1000 Ways to Save A Buck

71. Reuse Holiday Packaging

2010-12-22T22:31:00.000-05:00

Some gift wrap and cards don't get completely mangled in the gift giving process. Gift bags usually make their way to you 99% in tact and you can always rip off the little tag and save the bag for gifting another year. Wine gift bags made of fabric or other non-paper material will never be noticed as being reused.

I also like to take the brown craft paper paper bags that some stores use (if there is no logo on the front) and decorate them to use for gifting in.

Christmas cards can be cut up and used for decorating or craft projects too!

70. Make Homemade Christmas Ornaments

2010-12-12T21:05:00.002-05:00

I ran into a friend recently who encouraged me to keep up with my blog despite my hectic life, so I'm here trying to get back into the groove of posting.

We decided not to put up a full Christmas tree this year since our apartment is super small and we will be away for Christmas with our families. But I wanted to bring a bit of festiveness into our home, so I found a rosemary shrub at Superstore that had been pruned into the shape of a tree. I brought it home and started pulling out my ornaments to decorate it. When I realized all my ornaments were WAY too big for it, I started putting my coat back on to go out and get some tiny decorations.

That's when I stopped myself and headed over to my craft nook to see what I could do to come up with some ornaments for free. I took winter themed stickers and cut them out to place on the "tree", tied buttons to strings to hang off the branches, and started building a garland out of leftover Christmasy scrapbooking paper. (Its not done, but I got tired of gluing, so I'll finish that up late)

The star on top is actually from an ornament craft I did with the Brownies this past week. It is beads on pipe cleaners.

So I've really saved 2 ways here. 1 - did not pay for new tiny ornaments and reused some craft supplies that were leftover from old projects, and 2 - I have enough rosemary to flavour a year's worth of dinners.

69. Keep Busy

2010-10-25T22:51:00.000-04:00

I had never thought of this as a money saving tip before but it really has become true for me. Keep yourself busy! If you are not bored, you have no time to spend money on unnecessary items!

I've been SUPER busy with work and life lately that some days I don't even have time to THINK about blogging. I realized this the other day - it was the day before payday and I went to check my bank balance. The balance had 3 digits left of the decimal point! I was really confused. I went over the statement a few times and realized that I just hadn't bought anything this time!

So you don't need to become a workaholic - but activities and hobbies that keep you away from the stores and feeling happy are a good way to save!

68. Trade Coupons

2010-10-11T14:26:00.000-04:00

I know.... I'm a bad bad bad blogger. I just got super busy with more responsibilities at work and all my spare time activities fell to the side.

Back to the post: Trading coupons is a good way to get more of a coupon you would actually use and help a friend get more of the one's they want. I save every coupon I get - there are lots of different ways to keep them organized. Some online money saving forums have communities of people who are looking to trade coupons and I even get together with a few girlfriends to trade with them. This is especially helpful if you have free product or high value coupons for something you simply won't use. Someone out there will and will likely have a comparably priced coupon that you do want. Don't forget about Karma - if you can't come to a trade and the coupon is close to its expiration date - just give it away - people will remember your generous nature.

67. Get More Out of Household Items

2010-09-10T18:19:00.000-04:00

Today's post is inspired by an image I just found. Get more out of every day items. I think we can all use a reminder once in awhile that we don't always need to have a specialized tool for every single job. I like the idea of poking holes in plastic cups to use it as a sifter. That's a lot cheaper than the $12 I spent on a flour sifter that I use about three times a year.

So before spending money on specialty tools, take a moment to ask yourself if there is something inside your home that could easily serve the same purpose.

66. Watch Your Gas Tank

2010-09-06T19:35:00.000-04:00

On long car rides you can plan your gas tank fill-ups to be the most economical simply by doing research before hand. Websites such as Gas Buddy (again, they didn't ask me to say nice things!) can help you figure out where the cheapest place to buy gas is along your way.

For example - I went away this weekend and I looked up the city I live in, the city I was going to, and another one that was on the way. By comparing the average prices of gas for them all I was able to determine that I should only put enough gas in my car to get me halfway there, and fill up at which would be the cheaper place along the way.

I know that when I cross the border for shopping that I should only have just under half a tank of gas, because I can get it for 3/4 of the price down there.

Just make sure if the cheaper price is not the place where you are starting that you DO have enough gas to get there so you don't run out along the way!

65. Save Money on Text books

2010-09-03T13:55:00.000-04:00

With lots of people going back to college and university this week, I thought I would share some of the ways I saved money on text books when I went to college.

1. Don't buy any book until the second week of class. The bookstore will give you a list of books to buy, but wait until you meet each professor and ask which books are needed and which are just "reference".

2. Buy books used. As far as I know, campuses all have a student center that facilitates the buy/sell of used books. Try and get in there as people will sell their old books for half price.

3. Sell your used books. If you don't see any reference value in keeping the book - sell it when you are done.

4. Check Amazon or your favorite large bookstore. Their website often carry the same books and for a few bucks cheaper than the college bookstore.

64. Keep Your Eye on the Clearance Shelf

2010-09-02T21:05:00.000-04:00

Department stores and pharmacies usually have a rack or shelf towards the back of the store with some clearance items. Often market at at least 50% off or more, you can sometimes get a great deal on things you need. There is a Shoppers Drug Mart near my apartment building and I've found dish soap for 25cents, makeup for 75% off when the colours are going "out of season", and just yesterday I got a Motorola cell phone charger for my car for $3. The hard part for me is not stocking up and hoarding everything I find on this clearance rack!

63. Shop at the end of the day.

2010-08-31T10:45:00.000-04:00

I was at the grocery store the other day, later in the day, and noticed a bunch of meat with a sticker that said cook or freeze tonight on it and it was significantly marked down. What this means was that it had been packaged a few days ago and basically it was time for someone to do something with it or it was getting thrown out.

