Trick or Treat!
I took one of the round, plastic jack-o-lantern candy
buckets, put it on top of one of my fence posts, and put a tealight inside. It lit
up the orange bucket so it was glowing and bright orange. It was easy for kids to
see and know it was a house they should come to for trick or treating! The bucket
is reusable every year. And it only cost $3!
MKJ in Mountlake Terrace, WA
Deep Clean Your Hair
A bit of baking soda added to shampoo helps take hair
spray out of the hair. Yep, just plain baking soda. This saves on shampoo and doesn't
require so much scrubbing. It's easier on your hair and your pocketbook.
Judi B. in Ozark, MO
DIY Cookbook
Instead of buying expensive cookbooks and only using a
few recipes from them, I find recipes for what I want to cook on the Internet and
print them out for free. I have put together my own cookbook in a binder and keep
the recipes in plastic sleeves for easy cleanup.
Stephanie
Handy, Inexpensive Landscape Borders
Shingles make an easy and nice looking border. Just overlap
them so water will run off. I have some that I put under bricks that I used to build
rings around trees and the shingles have been lying on the ground for 8+ years and
still look fine. You can buy "broken bundles" at about a 50% discount and pick a color
close to the color of the dirt so they are very unnoticeable. And you can drive the
lawnmower right up onto them, so they have eliminated the need to trim weeds.
Debbie Z.
Winter Auto Ice Control
I keep a spray bottle with a mixture of winter windshield
washer solvent (the blue stuff) and white vinegar mixed 50/50 in my car. When I park
it for the night, I give a quick spray to the outside of the windows and the mirrors.
In the morning, there is no frost on them and ice does not usually stick if we get
freezing rain during the night. If you get some on your paint, it does not hurt it.
Paul D. in Amsterdam, NY
Grind Your Own Flour
We have a small coffee bean grinder, and it grinds oats
quite nicely. Quick oats are cheap, and we grind them into flour that we use to make
cookies. We can't tell the difference!
Tracy J.
Troublesome Auto Windows
Before replacing car window motors, use spray silicone
lubricant and apply a generous amount to the window tracks. I have a 1990 Olds that
could barely roll up the power windows. I thought it needed new window motors. After
spraying the silicone in the window tracks, they've worked like new for almost two
years now.
Rob
Non-Slip Coat Hangers
I almost spent a good amount of money to purchase non-slip
hangers, but then I came across a rubber band ball that my husband made from all the
rubber bands we've accumulated. I got the idea to wind a rubber band around either
end of some of my hangers. Now, I've got non-slip hangers for the bargain price of
free! They really work!
Gel
A Gift from Mom
A simple idea that I used for a gift happens to be my
daughter's favorite gift of all time. It was a recipe book with hand-written recipes
in it from her childhood. I also wrote a little story after each recipe, reminding
her of a time when we enjoyed that particular food in the recipe. It brought tears
to her eyes.
Eileen in PA
Prettier Packages
To me, this is the epitome of cheap, but I never buy new
tissue paper to use with gift wrapping for birthdays or holidays. I always reuse what
I get in my own family's gifts. That printed tissue can be expensive, so why buy it?
I just iron it! I smooth the wrinkles from each sheet and stack them in a pile (any
with holes or tears are used for packing items that need to be mailed). After I'm
done ironing any clothes, I just run the iron over my stack of tissue paper. I do
about ten or so sheets and turn the whole stack over and do the other side. They may
not look totally fresh out of the package, but I get one more use out of them, which
helps my wallet and our environment. I use a medium setting, and this has never harmed
my iron, or transferred any color from the tissue to my clothes.
A.M. in Springfield, MO
Hot Chocolate at Home
My kids love the creamy hot chocolate at McDonald's. However,
the price tag (over $10) is pretty steep with four kids. We've tried many of the box
hot cocoa mixes and even tried making our own from milk, cocoa powder and vanilla,
but they were never quite the same taste.
Recently, we discovered using store bought chocolate milk
and warming it slowly in a sauce pan. There's nothing extra to mix, and it's really
creamy. We add a spoonful of whipped topping and even drizzle on a little chocolate
syrup. It's delicious. Our local convenience store sells three half gallons for $3,
so it's really a good deal! We stumbled across this idea when we needed to use up
some chocolate milk a day or two past the expiration date.
