For an outlay of $65 I purchased chemical-free ingredients to make shampoo, baby bubble bath, moisturiser, hand wash and washing liquid. I made 500ml shampoo, a litre of washing liquid, a litre of hand wash, a litre of beautiful light moisturiser and 500ml baby shampoo and bubble bath. All I added were essential oils and water to the ingredients and I still have enough ingredients to make several more litres of any product.

My next outlay for a further $50 was for packaging; containers and tubes to make shampoos, moisturisers and lip balms for Christmas gifts. I have saved myself a small fortune. There are several good websites offering these products, however, I found 'Aussie Soap Supplies' the best, which offers recipes as well. http://www.aussiesoapsupplies.com.au/

I am a busy mum of two and my home manual helps my husband and I run our home efficiently, saving money and buying us both precious time to do things for ourselves.
The first section outlines the weekly and daily routines. The daily routine buys me 30 minutes to myself to exercise which makes me feel better throughout the day. My husband can also see when things get done, so he knows what to do if he is letting me have a sleep.
I let the girls watch TV until 9am so that I can complete a chore (clean the bathroom, dusting etc) each day. This helps me keep the house clean and tidy, and then I have the rest of the day to play with my children.
The next section covers dinners for the month. I have a weekly list of which dinners we will have and where to find the recipes for them. This saves time deciding what to have plus hubby or anyone who comes to stay can cook too.
The next section is shopping and supplies. I write all the ingredients needed for the month so I know exactly what I need. I keep catalogues in this section so when it’s shopping time I know where to get the specials.
I also asked for a floor layout plan of my supermarket so I don't need to walk down the aisles I don't need anything from. This saves time (especially when shopping with two young children) and money as I am not tempted by things in those aisles.
I also have a maintenance section with dates when items need maintenance done on them, eg. an oil change for the car. This means everything can be budgeted for and planned and it also helps prevent unexpected expenses, like changing gas bottles.
There is also a budget section of the manual which contains the monthly, weekly and annual budgets in it. We write down everything we spend in this section, so we can see where the extra dollars are spent!
Finally, I have an important numbers section such as insurance companies, medical centre etc so that everyone (including people who are staying) can get to them easily.
The manual doesn't always bring dollar savings, but its our way of making sure we don't waste time doing everyday household things so we maximise our family and down time.

I bake everyday because I enjoy baking and my family (5) enjoy eating. This has saved us thousands over 11 years. We have paid cash for 2 new cars and we have owned our house outright after only 5 years of mortgage. To save money grow a vegetable garden and flowers for enjoyment. Shop for specials and buy in bulk but not so much that it expires before you can use it.

I recently noticed my elderly neighbour was unwell and no longer able to drive or leave the house; relying on taxi services to deliver food (often expensive pre-packaged items), or he would have home delivered takeaways. Being a fussy eater, he was reluctant to consider 'Meals on Wheels', so I volunteered to shop for him and cook him three different meals a week. Each week he gives me enough money to cover the costs of his meals (soups/stews/freezable casseroles) and I make up bulk amounts of each dish. I deliver half to him and keep half for myself, as suggested by him for payment. Not only is he saving money on taxis and home delivery, but he is eating healthy food and my family is also provided with three meals a week as a bonus for giving up a little of my time. Often cooking for one is not inviting, but cooking for others encourages healthier eating habits and helps regain social contact. Often a lonely person will gain a new lease on life to boot. A great savings all round, and using recipes from the Vault saves me even more!

I saved quite a lot of money today at the supermarket because I took along my own, personal List Supervisor!

Every week my five-year-old daughter, who loves to read and write, writes down our shopping list that I dictate to her. She then gets to be 'in charge' of the list at the supermarket and has the job of making sure we don't get anything that isn't 'on the list'! She takes her job very seriously (as five-year-olds do), and whenever I pick up an item that hasn't been written down she pipes up 'That's not on the list!' - and so I put it back! Even items that were treats for her are sent back to their place on the shelf as she exclaims 'Uh-ah Mummy, that's not on the list!'

There are many benefits to employing a List Supervisor - we save money every week, we don't buy as many unhealthy 'treats' and I don't have a bored, nagging child at the supermarket as she is too busy doing her 'important job'! It's a win/win situation for everyone!

As a new singleton, I have learned not to let my pride stand in the way of making a new home for myself on a budget. I recently separated from my husband of 14 years and moved out of the family home. We share our four children week-about but I wanted to leave the family home as complete as I could for some sort of stability for the kids. With so little to now call my own I had no choice but to swallow my pride and 'put it out to the universe' that I needed quite a bit to furnish my new home.

At the op shop I purchased three Jason recliners, a telephone table, two tallboys, a desk, four bedside drawers, a single mattress and linen for the beds for $63, including delivery!

