And the winner is....
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....Karelyn
Karelyn writes "I hired a professional to clean my leather lounge & this is what he used.....buckets of warm soapy water & a normal scrubbing brush. It now looks brand new! I also bought some Oakwood leather conditioner, you just use a small amount and rub in with a cloth. By the way my lounge looked fine before it was cleaned but the buckets of water were almost black!! The lounge is beige!"
Congratulations, Karelyn, I hope that you enjoy your Cheapskates Membership for the next 12 months.
Do you have a money, time or energy saving hint you'd like to share? Then enter it in our Top Tip competition and not only could you be a winner too but you'll be helping to make Cheapskate's Tip Store the largest online resource of money, time and energy saving ideas in Australia!
Happy Cheapskating,
Cath.
Enter the Top Tip competition
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More winning ideas from Australian Cheapskates
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....Robyne from Goolwa
Robyne writes "Christmas isn't a cheap time of the year. I buy turkey and Chicken pieces instead of a whole bird. Saves time in cooking and preparing and if you want stuffing to go with it make it up in muffin tins. I make my own cake. I soak the fruit and nuts in black tea for 24 hrs and make it up as usual. I don't make a cake with more than 2 eggs in unless you have your own chooks, I also pour a tblspn of brandy or whiskey over the cake for about 2 weeks to keep it fresh, the taste does disappear after a few days of not doing it. Mince tarts can be made with 1/2 kilo of mixed dried fruit minced up fine in a blender and make your favourite pastry. I make sweet short crust and put in about 2 teaspns per each tray and bake for 20 mins or till golden brown. I have worked out for 10 people Christmas dinner will cost under $20. We make our own beer so for $11 we have 72 bottles of beer. I buy the beer kits when they are on special. You can make your own hats, sweets and table settings quite cheap. The library has lots of books on the subject, most stuff needed can be found in op shops very cheap and you're not helping your own pocket but that of a charity that helps others."
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....Catherine from North Bayswater
Catherine writes "I love to sew and do craft like cross-stitch, knitting and other handicrafts but it's expensive. I have a Spotlight VIP card (free to get) which saves me heaps of money. When the catalogues come out I pore through them marking the items I need (or want) and then I compare prices between Spotlight and Lincraft and buy the cheapest. Using this card I have been able to pick up craft items for as little as 10cents each. You can sign up on the websites for free newsletters and download free patterns, get ideas and instructions for all manner of things. If you like craft they fantastic."
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.... Jodie from South Australia
Jodie writes "We live in the country and don't always get the benefits of shop-a-dockets and fast food specials vouchers when we go to Adelaide or other larger towns. Now I always visit www.hotdockets.com.au before we go and almost always find something I can print and use to save us a few dollars."
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....Kate from Adelaide
Kate writes "Here's a very cheap and tasty idea bordering on desperate, but its good for you. After you wash and peel your spuds keep the skins. The same goes for pumpkin seeds. Put them on a biscuit tray in a single layer, sprinkle with a little salt and bake in a moderate oven until ready (they'll be brown and crisp).... voila almost no waste and a good healthy snack to boot!"
NOTE: You can sprinkle the potato skins with a little olive oil and some paprika and bake them for a delicious and really frugal alternative to potato chips. They are great to nibble on and go really well with dips, too. - Cath
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....Natalie from Adelaide
Natalie writes "I bought a crystal deodorant for $6 at the beginning of the year (mail order from Golden Glow - about $8 from Health Food Shops). Both my husband and I use the same one and it is not even half finished yet. I'm sure it will last us to the end of the year, which means I have spent only $6 on deodorant for two people for a whole year. This is not only a huge saving, but better for our body (no aluminium chlorohydrate, fragrance, preservatives or alcohol) and for the environment as there is less packaging. It is recommended for sensitive skin, and works a lot better than any other deodorant I have ever bought."
