Cheaper, Better, Faster (19 page)

Thanksgiving—prepare for Christmas now

Before Thanksgiving, give all family members who'll attend a ticket to write down their current interests, hobbies, and Christmas gift requests. The rule is: No Ticket, No Dinner. (Make sure they know this is all in fun.)

Valentine's Day—easy heart-
shaped cake

No special pan is required for this cake. Using your favorite recipe or box mix, bake one round layer and one square layer, then cool and remove each from the pans. On a large tray, platter, or aluminum-foil-covered cardboard, place the square layer with its corners pointing up, down, right, and left so it looks like a diamond. Slice the round layer in half. Place one half on each of the two adjacent sides of the square layer. Frost and decorate as desired.

Wedding—bride's
feet saver

Buy a pair of white sneakers and decorate them with lace, pearls, and white satin ribbon. At your wedding reception, go from your high heels to these comfy shoes. Your feet will thank you.

Wedding—decorated cake at
a good price

If you are planning a wedding, contact a cake-decorating class in your city. Coordinate with them to get a cake at an amazing price.

Wedding—shower, for the mother-of-the-bride

Gifts for this nontraditional event might include a gift certificate to have her hair done for the wedding; bubble bath and other soothing remedies; a lace handkerchief for potential tears; frames for wedding pictures; a memory book to record the details of the occasion; writing paper and stamps; lingerie; and some books by her favorite authors for after the wedding.

Wedding—shower,
to fill the newlyweds'pantry

Give the future bride and groom a “fill-their-cupboard” wedding shower. Each guest copies a favorite recipe or dinner menu onto a recipe card, purchases the nonperishable ingredients to prepare the dish or meal, and wraps them up as a unique gift. Newlyweds will be thrilled to have their cupboards filled with the ingredients and specific directions for how to make favorite tried-and-tested meals.

Appliances—coffeemaker timer

Rather than purchase an expensive automatic coffeemaker with a built-in timer, buy a model without the timing device. Pick up an appliance timer at the home improvement center (the kind used to turn lamps on and off) for about $10, plug your coffeemaker into it, set the time, and you'll have a quality, timed coffeemaker that costs a lot less than the built-in variety. And it will work equally well.

Appliances—
dishwasher, energy savers

Select the “energy save” option on your dishwasher, run it only once a day (at night), and allow the dishes to air-dry rather than use that expensive heat-dry portion of the cycle.

Appliances—dryer repair

If your clothes dryer seems to take twice as long to dry a standard load, try these two tips before calling the repairman: (1) Go outside, remove the vent cover, and clean out
any lint that missed the trap and has become stuck at the vent opening. (2) Pull the entire dryer away from the wall. This will alleviate a possible “kink” in the accordion tubing, which can impede efficient operation.

Appliances—dryer vent

If your home is dry during the winter, and you have an electric dryer (never do this with a gas dryer), you can detach the vent pipe from the outside vent, cover it with a piece of cheesecloth or nylon stocking to serve as a lint filter, and redirect that moist hot air back into your house. Come summer, return the vent to its normal position. You can buy a heat diverter attachment at your local hardware or appliance store and install it yourself. There is a lot of moisture in that diverted heat, so you need to keep an eye out for condensation and mildew. This technique is
not
advisable in areas with humid winter climates or for homes with humid indoor air.

Appliances—freezer,
count the cost

Think twice about buying a separate home freezer. It can be convenient, but it takes a lot of savvy food management to make it really pay for itself. If a freezer makes economic sense for you, a chest style costs less to run than an upright model.

Appliances—freezer, energy saver

Be sure to keep your freezer packed full to consume the least amount of energy. As your store of food is depleted, fill the gaps with plastic jugs filled with water. You'll accomplish a keep-it-full technique and have a good supply of fresh water in the event of a power failure.

Appliances—iron,
water refills

Keep a plastic ketchup bottle full of water on your ironing board for handy refills.

Appliances—refrigerator coil
maintenance

Vacuum the coils at the bottom or back of your
refrigerator frequently to prevent dust from building up around them. Dust makes the refrigerator kick on more often, as does keeping it too close to the wall. Refrigerators and freezers need room to breathe or else they can get too hot, run too often, and guzzle too much energy.

