Cheaper, Better, Faster (23 page)

Safety and readiness—ceiling
work on bucket stilts

If you need to do some work on the ceiling, 5-gallon buckets make good, stable stilts. Remove or tape down the wire handle on each bucket, turn the bucket upside down, make a foot stirrup out of duct tape, and off you go. You don't want the tape to stick to your shoes, so double it, sticky side to sticky side, on the part that your foot slides under.

Safety and readiness—disaster “Go
Bags”

Every household needs a Go Bag. This is a collection of items you may need in the event of a disaster that requires you and your family to be self-sufficient when all services are cut off. And because you may need to evacuate, your Go Bag needs to be packed in an easy-to-carry container like a suitcase on wheels. Then each family member needs to have a backpack that contains enough basic supplies to last for 72 hours—all packed and ready to go. Each backpack should contain a change of clothing, including underwear, socks, and a jacket or sweater; some food and an emergency lightweight blanket; copies of personal documents that are sealed in zip-type plastic bags such as photo ID, emergency phone numbers, social security numbers, insurance cards, and so on. When it's time to evacuate, each person grabs his or her backpack and a gallon of water and gets out. The larger family Go
Bag or box should be compact enough to carry easily and should fit in the trunk of the car—a vehicle whose gas tank is never less than half full.

Safety and readiness—fake vent for valuables

Cut a hole at the approximate location and size of a heat vent in the wall, and attach a vent cover. Paint it to match all the other heat vents, and you'll have a great hideaway for your treasures.

Safety and readiness—fire extinguisher

Everyone in the family needs to know how to operate a portable fire extinguisher. Just remember the word PASS. P: pull the pin to release the locking mechanism. A: aim low, at the base of the fire. S: squeeze the handle. S: sweep the spray from side to side, as if you were hosing down a sidewalk.

Safety and readiness—holding nails in place

If you can't hammer a nail without hammering your fingers in the process, use the tines of an old fork instead of your fingers to hold the nail in place.

Safety and readiness—out-of-area contact person

Every family needs to identify a friend or relative who lives in another state to be their disaster point person, and then keep that person's phone number and contact information with them at all times. Now instruct all of your family members to call this person to check in with their location and conditions. Long-distance phone service is often restored sooner than local service.

Safety and readiness—prevent a child'
s being locked in

Toss a towel over the top of a bathroom door so it won't close completely. This way, little ones are less likely to lock themselves in.

Safety and readiness—smoke detector battery changes

Fire safety officials remind us to change the batteries in our smoke detectors and home security systems every 6 months. Get into the habit of changing batteries when the time changes in the spring and again in the fall. But don't throw away the old batteries. They still have lots of life remaining and can be used in radios, toys, pagers, and so on.

Safety and readiness—surge protector for computer

Voltage spikes and surges through the power lines can fry the electronics of your computer and printer. A good surge protector is far better insurance for your machines than an extended warranty policy. You just plug your computer into the protector, it's quite inexpensive, and it's available at any computer or hardware store.

Safety and readiness—water

You don't have to live in “hurricane” country to get hurricane prepared. Disasters can hit anywhere, which means water could be in short supply. For flushing toilets and showers, line 30- to 45-gallon garbage cans with those large contractor plastic bags available at home improvement stores. Then, fill the garbage cans with water. Most people forget that three weeks without electricity means three weeks of no water if your supplier has not attached a generator to pump it to the houses.

Scales—for the home

Here are three scales worth their weight in gold in any home: a 25-pound scale in the laundry room so wash loads are right; a 5-pound scale in the kitchen to measure food portions for serving, freezing, and storing; a 300-pound scale for weight control. The kitchen scale also serves to weigh mail. No more wasting stamps trying to make sure you have enough postage.

Sewing—bedsheets for extra-wide yardage

Buy flat bedsheets instead of yardage. Buying sheets on sale gives you extra-wide yardage at a fraction of the cost of yard goods. They're perfect for making curtains, tablecloths, napkins, pillows, nightclothes, and crafts.

