Cheap ba$ket filler

This really is a pretty lame post as they go but thought I'd mention this to you anyway.
I recently had to prepare a very small gift using a mug, gift card and a small package of coffee and hot cocoa as a prize for a work celebration we are having.  The mug was quite tall and the 3 items sank too deeply into it to make a cute presentation.  I was at work, had to think quick and didn't have the time or inclination to run out and purchase some shredded paper to fill the mug.
I took some waste paper, (3 sheets) and using my office scissors, trimmed it into long strips about 1/4 inch wide.  I crumpled them up and VIOLA!  Shredded paper for my gift box. 

I use plain old white copy paper but it would have been real cute with the brown paper wrapping that comes in my office supplies or with colored paper!  Imagine the possibilities!

I ju$t $tumbled upon thi$ web$ite

Do you love couponing, deals, more reading on frugal living  and trying to get free stuff in your mailbox?  If you do, you don't want to miss this website
http://www.moneysavingmom.com/

What if it $tinks?

I swear I am the ONLY person in my house who can smell a rotting onion or potato in the pantry!  The thing could putrefy before anyone besides deal old mom searches out the stink and removes the offending object...We've all had those (embarrassing )bad smells emanating from some place in the kitchen and they can be hard to get rid of so here are a few ideas to keep the kitchen odor free.

Garbage disposal:  pour a cup of boiling water through the disposal which will clean the blades.  Follow with the peels of a lemon or orange.

Fridge:  give the interior a good wipe down occasionally with a clean rag dipped in diluted white vinegar, place a new box of baking soda in the back and dip a cotton ball in vanilla extract (place it in a bowl) on the lowest shelf.  Remove after a few days>  Of if you prefer, use coffee beans/used grounds instead.

Dishwasher:  Don't let a half full dishwasher stink up your kitchen.  Rinse dishes if they are going to sit for more than a day or two.  IF a really bad odor persists, you may have to clean the filters.  Some food particles may be stuck.

Stove:  Turn on your range hood when you cook, clean the grate over the fan, which collects grease.  Clean your oven occasionally along with the drip pan under the burners to remove food particles that can create a smell. 

The bathroom:  For those embarrassing "personal odors", light a match to quickly dispel the stink.  That's probably why a wise hostess has a candle burning in the powder room during her parties...

Baking soda, white vinegar and borax (like a concentrated baking soda) work wonders at removing odors. 
Brush your dog regularly, vacuum regularly and light a candle

Clean it like you mean it

I love a clean house but don't often have the time to do it as well or as thoroughly as I'd like and I am too cheap to employ a professional cleaning lady so...here is what works for me

De-clutter before you begin to clean

--remove items from table tops and counters

--throw away junk mail and newspapers

Work Clockwise and set a time limit

--set a time limit to assure you'll work efficiently. Play lively music to get you going and make it seem less a chore

--If you are using a cleaning product (toilet bowl or tub, for example) Spray first and allow the product to work while you focus on other cleaning tasks. This uses less elbow grease

--start at the entrance of a room and clean clockwise until you are back at the entrance of the room

--vacuum first and then dust to catch what dust you stirred up while vacuuming

IF you are dusting walls and baseboards, light fixtures, etc be sure to dust those first and then do the furniture after you've vacuumed

SIMPLIFY

--use only a few cleaning products that work for you

--I LOVE microfiber cleaning cloths. Dampen slightly and use to clean glass table tops, mirrors and windows. These are perfect dust catchers and even work on your blinds.

--Mr. Clean magic erasers work for those fingerprints on door and banisters-no scrubbing required

--Scrub using BOTH Hands for more power or wash with the right hand and dry with the left hand

--reduce clutter (knick-knacks) to make cleaning easier

--sometimes good enough is...well, GOOD enough!

--get in the habit of putting things away or wiping up the spill as soon as you you're done (let me know how you teach this to your pre-teen)

The devil is in the details

--don't forget door handles, cabinet pulls, behind the appliances on the counter

--sometimes just replacing that nasty shower curtain liner or the stove burner is more efficient than cleaning it

--if you're in a pinch, only do the room that company will see or hit only the hot spots (clean the toilet, vacuum high traffic areas)

$mells? How to air out your house just in time for $pring!

Time to open the windows and get some of that fresh spring air smell inside! 
Here are some tips on the BEST way to bring only the best of the great outdoors inside.

1) Keep the screens in so varmints don't get in along with that fresh spring air.
2) If you have double hung Windows, open the top and bottom equal amounts.  Warm air will escape out the top and the cooler air will enter through the bottom of the window.
3) Open windows across the hall from each other.  Outside air will enter through one and that stale air will exit through the other.
4) Change your furnace filter regularly.  Run your A/C on low to filter out particulates (which trap odor molecules)
5) Place fans strategically in conjunction with your open windows to get the most benefit
6)  Clean your blinds and windows while you are at it to maximize that spring cleaning feel.

To clean blinds and windows arm yourself with a MR Clean magic eraser (new) and several microfiber towels and a few rags.
Lightly moisten the magic eraser with water and clean the blinds by stroking the eraser across the blinds. 
Wipe clean with a damp rag, dry with a clean rag. 
Moisten half of a microfiber towel and "wash" the window".  Dry with a clean microfiber towel.  Viola!  Sparkling clean with no streaks or use of chemicals!

Follower$!

I am so excited.  I just noticed this BLOG now has 3 followers!  It's not many...but it's a start/.  Thank you all so much for following!  I hope I am able to inspire you occasionally!

Please respond and let me know where you are most challenged, what topics you'd like to see covered and how YOU live a frugal lifestyle!

Happy Savings!