Hello Cheapskaters, I hope you have all had a fantastic week, mine has been absolutely delightful. The weather has been very kind so I have spent hours and hours in the garden. We have been in this house for quite a while now and I really haven't done anything interesting to the garden at all. It's pretty much the way it was when we moved in, only tidier.  It has always niggled at me because really it's a pretty boring garden. I am not the best gardener, my thumbs are the merest tinge of green, but I have lots of fun and really enjoy digging and planting and watering and growing. Especially edibles. Last Sunday Hannah, Mum and I took a drive down to Dromana to Heronswood, the home of the Diggers Club. Mum and I were in heaven, surrounded by seedlings and plants and hundreds of packets of different seeds. And of course the beautiful gardens. I came home with so many ideas (and packets of seeds) and I can't wait to start the garden renovation. Slowly, slowly of course. The garden budget isn't huge and I don't want to overspend.  First thing I need to do is get the greenhouse repaired after the storm. I've been pricing the materials and even with the cheapest it would be cheaper to buy a brand new greenhouse. To me that is just ridiculous, there's nothing wrong with the frame or the door, even the shelves are fine. So I'll keep looking for either replacement panels or a cheaper alternative to them. Here's a hint Mum gave me on Sunday and I have already used it. To keep celery straight and tall while growing, slip the inner tube from a roll of foil or clingwrap over the plant.  It will still get water and sunlight, but the stalks won't be able to flop over. They'll grow nice and straight, so the bunch is neater. This is what I love most about living the Cheapskates way, the sharing of ideas and tips and experiences  to help others who are trying to live life debt free. Just had to write and say thank you. I have only been a Cheapskate four months, but with all the ideas and tips and some great advice from Cath we are now living on my partner's income and I have just handed in my notice at work. We are expecting our first baby in five months and thanks to Cheapskates I can be a full-time stay-at-home mum. I joined the day after we found out we were pregnant and life is good and it's thanks to Cheapskates. We never thought I would even be able to take maternity leave until the day I joined the Cheapskates Club. Phil says it's the best $29.20 I have ever spent. Thanks Cath and Cheapskaters.  Sarah & Phil Ralph Thanks for all the great tips and the motivation to keep saving and making my own stuff. My family appreciates you too! Cheers, Sarah McLachlan Saw you on the news tonight, always spot on with your advice. Thank you for everything you share.  Carol Ryan March is crunch month for us, all the big bills are due and we usually break out the plastic. My spendthrift husband and I sat down to try and work out how we were going to manage and I mentioned the Spending Freeze and showed him how it worked. After a little umming and ahhing (he loves his treats and eating out) he came around to the idea. Talk about a transformation, we haven't spent one single cent on anything unless it has been absolutely necessary and we have been able to pay all the bills as they came in, without resorting to the dreaded plastic. He's so excited by what we have saved he wants to keep going. Thanks Cheapskates for the great ideas, you've created another Cheapskates addict! Sharon Atkins PS: Love our site? We love referrals! Send a note to your favourite newspapers, magazines, radio stations, TV stations, friends and relatives, and tell them about us! PPS: You can read this newsletter and past copies on the website in the Newsletter Archive.

