Coupon Organizing Series: The Envelope Method

I started out organizing my coupons with the binder method. I used that method for almost 2 years and finally decided to give something else a try!

Initially my binder method was in alphabetical order. I had 5 binders...

• 2 for food (A-L, M-Z)
• 2 for non-food (A-L, M-Z)
• 1 for baby, pets, and individual store coupons

I started out with 1 binder (in the begining) but my coupons just kept growing and growing until I had 5. I couldn't possible take these in the store with me, they would take up the whole buggy, and I had to constantly pass up clearance deals without having them with me!

I knew that I wanted to keep my coupons organized in alphabetical order (the same as in the binder) but I wanted a faster method of taming those little pieces of paper Sunday evenings! I felt that making "categories" would put too many coupons in one envelope and take me longer to go through them in the store!

I changed over this past Sunday. I was 5 weeks behind with coupon filing (I already had them clipped but I was working out of baskets!). It took me over 5 hours to create my new envelope system, swap the coupons that were in my binder over to the envelopes, organize and file the coupons in my baskets, clip and organize my current set of papers.

Here what the final result looks like!


I started out in a small plastic bin...didn't work! I moved up to a mid-size bin...still too small! I finally had to go with the biggest bin I had and my poor coupons still can't breath!

Here's How I Did It!

Left Side:

• 1 Envelope for each letter of the alphabet
• Additional envelopes for Glade, Crest/Colgate, Loreal and a second letter "s" envelope! (I added the additional envelopes because I knew that their were going to be tons of coupons in that category!)

Right Side:

• 1 Envelope for each letter
• Additional envelopes for Betty Crocker, General Mills, Pillsbury and a second letter "s"

Back:

• 1 Envelope for each: Cats, Dogs, Baby, Use Now(for coupons that I know I am going to use but haven't made my list for each store and haven't filed them in those store envelopes yet...an in between!)

Sides:

• 1 Envelope for each store that I shop at!

I took this baby for a test run with me on Tuesday! It was a hit! I was able to still fit the box in the front of the buggy (with my purse up under it to keep it from sliding) AND I was able to score some great deals on clearance items (which was one of the things that I missed being able to do NOT having my coupons with me!)


I still plan to "purge" my coupons once per month as I did in the binders to get rid of the expired ones!

I estimate that it will take me approximately 20-25 minutes to clip and organize using this method. The binder method took me about 45 minutes! I am extremely pleased with trimming time off of this tedious task!

It took me about 10 minutes to pull all of my coupons for my grocery list this week and I was pleased with that time frame also (for 4 stores)!

Overall I seem to like it for now! My only other question would be...how long do these envelopes last! I will be handling them a lot! Can anyone share with me how long it takes them before they have to change torn or worn out envelopes?

My CVS ladies were amazed! They've never actually seen my coupons before and were in total disbelief! I told them that what was under the lid saves me hundreds of dollars a month and it was worth every second it took me to organize and use them!

Guest Post: Coupon Organizing Methods: Part I Filing Whole Inserts

 

Method #1: "Filing Whole Inserts"

I recently posted an article asking my readers to write in and share their coupon organization methods with all of us!

What may work for some may not work for others and I wanted everyone to see the various ways to tame those crazy little pieces of paper!


Marie wrote me an email offering to take the time to share her method with us and here is what she had to say!

Coupons All Over the Kitchen…

Marie says…

Until about a year ago I always said that the coupon inserts wouldn’t have anything in them that I would use and I never kept them. Since then I’ve become a “coupon fanatic” or something like that. Each week, I save all the inserts that I can get my hands on and I buy tons of newspapers on certain coupon-intense weeks. My husband couldn’t find a place in the kitchen to eat.

Managing all those inserts can be a nightmare for real. Using coupons depends on two key things which make for successful organization.

• Knowing which coupon you want to keep.
• Being able to find the coupon you want when you need it.

Binders – my first method:

I read many posts on the Hotcouponworld forum about coupon binders and thought that it was the best method for me. One convincing poster told me all about how she took the binders into the stores and when she saw a good deal she would look for a corresponding coupon. She was always glad that she had her binders.

