Jill Cataldo


Nationally-syndicated money-saving columnist
Blogger, workshop instructor & savings enthusiast
Read by more than 20 million people each week

Smart ways to save on shopping, home, travel and living well!

Jill’s shared her savings methods with:

Deals of the Week for February 17, 2009

By:

This week’s already off to a start with some fantastic deals! A big welcome to our new Super-Couponers from Crystal Lake and Rolling Meadows, and of course the many listeners from Johnny B’s show as well…

If you’re new to the site, take a quick minute to read Using this site and bring yourself up to speed on all the coupon lingo and abbreviations. Unless otherwise noted, grocery store deals run through Wednesday of this week, and the pharmacy deals run through Saturday.

Kicking things off at Jewel this week, let’s take home lots of granola bars and fruit snacks on the cheap! If you’re on General Mills’ email list, perhaps you received this email advertising a new $10 Catalina campaign when you buy 10 General Mills products. Now, while the deal’s supposed to start 2/19… it’s already under way :)

And what’s a great thing to buy right now? With all Catalina deals like this, it’s usually either the lowest-priced items…or the items with other Catalina deals simultaneously running on them! And guess what… fruit snacks and Nature Valley granola bars (the regular crunchy kind, NOT the sweet/salty nut kind) both overlap with this deal!

NOTE: In Thursday’s ad, the granola bars and fruit snacks are going to be even CHEAPER ($2.50 and $2, respectively) – this is one of those rare weeks where if you haven’t yet done the deal, wait until Thursday… it will be even cheaper. You will pay $22.50 pre-coupons and get $17 back… with the same $3.70 in coupons outlined below, you will pay $18.80 and get $17 back. WOW… $1.80 for 10 boxes of fruit snacks and granola bars!

Ready to take these home CHEAP? Grab your coupons…

Buy 5 boxes of Nature Valley granola bars @ $3.50 each = $17.50
Buy 5 boxes of GM fruit snacks @ $2.50 each = $12.50

We’re at $30 for our ten boxes… but we’ve just qualified for a $10 Catalina, a $3.50 Catalina, and another $3.50 Catalina! We’ll be getting $17 of that $30 right back. Now, let’s sweeten the deal even more with coupons…

Fruit snacks:
.75 off 2 (Print 2)
1/4 GM – .50 off 2
2/8 GM – .50 off 2
2/1 SS – .50 off 1

Granola bars:
.60 off 1 (Print 2)
1/4 GM – .50 off 1
The Winter issue of Que Rica Vida also has a .50 off 1 coupon for Nature Valley. (Que Rica Vida is a free Spanish GM coupon and recipe mailer – and YES I subscribe … it’s got coupons in it! :)

So, with coupons, here’s how it will work:
Buy 5 fruit snacks. Use 2 .75 coupons and one .50 coupon for your boxes & save (or substitute other coupons listed) – $2.00 savings

Buy 5 granola bars. Use 2 .60 coupons and 2 .50 coupons – $1.70 savings

Pay $26.30 for your 10 boxes and get $17.00 back in Catalinas, and you’ll end up paying $9.30 for all 10. That’s .93 a box… cheap lunchtime snacks! Note that the fruit snacks are only on sale for $2.50 until 1/18….

Still at Jewel, how about some really cheap razors? Bic Comfort 3 and Bic Soleil disposable razors are on clearance for $2.14 at most Jewels. (Check price with the scanner if yours isn’t marked – it’s a chainwide clearance.) Use the $2 off Bic Comfort and $2 off Bic Soleil from 1/18 SS to take these home for .14 a pack!

And still at Jewel, Kraft South Beach balsamic vinaigrette salad dressings are reduced to $2.09. Your Jewel Avenu has $1 off South Beach dressings … and 1/18 SS has a $1 off 2 Kraft dressings coupon. Buy 2 bottles — Avenu takes $1 off each bottle, and the coupon takes another $1 off. You’ll pay $1.18 for 2 bottles, or .59 each! (Note: Some readers are reporting that the dressings are on sale for $1.09 at their stores.. if so, you’ll be getting your dressing free with $3.91 overage with this combo – and THAT’s excellent!)