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... Silvia, from Perth
Silvia writes "I found a great product in Woolworth's supermaket. It is the home brand POWDER bleach. And although you would think it's like Nappy Soak, it isn't. It's much better. I use it instead of laundry powder at the same rate I would use a concentrate which is roughly half a cup per load. I have yet to ruin anything in my wash...and my wash is brighter and whiter than ever. But please test first on very delicate items. I also use it to soak handwashing...and very dirty white socks. It is amazing. And at $1.70 per kg it is definitely a bargain."
Enter the Top Tip competition
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Susan, with this great advice....
Susan writes "Garage sales & Fetes! Sounds obvious, but you would be surprised how many people don't think about them for presents.
I regularly shop at garage sales in my local neighbourhood. We are mainly young families with growing children and you can pick up some amazing fairly new toys, bikes, etc in good condition and SO cheap.
We especially like looking for good, clean, small novelty toys to put in our 2 yr old and 4 yr olds Christmas stockings. Some of the things we pick up are like new and priced anywhere from 5 cents each!! You would pay heaps more in shops, and you wouldn't even find half the great things we buy at the garage sales in the shops anyway!
They get heaps of things in their Santa sacks and it costs us very little if we shop during the year. Fete's are another brilliant find. We got some fantastic newish toys at our local fete - mostly around a dollar or less."
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...Megan from Sydney
Megan writes "My husband is from England and all his family are still there so most of our phone bill was made up of International calls, until I discovered phone cards at the newsagent. I bought a $20 'Click' card and it lasted 4 months. The call costs are 2.5 cents per minute, with no connection fee. Our phone bill has been cut by around $20-$30 per month! There is a huge choice in cards. Most newsagents have a stand with all the brochures so you need to flick through to find the best deal for the country you are calling."
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Sharon with a great free trial......
Our winner this week is Sharon Demarte.
Sharon writes "I have found a site through Telstra that offers for 30days a free trial of dvd's at no cost to you, its www.fetchmemovies.com.au Sure is better for one month than paying for video dvd outlets."
Congratulations Sharon, we hope you enjoy your Cheapskates membership for the next twelve months.
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....Christian Pajank, from Melbourne
Christian writes "I have just found a really good site to save money on interstate accommodation, just by booking at the last minute. It is www.check-in.com.au I just booked into The Hilton on the Park in Melbourne and saved myself $280!"
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....Gaylene from Watsonia
Gaylene writes "With two granddaughters aged 2 and 4 years I keep my junk mail and they use it for pasting. I either cut out pictures for them or the older one does the cutting. It keeps them busy for ages. If I have time to sit with them we talk about what they are pasting. They use recycled paper or exercise books that I have purchased for as little as 1 cent each at the beginning of the year to paste in."
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Barbara, with this great idea for sewers and quilters
Barbara writes A laser level is a great tool for shooting a straight line; not just for home improvement-type (think wallpaper plumb lines) projects. I use it to cut across large areas of fabric (like when making drapes; the 150cm fabric (or wider, if you are sewing panels together) ) can be easily cut very straight; just "shoot" a line and either mark it with a pencil or other marker, or start from the far side (making sure not to flash your eyes with the laser, they can be damaging, even in low doses) and just carefully cut that long, long line.
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....is Mirella from Yass
Mirella writes The hardest thing when sticking to a grocery budget is knowing when you've reached it! I have a simple spreadsheet with all the usual grocery items I buy listed and how much each costs, and before each shop I mark off each item I need and then check the total. This gives me a good idea of how much my shop will cost before I even get to the store. I also print the list off each shop and this becomes my shopping list. It takes a little time to get it started but is a great help once it's up and running.
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Ronnee Russell, from Sydney.
Ronnee writes "When moving house, save loads of time and money by planning ahead. Gather up anything that hasn't been worn in recent months or any item that you don't absolutely love, sell the things that are in excellent condition on Ebay and get rid of the rest by garage sale. What's left might go to someone needy. The money you make will help pay for the move, it's cheaper and easier with less to move and you move into your new place with more space and only items you love. What a great feel! We made $3000 doing this last time we moved and are doing it again now for a future move."
