Ways to save money

[chillys-willy]

I feed my dog leftovers if they are close to expiring and we are not going to use them. As well, sometimes, I just cook her rice. Saves alot on dog food and there is no waste. Better environmentally. Curiously, since I have been doing this alot of people have mentioned that she looks thinner and alot healthier. Not sure if this is true but she is very happy eating human food. ( including leftover salad) I still have dog food in case there is nothing suitable for her but go through alot less these days.

As well, my DH fixes everything. We buy mostly secondhand. My DH volunteers at Habitat when they are building and we support them by buying from their store. Not only does it save money, it saves the environment and gives money to a charity. DH just installed a new dishwasher with all the new features - looked like brand new - for $125 from Habitat.

BTW, can anyone explain the Smart Canucks cash back someone mentioned? I don't know about that. I can't find it. I use .com. Is it similar?

[Loner]

I don't buy any clothes
avoid restaurants
on buy groceries on sale

[grumpy]

Be smart about dealing with any debt.

ALWAYS pay off your credit card. If you can get a line of credit (less than 4% these days), use that to pay off your credit cards which charge 25% interest.

Pay off your line of credit before investing in an rrsp.

[mrscspit]

I make a budget...and stick to it..(love till debt do us part)
..put between 5 - 10 % of each cheque in savings ...
Make cards and gifts...
shop in thift stores/kijiji/ or sales
Sell un used things on kijiji
bought an inexpensive car out right..
i'll walk to stores instead of drive
plant my own veggies

watch all tv programs and movies online (I dont pay for cable )
take advantage of the free programs the city has to offer for my kids .. local library .. museum..ect

[Ginkoin]

I know some may have problems with this, but one thing that will save us woman decent amounts is using a menstrual cup and cloth pads for just in case the cup spills some of its contents.

Diva Cup This is where I got mine from.
Cloth Pads This is the person I got mine from.

I know I was spending something like $10 a month on personal hygiene products. So even if you spend $80 like I did on the cup and cloth pads, you still start saving money in less than a year.

[aaaa]

I know some may have problems with this, but one thing that will save us woman decent amounts is using a menstrual cup and cloth pads for just in case the cup spills some of its contents.

Diva Cup This is where I got mine from.
Cloth Pads This is the person I got mine from.

I know I was spending something like $10 a month on personal hygiene products. So even if you spend $80 like I did on the cup and cloth pads, you still start saving money in less than a year.

As you said, definitely not everyone's cup of tea, but if you pull it off, i'll bow down to your commitment to thrift.

[aaaa]

I don't buy any clothes
avoid restaurants
on buy groceries on sale

Just to add on to this, some cereal boxes often have free t-shirts to give away when you buy their cereal. If you pair it up with a cereal sale... double bonus!! Example/ Cinnamon Toast Crunch was on sale a few weeks after the olympics finished up. At the same time they had a Hockey Canada t-shirt promotion with every box. I bought 5, ordered 5 XXL shirts, and now I'm set for pajamas for at least the next 5-7 years.

[snuffaluffagus]

Hi. Just discovered this site several days ago and am especially very impressed with this thread .

I would like to add some points that haven't been covered yet, I don't think.

For pet guardians: Cats: Feeding your cats a well balanced raw diet can cost only pennies per day and save hundreds every year in vet fees as a result of feeding poor quality commercial foods. The same goes for dogs. We feed ours a combination of raw and home-cooked and it comes out to just under what it would cost to feed kibble. For those who choose to feed their dogs kibble but are concerned about value/quality, I've found that when comparing brands (ingredients), Costco's Kirkland brand is far superior to many popular brands including one's sold by veterinarians at a fraction of the cost. Do a comparison of ingredients to see which is better for your pet.

For homeowner's carrying a mortgage: If possible, choose to pay weekly or bi-weekly as opposed to monthly. You could be saving thousands in interest and can cut the amortization period by a year or more. In addition, try to put down as much $ as possible when it's time for a mortgage renewal (don't forget to shop around for better rates a month or so before so you're not charged penalty fees for switching). We scrimped and saved and paid off our first home in 7 years vs. 25 years and saved approximately 55 000$ in interest fees.