I scooped up a few of them (not too much, I have a tiny freezer full of bananas I'm planning to make bread out of.) and took them home to freeze. On the day I decide to cook them I will just take a package out of the freezer when I leave for work in the morning and make sure to cook it that day. I think on about three meals worth of meat I saved about $10.

62. How to Use a Whole Chicken

2010-08-25T14:10:00.000-04:00

I like to cook whole chickens for dinner as they last a long time and provide many different meal options.

Day 1 Dinner: Roast Chicken & your choice of sides
Day 2: Lunch: Chicken sandwiches
Day 2 Dinner: Chicken casserole or chicken pot pie
Day 3 Luch: More chicken sandwiches or leftover dinner
Day 3 Dinner: Chicken Soup with broth made from boiled carcass
Day 4 Lunch: Any of the above leftovers

Sometimes I make enough soup to stretch that out to 5 days - other times if I feel I'm getting tired of eating chicken I make the broth and then freeze it for using later.

61. Card Swap

2010-08-20T13:28:00.000-04:00

I wanted to tell you about this website I found - Cardswap.ca (who is totally not paying me to say nice things about them!... Nor did they even ask me to. Completely my own opinon over here!)

Anyways. Cardswap.ca lets you buy and sell unwanted gift cards. If you have one that you want to get rid of, you will lose some of the value in the trade and in their commission fee... so might not be the best way to get rid of it... But if you want to buy one you can save!

Some gift cards are being sold for 10%, 20%, and more off of the face value. So buy a $50 gift card for $40.
Combine that with promotions or coupons and you could find your money stretching even further!

60. Save School Supplies

2010-08-16T09:19:00.000-04:00

I got this tip from a friend of mine with kids. Back to school supplies are pretty consistent from year to year. What she does is when the kids are settled back into the school year and the supplies start to go on clearance, she stocks up for the following year. A package of paper could go on clearance for 15cents, and pens, pencils, and pencil crayons at equally good deals.

She doesn't buy binders or pencil cases, as the kids like to pick out new colours and styles each year, but this allows her to save on the basics by stockpiling at a low price.

59. Prepare for The Holiday Spend

2010-08-11T09:14:00.000-04:00

OK! I promiss after today no more Christmas posts until it is actually Christmas time!
I was looking at the Google Analytics, and I saw that someone found this site by searching "ways to save 1000 before Christmas" - and that got me thinking about something that I did one year (and sort of just fell out of doing) this year.

During the holidays we spend alot more money than we do other times of the year. On food, on gifts, on everything. Throughout the year, every time you do a large grocery shop - pick up a $10 gift card to the grocery store. When the holidays come around, get out all those cards and use them for all your holiday meal shopping.

What this does is frees up a bit of your cash at Christmas time, allowing you to spend less on credit (If you are smart enough to not need credit cards for Christmas, email me, you should be writing for this blog.) When we can spend less on credit, we pay less interest.

Enough of the winter talk now - It's August and its beautiful outside :)

58. Find A Penny Pick It Up....

2010-08-10T14:51:00.000-04:00

... and nickles and dimes and quarters too. Whenever I find change on the ground, I pick it up and toss it in my bag. It may not seem like alot, but over the course of the year, and over a lifetime, it adds up to be money you didn't have to begin with.

Every few weeks I clean out my purse and usually find a couple bucks in spare change that I had picked up off the ground.

57. Turn off the #$%& Lights!

2010-08-09T19:59:00.000-04:00

Today's title is half frustration and half funny. So I say it with a :)

But seriously - turn off the lights before you leave your home. Actually check to make sure they are all off - lamps, bathrooms, etc. It will save you on your hydro bill.

I'm looking at you --- <3

56. Think About Christmas Early

2010-08-05T20:37:00.000-04:00

I sent my boyfriend a message this afternoon to say "I had decided I wanted to get so-and-so a doohicky for Christmas and the company that sells them is having a warehouse sale next week, so I'm going to go buy it." His response was "never ever mention Christmas shopping to me in August again..."

But the point is, by keeping gift giving occasions in mind early, the opportunity to score deals and not be crushed by your credit card bills after the holidays is available.

I'm not making trips out to the mall to start stocking up on all the gifts, but when you find too good to pass up deals on something that would make a great gift -- get it and put it away.

Anyone else agree?

55. Water Your Plants

2010-08-04T20:07:00.000-04:00

Seriously. Just water your house plants. If you water them, they won't die. If your plants don't die, you won't find yourself at the store and think "oh, that's pretty... I don't have enough plants in my home". Instead, you will be like me, and think "Oh, that's pretty, I should ge---- no.. no, put it down. You have too many house plants in your tiny apartment".

54. Volunteer

2010-08-02T09:45:00.000-04:00

Volunteering for events and festivals can usually net a few perks. Free admission is usually one of them.

A few months before the event, check out their website. That is when they typically call for volunteers. If you can give a few hours of time to help hand out pamphlets, direct visitors, set up, tear down, or any other job they need - then the rest of the time can be yours to enjoy the event gratis.

53. Don't Buy Clothes Until You Need Them

2010-07-29T10:25:00.000-04:00

Maybe it's just the part of the world I live in, but stores seem to be carrying seasonal clothes before the actualy season arrives. Summer clothes in stock in April/May, fall clothes in stock in August.

Where we can benefit from this though is by waiting until the season arrives and we actually need the clothes because by that time they are often on sale. Tank tops and mini skirts don't do me much good in April, and long sleeve shirts are pretty useless in August. So I'll keep buying my season appropriate clothing off the sale rack and save money.

52. Get Rid of the Landline Phone

2010-07-28T13:57:00.000-04:00

Do you have a cell phone for each person in the house as well as a landline phone? Do you really NEED that landline? Does anyone even call you on it anymore?

Many people are phazing out the landline phone and opting to be mobile only. With all the ways of communication that have been brought to us over the last 10 years, there isn't always a need to have as many as we do, and the landline has been suffering.

