Binder Organization

So here is my big binder! I do not go to Moncton without it! I think I've spent about $7-$8 on it and that was just for the plastic sheets that hold my coupons. The binder itself is one I used to have in college. It's old, it's stained and dirty, but it holds everything I need in order to do my couponing and more!

On the very front of my binder is a pocket. I do a lot of coupon trading so I need lots of envelopes always on hand. I keep them in this front pocket so I'm never looking for envelopes when I'm getting a trade ready. I got married last fall and I had almost a whole pack of blank wedding invitations left so I took the envelopes out of the kit and threw them in my binder!

As soon as I open my binder, on the left hand side there is an accordion style pocket. This is where I keep all my "bigger things". There's a notebook in there that I use when I do my weekly match-ups, as well as some spare paper for notes or whatever else I may need it for. I also keep my flyers in here. It's always good to have your flyers with you, especially if your price matching at Walmart, so I put mine in here so I always know where they are. I also keep any coupons that haven`t been clipped yet in here!

This is this inside of my binder! On the left hand side I keep a couple pens and a pair of scissors. Again, I like to keep my stuff all in one spot and you never know when you might need either of these when your couponing. There is also a see-through mesh pocket with a zipper. This is where I keep my coupons when I am shopping. When I am shopping, as soon as I put something in my cart that I have a coupon for, I immediately take out the coupon and put it in this pocket. That way when I get to the cash I don`t have to spend a lot of time finding all the right coupons for the right items, they are all right here and ready to be used!

On the right hand side there is, what I think is, a pencil case that snaps into the binder along with everything else. This actually came out of a different zipper binder that I had in high school! The top see through zipper pocket is where I keep all my receipts. I like to have an idea of how much I saved, so I keep my receipts. This is where they all go. The bottom mesh pocket is where I keep stamps. When you do a lot of coupon trading, you can never have enough stamps so I buy them buy the book and I keep them in here. Lastly, there is a zipper down the side and that is a pocket as well. In there is where I keep any coupons that don't fit in the plastic sheets. 

Now for the coupons. I have my coupons divided into 7 categories but I only had 5 tab dividers so I had to play with it some to make it work. 

I try to keep my categories divided into sub categories, and then the sub categories divided alphabetically, but that doesn't always work out so well where I'm always getting new and different coupons.

First is FOOD. 

Second is CLEANING. In my cleaning category I have it divided like this: Dishes, Laundry, "All Purpose" cleaning solutions (Scrubbing Bubbles, Mr. Clean, etc.), "Smellies" (Febreze, Glade, etc.), and Other.

Third is PAPER PRODUCTS, DIAPERS AND WIPES. Divided into 2 subcategories, paper products (toilet paper, paper towel and facial tissue) and diapers and wipes.

Fourth is TOILETRIES. I divided my toiletries into these sub categories: Hair (shampoo/conditioner, hair dye, etc.), Shaving (razors, shave gels, etc.), Dental (tooth paste, mouth wash, etc.), Deodorant, Lotion/Soap, Make-Up, and Other.

Fifth is PETS. Any pet related coupons go here.

Sixth is PHARMACY. Any pharmacy related coupons go here. 

Seventh is OTHER. Any coupons that I can find a spot for in any of my other categories go at the back of my book behind everything else (Batteries, Build-a-Bear, Raid, etc.).

Finally, the actual coupons! I went to the dollar store and purchased 6 or 7 packs of sports card protection sheets. If you go to the dollar store and can't find them, don't be fooled like I was. They are not in office and school supply section like you would think they would be (or at least like I did). They're actually in the sports card section.
Each page holds 9 different coupons. In my binder EVERY COUPON has its own spot! I do not put 2 different coupons in the same slot. If I have multiples of the same coupon I will of course put them in together.

Usually when I'm organizing my binder I like to leave a few blank spots, especially in between my sub categories, since I don't have dividers for them. When I first got my binder I had them in there one right after another, and then I would get a new coupon and I wouldn't have a place to put it, so I would have to spend an hour re-organizing my binder to make room for one coupon. I quickly learned that if I leave a few blank spots then it will be easier to make room for the new ones when I get them.

So that's about it for my binder! I hope the information was helpful! Don't be scared to ask me any questions.