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Lisa Donelly, from Sydney
Lisa writes "To make your own hair de-tangler, simply buy a clear plastic spray bottle about $1.50 from Franklins, fill to about 2/3 water, and add 1-2 squirts of conditioner. Then add 1-2 drops essential oil (chamomile for blondes/rosemary for brunettes) and 1-2 drops Tea-tree oil, put cap back on and shake. Instant leave-in conditioner and de-tangler, the essential oils bring about the natural shine and highlights in the hair and the tea-tree oil acts as a deterrent for head-lice who hate the scent, so it is great for kids."
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....Leigh Kostiainen, from Sydney
"I recently made a few calls to some local poultry farms and discovered that I can purchase chicken breast (on the bone) for $5 per kilo. Whilst it is on the bone I bag them individually before freezing and then fillet them from the bone as I need them, it only takes a minute or so and the bone goes into a pot of water to make chicken stock then into the freezer for when I need it. It was a saving well worth the call."
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....Lisa.
Lisa says "If you use Internet Banking, and want to set up a Nest Egg for a newborn child, ING Direct have a fantastic facility. Firstly, check out major websites e.g. SMH to see if there are offers for a free deposit ($15 at this time) when you open up an account. Second, open up your account via that link, and organise a direct debit from your bank account of a small amount per week. Of course you need to make sure you can cover that withdrawal every week. If you only save $5 per week for a newborn child, apart from the interest earned (5.25% pa at the moment), over 18 years you could deposit $4680. Hey, that might not be much in 18 years time, but its' better than $0! At $10 you're looking at $9360 plus interest! I have been doing this for my son for nearly 3 years, and intend to for my soon-to-arrive new addition!"
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Sian, from Mackay in Queensland.
Sian writes "Make your own air fresheners by cutting a small sponge and putting into a container (hint, I use cut off bottoms of 600ml softdrink bottles) put a few drops favourite fragrance oil and top with hot water.Put on or near window sills.The breeze makes the smell go through the house. After a few days top with more water."
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Maureen, who pays attention to all the prices when she shops, a great example to us all.
Maureen wrote ?Don't fall into a false sense of saving money by shopping at the same place all the time. I've noticed that sometimes things are really cheap for a while and then they just creep up in price, one or two items a week, until you are paying more than you should ie cheese - I used to pay $3.29 for 500g grated tasty and this week I noticed it had gone up to $3.39 for 500g. It really does pay to know your prices at all the supermarkets you use.
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Jennifer from Brisbane....
Jennifer wrote If you have to send birthday or Christmas presents interstate, check out the prices of online shopping sites. The advantages include: 1) Often lower freight charges than the postage you would pay 2) Some offer free gift wrapping. 3) They have specials which regular shops can't beat because of the lower online overheads 4) You don't waste petrol and wear and tear on your vehicle driving to the shops and post office 5) You can shop any time of the day or night 6) They usually guarantee delivery before Christmas. 7) They usually have a free newsletter which emails you about their latest specials. I bought almost all my Christmas presents from Peters of Kensington http://www.petersofkensington.com.au/which I found through ninemsn shopping. The gifts were beautifully wrapped (including fabric ribbon) and excellent prices.
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Mel, from Perth....
Mel,writes Save money using the internet...have a look at www.pharmacydirect.com.au We now save $10 a packet on one product and $5 pack on my hayfever tablets; lots of other savings too. Freight is only $5.95 per order anywhere, no matter how big the order. Worth a look!
Click here to enter now!
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Linda Harrison, who has budgeting her family income down pat - good on you Linda!
Linda writes "My Husband and I have one wage coming in and no children. Each payday (once a fortnight) my husband and I put money on our bills. So we might put for example $30 on the electricity bill, $40 on the phone bill, and $40 on the car registration. This is easy enough to do by taking any bill which has a bar code on it to Australia Post to make a voluntary payment. You can apply to get a Car Registration Card which is used to make voluntary payments on your car registration. We find that we never miss the money that we voluntarily place on the bills and we keep record of how much we have payed off on the bills in a notebook. After a few months of doing this we found that when we received the bills that they had a credit balance, which meant that we never had to think where the money was going to come from to pay for the bills."
