As seen on Timesonline.com Money Central BlogDinner party conversations are dominated by ways to reduce the amount we spend. We are now all familiar with cheap restaurant deals, or the benefits of shopping around online. We all know someone who is growing vegetables in the garden or darning their socks.
But do you know how to store your fruit so it lasts longer, or what to use instead of washing powder? We have scoured the internet to find 20 money saving tips we think you might not have come across before. If you are already practicing these thrifty tricks, use the comment space below to share other suggestions.
1. Get a BabeeCard
Parents should join the BabeeCard (http://www.babeecard.com/) prepaid card scheme, which offers discounts of up to 20 per cent at a number of high street retailers.
2. Join fixture Ferrets
For 10p a week you can join Fixture Ferrets (http://www.fixtureferrets.com/), a website which will keep you up to date on the various offers available at supermarkets across the UK. It will even send you text alerts about the latest deals.
3. Visit the deal centre online
Sign up to http://www.dealcentre.co.uk/ or http://www.searchfreebies.co.uk/ for a comprehensive guide to the best promotions available across the internet.
4. Ask for a "rain check" voucher
If a special offer has run out, ask for a "rain check" voucher. Tesco, Sainsbury's and a number of other supermarkets offer the vouchers, which allow you to benefit from the offer the next time you are in the store, even after the promotion is over.
5. Do not assume that bigger packets mean better value
Some items, such as dog food or washing powder, can be more expensive in bigger packs. Check the price per 100g on the shelf label before buying in bulk.
6. Use vinegar in place of whiteners in your wash
Adding vinegar to your wash ensures your whites emerge from the washing machine whiter than white at a fraction of the cost. It also doubles as a stain remover if applied directly to your clothes.
7. Use baking powder in your wash
Add baking soda to your washing machine powder or dishwasher powder to make it last longer.
8. Use glycerine as a moisturiser
Glycerine is an effective moisturiser and is the foundation of many more expensive products on the market. However, it can be bought for next to nothing from you local chemist.
9. Create your own "mulch"
You can prevent soil from drying out around flowers and plants in your garden by adding "mulch", effectively a layer of any material used to cover the garden bed. However, instead of expensive options such as wood chippings or peat, collect fallen leaves or grass clippings and
store in a black bag with some water until it is rotten then spread over the bedding.
10. Keep your fridge full
You can help your fridge work more effectively by keeping it full - use bottles of water to fill empty shelves. However, if you rarely fill your fridge, downgrade to a smaller model. You will save energy and are likely to buy and waste less food.
11. Make "mop-up squares" from old T-shirts
You can save money on kitchen cloths by cutting up old T-shirts to make square cloths you can use to wipe up spillages, suggests thrift expert Rebecca Ash.
12. Store bananas separately
Bananas release a gas which hastens the rate at which other fruit goes off.
13. Protect your apples in paper
You can keep apples for several months by wrapping each one in newspaper as it makes it much harder for rot to spread.
14. Do not put some fruit and veg in the fridge
Do not keep satsumas in the fridge as the cold can turn them to mush. The same is true of peppers, cucumbers, courgettes and marrows.
15. Store mushrooms in a wine rack
It may sounds silly but if you store mushrooms in a paper bag and keep them in a wine rack they will stay fresher for longer, according to experts.
16. Watch TV live
Instead of paying for theatre or cinema tickets, get free tickets to the filming or recording of TV or radio shows. Visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/tickets/ or http://www.itv.com/beontv/tickets/ for more information.
17. Save on train fares
Buy train tickets over the phone, even if you are already at the station - prices over the phone can be cheaper than buying from the ticket office directly.
18. Stay in a halls of residence
University halls of residence are much cheaper than hotels for city breaks.
19. Swap your old books for new
The website http://www.readitswapit.co.uk/ allows you to exchange the books you've already read for the books you want to read next. Postage is around £1.40 per book.
20. Buy eggs from your local farmers market
Farmers markets have become synonymous with expensive organic meat and cheese, but some items on sale at your local market are markedly cheaper than the supermarket, namely eggs. In some markets, you can buy a dozen of free-range eggs for half the price of the supermarkets.
By James Charles
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