Sewing—dryer sheets for
appliqué

Another use for dryer sheets: Use these sheets, new or used, as interfacing when appliquéing a quilt. They form the layer between the cutout and the quilt top. They keep the quilt fresher longer between washings and airings, add increasingly lightweight insulation, and extend the life of the quilt.

Sewing—lazy Susan for notions

Put a lazy Susan on your sewing table to store your notions. Now everything you need is just a spin away!

Sewing—
machine dusting

When the bobbin apparatus in your sewing machine needs dusting, blow the dust out by aiming quick bursts of air from an empty squeeze bottle.

Sewing—magnet for
pins and needles

Keep a magnet in your sewing box to pick up pins and needles that fall on the floor.

Sewing—make your own washcloths

The next time you see cotton bath towels on sale, buy one and give this a try: Cut it into 8 washcloths. Either serge the edges or use a zigzag or overlock stitch on a regular sewing machine. You should be able to make loads of wonderful washcloths for a fraction of the cost of ready-made.

Sewing—mend with newspaper

Slip a folded newspaper through the leg or sleeve of the garment you're mending
so you don't sew through both layers.

Sewing—needle sharpening

Sharpen a sewing machine needle without removing it from the machine by “stitching” through a sheet of fine-grain sandpaper.

Sewing—pincushion of soap

An unwrapped bar of soap makes a terrific pincushion. Bonus: Needles and pins that have been stuck in soap will glide through fabric.

Sewing—stuffing made
easy

Cut clean, used pantyhose in rings and use as stuffing for pincushions, pillows, and children's toys. The fabric is washable and can easily be coaxed into tight corners.

Sewing—thread color choices

A good rule of thumb is to use a thread that is one shade darker than the fabric you are working on. Thread has a tendency to fade more quickly than solid materials.

Sewing—threading a
needle

If you have trouble threading a needle, wet the end of the thread and draw it across a bar of soap. The thread will stiffen and slip right through the eye of the needle. Or, draw the end of the thread across a wax candle first.

Shelf lining—adhesive-
backed shelf paper

Put adhesive-backed shelf paper in the freezer for about an hour before using. The frozen paper will be less limp and easier to apply. Smooth it out with a blackboard eraser or dry squeegee.

Shelf lining—
bath rug

Use an old bath rug to line the cabinet under your bathroom sink. It will soak up spills and leaks, and is easy to clean. Just toss it in the laundry.

Shelf lining—contact paper

The warmth from a hair dryer can remove contact paper from a shelf. If there's any glue left behind, use rubber-cement thinner, Soilove, or WD-40 aerosol lubricant.

Shelf lining—freezer
or butcher paper

White freezer or butcher paper is perfect for lining kitchen and bathroom cabinets because it is sturdy, extra wide, and quite inexpensive. Place the coated side up to make for easy cleanups, and use thumbtacks to hold down the corners.

Shelf lining—vinyl flooring

Use pieces of vinyl flooring to cover shelves. This product can be cut to size and is easily removed when you want to clean. Vinyl flooring is also very durable and comes in a variety of colors and patterns. Put the vinyl in the sun to soften it before cutting. Do not glue or attach the vinyl in any way; just lay it on the shelf.

Sound of music

Put a clock radio in every bedroom. Instead of the buzzer, set them all on the same radio station that plays lively music, and your family will get up to surround sound each morning.

Vinyl records

To straighten a warped vinyl phonograph record, place the record between two pieces of sturdy glass and set the glass in direct sunlight for 2 hours.

Windows—cord
hiders

Put self-stick plastic hooks on the wall or window frame next to drapes and blinds. Keep any loose cords looped around the hooks.

Windows—curtain rods, unique

Instead of the typical drapery rod, hang curtains from a copper pipe or a sturdy tree branch set on brackets.

