i think most of us have cut a corner or two in recent years

what's something you've done that you wanna share that's notable?

i'll start

we got the magic jack to save about $35 a month on home phone costs

which is over $400 a year of course

where you hook home phone to this jack and then you can cancel your home phone provider and get off the -monthly billing cycle

i haven't exactly hooked it up yet

but i need to get on that

your turn

AWe use phone service from ooma, after you buy the equipment (~$200) you get free phone service for life. It works similarly to magicjack, where you hook up your regular home phone to the hub.

Another big potential money-saver is refinancing your mortgage. Rates are near historic lows, so if you haven't refinanced in a while you could potentially save hundreds of dollars a month and extend fixed-rate, low interest debt well into the future as a hedge against inflation. It's only a matter of time before inflation starts growing again due to the Fed's policy of quantitative easing (which is essentially printing money).

We also buy everything we can using a credit card with cash rewards (usually in the 1% range). As long as you can pay it off every month, this gives you a free short-term loan and cash back for stuff you were going to buy anyway.

And if you have money in the bank you are better off keeping as much as possible in an online savings account with a better interest rate. I use ING Direct, they pay 0.75% for savings and 0.8% for checking (the checking rate requires a balance of >$50K). I keep a few hundred in a local retail bank and transfer funds back and forth when necessary.

i got the call today as in five hours ago that our refi's been approved

<high five>

and some grocery stores that have gas stations give you extra savings on their gas if you shop there a lot

so my point is some people who do heavy buying, example a contractor buying supplies from Lowe's or Home Despots--goes to grocery store-- buys gift cards--pays for supplies with the gift cards at Lowe's -- gets maximum savings on gasoline which ain't nothing to sneeze at these days huh

i don't know for sure but i can get $.30 off a gallon with my piddly purchases--those guys can get a bunch more

it's about $5 for a $200 gift card so the card gets paid for in about ten gallons or less

I have been married for five years and we have never once paid for (or stolen!) cable. We either watch movies or the $8/month netflix through our wii and computer. Some months we cut out netflix too. Even $8 helps some months.

We heat by propane and every fill up cost about $800. During the day, I turn down the heat because it's usually just me here. If I'll be mostly in one room, I'll turn the thermostat way down and use a space heater.

My dh and I both accepted transfers with our company which landed us right in the middle of the oil boom.  Housing is a joke and almost impossible to find, especially since the oil companies are snapping up any and all properties when they become available.

We bought a fifth-wheel camper and it has worked out really well for us - - it's a good thing we get along so well. It required some ruthless downsizing and we can't buy anything since there's no place to put it.  I even buy milk by the half-gallon because the fridge is so small. All utilites including cable and wifi are included in our lot rent, so there's not much to spend money on. Makes me wonder how much of my spending was unnecessary when we were in a house. We have been able to save quite a bit in the last 6 months.

Chest freezer (two, actually, one for meat/veg and one for baking/caking).  Reading all of the flyers.  Never buy meat if its not on sale (when you first start this you find yourself with a limited menu, but after about two months you've got a good variety of meats and all at the lower prices).  For example my Thanksgiving, Christmas and next easter hams were all bought at 88 cents a pound just before Thanksgiving.  My daughter supplies the turkeys for those occassions because she spends more (buys more pre-packaged foods and more junk foods) and gets the free turkeys.  Always buy meat in bulk and sparate it into more manageable portions before freezing.  I buy the largest packs of lean ground beef they have and repack into 1 lb packs for freezing.   Buy all eggs (30$ a case for grade A large = 2$/doz) and whole chickens (1.40/lb for fryers and 99 cents/lb for old layers for soup/broth) from a local farm source in bulk.  Bake all my own breads, biscuits, buns, pizza dough etc (bread marathons = 40-50 loaves in 2 days and freeze it or barter (1 loaf of potato bread = 2 dozen large perogies, and we each think the deal is all on our side).