As some others have already mentioned here, my favorite advice is don't spend on something if you don't need it. It doesn't matter if it's on sale; if it's not a necessity then you're spending money, not saving it.

[Insane]

Just to add on to this, some cereal boxes often have free t-shirts to give away when you buy their cereal. If you pair it up with a cereal sale... double bonus!! Example/ Cinnamon Toast Crunch was on sale a few weeks after the olympics finished up. At the same time they had a Hockey Canada t-shirt promotion with every box. I bought 5, ordered 5 XXL shirts, and now I'm set for pajamas for at least the next 5-7 years.

Becareful with the t-shirt promos. They go fast. I've been burned a few times. Went to enter the pins and they had no more!

[Lake]

WOW you guys rock...so many simple things that I didn't think of. One thing I do to save money is I buy the cheapest dish soap (usually .88 cents at Giant Tiger) & I mix it half & half with water and put it in the foaming hand soap container in the bathroom. With 6 people washing hands a lot this has saved a lot of money.

[Valiant]

I find it helps me to save money when I use anger to advantage:
1. When a store clerk gives me the rude treatment when I use coupons, I feel angry enough not to shop there for 2 weeks, thereby saving money.
2. When somebody in line makes a disparaging comment about my needing to use coupons, I feel angry enough to avoid the store and cook at home for a few weeks, thereby saving money.
3. When people bother me with door-to-door solicitations for various donations when I can't afford it, I feel so annoyed, I don't answer the door, thereby saving money.
4. When people make a point of bragging to me about their posessions, trips, money and things, and then blatantly ask me what I have in comparison with their stuff, I feel disgust at being buttonholed.
And I realize again that the best things in life are still free and much more satisfying; while they are never satisfied with what they have, they only want more and better things afterwards, with bragging rights. So I make a mental note not to buy the things they bought and bragged about, because they are still not satisfied. And that's another way I save money.

[Shwa Girl]

I find it helps me to save money when I use anger to advantage:
1. When a store clerk gives me the rude treatment...
2. When somebody in line makes a disparaging comment about my needing ...
3. When people bother me with door-to-door solicitations ...
4. When people make a point of bragging to me about their posessions, trips, money and things, and then blatantly ask me what I have in comparison with their stuff....

Hey Valiant, thanks for your post.
Anger may hurt you inside, and may appear as a physical ailment later on.
You are a Smart Canuck, and I view #1 to #4 people (above) as being jealous of you. I have met similar people that you have met.

If you would allow me to take your lead, I would revise your excellent points to:

1. When a store clerk gives me the rude treatment, I report this to the manager and tell them I would like to continue to shop at your excellent store, if "Jane Doe" cashier would be trained to provide excellent customer service. Then I find a "super cashier(s)" and only go to that lane(s).
No one stops me from shopping where I want to shop, and with coupons too!

2. When somebody in line makes a disparaging comment about my needing to use coupons, I ignore them and focus on watching the cash register screen and the cashier. If they persist, I sweetly smile and ask, "Are you volunteering to buy my groceries today?" I then continue to ignore them.

3. When people bother me with door-to-door solicitations, I tell them "No thank you", and close the door. If they come back again, I take their company information and call asking that no other reps come to my home.

4. When people make a point of bragging to me about their posessions, trips, money and things, and then blatantly ask me what I have in comparison with their stuff, I smile sweetly and calmly say, " Wow, you have done well. Congratulations. No, I do not have what you have [whether I do or not - not their business]". I say nothing else.

I find the people who would be interested in SC and help them out. The others, I don't bother with them.

Hope this week is a great week for you!!!!

[Valiant]

What I have written, I have written, for very good reasons.

Forum rules: no criticizing another poster's post, but if the post is contrary to the rules of the forum, it may be reported to a mod, etc.

[[email protected]]

me to i do the same thing now ill be couponing,tooo

[tia66]

One small thing that I do (but I like to think helps at least a bit) is to never boil more water than I need at that moment. Why fill up the kettle and boil 1.7L of water when you're only making one cup of tea?