A week of coupons & freebies

I’ve been so busy that I haven’t even updated you with some great deals and freebies I discovered last week. First, let me begin with my favourite grocery deals I scored.

This week's best deals

As Kate mentioned on a previous post, the Europe’s Best Frozen Veggies were on sale for $1.99 and with plenty of Europe’s Best coupons out there, the priced was reduced to just 99¢ each.  Luckily, this sale, which can be found at Loblaws, is recurring this week!

The Robin Hood Flour was on sale for only $3.49, but with a 75¢ off coupon (came with my free Homemakers magazine) it was only $2.74.

The Maestro Extra virgin Olive Oil was on sale for $5.89 - and this sale came just in time, as we had just run out.

The Knorr soups were on sale for $1.99 and came with a $2 coupon when you buy two, so they were only 99¢ each.  This special is still on this week at Loblaws and Valu Mart.

The Royale toilet paper was purchased from IGA at $2.99 for a pack of 16. With a $1 coupon, it came to $1.99 - or just over 12¢ a roll.  The equivalent sale is on now at No Frills this week - 40 rolls for $5.97. Use a coupon (Royale coupons are plentiful, at save.ca, for instance) and pay $4.97, or again, just over 12¢ a roll.

I will be adding the flour and toilet paper to my Food Bank stash for the Saver Queen Shopping Challenge. I am adding to my personal stash every time I get a great deal and will be delivering to the Fire hall this December.

Butternut loves exploring the cloth bags when I unpack the groceries!

In all, I used $6.55 in coupons - a little bit less than normal, however I also got extra PC points with points coupons and from bringing cloth bags.  Make sure to remind the cashier to give you your PC points with every green bin and cloth bag you use.  I used two bins and one bag. 

I also received some coupons with my PC bill.  If you spend $75, you will get a bonus of 5000 points; 10,000 points come with $150 purchase and 20,000 points with a $200 purchase.  Don’t forget to check your bills for coupons like these!

Other freebies this week:

My partner and I went to Marks Work Warehouse to use my two free $10 gift cards that came with the flyer.  (As earlier referred to here.) The minimum purchase was $10 so the products were free (minus taxes). I got a stainless steel water bottle (stainless steel is apparently the safest kind of water bottle) and another travel mug (a certain someone keeps forgetting his at work.) The best thing about getting these purchases for free is that they are money savers!  Water bottles and coffee mugs are great investments to make so that you can avoid frequenting the coffee shops.

Did anyone else use their free gift cards?

They were free! And a great investment to boot.

Finally, I also enjoyed receiving a few more freebies.  I used my free coffee card at the Second Cup (also mentioned here) and found Head & Shoulders shampoo and conditioner samples in my mail box. Good for a stocking stuffer or a travel kit.

What great deals, sales, or freebies did you enjoy in the last week? 

Cheap toiletries & bath products

I strolled into Honest Ed’s the other day for a quick look around and ran into some great finds.  They had my very favourite Ombra body wash on for $2.77 for a 300ml bottle.  Just to put this into perspective, Shoppers Drug Mart sells a 500ml bottle for $10.99.  The unit cost at Honest Ed’s is .923 per 100ml, compared to 2.198 at Shoppers.  In other words, Shoppers is more than twice the cost!

They had loads of other goodies at Honest Ed’s too, including scented Soft Soap refill bottles at 99¢, which came with a free sample of pomegranate body wash!  I hope to go back next week to find some more great deals, since I was in a rush during my last visit.

For those outside the GTA, check out your discount stores and please report back with any great finds!

The best deals for your shopping this week!

I am out of town this weekend but I still wanted to give you a quick update on some of your best shopping deals.  Of course this applies to GTA only and you will have to check your local fliers.  Here are the very best deals that I’ve found:

NO FRILLS

Danone Creamy Yogurt 16/100g, $3.99

Breyers Ice Cream $2.88

Always pads 12 - 60s - $2.79 - with coupon - $1.79

Panente Hair care - $3.49 - with coupon - $2.25

Astro Yogurt - $1.99

Bella Tavola Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 750ml - $3.99

Celmentines, 2.5lb - $1.88

LOBLAWS/VALUE MART

McCain thin crust pizza - $3.99 - with coupon - $2.99

Oil of Olay moisturizer - Buy 2 get 1 free

PRICE CHOPPER

Tide Laundry Detergent - $5.87 - with coupon - $4.87

Life cereal - $2.49 - with coupon - $1.99

High Liner Fish Fillets - $3.99 - with coupon - $3.75

Tomatoes on the vine - 99¢/lb

Plus, there is an in-store coupon booklet!  Can’t wait to explore what’s inside!

