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Saving money ideas:

Since our economy has gone through the roof I have accumulated many ways to save money. I'd like to share these with you:
    Coupons and rebates are one way along with free samples I've discovered. I search for websites with free samples and coupons. I also have learned watching for low prices and combining that with coupons is just one great strategy. But don't let coupons entice you into buying products you would not ordinarily buy. Walgreens offers free items every month, if you just fill out the paperwork and send it in. The things that I might  not need now or might need in a couple of months, I go ahead and get. One of the keys to this is planning in advance. You can't just wake up one day, realize you ran out of deodorant, and go to the store and get it. You're going to have to do a little bit of advance planning.
   Buy a newspaper every Sunday and save all of the coupons. People even post things they want to give away for free on Craigslist.com. A family could save by eating out less. But, if you choose not to do that, you can save in other ways while doing so. Drink water instead of soda, because soda is where they make money. Also eat where kids eat free. Kids can eat free at many restaurants on certain nights of the week. Or look for other specials. Buy one, get one can free be huge if you eat out several nights a week.
   Food inflation has been running at a 5.3 percent annual rate in the past three months. Before your next trip to the grocery store, look in your refrigerator. It's been reported households throw away 14 percent of the food they buy. That adds up to about $600 a year. Fifteen percent of what is thrown away is unopened and within its expiration date. Buying in bulk, and more generic items at the grocery store can also be very resourceful in saving money to a degree. Go to the grocery store armed with a list. Shop alone, and get in, and out of the store quickly. This cuts down on impulse buying of unneeded items. For every minute in a supermarket, you spend $2.17. Try store brands. These brands average 26 to 28 percent less than nationally advertised brands. It's the same quality you get anywhere else and savings are considerable. In fact many are made by the same companies. Reach up and bend down. Bargain items are found on the top or bottom shelves. Companies pay a premium for shelf placement. Higher-profit items are more likely to be at eye level. Buy non-food item from discount stores. Grocery stores have high markups for pet food, cleaning supplies and personal care items. Be careful when choosing convenience foods. A few, like mashed potato flakes, are even cheaper than fresh-made, but many items like grab-and-go soups come at a high store markup. Cut back on foods with no nutritional value. I write up a menu for the week and stick to that grocery list, and I leave the kids at home with dad. And taking dad is worse sometimes than taking the kids.  I go to the store only once a week. I also love a bakery outlet. You can save so much on breads, cupcakes, rolls etc. Freezing is also an option with many of these bargains. Leftovers? Freeze them! Talk about a quick dinner later when you're rushed or just simply too tired to cook. Also, rethink what is an appropriate amount of food and portion size. I was used to cooking for 6 plus and now I cook for 2-3 and it's not an easy adjustment. Maybe we are eating more food than we really need. We want to get the best buy for our food dollars. A good strategy is to shop the outer aisles of supermarkets, where you find vegetables, dairy products and meats. The inside aisles display processed foods and snacks. Be blind to branding. Store brands as I said earlier, are almost always as good as name brand. And alot of them such as Best Choice, are made by brand name suppliers with the cheaper label. I have a brother-in-law who worked for Best Choice and when he told me this I realized then why their products were so good. And soooo much cheaper! When something's on sale that is really cheap, I buy it up and stock it! Either by freezing or filling up my cabinet space to the rim! Cereal, sugar, mayonnaise, meat, and canned foods are some of my faves to buy in large quantities on sale as we use these alot. I've noticed the smaller grocery store chains are really starting to compete in their sale ads. So, thats when I hit them! Watch those papers for their ads-Sunday and Wednesdays are usually when they're posted.
   Another tip for saving money is of course Ebay. I buy alot of my youngest daughter's clothes as well as my own on Ebay. I love to bid and get a bargain! "Lots" are my favorite thing for clothes. Just type in the size you're looking for and ad the word lot with it. You'd be surprised what you'll get! I really like to buy school clothes on Ebay. Talk about saving money!
   
