Coupon news and a coupon giveaway

I've been a shopping maniac lately. My husband is using words like "intervention" and "cut off," but with all the good deals at CVS and Walgreens I can barely hear him. What was that, honey?

When I shop at Walgreens, CVS, Dominick's and Jewel, I get many comments from fellow customers and cashiers. Mostly, How did you do that? Less often, I hear Your haircut looks just like Martha Stewart's! but I won't discuss that now.

My response usually includes a plug for my summer course at Waubonsee (see how I worked that in again?) and a quick overview of my Five Fundamentals for Frugal Shopping. In the next few days, I'm going to cover how to make deals work for you at CVS and Walgreens.

But first, a coupon giveaway! Dove recently sent me a full-size sample of their Dove Ultimate Visibly Smooth Deoderant, along with a gazillion coupons. Each coupon packet contains two $2.00 off coupons for any one Dove Visibly Smooth Deoderant. The coupons expire 12/31/09.

I'll send one coupon packet (2 $2.00 off coupons in each packet) to the first 12 people who email me. My email address can be found by going to my full profile (link is at the top left of the screen) and clicking on the Email link. Please include your mailing address. One packet per person blah blah blah.

Coupon news: Jewel

Chicago-area Jewel stores are no longer taking expired coupons. However, their most recent circular included coupons for ice cream, cereal, etc. that were for use only at Jewel stores. These coupons can be stacked with regular manufacturers coupons, a perk also found at Dominick's and Walgreen's. Be on the lookout for these coupons, and note that they require customers to make a minimum purchase (usually $10) to use the store coupons.

Coupon news: Kmart

Chicago-area Kmart stores are doubling coupons up to and including $0.75. The most recent flyer did not have an expiration date for this policy--it could end on Saturday, or it could continue forever and ever. Keep your eyes open for more information about this--if your local Kmart is participating in the double-coupon fun, then the front page of the sales flyer will have all the information.

TMI Note: In the past, Kmart has not accepted Internet coupons. On my last trip, I noticed several signs on shelves that said they will accept Internet coupons. Exceptions: no coupons over $5.00 in value, and no Internet coupons for free items.

Happy shopping!