Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Share your tips and ideas on making the most of meals!
Mary
Posts: 673
Joined: Sat Oct 15, 2011 9:53 am

Re: Tips on curbing impluse food purchases

Post by Mary » Sun Feb 05, 2012 9:55 am

HeatherFeather wrote: I wish they would just sell the jello molds - I would happily buy them.
I loved the flag jello mold and it broke or I lost it - I haven't seen that one in a while. I actually used that one quite a bit.
Heather, I've seen them for sale on eBay. They run from $4.99 to $12-$13 plus shipping.

Crocus
Posts: 118
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2011 10:52 pm

Re: Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Post by Crocus » Sun Feb 05, 2012 9:56 am

On most of my grocery shopping trips I have a list. Much of what I buy is on the perimeter of the store, ie. meat, dairy, produce.

I do not go down any of the aisles unless I need an item from them - yesterday for example I needed oil and teabags. I went directly to the items I needed and didn't slow down to look at what else might be a "good deal". I do not go into the bakery department and I stay out of the frozen foods unless I specifically need something like frozen peas or ice cream. Deli, only if needing something for DH's lunch, and sometimes pizza meat. I rarely buy convenience foods. Canned goods like tomato products, beans, salmon, and some basic soups I try to stock up on if there is a good sale.

I'm not really as frugal as that may sound. We eat well but I like to make as much from "scratch" as possible. I make my own bread, baked goods, pasta, yogurt, some condiments, jams/jellies, and some cheeses. I blow a lot of money on gadgets, appliances, specialty pans, etc., but good quality stuff so I will likely never have to replace them.

Denise
Posts: 1205
Joined: Mon Sep 12, 2011 10:02 am

Re: Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Post by Denise » Sun Feb 05, 2012 12:03 pm

Kchurchill5 wrote:
Cilla wrote:EAT before you go grocery shopping! Very important! LOL! :D :D
YES!!!!
I agree, but not too much or you won't buy enough food! :lol:

I don't have an issue with impulse buying at all. Most of those "offers" are for stuff I never use. Like BOGO free canned spaghetti sauce, or what have you. I take a list, pretty much always stick to it. Once in awhile something might catch my eye, but not often. I have a friend who goes to the store and it's like a kid in a candy shop. She buys everything that looks good :lol:

Edit to Add - That extra money is what keeps me motivated. That extra $20 or $30 you spend here and there can add up to $200 per month. In one year, that $200 per month savings can mean a six night trip to Mexico. Or whatever you personally would like to spend $2400 on, LOL.

Roxanne
Posts: 676
Joined: Fri Oct 14, 2011 3:47 pm

Re: Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Post by Roxanne » Sun Feb 05, 2012 5:50 pm

I always have a list but still end up walking out with extra things in my basket :?. I think my problem is I love to browse! Browsing makes it easier to see all these specials and harder to resist them :lol:.

HeatherFeather
Posts: 2558
Joined: Wed Oct 19, 2011 6:07 am

Re: Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Post by HeatherFeather » Sun Feb 05, 2012 10:59 pm

Roxanne wrote:I always have a list but still end up walking out with extra things in my basket :?. I think my problem is I love to browse! Browsing makes it easier to see all these specials and harder to resist them :lol:.
I account for that in my weekly budget. I automatically allow myself 2-3 items that are "blank" on my shopping list. Those can be any item I want (as long as the price is reasonable) that wasn't on my actual list. I don't always get the extra items, but this way I have planned for an impulse if I see something new I really want to try and it doesn't take me over budget.

Crocus
Posts: 118
Joined: Tue Oct 18, 2011 10:52 pm

Re: Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Post by Crocus » Mon Feb 06, 2012 8:19 am

HeatherFeather wrote:
Roxanne wrote:I always have a list but still end up walking out with extra things in my basket :?. I think my problem is I love to browse! Browsing makes it easier to see all these specials and harder to resist them :lol:.
I account for that in my weekly budget. I automatically allow myself 2-3 items that are "blank" on my shopping list. Those can be any item I want (as long as the price is reasonable) that wasn't on my actual list. I don't always get the extra items, but this way I have planned for an impulse if I see something new I really want to try and it doesn't take me over budget.
That's a great idea Heather. Kind of like dieting and allowing yourself the occasional "treat". About every 6 weeks we go to the city and hit the big stores; that is when I do some grocery browsing and pick up a few different things. It's fun.

Roxanne
Posts: 676
Joined: Fri Oct 14, 2011 3:47 pm

Re: Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Post by Roxanne » Mon Feb 06, 2012 2:36 pm

Well that is something I don't have, a weekly grocery budget, but I got to say that is an excellent idea. Make sure you don't overspend too.

Cilla
Posts: 137
Joined: Fri Oct 14, 2011 8:22 pm

Re: Tips on curbing impulse food purchases

Post by Cilla » Mon Feb 06, 2012 6:30 pm

One thing I also do is to go online to the grocery stores websites. The 2 stores we have here where I live both have websites that have the weekly sales and a shopping list with prices that I print out. That way I can pretty much know how much I'm going to spend. I do usually only shop monthly with a milk, 1/2 and 1/2 (for Cilla), cream (for me) and bread, maybe a couple of meat sales and a few veggies by weekly or weekly depending on the sales for each week. Works out really well. I'll bet that most of your grocery stores will have a website and it really helps me out.

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