I love using the whole insert method but lately I may use one or two of my 10 coupons (I get 10 delivered each week) and then have to sort through my folder of those inserts to find the other 8 that still have the coupon. It was getting tedious but I REALLY didn’t want to cut out 10 inserts each week. PLUS I wwas wasting coupons because there are somethings I just won’t buy. Pickles, hot sauce (I have enough to last 2 yeas!), etc. Those coupons were just wasting away.
So for the last 3 weeks I have been taking about 20 minutes a week to make my life a bit easier!
Step 1:
Separate all your inserts into each “type”: Smart Source, Red Plum, etc.
Step 2: Take one set and start to collate it. I use the floor because I can watch TV while I am doing it 🙂 Plus my kids like to help ( notice the little toes?)
Step 3:I tear each 2 page sheet in half (be sure to check that there is no coupon spanning both pages before doing so!) I staple each set together.
It took me about 20 minutes to collate all 3 insert sections, staple and pile up. Yes, this is more time than I would LIKE being organized each week but over time it will save me a LOT of time. For example this morning I wanted to cut out all of my Yoplait Simplait coupons. It took all of 3 seconds to find that section and clip.
This method also allowed me to see all of the coupons I am certain I won’t use and clip those out. I was also able to pull out all the “extra” pages such as the ads, etc. that were just taking up room in my whole insert box.
Now one concern I have/had is the idea of “gang cutting”. Some manufacturers deny reimbursing stores when coupons are gang cut. My thinking is this: The maxmium of coupons I will cut all together is 10. First I doubt my scissors will do a good job on more and secondly that is usually all I have. Secondly, most of the stores around me will double a max of 3 like coupons at a time. So only 3 coupons are usually redeemed on one trip. Gang cutting is generally not a concern for 10 or so coupons but for larger quantities. If I hear that this is a concern of my stores I will re-evaluate my organizational method.
How do you organize your coupons? The best organization method is the one that works for you!
Gang cutting? They get upset if the hand cut edges of coupons match?
In the past, stores have taken inserts and cut hundreds and hundreds of coupons and submitted for reimbursement without selling the items. So gang cutting was a red flag to them…it also often indicates that the coupons were sold via a “clipping service” who cuts hundreds and hundreds of coupons out. I don’t think 10 or less coupons will cause an issue for the stores though. It’s the larger numbers (like 50, 100 + ) all submitted together in a nice little stack that may be questioned
Whew you had me a bit worried for a minute LOL. We get 6 papers and hubby use’s a paper cutter to cut them. But, like you said, we use no more then 3 at a time, so I am sure we are fine!
This is what I have been doing for a while now and it does work SO much better!
AHHH!!! Finally, I way for me to try to get organized too. Thanks Jessie! P.S. I love the picture with the little toes in there. It’s precious. 🙂
Thanks 🙂 They love to help and then they spent 30 minutes cutting “coupons” out of the dollar general ads LOL
I do this with the coupons I don’t put in my binder. I might use them so I keep them but I group them all and if I do decide to use them they are in a folder in my binder and already all grouped together but not yet cut and not taking up space in my binder pages of coupons I will definitely use.
you have 10 papers delivered every Sunday? so that’s $20….. is 10 the “ideal” amount of same coupons a person should have? I never know how many papers to buy!
I actually got in on a $1 a week deal so just $10. The ideal # is going to vary by household and how much you like to stock up. I like to REALLY stock up and there are 5 of us. So 10 papers is just about perfect. Smaller families will require less.
I do the same – but then I go a couple of extra steps further without much extra time:
(idea taken from a poster on another site a while back. So glad people share their methods!)
After stacking and collating, I clip all the coupons.
I write the date/type on each clipped, stapled “stack”.
I file in an envelope (plastic, sturdy) and put them into my coupon box, with each plastic labeled with the date and type.
It still only takes 30 minutes for the entire task each week.
I take these extra steps because I was tired of the extra clipping each time I wanted to pull a coupon. Clipping them all really fast is more efficient than pulling out an insert each time I’m gathering what I need.
The date/type written on each coupon stack is for the purpose of refiling. If I don’t use a coupon for one reason or another, I can just quickly stick it back in it’s folder without hunting down which insert it came from.
My box is portable enough to take into the store, but I usually store it in my van.
I do this but I don’t staple them together when I cut them out. I have a commercial style paper cutter that I bought at a school auction to cut them or I use a pair of wallpaper scissors. I like the wallpaper scissors because they are 10″ long and will cut the coupons out in a jiffy. Two quick snips the coupons are out. They are really sharp so no worries about cutting an important part of the coupon as some scissors will do when you cut a stack. I put all my cut coupons in my 2″ binder. I use the baseball card size sheets in my binder and if needed fold the coupons in half so they fit. I put cardstock as a separator in each so I can put two coupons in each pocket. One faces the front and when I flip it over the other coupon is visible. I can fit 18 coupons in one baseball card sheet.