Well its the last day of the long group of frugal tips I have for you today. This is just a collection of tips for your household. Hopefully you have found some of these tips super useful. Maybe you even printed them off and hung them in their respective places (Laundry in the laundry room, kitchen in the kitchen, etc.). LOL. However, since this is the last installment of tips, I am gonna have to find other ways to earn my title of "The Frugal Mom" LOL! I don't think that will be too hard! Ok kids, here they are... even MORE frugal living tips! Enjoy!
Miscellaneous Household Tips
1. Fruit and flowers may be preserved from decay and fading by immersing them in a solution of gum arabic and water two or three times, waiting a sufficient time between each immersion to allow the gum to dry. This process covers the surface of the fruit with a thin coat of gum, which is entirely impervious to the air, thus preventing the decay of the fruit or flower. Or spray them with hairspray.
2. Sharpen your own scissors by using them to cut fine grade sandpaper. About a half dozen cuts should do it!
3. Bobbins, thread, and other sewing notions can be hung on a bulletin board with straight pins near your machine.
4. Use iron-on rug binding on men's trousers to prevent "waist-band curing" of trouser tops.
5. Use nylon net to brush lint off dark clothing.
6. To achieve fresher air in the house without paying a fortune for canned spray, squeeze a few drops of a fresh lemon into the dust bag of your vacuum.
7. Close off unused rooms. If you currently heat and cool several seldom-used rooms in your home, you are wasting energy and money. Consider closing the air ducts and doors in rooms used mostly for storage and occasionally for guests. Closing unused rooms may reduce heating and cooling costs by up to 20 percent, depending on the proportion of your home's total square footage the closed rooms comprise. Check with the dealer of the heating and cooling system in your home to determine whether closing off rooms has the potential to harm the system.
8. Always have trouble with that one roll of tape and finding the end of it? Stick a button on the end, then when you use it, just move the button.
9. Rub the pure cornstarch type baby powder into your pet's coat prior to brushing/combing, if there are tangles or mats, it will make them come out much more easily.
10. Tea makes a nice inexpensive, yet permanent stain for unstained furniture.
11. Sprinkle cinnamon on aluminum foil and place it in a hot oven, leaving the door open. As the cinnamon heats, the cinnamon will permiate the house.
12. Spray the inside of a mayonnaise jar white. Store it in the refrigerator as a hiding place for money or valuables.
14. Put a metal spoon into a glass before pouring in any hot liquid - this will prevent the glass from cracking.
15. Soak a cloth in carbonated water and wrap around a rusty bolt and leave for a few minutes. The bolt should loosen right up.
16. Tip for stamp collectors: Place the envelope in the freezer for a few hours. You'll then be able to easily lift the stamps off with a pair of tweezers.
17. Save your change. Empty your wallet, purse, and pockets on a regular basis into a "piggy bank". Occasionally roll the change and take to the bank. It will add up faster than you think.
18. Did you know you can freeze milk? Next time it is on sale, pick up several gallons and freeze it!
19. Freeze candles before using and they will burn longer.
20. The more food in the oven, the more efficient it is. The same goes for your freezer.
21. To keep buttons from dropping off: Dab a drop of clear nail polish onto the thread to secure the buttons. This will harden and make it more difficult for thread to break off.
22. A shot of vodka added to a vase will keep your cut flowers fresher much longer.
23. Potatoes will take food stains off your fingers after your food preparations. Just slice and rub a raw potato on the stain and rinse in clear-cool water.
24. Do not store propane tanks in your garage. They may explode when it gets very hot.
25. Brown sugar will not harden if stored in the freezer.
Now its just about time for us to begin yet another challenge... the Christmas Challenge. Now today I will have a little visitor hanging out with me for a spell and I thought a baby craft would be cool to feature today. I might use this idea as part of his gift... not sure yet. At any rate, this is a great craft to make some inexpensive toys for your kids or even for donation to maybe a children's hospital too!
Craft Idea of the Day: Felt Baby Cube
Materials:
Felt
Embroidery Thread
Colored felt for shapes
Needle
Toy Filling/Wadding
Directions:
This felt cube sewing project is so versatile, it can be used as a kids toy or a pin cushion.
Start by cutting out 6 squares 8 inch (20cm) in size.
