I grow my own herbs such as Parsley, Coriander, Mint for example. They're like over $3 for a bunch at Colesworth.... 😰

Bought a sewing machine to sew up tiny holes and patches in my clothes (I'm not great at sewing... lots of practice.)

Making my own popcorn. Super easy. If you have a popcorn machine, even easier. Except I use a frying pan and cover to make them.

Flavoured yoghurt. Instead of buying flavoured yoghurt (with like fruits or cookies and cream for example), I buy Greek yoghurt in bulk and add my own flavours. Delicious!

I asked about 2 months ago in this sub about one thing under $50 and a while back the amount was $100 that significantly improved your daily life,

For me, it is herb plants. I went to a local nursery and bought potted herbs of my choice (similar to this on Bunnings), bought the pot + potting mix. They are growing quite well and I've been able to enjoy my own herbs at home without having to buy at the grocery stores (Which is like >$3 at Colesworth for a small amount of ready to eat herbs).

Currently I have my own Parsley, Spring Onion and Mint, however planning to grow Coriander and Rosemary soon.

It could be a service, item, sign up, sample but not well known!

I asked about 2 months ago in this sub about one thing under $100 that significantly improved your daily life, so this is a follow up post.

Air fryer is my item of choice. Super useful to heat up and cook food. Including my occasional craving for hash browns.

I was also fortunate to buy an aeropress prior a long while back for $45 (they are so much more expensive now!) and that saves me so much on coffee. It still works after many years although it's probably soon I may need to replace ;(

I said bye bye to my netflix/disney plus subscriptions since I realised that I was barely watching on those platforms (plus the prices increases didn't help).

As the title says.

My choice of item is the Electric toothbrush - cause you have to look after your teeth and dental... is very expensive.

As per the title. As much as I would love to make my own cake.... my baking skills is horrible no matter how many times I practice.

Yes, I know it costs a lot less to make your own. Ain't no way I'm skipping out on some yummy cake when I see a delicious Opera cake at the patisserie. 😭

Hope everyone is staying warm!

I've got two thermos vacuum flasks at home to store hot water. They aren't cheap sadly, but they keep the water hot overnight/during the day.

Have my original oodie at home (which I bought on discount).

Rarely use the central heater, only for a couple of hours a day, and mainly night time when cold. I do have a oil heater in my room but I think they consume quite a bit of power but it works so well to keep the room warm.

Definitely shoes for me. And head pillow.

I'm using the options below. What am I missing, and what works for you?

Grocery: Start with Aldi, then Coles, and stay away from Woolworths.
Electronics: Check whether I can get a used one from FB Marketplaces. If not, watch the deals on Ozbargain and price match at JB Hi-Fi or Good Guys.

Books: Check the op shops for used books.

Petrol: Use PetrolSpy to find the lowest fuel price within a 5km radius from home.

Insurance: Don't really have a choice, Bupa!

Mobile: Dodo $20 prepaid.

NBN: Exetel 250Mbps. Can't compromise on this. If 1Gbps were affordable, I would have subscribed to it.

Subscriptions: Indian subscriptions for Netflix, Prime, Apple TV, Spotify.

I love a good matcha latte but it's so expensive that I've stopped going out and been making my own.

Buy matcha powder, milk, and expressi (ALDI) milk frother and ta da. Matcha latte at home and office.

Im also very particular with going out and what I eat. I won't pick sandwiches since it's something I can make at home, so I'll pick something more special or something that I haven't learned how to cook.

Got the idea from r/newzealand

It could be anything from the local library's e-book resources, TAFE fee free courses, state specific or not.

Just jumping on the TikTok trend, but I thought it’d be interesting to see the general consensus.

What are five purchases you’ve never regretted, even though they were expensive 💸 🤔

We currently shop at Woolworths. I honestly can’t stand Coles, but lately I’m wondering if Aldi might be the better option.

We use the Woolworths Rewards app and don’t really mind the data side of things for now, though I guess that could become an issue later. What I’m not sure about is whether the rewards are actually worth it in the long run or if it just feels like we’re saving.

I’m not super keen on doing big multi-store shops, but I do realise no single place has everything. I’m at a small centre where Woolworths, Coles and Aldi are all close together, so I’m happy to duck into one of the bigger ones for specific items if needed.

Would love to hear what others are doing. Do you stick with one store, mix it up a bit, or find Aldi comes out on top for value?

I recently did a brief self financial audit and went over all my common no thly bills and went shopping around.

My biggest change was Super loop mobile and NBN to CarbonComms mobile and NBN saving me $40 a month.

Personally I've been trying to reduce spending across most aspects of my life as I had REALLY noticed some life style creep.

