Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Beginners Walgreens Trip. Eh.

So I'm totally intrigued by the women (and probably men) I see posting on blogs and message boards about how they get alllllll kinds of stuff at Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, etc and only pay like $1 out of pocket. I've been attempting to figure out how all that stuff works. Walgreens is the closest pharmacy to me (I prefer CVS, but there isn't one all that close-- Boo) so I've mainly been working on learning how to save money there. The Register Rewards seemed a little confusing at first, but it wasn't as difficult as I expected. Anyway, here are the summaries of my first *real* attempts.

1. Rephresh Tampons - $5.99 with $5 RR
Aussie Sprunch Hair Spray - $2.99 with $2 RR
Total: $8.98
RR Earned: $7

2. Honey Nut Cheerios - 2/$5 *plus* $1 off 2 box coupon (so basically 2 for $4)
Milk - on sale for $2.89
Used $2 RR
Total: $4.89
Saved: $5.98

3. Gillette Bodywash - $4.49 (earned $4.50 RR) *plus* B1G1 coupon (so I got 2 body washes and a $4.50 RR so basically both free)
Herbal Essences Conditioner - $2.99 (earned $2 RR) *plus* $1 off coupon (so basically free)
Aussie Opposites Attract Mousse - $2.99
Aussie Aussome Volume Shampoo - $2.99 *plus* used buy 1 shampoo get $2 off styling product coupon. (so I got both Aussie products for $4)
Used $5 RR
Total Spent: $6.54
Total Saved: $15.49
Total RR Earned: $6.50

Now, keep in mind this is my first attempt. I see where exactly I made a few mistakes. The first mistake was not being entirely clear on the RR Policy. The Aussie products were advertised as $2.99 with $2 RR. I thought that meant I would be getting $2 back on each (making the total RR earned in my 3rd transaction $10.50). Apparently that is not the case. Had I known that, I would have purchased the Aussie products in another transaction and gotten at least another $2 RR back. Eh, whatever, now I know. I still think I did decent.

If anyone else sees any errors I made, or anywhere I could have increased my savings in the aforementioned scenarios, please do let me know. Another main thing that is holding me back is the fact that I need to get ink for my printer! I need to print a few other awesome coupons to help me out with this. I also need to get some sort of better organization system for the coupons I have. What does everyone else use?

Anyway, I'm hoping this weekend when I'm visiting my mama I can hit up the CVS near her and get some good deals. CVS seems easier to me, and their prices seem better.

xoxo,

Lindsey

4 comments:

Cassie-Lyn said...

what the heck are rr's?

I have just started clipping coupons but what you have is awesome! I wish I could save that much.

Frugal Science Gal said...

Great first purchase! I always like to plan my purchases to where I spend as little Out of Pocket as possible. I am not a Pro like some bloggers that I am utterly impressed with, but here is an example of my purchase this week:

http://frugalsciencegal.blogspot.com/2010/06/walgreens-5-challenge-620.html

Register Rewards (RRs) are definitely tricky, but you will pick up on it soon. You can only buy one per purchase and you can't use that register reward on a purchase with the same item or else you won't receive another one back.

Good Luck with your future purchases! Keep an eye out for my posts for my Sunday purchases!

Frugal Science Gal
frugalsciencegal.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

I'm a beginner with Wags, too! I focus my purchases around RRs and try not to spend it on much else unless I can get it for really cheap and not lose RRs getting it.

I plan my purchases around what others post for matchups. I also take a look at the ad myself to see if I have any coupons others might not have for something.

Cheap Geeks Anonymous

Cari said...

That is awesome!! Great job!