Best painless "stretching things" budget tips?

[stahshee]

one more tip

I was going through the clothes that my dd had out grew. They had stains on them and I could not send them to the Salvation Army.. so I cut them in half to be used as rags (insted of paper towel) . I use them and then toss them.

 

[gottaluvdis]

Home Depot or Lowes ..... they will cut it there for you too. It's in the section for closet organization ... just a white wire closet rod with shelf on top. My DH also put up one of those TINY little ceiling fans - 24" or less (I think it was called a bullet or an egg). We turn it on to help dry stuff hanging in the laundry room. that cute little fan

We have a small laundry room that has 2 walls opposite each other over the tub sink. I bought a regular shower tension rod and put it up between the 2 walls, over the sink. I hang all our "nondryable" clothes on the rod and take them upstairs when dry. I also try to hang as much as possible to avoid using the dryer as often. I like the idea of putting old dry towels in with the loads to save dryer time - I'll try this next load. I also sometimes wash at night (always use cold water), and dry in the morning. The clothes are drier when they hit the dryer.

 

[marypoppinswannabe]

I use soak when I wash my electric blanket, because it's on the instructions. I also use it when I wash the backdoor rugs, because the dirt gets so ground in.

So, do I just put the clothes in without any detergent, or do i put detergent in the soak? And do I just put the clothes in the washer and soak and it runs like any of the other cycles. (I should probably be ashamed that I made this long without ever using this cycle this before )

Do you have a toaster oven? Before my son was born I used to use mine nearly every night to cook dinner for my husband & I. It takes much less time & power to heat than the oven & does a really good job. I could fit a 9" pie plate in mine so things like corningware casserole dishes were no problem. So things like extra chicken would get turned into things like enchiladas or pot pies, beef into shepherds pie & the leftovers all became something different. I could use it to roast peppers, melt cheese for nachos, even bake biscuits. Very, very handy. This might be a good solution for you.

Thanks for sharing the recipes. I am trying to start cooking more homemade to save money. Also, I never even thought about using a toaster oven for anything but toast. I will definitely be trying this.

 

[bartleby1]

So, do I just put the clothes in without any detergent, or do i put detergent in the soak? And do I just put the clothes in the washer and soak and it runs like any of the other cycles. (I should probably be ashamed that I made this long without ever using this cycle this before )



Thanks for sharing the recipes. I am trying to start cooking more homemade to save money. Also, I never even thought about using a toaster oven for anything but toast. I will definitely be trying this.

Yes, you put the clothes in with detergent on the soak cycle. It will fill with water and do a small amount of agitating but it won't drain or rinse (hence, the 'soak' name). Then, later on, when I think about it, I'll start the regular wash cycle, but my machine has different lengths that I can set it on. I just do a short regular cycle. The clothes come out fine since they've been soaking for a while (many times it is all day because I forget about it, LOL!), but it uses less electric because I only run a short cycle.

 

[sunnyday123]

So, do I just put the clothes in without any detergent, or do i put detergent in the soak? And do I just put the clothes in the washer and soak and it runs like any of the other cycles. (I should probably be ashamed that I made this long without ever using this cycle this before )
/QUOTE]

that's ok. I can't use bleach to save my life. I just buy new.

 

[marypoppinswannabe]

that's ok. I can't use bleach to save my life. I just buy new.

Pretty funny... I don't use bleach either.

 

[aepecoraro]

I dont know if anyone else does this.. But there is no need to wash towels often. You use towels to dry off from the shower and you are clean. Just make sure to hang it up to dry. Wash them weekly or bi-weekly depending on how many times you use it.

 

[mom2rose&john]

I dont know if anyone else does this.. But there is no need to wash towels often. You use towels to dry off from the shower and you are clean. Just make sure to hang it up to dry. Wash them weekly or bi-weekly depending on how many times you use it.

I wish I could get my husband into this mindset. I think it is such a waste not to reuse bath towels.

 

[Kycha]

I wish I could get my husband into this mindset. I think it is such a waste not to reuse bath towels.

Maybe you could try throwing the towels in the dryer for a few minutes to "fluff" them. I doubt your husband would notice the towel hadn't actually been washed.

 

[katiee511]

I dont know if anyone else does this.. But there is no need to wash towels often. You use towels to dry off from the shower and you are clean. Just make sure to hang it up to dry. Wash them weekly or bi-weekly depending on how many times you use it.

This is the way I grew up and have always done this in my own home. I basically wash towels every Wed & Sun, so it is routine. We also use a hand towel hung over the shower door rod (to dry & store) as our bath mat. When its time to wash, I use the 'bath mat' towel to wash the floor and the hanging hand towel to wash all the counters, sink and toilet lids before tossing in the wash.

 

[kwhite1022]

Along the lines of the cutting the fabric softner: I cut those baby washcloths by huggies. I always get coupons for those, and have a 2 and 5 year old that I bathe together, a half of one of those works great and then after bath time, I use it to clean the shower/sink/toilet.