And yes, still at Jewel, Hershey bars are still on sale for $1, B1G1F. Use the B1G1F coupon from 11/9 SS and 1/25 SS and take home TWO for free!

Heading to Meijer… Meijer has both Crest and Colgate toothpaste on sale for 99 cents a tube. Use the $1 Crest coupon from 2/8 PG and take this home for FREE… if you want the Colgate, use the 2/1 SS .75 coupon and pick it up for .26! Or, if you plan to go to CVS this week, hold onto your Colgate and use it there, because the deal’s even better…

Over at Target, there’s a great deal on Goldfish crackers (which is rather timely, as if you’ve been with my blog for awhile, you’ll undoubtedly remember that huge Goldfish sale at Jewel last fall. My Goldfish crackers are almost gone from that sale… and here’s another one, just in time! Goldfish are on sale for $1.66 a bag. Print this $1 coupon from Target.com and pick them up for just .66 a bag! Remember you can also print these coupons from the gift registry kiosk in the front of Target stores :)

Note: A reader said that the sign at her store states they’ll only be on sale through 2/16, so if you want these, you may want to get there TODAY (Monday, early birds! :)

Over at Kmart, Revlon Colorsilk haircolor is on sale for $2 a box – already a cheap price! But use the $1 off 2 coupon from 1/11 SS and you will pick 2 boxes up for $3, or $1.50 each! The recession is no excuse not to look fabulous! :)

Over at Walgreens, did you miss getting your FREE “expensive” razor last week? The mad rush on free Gillette Fusion “Gamer” razors left many shelves bare and many shoppers frustrated. Well, guess what… the razors are still on unadvertised sale for $8.99. 2/8 PG had a $4 coupon for the razor. Use the coupon, pay $4.99… and get $6 in RRs! They’ll pay YOU $1 to take the razor home! Note that while the RR for this razor is not in this week’s ad, it’s still running… so get in there and get your free Fusion razor!

Or, go over to CVS and get the Fusion Gamer there instead! CVS has the Gillette Fusion Gamer on sale for $7.99. Use the same coupon, pay $3.99, and get $4 back in ECBs! While not a moneymaker, they’re still FREE… and with an item like this that’s hard to find, FREE is good!

Still at CVS, you can take home some FREE Gillette’s Men’s Shampoo again this week too. It’s on sale for $4.99 a bottle. Use the $2 coupon from PG 1/18… pay $2.99, and get $3 back in ECBs. Your shampoo will be FREE!

And STILL at CVS, enjoy this Neutrogena soap moneymaker — certain Neutrogena products qualify for $10 in ECBs when you buy two. Neutrogena Facial Bar Soap (black/white box in original scent or fragrance free) is on sale for $2.99 each. Buy 2, pay $5.98… and get $10 back in ECBs! They’re paying you over $4 to take home 2 bars of soap! Note that this soap is NOT with the other bar soaps but is near the other Neutrogena face products. I had an awful time trying to locate it at CVS this morning. But it’s a nice moneymaker if you can find it!

And yes, still at CVS, Colgate Total Advanced toothpaste is on sale for $2.99. Buy it, and get $2.99 back in ECBs! You’re already getting free toothpaste, but we can sweeten the deal with a coupon, as you know… use the .75 coupon from 2/1 SS and they’ll now be paying YOU to take the toothpaste home. This one’s limit 2, so grab two for yourself… and both will be FREE!

And, my oh my, it’s a busy week at CVS… there’s also a deal going on cotton beauty products at CVS. The “Cotton Rounds” beauty pads (like a cotton ball, but circular and flat) in 10 or 25 count cost 99 cents each. Buying 2 generates $2 in ECBS! FREE beauty stuff is great too :)

Do you like these deals? Want to learn how to get deals like this on almost EVERYTHING that you buy? Attend one of my Super-Couponing™ classes and learn all the tricks of the trade. You’ll be slashing your bills in no time!

