Last winter, I saw a television commercial bragging about an "improved" toilet-paper brand that was so good consumers would actually use less and thus save money.

Saving money by using less toilet paper struck me as odd, if only because I presumed that most people take whatever amount of paper they use by habit and then take a little more than normal if they think they need it.

I was reminded of the commercial recently when Kimberly-Clark announced that it would raise the price of its Cottonelle and Scott bathroom tissues in February. Prices on toilet paper and a number of child-care products will rise between 4% and 7%.

That may not seem like a lot of money -- until you consider that you are flushing it away. And it got me to thinking about how so many consumers want to save money but find it hard to squeeze just a little bit more out of their paychecks. Moreover, it made me focus on how hard it can be to change your habits, the standard advice that savings gurus offer.

In some instances, finding a way to make your money go a bit further requires real thought and life-altering decisions. Nowhere is that more evident than with toilet paper, which is precisely why it is a great example for making spending decisions about other needs.

Consumers tend to think of rising prices for necessities as being the cost of gasoline or eggs, but it includes staples such as energy -- and toilet paper. Regardless of which commodity is involved, cutting costs is theoretically a good thing.

Article by msn