I just had to replace my washer and went with a HE one....Im a little leery to not use the HE soap, I do have a whole bottle of unused Pyrex that I may use as filler when I cannot find a deal on the HE I like.

My hubby makes a marinara sauce for his chicken parm recipe, and after that dinner, we use the remaining sauce for homemade pizza....works great. I time this to be in the same week I make pasta salad, which means I will have pepparoni on hand for that, that way we dont waste anything.

 

[cndij]

I plan on buying more staples in bulk, rice, different kinds of beans, oatmeal etc. Anyone have suggestions for where to get Bulk storage containers reasonably? I know Tupperware has them, but not wanting to spend $100 getting set up.

Thanks
Cindi

 

[lauralana9]

I wish I could get my husband into this mindset. I think it is such a waste not to reuse bath towels.

OMG Me to. He would only use it once. Drove me insane, so.. I stopped washing them. Seriously, It's just us. No reason I should have to do an entire load of towels a week. After a few times of him begging to use my towel, the only clean non stinky one (he throws his wet towels in a pile they have to be bleached after that) in the house he got the hint.

Thing that really drives me crazy is we used to share HALF a towel that got washed once a week. We never decided to move in together, one day I stayed the night and just didn't leave. At the time he had this old raggedy beach towel he used (ahh single men). At some point it had ripped down the center, not sure where the rest of it was. He didn't think anything of it and we just kept forgetting to buy more. Eventually on a trip back to my sisters where I had been living I swiped one of hers so we could each have our own. When we finally got our own place his mom bought us a nice set of towels its like he went nuts. All the sudden he could not use it more than once.

 

[gorams]

A great stay at home mom I know uses new pet food containers for bulk flour, rice, etc. They look really nice and organized. She said that they were the only thing big enough and the price was great. SHe bought them at a pet supply place.

 

[StillPinballFamily]

I plan on buying more staples in bulk, rice, different kinds of beans, oatmeal etc. Anyone have suggestions for where to get Bulk storage containers reasonably? I know Tupperware has them, but not wanting to spend $100 getting set up.

Thanks
Cindi

OK- I am insanely cheap! I have an entire matched set of lovely large bulk storage jars.

What are they? Where did I get them?

They are the big clear plastic jars that formerly held BJs animal crackers! I use my label maker to specify the *new* contents. I've got several different types of rice, five different types of flour, sugar, oats, and other stuff. The jars have screw-on lids. The animal crackers are about $6 a jar and we truly enjoy them - but I love them even more when they're gone and I get my hands on the empty jars! The jugs are each big enough to hold about 15 lbs of flour.

 

[OceanAnnie]

OK- I am insanely cheap! I have an entire matched set of lovely large bulk storage jars.

What are they? Where did I get them?

They are the big clear plastic jars that formerly held BJs animal crackers! I use my label maker to specify the *new* contents. I've got several different types of rice, five different types of flour, sugar, oats, and other stuff. The jars have screw-on lids. The animal crackers are about $6 a jar and we truly enjoy them - but I love them even more when they're gone and I get my hands on the empty jars! The jugs are each big enough to hold about 15 lbs of flour.

Great tip! I was wondering how I'd store bulk rice and such. Thanks!

Does anyone have the GT Xpress 101? I have one that I did use quite a bit and I put it in a cabinet and forgot it. I saw a infomercial and fell in love with it again. I'd buy it all over again. I was remembering all the great omlettes and wrap sandwiches I made. LOL. I mainly used it in the summer. Great to make food "to go". I pulled it out for omlettes in the morning!

 

[Local_Girl]

ooo, I like that idea for using the big plastic jars! I use the big 5-quart ice cream tubs (we *ahem* seem to have an abundance of those ) to hold lots of things. I let the kids use some for little toys, rock collections, etc. and keep some in the kitchen for holding rice, gravy-type packets, and other small stuff that would clutter up my pantry shelves. I also use them to transport cookies/treats on occasion. Not sure how air tight they are, but they seem to serve my purposes just fine.

 

[KQAN]

The best budget tip for me was taking a recent trip to the UK and Ireland (where my son lives). Man, everything is so darn expensive there, and our dollar is worth squat, that everything looks like a deal here! No more complaining about prices from me! UK people, I am so sorry for the prices you pay for everything!!

Because they get paid in pounds, the prices aren't as bad to them as they are to us yanks. And when they come to the States, everything is half off! So don't bother feeling sorry for them.

 

[KQAN]

Great tips on this thread...I think the biggest theme is to just reduce the amount of single-use, throw-away items you use, because you just have to buy more. Tupperware instead of plastic bags, real towels and napkins instead of paper ones, reusable bottles instead of buying bottles of water, etc. Nobody's perfect, but making an effort to do all these things is good for both the environment and the budget!

 

[Gisele]

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