Comments

  1. printing the Qs from the links Jill provided? I logged in, selected my coupons, hit print, and got a “We’re sorry, we encountered an error…” When I went back to try again (third time now), it said print limit reached! Never got to print them! I’ll try other sites.

  2. Hello Jill,
    Do you know if we can re-use the $17 catalinas to re-purchase the whole thing again. Do you know if they would roll?
    once you spend the original $26.30 then get the 17 back…if we roll it one more time we would pay
    $26.30 – 17 = 9.30 and get another $17 worth of catalinas.

    It might be too many boxes and I don’t know if I want to do it twice. I think it would still be a pretty good deal probably better the 2nd time around.
    Let me know
    Thank you

  3. Jill, My head is spining I’m so glad I didn’t go to jewel earlier and waited for the deals of the week.
    Here’s another question. How about if I did the GM deal with only fruit snacks? the only reason is because I don’t have enough coupons for the granola bars.
    Can this work?
    10 boxes of fruit snack 2.50*10 =25
    minus 5 coupons of .50/2 – 2.50
    We would pay $22.50
    Would this qualify us for $10 catalina (for 10 items) plus one of the 3.50 catalinas?
    That would net us $9 for 10 boxes of fruit snacks.
    Is this correct?
    Just when I start to think that I’m really getting things under control , You keep posting deals that I had no clue. THis is the reason why you are the Coupon Queen! :)
    Thank you for making shopping so much fun.

  4. Hi – tried the fusion razor deal last week..when the coupon didn’t print the manager told me that I couldn’t use two coupons, either I used the manufacturer’s coupon or I got the walgreens coupons to spit out. When I asked where that policy was she said it was every Walgreens’ store policy! Has anyone else run into this? Thanks!

  5. I was at Target today and noticed that the Goldfish are 3/5.00…I wonder if each Target is different.

  7. I see on the coupon that it says “one coupon per transaction”… not “one per purchase”. I’m assuming they will only let you use one coupon. Looks like they are going to make us go thru the line mult. times., just like Meijer’s does now.

  8. Hello Newbie,
    yes. I just went to jewel and did the deal 2 times. Each time I picked all different fruit snacks, my kids like roll ups more so I got mini roll -ups, the long ones I forgot how long and all kinds of different fruit snacks. They are all 2/$5 so just stick to that price. I also tried all varieties of the granola bars, peanut butter, Oats, Almonds — I bought 10 on each transaction, the cashier was very nice and friendly (young male).
    both times the $17 total of catalinas came out no problem. my last transaction (rang separately) was for just milk & bread which I paid with the $3.50 catalina the young man asked me are you expecting any more coupons coming out? he was really nice and friendly.
    Thank you

  9. My Spanish skills are minimal but I just visited the website-does it say a subscription is free? **DUH-I just read your tiny note (time for new glasses) that it is free!

  10. I was lucky enough to get one of the Jewel freezers last week, and am wondering about the coupons that came with it. I know the best way to use them is to wait for a B1G1F sale, but will all these items do that before the expiration? Also, since they are manufacturer’s coupons, can I use them anywhere, even if they say that they’re for use at Jewel?

  11. Just got home from Jewel. Trried buying the fruit snacks and granola bars. Took all the same granola bars (green box) and the fruit snacks were two different kinds, the roll ups and gushers. No cats! While I was checking out I got intimidated. There was an older guy checking out and very pokey. After the bagger (another checker bagged my items) she walked behind me and I heard her tell another checker to look at me. She said something like ,”Here’s one of them.” She told her she would check her computer when she goes home to see what “They’re going to try to get away with this week”. I thought of trying to return these items, but after that I didn’t have the nerve to. But even if I did try to return them, I had $4.00 worth of Q’s, so those would those just be lost on a return. Right? I just couldn’t think fast enough on what I should do. And again I was just intimidated and afraid to say or do anything but leave the store as quick as I could. I know we are following the rules, but I feel like I’m doing something wrong. Any words of encouragement?

