I'd heard from various sources that a mix of vinegar and water makes a great window cleaner, and that you can use a sheet of newspaper instead of a paper towel to wipe the glass.

Recently my bathroom mirror was looking pretty dismal. Surely vinegar and water would work on mirrors, too, I thought. 

I'm happy to report that a 50-50 vinegar/water solution and a single page of the Seattle Times left the mirror looking great. I'll never buy commercial window cleaner again -- and using newspaper will help me stretch a roll of paper towels even further.

I recently wrote an essay about why getting rid of some of the clutter in your life could help you save money. Then I read an Associated Press article about people who are emptying closets and attics just to keep the wolf from the door.

Online auctions are bristling with family heirlooms, home electronics and designer duds. Craigslist ads are getting increasingly frantic, like the one in which a teen begged on behalf of her unemployed mom for people to "please buy anything you can to help out." One cash-strapped Wisconsin woman put her diamond engagement ring up for grabs. 

Craigslist has noted a 70% increase in for-sale listings since July 2007. Well, of course it has: There's no charge to sell an item on Craigslist.

Seattle is loaded with blackberry vines. The sight of all that free fruit makes me want to forage each summer. My arms get so thorn-raked it looks like I’ve tried to exorcise a cat, but I fill the freezer, make jam, and eat blackberries almost every day for weeks.

On my way to pick berries one end-of-summer day, I saw a dark-purple blob in the dust. A plum had fallen from a tree in a nearby yard. I broke open the windfall and took a tentative nibble from its golden interior. Sweet as the memory of first love.

Peeking through the fence, I could see the tree was loaded. I asked the homeowners if I could trade them a jar of jam for the fruit I’d need to make some. They told me to help myself: "We’re glad someone wants it."

Want to get a roll of paper towels for 39 cents? Hit the auto supply store. Shocked at how expensive canned fruit has gotten? The drugstore might have an alternative. In the market for deeply discounted coffee, trash bags or toilet paper? Visit an office supply place.

These are some examples of the deals you can get if you stop thinking that foodstuffs and sundries can be purchased only in supermarkets. With the costs of basic foods continuing to rise, it really can pay to break out of the grocery gulag. 

• Bing: Find free grocery coupons
  

Yesterday I noticed long-grain rice on sale for $1.13 a pound at a local supermarket; the dollar store across the street sells 2 pounds for $1. Condensed soup is 99 cents and up at the grocery store, but I've gotten three cans for a buck on sale at Rite Aid. Five pounds of sugar costs $3.49 at Safeway but was $1.99 this week at Walgreens.

A Smart Spending message board reader reports that "empty" doesn't always mean "empty." Posting on a thread about general frugality tips, "Canoes" told about cutting open a depleted tube of lotion and scraping out up to an extra week's worth of product.

Boy, am I glad I'm not the only one who does this. 

This post comes from Abigail Perry, who blogs at I Pick Up Pennies. 

The holidays mean joy and giving -- and garbage. 

This isn't social commentary on commercialism -- I literally mean garbage. Think about the post-Christmas morning battlefield that was once your living-room floor: ripped, shredded wrapping paper and ribbon and toy boxes, waiting to be thrown in the trash. 

Add to that all those "they meant well" gifts, and you have, well, waste. Household garbage levels increase 25 percent in the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, according to this MSNBC article. 

School's back in session and retailers are trying to sell us items like breakfast cookies and individual bowls of cereal. Convenient, maybe, but also fairly pricey -- and would you really trust a 7-year-old with a bowl of cereal and milk in a moving car? 

Besides, breakfast is the most important meal of the day for all ages. Over on the Smart Spending message board, some readers offer grownup strategies beyond granola bites and fast-food drive-throughs. 

The less you earn, the more you’re likely to give away. People who earn $20,000 or less per year donate more (relative to their income) than higher earners. 

Or so Arthur Brooks reports in his book about American benevolence, "Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism."

Charity appears to benefit the givers as well. An article from the Christian Science Monitor noted that “greater charity tends to push up income."