Windows—
curtain rods, wide

Many window valances are hung on 2
½
-inch rods rather than the typical skinny ones. If you don't want to spend money to get the wider ones, update your skinny rods. Cut 2
½
-inch strips of wood from an old piece of paneling and use a hot glue gun to attach the strips to the skinny rod. Attach the rod to the existing hardware, which should still be in place on the wall. New valances can be slipped right over the rod.

Windows—curtains, sheer

To hang sheers and curtains quickly and easily, insert a table knife—blade-first—into the open end of the curtain rod. It will act as a guide and sheers will glide onto the rod without snagging.

Art and crafts—artist smocks

Old pillowcases can be turned into inexpensive smocks for kids to use when finger painting or doing other messy stuff. Just cut a hole on each side for the arms and a large one at the top for the head.

Art and crafts—dried
-up markers

Are your children's markers starting to dry out? Dip the tip of the marker in water or vinegar for 5 to 10 seconds. Blot excess liquid, and you have just given a marker a new lease on life.

Art and crafts—edible finger paint recipe

You'll need one envelope of unflavored gelatin softened in
¼
cup warm water, 3 tablespoons granulated sugar,
½
cup cornstarch, 2 cups cold water, and food coloring. Mix sugar and cornstarch. Add water and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thick. Remove from heat and add the softened gelatin. Divide into as many portions as you have colors (four or five is best). Add food coloring to each portion.

Art
and crafts—face paint recipe

Ingredients: 1 teaspoon cornstarch,
½
teaspoon water,
½
teaspoon cold cream, and food coloring. Mix the first three ingredients, and blend well. Add food coloring a drop at a time until you get the color you want. Store in small covered containers. Paint chubby little faces with a small paintbrush. Allow paint to dry. Remove with cold cream.

Art and crafts—make a family history
book

Write a book of your family's history. Let the kids write and illustrate their own personal chapters.

Art
and crafts—make a flannel board

Cover a large piece of cardboard with flannel, using glue, staples, or tape. Cut shapes from felt, such as rectangles, squares, triangles, circles, trees, letters, numbers, and so on. Kids will spend hours creating scenes and pictures by sticking the felt to the flannel.

Art and crafts—make big crayons

Clean out a small, flat can. A tuna can works well. Preheat oven to 250°F. Fill the can halfway with crayon pieces that you would normally throw out. Don't forget to remove any paper. Place the can in the oven until the crayons melt in about 20 minutes. Once the crayons are melted and the colors have run together (don't stir or you'll introduce a new Crayola color: mud), take the can out of the oven and cool the mixture in the refrigerator until hard. Pop the crayon out of the can, and your kids will have a big, new rainbow crayon.

Art and crafts—make edible necklaces

Tiny fingers can easily thread Cheerios or Fruit Loops onto a length of yarn. Tie a knot in one end, and twist a bit of tape on the other end so it is easier to handle.

Art and crafts—make place mats

Cover your kids' drawings with clear adhesive-backed
contact paper, and use them as place mats. You can also give these great works of art to their grandparents as gifts.

Art and crafts—paint palette

Use plastic or Styrofoam trays (like the ones vegetables or fruit are sometimes packed in) as palettes for mixing paint colors. They won't leak, and they are especially good for kids' projects.

Art and
crafts—paint pots

Save old muffin tins or egg cartons for kids' painting sessions.

Art and crafts—play-and-eat
dough recipe

Here's an alternative recipe in the event your little one likes to eat more than play. Mix
½
cup smooth peanut butter with
¼
cup powdered sugar. Can be stored in a tightly closed container on the pantry shelf.

Art and crafts—play dough recipe

In a large pot combine 3 cups flour, 1
½
cups salt, and 6 teaspoons cream of tartar. Stir in 3 cups cool water, into which you have mixed 3 tablespoons vegetable oil and food coloring of choice. Stirring constantly, heat over medium heat. Keep stirring until the mixture coagulates and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan, or for about 5 minutes. Turn onto a cutting board and cool slightly. Once you can touch it, knead it until it is smooth and has the right feel. Store in an airtight container.