  12. I was planning on going to CVS today, (Feb 17th) and try and purchase the soap bars, cotton flats and colgate toothpaste. Was wondering if each of these items (deals) need to be rung up separately to get all of the free savings. Thanks.

  13. Does anyone know if these soaps are found by the other bar soaps? I figured they were all gone, like all the other deals I sought last evening, but I couldn’t even find a shelf sticker for them…just wondering. It’s not a big deal as I don’t need the soap, but when I stop in again later this week, I plan on trying to maximize some deals.

    thanks in advance.

  15. Ok, another one I can’t take credit for but IF you can find Green Peanut M&M bags leftover from Valentine’s Day at CVS (it says “the new color of love” on it, 12.6 oz.), buy 2 bags for about $1.75 each, get $2 extra bucks! Not free but cheap! I only found these at 2 CVSs and the cashier may have to manually adjust the price to 50% off. If you have ECBs to roll, even better! :)

  16. Just got home from Jewel. I had a raincheck for last week’s deal on Lawry’s Taco seasoning, B1G1 Free. I put 4 in my cart, as I had a coupon for $1.00 off the purchase of 4. The cashier said she really should not take that coupon as 2 of the seasoning packets were already free with the B1G1 free deal, and they can’t give money back on coupons (or I guess let it get absorbed into the rest of my transaction). She said she would “be nice” and take it this time.

    I’m thankful she took the coupon, but I felt like she thought I was trying to pull a scam. That is certainly not my intent! Does anyone know where I can find Jewel’s coupon policy? I thought my couponing was legitimate, but if not, please let me know! I’m not trying to be sneaky with my coupons!

  17. I tried to buy the gamer razor at my walgreens today and I did not get the register rewards. The checker said it was because I had too many coupons. So I talked to the manager and he rang it up separatly to see if it would print the register rewards and it still didn’t. He said if it is not in “his” add it would not work. Did anyone else have this problem?

  18. From reading the Catalinas that Jill posted, the deals will overlap until Feb. 22. If you can wait until Thursday’s new sale, there will probably be better pricing on both items. (Sorry, Jill, deals are deals! I know you understand!)

  19. My target had all goldfish for 1.52 a package!! WOO HOO!! I got 6 but I have to go back for more!! I just ran out of the ones I had from that last Jewel deal.

    I also found Gillette Venus Disposable spa breeze razors , 2 pack, which are on sale for 6.59. I used the 3.00 off the Venus razor coupon from target website and the 2.00 off the disposable pack from the 2/8 PG ad and picked them up for 1.59.

    They also had Nutrigrain yogurt bars for 1.77 a box and if you buy 5 you get a 5.00 gift card, my kids love those bars so I bought 6 and had 3 1.00/2 coups so with the gift card I got back I basically paid 2.80 for 6 boxes.

  20. I tried this morning to print the Nature Valley Coupon from the Betty Crocker link Jill posted. I created an account, selected the coupon and tried to print. It told me the coupon was no longer available and to come back next month. After getting home from work and trying again, I see its gone from the site completely. :( Is anyone else having this issue, and if so is there another site with a coupon we can use? I’d like to try this deal before the new ad comes out on Thursday.

  21. for some reason is MORE than 2. I bought 2 earlier in the week and my receipt said “offer limit reached”. Today when I shopped at CVS, it no longer says that. I read on another board it’s been increased to a limit of 5.