I live halfway between the two nearest cities so I have the benefit of having the three major chain stores and the local bulk store at one intersection 30 minutes away by car (and a super walmart opening this month on the fourth corner) so I read the flyers, make a list and do all the stores in one day.  I also go to the larger city (45 mins away) once every few months and hit the chinese market, Michael's, Canadian wholesale, Costco and Bulk barn all in one day, usually when I'm visiting my sister.  Have a big garden and always freeze the extras before they go bad.  That extra pound of tomatoes that you freeze in June saves you buying a tin of spagetti sauce in January.  I also haven't bought a bag of potatoes since last August.

Hubby is a truck driver so I save mega on shipping by getting him to pick up caking supplies at Golda's in Missisauga (when he's headed east), or PM Hobbycraft in Calgary (when he's headed west).  I give him a list and if he gets lost in the stores he calls me on his cell and I talk to the people on the floor and they help him to find exactly what I need or a reasonable facsimili (sp?). 

i love that you said pierogies!!! too cool, cakeyouverymuch!!!

you don't hear that word much in Tennessee!

i just put some in the frige to thaw out this morning!!!

♥♥♥♥

'special family' omg--we have had way too much drama in our family over pierogies!

who can come & dine--who can't-- omg

but unfortunately all those little pierogi makers are stuffing and pinching up in heaven now

my mom made the toughest to handle but best dough evah--best pierogis in the family

i roll out sheets of it & cut circles--i used to have a plastic 'maker' (sacrilege!!!)

i use cream cheese in my dough (shhhh dont' tell)

mom's you had to roll out each one (in all directions) and water the edges to get them to stay closed

oh god deliver me!!!!!!

but her's were the prettiest too--fluted like a bias cut dress ruffle

the sheer agony of making them versus the joy of a big fat

crunchy cheesey gooey noodlishious oniony buttery potato packed mouthful

yeah i carry at least one on each hip too

AI've had several Roku devices over the years, and they work great for connecting to paid video services (like Hulu Plus and Netflix) but there is very little in the way of free content if you don't subscribe to one of those services. You may also be able to connect to Netflix etc. through your game console if you have a Wii, PS3, or Xbox 360.

on my roku i like pandora for music and for some news stories--all for free no monthly service charge just the cost of the roku box

and whatever's necessary to have it hooked up television wise--and i did it myself so it's easy!

is there any way to get the golf channel without cable???

or the courtroom tv channel tru tv??? I love to watch those real courtroom trials

~~Turn the furnace down.  If you're used to 70, try 68 for a few weeks.  Ours sits at 62 unless it is really bitter outside, then we splurge on 65.  Warm clothing, couch blankets and cuddly pups help.

~~Don't throw food away.  Even a few tablespoons of veggies can be saved.  Start a "soup pot" in the freezer.  Throw bits of veggies, beans, meats, broths and such in the dish.  When it gets full, heat it up, add more broth or tomato sauce, season it to taste and you have nearly free supper!  Make your own TV dinners if you have single portions left of a meal.  After a few weeks, you can declare a fend for yourself night where everyone picks a frozen dinner.  Cheap AND easy!

~~Put electronics on power strips.  Anything with an LED light or clock is using electricity around the clock.  Train yourself and your family to click them off at the power strip when they aren't being used.  We saved $20/month doing this.  The extra strips I bought paid for themselves in a month.  Don't, however, use one on a DVR device...they can't record if they have no power LOL! 

~~Cook from scratch as much as you can.  Using sale bought ingredients, I can make a large pizza for less than $5.  Even on sale, Pizza Hut costs $10 plus tax and delivery and tip.  Burgers and fries for 4 from McDonald's is at least $20.  You can make it at home for less than half of that...and no weird ingredients!  (Yeah, I still cave and get the occasional McDouble...PMS is wicked!)

~~Take a drink with you from home.  Learn to make fancy coffees at home...then the occasional splurge is a real treat instead of a daily $$ suck. 