Click here to enter now!
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Jane from Blackburn.....
Jane said "My husband bought me a bracelet when he was in Germany late last year and I loved it. But one little ring kept coming undone and I didn't want to lose it. So I took it to a jewellers in Forest Hill who wanted to charge me $20 to do a tiny bit of soldering. Then I went up to Michael Hill Jewellers who put on a brand new specially made clasp for just $5 and were happy to do so. It pays to shop around, even for jewellery repairs - I saved $15 just by asking for another opinion."
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Jo, with this frugal decorating idea....
"Use old calendars, (or buy them on sale) of your favourite painters/animals/objects and use them to decorate your home as prints. I love Gustav Klimt and have framed up many pictures from my calendars (even desktop size). You can get frames from Ikea really cheap and either paint them, ( I do mine gold) or leave them natural. I have also framed up favourite jigsaws. The added bonus is that you can change the look of your home quickly and cheaply, just cut up some more calendars!" Jo.
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Silvia for this inexpensive beauty treatment....
Silvia writes "Exfoliating your skin is really important and now more than ever it has been found that it helps keep skin young looking...but you don't need to spend a fortune to exfoliate your skin. Just use a couple a teaspoons of castor sugar mixed with enough liquid soap to make a paste and use this to rub your skin and rinse off. This can be used every other day and keeps skin fresh and ready for your moisturizer."
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Debi with this money, time and energy saving tip...
"Rushing in the morning to make kids lunches for child care and school can end up costing a fortune. To help make things run smoother in the morning, I prepare my kids lunches in advance by making sandwiches with a variety of fillings such as vegemite, nutella, peanut butter etc. and freeze them separately. I then make a home made batch of mini muffins and freeze them. I buy Bi-Lo Barbeque Shapes and Fruit Sticks. Decant large containers of peach and pear pieces into smaller containers. Then the night before or even better, in the morning before the madness sets in, I just grab some sandwiches, muffins, shapes, a fruit stick, small fruit and voila! It's done with minimal fuss and so much less in cost. I find that saving money is very important, but also saving time and emotional energy equally important to me and my family and this helps in keeping my stress levels down and me a happy mummy."
Debi
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Jay, with this practical money saving tip....
Paying for movies and entry to big fun parks, such as Movie World, Dream World, Sea World can cost a fortune. Before you go, check out discounts you may be able to receive from you Health Fund, Union, Motoring Organisation e.g. Racq. They can give you discounted prices, but make sure you bring your id cards, and/or purchase your tickets from them before you go.
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Sophie, from Sydney....
"Never believe that boxed wine is below you!! Ok so there are some shockers - usually the ones in 4-5 litre boxes, but after tasting a few of the 2 litre "chateau de cardboard" offerings we have found a couple of reds, two whites, a rose and even a port (!) that we enjoy for around $15 for 2 litres.
It doesn't look quite so flash at a dinner party I admit, but even if you're not big drinkers they do keep for at least a week (the whites and rose are fine in the fridge for 2 weeks). They are also pretty good for cooking with if hanging around for a bit too long."
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Lorraine....
Lorraine says "To recyle your old Doona Covers - Unpick them at the sides, hem them on your sewing maching and they can be used for 2 good flat sheets."
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Cheryl....
"For great flavour at a third of the cost try placing 1/3 cup of good olive oil in a bottle and then topping it up with a cupful of cheaper canola oil. You can vary the amounts to suit your taste but any way it is a much cheaper alternative to all olive oil." Cheryl Beasley.
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Dianne in Sydney........
Dianne says "If you are after brand name perfume at a cheap price try strawberrynet.com they have a range of perfume at discounted prices and ship free to you anywhere in the world. I have bought many perfumes from here and saved so much.