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Cheapskates Tip of the Week

This week's winning tip is from Yun Si.  Yun Si is already a Platinum Cheapskates member and so has won a one-year membership extension for submitting a winning tip. Improving Air Quality in the Home and Decorating with Indoor Plants Approximate $ Saving: $240 to more than $2000   We recently moved and the air quality in the area where we live (near the airport) is particularly bad. As I suffer from allergies, made worse by the bad air in the area where we live, I wanted a way to clean the air in our home but didn't have much money to spend.   Air purifiers are expensive to buy in the first place, costing approximately $200 for a cheapie and ranging up to $2000 for a top of the range air purifier. Furthermore, they require costly filter replacements (usually every 6 to 12 months) and usually need to run 24 hours a day to be most effective, using up electricity and costing more on the power bill. Add to that the fact that most air purifiers will only be effective in purifying air in just one room of the house. In doing my research I heard that some indoor plants were good air purifiers.   I found a study that NASA (yes, the space agency) did on indoor plants and air quality. It showed that some indoor plants were excellent at purifying the air of VOCs (harmful chemicals) and other airborne particles like carbon monoxide and refreshing the air! This was a more affordable option.   I did my research, looking at which plants were best for cleaning the air (easily found on the Internet) and then went to all the stores and nurseries I knew, including Bunnings, Kmart, BigW, Flower Power and other local nurseries to research the size and pricing of plants. Upon looking, I was disheartened by the price of a decent-sized indoor plant. They were all so expensive, especially the ones I liked.   I looked further into it and found an indoor plant wholesaler selling all the plants I wanted at less than wholesale price! The wholesalers were indoor plant hire specialists looking to clear their excess stock cheaply. I bought two medium sized happy plants, two large Spathiphyllum 'Sensation', one medium Zanzibar Gem, one small Peace Lily, one medium sized lady palm and some mother-in-laws tongue plants all for under $100!   Just to give you an idea of how much I saved, Happy Plants the same size were selling for $50-60 elsewhere, Spathiphyllum 'Sensation' of the same size were $40 upwards at other nurseries, Zanzibar Gem was $40 elsewhere, Peace Lilies on 50% sale at a nursery were still twice the price of the wholesaler, Lady Palms that size were $50 and up elsewhere and the mother-in-laws tongues were $20 at the cheapest place I could find.   All up I spent just under $100 for plants worth $340. That's a saving of more than $240! Although the wholesaler was quite a distance from us (it cost  $20 in petrol and tolls) it was well worth it as we saved so much.   My home has cleaner air now and as a bonus the indoor plants give an added beautiful, serene touch to the decor of our place. I'm so glad we couldn't afford to buy an air purifier as the filters and running costs would have sent us broke, this was a much better and more natural option.   In case anyone wants to know, the details of the wholesaler I went to are as follows: Address: Lot 1 Wattle Rd, Ingleside NSW Contact: Graham 0401620430 Opening Time: Sat 10am to 4pm (They are ONLY open on Saturday and you should call ahead before arriving).  Congratulations Yun Si, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.

The Cheapskate's Club website is over 2,000 pages of money saving hints, tips  and ideas. Let's get together and make the Cheapskates Club Australia's largest online hint, tip and idea library. Share your favourite money saving, time saving or energy saving hint and be in the running to win a one-year membership to The Cheapskate Club. We publish a Winning Tip each Tuesday, so enter your great money, time or energy saving idea now!

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Submit a Tip

Share your favourite hint or tip that saves money, time and energy and be in the running to win a one-year membership to the Cheapskates Club valued at $29.20. Remember, you have to be in it to win it! Enter your tip here

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Money Saving Meals

Easter Treats Who can resist a piping hot, freshly toasted hot cross bun? Not me, for sure and certain. I love the spicy fruitiness of the bread and being a bun it is just the right size for breakfast. The price puts a damper on the enjoyment though. Those delicious little morsels of bread with a few sultanas thrown through cost close to $1.00 each! Ouch. A few years ago I tried my hand at making hot cross buns and again it was a doh! Moment. I couldn't believe how easy they were to make, or just how inexpensive they are. Even the dough for the cross is simple, just mix and pipe! If you, like me, love Easter buns but find the price prohibitive, try making them, and you'll never buy them again. Hot Cross Buns  This recipe is done the old fashioned way, with the kneading done by hand and the rising done on a windowsill. If you have a breadmaker read the instruction book for the correct settings for making dough. Ingredients: 2 teaspoons dry yeast 1/4 cup caster sugar 1/2 cup milk, warmed to blood temperature 2 1/2 cups plain flour 1 teaspoon mixed spice 50g butter, chilled , chopped 1 egg, lightly beaten 1/4 cup warm water 3/4 cup sultanas 1 teaspoon powdered gelatine Piping Dough: Ingredients: 1/4 cup cold water 1/3 cup plain flour 1 tablespoon caster sugar Glaze: 3 tsp hot water 1 tsp sugar Method: Grease a slice tray. Place yeast, sugar and warm milk in a bowl. Stir until combined and yeast is dissolved. Cover and set aside in a warm place for 10 minutes until the mixture is foamy and thick.   Sift flour and mixed spice into a bowl and rub in butter with fingertips until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre of flour mixture. Add yeast mixture, 1/4cup warm water, egg and sultanas. Stir with a flat blade knife or spatula to combine. Cover with a damp tea towel and set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius.  Turn dough onto a floured surface. Knead for 5 to 8 minutes or until smooth. Form into 12 balls. Place balls in prepared pan, 1cm apart. Cover with the damp tea towel and set aside in a warm place for 45minutes or until balls double in size.  In the meantime make the dough for the cross.  Whisk flour, sugar and 1/4 cup cold water together in a jug. Spoon into a piping bag. If you don't have a piping bag use a zip lock bag and snip one corner off. Pipe crosses onto buns. Bake buns for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temp to 180 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden and cooked through.  Make a glaze with 3 teaspoons hot water and 1 teaspoon sugar. Turn buns onto a rack and brush with glaze. Allow to cool before serving. Note:  If you like the choc chip Easter buns, simply substitute 3/4 cup choc chips for the sultanas. These buns freeze very well for up to a month. There are over 700 other great money saving meal ideas in the Recipe File.

