Salvage and gather reusable screws, bolts and fasteners from wood or other item being recycled or discarded. Place them in a large clear jar with a lid. Soon you will have a readily available collection of fasteners that are visible through the sides. Except for large projects you may never have to buy another screw or fastener . Do the same for larger items by catagory.
Some items are surplus to our home, others are garbage-picked or just found.
Whatever the source, they inevitably get used. The larger the number of people that contribute to these stashes, the greater the variety and more money and material preserved. Consider catagories such as hardware, plumbing, garden, car etc. Paper being saved for recycling can be highly consolidated in a paper grocery bag by laying the bag on the floor, open side against a wall, and then carefully stepping on the bag to compress the material inside. Video stores get hundreds of free preview tapes of short duration.