Appliances—refrigerator warmer setting

Turn your refrigerator to a slightly warmer setting when you go away for more than a day. As long as the door stays closed, food won't spoil. Just don't forget to restore it to its colder setting when you return!

Appliances—vacuum cleaner, hose
on hose

Attach pantyhose with a rubber band over the end of your vacuum hose when cleaning drawers or searching for a tiny lost object like a contact lens or earring back. The small item cannot be sucked into the nozzle, but you'll find what you've been looking for because it will stick to the hosiery.

Appliances—washing
machine, pantyhose filter

If your washing machine drains into a laundry sink, attach one leg of an old pair of pantyhose to the end of the washing machine drain hose to catch lint and prevent clogged drains.

Appliances—water heater,
blanket

Insulate your water heater with a blanket manufactured just for this purpose to reduce heat loss. On an electric heater, this could save $20 a year.

Appliances—water heater,
empty house

Turn off the water heater when your house is empty, whether it's for a weekend or a week's vacation.

Appliances—water heater, size

Match your water heater size to the needs of your family.
If you are constantly heating enough water to service a family of eight and your nest is empty, you're wasting a lot of money.

Appliances—water heater, timer

A $30 timer on your water heater will pay for itself in saved energy in less than a year. The unit turns the water heater off while you sleep and then back on again in plenty of time to heat water for morning showers. Also consider taking advantage of off-peak electric rates. Call your utility company for more information.

Bathroom—moisture

Learn a plumber's trade secret and hide a few pieces of charcoal in your bathroom to absorb moisture and odor.

Bathroom—not down the toilet!

Don't throw dental floss or colored toilet paper or colored tissues down the toilet. The insides of sewer pipes are very rough, and dental floss has a tendency to stick to the pipe and accumulate over time. Colored toilet tissue might look good, but it doesn't break down as readily as white toilet paper and could cause problems down the line.

Bathroom—shower
curtain hooks

To prevent shower curtains from slipping off the hooks, alternate the direction each hook faces.

Bugs and such—
ants, repelled by lemon juice

Squirt lemon juice on windowsills and doorways. Ants hate it and will absolutely refuse to come into your home.

Bugs and such—ants, repelled by
spices

Drive ants from the kitchen by sprinkling shelves or windowsills with cinnamon, cloves, or baking soda. Put these ingredients into crevices too, and reapply occasionally.

Bugs and such—ants,
repelled by water and vinegar

Repel ants by washing countertops, cabinets, and floors with equal parts water and vinegar.

Bugs
and such—catch with tacky flyswatter

For fruit flies and other tiny flying insects that a regular flyswatter seems to miss, put a few strips of double-backed tape on your flyswatter.

Bugs and such—catch with tape

Don't squash a bug that is crawling on your wall, drapes, or anywhere else it can stain. Just “apply” a strip of clear tape. The bug adheres to it and can be disposed of.

Bugs and such—cockroach deterrent

Cockroaches often enter homes through plumbing holes under the kitchen or bathroom sinks. Plug these tightly with rags or steel wool and you'll cause a permanent traffic jam on that roach freeway. The same trick keeps mice at bay too.

Bugs
and such—cockroach killer

Mix
¼
cup shortening with
⅛
cup sugar. In a separate container mix
½
pound powdered boric acid (available at pharmacies) and
½
cup flour; add to shortening mixture. Stir well with enough water to make a soft dough. Form into small balls the size of marbles, and hide in those out-of-the-way places roaches love to hide. This recipe works far better than commercial products. Just make sure you keep this out of the reach of children.

Bugs and such—fruit flies

Set out a small dish of vinegar that contains a few drops of detergent to repel fruit flies.

Bugs and such—
keeping out of food

Insects are attracted to the glue in cardboard cartons and brown paper bags, so when
you keep things stored in them, it's the same as inviting the bugs to a banquet. Seal items in plastic before placing them in cardboard boxes and paper bags.

Bugs
and such—mothproofing

Make sachets of dried lavender or equal portions of rosemary and mint. Place in closets, drawers, or closed containers to mothproof garments.

Bugs and such—moth repellent

Here's an easy and inexpensive way to make a moth repellent. Purchase a bag of cedar chips from a pet supply shop—a large bag is only a few dollars. Put 1 or 2 cupfuls into resealable plastic bags and poke small holes in them. Hang the bags in your closets and drawers. The lovely, fresh scent repels.