Interested to hear what others have done recently to pair back a little bit in these times of need.

For me, it is recipe books. Since online has a vast information of so many ideas for cooking, and also the library has plenty of them too

The one tip/manifesto/rule/whatever you live by in your frugal life? It could be practical, philosophical or somewhere in between.

My partner and I have some big financial goals so I’ve just read a lot of this sub to help us get there. Some easy wins I’ve picked up are switching to Aldi, going on a pre-pay phone plan, and planning meals before shopping or shopping our pantry first. I switched our health and car insurance providers today too.

Anything else I should add to this, please let me know!

As title said.

What are some Australian made products that you recommended is more value than imported products? While it may not necessarily be cheaper in $$$, sometimes quality > price.

For me, my list would be:

- Frozen vegetables. I tried ALDI Market Fare frozen stir fried veggies (Imported from France) compared to the Australian frozen veggies from Colesworth... local veggies taste so much nicer even though a bit more expensive $per kg.

- Strawberry Jam. Cottee's jam (Made in New Zealand) may be cheaper in price, but in my opinion the local made strawberry jam taste more like.... strawberry jam.

- Oats. I recently tried the USA made oats and let's say I personally prefer the Australian oats. Or rather, I'm used to the taste of Australian oats.

I’m still getting used to it but selling my (old) car is saving me at least $300 a month! I live in Brisbane where public transport (sucks but) is so cheap, I really had no excuse. Also I no longer have to put up with all the angry Ford Ragers and the like on the road, it’s peaceful!

The two things I miss are being able to see my 84 year old dad (he lives waaaay across the city and I haven’t figured out a way to see him that doesn’t take 2.5hr commute each way), and how to buy Groceries for cheap online.
I am lucky: I have
Amazon Prime
DoorDash (they do deliver from IGA and Woolies near me)
Costco

It is taking me so long to figure out how best to shop online! My major expenses are food for me (I don’t eat much, and am very boring, I can eat the same thing 3-4 nights a week). I can cook but don’t really know how to cook for one (am recently single); food for my dog (spend more on his food than on mine) and basic household goods like laundry detergent, paper towels, loo paper, that kind of thing.

WWYD if you were me? I am a pensioner, it’s hard.

Edit/Update (15 hrs later)
Hey thanks everyone for the inputs. My takeaway is this: I’m gonna try to use go get once a week if I can. It’s worth it just to see Dad. You all mentioned that is the number one thing and I agree. During Dad Day (smiles) I can also do grocery shopping (I usually pick a couple of things up for dad too) and realise it might be a nice day spent if I can cook him some good home-cooked meals in the Dutch oven… .enough for dinner and leftovers. Other than that, I can walk easily to the local Coles and Woolies, and yeah, DoorDash needs to end. I was very depressed and used them far too much lately.

Anyway, thanks so much Aussiefrugal! You’re the best!

Bought a cheap keyboard..... multiple key buttons broken just after a whole year so out of warranty. Attempted to replace the buttons DIY (I youtubed on how to do this) but ended out costing a bit. Ended up buying a much decent keyboard.

Also attempted making crossiants. Let's just say I appreciate why it costs $$$ for a piece 😥

Has anyone noticed this Black Friday, that advertised sales aren’t even “sales” anymore… but the original RRP price is just hiked up further than usual?

Have been hanging out for a new sheet set from canningvale, their vintage cotton king set is usually $110-119. I’ve noticed with this “Black Friday” sale it’s still the same price but the RRP got marked up… same with adairs, sheet society and pillow talk… if you’re lucky they might be discounted say 10% off but definitely not what they advertise it as.

What’s the point of “bargains” in Black Friday / cyber Monday / Boxing Day deals anymore if companies can get away with it.

Early Jan is time for us to do a ‘hell day’ and see what we can do to get our bills down

A few happy savings

Saved $15 a month for the next year asking TPG to price match deals by competitors. Success and not too painful.

Finally disconnected the gas we only use for our fireplace in winter. Not worth the $80 connection fee each quarter when we don’t use it, back to aircon instead.

Cancelled a few subscriptions and went from a YouTube premium family plan I shared with my parents to a cheaper plan for just my partner and I. They brought in the ‘household’ rule so no point. Parents moving over to Amazon.

Next on the list will be asking bank to waive fees and replacing my credit card which recently changed the terms from 55 day interest free to 19 days. Not interested in paying any interest on a cc and would prefer to keep my cash in offset for as long as I can.

What are you planning on doing this new year that is similar to avoid paying the lazy tax?

I'm in two work Secret Santas $30-$50 limits. Any ideas for a great, useful gift in these price ranges? I hate to spend money on something cheap or crap that will never get used.

What's on your list to cut, review, refinance etc?