Miscellaneous Household Tips

From: The Dollar Stretcher ~ gary@stretcher.com
Used by permission

Burritos ~ Better Than Store Bought ~ My daughter loves those frozen meat/bean/cheese burritos you buy at the supermarket. I noticed that they seemed to be mostly tortilla with little filling and were expensive.  At the health food store, I buy whole wheat tortillas (which have a rich flavor and are more nutritious) and generously fill them with mashed black beans, brown rice, different shredded cheeses, browned ground turkey or beef, salsa, etc. I then fold the ends and put them in an inexpensive sandwich bag and freeze them.  They are more filling than the store-bought kind, and I control the quality. The preparation and assembly takes about an hour to make enough to last several weeks. They can be heated in the microwave in one minute and 45 seconds, or brown bagged in the morning and ready to eat by lunchtime. ~ Dorinda
 

A Little of This, A Little of That ~ When I have some raw veggies and fruit that I don't think I will be able to use up, or even scraps of raw veggies and fruit, I shred them and make a slaw out of them. Last night, I used up a 1/4 head of lettuce, about 1/4 head of cabbage, a half of a red onion that didn't have much life left, and an apple by shredding them and putting them all together in a bowl with some mayonnaise, a capful of white vinegar, salt, and pepper. Then I chilled the mixture.  It was delicious. We had it as a cold side dish with our grilled burgers last night. We ended up with almost two pounds of coleslaw for pennies and it tasted much better than the deli version. You can add many more types of veggies to this like chopped cucumbers, any kind of onion, chopped celery, etc. ~ CM

One Cool Cat ~ This is a tip for pet owners. I put half a bowl of ice cubes in my cats' water dish each morning and then I fill the remainder with water. The melting ice cubes fascinate them and they stay cool. ~ Sean

Cooler Kitchen ~ I have a 6.5-quart crockpot that I use many days out of the week in the summertime. The main reason is so I don't have to use my oven. ~ Debbie K

Summer Drinks ~ Go to a dollar store and buy about 10 inexpensive rugged plastic drink cups. Eight ounces is a good size.  Using a Sharpie marker, draw a different design on each one.  Make one for each of your children and the neighborhood kids as well.  Keep some extra for new friends.  Cups are washed once a day and used over and over.  Nothing thrown away.  Mark a couple "special guest".   Fill an insulated jug (with a spigot) with cool water for the kids to use as often as they like. ~ BB

Kids' Camp Supplies ~ Getting three kids ready for summer camp can be expensive so I have devised a plan to make it a bit cheaper. For toiletries, I hit myfree.com and got free samples of toothpaste (just right for a week at camp). I also got shampoo, dental floss, bath wash, and sun block this way. All it cost was a little time.  After the holidays, I purchased holiday towels (they never come home anyway!) for $1.50 each and wash cloths for 35 cents each. Instead of plastic soap dishes, toothbrush boxes, and toiletry bags, I put everything in its own zipper sandwich baggie and then used a gallon-sized bag for the toiletries (throwing in a few extras, just in case). I purchased a package of cheap toothbrushes from the dollar store (they were 6 for $1) and packed two for each child (if they don't come home, oh well!). I got sample packets of Skin-So-Soft wipes from the Avon lady for bug protection and packed a handful for each child. Now all we have left is their clothing and we have a month to go! Thus far, I have spent under $10! ~ Brenda H  (Note from Lois: Avon now has Bug Guard that protects even better than Skin-So-Soft.)

Just a Swipe ~ I keep a couple of damp washcloths in a zipper bag in the fridge. When I am too hot and sweaty, I take one out and rub my face and wrists with it. This is a real quick, easy way to cool off. Be sure to put a clean damp cloth back in the bag.  As a side note, this works for the occasional hot flash too, ladies. ~ Carolyn  (Note from Lois: Teething babies love to chew on frozen baby washcloths too!  Just wet them, wring them out and freeze in a baggie.  You may want to keep several frozen.)

Small Tear Equals Big Savings ~ When my husband shops for fertilizer, soil, all the things sold in plastic  bags, etc., he goes in to the larger stores with garden departments and asks if  they want to sell the ones with ripped or torn bags. They always do and  they practically give them away to him just to get rid of them. It's really  a big savings. ~ Emily in Houston, TX  

(Dollar Stretcher Editor's note: remember that it's not fair to tear the bags yourself!)

Free Artwork Decorations ~ During a recent visit to our local craft store, I was able to bring home a variety of flowers, leaves, and berries for free. Theses are the ones that fall off from people picking over them, knocking them off, etc.  I asked the clerk what they did  with all those that were on the floor and stands and she informed me that they just swept them up at the end of the day and threw them out. After asking if I could have them, we left the store with a variety that have since been turned into some beautiful artwork decorations. They were free for the asking. ~ Denise D.

No Pesticide Ant Solution ~ We have been having an ant problem in our house ever since we moved in about 17 years ago. I have always hesitated using chemicals to kill them because of small grandchildren and pets. However, recently I found out that ants don't like chalk. I got some colored sidewalk chalk, chose the color closest to my linoleum, and rubbed a chalk line where the ants had to cross, and within a couple of days, no more ants! ~ BC

Custom Borders ~ I am doing my kitchen in an Italian theme and could not find any border at any of the home stores or paint stores that I liked at any price. So I took the post cards I got in Italy along with the street maps and tickets to places I had seen and put them along the top of the kitchen wall. With the postcards, I had to soak them first in plain water to get the pictures off because they were too heavy to stay on the wall with the wallpaper paste.  I bought  wallpaper paste for $4, and then I positioned my pictures ahead of time, cutting them to make an attractive border. Now I can look at my walls and remember my trip, but best of all, this only cost $4 and some time. Now my postcards are not in some box in the attic. ~ S.

Sun Spots ~ For stubborn stains, I put lemon juice on the stain and put it out in the sun. 99% of the time the stain will disappear. Sometimes, but not often, a second application is  needed. ~ Sandy in Calgary, Canada

Perfect Patio Furniture ~ I tried power washing my white outdoor furniture that had black mold marks on it from the winter. That did a decent job, but it wasn't entirely clean. I then decided to try Tilex. It was extremely quick and effortless and I just hosed it off. You can bet I'll do this every year. My patio furniture looks brand new. ~ Mary Ann
 

Teen Girl's Party ~ My 13 year old daughter wanted a birthday party with all of her friends. What I did to save money was bring the girls to our local cosmetology school where they were all treated to manicures for which I only paid $1 each. Afterward, we had pizza at home (which I got at the grocery store on sale using coupons).  I made a cake and small gift bags which I made up from items purchased in bulk at a local novelty shop.  The girls loved it! ~ Sherrie

Gift Bag Filler ~ While trying to come up with filler to add to a gift bag, I found an easy answer! I took pieces of wrapping paper I had saved that were too small to use and put them through the paper shredder. What an easy way to come up with colorful filler for the gift bag! ~ S. M. of Kearney, MO