Waste-not want-not is a grand earner

The 62-year-old has been crowned the county's Thriftiest Granny by Yorkshire Water in a competition that won her 1,000.

Mrs Cowell, from Colton in Leeds, entered her best money saving tips into the company's competition.

She got the most customer votes for her simple tip of using tea bags twice then putting the left over bags on to garden roses as free compost.

Yorkshire people lived up to their name of being money-wise by sending in tips ranging from making the most of buy-one-get-one-free offers to using washing-up liquid to get rid of crayon marks on fabric.

Mrs Cowell said she learned about thriftiness from her parents but sadly her own children, Simon and Emma, were not following in her footsteps.

"I'm from the war generation and we were brought up to with that mentality and nothing was wasted, absolutely nothing," she said.

She intends spending the money on a trip to a spa hotel.

"It's the kind of holiday I would never spend on usually because it is rather expensive."

Her other top tips including putting vinegar in water for washing windows and cutting open sun or face cream containers to squeeze out every little bit.

In winter, she saves money on heating bills by wearing extra clothes and she never boils a kettle containing more water than she needs.

Mrs Cowell decided to enter the competition after encouragement from her nine-year-old granddaughter Emily during a family outing.

The competition is part of a Yorkshire Water awareness raising campaign after research showed that 40 per cent of their customers were unaware of what their water bills were paying for.

n What is your top money-saving tip?Email: andrew.robinson@ ypn.co.uk.