Cheap Thrills

I decided to take a break from blogging about my Whole30 for today, because I am tired of talking about food. I slept in today, 10 am! and had a few errands to run. When I returned home, I used some of my Pinterest ideas to clean my apartment. Hans cleaned the microwave, we both tag teamed the oven and stove top, and I also cleaned the washing machine. I have to say, cleaning the oven went better then expected. Here's the steps from a savvy Pinterest gal.

How to clean the oven without harsh chemicals

1. Mix baking soda and vinegar to make a paste. Wait until it stops fizzing
2. Spray warm water in the oven
3. Apply paste to oven and let sit for 15-30 minutes depending on how dirty and greasy it is.
4. Scrub down the oven and use warm water and a towel to clean up any left over paste.
5. Enjoy a clean Oven! Worked like a charm!

How to clean your top loading washing machine

1. Fill machine with hot water.
2. Add in one cup of bleach and 1 quart of vinegar ( 1quart=4 cups)
3. Close lid and let the machine agitate
4. Open the lid and let bleach and vinegar mixture work its magic
5. Clean the fabric softener spout and top of washer
6. At this point you should be able to see how dirty the washer was by looking at the water :/ Gross.
6. Close lid and let it run through a full cycle.
7. Enjoy a clean washer! That was easy                

 As a broke almost 30 something gal, I get pleasure in cheap thrills. Enter couponing. I usually clip coupons each week because I find it relaxing. I make piles of coupons and then separate them by people who could use them. I have so many coupons, sometimes it can be overwhelming. Here's some of my personal couponing tips.

Coupon Crazy

* Clip all the coupons in the paper, even if you cant use them. Someone in your family might use it, and its always fun to leave coupons under an item in the grocery store for a stranger. It could also help increase your Karma. 

Baxter helping clip this weeks haul of coupons.

* Organize your coupons by how you will be shopping at the grocery store. If you frequent a store you can probably picture the aisles in your mind. I make several groups of coupons.
Produce- fruit and veggies
Meats- Meat and deli meats
Grocery- dry goods and snacks
Household- paper products, shampoo etc.
Frozen- Anything frozen veggies snacks meat etc.
Dairy- Milk cheese bread etc.

* Invest in a coupon binder. Although everyone made fun of me at first, I must admit a coupon binder is where its at. I used to use an envelope system, but it was hard to see all the coupons. So there I was, that girl blocking the aisles sifting through 900 coupons to save 20 cents on a tomato. Now, I can access all my coupons and see them at a glance. You can find coupon binders at Staples. They are awesome. 

My awesome coupon binder.

* Check all the circulars that are in the paper. You might not like to shop at particular stores, but many of them will have similar sales based on what coupons are in the paper that week. Check the sale prices and your coupons to see which store offers the best price.

* Shop at multiple stores. This seems annoying but in the interest of saving money, its helpful. Make lists of items you need by store and where you can get the best deal. It makes a world of difference if you are on a budget.

* Create a master price list. I have a small notebook where I list stores and prices of things I buy on a regular basis. Ie. toilet paper, shampoo, soap, detergent, milk etc. A master list takes a while to create but it can help if you are shopping at multiple stores. If you have one, you can look to see if you are getting a good deal on something or if its a rip off.

So there you have it. Those are my Sunday musings. I hope I inspired you to get a paper and start clipping. Have a great week.