Monday, February 02, 2009

Saving in Style!

My sweet friend, Grace, sent me this adorable recipe box:

... and instead of a recipe box, I decided to make it my coupon box (I needed a new one anyway!)

Simply use the included Recipe label and cards to trace on your own fun paper. Get laminated and organize! I opted to put small white labels over the top of the lamination for labeling each category so that someday when I change my mind, I can just remove the labels and add new ones as needed without replacing the dividers.

I've already had fun taking my super cute coupons to the store and being thrifty with such a cute set up!


As requested - here are the categories I use in my box, when I remade my box I added several categories because I found that the simplified ones I was using just weren't enough for dividing out the coupons. So far, this is working out much better!

Baby
Baking
Beverages
Boxed
Canned
Cleaners
Dairy
Frozen
Meat
Misc. Food
Misc. Non-Food
Paper
Pasta/Rice
Personal
Restaurants
Snacks
Store Coupons
Wraps

FREE!
Expiring Soon

55 comments:

Katy said...

Great Idea! :) I love it! :)

gemma said...

Great box and you are always so clever and artistic. Love all your ideas and projects. Here's one we just started...at the end of the shopping expedition we check out the register tape. It always shows us how much we saved between sale prices and coupons. We write a check for that amount and deposit it in a small account we keep separate from our others. In that way we know exactly what we are doing with the money we work to save. Some weeks we may wait a week, if we didn't save much but generally we manage a weekly deposit. I wish we had started this years ago.

Leanne said...

Monica...
would you list your coupon categories?? I have tried this idea, but failed because I didn't get enough categories written down!
Thanks...
I know your busy...
I can wait!
Leanne

Monica Wilkinson said...

Hi Leanne - just added the categories for you! :)

Gemma - When I first read your comment I thought you meant you deposited the entire amount you saved, which of course I could not afford!! I see now it is the coupon savings - great idea, I bet it is so encouraging to know how much you've saved using coupons!

Wendi said...

Cute box!

~katie~ said...

How neat! Makes couponing something to look forward to rather than a chore! :-)

Along those lines, maybe you have done posts on this in the past, but where do you find most of your coupons? Sunday paper/ads? Online? Particular stores? We used to get the Sunday paper, but I really would just take the coupons out and recycle the rest with hardly even reading it. I've tried some online coupon sites, but I find once I subscribe, my email in-box is soon cluttered with spam/junk mail because my email address was given to affiliated sponsors of that site.

I guess I have much to learn in the world of couponing, but if you have any quick tips or old posts regarding this, I would be very grateful for some advice!

Thanks!
Blessings,
Katie

Anonymous said...

This turned out very cute! :) Enjoy! Love, Mom

Anonymous said...

LOVE it!! I am so glad you can use it and it turned out sooooooo cute.

Tammy said...

Oooh, I like that a lot! I haven't gotten into couponing yet, but I am wanting to. This seems like the perfect way to organize coupons!

Anonymous said...

i'm sure this would help to make couponing even more fun w/ such a cute box! :-) great idea!!!

~eunice

Unknown said...

What a great idea! I have one of those just sitting around, I will have to try your idea! Thanks for sharing!

Becky said...

Monica! SO adorable!! I love the idea!! Makes me want to make one!! You are just too clever for words...and I want to thank you again for hosting the Clean Swap and I am SO thrilled to be able to participate in my first one!

Amy said...

That is such a cute idea and I love your color choices. Crafty and thrifty! I have a true appreciation for that!

Ruth Ann said...

Thanks for sharing such a great idea!! I've been wanting to find a new way to organize my coupons!

Their Momma said...

Thanks for this!! I have fought my coupons for years. Can't wait to copy you! :)

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the categories. I have been meaning to get my coupons organized and this is just the motivation I need. :)

Jenny said...

I know it's wrong to covet, but this would look so very, very CUTE in my kitchen!!! :)

Elise said...

I love it!! Great idea!! I've been thinking of a way to organize my coupons so I will actually use them and I think I found it!!
I heart you!!
Elise

Unknown said...

Cute! :)

Adelia said...

So cute. I have that same paper!! It's my happy paper!Thanks for posting your categories!!

Lisa said...

Thanks for the great idea - can't wait to make my own cute recipe box!

Tracy said...

I'm new here...stopped by when I saw you listed on the Top 100 Christian Women's Blogs! (Congratulations by the way!) I have to say that is about the most adorable coupon box I have EVER seen! Thanks for sharing! = ) Looking forward to coming back again and again!

Blessings!
Tracy

*carrie* said...

Monica,

That turned out great--glad you shared the results! My black vinyl coupon organizer is quite blah in comparison, though I do like the compact size, as I can stuff it in my purse!

Joy @ SAH Missionary said...

I love the box! I love the organization and the stylish-ness (is that a word?!) of it!
Blessings,
Joy

Me said...

Very pretty, Monica! I love it--good job. :)

Anonymous said...

Cute box and really nice touches. Thanks for always adding your worked out details (ie the names for the labels, that is so inspiring and helpful)I will have to try this! I love organizing!
Smiles, Angelia in Tx

Mary Ann said...

This is adorable. Much more fun than my big binder, although I love having the coupons out where I can see them instead of rustling through.

Thanks for listing your categories.I always have trouble getting everything into neat categories. Your idea of having a category for both "boxed" and "canned" is helpful. I think I'll borrow that.:-) I've been lumping them together and it just doesn't work for me.:-)

Weaves Way said...

