines, so it's worth it.

When I shop online, I always look for online coupon codes, which have saved me a lot of money, and I'm a big fan of Amazon, Ebay and craigslist (but that's another post).