The Art of Couponing

So for just under three weeks I have been in America, and I certainly did not return from there empty-handed! Everything in the picture was bought using a coupon, available either online or in the Sunday edition of the local newspaper. (I also bought food items using coupons, but I didn't keep track of them, so to make it simpler I'll only include make-up products.)




Coupons can be separated into two different types - manufacturer coupons, and store coupons. Manufacturer coupons are usable in any store that stocks the specific item on the coupon, whereas store coupons can only be used in that specific store. If you're lucky enough to get both a manufacturer and a store coupon for the same item, you can combine them and get even more savings! (But be sure to read the conditions on the coupon, as different restrictions apply to different coupons!) Also, some stores will require you to have a store card with them to be able to use store coupons (an unfortunate problem that I had at Walgreens).

For these products I went to three separate stores - Walgreens, CVS, and Target. Maybelline Color Show Nail Lacquer and Revlon ColorStay Ultimate Suede Lipstick were bought at Walgreens; Covergirl intenseshadowblast and smokyshadowblast, Revlon Illuminance Creme Shadow and Sally Hansen Diamond Strength No Chip Nail Color were bought at CVS; and Almay Eye Makeup remover pads was bought at Target.

This is Maybelline Color Show Nail Lacquer in the shade Crushed Candy, a dark pink with a purple shimmer throughout. I used a $1 off Maybelline Color Show nail product manufacturer coupon that I got from Seventeen magazine. (Unfortunately I cannot remember the price of it, and the price being quoted on the Walgreens website is definitely less than I paid for it.)

This is Revlon ColorStay Ultimate Suede Lipstick in the shade Couture, which is red (what can I say, I love red lips!). I used a $1 off Revlon ColorStay Ultimate Suede Lipstick manufacturer coupon that I found online (I did also have a $1 off Revlon lip products store coupon, but no store card so was unable to use it). Now this was a more expensive buy for me at around $9 (approx. £6), but I had been interested in the product for a while before finding the coupon, so I thought I might as well save some money on it!

These are Covergirl intenseshadowblast (in the shade Forever Pink), and smokyshadowblast (in the shade Tempest Blue) eye products. I have to say, these are probably the biggest bargain I got whilst couponing - each of these should have been around $9 in price, but were reduced by 50%, making them about $4.49 each (approx. £2.99). Then the manufacturer coupon I had was for $4 off of two Covergirl eye products, so after all savings these only cost roughly $2.49 each (approx. £1.66)!

This is Revlon Illuminance Creme Shadow in the palette Wild Orchids. For this I used a $3 off Revlon makeup products manufacturer coupon from the local Sunday paper, meaning that this only cost me around $3.99 (approx. £2.66). Sadly, an eyeshadow applier is not included in this palette.

This is Sally Hansen Diamond Strength No Chip Nail Color in the shade Black Diamonds. Originally I was going to buy this in Walgreens, but I wasn't able to use the store coupon. I used a $1.50 off Sally Hansen nail products manufacturer coupon from the local Sunday paper, bringing the cost down to about $3.99.

These are Almay Eye Makeup remover pads, with a total of 80 pads in the tub. Originally $5.29 (approx. £3.53), I had a $2 off Almay makeup remover store coupon, making them $3.29 (approx. £2.19) after discounts.















So these are all my couponing rewards - I hope you've enjoyed a glimpse at one way in which you can cut down on your makeup costs!