I've been laid off since October of last year.  I don't understand why anyone in my position would be clipping coupons for mouthwash to save a buck.  Mouthwash is a non-essential item, as are breath mints, fancy soaps, candles, soda pop, breakfast cereal, etc....I'll never understand how Kelloggs and Post brainwashed people into thinking they needed to eat their dried-up, tasteless boxed crap for breakfast.  Throw a piece of bread into the toaster, and coat it with either peanut butter or butter and cinnamon and sugar, or jelly and call that breakfast.  Throw a couple eggs and some bacon in the skillet and you have a decent meal.  Let Kelloggs and Post eat their own cardboard.  After all, that's what their cereals taste like an hour after you've downed a bowl and start burping it up.....

I can't help agreeing with Diane most heartily. Although, I would hold back on the bacon which is expensive and not as healthy as it was in the old days when it was pure, humanely grown from more well-tended naturally fed pigs.

These days, pigs are fed things that would curl the toes of a nuclear waste engineer.

Anything processed is very much a waste of good money in that you're paying for packaging, air and excess transportation. Oftentimes such foods are heavily laced with salt, sugar, additives and cheap fillers.

Not so good for folks. Furthermore, we have a tendency to eat more than we need, especially when we eat high salt/sugar foods.

Manufacturers also have a tendency to add the salt plus sugar or corn syrup sweeteners to counteract each other. They're the cheapest ingredients... (not including certain genetically modified grain or corn additives...) !

Diane..had you read the article. perhaps you would have noticed that it was $2 saved and then sold for profit so this person could stand on their own in this terrible economy. Many people live off of coupons, even before the economy tanked. And if you are going to interviews, mouthwash is not non-essential!

People will do whatever they can to get by. We recently purchased items at a yard sale that we needed and when our addition has it sale later this month, will sell what we don't. Its a form of recycling. My grandson is enjoying a car play set we picked up from a family with a boy that has outgrown it. Some of my grandson's toys will likely be in our sale. Many people are making enough off of these types of yard sales to keep their bills paid. My hats off to them for being resourceful.

I admire people who are thinking of creative ways of making a buck instead of sitting around feeling sad and depressed. I think some of the other people who focused in on WHAT she was selling instead of WHY she was selling it and whether she was successful totally missed the point of the article. If she can make enough money to pay some bills or buy some healthy foods for her family, good for her!

I'm all for garage sales. I had 3 garage sales towards the end of 2008. I MADE $7,000. (And no, I didn't sell everything I had -- and most items were priced under $3.)

I'm a single mom with 2 young children. At the time of the sales, I was unemployed. The garage sales kept my bills paid until I got a job.

I also regularly use coupons. I average 20% - 50% off my grocery bill using coupons. It's good to be thrifty!

Eventually you will run out of stuff to sell. Coupons only go so far. This thing is in its begining stages and selling your stuff to get by is not an answer, its is a part of the problem.

First of all, let me say "I do NOT work for the IRS."

For those who are couponing, or selling items at garage sales for more than what they paid, those profits are taxable and should be claimed when they file their tax return next year.

Sorry, but that's the law. So keep good records to protect yourselves.

Wait a minute folks, aren't 'we' missing the really really GLARINGLY BIG POINT of this story??? The 'part' about Ms. Curtis being both an Iraq AND Afghanistan VETERAN!!! Perhaps it's just me, being an inveterate advocate for Veteran's, but isn't that point (on it's own) REALLY a glimpse of the over-all BIG SAD Picture?

Also, to the Nay-Sayers that regard mouthwash and "breath-mints" as "non-essential" items; as one without health/dental insurance/care... I must Heartily disagree!! Mouthwash helps to kill germs, that, with poor dental health, DO lead to other {sic} more expensive 'complications'... like that HEART ATTACK I had last year, at 47!!! Also, I note that Altoids were specifically mentioned... again... because I can not afford the medication for my GERD; I utilize the more NATURAL stomach soothing effects of the Peppermint Altoids!

I certainly applaude these women and the entire town in working toward POSITIVITY in the face of Adversity! SHAME on You, Nay-Sayers!

Shalom!

The point is, that in a cash-less economy, there is nothing to tax. Most of us R 1 step up from homeless..miss the mortage payment, & bam! we're out on the streets. Here in Salem, Oregon, we are fighting city hall for the right to keep chickens in our yards for the eggs we can harvest to eat or to sell/barter. When you eat 4 free out of your yard, you save A LOT of cash for bills. We harvest rainwater to water our vegetables & fruits (12 dwarf fruit trees on one lot) so that keeps our Utility water bill low. Right now, some of us r trying to start a co-op to keep goats for the milk and cheese. My neighbor, Kate, grows her own wheat and makes her own bread. Our grandfolks went thru this in the Great Depression, and make no mistake, this is another Great Depression.

I am proud to say I clip coupons, shop the sale ads and rebate. When I have my garage sales of my "stockpile" items I charge half of what they are charging in the stores. I know Stefanie Curtis and I am the one that got her into couponing. She is a great person and is doing what she has to do to get by in the sad state of economy.

I agree with maggie r. What would you rather people do, sell stuff or go on welfare or beg by the side of the streets? I said I was unemployed at the time, I am not now. Taking care of my children was my number one priority!

Furthermore, as I said, I didn't sell anything that I needed. I still have a fully furnished 4 bedroom house. I just sold stuff I didn't need. Why shouldn't you make money off my stuff? As for the IRS comment, give me a break.

Go Stefanie Curtis! Good for you!