I also try to save a bit of cash on cleaning supplies, I buy my clothes washing powder from Jamac Cleaning Supplies in Sydney. Phone or email your order, any order over $30 has free delivery to Sydney Mero Area - this includes the suburbs. 25kg of washing powder $32, lasted me over 12 months with 5 adults and 2 kids and washing almost every day. Look on their website www.jamaccleaningsupply.com.au. Also for toilet paper in bulk try www.thebulkwarehouse.com.au they have anything from nappies, formula and toilet paper in bulk. If you cannot afford to buy bulk split it with somebody that you know. Happy Saving."
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Rose from Adelaide....
Rose says "Water restrictions are here to stay,save water and refresh your garden with this tip.From a hardware store I purchased 2 plastic square bowls to fit into my double sink.The water from here goes onto the trees and lawn (suds) and pot plants ect.,(rinse).In the handbasin to the bathroom I reuse a icecream container and wash my hands in this throughout the day and throw it out on the lawn. I am expecting to see a big difference in my water account next time!"
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Kylie from Perth...
Kylie says "When buying concentrated fabric softener, it says to dilute it with 2 litres of water. Wash out a 3 litre bottle such as a plastic milk bottle and dilute the concentrated softener in 3 litres - It lasts longer and also still smells great. Plus if it's too strong it can leave stains on your clothes when you put them in the dryer!"
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Tracey from Victoria....
"When you have small children at kindergarten, you end up with an overflow of paintings...instead of keeping them all, bluetack them to the wall in an arch formation, get the child to stand in the middle holding one and take a photo, then the paintings can be recycled as lovely wrapping paper and you still have the photo as a momento."
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Maria, from Wollert....
Maria writes "We like to grow our own veges. Not only is it a great hobby for the whole family, but cheaper too. Whatever we have too much of we blanch and freze and have our winter's supply of veges instead of buying them form the supermarket. We puree or dice our tomatoes and have ready tomato sauce. This way we know the veges are pestiside free and picked fresh."
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Sheila, all the way from London, England....
Sheila's timely tip is to "Fill a spice jar which has a perforated sprinkler top (after it has been emptied of course) with Castor sugar (superfine). This is very useful for sprinkling the sugar over mince pies or other cakes as one only uses a small amount at a time."
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Christine from Brisbane....
Christine's really cheap tip is "Instead of expensive spray'n'wipe type cleaners for kitchen/bathroom pour a little Domestos into a $2 spray bottle and dilute with water. Always handy and makes the Domestos last a long long time."
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Liz with her great bargain prices for nuts and dried fruits....
Liz says "Check out Oriental and Continental supermarkets. There are some great bargains to be found at these shops. My husband is crazy about nuts and figs! Two of his favorite shops are 1. The Nut Roaster at Lakemba 79-81 Chapel Road phone 9759 1206 They have good variety of fresh nuts. You can buy any quantity you like. They also have lots of other Lebanese food items. This shop is very crowed and a bit messy. Here are some prices of nuts and other items we have brought recently Raw Almonds $9.80 kilo
Walnuts $12.00 kilo Cracked Wheat ( Bourghul) $1.30 Kilo Sesame seeds $3.90 Kilo Figs $8.00 kilo (these are large and are very fresh) Figs (these are the little baby round ones) $8.00 kg 2. Stelissa Pty Ltd (Oriental & Continental Foods) 20, Corner Herbert & Cleg Street s Artarmon. Phone 9906 8990
This shop is in the Industrial area of Artarmon you can park underneath the building. We have found it easier to shop there on a Saturday. They sell some items in Bulk. Here are some prices of items we have brought recently Raw peanuts $4.50 kilo Cracked wheat $1.50 kilo Sharwood s Tandoori Paste 1.25kilos $13.50 To know if the prices are better than what you are paying now. Note down on your shopping list the price you are paying now, so as to compare with these shops. Not all items will be cheaper than say woolies. We have compared the items above with woolies and found them cheaper and the quality much better. There are many other shops similar to the ones above in Sydney. The Nut Roaster is a long way from where we live so if we drop in there if we are passing by on our way to visit friends or family.