Using a blanket stitch join all the edges together to form a flat shaped cube.
Leaving the Top square off. This will allow you to sew on the shapes and to fill it.
We used hand shaped pieces that were sewn onto the side, but you can find adhesive felt shapes in your craft store which are much faster and add more detail.
Soft filling works best for toys, but if you intend to use it as a needle holder try using something a little firmer like toy foam or a foam cube.
Sew the top on using the blanket stitch.
Make smaller ones for cat toys or larger ones for kids toys. Drop a bell in for a rattle effect.
Ok, lets talk about Elvis! Now everybody has favorites... and Elvis was no exception. Tabitha wanted to know some of my favorite Elvis stuff? Well... let's see, I really can't pick one favorite song... I love them all! But I would say that I am more fond of the upbeat tempo songs like "Rock-A-Hula", "(You're So Square) Baby, I Don't Care", and "Bossa Nova Baby" just to name a few LOL. I also like some of the songs that really showcase "Southern" influence like "Crawfish" and "The Eyes of Texas" just to name a couple! However, there is one song that sticks in my mind so much that it is written in my final wishes that it be played at my viewing. I know, morbid, huh? Anyway... the song is "My Way" and I chose that because it is the epidemy of my life. I truly have lived it "My Way". Now my favorite movie? Again, its SO hard to choose because I love them all as well! I could make a day (or even a weekend LOL) of just sitting around watching all the Elvis movies! But if I HAD to pick then out of the 31 films he did as an actor, I would have to say either Viva Las Vegas, King Creole, G.I. Blues, or Blue Hawaii. Choosing is so hard! LOL... And my favorite Elvis food? Well... considering what all was on his list, I would have to say the cheeseburger or boneless chicken (depending on the part of the chicken and the preparation LOL). (Of course that is not MY favorite food LOL.) Shoot, I don't even know what all my favorites would be LOL... something for me to think about seriously LOL. Anyway, let's explore some more of The King's Favorite stuff!
Favorite toothpaste: Colgate
Favorite after-shave: Brut
Favorite drink: Pepsi Cola, Mountain Valley Water
Favorite foods: Peanut butter & bananna sandwiches, mashed potatoes, burned bacon, grape jelly, cheeseburgers, pork chops, sauerkraut, meatloaf, boneless chicken, cornbread, egg pie, blackberry cobbler
Favorite hobbies: Go-carting, karate, numerology, reading, gospel singing, touch football
Favorite board games: Yahtzee (the score pads he and Priscilla used are on display at Elvis's Memphis restaurant), Monopoly
Favorite collectible: Official badges. He had police badges from almost every city he sang in and a federal narcotics badge from President Richard M. Nixon.
Second favorite collectible: Guns. There were nearly 40 weapons of various kinds in the Presley arsenal, including M-16s and other rifles, automatic pistols, derringers and a Thompson submachine gun.
Ok its time to make a meal fit for the King! A couple more of the King's favorite foods (as you see listed above) were sauerkraut and cheeseburgers. In his 20s, Elvis told Country Song Roundup Magazine he could polish off eight deluxe cheeseburgers, two bacon-lettuce-and-tomato sandwiches and three milkshakes in a single sitting. Now I could bring you a recipe for a normal cheeseburger, but what spiffed up kind of boringness would that be? Exactly! So I thought combining the 2 would be strange and modern! So I bring you sauerkraut... and a cheeseburger... together... shining in a whole new light! Eat & Enjoy!
Reuben Burgers
Ingredients
2 pounds ground pork
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup sauerkraut, drained
8 slices Swiss cheese
8 hamburger buns, split and toasted
Thousand Island salad dressing
Directions
In a bowl, combine pork, salt, pepper and garlic; mix well. Shape into 16 patties, about 3/8 in. thick. Spoon tablespoon sauerkraut in the center of eight patties; top each with a second patty and press edges to seal.
Grill, uncovered, over medium heat for 6-8 minutes on each side or until juices run clear. Top with cheese. Spoon salad dressing on buns and serve.
Well kids, I need to get off of here and make myself useful. I need to run a couple of errands and then come back and get crafty. I also will be waiting to hear about mom, as she was scheduled for her second shot today. Everyone please pray for her. Well, be safe in wherever life takes you today and I will see you tomorrow. Until then... HUGS!
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