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If you've been at my flickr lately you will know I am coupon crazy. It takes some practice and work to figure out all these deals but I love getting some for free (or really cheap) so I think it is worth it. These are all my freebies & deals from today - copied from my flickr. Also check my flickr for all my previous deals and how you can get them too.

Today was the last day of triple coupons (up to 50¢, so a 50¢ coupon=$1.50) at Shoppers grocery store. My mom and I waited to go today because of all the new coupons in this morning's newspaper. I actually bought 2 more newspapers - only cost $2.88 total - and we saved so much more with the extras. Most of the things in the photo we used coupons on. And in many cases multiple coupons.

Total before coupons:  $237.01
Total after coupons: $125.60
Saved $111.60

Most of the stuff we got free. A lot of the things we didn't have coupons for were expensive: meat, 24 pack of bottled water, two eight packs of Gatorade, trash bags, milk and other misc. stuff. I'm guessing that if we only bought stuff we used coupons for we probably would have spent about $30. Click here to see photo bigger

The lady behind us was amazed and wanted to borrow me!

My CVS & Staples deals and how you can get them too:

1. BIC Mark IT 12 pack markers: Reg. $8.28 but on sale for $4.14. Then use this coupon. Even though the coupon says its for a 24pack mine still worked. You pay  $1.14 for them

2. Caress body wash on sale for $2.99. I used a $1 off coupon and got it for $1.99. I think I got the coupon here, but I'm not sure. It was a printable coupon though.

3. Sally Hansen nail polish are reg. $2.49 each (for the type I got). The sale is buy one get one 50% off. Then I used two 50cent coupons from today's newspaper inserts. I got them both for $2.73 total

4. Gold Bond travel size is 99cents and I used this coupon to get it free.

I then used this coupon to get $2 off a $10 purchase - mine worked even though I had a less than $10 purchase.

My total was $4.46 and I saved $15.69

The rulers and pencils are free at Staples this week. Each are a limit of 2.

Today I finally finished my mini quilt. I started with sewing selvage strips together. I sewed many 10x5 inch blocks. Then I cut them in half to make 5x5 inch blocks. Then I cut some solid & pattern fabric 5x5 inch squares. I sewed them all up then made disappearing 9 patch blocks. Then I sewed all those together. Once the quilt was pieced I cut two fabrics for the backing and sewed them together. Then I sandwiched it all together and machine quilted a crazy wavy pattern all over it. I have a really simple & tiny machine so this took awhile. Then I machine & hand sewed the binding around it. I finished that today. It was a fun quilt to make. It took 8 hours and 15 minutes over 5 days to complete. I can't sit and do one thing too long so I did this mostly in 30min-2 hour sittings.  It is 19 x 25 inches.

 I've already started on another one!

If anyone would like to sign up for a MyPoints account please leave your email so I can refer you. Its a program where you get points and can turn them in for gift cards and other prizes. Its really easy to do too. I've only had my account maybe 2 weeks and already have 530 points! Comment with your email address or email me at mar013coupons@gmail.com and I'll refer you (you get 125 points when people you refer sign up). Thanks!

I've been a coupon addict lately. There is nothing better than a good bargain. Today on Money Saving Mom there is a coupon code for Borders.com:

"Through August 8, 2008, you can order anything for $5 or less from Borders.com and get it for FREE!

Go here and you can search through the products they offer which are $10 or less. Find something for less than $5, add it to your cart, and proceed to the checkout. (You can checkout as a guest to speed things up if you don't have an account with Borders.)

When it asks for the promotional code, enter: BR41925. Choose to have it shipped to your local store and your total will be $0!"

This coupon code applies to EACH book! Look at what I got and what I paid:

Isn't that awesome?! The kids books I'll use in my classroom & if the other books aren't good I'll add them to my bookmooch!

Everything at my etsy shop is $5 or under. Go check it out.

These shoes are Nike Free Mary Janes. They have great reviews & seem like a good pair of shoes for the summer. We're going to Hershey Park & Knoebels this summer so I need some good walking shoes. These come in all kinds of colors & patterns but I found these on sale for the cheapest I've seen any. I can't decide between the black or the white pair. Which should I get?!

I am giving away this lovely 5x7 print by Kurt Halsey. It came with a set I bought but I already have this print, so now it can be yours! Go here to leave a comment and enter to win it.

I bought most of these prints months and months ago. Today I finally got them all framed and hung on the walls. Hanging them was tricky. We live in an old house and the wall is not flat and it is slanted. The floor is also a huge slant. So they are not even, but I don't really care. I'm just glad they are finally all hung up!

The four large frames (3 above the bed and one above the nightstand/shelf) I got at Michaels Craft Store today. I bought mattes for three of them, the one came with a matte. The three 5x7 frames I got at the Dollar Store. They were an ugly color so I painted them black with acrylic paint. I also cut mattes for them.

Artwork Info:
The large birdcage print is an original screen print I made.
2 prints are by Kurt Halsey
2 Prints by Boy Girl Party. They are actually post cards.
1 Print by At Whim
the one print is a card from Syko and I loved it so much I framed it!

We went to The Book Thing in Baltimore today for the first time. I found the site online awhile ago and forgot about it until recently. I checked out their website, read some newspaper articles, and reviews about the place. I got so excited that I just had to go there today. It is a bookstore where all the books are 100% free and you can take up to 150,000 books per day per person! It is about 45 minutes from my house and is somewhat close to the Baltimore Zoo.

We got there and they have a parking lot, which was great, and the area feels safe (most of Baltimore is kind of scary). As you can see from the photo, they have a huge garage full of recently donated books that still need to be sorted and put on the shelves. I donated a huge box of recipe booklets someone gave me and some cookbooks I didn't need. I felt less guilty taking their books since I donated some too! We go inside and the first room has cookbooks, art, hobby, and similar kind of books. The next room is pretty big and has all the romance novels, mysteries, fiction, and some other random topics. Then there are two smaller rooms with a wide range of subjects. I was surprised at how clean and well organized the place is. I was going to take some photos but since they are only open weekends it was pretty crowded and people would probably find me creepy taking pictures! But, Here are some I found on flickr (click on them for credits). I think these were taken at their previous location, but it looks about the same
There are wooden bookshelves lining the place and all the books are neatly placed. Its well lit and just wonderful. I brought along a huge tote bag and had it so full it was too heavy to carry.

I got 17 novels and 2 vintage craft books. If anyone lives in the area you should definitely go there if you love books or know someone who does. It is great! I put Otherwise Engaged on BookMooch (book trading site) because I forgot I already have it!