by Amanda Ines

Created on: May 07, 2009   Last Updated: February 18, 2011

'How to Save Money During a Recession

All anyone ever talks about these days is the Financial Crisis that the whole world is going through and unless you are very rich it's a very big worry for all the rest of us normals.

It is also very frustrating to be in a situation that came about not through your fault but through bigger powers out of your control.

So we have to feel as if we are doing something ourselves to help ourselves which in turn will make us feel that we at least have a little control of at least the situation in our own homes.

There are many things that one can do to cut down on every day expenses and notice the difference at the end of the month.

First thing is to hide all credit cards away in a drawer. Getting into even more debt with credit cards only makes matters worse.

Try and pay off any existing credit card debts if you can. Once they are paid off you wont have to pay the interest every month and you will have that amount in your bank account instead.

Don't buy flowers for the time being. They are very pretty but they cost money and then they die. A nice display of dried flowers will last years and if you used to buy a bunch every week at say $15 that's a saving of $780 a year already !

This is not a time for buying clothes, shoes etc. If it gets you down that you can't have something new or different to wear for some occasion take a good look into your wardrobe. Look at the clothes that you haven't worn for a long time and so obviously don't like that much and see if they can be altered or changed. A dress that is no longer in fashion can be changed into either a top or a skirt just by taking a pair of scissors to the waistline! A long sleeved winter blouse can be turned into a blouse for the summer just by cutting off the sleeves. Other clothes can be dyed to different colours the same as old shoes. A pair of jeans can be cut to shorts. If you use your imagination you could rig up quite a few new outfits out of the clothes that you already have.

If you had a house cleaner it's time to decide to tidy and clean your home on your own. It will make you fitter and if you just do one different room each day, another day iron, another day wash, another clean windows etc by the end of the week your whole home will have been done and you just start all over again the following week. You will probably lose a kilo or two by the end of the month and if you had a cleaner come in once a week for say 3 hours paying $10 an hour that's another saving

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>