Avoid Ironing Clothes
When taking your clothes from the dryer, remove
them a bit early, when still slightly damp, and hang on hangers (use the big fat ones
to avoid the stretch at the tips of the hangers on certain tops, and use the fat ones on pants).
They'll continue to dry and the wrinkles will tend
to go away with hanging. May not work as well on
pure cotton, but does for most fabrics. For cottons
and such – iron them while still slightly damp and
it will be easier. Or you can hang and spray with more water mist, and then
put clothespins on the shirt to weigh it down in crucial areas where wrinkles are
worse.
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Cleaning Your Fridge
Clean a little each day – start with the top shelf and
remove everything. Use warm water and baking soda
mix with a rag. Wipe the shelf and walls and top of
the fridge. Put everything back and do the same with
the second shelf another time. It's less intimidating
to do when it's a bit at a time.
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Buy in Bulk
Go to warehouse stores and buy food in bulk to save
money – but buy what you know will get eaten. If
you buy too much produce it will probably go rotten
before it gets eaten. Store the dry goods in air-tight
containers to keep them fresher for longer. Store
extra bread in the refrigerator if you will eat it within
a week, otherwise store in freezer and take a few pieces
out to thaw ever day or so.
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Save on Panty Hose
When you get a snag or run in your panty hose, just snip off that leg about an inch lower than
the crotch. Keep it around and when you get a run in another pair of the same color, snip that
leg as well. Now you can wear one side on one leg, and the other ½ on the other leg (unless
these are both right or left specific feet – and then you might have to wait for another run in
the leg you need).
~~~~~~~~~~
Paper Waste – Turn it Around
Do you get mounds of paper from your kid's school or from work that seem like such a waste? Recycle
them – fold and tear or cut into note sized pieces of paper – and either stack them into a small box or
container, or get some stick glue that is the type that can be removable or re-stickable – and have your
child rub one side of the note and stack one on top of the other. This will build a pad much like the
"Post-It" notes. Of course, you will have to use only the papers that are blank on one side – not papers
that are used on both sides.
~~~~~~~~~~
Save on Your Water Bill and Usage
If you have a sump pump that drains water from your home to prevent flooding, try to
direct the flow of the water to some useful area – like into a garden or to flowers or
trees. There can be a lot of water pushed out and it should be made useful, rather than
wasted. Also – use any other collected water to pour on plants and gardens, like the water
in gutter drains or buckets left in the rain.
~~~~~~~~~~
Cooler Weather
Time to start getting fall and winter ready. Start emptying the hoses and be sure to disconnect them when it
gets close to freezing temperatures. Put a coat of caulk in areas of air flow from the outside in. Weather-seal the
doors and windows. You can get some blinds or even some blankets to put between the window and the inside of the house -
the space between can cushion so that the cold need not creep into the house from outside.
Get ready to cover your tomatoes and other plants in case the weather gets cold. Keep a blanket or a tarp ready to
toss over the garden. It would help if you put some stakes in the garden that are taller than the plants you will cover,
so not to burden the plants with the weight of the cover. If it rains or snows on top of the cover, your plants will
get crushed, but the stakes will hold up your cover and protect the plants.
Plant fall bulbs now so they will be ready to bloom in the spring. There are great sales on now and you should plant
before the ground gets hard from being cold. Plant several inches down so that the bulbs will be protected under the ground
once the snow starts coming down (depending on where you live). Tall flowers will need deeper planting so that they will
be able to hold up the stems. Bulbs are by far the least maintenance way to decorate your yard. They come up every year with
some fairly passive care.
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