The Great "Extreme MoneySaving" Hunt: How far do you go?

Aki123

My dad (a keen cyclist at 72!) always made our bikes as kids, his own bikes and now he's building them for my kids - he picks up discarded bikes or just frames from the local tip and 'does them up', they always look great and are a fraction of the cost of shop bought ones, in fact I remember my 'designer' bike being the envy of all my friends!

Admittedly he knows what he's doing, but it's a lesson to look out for stuff that other people have abandoned when you're tipping that you may be able to make use of.

jacand

I've had loads of stuff from skips, I love to have a rummage. I do knock on the door and ask first though.

Probably the most extreme thing I've done to save money though, was when a major department store was offering £50 gift card for couples signing up to their wedding list, I dragged my husband in and told him to just play along. We took our wedding rings off and told them we wanted to sign up to their wedding list. We had to go round the store with a handheld scanner and scan stuff we would want. We were killing ourselves laughing, and just scanned anything. We then made the excuse that the car park ticket was running out and we'd come back at a later date and add more. We got the vouchers and left, a few weeks later I contacted them and told em the wedding was off.
Naughty but easy £50

HappySad

jacand wrote: »

I've had loads of stuff from skips, I love to have a rummage. I do knock on the door and ask first though.

Probably the most extreme thing I've done to save money though, was when a major department store was offering £50 gift card for couples signing up to their wedding list, I dragged my husband in and told him to just play along. We took our wedding rings off and told them we wanted to sign up to their wedding list. We had to go round the store with a handheld scanner and scan stuff we would want. We were killing ourselves laughing, and just scanned anything. We then made the excuse that the car park ticket was running out and we'd come back at a later date and add more. We got the vouchers and left, a few weeks later I contacted them and told em the wedding was off.
Naughty but easy £50

I must also admit that I have also been dishonest too. I joined a gym with my lodger friend and said that we were a woman gay couple so that we got the couple discount on the monthly fee.

polka.dot

HappySad wrote: »

Keep stuff for ever and look after it.

• Habitat wardrobe over 20years old. Bought in the sale.

I still use kettle that was a wedding present 26 years ago. Lasted considerably longer than my marriage :-)

skint,single_mum_of_4

If i have a special occation to go to i buy something nice then take it back for a refund after ive worn it.

When my sister comes to stay i buy air beds then take them back too for a refund after shes gone home.

When my kids were younger if we went anywere like a theme park or cinema i'd always try and sneek one in.

Never bought rip off food at cinemas always took our own, sometimes we'd buy popcorn.We eat it and then say we spilt it and get a free refill

I know its wrong...but needs must !

savingqueen

I cut up my old (clean!) white cotton knickers that are past wearing... and reuse them as hankies...then they get washed and reused. Saves a fortune on tissues as I have hayfever. I only use them at home on my own though, OH doesn't even know!!

Bambywamby

Extreme money saving??? Been there...done that and occasionally still do it. This has included:

*Watering down every possible liquid and lotion in the house to make it go further.
*Using one packet of free contraceptive pills straight after the other so I didn't have a totm and therefore didn't need to buy protection.
*Blagging leaves from the greengrocers and bones from the butchers for the "pets" when they were really for human consumption.
*Putting cardboard in shoes when the sole went through and carrier bags on feet for when the cardboard went through...feet were then protected for a short period of time from the elements.
*Putting socks on my hands in winter when I lost a glove, couldn't afford to buy a new pair.
*Worn a woolie hat and gloves in bed during the winter when we didn't have central heating many moons ago.
*Jam sandwichs and bruised apples for packed lunches (yuk!)
* Buy medium sliced bread instead of thick so you get more slices for your money.
* Using jelly with a few slices of banana in it as pudding, rather than doleing out whole pieces or fruit of more expensive sweet courses.
*Investing in a £10 waterproof jacket, so I could walk every where even in bad weather rather than pay out for transport and petrol.
*Turning the mattress over when a spring started to poke through, then layering the bed with a thick blanket under the bottom sheet for when the springs started to poke through on the other side.
*Making rollie cigarettes out of other people's dog ends...oh those student days memories.
* Pinching from local allotments to eat produce.
* Mixing dreg ends of paints to make a whole new colour to paint the spare room...turned out a nasty mustard yellow (vom!).
*Going to bed early when it got too cold to sit downstairs.
* Leaving pasta to soak for an hour in cold water so it rehydrates and only needs two minutes cooking time.
* Taking the kids to any free museums, parks and places of interest during the summer holidays as we couldn't afford a proper holiday. This included picnics out, trips to the library and then story time with a tea party when we returned home, A pre-set quiz about things around the mueseum and a prize for getting so many answers correct (usually a choccy bar). I once spent hours making a Post Office set with hand made notes, postal orders, coins, date stamp, postage stamps etc. My son loved this and would play with it for hours and hours. Also we would make homemade Snakes & Ladders type quiz boards...they usually had themes that the kids were into at that time (i.e one was Pokemon) and we also camped in the backgarden with a tent, sleeping bags and spooky stories by torch light.
*Removing the toilet roll from the bathroom and leaving a few sheets in there (keen toddlers and lots of wastage was the problem).
*Making "rubber mince" ...a basic onion and mince mixture with grated carrot and mushrooms which could be made into many meals. Cottage pie with more topping that meat, bolognaise volumised with a lot of tomato sauce, stew and dumplings with more veggies than meat and meatloaf with plenty of added breadcrumbs, herbs and an egg.
*Only been able to eat twice a day, missing breakfast and having an early lunch and late tea.
*Eating "naturally" brambles, wild strawberries, garlic, nettle tea (yak!), elderberries etc
*Giving the dog gruel for breakfast (oats and water) allowed to soak overnight.
*Feezing dilute fruit juice into lolly moulds rather than spending money on icecreams from the icecream van.
*Unpicking an old jumper and reusing the crinkley wool.
*Dyeing wool by soaking it for a few days in onion skins and water - goes a lovely rich brown.
*Making flat sheets into curtains.
*Recording the charts off the radio with a tape recorder - yay good old days.
*Using a hand bag strap for the dogs lead when the original one snapped.
*Propping the door open and all sharing the same public lav when it used to cost 2pence to go.
*Pinching the Izal toilet roll from the public lav...y'ouch!
*Wearing a navy jumper as a school skirt when my school skirt ripped- arms tied around my waist to one side. I was 13, Madonna was out in her raggle taggle 80's get up and everybody thought I was making a fashion statement as oppossed to mum being skint.

Oh those were the days. :rolleyes:

rizla01

Saturday night. Whoopeeeeee.

Not such a good haul tonight but it'll suffice.

Don't believe me.

Look here.

(ignore the lettuce - it was getting dark. - probably just a few bad outer leaves)




Loads of apple juice for tomorrow, too.

And ALL of those strawberries are as good as they look.

Such a waste!!

On the same subject, I must admit that i have, before now, asked printing companies for samples of thier mug printing especially porcelain mugs, just so i could get a couple for my own use.

Got some real quality.

That WAS a bit dishonest but in my defence I was a lot poorer then.

Needs must, Eh?

skint,single_mum_of_4

Rizla.....

Wow u did have a good haul !

Strawberries look loooooooovely and i bet they taste even better because they were free !

You know what its a scandal what they throw out,an absolute scandal !

I love a good skip dive myself.

Bambywamby

Wow Rizla, that's nearly a weeks worth of fruit and veg. Well done you! Can't believe they have thrown those strawbs away, they look delish. Well, at least they are getting recycled, good on you!

Bam x x