Now I don't think we'll use anything else for hot chocolate!
Jody A.
The Monday Exchange
A few of my co-workers and I have a coupon exchange at
the office. Every Monday, we bring in our coupons that we received with our Sunday
papers. I keep what I will use and bring in the rest for the exchange. At times, I
will get a few coupons for the same item that I always use.
Cheryl
Winter Auto Care
During the winter months, along with putting bags on my
side mirrors, I also put a tarp over the front and rear window. I never have to scrape
my windows, nor do they fog up. I just remove the tarps and bags, and I'm ready to
go!
Rebecca J in Forsyth, MO
Expecting? One Outfit = Many
When I was pregnant the first time, my mother-in-law gave
me a wool jumper (winter baby). I discovered that I could wear it with regular button
blouses by leaving the bottom buttons unbuttoned. No one sees it open under the jumper,
and I have a lot of outfits from that one item of clothing. It's great for church
and many other "dressy" places that I go.
Judy in WI
Shipping Books for Less
Selling books online is a great way to make a few extra
dollars, but if you're not careful, the shipping costs can add up to more than what
you're getting for the book. To help keep shipping costs down, always ask the post
office to ship books at the book rate, which is significantly cheaper than regular
shipping.
Amanda S. in Bridgeport, CT
Sharing Meals
Having a weekly potluck dinner is a great way to help
each other out. You could provide the meatloaf stretched with bread or oats and the
rest can come from the neighbors. Everyone can have a really great meal at a very
cheap price of providing one dish, bread, or dessert. Serve water and or iced tea.
Seantel in The Netherlands
Smelly Laundry Solution
For undesirable odors in your laundry, add one half to
one cup (depending on the size of the load and the strength of the odor) rubbing alcohol
and/or Listerine® to your load. This also gets rid of dried-in odors, sour laundry
and urine smells.
Julie
Perfume Stretchers
To stretch my favorite perfume, I use unscented body lotion.
After my shower, I put enough lotion in my hand to moisturize my body. Then I spray
about three shots of perfume on the lotion, rub my hands together to mix, and apply
the lotion to my body. This makes my favorite perfume last at least twice as long
as just spraying directly on.
P.S.
Winter Warmth
My spouse and I wear sweat suits around the house all
winter with wool socks and a knit cap for our heads. We keep slippers or sneakers
on our feet. We have a down comforter on the bed. We keep the thermostat at 65 degrees
during the day with the window shades open, and set the thermostat at 55 degrees at
night. Our heating bill (propane as we live in a RV) is affordable. Please note the
addition of the cap on the head makes a big difference in changing the temperature
of the body.
Joy M.
Make Your Own
My dad is a do-it-yourselfer. Last year, I was looking
at a catalog and liked a picture of a coat rack I saw in it. I showed it to my dad,
and since the gardening season was over, he had time on his hands and built a version
of what I had shown him. Not only that, but he improved on the catalog by putting
many hooks inside the frame, so we can hang umbrellas and gloves there. This coat
rack is so nice. He has three standing orders from our friends, who are offering top
dollar to him to make them one. When I think of the money I saved and the love that
I was shown, I am proud.
Z.
Saving Decorating Ideas
When browsing through magazines, I almost always find
a picture of a decorating idea, window treatment or craft item that I like. Instead
of making copies of the page when there might only be one item I like, I take a picture
of it with my cell phone and then send it to my email where I download it into a folder,
which can also be organized by room or type. It's easy to locate, and it saves ink
and paper. Also, I don't have to keep a physical folder of those. You could also do
that with a digital camera, but I always have my cell phone handy.
Sharon in Ohio
Homeowner's Insurance Savings
With the way home prices have plummeted, the cost of replacing
a home in the unfortunate event it is ever destroyed has also plummeted. I recently
received my homeowner insurance renewal quote in the mail and realized my dwelling
coverage was still being calculated at the same amount that it would have cost me
to replace my home in 2005! I immediately called and asked them to recalculate that
cost and there was a 12.5% decrease in the required coverage. The lady on the phone
said that they only readjust those amounts when people call and request a recalculation.
Insurance companies are probably raking in the money on all these home policies now
seriously over-valued. My 10-minute phone call saved me almost $100 for my renewal
this year, so it's worth a look!
Jaime P.