  22. Jill thanks for taking the ho-hum out of shopping. It has become a real sport. I did the 14 cans of Hunts diced tomatoes. They are still on sale 10 for $10.00, 9 boxes of Betty Crocker fruit snacks, 1 box Nature Vally granola bars, (kids are not crazy about the N.V. bars) & 3 Bic comfort razors. Got 2 $10.00 & 1 $3.50 Catanlina coupons at the end. I will be sharing with my local food pantry! Thanks forall you do!! ;~)

  23. At Jewels the Johnsonville deli brats are once again on sale but this time 2/$5…..so buy 3/$7.50 use the $5 off 3 from a couple weeks back and get 3 packages for $2.50 or .83c each…..now let’s start summer bbq season…G

  24. At Jewels the Johnsonville deli brats are once again on sale but this time 2/$5…..so buy 3/$7.50 use the $5 off 3 from a couple weeks back and get 3 packages for $2.50 or .83c each…..now let’s start summer bbq season…G

  25. I found the $2.99 soap at CVS and the catalina deal wasn’t marked on the shelf. I bought them anyway but no cats printed. Anyone know why? I returned them.

  26. Jill, I have been doing couponing for many years and really appreciate all that you do for us! Why do I have to use 2 b1g1f plus the jewels b1g1f. For some reason, I just cant figure it out. I have been to your classes and always “got it” when you would explain things, but for some reason, I just am not getting this. Boy do I feel silly!! I even ran it past my husband and he cant understand it either. I sure it works but could you explain it to me again. sorry!
    Im sure you have better things to do than coach me. Thanks again for all you do. I have saved so much money and my husband brags about me at work! I have gotten a few people at his work to start shopping this way. keep up the good work! by the way, nice pantry!

  27. Hello Freestuff,
    Lets do the example of the hershey bars at $1.00 ea.
    If you have a coupon that states b1g1f and the store is also running a sale b1g1f then you need to purchase 2 candy bars and they will both be free.
    here’s how it works:1 will ring up at 1.00 and 1 at 0.00
    then your coupon will have a value on it and the cashier will deduct the value of that item which will be then applied to the candy bar that scanned at 1.00. Almost all the B1G1F coupons have a value on it. The candy bar might have a .89c value.
    if so, YOu can get 2 candy bars , the cashier will deduct .89c
    and you will only pay .11c for both bars.
    ** if the value of the coupon is up to 1.00 then you would pay nothing.*** I hope this helps and trust me it’s not a silly question. This one took me a while to get it.
    If you have 2 coupons then get 4 bars and so on.

  28. Yes I did do my shopping in Spring Grove. So that was you huh? I did pretty good that night. I got about $90-100 in groceries and pd about $20.00. But when I heard what you did I was jealous:) I want to do that! Any way they were nice, but like I said I get the impression that they don’t think it’s right. But what I don’t understand is where do they think we are getting these cats, etc? And do they think that corporate or who ever puts these sales/incentive together don’t know what they are doing or what can be done with these deals? Seriously, if they were being “ripped off” as these cashiers think then wouldn’t the stores stop doing them? Some cashiers are just uneducated in the way of couponing!
    I usually shop in the late evenings after my DH gets home from work and after we eat dinner. I usually go to the Walgreens across the street from the Jewel in SpringGrove, because they close at 10:00 PM and sometimes it takes me a bit to find the items I am looking for. Then I head over the the Jewel (they don’t close until Midnight) and do my shopping in there. Who ever said go to the teens when you check out is right. I don’t necessarily try to but they do seem to be less scrutinizing about the coupons and I am not trying to pull one over on them. I follow the “rules”. The cashier that I usually go to was more than willing to work with me to get the deal to go through a few weeks ago. We tried everything I could think of but wouldn’t work so she voided the transaction. I told her what I was trying to do and she was cool about it. It was close to 10 PM and no one was waiting behind me so I didn’t feel bad.
    I love hearing everyones great deals and I do get a bit envious because I want those low grocery bills, but unless we stop eatting it won’t happen. I have to buy special food for myself and kids that aren’t usually included in the cats nor do they offer many coupons if any. I have checked and have contacted some of the companies as someone else suggested on this board.

  29. With this coupon [coupon removed] it becomes a money-maker! And the coupon expires 12-31-2010 so print lots of them!!
    Looking forward to seeing Jill tonight in Geneva!

