To save money on men’s haircuts, we shave the back of the neck  between cuts. Not only will you be able to go longer between  cuts, but also you will look neater longer.
Fonda A. in Omaha, TX

I like to walk for pleasure and exercise. One of the things  that I enjoy along the way is looking at the vegetation. Many  trees have tiny “babies” under their canopies that are free  for the asking and/or taking, depending where they are  located. For instance, you can’t take plants from public lands  and you should ask the owner on private property. You get a  strong, often expensive plant by only asking. I live in  Florida and have gotten expensive and, of course, tiny palm  seedlings as well as trees this way. Therefore, I landscaped  my yard for next to nothing. Not every plant “takes,” but it is  a fun and enjoyable hobby. As an added bonus, I’ve met a lot  of neighbors this way. I also look at trash piles for  cuttings.
Cristina

I found that by investing my time in activities, I am less  likely to go shopping when I am bored. My gym membership has  been the biggest payoff. If I’m bored, I go to the gym! I make  friends, keep fit and stay out of the shops! The monthly  membership costs me less than a new outfit (or two). Other  ideas might include a garden club, joining a church committee,  volunteering at a local hospital, or taking a class. I usually  check the newspaper to find groups and activities that might  interest me. 
CW

When I bought my house 5 years and 7 months ago, a co-worker  talked me into financing it for only 15 years. I am single and  I don’t have a large income. Therefore, this was an extremely  big step for me. Shortly after I bought my house, I set my  payment up on a bi-weekly schedule. As a result, my house will  be paid off 7 years from now. In other words, instead of 15  years to pay it off, because of the bi-weekly payments, it  will only take 12 years and 7 months. It’s amazing how a bi- weekly payment can reduce the time it takes to pay something  off, not to mention the reduction in interest paid.
Leslie C.

Some states have an alternative for  motivated high school students called “Running Start.” Running  Start provides free community college classes. The students can take varying amounts of credits up to 17 while enrolled in junior and senior years of high  school. The credits count for both high school and college  graduation. In my state, there are some classes available  online. Parents pay for books and fees (costs me around $350- 400 a quarter), but the tuition is free (worth around $5000 a  year). See your high school counselor to find out if you have a similar program in your state.
Kathryn of Washington State

I have an active 8-month-old baby girl. When I finish bathing  her, I throw all the small toys she plays with during the day  (plastic, washable toys) in the tub. The soap and water in the  tub clean her toys and they are ready for her to play with the  next day. By doing this, I don’t have to waste time after she  goes to bed cleaning her toys.
Sally in Nova Scotia, Canada

One of the best ways that I’ve found to keep the house warmer in winter  is to make “window blankets.” I measure each window and make a  simple quilt to fit, consisting of two pieces of fabric with  batting in between. Put the batting in the middle with the  fabric (right sides facing the batting) together. Sew 3-1/2  sides and then turn inside out and stitch around the edges to  hold it all flat. Cut piece of bias tape or a strip of fabric  to make a rod pocket for the top. If you don’t sew, you could  just cut a piece of fleece and fold the top over to make a  pocket for a tension rod that fits the inside dimensions of  the window frame. 

Sometimes, I just thumbtack this to the top of the window  frame in the kids’ rooms if they don’t want to use that window  for light during the day. It’s surprising how much this warms  up a room!
Dee

Our family of seven is very active and we go through a lot of  beverages. Not liking the taste of our well water, we obtained two industrial  distillers that were being thrown away where my husband works.  With that, we are able to make our own distilled water much  cheaper and we are not using bottled beverages from the store  anymore. It’s been quite a savings for us. Countertop  distillers can be bought for a little over $100 and are well  worth the expense.
Wendy in VA

Let’s all face it. We all get soft in the organizing  department after awhile. So the easiest way for me to organize  my pantry is to use the plastic soda can dispensers. I use the  kind that the can rolls from the top to the bottom. You can  line your pantry with them. Each product has its own  dispenser. And they’re stackable for the high/deep cabinets  too. Just add the new cans at the top. This way, I never have  to worry about which product is new or expired. I also use one  for the miscellaneous can items. With a family of six, I don’t  have time to keep looking for a certain can.
Darcy

Many people don’t know that broccoli stalks are really quite  delicious steamed along with the florets. The trick is to peel  the outer layer of the stalk with a knife and steam the tender  inner part. It tastes delicious and you’re getting more of the  vitamins and minerals than by eating the florets alone.
Megan G. in Spokane, WA

I use our solar-powered dryer (clothesline) whenever possible.  To keep bright and dark colors from fading when using the  clothesline, I simply turn the item inside out before pinning  it to the line. That way, the wrong side of the item fades  instead of the right side.
Pam in South Carolina

I work at a university and happened to be in the campus bookstore last weekend. I was walking through the “personal items” section on the way to the bookracks and happened to notice a tiny jar of ladies’ hair cream on the  shelf. This is the stuff that I found at a beauty discount place for about $5 per 16 ounces. In the bookstore, the jar, which couldn’t have been  more than 4 ounces, was selling for about $3.50. All of the  other personal items were also marked up beyond belief.

I think bookstore management counts on the idea that students  don’t realize that there are dollar or other discount stores  within a few blocks of school and “rip them off” accordingly.  The bookstore owner makes a tidy income from these kids, many  of whom can’t afford the high prices. After all, everyone has  to have toothpaste, soap, deodorant, and razors/shaving cream  or feminine items!

The first thing students need to do upon moving to campus is  to find out from the upperclassmen or even faculty members  where they can pick up personal items at a fair price. Most  adults know how quickly costs for these items can add up, but  many students have never had to buy them, their cost being  part of the household budget and therefore borne by parents. I  should also add that students might also find non-textbook  books for English, history or philosophy courses for 2%-20%  less in the major chain stores such as Barnes and Noble or on  Amazon.com. My one caveat is that students should ask the  professor if text substitution is acceptable, as some  professors want all their students to have identical texts.
J.W.

We thought we were just dreaming when we said we’d like to take an annual vacation. That goal seemed an impossibility, as much as owning a Rolls Royce! 

But a few years ago, we decided to start saving all of our  coins and keep them a whole year. At the end of that year, we  had nearly $400. It didn’t pay for a week long vacation, but we were  able to go away for two nights with our family by taking food  with us and preparing our own meals. It was such a fun time  that we decided to do it again the next two years. 

Now we’re adding $1 bills to the coins each week and we’ve  been able to add nights, choose attractions we’d like to see  in the area where we’re vacationing, etc.

We average a savings of nearly $1000 a year by adding in gift  monies, refund checks, unexpected bonuses, and our daily  change of coins and $1.

We’ve continued the practice of vacationing in hotels that  provide a kitchenette and prepare our own meals while we’re  away. Now we stay all week long, go to three or four  attractions and come home with money to spare. Turns out the  “annual family vacation” wasn’t such an impossible dream at  all!
Terri in Georgia
Gary Foreman
The Dollar Stretcher
gary@stretcher.com