ThriftyThursday: Freebies with Coupons; Free Crest at Publix!

A lot of people don't realize it when they're getting started in couponing, but you CAN get free grocery items just by using a coupon. People do it all the time; I do it whenever I can. I've even had a Kroger cashier check with the manager because she realized that the coupons I was using meant I was getting some items for free. "You can't get these for free, that can't be right", she said. It was right. The items were free, and her manager verified it. It's just a matter of matching up the right coupons with the right sale.

In recent years a lot of grocery stores have started offering 10/$10 sales, where you can buy 10 items for $10. Most of the time you do not have to buy 10 to get the deal, you can buy however many you need for $1 each. You do need to check the tags to make sure, because sometimes there are quantity limits, or you may even have to buy 10 items for the sale price. Always check the fine print!

A prime example is a sale that started today (yesterday in some areas) at Publix stores: Crest Toothpaste, 10/$10, or $1 each. There just so happens to be a few varieties of coupons out there right now, a few that would make the item free:

• $1/1 Crest Paste, 4 oz. or larger; 6/27 RedPlum
• FREE after coupon
• $.75/1 Crest Toothpaste, 4 oz. or larger, or Liquid Gel; 7/4 P&G Insert
• $.25 after coupon
• $.50/1 Crest Toothpaste, 4 oz. or larger; 6/6 P&G
• If your store doubles, as most Publix stores do*, FREE after coupon

If you have these coupons in your file, go get your free Crest! Even if it's not a brand that you usually use, you can't beat free. Or, you could always donate it. I'll be sending some tubes to my cousin, a coordinator for Operation Christmas Child, to be added to their shoeboxes.

If you don't have these coupons, you can still get them in time. eBay is an excellent source for coupons; you do have to pay a small fee for the clippers time and packaging, but the savings still outweigh the cost. There are many other sites to get coupons, such as The Coupon Clippers and The Coupon Master.

I look every week for 10/$10 deals, then I look to see if there are coupons available for that item. These sales are a great way to get started in saving money!

The Crest Toothpaste sale is one of the many great deals at Publix this week. For a full list and coupon matchups, check out I Heart Publix!

*Unfortunately, Publix stores in Florida do not double coupons; always check with your store just to make sure!