My husband likes to roast his own Peanuts. This is his Roasting Recipe:
Preheat Oven to 180 degrees C
Place two cups Raw Peanuts on a tray (he uses a pizza tray)
Bake for 10 mins.
Mix ¼ teaspoon salt with one tablespoon of water, pour over nuts immediately after taking out of oven.
Turn oven off and leave door open slightly and put nuts in till cooled. YUM!
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Marilyn, with a great idea for free entertainment.
This week, Marilyn is our winner with her money saving idea."Next time you're at the Library check out their CD's and Video's they are free to take home for 2 weeks and you often get some really good movies. I found a lot of CD's from the 60's that I really loved. They have some of the latest ones too."
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Ian, from Clontarf
This week Ian is our winner with his money saving idea.
What about all those cables and leads behind your TV. TV, DVD, Cable TV, Games Console, VCR. You could buy expensive cable ties that you have to cut off each time you have to move one of the components (repair etc) or you could simply secure the cables neatly with inexpensive pipe-cleaners. They are easily undone as well.
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Helen from St Ives with this great idea:
For scrubbing around the house, such as bathroom or kitchen, try this:-
Don't thow away used socks and stockings that's has holes. Put socks in the stocking and tie around to make a ball. Use it to scub bathroom or anywhere and it's better than any of the mop or cloth from supermarket. It's particulary good for stubborn stain as the stocking can break down the stain and yet
the stocking is gentle in texture.
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Lesley with this great decorating cost saver...
"Wanting to spruce up the place but save dollars as well? Have a look in Bunnings, K Mart, etc for tins of mistinted paint. They put them on sale as about 1/2 the usual price."
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Jennifer, who has a fabulous way to slash the family grocery bill.
"Instead of having a fruit and vege co-op I got together with 2 other families and bought a hind quarter of beef at $5.50/kg and chickens at $4.50/kg. This was a lot easier to store and also easier to get together enough money in one go as my dh is a student. 4 chickens and 1/3 of a hindquarter lasted us 2 months. Dh is a big meat eater so it could have lasted longer." Jennifer, Brisbane
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Barbara, with her great money saving idea for family entertainment.
As we have a young child we find that on the weekends we would spend alot of money on things to keep us entertained etc. Now we have taken up Aqua golf! It is fun & affordable at only $6.50 per bucket of balls.(approx 50-70 balls) It is a good way to get the kids outdoors & can even be played if raining as most Aqua Golf places have covered areas... There are targets to hit (kids get easier & closer ones) prizes are either money or free buckets of balls! My son loves it & he is only two & a half, so anyone can play.... We can spend all day there & only have spent about $20! Normally we spend up to $80 or so doing things on the weekends......
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Kirsten for her great money saving Cheapskate idea...
"My neice needed a carrier to transport her cat to the vet, she took two identical plastic washing baskets and fastened them together. With a makeshift hinge on one side she only needed a piece of rope on the other side to allow puss in and out! Much cheaper than purchasing an expensive pet carrier that rarely gets used."
Kirsten,
Melbourne
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Maryrose for her great Cheapskate gift idea...
"When your children are invited to parties the best , cheapest and most popular present is a TORCH. You can get them for around $2 with batteries included at your budget shop.
(I have 5 children and we have bought LOTS of torches!!) "
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Mandi for her great Cheapskate's tip...
When using candles, keep the run offs for kids who are into skating or scooting as they can be used on the bottom to help them when they grind.
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Lyn for a great freebie tip....
Save the cost of asking Telstra for number information by ringing FREE Telstra Direct Assist on 1223. This number is not widely advertised (for obvious reasons)
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Erin for her tip and timely warning...