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Last Weeks Question

  

Last week's question was from  Tess looking for suggestions to redecorate and paint on a limited budget. Janet Bright answered Go to the local hardware store and get paint cards. Choose the new colours for the house then dye the curtains to match.  Replace the bench tops and door knobs and you'll have a brand new look.  Charisa Sanders answered When we bought our house it was all chocolate brown and beige and was so dark and dingy it was depressing. What we found was that we took the beige (our most neutral colour) and built a new colour scheme around that. So instead of having to paint the entire house, a large portion of it remains the same but now has a more modern look as a highlight. My suggestion would be to look at the colours used in your current scheme and choose one colour that you can keep - then build your new scheme around it. Also to save money on accessories, buy material in bulk so you can have all your soft furnishings tying in with each other to create a continuity throughout your home. Good luck with doing it yourself, we did ours on our own and the sense of achievement is fantastic!  Samantha answered You could add a touch of a mushroom colour to the same shade you have(that would match your curtains and benchtop).You could also update your kitchen cupboard door knobs to stainless ones (which you could pick up from hardware store). This would modernise things without the price tag.  Paula Fry answered You can dye curtains for a new look. As long as they are in good condition just dyeing them to match your new colour scheme gives you "new" curtains for very little money.   Don the professional handyman & dedicated Cheapskate answered Great paint is cheap if you know where to look, forget the Bunnings stores, try the paint professional stores, e.g. Solver, 3 D, Dulux trade depots etc. Yellow pages are good source. What you need are tins of miss tint, mostly 50 to 70% off all sizes all colours with a bit of hunting. (Hint: don't water the paint down, it just uses more paint to cover.) Ann Malavey answered The best solution to repainting the interior of your house is to go white and accessorise with colour for a fresh and updated look.  You can change it with the seasons. This never dates.  Michelle Savage answered We recently painted our house too and we also were not able to spend lots. Paint the walls in a neutral colour such as cream so all furniture matches, even if you buy new stuff later on. We bought beautiful cream curtains, including a valance, from the Reject Shop in standard sizes for $15 a pair including tie backs. Use old quilt covers in light shades for a sofa cover and match it with plain cushion covers for a lift.   Jane answered To save on paint both exterior and interior, check your local yellow pages for paint suppliers. Many areas have local paint manufacturers who can match the colours of the name brand paints but for a fraction of the cost. If you are located in Brisbane you can try http://www.lakerpaint.com.au/ or www.luxurypaints.com.au. Both are located in Darra and are used by many professional painters. Paint can be bought in bulk with substantial savings in comparison with purchasing from Bunnings etc.  Websites: www.lakerpaint.com.au www.luxurypaints.com.au

Do you have a question that needs an answer? Send us your question and receive the combined knowledge of your fellow Cheapskates to solve your problem! Ask a question

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This Weeks Question

Magda asks "I was wondering if anyone know a cheap way for getting rid of excess soil. We have heaps of it from when we built a retaining wall and to take it to tip would cost thousands (and would defeat the purpose of saving and building a wall ourselves). Any ideas would be appreciated."

Do you have the answer? If you have a suggestion or idea for Magda let us know, and your answer could be published in our next newsletter. You'll also be automatically entered into our Tip of the Week competition, with a one-year membership to the Cheapskates Club as the prize. Click here to send your answer

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Join the Cheapskates Club

Join the Cheapskates Club for just  $29.20 for the first year ($18.25 to renew) and get exclusive access to the Cheapskates Club Platinum Member's Centre containing thousands of ideas to save you money, time and energy. Join the Cheapskates Club today

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Frequently Asked Questions

How do I change my email address? This one is easy. If you area Platinum member login and click on the Edit Profile button, then on Change Password. If you are a Silver member use the Change Your Address form (under Customer Service in the menu) and fill it out. Once you've filled it in click the send button and we'll do the rest. Please remember to include your old email address so we can find it in the list as well as the new one. How do I know when my membership should be renewed? When you login to the Member's Centre you will be told how many days of membership you have left once you have 30 days left. Just click on the link to renew and your membership will just continue on, uninterrupted. What will you do with my email address? We never rent, trade or sell our email list to anyone for any reason whatsoever. You'll never get an unsolicited email from a stranger as a result of joining this list. How Did You Get on Our List? You signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Journal Web site or at the Channel 9 Money Expo. We never add names to our list unless you have voluntarily opted in.

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Contact Details

The Cheapskates Club - Showing you how to live life debt free, cashed up and laughing! Cheapskates Club PO Box 4232 Ringwood Vic 3134 www.cheapskates.com.au info@cheapskates.com.au