Art and crafts—shaving cream finger painting

Dress each kid in an old shirt, apron, or pillowcase smock. Squirt out a small amount of shaving cream on the kitchen table. The kids can then “paint” on the table, and after rubbing for several minutes, the shaving cream will disappear. Test the tabletop ahead of time for any adverse effects.

Art and crafts—sidewalk chalk recipe

Mix together 1 cup plaster of Paris, 4 tablespoons water, and food coloring, and blend to a toothpaste consistency. Pour the mixture into cookie cutters placed on waxed paper to make fun shapes, and pour it into toilet tissue tubes covered on one end with waxed paper secured with a rubber band. Allow chalk to thoroughly dry. Remove from cutters or cardboard tubes.

Bathing—baby

Smear a tiny bit of petroleum jelly above your baby's eyebrows to channel soapy water and shampoo away from her eyes.

Bathing—food coloring

Kids sensitive to bubble bath but still want a fun and festive bath? Add a few drops of food coloring to the water and presto! Green, blue, or whatever color you want. It doesn't stain and they love it.

Bathing—goggles
for shampooing

You can turn an unpleasant situation into a really fun time if you let your child wear swim goggles while you shampoo and rinse his hair.

Bathing—lotion
warmer

Lotion can be cold on a baby's skin after a nice warm bath. Warm it up by floating the closed bottle of lotion in the bathwater with baby.

Books—covers

Instead of buying expensive, laminated book covers for paperbacks, children's books, or booklets, use clear contact paper. It is much cheaper and performs equally well.

Cleaning—baby
bottles

To clean the gook that sometimes accumulates in the bottom of plastic baby bottles, drop a teaspoon of regular rice and a few tablespoons of hot water into the bottle. Apply the lid and shake vigorously.
Repeat as necessary. The kernels of rice act as tiny scrubbers to clean even the tightest spots inside the bottle.

Cleaning—rake to
gather toys indoors

Keep a small plastic yard leaf rake for quickly picking up all those tiny toys kids love to scatter. Rake them into a pile. Now you can quickly sort and put away.

Cleaning—stuffed animals

To freshen up a stuffed animal that can't be laundered, give the toy a “shower” with baking soda. Sprinkle it on, work it in, allow to sit for a while, then shake well or vacuum the baking soda away.

Clothes and
shoes—mark the right shoe

Mark your toddler's right shoe with a special mark like a heart or star. You'll be able to teach right from left while you teach how to put shoes on the correct feet.

Clothes and shoes—securing mittens

If your kids keep losing their mittens, do this: Sew a button to each mitten, and teach them how to button their mittens or gloves to a buttonhole in their coat or jacket when they take it off. No buttonholes? Make two in a concealed but convenient place on the inside of the coat.

Clothes
and shoes—trace feet for right-size shoes

Every few months trace your kids' feet on paper, cut out, and carry with you. If you run into an outrageous shoe sale and the kids are not with you, you can fit shoes nearly perfectly using the drawn image.

Decorating—room
redo

If the cost of redecorating a child's room with matching sheets, comforter, pillow shams, dust ruffle, and drapes sends you over the edge, here's a way to reduce that cost: Buy sheets in the pattern you want, then buy an extra set that
matches exactly or coordinates nicely. Cover the box springs with the extra fitted sheet, which eliminates the need for a bed skirt. Use the extra flat sheet to make curtains and or a valance and throw pillows. Two additional flat sheets would make a perfect duvet if you have even minimal sewing skills.

Decorating—
sleep under the stars

Instead of buying plastic stars or stickers for your child's ceiling, dab glow-in-the-dark paint on the tip of a dowel and randomly tap the ceiling in your child's room, reapplying paint as needed. The dots won't show during the day, but at night these “stars” glow and even seem to twinkle. A cheap and easy way to surprise a child.

Diaper rash

Instead of buying expensive diaper rash ointments, purchase store-brand zinc oxide from the drugstore. It works great to prevent and treat diaper rash and is very inexpensive. Always consult your pediatrician about any unusual condition that does not clear up quickly.