A few extra tips:
1. Did you know a car going 55 miles per hour gets 15% better fuel economy than one going 65.

2.Set your air conditioner thermostat higher. For every degree above 72 degrees farenheit you'll save up to three percent per month in energy costs.

3. Save for Christmas by depositing all your change in a cookie tin. I bought all my Christmas last year by doing this. And I spent more on people than I usually do!

4.Wash clothes in warm water rather than hot. You'll cut your energy use in half.

5.Keep your car tuned. Replace filters regularly. A new oxygen sensor can improve mileage by as much as 15%.

6.If you haven't switched to compact fluorescent lamps, do it! They are four times more efficient than incandescent and last up to ten times longer.

7.If you need to run errands, do it all on same day if possible. Making one trip and saving fuel. I take my daughter to school daily, so I try to do my errands on one of the trips to the school. That way I'm not back tracking twice.

8. Hang your clothes to dry if at all possible. If you add a nice liquid fabric softener to your wash your clothes will be just soft as if they came out of the dryer and saving you approximately .50 cents a load.

9. If you know someone else who takes their child/children back and forth to school, and you can trust their driving, offer to trade carpooling the kids. You take them all this week, and they can do next week. Do you realize how much you'd save in fuel? Not too mention extra free time for yourself on those weeks you're off!

10.Instead of going out or hitting the nearest fast food drive-thru, take leftovers from last night's dinner to work for lunch today. You can easily save $5. By doing this just one time a week, you could save $260 by the end of a year.

11.Instead of buying a gift and birthday card for someone today, make a homemade card and a batch of his or her favorite cookies to show how much you care. Even if you only saved $10 per occasion by doing this, that $10 for one special occasion per month would add up to a $120 savings by the end of the year.

12.Rather than renting a movie from the video store tonight, take the family to the library for browsing through books or reading the latest magazines. Assuming an inexpensive movie costs around $2.00 to rent, you could save $104 by the end of the year by doing this just once a week.

13.Don't buy canned drinks from the vending machine at work. Instead take a six-pack of soda from home that you bought on sale. With at least a 25¢ per can savings, you can save at least 50¢ if you drink two a day. That's a savings of $2.50 a week or $130 a year.

14.Instead of buying snacks from the snack machine at work or school, stock up on snacks when on sale or at the bakery thrift store or bring homemade snacks. Snacks from vending machines can cost 50¢, 75¢ or even more. Using the conservative estimate of a 40¢ savings per snack, you could pad your bank account with an extra $104 a year by adopting this simple habit.

15. Rather than running through a drive-thru or stopping at a convenience store when you get hungry and thirsty, take a small cooler with snacks and something to drink along with you when you go out to run errands. Doing this can easily save you $2.00. By doing this two times a week you could save a whopping $208 by the end of a year.

16.Type in the word coupons on Ebay search and be amazed at the results!

17.Take a trip to your local $ shop. But be careful... somethings are only a dollar or less elsewhere. But you can save tons on many many things! I also like to fill up a goody bag for birthdays here. Kids love all those little things you can fill a whole gift bag with (also bought at the dollar shop) So many different things! And keeping the gift to minimum.

18. Don't buy a newspaper; borrow a friend's discarded copy or stop by the library on your way home. This will save you 50¢ a day, or $52 a year if you do it just two times a week.

19. Save money and get some exercise by walking, riding your bike or
rollerblading for short trips. Assuming you'd save 32¢ per mile on gas and wear-and-tear on your car, you could save about $2.00 a week by doing this for three short trips a week (two miles or less). By the end of a year, this would add up to a $104 savings.

20. When you cook dinner tonight, omit meat from your meal. Cook a meatless pasta dish or a vegetable soup and bread. Using a conservative estimate of a $3.00 savings, you could save $156 by the end of a year by just one time a week.

