My Coupon Binder is No More!

I've mentioned before how very ugly my coupon binder is. In fact, it's not even a binder. It's an 8x8 inch scrapbook that I had on-hand when I started couponing. I was all about using what I had (and what was free!), so I stashed my coupons in this scrapbook. It is a lovely shade of soft metallic gold, which is not bad for the Christmas scrapbook that it was intended to be.... but not for a coupon binder. I've never posted a picture of it and have only shown it to a handful of people at two money-saving seminars I've taught. This binder lasted for about 6 months. It was pretty faithful (though ugly), but it has now fallen apart.

I suppose I could probably spend a few dollars to replace the screws that hold it together, but it's time to take the leap into something a bit more organized. I also need something that zips shut. I've realized recently that with one wrong fall, my coupons would be scattered to the corners of the earth! Tragedy indeed! Because each 8x8 sleeve is just one large compartment, it also takes me a really long time to hunt through each section of coupons when I'm shopping. If I find a good deal on something and need to hunt down a coupon, I'm going to be standing still in the store for a while. Add that to the fact that the thing doesn't even close, and you can see why I'm moving up in binders.

I stopped by Wal-Mart today and bought a Trapper-Keeper style binder (only $10!) and some baseball card sleeves. I also found some interesting clearance photo pages that each hold three 4x6 photos. I'm thinking that I might go with these instead of the baseball card sleeves. It seems like they will hold larger coupons without folding. (Okay, I'm a bit obsessive!) I'll be doing some experimenting this week, and I'll report back with some pictures of my new system.

But, for now, it's farewell to the original coupon binder. It's been a great journey, and you've saved me TONS of money! I will no longer have to hide you behind my purse or under my jacket in the shopping cart out of sheer embarrassment over how you look. I will retire you to the trash or recycle bin (not sure what it's made of). I am moving on to something more organized -- and far more girly! (Did I mention that the new binder is PINK!?!?)

If you have any suggestions for organizing my new binder, feel free to send them my way!!