Let me just start off by saying, yes I am a Veteran and currently going through the process to get back in the military. I began this with a friend of mine who has couponed for years; she said “go with me to this seminar for Jim the coupon guy.” So I went and ever since then I have been hooked on coupons, rebates and sales ads. I learned how to get things I need at a much cheaper price and even sometimes free. Sometimes to get the things you really need, you might have to buy something you don’t need. It might seem a bit confusing at first but eventually you catch on, I use several websites to help me out but my favorite is . I don’t only do this to make a profit, I donate a lot to my church which is servicing over 35 families a week now and also give things to other people in my community who need them. I would much rather do what I do knowing that people might be able to brush their teeth this month, then be part of the problem. Nothing I do is illegal and I have already paid taxes on everything. In today’s economy you need to cut back where ever you can and this might just help that one person in need. And for those of you who think mouthwash is a non essential item you are making me worry a little bit. Using mouthwash and floss will save you in the end at the dentist. I would much rather buy a $2 bottle of mouthwash, than pay for a filling. To end this I will just say that our community has the highest unemployment rate in the nation and people appreciate when I have things like this available for them to buy.

Regarding home remedies: I grow lavender, rosemary, and lemonbalm (aka Sweet Melissa herb) and mint in my yard. Instead of drinking coke, I brew mint tea in a big jug (water + mint leaves +honey) & saved $35 a month. My neighbors across the street keep bees, and generously share the honey. I buy bulk canola oil and steep it in jars with the lavender fronds for body oils [saved $40 month by not buying lotions]. I shop for food at WINCO and Grocery Outlet for things I can't grow or make. I use the rosemary steeped in canola oil for anti-flea treatment for my dog & cat, instead of buying Advantage or Frontline. Mint tea soothes the tummy and cleanses the breath.

I am pregnant, my fiancee is laid off so we are on a very tight budget - Things that have been helping a great deal so far are 2 free websites. The first is www.freecycle.org where people post a variety of FREE (and free only) items they want, or want to get rid of. The other is www.swapmamas.com which is another site where Mom's (and Dad's) can post items they need, want to give, or swap. It's all about recycling AND helping your neighbor.

Diane, I think the article was misleading regarding the couponing. Ms Curtis "sells" certain things she has excess of in her garage sales to supplement her income. There are many other items she uses to feed her family and community which are not sold. If she can get a box of cereal Kelloggs or post cereal for $.25 using coupons and watching the sales, she can feed her family a couple meals for that. This is where someone in your situation could benefit from using the coupons. As someone who uses coupons myself, I have been able to cut my food budget by almost 70% by using coupons, stocking up when things are on sale and combining coupons. I get many items free or very inexpensively by taking the time to plan and save. There are many sites online you can go to to teach you how to do this yourself. Check out for example. I wish you luck in your situation.

Great article. I Have cut coupons and shopped that way for over 30 years. My family consists of husband and me. We love to save money and I love to help others in need. I can supply retired people on a fixed income a few items, as well as a sister that went through a tough divorce. For those of us that are givers, coupons are a blessing to our wallet. Lately the savings have been noticed by those on a tighter budget, that use to buy willy nilly and did not check prices.

Simple rule follows to everyone .... Buy what you need not just only during bad days, Also Save even while you are in job for rainy days

Yes! Couponing helped me a great deal since the day I was wrongfully dismissed from my job. Because I use coupons on as many items as possible I get to use nice toilet paper instead of the old Sears catalog and get my organic eggs and whole grain bread for a fraction of the price. I clean my house with products I have received a full refund price for and yes, it is almost like a part-time job that requires time, effort, and organization but to me it is worth it. I work hard for my coupons.

I have no empathy for any of the unemployed Elkhart folks who are ILLEGAL and staying in the US as under-the-radar residents. GO HOME.

Legal resident, here is a number you might want to write down and use: Immigration Issues: 1-866-DHS-2ICE.

BTW - have any of you in Elkhart questioned the illustrious City Officials as to why your town is getting flushed? Why your entire way of life is turning into one disgusting soap opera of whiners? Why they allow MSNBC to make you folks the butt of jokes?

Let's see....Elkhart was/is a one-industry town, where if you didn't work for or connect to a RV related business, you didn't work.

How about this - you have trained people in building small-style housing. Travel trailers, RV's perhaps Park Models. Your units have always met or exceeded the Industry standards.

FEMA needs good substantial trailers suitable for disaster housing. They seemed to have purchased junk with health issues (Formaldehyde and mold for example) - ever wonder WHO built them and who got the contract?

Why not bring those two needs together..PUTTING AMERICA BACK TO WORK? Gee - what a concept!

Instead, Elkhart is being used a a poster child for Yankee Whiners - aka the New Orleans Katrina group.

Elkhart Central High School. Any editor could have googled it and confirmed. Internet reporting is rubbish, because no one checks anything any more.

Elkhart Central High School. Any editor with google could have verified it. That's the problem with internet reporting - no one checks any more. The story has greatly exaggerated the idea that the ONLY industry in Elkhart is RV manufacturing. There is a major FEMA housing industry and manufactured housing industry as well, it just doesn't compliment the story well so the full facts are not included.

There are a lot of really good ideas that people are having here that can be really helpful. The only thing I don't like is the tone some people have towards others, one that is more than slightly judgemental and condescending. There is no need for us to be pitted against each other as to who is the "deserving" and who is the "undeserving" poor. It's as wrong as it is old. jmo.

How dare people on here try to judge someone for trying to save money by using coupons and reselling some to people who could use the discounted items for their own families. I see NOTHING wrong with this. Maybe you people who are so quick to judge have NEVER been in a situation where you had to use a coupon or shop at a yardsale. Maybe you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, but you must remember. Let he without sin cast the first stone. I hope you don't live in a glass house.