"A few cheap homemade cleaning items you can make yourself and save money:"

GLASS AND WINDOW CLEANER
1/2 c. ammonia
1 pt. rubbing alcohol
1 tsp. laundry detergent
2 qt. water
Mix the ingredients in a large bottle.  Makes 2 1/2 quarts.
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COPPER AND BRASS SPRAY CLEANER
white vinegar
3 Tbsp. salt
Fill a small spray bottle with vinegar and add salt. Spray the solution on copper utensils, let stand for a while and then rub clean.
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DRAIN CLEANER
1 c. salt
1 c. soda
1/4 c. cream of tartar
Mix ingredients together. Dissolve one cup of cleaner in one cup of hot water. Put in drain. When bubbling stops, rinse drain with hot water.
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APPLIANCE SPRAY CLEANER
2 fluid oz. rubbing alcohol
7 fluid oz. sudsy ammonia
11 fluid oz. tap water
Mix ingredients together and pour into a spray bottle. 
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CARPET CLEANER
2 c. baking soda
1/2 c. cornstarch
4 to 5 bay leaves
1 Tbsp. cloves
Mix all ingredients together and store in a coffee can. Sprinkle on carpet and let stand for a couple of hours. Vacuum.
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FURNITURE CLEANER SPRAY
1 qt. mineral oil
10 drops lemon extract
Mix together mineral oil and lemon extract.  Pour into spray bottle.  
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JEWELRY CLEANER
3 parts ammonia
1 part water
2 to 3 drops dish soap liquid
Soak jewelry a few minutes, then rinse in clear water.  Do not use on pearls.
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Laundry!  Mention the work and you’ll see moms wince. It’s a job that’s never done, and it can take a big bite out of your budget.  Here are some tips to preserve your clothing, your budget, and your sanity:

1. Add 1/4 C. baking soda to your laundry detergent to leave clothes smelling fresh

2. Make your own stain pretreater by mixing one part laundry detergent, one part hydrogen peroxide, and one part water in a spray bottle.  Spray stains and rub material together or scrub with a soft brush if needed.

3. When buying laundry detergent, consider the cost per load.  Because the amount of detergent needed for a load can vary by brand, the price per ounce isn’t a reliable measure of the true cost.

4. Make your own laundry soap at home.  Combine a half a bar of grated Fels-Naptha soap with two pints water.  Heat on low until melted.  Stir in ½ cup Borax and ½ cup Washing Soda (found in the laundry aisle) and remove from heat.  Pour the mixture into a large bucket and add enough water to make two gallons.  Let the mixture stand overnight to thicken.  Use one cup per load.

5. For your toughest stains, make a mixture using 1 cup laundry detergent, ½ cup bleach, ½ cup dishwasher detergent, and warm water.  Soak heavily soiled items overnight, then machine wash.  Test garments for color-fastness, as this may bleach some fabrics

6. Only put your child’s clothing in the dryer for five minutes.  That’s all the time you’ll need to fluff the fabric and get the wrinkles out.  Then, hang them to dry. Air-drying not only saves electricity, it extends the life of your clothing.  Driers can set in stains and cause fabric to shrink.  Hang a clothesline in your basement, invest in a drying rack, or hang clothes on hangers to dry.

7. Wash items containing polyester inside out to reduce pilling and fuzzing.

8. Laundry detergents formulated just for babies are not necessary.  Most babies are not bothered by the detergents used by the rest of the family.  If your baby does react to stronger detergent, it may be a sign the clothes weren’t rinsed well enough.  Try running the rinse cycle twice to remove all traces of detergent, or try regular detergents that are fragrance free.

9. Use white vinegar instead of fabric softener when washing clothes.  It is much less expensive than commercial fabric softeners.

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Here are a couple webites I've found for coupons and samples:

hotcouponworld.com

walmart.triaddigital.com/In-Stores-Now-Free-Samples-And-Trials.aspx

couponmom.com

Off these sites I have gone through many links into other sites. Definately kills some time doing it.
Also, you can send a friendly email to your favorite companies requesting coupons. Such as Proctor and Gamble. I didn't realize how many of their products I use on a regular basis and they are costly if not on sale. I am starting  to get samples and coupons in the mail! I love it!