Getting rid of it can easily save (depending on your location and provider) $30 a month.

I've talked to a few people and some of them still have arguements as to why they want to keep it - but think about it for a minute, and if you can live without it, then think about axing it once and for all.

Personally, I haven't had a landline phone in almost 5 years and I've never missed it.

51. Leftover Casserole

2010-07-27T19:59:00.000-04:00

Today I want to tell you about one of my favorite cheap meal ideas. I call it leftover casserole. When there are just little bits of everything left in the fridge and not enough for a whole meal for the family. Combine the bits of leftover meat, vegetables, some cooked noodles, some shredded cheese (as much as you like or have), and either a can of condensed cream soup or if you have any - leftover pasta sauce. Mix it all together and then bake in a casserole dish at 350F for about 45 minutes.

We can stretch household groceries by an extra night, or have 2 more days of lunches for work by making sure all the little bits of leftover food get eaten up.

We don't always use meat in this, but it is great for when there is half a pepper, a few asparagus stalks, and random odds and ends from the weeks meals still in the fridge. Remember not to add in anything that has been in the fridge TOO long. Getting sick is not frugal :)

50. Pay Fines On Time

2010-07-26T19:43:00.000-04:00

Today's tip comes with a story from my vacation.
It was late at night and I was trying to get onto the Maine Turnpike. I was tired, and not paying attention to which toll booth I drove up to. I realized too late that I was in the EZ Pass lane... panicked... and drove away.

The next morning I called the Maine Turnpike Authority and told them my story to beg forgiveness. They told me if I mailed the toll ($1) to them when I got home that I could avoid a nasty letter in the mail and potential fines. That my license plate had indeed been photographed as a "Toll-Evader". (Sounds Scary!)

So while getting fines and tickets and tolls is never a cost-cutting measure... it happens in life. So make sure you pay them on time to avoid any type of late payment fees. Actually - pay all your bills on time - interest charges add up too... maybe the math on that one could be a post later on.....

Bon Voyage!

2010-07-16T15:50:00.000-04:00

No tips for a week, because I'm super busy today, and I'm going on vacation next week!
I'll be back on the 25th or 26th with more super frugal tips :)

49. Group Buy

2010-07-14T09:36:00.001-04:00

I've mentioned this over in the Savy Links section of the website, but I haven't written an actual tip post about it. There are a few different websites out there that offer "Group Buying Power" They negotiate deals with local businesses, and if a pre determined number of people agree to buy the deal, then the deal is on.

One of the most popular deals I've seen is for restaurants where you get a half price gift certificate. I follow a couple different sites, and I make sure I only buy if it is for a place I go frequently, or for something I really wanted to try. I've also seen deals for half price fitness classes, a few different local adventures, attractions, etc.

Just make sure you are buying because you would have paid full price for the product / service anyways, and not because you think it's a deal. It's never a deal if you wouldn't have paid the money in the first place!

I'm not affiliated with any of these companies, but these are my two favorite that I follow daily.
Web Piggy
Groupon

They offer deals for many different cities. If your city is not listed, try going to Google and searching My City + Group Buy.

Happy Savings!

48. Make Your Own Notepad

2010-07-13T09:20:00.000-04:00

We all see the little messages at the bottom of our emails: "Consider the environment before printing this email". But sometimes you really do need to print it - for whatever reason. If that email is not destined for a file folder somewhere, you can still re-use it before sending it to the unknown fate of the blue bin.

Cut your used papers into 4 or 6 or 8 pieces and keep a stack of them on your desk. The back page of alot of these pages can still be used for scrap note taking such as jotting down a phone number or any other short lived note-to-self.

47. Save Giftwrap for Crafts

2010-07-12T10:20:00.001-04:00

I love doing crafts. I'm really into scrapbooking too. I like to consider myself a professional cut and paste artist. Nice paper can cost alot of money if you want to have a big collection of lots of different patterns and prints.

If this sounds like you too, then next time you open a gift and don't COMPLETELY destroy the giftwrap, save the paper for your craft projects. Giftwrap comes in so many different designs and can make a really nice background to your scrapbooking or craft projects. And as a bonus, you'll have something that is completely diferent from the papers your scrappy friends are buying at the moment.
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Don't forget that I have a short 4 question survey about the website going on right now. I would REALLY appreciate your feedback. It's completely anonymous and is just to help me make sure I have a website that is helpful and you want to keep coming back to. You can take part by clicking here.

46. Beat The Heat For Cheap! - Part 3 - Have a Light Dinner

2010-07-08T17:57:00.001-04:00

In these hot hot days, its almost unbearable to turn on the oven and fill your home with more heat. A light dinner filled with nutritious foods can be inexpensive and easy. Giving you more time to get back in front of the AC unit.

Try sandwiches filled with meats and cheeses and fresh veggies. Add a fruit salad on the side to complete it all.

For myself tonight it's whole grain bread with marble cheese, ham, cucumbers, tomatoes, and mustard.

What's your favorite no-bake easy and inexpensive dinner?

NEED FEEDBACK!

2010-07-08T08:42:00.000-04:00

I'm trying to collect some honest, anonymous feedback on the blog. There is a super short 4 question survey right here. Could you spare 30 seconds to fill it out? Thanks everyone!

45. Beat The Heat For Cheap! - Part 2 - Get Together Friends

2010-07-07T13:47:00.000-04:00

Getting a bunch of friends together into ONE air conditioned home can save a few bucks on electricity costs for everyone who's a guest as they don't need to be cooling their own homes. Hang out in the cool dark basement rec room of someone's house and watch some movies, play some games... maybe even a pot luck dinner (there is another tip!).

Remember, drink lots of water and stay safe in these extreme weather alert days!

44. Beat the Heat For Cheap! - Part 1 - Swimming

2010-07-06T09:12:00.000-04:00

It is very hot in Toronto this week. So all this week I will be bringing ideas to beat the heat for super cheap or free!