"I urge you to stop using your anti perspirant deodorant and change over to the cheaper roll on deodorant or the more natural dusting of bi-carb soda. (it works well). A friend informed me that her friend who is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer was warned by the hospital to stop using antiperspirants as this was a major cause for breast cancer. The most common area for B/C is under the armpit. The body has few areas to purge toxins, one of these is the armpit. The toxins are purged in form of perspiration. Anti perspirants prevent you from doing this. These toxins don't magically disappear, instead the body deposits them in the lymph nodes below the arms since it cannot sweat them out. Breast cancer is becoming frightfully common so please don't keep this infomation to yourselves."
NOTE: Message: I was concerned by a tip/warning that appears on your "Cheapskate's Winning Tip" page, titled "Erin for her tip and timely warning". This tip states that Erin's friend was told that antiperspirants are a major cause of breast cancer.
Although studies have found that there MAY be a connection between antiperspirant use and breast cancer, that link has not yet been proven. Perhaps you could put a note under Erin's tip stating this.
For more information and links to research and articles on the topic, please visit the following sites:
http://www.snopes.com/toxins/breast.htm
http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/b/breastcancer.htm
Mellissa.
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Jenny for her great clean-up idea....
"Instead of using turps as a cleanup for oil paints ....use baby oil . Takes paint off hands and brushes and leaves both soft. Baby oil is safe, non toxic and the cheap brands are okay to use."
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Sharmaine with her great pest control tip...
"Add Rosemary to boiling water then use this to rid ants and other bugs. Rub vaseline around plant pots to keep snails at bay. Use left over tea to stain wood or floor boards. Use tomato sauce or toothpaste to clean tarnished metals. Let your new soap breath for awhile before you use it. Dry soap lasts longer and a new cake of soap has moisture in it. "
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Maresa Robbers of Melbourne with her hint on how to save on cleaning products.
Buy sugar soap as a cleaning agent. Water it down in a spray bottle and you'll be surprises how far it goes, how quick it cleans and how less often you'll be forking out for cleaning agents. Water it down in a spray bottle and you'll be surprises how far it goes, how quick it cleans and how less often you'll be forking out for cleaning agents.
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Cheryl from Scoresby with her tip to save money, time and energy...
I save time and money on cleaning products by using inexpensive micro-fibre cloths found in the cleaning isle of the supermarket or alternatively Kmart have a good range for different purposes.
Micro-fibre cloths work best wet with and just wipe the surface you are cleaning, the fibres in the cloth do the cleaning. There is no need for any cleaning products as these clog the cloths and reduces their effectiveness.
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Ellie from Adelaide with her tip to save money, time and energy...
We have prepared a shopping list template based on the order of shopping aisles at our local supermarket. We keep a heap of the printed lists on hand and start a new sheet at the beginning of each week. We read the supermarket's junk mail that comes out each week and add required items to the shopping list. The average saving is around ten dollars a week and with this system we are finding the shopping trip is quicker, more orgnaised and we are less likely to forget to buy items.
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May from Bunbury, WA for her money, time and energy saving ideas.
8 January, 02
I use the Internet for so many things that save money.
1.Postage - 1 local call cost compared to 45c postage to pay all my bills.
2.E-mails instead of STD calls and still keeping in touch.
3.Shopping. I saved $50.00 on a watch for my son, compared to local jewellers. Had to spend a little time searching though. Also saved $30.00 on my brand of perfume. Plus numerous other shopping savings.
4. Manage my banking on-line, this saves on petrol.
5. Sacked my share broker and now trade shares for $15.95 instead of $79.95, by doing it on-line. Also can check their values every day on the Internet.
6. Investigate so many things that would otherwise require many many phonecalls.
And I am sure I am going to find many more ways of saving money with my Internet connection.
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Julia from Sydney for money saving tip....
I have just started mixing 50:50 fresh milk with powdered milk (mixed with water) for my family. This is a good money saver if your family drinks a lot of milk as powdered milk is only about 55c a litre if you use supermarket's own band. This has worked a treat with no-one tasting the difference! If you have children under 5 years just be sure to use full cream milk powder (cost is slightly higher than skim milk powder) as low-fat diets are not recommended for young children.
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Check out more great tips and ideas...
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