Entertainment and activities—bubbles recipe

Bubble recipe: Thoroughly mix 1 cup water,
⅓
cup Joy dish-washing liquid (must be Joy), and
⅛
cup white corn syrup. Use with a bubble blower.

Entertainment and activities—create
a carnival

Summer boredom set in? Have your kids help you create a carnival. Using resources such as
Family
Fun
magazine, design a selection of simple games kids will like, such as shooting cotton swabs through straws to knock down paper cups, water balloon tosses; make a golf club with a sponge tied to a stick, and so on. Make game tickets on your computer or draw by hand. Have your kids help with setup and include some
fun food, such as popcorn in paper bags or homemade popsicles. Set up prizes picked up from the local thrift shop and “price” each with the number of tickets needed to win. Invite some friends, blow up some balloons, and have a ball.

Entertainment and activities—designer birthday party

Here's a great idea for a young girl's birthday. Buy inexpensive fabrics for the young guests to cut and create fancy dresses. You won't need to sew, just tie and pin with safety pins. Hold a fashion show to allow the guests to model their creations.

Entertainment and activities—dress
up

Go to a thrift store and purchase old clothing, jewelry, shoes, hats, scarves, and purses, or ask for donations from friends and relatives. Select things that can easily be laundered and disinfected. Put everything into a special box or costume trunk. Little ones love to dress up.

Entertainment and
activities—garden hose phone

Insert a clean, tight-fitting funnel at each end of a garden hose. One child can speak into the “transmitter” funnel, while the other listens through the “receiver” funnel at the other end.

Entertainment and activities—
indoor sandbox

Here's a cheap, indoor, rainy-day activity for preschoolers. Pour coarse cornmeal into roasting pans or small boxes to make indoor “sandboxes.” Provide plastic utensils, toy soldiers, cars, trucks, and small wooden blocks to use in the “sand,” and you will have created hours of fun. Keep the vacuum cleaner on standby.

Entertainment and activities—indoor tennis

You'll need one leg from a clean pair of old pantyhose,
a wire coat hanger, masking tape, scissors, and blown-up balloons. Bend the hanger into a diamond-shape and straighten the hook to form a handle. Slowly pull the hose over the hanger until the top point of the diamond fits into the foot portion. Now wrap hose tightly around the handle, making sure the sharp end is well padded. Tape the hose to the handle. Use balloons instead of a ball to play tennis indoors. This is easy, quick, and lots of fun for little ones.

Entertainment
and activities—make a playhouse

Get a big cardboard box and cut holes for a door and windows. Let the kids color the box. Help them draw flowers at the bottom, shutters on the windows, maybe curtains on the windows. The possibilities are limitless. Washer, dryer, or other large boxes are ideal.

Entertainment and activities—occupied baby

Keep a stack of family photos at your baby's changing table. Babies who can focus love to study the pictures, which will buy you enough time for a quick, noncombative diaper change. Just make sure these are photos you don't mind getting crumpled.

Entertainment and activities—rainy-day surprise video

Videotape or make a digital film of the kids in action during one fine summer day, then put the movie away for a rainy-day surprise for the kids.

Entertainment and
activities—toys during phone calls only

If your kids cut up and misbehave when Mom's on the phone, here's a solution: Keep a large bag of small toys hidden until phone time, at which time the toys are taken out of the closet and dumped on the floor. The children are so excited with their “new” toys that Mom can have a pleasant conversation.

Equipment—booster chair

Start with old magazines of the same size, and stack
them to the desired height to properly boost your little one. Bind them together with strong tape, such as duct tape. Make a simple fabric cover that can be easily removed for laundering.

Equipment—chalkboard

Instead of buying an expensive chalkboard for your kids, for less than $20 you can purchase a piece of clear plywood and chalkboard paint available at any paint store. Paint according to instructions.

Equipment—kid's
bulletin board

Need a bulletin board for a child's room? Use an old-fashioned game board—a relic from the age before electronic games took over. A no-longer-used Monopoly board is colorful and decorative for hanging on a playroom wall.