By word of mouth through friends I was given: a washing machine, microwave, crockery, glasses, towels, THREE TVs and a TV/stereo unit, a digital set top box, two stereos, a BBQ, a brand new gas bottle for the BBQ, a gorgeous white cast iron bed for my daughter, a queen size bed and three single beds, a computer, a bookshelf, a two seater couch, a bike and doonas for us all, as well as pillows. I gave away a few of the TVs and one of the stereos to people who needed it.

I also found that if you ask your friends if they have excess tea towels, coffee cups and so on, you'll find that they can often spare a few of these items.

Most importantly of all, I have learned that I don't need matching crockery or linen to make a home, just the basics and a lot of love!

A friend gave me some great advice that is saving me a fortune.
 
She gave me a lovely crocheted brooch for my birthday, adding that her policy is to only give gifts that are recycled or made at home. I have embraced this policy, and proudly share it whenever possible. Not only am I saving huge amounts of money, but I am also re-using resources in an ecologically friendly way. Another benefit is that I am embracing my creative side to come up with so many ideas e.g. crafts, baking, gardening, knitting and so on.
 
My ideas come from library books and most of the materials from Op shops and friends' abandoned projects. I have got some amazing projects ready for Christmas e.g. three sad rag dollies rescued from the Hospice for $2.00 are now fresh and bright with smart buttons and ribbons, and will be loved for many years by my three girls. One daughter will have fab roller skates too – just $10 from a church sale, snazzed up with fluoro laces and personalised with a name charm.
 
Rather than feeling reluctant to buy second hand gifts, I am now always scouting for the perfect gift. I feel my policy is one that embraces our present cultural climate of economic thrift and resourcefulness. I have also rediscovered the joy of home craft and am now sharing these skills with my children, as my Mum did with me.

For many people juggling work, family and study, time is the most important saving they can make. I work four days a week, have a three-year-old and studied part-time for a diploma for a year. I got by with these time-saving tips:

1. Lowering my expectations for the house. I don't need a spotless house, but a tidy and lived-in home.

2. Doing my housework little and often, rather than spending huge amounts of time tidying up. I do things like:

- put my little one's daycare bag together for the next day as soon as we get home in the afternoon.
- cook my lunches (pasta and sauce, muffins and so on) once a week and freeze them.
- put my lunch box together from the freezer in the evening.
- clean the toilet by putting a teaspoon of Napisan in it each night. It soaks overnight and the bowl is clean with the next flush.
- do laundry when enough for a load accumulates so we don't have a sudden clothes drought, then an avalanche of laundry to do and put away.

3. Exercising on a stationary bike in front of the TV in the evenings after my little one is in bed.

4. Programming our DVD recorder once a week (Sundays when we get the new TV guide) so I don't miss my favourite shows.

5. Filling cereal bowls with water if I am rushing and have to leave the breakfast things. This makes them easier to clean later and stops ants.

6. Trying not to double handle things. Rubbish goes straight in the bin, meat is put in meal size portions in plastic bags and frozen as soon as it gets home, magazine subscriptions go straight to magazine rack when they arrive in mail.

7. Leaving rooms better than when I arrived, so the need to tidy doesn't build up. It only takes five minutes to put laundry from the floor to the hamper, make the bed, wipe a bench, replenish the toilet paper.

8. Recruiting my little one to help - she's only three but she can put dirty dishes in the sink, put toys away in her room, dirty clothes in the hamper.

9. Shopping for groceries by myself in the evening so hubby can watch his TV shows in peace and I am not tempted to go to other stores as only the supermarket is open. Also many things are marked down at that time.

10. Trying to do three things for myself that make me feel happy each day, like listen to podcasts while I do the housework.

11. Writing the shopping list progressively through the week so I can pick it up and go when it's time to do groceries.

12. Storing the bedding in storage containers under each bed so it's quick to make the bed, especially when changing my little one's wet sheets in the middle of the night.

13. Shopping for presents at sales during the year (online or in stores) so I don't need to go to crowded stores during the Christmas rush.

14. Not beating myself up if I find lifestyle changes tricky at first - I am afterall human!

My husband is self-employed and over Christmas and New Year we were waiting on a payment that had been due in November. I had not done any shopping for over a month, and we felt like there was nothing in our pantry, especially my five kids who repeatedly moaned ' there's nothing in here!’

Of course, that wasn't the case. It's amazing what you have stashed away in containers or hiding at the back of each shelf. On a closer inspection, we found dried beans and lentils, flour, sugar, cous cous, rice and lots of other bits and pieces.

We managed to feed our family of seven on the 'nothing' in our pantry for another two weeks. We are lucky enough to keep chickens, and have a very basic vegetable garden, so all I really needed to purchase was milk. We made pancakes, pikelets and scones, and even a chocolate cake with the cocoa we found - these snacks kept the kids, and hubby, very happy!

We survived until our very overdue payment finally arrived. We have now decided that we will eat the cupboard clean every month, as this encourages us to save money by using what we already have and by not allowing things to go out of date.