And my last one...check out Swagbucks.  (I'm not including any link, just google it...I don't want to get in any referral mess here!)  I spent about 30 minutes per day playing around on the site from July to November.  I paid almost ZERO out of pocket for all of the Christmas gifts I bought due to earning Amazon gift cards.  I had close to $400 just from that small amount of time invested.  Do set up a spam email account to use with it though. 
 

AWhen the bar of soap gets small, I slap it on the new bar..never have to throw away any soap..

When liquid detergent is empty, I fill half of the jug with water, shake & pour into washer, none wasted, I do the same with shampoo, conditioner & dish washing liquid..

I break up any box before putting in trash can, I don't have to change the bag as often..

I save my pop tart boxes, remove the top flaps, to use as a napkin, utensil holder when cooking outdoor..

When ketsup bottle is empty, I add a lil bit of water shake & use in soups. I do the same thing with mustard to use in pull pork or any dish I use mustard in..

When I have milk that won't be used for what ever reason, I freeze it in small coke bottles to be later defrosted for oatmeal or cooking with..

I buy bananas that are on sale due to being over rip, I smash them then add a lil sugar, cook them a lil, when cool I freeze them in butter dishes. I use them in banana pudding or for smoothies

..

great stuff!!

and welcome to cc tiger, shelby and gena

sometimes i even take the empty pump bottle (for liquid hand soap for example) and pour half the new bottle into the empty bottle then add water and shake so now i doubled my quantity and i can still wash my hands easy with one squirt.

A

Lol I do that also..

great minds!

high five!

cake deco idea:

some of us use tylose in fondant to make it into more of a gum paste to model with

if i am just making a bow or a frog or something like that--i add cornstarch to my fondant so it dries nice & crispy

to a pound of fondant i'd use maybe a third cup of cornstarch give or take

if i am making flowers where i want them to be ruffly and thin i use the tylose like roses or orchids

if i am making little cut out posies or individual rose petals (to scatter or whatever), hydrangeas--i use cornstarch

cornstarch of course is cheaper and easier to keep in stock

just a thought to save a buck

AI also make my own laundry, dish and hand soap. It only takes me a couple hours to do all three and i have enough for months. Best part, i can make it for about 10% of what i used to buy it for. I can't believe i ever used to buy laundry soap!

AYes! Happy to. My laundry recipe is

1/3 bar grated soap 1/2 cup borax 1/2 cup washing soda 2 gallons water

Heat 1/3 bar grated soda and some water (enough of the two gallons to fill a small pot) until soap is melted Add borax and washing soda Mix until all ingredients are dissolved Add soap mix to the remaining water and mix well

Add 1/2 cup mixture to each load of laundry

As the soap mixture sits it will gel on top. This is normal, just remix and you're good to go!

I don't have a saved recipe for dish or hand soap, but if you google "homemade hand soap" or dish soap there are tons of recipes and you can scroll through until you find one you like. I change the recipes I use sometimes just depending on what I have on hand. HTH!

does this work ok for most blouse & top materials that are a little more delicate & fussy?

but you don't really need woolite but still does using this up the woolite ante?

ok for permanent press??

i mean mom used to 20 mule team borax in the wringer washer

i associate it with boys jeans and grass stains and heavy duty washing

AI use it for all my laundry except dry clean only items. That being said I own [I]Very[/I] few delicate clothes. I am a mom of two young boys, and me and my husband own a landscaping company!

Speaking of soaps and such, I saved a hand soap bottle and pump. I fill it half way with Dawn and the rest of the way with water. I wash my hands a lot when caking and this saves me from using too much dishsoap when I just need a little to get the grease off my hands. It's also less messy to use as I can pump it with the heel of my hand instead of manhandling the bottle.

ADo you use the Fels Naptha soap, for the grated soap, Shelbylyn? I use that instead of spray and wash. Works great! I just dampen the clothes, then rub the bar on the stain, then work it in with my hands.