Cheap medicine!

I just discovered a great way to get over the counter medicine for cheap - shop at the clearance section of your pharmacy.  It sounds sketchy, but it’s not.  I just picked up some Benadryl for $3.99 - regularly $9.99.  I checked the expiry date and it does not expire until October, 2010.  We will definitely have enough need to completely finish that pack before its expiry.  After all, that gives us two full seasons of hay-fever and allergies!  

I also picked up a thermometer there for $9.99 that the store was selling for $21.99 in newer packaging - the exact same model!

By planning ahead with your family’s needs, you can get great deals.  If someone gets sick, you don’t care what the cost is to make it better and end up paying top dollar.  Plus, by planning ahead, you have all the medicine you need at your finger tips, and don’t need to dash off to the store in a hurry.

Fun coupons from Red Flag Deals!

Red Flag Deals has some great deals this week.  Here are my faves:

25% at Roots - this sale is extended until Nov.16!

Buy one Angus burger at Harveys and get one free when you use your SPC card and present this coupon.

Spend $10 at Rexall on Cough & Cold remedies and get a full bottle of hand santitizer for free when you use this coupon.

And my personal favourite…

Spend $50 on sleect P&G products at Wal-Mart and get a $20 gift card.  Don’t forget to use your coupons!  Just send in the rebate form - and don’t forget to keep your receipts!  And remember, you don’t have to spend it all at once.

Check out the deals section of Red Flag Deals for more info!

The art of the bargain

Don’t you love the feeling when you get a great deal?

All this for $83!

A couple of weeks ago at the grocery store I used close to $10 in coupons, saved another $40 by using the PC card, and sought out GREAT sale items.  In fact, I got everything on that lengthy receipt you see on the left, for $83. I was disappointed to learn, after my trip, that there were two coupons not accounted for. I’m not sure if the cashier forgot to put them in, or I forgot to give them to her.  The total loss was $1.75.

Nevertheless, a brief stroll around Shoppers Drug Mart made me feel happy about the great deals I got at Loblaws last Saturday.                                                                                                                                         Here are a few examples.         

(Keep in mind, many of my bargain prices were found by combining sale items with coupons or are based on buying 2 items.)

                                                                                I paid:       Shoppers Drug Mart:   

Pantene Pro-V  Shampoo/Cond. (w/ coupon)              $2.25                   $7.99 

Tampax tampons, 20 pack, cardboard (w/coupon)     $1.52                   $4.49

Always pads, 18 pack (with coupon)                          $1.77                   $5.99

St.Ives Apricot Scrub, 250 ml                                    $2.75                   $4.99

What a difference!  I think I’ve learned the secret to couponing: wait to use the coupon until a great sale comes up and then cash in!

Wow! Excellent Freebies!

Red Flag Deals has brought my attention to some incredible freebies.  I encourage you all to head to Red Flag Deals to see what else they have there - but here are my faves.

1. Get a 2009 Calendar and $5 in coupons from Ocean Spray 

2. Free sample of Goody Ouchless elastics.  This one is good for Canadians AND Americans!

3. Free Specialty coffee from Williams Coffee Pub (and free gift on your birthday!)

4. Free gift for Rogers customers - gift options include a New Release Rogers movie rental or 3-month magazine subscription to magazines like Chatelaine.

5. New Visa Perks coupons 

6. Tickets to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Nov.12 & Nov. 15 for only $17 each - promotion code NOVEMBER

Also, special thanks to Brenda for reminding me about Red Flag Deals coupons. Lots of good coupons there!

