Pick the thing you notice.
A forgotten pantry shelf. A leaking hose. An uncomfortable room. Start with something that matters in your home.
OLD-WORLD WISDOM. EVERYDAY SAVINGS.
Spend less.
Waste less.
Live a little wiser.
Bring the old Italian way into your home. 100 practical ways to make your food, water, energy and money go further — all in one illustrated handbook.
$5,000/ year
A savings goal to work toward.
Your home. Your numbers. Your pace.
An aspirational goal, not a promised result. See the example behind it.
One-time purchase · English PDF · Yours to keep
A HANDBOOK TO RETURN TO, SEASON AFTER SEASON
100 useful chapters.One place to begin.
672pages to explore
120images throughout
100practical chapters
5areas of everyday life
A NOTE FROM SALVATORE
You don’t need a new life.
Just a place to start.
The food behind the newer groceries. The hose that drips beside the tap. The draft you notice every winter. Small things have a way of becoming ordinary expenses.
This handbook helps you look at your home with fresh eyes — and choose one useful thing to put right.
“Choose a job small enough to finish, then use what you have changed.”
Salvatore CarusoFrom the opening pages of the handbook
FIVE AREAS. ONE MORE RESOURCEFUL HOME.
Where will you begin?
Follow the water into the garden, the harvest into the kitchen, and the small repairs through the rest of your home.
CHAPTERS 01–10
Make every watering
more thoughtful.
Spot small leaks, plan useful rainwater collection, and bring water to the roots that need it.
- 03A Rain Barrel That Fits Your Home
- 07Bring Water to the Roots
- 08The Clay Pot Watering Trial
CHAPTERS 51–60
A more comfortable home.
A little less waste.
Understand sunlight, drafts and everyday energy use before deciding what to change or buy.
- 52Use Shutters with the Weather
- 54Find the Draft Before Buying a Seal
- 60Trace Hot-Water Waste Before Rebuilding
CHAPTERS 11–30
Grow what finds its way
onto your table.
Start with a manageable bed, make more of your soil, and give useful herbs and plants a place to thrive.
- 12Start with One Bed You Can Manage
- 22Make a Rosemary Cutting Count
- 28Save Seeds from an Appropriate Crop
CHAPTERS 31–50 · PANTRY & KITCHEN
Let more of what you buy
become a good meal.
Keep food visible, plan useful portions, and shop around the meals you actually cook.
- 31The Shelf That Gets Used First
- 41Cook Beans for More Than One Meal
- 46The Pantry Meal Before the Shopping Trip
CHAPTERS 61–100
Look after the things
that look after you.
Care for tools, tackle suitable small repairs, plan outdoor jobs and build household routines that last.
- 61Clean a Tool Before Calling It Ruined
- 71Sand into Solid: What a Binder Really Does
- 99Decide Whether to Repair or Replace
10 parts, 100 chapters. Choose the methods that fit your home, climate and experience.
OPEN THE BOOK BEFORE YOU BUY
Real pages.
A proper look inside.
Take your time with six sample pages from the finished edition. Read the words. Look at the images. See if this feels like your kind of handbook.
Select any page to enlarge it and keep reading.
GIVE YOUR SAVINGS GOAL A PLAN
Aiming for
$5,000
over a year?
Start with what you already spend. The handbook walks through a hypothetical household’s year, including the cost of making the changes.
Your opportunity may be smaller or larger. The useful part is learning to put your own numbers on paper — and keeping the habits that earn their place.
Build your own starting pointAN ILLUSTRATIVE HOUSEHOLDONE YEAR
Small decisions.
A bigger picture.
The worked example from the book:
- Groceries & packed lunchesIncluding ingredients for the new lunches
- $4,000
- Heating & cooling energy
- $240
- WaterAfter a $20 repair expense
- $80
- Household consumables
- $200
- Suitable minor repairsAfter parts and required tools
- $540
- Illustrative reduction
- $5,060
How this example is calculated
The hypothetical household starts with $18,100 across these categories and reduces it to $13,040. Food spending falls from $13,000 to $9,000: the new grocery total includes $1,000 of ingredients for 200 packed lunches that replace $3,000 of purchased lunches.
The other assumptions are a 10% reduction in a $2,400 heating-and-cooling expense; $100 less in variable water charges, minus a $20 repair; $200 less in consumables; and a $900 minor-repair alternative replaced by $360 in parts and tools. Those repairs may not recur every year.
The $37 handbook makes this example’s first-year net reduction $5,023 before any other unlisted costs. These are hypothetical figures, not measured customer results or a prediction for your home.
An example, not a guarantee. Actual savings depend on your starting expenses, choices, local prices and implementation costs.
A HANDBOOK, NOT ANOTHER UNFINISHED PROJECT
Make the first change a small one.
Find your chapter.
Use the clickable contents to go straight to the method. Read what fits your situation before buying supplies.
Use it. Then judge it.
Keep a note of the cost and the result. Return to the handbook when the next useful job comes along.
THE COMPLETE ILLUSTRATED EDITION
YOURS TO KEEP. READY WHEN YOU ARE.
Bring the old Italian way
home with you.
The Old World Home Handbook
by Salvatore Caruso
- All 100 practical chapters across 10 parts
- 672 pages, including the full-color cover
- 120 images throughout the handbook
- Water, energy, garden, pantry and home
- A worked savings example to help you plan
- An English PDF with clickable contents
$37
Get my complete handbook One purchase.
No subscription.
Digital download through Gumroad.
Any applicable taxes and final total are shown at checkout.
BEFORE YOU TURN THE FIRST PAGE
A few good
questions.
Know what you’re getting,
and how to make it useful.
What exactly do I receive?
The complete English-language PDF of The Old World Home Handbook: 672 pages including the cover, 100 chapters in 10 parts, 120 images, and clickable contents. This is a digital ebook; no physical book is shipped.
Do I need a farm, a workshop or special experience?
No. Many starting points fit an ordinary home: arranging a pantry, planning meals, caring for tools or observing drafts. Garden and outdoor chapters need suitable space. Pick the methods that fit your home, ability and climate; some jobs call for a qualified professional.
Will I save $5,000 a year?
$5,000 is a goal to consider against your own expenses, not a guaranteed or typical result. The book includes a hypothetical worked example, with costs and assumptions explained. Your actual savings depend on what you already spend and the changes you can realistically maintain.
How will I get the ebook after I buy?
Purchase through Gumroad to access the downloadable PDF. You can save it to your device and return to it whenever you need it. Use the email address where you want to receive your purchase receipt.
Can I read it on my phone or tablet?
Yes. The PDF works with standard PDF readers on a computer, tablet or phone. A tablet or computer gives you more room to enjoy the illustrated pages; on a phone, zoom in as needed. You can also print pages for your own use.
Do I have to read all 672 pages in order?
No. Start with the welcome and the savings discussion if you’d like an overview, then use the clickable contents to find a chapter that solves a current problem. The book is designed to return to as your needs change.
ONE USEFUL CHANGE IS A GOOD BEGINNING.
A home that works better.
More of your money kept for living.
Get the handbook — $37 Read a chapter. Try a suitable method. Keep what works.