I spent many hours sorting, cutting and filing coupons into two binders (one for pharmacy items and one for grocery store items) which I filled with baseball card pages. At first, I tried pages that had 4X6 pockets and quickly switched to baseball sized ones. After all this work, I still couldn’t find what I needed. My constant searching through the binders resulted in not finding coupons that I didn’t keep or glancing over ones that I actually did have.

Shopping with a 3 year old requires my trips to store to be as fast as possible. Every minute in a store means she finds more princess items that she wants. J I found myself never digging into the binders for additional coupons beyond the ones that I had planned to use.

Together with a neighborhood friend, we put together a class for some of our neighbors to show how we were using coupons. When we got to section on how to organize coupons we each presented our personal system – I showed my binders and she demonstrated how she saved the whole inserts. After hearing her discussion on inserts, I made the change to whole inserts and never looked back!

Does anyone want to buy some baseball card pages? Seriously, I have lots that I will never use.

The Whole Insert Method:

• In our household, each insert in its entirety gets saved – no cutting or filing in binders. All the inserts from each week’s papers are sorted into stacks.

• For example, all the 1/4 SmartSource inserts get stacked together.Then I go through all the like inserts and combine the pages so that when I go to cut coupons, all the pages with the desired coupons are together.

• Each week’s inserts are stored, by week and type in a file folder and all the file folders are in a simple file box that is easily portable. That way I can carry it around the house and even in the car if necessary. I write in pencil on the file folder tab which week and insert type is in the folder – that way I can reuse the folder when those coupons expire.

• I also still maintain a small binder to store loose coupons. Once most of the coupons in an insert expire, I’ll clip the few that have further out dates and file those in the binder. Any Catalina coupons, internet blinkies or peelie coupons that I come across are also stored here.

This method might best be described as a hybrid method.

Why This Is Successful For Me…

• Expired coupons are easily removed. Most of the coupons in an insert expire at the same time so I pull those and throw them away. No time was spent cutting, filing and unfiling those that were not used.
• Cutting and filing in binders is time consuming – many times, I had to cut the coupons “just right” to get them to fit into the baseball card pockets so that I could see the face of the coupon.
• My system is to work off of lists and use multiple blogs to figure out which insert contains the coupons that I need. I make my list and cut my coupons before going to the store.
• No binders to carry around. I place all the coupons for a specific store into a zipper bag and carry that to the store.
• Less mess in my house. I discovered that I didn’t keep up with the clipping so I often had inserts lying around our house for weeks. Now it takes me about 15 minutes each week to file the inserts into file folders and I am DONE until I plan my next shopping trip.

Scott says…

Wow! I finally found my wallet and the car keys. I knew they were here somewhere. And there aren’t little shreds of paper all over the kitchen. Great job! Got any coupons for beer?

Marie, thank you for sharing this with us!

Marie and her husband have just started a blog of their own. Be sure to check it out here! I will be highlighting her site later on in one of my upcoming articles so be sure to check back soon!

Coupon Chaos! An insight to my coupon organization method!

How many of you get behind? I am 2 weeks behind and this is what it looks like! Total Chaos! It doesn't take me too long but still! I have 5 papers from this weekend and 8 from last weekend! I just wanted to give everyone a little insight to my organization method for coupons!

I separate each individual paper from one insert and stack like papers on top of each other! I take a stapler and staple all of the coupons together(making sure I don't staple in the bar code). I do this because all of the same coupons stay together. I organize them in alphabetical order by the name brand. I have 5 binders that I separate them into. One is for surplus that I sell on ebay (organized in the smaller bin with envelopes by product type), one is for food items only and 3 are for non-food items.

Yes it seems like a lot to do but usually it only takes me about 30 minutes each week to organize and file all coupons! I use the baseball inserts and only put one set of coupons in each slot. This makes it easier for me to find each coupon as I need them!

I don't take my binders into the store with me like I did when I first started! I have learned how to read the sales each week and make a list, pull the coupons...and go shopping! This takes way less time in the store also than going through a big binder!

The bigger bin is for coupons that I cut, but haven't filed yet!

I would love to hear how you store your coupons...please leave any comments!