The best deals for your shopping this week

Here are my favourite deals this week:

FOOD BASICS

Classico Pasta Sauce - $2

Ocean Spray Cranberry Cocktail - $3 - with coupon - $2

NO FRILLS

Black Diamond Cheese, 520g - $3.97

Chicken Breasts, Skinless, Bone-in - $1.97/lb

Bella Tavola Olive Oil, 750ml - $3.99

McCain Fries, 750g - 1kg - $1.99

Heinz Soup - 39¢

PC Chips $1.69

Sweet peppers - $1.99

3lb bag, Red/Yellow cooking onions/carrots - 79¢

2.5lb bag, Clementines - $1.88

SHOPPERS DRUG MART

Gillette Fushion Phenom Razors - $6.99 - Free product if you use your $10 off coupon!!! 

(Unfortunately, Shoppers Drug Mart would not give me overage on this coupon!)

LOBLAWS

Silouette/Danone Yogurt, 12 pack, 100g each - $3.50

Avocado - 99¢

PC Chips $1.69

Ristorante Pizza $3.99 - with coupon - $3.24

So Good soymilk $2.99

The best deals for your shopping this week

This morning I scanned the flyers to check out the best deals.  All the stores try to make it look like they are giving the best deals, but not all advertised prices are really that great.  By price-shopping and comparing prices on a regular basis, you get to know which prices are really good and which ones are not.  You can see the full flyers for your region (if in Canada) at flyerland.ca but I have taken the liberty of scrolling through the flyers to point out the really good deals!  My choice this week will be, if I have the time, Loblaws, although some of those deals in the stores are pretty tempting too. 

FOOD BASICS

Black Diamond Chedder Cheese, 520g - $4.44

Equality Large White Eggs, $1.99

Life Brand cereal, 600-650g, $2.49 - with a coupon from previous box - $1.99

Oasis Juice, 960ml, 99¢ - with coupon - 24¢

Oasis 100% fruit juice blend, $2.99, with coupon - $1.99

Coke, 18pack - $3.99 (works out to 22¢ a can)

Pet beds - $7.99

Flaked Light Tuna - 79¢

Tomatoes on the Vine - 99¢/lb

Avocados - 5 pack/$2.49

PRICE CHOPPER

Black Diamond Chedder Cheese, (including old) 520g - $4.44

Gold Seal Salmon, 213g - 99¢

Heinz Beans - 79¢

Classico pasta sauce - $2.59

Cascade auto dish detergent, 1.7kg - $2.49 - with coupon from Brandsaver - $1.99

Tomatoes on the Vine, 99¢/lb

LOBLAWS

Lantic or Redpath white sugar,2kg - $1.69

Kellogg’s Cereals, 350-775g - 2/$5 - with coupon - $1.50 each

Robin Hood flour, 2-2.5kg - $4.49 - with coupon - $3.75

Crisco vegetable oil - $3.99 - with coupon - $2.99

Tenderflake pie shells (2) - $2.99 - with coupon - $2.49

Pantene shampoo, 200-375g - $3.49 - with coupon - $2.25

Tampax - $2.77 - with coupon - $1.52

Always - $2.77 - with coupon - $1.77

Classico Pasta Sauce, 270-700g - $2.49

Silhouette Yogurt - $1.99

Canola Harvest canola oil - $2.99

Plus - get 3x the points on PC points and 2x the points with your PC Mastercard

Plus - get 5000 points when you spend $75 or more, (worth $5) or 10,000 points when you spend $150 (worth $10)

SHOPPERS DRUG MART

Royale Toilet Paper, 24 roll (2ply) - $4.99 - with coupon - $3.99

Kotex pads or liners - $1.99 - with coupon - 99¢

Villagio Bread - $1.69

Ombra body wash - 25% off

Duracell mini battery charger - 20% - use with coupon for $5 off

Plus: This weekend get a free $10 food card (Montana’s, Harvey’s, Kelsey’s, Swiss Chalet or Milestones) when you spend $50 or $20 when you spend $75

More great deals!

1. Get a coupon for a free bottle of Sprite by registering with icoke.ca and then heading here. 

2. Get in line folks, the William Ashley Warehouse is having their once-a-year sale, with up to 90% off! For those who live in the GTA, it’s is located at Lawrence and Railside and runs from Nov.5 to Dec.7.  For more deets, visit their website and see the flyer online.

3. Proctor & Gamble Warehouse sale is coming soon - November 16-30th, 2008 at the International Centre (6900 Airport Road, Mississauga). Save big on household and personal products!

M-F - 11am-8pm; S&S - 9am - 6pm.