That is the coolest idea ever! Love that , I will be on the look out now for a cool little box ! Jody

DairyQueen said...

That's a great idea!

My question is where do you keep your box? your car? house?

Rebecca said...

so cute! i'm totally copying!

Monica Wilkinson said...

Hadley -

Great question! I keep my box in my car. Between the front seats is an arm rest that opens and has storage in it. This is the spot my coupon box calls home. It is always there when I am at the store and if I need to file, I just run out and bring it in the house for an hour or so.

Monica :)

melissa said...

like your box! I'm on the lookout (quickly) for something to use temporarily while in the US. Overseas, there are no coupons to worry about! :-) Actually, I also like this idea for my mom for a Christmas gift. :)

A question I have for you, though...how do you handle the grocery shopping and coupon saving with three little ones in tow? Where do you keep the coupon box in the cart (assuming that a little person is sitting in the cart)?

Pamela said...

ok that is a fabulous idea. i will have to make myself one as well. thanks! pamela
www.frenchknots.blogspot.com

Carey said...

Now I want to re-do my coupon box! It's going on the list of things to do. Very nice!

Mama Llama said...

Do you have a laminating machine at home? Or did you use another method to laminate the dividers? I have some flash cards I'd like to laminate, but I don't have a machine and I'm not sure how to have it done.

Sandra said...

Such a cute idea! I need to do something like that for me! LOL

Right now I have a coupon orgainzier from the $ Tree. lol Nice to have, it organized well for me, but I need to be like you and more organized with them.

Thanks for the idea!
Sandra
http://www.bargains4wahms.com

Anonymous said...

It is super cute. What are the measurements? It looks larger than a regular recipe box-----
Thanks
Tracey

Anonymous said...

I have something similar, that I got from office depot or office max or office something or other! It's a 3x5 card organizer, with alphabetical tabs. I file all my coupons alphabetically by brand name. It's just easier for me to keep them straight that way.

Lisa B. said...

I love your box! Red is my FAV color. I use a 4x6 photo box for my recipes and then another for my coupons. They are the heavy cardboard type bought from Walmart. I would love to have a metal one.

If you're interested, here's my post on using these 4x6 boxes: http://www.moneysavingmom.com/money_saving_mom/2009/02/a-fun-coupon-box-and-ideas-for-finding-more-coupons.html

Monica Wilkinson said...

Mama Llama -

I do not have a laminating machine. There are two ideas you could use:

* I took my dividers to Staples and had them laminated there. It is worth the cost to me to have the heavy duty laminating they can provide.

* Or, you could use Contact paper and just cover them yourself. There are even some self stick laminating pouches you could do at home if you prefer.

Hope that helps!
Monica

Anonymous said...

Are the dividers included with the box or did you have to make them yourself?

Anonymous said...

Is this your only coupon storage box or is this the one you take with you? (I guess what I am asking is, is this large enough for storing everything?) Thanks!

Laura said...

I love this box idea. I have tried several different types of containers and folders to organize my coupons and just couldn't find the right kind for me. I really like this one. I went to macy's website and ordered me one!!

Monica Wilkinson said...

The box comes with plain white dividers - I used them as templates to trace onto scrapbooking paper which I had laminated to make them more sturdy!

Heidi said...

After flipping through about one thousand pages in my homemade coupon binder tonight, I am ready for a new method. This might just fit the bill! Plus, easier to handle than a big notebook with 4 little girl hands grabbing at it! BTW, I followed a link from MoneySavingMom to your site. Love it!

Shannon said...

I also found you thru moneysavingmom, consider me a subscriber now! I absolutely LOVE this box. I am new to couponing, and been trying to figure out the best way to organize my coupons. I dont think the binder method will work for me. This photo box is great idea!! Thanks. And if you dont mind, im gonna link this post from my blog.

Thanks!
Shannon

Anonymous said...

That is darn cute! Saw some picture storage boxes that looked like that at Target on clearance, plus I have a whole wrath of scrapbooking papers.

Monica Wilkinson said...

This is the only thing I take with me - and the only thing I store coupons in. My old box was getting too small so I moved up to this one. I am planning to make it be big enough, meaning if it gets full, I weed out some coupons I won't use or pull the about to expire ones into an envelope or something.

Penny said...

Thanks for sharing. I use the binder method but I need to fix up a box for my excess coupons.

http://tupelodeals.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

I know this is an old post but I found this post when looking for a new way to organize my coupons... I love this idea but do the coupons fall down to the bottom or slip out between the dividers at all? Or do you have some kind of pocket they sit in?

Monica Wilkinson said...

Tausha: I don't have any trouble with my coupons but I have quite a few in my box. If you have less coupons, an envelope might be a good idea, or filling up the back with something to hold them up. Mine don't slip underneath the dividers or fall over - some suggestions of things to use for the back if a space filler is needed are an empty sour cream tub, blocks or a paper towel tube cut down to size. Hope that helps...

Mrs. T said...

I love your box. Thanks so much for sharing it. You inspired me to work on my own. I posted about it on my blog with a link back here.
Adventures in Frugal Homemaking

The McFarlane Family said...

So cute! I'm working on mine right now. What is the wrap category?

Amazon Coupons said...

LOVE it!! I am so glad you can use it and it turned out very cute.

C.Mahan said...

I am just now finding your blog (this post is linked to another frugal blog) and your coupon box it adorable. I have a binder that I made after outgrowing my little $1 Store coupon organizer. I now use that for receipts. But I find the binder too bulky for me. I like the idea of a small cute box. Can't wait to get started!