Bugs
and such—natural repellents

Fill vases with geraniums or eucalyptus. Bugs stay away from their scents.

Bugs and such—silverfish

To get rid of silverfish, put about
¼
inch of flour in a small, straight-sided glass. Run a strip of adhesive tape on the outside of the glass from bottom to top. Silverfish will travel up the tape and drop into the glass, but they won't be able to get back out. Place one of these traps in each room where you've seen silverfish.

Candles, dripless

To make new candles dripless, soak them in a strong saltwater solution for a few hours, then dry well.

Candles, warped

To straighten those droopy, warped candles, dunk them in a pan of warm water until they are just pliable enough to bend back to their original shape.

Candleholders—easy candle
removal

Coat the inside of a candleholder with a tiny amount of
petroleum jelly to ensure easy removal of the candle.

Candleholders—removing wax

Remove wax from candleholders by placing them in the freezer until the wax freezes and snaps off.

Candleholders—tight

Fit a candle into a really tight holder by holding the bottom end of the candle under hot tap water. It should soften just enough so you can firmly place it in the holder.

Cleaning—deadlines

Invite company over at least once a month so you'll be forced to clean up. Keep the bathtub clean so you can hide clutter in it at a moment's notice.

Cleaning—dejunk schedule

Dejunk drawers and closets in one room each week until you're done. Prepare one box for charity, one for items in need of repair, and one for a garage sale.

Cleaning—neighborhood exchange

Don't sell your kids' outgrown bicycles, skates, or sports gear at a garage sale. You may not raise enough money to replace it in a larger size. Instead, organize a neighborhood exchange. You'll be surprised to find out how many of your neighbors are in the same boat.

Cleaning—quick
magnetic pickup

Pick up spilled nails, screws, or pins with a strong magnet wrapped in a paper towel. When the spilled items attach to the magnet, gather the towel corners over the pieces and pull that tidy bundle away from the magnet.

Communication—chalkboard from window shades

Paint an ordinary window shade with chalkboard paint and mount it on the wall in front of your garage
workbench or in your utility room. When you need to make a note, just pull it down.

Communication—memory assistant

If you're worried about remembering something, wear your watch on the wrong wrist. It doesn't look as silly as a piece of string tied around your finger, but it works just as well.

Communication—mirror notes

Leave reminders for family members by writing notes on the bathroom mirror with a dry erase marker, available in all kinds of colors at office supply stores. It wipes right off with a tissue, and it's sure to be seen. If a note is not erased for some time, use a bit of rubbing alcohol on that tissue to wipe it away without a trace.

Communication—voicemail for reminder

If there's something you absolutely have to do when you get home, just call your answering machine and leave a message for yourself. That's probably the first thing you'll check.

Communication—welcome map
for new owners

When you move, leave a “neighborhood guide” for the new homeowners. Include items such as a map of the surrounding area, and names and phone numbers of the best babysitters and trustworthy repair companies.

Crafts—art display

To display posters, maps, or children's artwork on the wall without marring the art or the wall, put a dab of toothpaste at each corner of the paper and press it onto the wall. Sounds goofy, but it works really well, and you end up with an undamaged, minty-fresh wall.

Crafts—artist paintbrush protection

Slip tiny artist paintbrushes into drinking straws to protect them.

Crafts—clay

Mix 2 cups baking soda, 1 cup cornstarch, and 1
½
cups water. Heat in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly. Mixture will become thin and smooth at first. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is too thick to stir. Turn the mixture out onto a cookie sheet to cool. Cover with a damp cloth. When cool, knead until smooth. Store in a tightly closed plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Clay will harden at room temperature. Most items made with this clay will be dry after 24 hours. If desired, you can preheat the oven to 350ºF, turn it off, and then put the clay into the oven to dry, turning the pieces occasionally.

Crafts—glue caps stuck
on

If your glue cap keeps getting stuck to the tube, coat the inside with petroleum jelly and it will open easily.

Crafts—restringing beads

Use dental floss for restringing beads.

Decorating—black touches

A touch of black adds punch to any decor. But use a light hand. A lamp shade, needlepoint pillow, or area rug is all it takes.