Simple Tips for Saving Money on All Your Families Needs

With the economy slumping, jobs being lost and budgets getting tighter people are looking for ways to save money. The old adage "a penny saved is a penny earned" still holds true, even if you aren't having financial struggles saving money makes cents (and dollars!).

Coupon clipping is no new concept, newspaper articles and television shows have all proclaimed the power of the coupon for years. In fact one of t.v.'s most popular personalities as of late due to personal conflicts, Kate Gosselin from TLC's Jon & Kate plus 8 mentioned in one of their many episodes that she views coupon clipping and saving money as exciting and fun, every time she scores a major bargain she feels triumphant. Whether or not you are feeding, clothing and entertaining 10 people or 2, we can all use this tip for saving money.

There are several websites that allow you to print out manufacturer coupons, for example, Procter and Gamble have their own website in which you can even get FREE samples of many different products you may already be using, or maybe products you have considered trying out. They offer samples of laundry, health and beauty, cleaning and toiletry products, in addition if you sign up to become a coupon clipping member they even have an option to load coupon savings directly onto your Safeway, Albertsons or Thriftway club cards, so you don't even have to print, clip or carry any coupons, they are already on the club cards so you get the club card savings and the coupon savings just by swiping your club cards at the register!

Another veritable treasure trove for coupons is your local newspaper or the free midweek papers that some cities offer. In the papers you will find dozens of manufacturer coupons as well as ads for savings at your local favorite stores. There are also coupons for free items ranging from a free bag of cough drops or dog food to free frozen pizzas, redeemable at any retailer. You can find coupons for buy one get one free meals at your favorite restaurants, or buy one movie ticket get one free for the cinemas near you. Movie tickets are getting outrageous and budgeting for a night out on the town with your family is getting more and more difficult so using coupons is a smart, easy way to save money and still enjoy your favorite entertainment outlets. Don't forget car maintenance, there are also coupons for oil changes, tune ups and even windshield replacements. Look for coupons for everything, carpet shampooing, haircuts, clothing, crafts, movies, groceries, household supplies, home repairs and even pet grooming. Using coupons for everyday items saves a family of 4 on average of more than $1,019.29 per YEAR! Now that's money in the bank! By the end of the year you will have saved enough to practically pay for Christmas!

One more important and useful tip for getting the most out of your coupons is to use them when the products are also being offered as sale items that week at your local favorite store, then you are almost doubling your coupon savings!

If you are a music or movie lover, maybe a video game-aholic or an avid reader, another great penny pinching idea for finding bargain books, movies, music and video games for the book worms or gamers in your family is checking out these two websites I found that offer thousands of books, cd's, dvd's and game system games you can also get for less than $5.00 dollars, that includes shipping! The first website is www.swaptree.com, this website allows you to trade your own books and other forms of media for others that are being offered for trade, all you have to do is make an account, type in the ISBN or barcode # listed on the backs of your own media and then start looking around for items you want. Once you have found items you would like to have you add them to your "want list" and SwapTree will search through their members until they find someone trading the item you want for one of the items you have. SwapTree will email you when a trade has been found that think you may be interested in. Once you accept a trade, you just put your book or other media in a bubble mailer and ship it via MEDIA MAIL at your local post office. Media mail is VERY inexpensive most of the time less than $3.00 dollars, so in essence you are getting the book, game, cd or dvd you want for $3.00 dollars! The second website is a partner site to EBay but it is not an auction site, It is called www.half.com. This website also has thousands of books, cd's, dvd's, games and gaming systems for sale, hundreds of the books are $1 dollar or less! The cd's, dvd's and video games range in prices but hundreds can purchased for less than $6 dollars, most of your book purchases from this site are shipped media mail which is very inexpensive. Dvd's, cd's and games are usually shipped first class mail, FedEx or UPS because they are insured. Half.com also allows you to sell your own media, so not only are you getting great deals, but you might make a few bucks too!

One last money saving idea that my family enjoys is going to our local thrift stores to shop for Do-It-Yourself Halloween costumes, holiday decorations, board games and craft projects. Many times I can find picture frames to repurpose or baskets I can paint and reuse as a decorative holder for towels, cosmetics, perfumes, scrap book stuff or even as a shoe collection basket by the front door. I have made dozens of Halloween costumes over the years out of clothing and props I have found at thrift stores, it's fun and inexpensive! So get out there and be creative and start saving your money.