Get outside to a local park or beach were you can play in the water and cool down. Make sure to find a shady spot to park your beach towels and apply lots of sunscreen! And drink lots of water!

If you don't have a beach nearby, try a local pool. The entrance fee is usually quite nominal. I don't know what Toronto pools charge because I haven't been to one yet, but I know that when I lived in Oshawa I could go to the local rec center and swim for about $3.75

And if neither of these is an option - send the kids to the backyard and put the sprinkler on the hose. I remember spending hours running back and forth through the sprinkler when I was a kid. Good Times.

The Best of June

2010-06-30T10:53:00.000-04:00

I'm going to be really busy and then away for the next few days, so today I'm going to leave you with the best of June and the regularly schedualed programming will resume after the weekend.

Here they are, my 5 favorite posts from the past month.

Go Camping! a great way to save money on overnight costs and getting yourself places you may not have gone.

Save money on books by going to the library.

Stop wasting fruit by turning it into delicious frozen treats.

Toilet train your cats.

Walk places to get fit and save on transportation costs.

Have a very happy patriotic day, no matter which side of the border you are reading this from!

43. Cut Your Meal in Half

2010-06-28T19:22:00.000-04:00

How often do you go to a restaurant and find yourself choosing between over stuffing yourself and throwing away part of your meal?

Portion sizes for restaurants have ballooned along with people's waistlines. One thing you can do to save your figure as well as your wallet is to force yourself to only eat half of the meal. You will likely find yourself still feeling satisfied, and if you take home the other half you will have another meal to eat the next day. If you have trouble doing this, particularly at first, then ask for the take home container when the meal arrives and promptly cut it in half and store the other so that you don't see it sitting there on your plate taunting you to eat it.

42. Return It if You Don't Like It

2010-06-25T10:00:00.000-04:00

The other day I mentioned getting samples of products before you buy them to see if you like them. But sometimes you buy things that you just can't try out before buying, or you can only get a limited demo of it.

Don't be afraid to return an item to the store if it does not meet your expectations. It's a huge waste to buy something, only to discover you don't like it and have it just sit around collecting dust, never to be used again. Many manufactures have a garauntee that you will love it or your money refunded. If the store will not take back the item then get in touch with manufacturer and politely tell them you didn't love the product and you would appreciate your money back or a credit for your next purchase.

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In other news, I'm skipping town this weekend to hide from G20 related craziness and likely won't be posting. I'll be back Monday with a new tip!

41. Fix It & Save It

2010-06-24T09:47:00.000-04:00

Not everything that is broken needs to be replaced or thrown out.

If a chair breaks, can you glue it back together with some super glue? If your pants split, was the rip on a seam that can be sewn back together? Mirror broke? Now the frame can be hung on the wall for decoration as it is.

Assess the situation carefully before throwing anything away and decide if it is salvagable.

40. Ask for Beauty Product Samples

2010-06-23T19:00:00.000-04:00

I am a self proclaimed product junkie. I'm always trying something new and finding the latest and greatest product for my hair & skin. The problem is that there are some REALLY expensive products out there. If something works I will spend the extra money on it, but how do you know what works for you?

If you go to a department store or a specialty store like Sephora, you can usually ask for a sample of a product before you buy it. Sephora especially is very generous with samples and I've never had a problem getting enough to try it out for a few days before making a decision.

This is great because I've saved money by not buying products I really wanted to try but that did nothing for me. I've also discovered some new products that I wasn't too keen to try but ended up being fantastic.

39. Win Something Online

2010-06-22T20:35:00.000-04:00

I thought today's entry was appropriate because I recently had a little blog contest, and today I found out that I won a Twitter contest. There are alot of people and brands out there holding short and small contests on blogs / facebook / and twitter, and quite often the chances of winning it are pretty good.

The prizes are usually small, but small is better than nothing! About 6 months ago I won some makeup from a cosmetics company I favour for being one of the first 25 people to correctly answer a question on Facebook. The prize was worth about $12, but it was great to get it for free since it was something I was going to buy. Today I found out I won a $25 gift certificate to a shoe store in their Twitter contest... i was the only one who entered it. About 4 months ago I won a $50 gift Visa gift card from a company I follow on Twitter because they had a "send us a picture of your office" contest and again I was the only one who entered.

Remember, if you don't enter, you won't win.

38. Up-cycle Table Clothes and Curtains

2010-06-21T18:18:00.000-04:00

When you eventually get tired of the table clothes and curtains in a room, don't be so quick to toss them or donate them. (Although donating is always a better option than tossing.)

Look around to see if there are other uses for them in your home. Could you make pillow covers out of them? Re upholster a chair or stool? If they are actually damaged, could they be cut up and used as rags?

Mini Contest Winner!

2010-06-21T18:11:00.000-04:00

And the contest winner is #3 - thomasblair - please email me kelly dot hajnik at gmail dot com

37. Pass on Designer Eyeshadows

2010-06-20T20:24:00.000-04:00

There are some cases where it's essential to spend more money and get better quality makeup. Anything that covers your whole face, such as a foundation or moisturizer requires the best quality you can buy. Other cosmetics don't really get any better from drug store to department store.

Eyeshadow is one of those cases where you can safely get drug store or lower end brands. A good eyeshadow primer can make your $6 eye shadow pallet stay on your lids all day with the rich pigmented colours you want.
My favorite is Urban Decay Eye Shadow Primer, but Benefit Stay Don't Stray is a close second. I've also heard good things about the Too Faced Shadow Insurance.

There was a time were I would spend $36 on an eyeshadow quad. I also had a few from the drug store that cost under $10 each. When using an eyeshadow primer I can't even tell the difference between the two types of eyeshadow.

