[NorthEssexsmallholding]

just a small thing, I buy most clothes off ebay and in charity shops.

[benkt]

Our best money saver at the new place has been to buy a formerly unoccupied farm that has a very similar name to another nearby farm so that the water board get confused and refuse to bill you 'cos they can't believe that you actually exist.

[doganjo]

Now you have given me an idea, but who these days would want old fashioned ways even if it did save money.

I think you'd be surprised - probably more so now than ever before.  This ercession wasn't bothering me too much before but it's getting harder by the minute.

[sabrina]

I reuse envelopes, jiffy bags, carrier bags for used cat litter. We only buy what we need for that day as my OH picks things up on the way home from work better than doing a big shop and wasting food. Love the charity shops and e-bay. As I am outside working a lot during the day I switch off the heating unless its very cold like winter.

[Juno]

Barter its great, i've just had my downstairs light fixed by an electrician for 1/2 dozen eggs and to allow his 4yr old daughter to come round to feed and collect eggs from the chucks ..... Bargain !!

I am also moving the kids out slowly 

[Sandy]

Wonderful!!!!!! The thing most of us have in common is the love of bargains, I get far more enjoyment from charity shop, E Bay or Car Boot shopping than from any High Street shops!!!! I get the things I want and need rather than the things others tell me I need !!!

[Womble]

Good point Sandy. I've found that getting rid of the TV has been a huge money saver - not particularly the license fee, but more that we don't end up watching lots of adverts that suddenly make us think we 'need' things!!

[Sandy]

We don't watch too much TV and I avoid big glossy mags, they make you want food, nice bodies, nice homes, nice families, nice clothing, nice flowery gardens, nice cars, nice hubbies or wifes or lovers   SO I avoid as they are all difficult to get!!!

I read an article in a waiting room yesterday and it said how nowdays we wash our bedding far too much,,,,so, don't change the beds until at least 10 people have slept in them No, I actualy do wash our B&B sheets but not so often ours....I thought about my mums shopping when I was a child...1 Box of Daz lasted ages and ages, now we all have those huge ones!!

[Hatty]

Now you have given me an idea, but who these days would want old fashioned ways even if it did save money

People these days want purpose made things and not make do and mend.

I teach Adults in the Community my last course was titled "Grandmas ways for Modern Ways" after Diana Peacocks Book (with her permission of course)

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/WEA-Grandmas-Ways-for-Modern-Days/175557169148602

We made Rag rugs from feed sacks and old t shirts, plant pots from newspapers   http://youtu.be/_gTyAmH1LAk , I had them making butter with left over cream, using empty plastic milk bottle as a churn, then we made soda bread with the left over buttermilk.

My learners range in age from 18-80 and they LOVE IT!!!!

[Newfoundland]

I never throw used compost onto the garden as so many gardening books tell you. I save the compost from pots and grow bags that I have grown veggies in and reuse it to start off the seeds the following year. I have had no problems with doing this and would enrich it with some rotted animal manure if necessary.

[ellisr]

Now you have given me an idea, but who these days would want old fashioned ways even if it did save money

People these days want purpose made things and not make do and mend.

I teach Adults in the Community my last course was titled "Grandmas ways for Modern Ways" after Diana Peacocks Book (with her permission of course)

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/WEA-Grandmas-Ways-for-Modern-Days/175557169148602

We made Rag rugs from feed sacks and old t shirts, plant pots from newspapers   http://youtu.be/_gTyAmH1LAk , I had them making butter with left over cream, using empty plastic milk bottle as a churn, then we made soda bread with the left over buttermilk.

My learners range in age from 18-80 and they LOVE IT!!!!

I am making a rag rug at the moment I never thought of that as money saving it is something I have always done. I also make all my own soft furnishings and a lot of my clothes as they fit better more than price.

[Rosemary]

Go on a diet. No crisps, alcohol, biscuits, sweets, juice in the shopping basket. I feel better, my belly's shrinking and the shopping's cheaper 

[robert waddell]

and life is not worth living       without the odd indulgence of what takes your fancy or any fancy

[ellisr]

Go on a diet. No crisps, alcohol, biscuits, sweets, juice in the shopping basket. I feel better, my belly's shrinking and the shopping's cheaper 

Or make them instead won't make your belly shrink though

[helskitchen]

We used to live across the road from Sainsburys (until we found the right place to live!) and got a bit lazy with popping across if we didn't fancy whatever was in the cupboard, although my OH did kind of work out when the best time was to go and get the reductions - loads of fresh fish, meat and bread went in our freezer.

Now we are living in the middle of fields we have had to make lists of what we need and make sure we stick to it - we have saved loads on our shopping bill!  Tescos is near our sons school in town so we try to plan for what we are going to do to make sure we can make one trip rather than jumping in the car unnecessarily like we used to.

Now we have more hens we are able to trade stuff - the farmers who store hay, corn and straw in the barns next to the house swap us for eggs and us keeping an eye on their stores, so we never have to buy hay, corn and straw!  They love that we have dogs who bark whenever anyone comes near cos they feel their stuff is more secure.

Best swap of all is that the local icecream man has fallen in love with our eggs - he pops by every weekend and buys as many as he can, and always give us all free double 99s with lots of sauce and nuts.  Yummmmy!

Apart from that we are gradually cutting down on what we spend, and enjoy spending the savings on fun stuff!