    Jill’s note: This coupon has been declared “fraudulent” by Colgate. Do not use it anymore. It was originally posted on Aetna’s website as part of a benefits brochure, but because it wasn’t “intended” to be posted this way, the company has declared it fraudulent. They’re going after the websites that are reposting it, and I do not want to become the target of their legal action for linking to it or redistributing it.

    For more info on why/how this happens… read this article.

  30. I hope I haven’t overlooked mention of this here, but the Wild Harvest pasta, and pasta sauce were going B1G1F, with the pasta being $2.50/box and the sauce being $3.99/jar.

    There may be other deals on Wild Harvest products, but not all Jewel stores carry all Wild Harvest products.

    If anybody is able to print the $1 coupons from the Wild Harvest Organic website, there’s some really nice deals on these.

    For me, I have been unable to get a coupon to print. I either get an error that says Unable to Print Coupon(s) Your default printer is not supported., which is silly since they’ve printed before, or I get an error that says something like We are unable to process your request.

    I suppose, even without the coupons (hush my mouth), B1G1F on organics is a good deal.

  31. Today I purchased 5 NV Granola, 5 Fruit Snacks, 3 JV Brats, and a 2 liter of Seltzer, through Q’s and hang tags (found an old Halloween Hang tag for $6 off Grocerys on Stoli bottle and had a $1 Off any mixer) I left the store for $16.99 and got back 10, 3.50 & 3.50 in Cats….could not have done it without some luck and knowledge from you….Thanks

    Jewel in West Chicago

    P.S. this counted $40 towards a gas reward so it is pre-coupon for that juicy nugget…

  32. Thanks for telling me that about the catalina machines. I some how missed that bit of info. Thanks!!

  33. I just want to heads up a couple of additional saving methods!

    1. When you use your CVS card after a while about every or every other transaction you get a coupon that prints for $3 off any purchase of $15 or more

    2. CVS cards give you 2% back

    3. Discover card gives you 1% back on all your purchases plus (see #4)

    4. Shopping through the Discover Card “Shop with Discover” gives 5%-10% back on special merchants like Apple Store, Best Buy, APT, Home Depot, etc. You can purchase big ticket items and get 5% back!

    5. When you redeem your “cash back” you can get it in cash OR get additional amounts with special merchants. I like to redeem my cash for 100% matching from Crabtree and Evelyn. Most merchants only give $5 when you redeem for $20, 30, or $40. However C&E give you $40 when you redeem $20. Ultra Diamonds also give you $40 for $20 redeemed!

    Having said all that. I spent $7.44 today at CVS taking advantage of the Gilette Gamer Razor Deal and the Gillette Shampoo/Conditioner deal. I got some other items to make the total $15 (a loaf of bread and a soda).

    Toss in coupons for the Razor and the $3 off when you purchase $15. Cost after coupons = $7.44. I received $7.00 in extra care bucks which makes my purchase 44 cents! And wait! I charged it to Discover and used my CVS card so Discover will give me (7.44×1%) 7 cents and CVS will give me 15 cents.

    My actual money spent after all the values is (7.44-7-.15-.07) 22 cents!

  34. I just got my first issue of All You (so excited-yeah!)–it’s the March issue. There is a $1.50 coupon for Colgate Total Advanced 4.0 oz. or larger in it!

  35. I just got back from the Spring Grove Jewel, and I bought the GM Granola bars and fruit snacks. I bought 5 of each, and only got a $3.50 and $2.50 catalina back. I’m not sure if I did anything wrong or if the $10.00 catalina deal is over. Anyway, I still got a good deal. Thanks for all the great information!

  36. just tried again to print the fruit snack and granola bar coupons from the online source and it said try back next month, all out. Is that typical??

jillcataldoheadshotI'm Jill Cataldo, founder of Super-Couponing® workshops and author of the nationally-syndicated newspaper column and video series "Super-Couponing Tips" enjoyed by over 20 million people each week.

Want to live well on less? Read full bio

Blogger Badges

JillCataldo.com contains affiliate marketing links and promotional offers. Read full Privacy and Disclosure Statement for details, blogger network affiliations and advertising/PR information.