Rogers Customers To Get Refund

2010-06-18T22:03:00.000-04:00

Last month I wrote a post about how reviewing your phone bill can save you a few bucks a month. It turns out that it seems the phone company should be reviewing our bills too! Rogers customers who had bundled services apparently were not being given the proper discount, and now Rogers is going be reimbursing us the difference. The average reimbursement will be about $100. It sucks that we have been over paying all this time, but it will be nice to get a large discount on my upcoming bill.

36. Maintain Proper Food Storage

2010-06-18T13:47:00.003-04:00

Today's entry is a guest post by
Sara from Le Chocolat Chat

Some cases of saving money start with spending it. There are few things in this world which consume more of our daily income than food.

The average consumer will spend anywhere from $5 to $30 for every meal. Multiply that by three meals per day over the course of a month and you will be surprised at how much money you spend. That said, this post is all about food storage and preparing your own meals. The level of difficulty involved in amassing a proper food storage is dependent upon the individual, but for most of us we can just start small. Buy groceries for your home once every two weeks from a prepared list.

Buy essentials such as flour, salt and sugar remembering to stock up on sale items that you use most often. For example; if cans of tomato sauce are on sale for 50 cents buy four. Canned goods are the best way to stock a food storage. Purchase "Sale Packs" of vegetables where they have plastic wrapped four or more cans together. You may only use one can in the course of the upcoming weeks, but you will have three or more remaining cans to prepare lunches or dinners with, at no additional cost to you.

50 cent can of tomato sauce, 45 cent package of spaghetti noodles and a bit of grated cheese. = $1 give or take. Compare that to your $30 Italian sit down restaurant.

Retain all leftover portions of uncooked noodles and rice. Get yourself some sealed containers and fill them up with those remaining dried goods for use later.

In addition to saving money at meal time, it is also a great convenience when in the middle of baking cookies etc when you realize that you are out of sugar and can easily grab a new bag from your food storage without running to the store (or embarrassing yourself asking a neighbor!)

Our generations have large food bills. This is a great first step towards cutting that bill directly in half!

35. Read The Flyers

2010-06-17T19:13:00.000-04:00

Today I got a bag of grocery flyers in the mail. There are a lot of both high end and low end grocery stores in close proximity to each other in my neighborhood. By looking at all the flyers I can see what is on sale at each store and then visit most of them in one trip to get the most savings for our groceries.

34. Camp

2010-06-15T14:07:00.000-04:00

Vacations can get really expesive fast. There are lots of ways that you can save money and still go away for your holidays. One of the ways that we save money is by camping instead of staying in hotel rooms. Next month we are going to Maine for a week, and we will be gone for 7 nights. Hotels would cost anywhere from $65-$150 per night, and in that case would not be an affordable vacation for us. Because we are camping, we are spending on average $25 a night for a place to lay our heads. Our camping gear is all pretty luxurious and comfortable, and campgrounds all have shower facilities. With the cost savings we are able to do alot more with our vacation budget.

Contest $5 Gift Certificate

2010-06-14T19:42:00.001-04:00

I'm receiving conflicting information from my web stats pages, so I've decided to take matters into my own hand to determine how many people are really following my page.

What you need to do to enter is leave a comment on this post, and let me know what your favorite post so far was! On June 21 I will use random number generator to choose a winner. All entries made before I draw the winning number will be accepted. Limit one entry per person though!

For the winner I will buy a $5 gift certificate to Starbucks. (The card will be in Canadian currency but I believe Starbucks lets you use it on either side of the border.) The prize is small because I truly have no idea how many of you are out there :) Maybe bigger next time :)

Good luck!

33. Define "Art" Yourself

2010-06-14T19:29:00.000-04:00

You don't need to spend a lot of money to have a cozy looking home with lots of art on the walls. Some inexpensive frames and some meaningful pieces placed on the walls with thought and love will show off your personality and make your home truly unique.

For example, all the frames on our walls are matching black, but inside the frames is everything from vacation photos, family photos, a few drawings made for me by artists I admire, a shadow box with antique souvenir spoons, and a poster we bought off Etsy.

Try to find things that tell the story of you, and fill your home with coziness and memories instead of expensive paintings done by some guy you've never heard of.

32. Get On The List

2010-06-13T09:51:00.000-04:00

Sorry for no post yesterday. I got a little caught up with doing things around the apartment and then had to go out and it just never happened.

Most of your favorite brands and stores likely have a website and an email list that you can subscribe to. These kids of email newsletters usually offer exclusive sales or coupons just for members on the list. If you don't want your regular email address to start getting full of junk mail and spam then set up a separate email account just for these. You can check it every few days and see if there is anything that piques your interest.

31. Buy Phone Cases on Ebay

2010-06-11T16:15:00.000-04:00

First thing is first - Ebay is NOT paying me to say nice things about them.

I carry 2 cell phones - one for personal and one for work. Today I dropped my personal one in a parking lot and it's pretty banged up. About 15 minutes later my office phone slid off a pile of books I was carrying and went flying down a stairwell. I saw it bounce on every other step on the way down. Miraculously it still works and has no new bruises since the last time I dropped it.

Someone suggested I get rubber cases for my phones. I'm not a fan of going to the mall to buy rubber phone cases for $20 each.

If you go on Ebay you can get phone cases for under $5. I actually spent $6 shipping included and was able to get cases for both my phones.

30. Keep A Jar of Buttons

2010-06-10T14:23:00.000-04:00

Pants and button up shirts usually come with a spare button in a little bag attatched to the price tag. Stop throwing them out. Seriously - stop it. Keep a jar filled with all those spare buttons. Have you ever lost the button on a pair of pants and then they end up living in the back of your closet only to eventually be replaced? All you need to do is break out your jar of spare buttons and sew a new one on.

Buttons also make excellent craft supplies.

29. Make A List

2010-06-09T16:14:00.000-04:00

When you go out to buy things, try and make a list of everything you need to get it all in one spot. Making lists helps you avoid impulse purchases and forgetting things. If we can avoid forgetting things, we can avoid more trips to the store which could also lead to impulse purchases.

