Lock in fuel savings and make them last!

Our household has found a super easy way to make the most of cheap fuel prices. We watch the fuel cycles with the ACCC petrol price cycles website (https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/petrol-diesel-lpg/petrol-price-cycles). When it is getting to the lowest point of the cycle, as well as our vehicle, we also fill up five 20 litre fuel containers. If it is inconvenient to do so, we prepay and lock in the fuel price on both of our phones on the 7/11 app. This guarantees that locked price for seven days. We then use that fuel through the next 3-4 weeks (the length of the fuel cycle generally). It's like having our own petrol station at home!

Fuel containers cost around $20-$25 at BCF and the savings per cycle paid for each container. Now it's pure savings of $30 per cycle. Petrol works out around $520 per year less for us, for very little effort! At first, my husband was concerned that the fuel may not last (he is a qualified mechanic), but I showed him some tests BP had done on this matter, finding that six months later, the values were still the same. We notice zero difference in fuel consumption, km/L, or parts wearing out any faster.

Everyone we tell thinks this is an amazing idea, we find it strange that no one else seems to have thought of it!

Laundry liquid makes the best handwash soap!

I stumbled upon the best hand soap ever by accident! I had a bottle of laundry liquid I didn't like the smell of. The perfume smell was far too strong but I didn't want to throw it away. Instead, I refilled the liquid soap bottle in the laundry with it. To my surprise, I have found it is the best hand wash ever! In fact, once I finished the laundry liquid, I bought some more, to fill the hand soap bottle with!

Deluxe hampers for Christmas

Buying Christmas presents for adult friends and family can be both expensive and stressful, especially when trying to match the perfect present to the person.

So one year I decided to make up small deluxe hampers which contained a mini bottle of sparkling wine, two plastic champagne glasses, chocolates, mixed nuts and home-made shortbread. I purchased the gold wire baskets from the Reject Shop for $2.00 each and the glasses (also from the Reject Shop) were $2.00 each. The mini sparkling wines were purchased from Dan Murphy's and worked out at around $3.50 each when purchased in lots of six. The chocolates were a good quality brand, and individually wrapped, so I bought a large tray and then divided them up (which was cost effective as I only needed around three in each basket). I then purchased a large bag of mixed nuts, which I repackaged into small Cellophane sachets, and I made the shortbread, which worked out to only a few cents each.

The overall cost of each hamper was around $10, including the cost of gold tissue paper (also purchased from the Reject Shop) to line the baskets and ribbon for decorating. I suggest sticking to one colour theme for each hamper, for example, gold covered chocolates, ribbon and baskets or silver baskets and accessories.

It's a good idea to look in places like the Reject Shop or $2 shops as soon as you see Christmas decorations appearing on the shelves. That way you get the best selection and can start putting them together early (except for the shortbread or any home-made foods you choose to include in the hampers). This way you'll have plenty of time closer to Christmas to concentrate on the children's presents!

I saved heaps of money, made something original and had heaps of fun doing it!

Home sweet home for $63

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!