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I recently read a story about a woman who was trying to save money by penny-pinching and cutting back in some desperate ways, and one thing to save money that she did was she never paid for washing her clothes. Instead, she would get into the shower wearing the clothes and always wash them that way and dry them naturally. She also didn't want to spend a lot of money on buying food so she would go dumpster diving instead in order to find something. 

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There are many other people out there like her. They even have entire television shows dedicated to cheapskates, and people who coupon and penny-pinch for a living in order to get by. Sometimes they come up with some really creative ideas on how to save money, and other times their ideas are a little less than appealing. 

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I myself am always open to creative and efficient ways that I can cut back on living expenses, but I have never considered going dumpster diving in order to supplement my monthly food costs. Sometimes there are some really high quality items that can be found in the trash though and there are a number of blogs detailing people's experiences with trying to find edible items in their own local dumpsters. 

Other easy ways to cut back are doing things like making homemade cleaning solutions, eating out less, showering less to cut back on water bills, saving free condiments and napkins and straws etc, doing your own haircuts, hanging clothes to dry, and choosing to buy second hand items over new ones. Getting creative with how you save money can really pay off in a big way down the road.