Before you go out, take a look around the kitchen and bathroom to see if anything is close to running out. Efficiency equalls more money in your pockets!

28. Stop Hoarding Electronics

2010-06-08T21:01:00.001-04:00

How many times have you upgraded your cell phone / gaming console / computer / whatever and then put the old one somewhere only to be forgotten about?

There is someone out there who probably wants that. Cell phones especially, as people break theirs and want a cheap replacement to last them the duration of their contract or until they are eligible for a free phone from their provider. I upgraded my cell phone recently and was able to sell my 2-year old used Blackberry for $150!

So try posting an ad on your local classified, craigslist, or kijiji and clear out of of your old tech!

27. Toilet Train Your Cats

2010-06-07T21:35:00.002-04:00

Today's tip is a bit on the quirky side... but with ~~933~~ 973 tips to go I figure that it is OK once in a while.

We have 2 cats. Cats poop. And we have a small space, so we buy the best quality kitty litter we can find. We spend about $30 a month on the stuff. Until now....

I found this kit online that is a litter pan you set on your toilet. Over time you start punching holes out of the center until eventually there are none left. The cats learn that the toilet is their toilet too and become less dependent on using the litter.

There are a few different kits out there. These seem to be the ones that have gotten the best reviews:
CitiKitty
Litter Kwitter
Has anyone else tried this or am I absolutely crazy? I will post an update to this when we have successfully finished the transition!

26. Clean Out Your Closet

2010-06-06T09:10:00.000-04:00

It's finally that time of year where I pack up the sweaters and wool pants into a bin and shove them into the back of the closet. I was taking inventory of my closet to find out what I would need to buy to prepare wardrobe for summer- there was a lot of stuff that had moved to the back and sides of the closet that haven't been seen since last summer.

Going through it all can surprise you. I found all sorts of summer clothes that I had completely forgotten I owned. Combined with the things I had bought for spring and I'm pretty sure I don't need to buy any new clothes for summer. (And I'm really going to try not to!)

My sister also scored here too because I've created a bag of clothes for her to have that either don't fit or look to young for me to be wearing. (Sigh....)

Everybody saves when you clean out the closet. I've heard of people having parties where all their girlfriends get together and swap clothes that nobody wants anymore. Has anyone done this?

25. Walk

2010-06-05T20:36:00.000-04:00

The sun is shining, the temperature isn't too hot, and, and you need to get somewhere. I live in Toronto, so driving my car anywhere in-town is silly because I'd have to pay to park it and and it would just be a pain in the butt. Transit is an option, but when its such a nice day why not walk where you have to go?

I needed to go somewhere 3km from my apartment. It's far enough to suck on a bad weather day. But today it was really nice. Got some fresh air, some exercise, and saved the $3 each way on transit.

When I lived in suburbia I wouldn't walk anywhere unless it was home from a bar, and even then I usually took a cab. I find living in the city it's much more pedestrian friendly and I really look forward to walking more places.

24. Don't Waste Fruit!

2010-06-04T18:03:00.000-04:00

I promise that after today I won't talk about the freezer for awhile. But this really is a great idea, and it's something I practice regularly in our home without even thinking of it as an active money saving method.

Whenever a soft fruit, such as bananas, berries, peaches, etc, is about to go bad I mash it up (or blend), mix in some yogurt and some fruit juice. Then the mixture gets poured into frozen treat molds and a frozen into a tasty treat on a stick.

So don't throw away money by wasting uneaten fruit! Turn it into something even better!

23. Freeze Meat

2010-06-03T14:18:00.000-04:00

The freezer ontop of your fridge can actually save you some money. Buy larger than you need packages of meat and freeze them in individual portions.

There are two of us in our house, so we save money by buying chicken breasts in packages of 6, and freezing them in groups of 2. Ground beef gets divided into portion sized balls and then frozen. This way we get the cost savings of the bulk buying, without the need to worry about meat going bad.

22. Go To The Library

2010-06-02T20:37:00.000-04:00

The library is a wonderful place. It's like a big free bookstore. It may not look as nice as chapters, but it is filled with just as many wonderful books. Books that you can borrow for free and then return.

I love owning books. I want to have shelves filled with knowledge. But sometimes, I need a good beach read - something I will read only once and then probably never again. For those times I find the library is my friend.

Many libraries also loan out DVDs and CDs, even new releases. Check out your towns library to find out more about the services they offer. If you borrow one book and take it back, your wallet will already be ahead.

21. Put Electronics On A Power Timer

2010-06-01T11:34:00.000-04:00

You've heard it before - electronics suck up a huge amount of power while they are in stand by mode. But most of us can not be bothered to go around unplugging TV and stereos before going to sleep or leaving for work in the morning. Power timers, like this one, can cut the supply of power to whatever device you plug into it during the times you are regularly not at home.

The Best of May

2010-06-01T11:21:00.001-04:00

In case you missed any of the earlier posts, these are my top 5 favorite posts from May.

20. Use Loyalty Cards

2010-05-31T13:12:00.001-04:00

I was already planning to write today's post on loyalty cards and how you have nothing to lose by having many of them. Then I saw this post on Yahoo Finance today outlining a few of the more popular Canadian loyalty cards and how much return you get on each one of them.

Some people complain that they don't like to carry extra cards in their wallets. I keep all of mine wound up in rubber band in the bottom of my purse so that they are all there when I'm out shopping, but don't eat up all the valuable card slots in my wallet.

We all have a few stores that we shop at the most. I have a favorite grocery store, a favorite drug store, and a few places that I usually buy my gas from. It makes sense to have the loyalty cards from these places, where I get points for purchases I have to make anyways. Points can usually be traded in for gift certificates, money off future purchases, or sometimes from a rewards catalog.

There are also alot of strategies out there for maximizing point accumulation with as little spend as possible, such as shopping more on bonus point days.

Also consider that some companies allow you to trade points between different stores. I have all of my Club Sobeys (grocery) points automatically transfer to Aeroplan (Air Canada). So I now collect Aeroplan from more sources which makes them grow faster and in turn, I see larger rewards faster.

19. Shop For Airports

2010-05-30T19:27:00.000-04:00

I'm going to generalize here, and assume that most of us living within driving distance of more than one airport. I'm going to call driving distance 2-3 hours. Some airports charge more for a plane to take off and land from, which can affect the price of your ticket.

When planning a trip, try and find prices from all the nearby airports to compare costs. I live only 15 minutes from Toronto airport. A round trip ticket from Toronto to Salt Lake City costs about $800 depending on the day of the week. It also costs over $100 to park at the Toronto airport for a week. If I drive 2 hours to Buffalo airport, the ticket to Salt Lake City costs $300 and parking there for a week is $50.

So consider all your options and not just the most convenient the next time you are planning a flight.

New Section - Savy Links

2010-05-29T21:49:00.000-04:00

I've started another section of the blog where I'm going to keep growing a list of websites that give users access to great prices and / or discounts.

Feel free to comment or email if you think you know one that should be included. It's a short list right now but I'm going to keep expanding it so check often.

18. Look for Yardsales

2010-05-29T13:21:00.000-04:00

It is a beautiful weekend here in Toronto. And there is a great activity for getting outside, that can also save you money! I'm looking for a few things for the home that I know are a little pricey brand-new. So tomorrow a friend and I are going to scope out yard sales in search for some finds at a fraction of the cost.

Here are a few of my favorite tips for getting quality goods at a low low low price.

Go to rich people's neighborhoods. They have better stuff.
Carry change and small bills so you don't look like you are able to pay more.
Go early in the morning for the best selection - but later in the day for the best prices as the home owners get desperate to off load their goods.

Also - if you want to make a bit of money - have a yard sale of your own! Consider getting the neighbours involved for a multi-family sale - they tend to draw more attention and bring a larger crowd.

17. Have A Garden

2010-05-28T08:47:00.000-04:00

Today's post has so many more benefits than simply saving money. If you have the space, I encourage - no plead with you, to grow some of of your own food. It doesn't need to be a huge garden, it can simply be a few containers on a balcony or patio. Last summer we grew our own lettuce, carrots, and squash. The lettuce we picked daily for salads and because it kept growing back we had a steady supply of leattuce from June to September. You can grow tomatos and peppers easily in container gardens.

Besides the abundance of free food you will know that your food has been grown without the use of pesticides or other scary sprays. There is also a HUGE satisfaction that comes from knowing that you grew that food on your plate.

Canadian Living has a nice article on container gardening right here.

I'd love to hear your tips for growing food both in a large patch and in containers, or any other way that you do it!

16. Pick One Brand of Reusable Container

2010-05-27T12:58:00.000-04:00

I love reusable plastic containers. I take my lunch to work in them, use them for storing leftover food, store small household items in them. The trouble is often a piece gets lost or broken. You could find yourself in a situation with twice as many lids as bottoms.

If you choose one brand, and always buy the same brand, you will find it is both easier to find lid to match your bottom and that you are buying less of it.

15. Cut Your Own Lettuce

2010-05-26T15:16:00.000-04:00

I'm not against buying prepared foods for the convenience. I understand we often pay a premium to get food that comes partially or fully cooked, or fruit trays that come ready sliced. (Which is a huge time saver when you are throwing a party. But there is one that we pay a premium for that is just ridiculous.

Bagged Lettuce.

Is your life really so busy that you can't cut your own lettuce? It's not even diffiuclt! And you can get an entire head of lettuce for 85cents instead of $2.99 for a bag of ripped up lettuce.

If anyone can offer an argument in favor of bagged lettuce, I'd love to hear it. And I'm not talking about the salad kits that come with dressing, toppings and lettuce. I'm refering to a simple bag of pre-cut lettuce.

14. Ask The Internet for a Coupon

2010-05-25T08:50:00.000-04:00

The internet is ripe with coupons and discounts for those who wish to find them. Are you planning an online purchase? Before you hit the pay button and surrender your payment information you should search the internet for a discount. Just go to your prefered search engine and type in "store name coupon".

Quite often you can find an online coupon code for free shipping, or $10 off $50 or better!

13. Buy American

2010-05-24T10:17:00.001-04:00

As I can see from the google analytics report, this post is only going to be applicable to about half of the people who read this - the other half may just find it interesting to know.

If you live in a Canadian town which is close to the Canada-USA border, you could be saving quite bit of money on more than just the clothing and electronics we often race across the border to get. Have you considered stocking up on some groceries while you are there?

I'm going to show you a price comparison of a few of the things I picked up at a grocery store in Buffalo, NY yesterday. All package sizes are equal and the currency conversion is almost on par right now. ($1CDN = $0.94USD)

Iams Cat food - $8.00 in Buffalo / $12.00 in Toronto
Cream Cheese - $1.25 in Buffalo / $2.99 in Toronto
Butter - $1.50 in Buffalo / $3.25 in Toronto

So next time you visit our friends to the south and pillage their malls and department stores, consider taking a cooler with you and bringing home some groceries other than Mint Milanos.

12. Plan Hotels Ahead

2010-05-24T00:13:00.000-04:00

Sorry for no post yesterday! We woke up early in the morning and decided to get in the car and drive away for a weekend adventure. We ended up in a little town called Corning, Ny. It was cute.

So for today - I have a tip that we SHOULD have taken. I've travelled quite a bit for business and pleasure, and I always go on a discount hotel searching website like Hotwire or Travelocity and usually get a pretty decent price on a hotel. We drove to this little town and went into a hotel that seemed conveniently located and asked for a room. We were tired, hungry, and not really in the mood for hotel shopping.

So we paid too much for our room. We should have had some sort of destination in mind and planned some sort of accomodations. C'est la Vie.

11. Do The Survey

2010-05-21T09:31:00.000-04:00

Do you ever get a note on the bottom a of a receipt that says you can do a survey about your exerience at the store and receive a percentage off your next purchase? Do you usually just toss out the receipt?

If it is a store you shop at regularly like a specific clothing store, or a drug store, grocery store, or whatever, you should be doing the surveys and then storing the confirmation codes in your wallet so that you can take advantage of the savings next time you shop.

10. Drink The Office Coffee

2010-05-20T14:54:00.001-04:00

I'll admit I can't do this one EVERY day, but I try to do it at least once or twice a week. On a regular day, I buy a ($1.50) cup of coffee at my apartment on the way out the door. Sure I could make it at home, but lets be honest - that travel mug is going to live in my car for weeks before it makes it back inside. So as a challenge to myself, some days (when I'm not still half asleep at 8am), I decide to skip that coffee and wait the 20 minutes until I get to the office - where the coffee is free.

9. Use the ATM Less

2010-05-19T20:53:00.000-04:00

This is from a bit of forward thinking I had this afternoon.
The ATM machine charges $1.50 every time you use it, plus another $1.50 from my bank for using a no-name bank machine. I'd like to be able to use my banks ATM machines for free but honestly, I can't find one near my home.

So I stopped to get some cash for a dinner I had to go to tonight, and as I was choosing the ammount I thought "wait... you need money tomorow too... get it now and don't pay the service charges again tomorow."

I know I should plan a little further in advance, but I don't like to carry too much cash on me, so getting 2 or 3 days worth at a time works for me.

8. Recycle Grocery Bags

2010-05-18T17:09:00.000-04:00

In Ontario, we have to pay 5cents per plastic grocery bag.
Now, I've mentioned this idea to a few friends before and everyone agrees it makes alot of sense. I know they want us to start bringing our own reusable grocery bags to the store - but have you considered what you pay for garbage bags?

When the 5cent charge came into effect, most of the grocery stores made the bags larger to accomodate more stuff. The bags are now SLIGHTLY smaller in capacity than the white kitchen bags we buy for garbage.

Say you pay $3 for a package of 20 kitchen garbage bags. Thats 15 cents a bag! Why not pay 5 cents a bag to bring your groceries home in and then reuse those bags for your under the sink kitchen garbage?

7. Freeze Your Milk

2010-05-17T14:52:00.000-04:00

I Canada, (and some other parts of the world that are not America) you have the option to buy milk in bags. you get 3 bags that total 4L inside one larger bag. Then you have a fancy plastic jug in your kitchen that holds the individual bag upright.

The price of milk at my local store is as follows.
1L carton - $1.99
2L carton - $2.99
4L bag - $3.99

So by buying 4L instead of 1L, I will pay half the price.
We don't go through milk quickly in our home, so what I'm starting to do is to buy the bags and put 2 in the freezer. Anyone else thought of this one before?

6. Review Your Phone Bill

2010-05-16T11:33:00.000-04:00

Here is a good activity for a lazy Sunday. Have a look at your cell phone bill and compare the price plan you are on with any new promotions and plans that your provider might have right now. If you find a cheaper plan on their website, call and ask to be switched. I did this and brought my plan down $5 a month.

5. Search for Warehouse Sales

2010-05-15T10:42:00.000-04:00

This is a great example and it was something that happened to me yesterday afternoon. I knew that we would be buying both an air mattress and a cooler for camping this summer. I also knew we were would be buying brand name equipment because camping gear needs to be sturdy and durable.

I found out about a Coleman warehouse sale in my area and went there yesterday afternoon. I was able to get everything we needed at about a quarter of the price I was willing to pay at retail.

Later on, I was telling a friend about it and he mentioned when he went to a Kitchenaide warehouse sale and the deals he had got.

This got me thinking -- every manufacturer must have a warehouse sale at some time.... why not figure out when and were they all are and try and make a visit to any that are local to me? I also know that most hold their sales at the same time of year, so it may even be advantageous to keep a calendar of when they are each year so you can loosely plan in the future.

4. The Bulk Food Store

2010-05-14T10:44:00.000-04:00

Alot of the foods I eat are pretty generic. Today is grocery day, and I'm out of trail mix, something I snack on alot of during the day. A bag big enough to last me the week costs about $10 - so what I do is go to the bulk food store, pick our the ingredients I want in my trail mix, and then mix them together when I get home. This ends up costing about $7 and I'm not wasting the bits at the bottom that I don't like because I like all of them.

3. Find A Coupon

2010-05-13T16:59:00.000-04:00

You don't need to become a super coupon clipper and every week scour the grocery fliers looking for cents off and carry a mini portfolio of neatly organized coupons. (But if you are that is phenomenal and I applaud you.) But before you toss the flyers in the mail give them a quick once over - if you see a coupon for something you were ACTUALLY planning to buy (like toilet paper) why not tear it out and stuff it in your wallet to use when you are at the store?

Our grocery fliers came today and I rarely even look at them, but I've found $1.25 in coupons for products I regularly buy.

2. Order Water

2010-05-12T08:58:00.000-04:00

Like it says in the about section, this blog is not about making life changes, so today's idea isn't a permanent change, but something to do just for today.

If you go out for lunch or dinner today, instead of ordering pop or juice, ask the server for a glass of ice water. You can flavour it up with some lemon or a lime. Not only is this super good for you but your totall bill will come in at least $1 cheaper.

1. Return for Deposit

2010-05-11T19:35:00.000-04:00

Depending on the recycling return policy in your province or state, the return deposit on recyclable cans and bottles will vary. In Ontario, we receive 10cents for each beer bottle we return to the beer store. Gather 10 (or all of them) and put them in your car to return next time you drive by a return center.