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If you have a university in your town, they might have an excess, outdated, or just no longer needed storage area where items are sold to the public or other educators. My teacher-husband found a military shredder for under $50 that can shred half a phone book. We can shred our mail and personal items and shred newspaper for packing material for our business, which is a wonderful recycling method.
Janna
editor's note: For more on Buying a Paper Shredder, please click here or check out the discussion in The Dollar Stretcher Community.
Late July, August, and early September, as well as late November, December, and early January, are the best times to ask at college stores for empty boxes. They have tons of strong but manageably sized ones from stocking new start of the semester textbooks.
H.R.
If you have a hobby or a project that requires a template, use your empty gallon or half-gallon plastic jugs. Simply cut them apart into flat surfaces and cut out your template. These are free templates for quilters or other hobbyists.
The jugs also make great luminaries at Christmas. Just cut out a design, fill it with sand and a candle, and viola! You have a luminary! If you start now, you will have enough for your yard without the fire danger you have with lighting paper bags.
Diane L.
We get apples, and there are times that they sit and start to go soft. We also eat instant oatmeal in the single serving packets. I cut up the apples. Then I top the apples with one packet of apple spice oatmeal and one packet of brown sugar oatmeal. After adding butter to the top of this, we have apple crisp. It is a treat for breakfast or for evening dessert when topped with a scoop of ice cream. The apples are used, and everyone is happy.
Daura H.
editor's note: If you have a method for making you or your family feel good without spending money, please send it to gary@stretcher.com.
Here's a little something I do for my family that is fun and free. Whenever I sign up to receive a free product sample, I also sign up my married son and my daughter at college. They love going to the mailbox and finding "surprises." It only costs me a few minutes of my time but provides lots of smiles.
Cheryl C. in Peculiar, MO
editor's note: You might want to check with your kids first just to make sure that they'll enjoy the "surprises." Otherwise the surprise might be on you!
My husband and I came up with a way to get our young children to eat leftovers with no complaints. Once a week, we have a "special supper" night. Instead of serving the food at the table, we fix a plate for each with about seven or eight different things. For instance, we might give them a slice of leftover ham, a spoon full of each leftover side dish, and surprises like a few peanuts, two or three crackers, a chunk of cheese, piece of fruit, etc. They love it!
Shirley
To prevent a small crack in your windshield from spreading, place a drop of super glue over the area. Three years ago, two flying stones damaged my windshield and this method has kept them from becoming any larger.
Betty S. in Texas
editor's note: Before you try this tip, check with your insurance company. Many states require insurors to repair a cracked windshield without charging a deductible and companies can even come to your home or workplace to do a repair.
My oldest daughter has really thick hair, but expensive de-tangling sprays are not in our budget. Inspiration struck and I filled a spray bottle with about 1/3 conditioner to 2/3 water and sprayed a bit on her hair. It worked wonderfully at de-tangling her hair, and it was much shinier and more manageable the next day.
Melissa D.
Okay, it's late July and it's hot! Who wants to cook? Here in OK, our hottest months of August and September lay ahead of us. It's time to move the kitchen out of the main house. Being a scratch cook doesn't mean I have to make the air conditioner run double duty trying to keep the house cool while I cook good meals for my family.
While I still do all my prep work in the kitchen, I move the hot part outside to my sun room. You could use a garage or balcony of your apartment the same way. Any place small children and pets can't get into the food.
Most of us own small appliances. Now is the time to use them. My slow cooker, toaster oven and bread machine become my very best friends in the summer months. They are all used to prepare meals away from the main kitchen. I've also been known to use my electric skillet on the back deck. Then, of course, there is the charcoal grill, our fire ring for roasting hot dogs and doing Dutch oven cooking in, and hopefully some day soon a solar oven. (There are patterns to make inexpensive ones on the Internet.)
Anything you can cook in or on your big stove you can cook in these small appliances away from the kitchen in the summer months. I personally own several slow cookers in all sizes (watch for them at garage sales and during the holidays on great sales). Everything from soup to dessert can be cooked in these, and since you never open the lid, there is no danger of contamination. Check your local library for slow cooker cookbooks. You will be amazed.
Jan
editor's note: For more on solar ovens, please click here.
One of my favorite luxuries is to put a few shakes of essential oil in a safe place on the shower wall before I turn on the water. Once the warm water hits the wall, it creates a spa like atmosphere in my shower. I particularly like geranium oil that has mood lifting effects or eucalyptus oil. You can indulge and revive yourself for just pennies per use. Essential oils be purchased online or at your favorite health food store.
Lisa in CA
editor's note: If you have a method for making you or your family feel good without spending money, please send it to gary@stretcher.com.
Know the mesh produce bags that our potatoes, onions, and oranges come in? They are good for more than holding produce. Once the veggies are gone, slip the bags over everyday kitchen sponges (that you can get at the dollar store) and tie a knot at the end of the bag and at the end of the sponge. This will give you scrubbing power when scrubbing pots and pans!
Arlene D. in Raleigh, NC
When planning family activities, always assess whether your family will actually have "fun." Many times, I see fed-up parents dragging tired, over-stimulated kids around amusement parks, forcing their kids to go on rides when the kids are terrified just to "get their money's worth." I once spent $100 on circus tickets, only to find my son was more interested in the toy that the kid next to him had! Kids often don't need or want the expensive entertainment. They may enjoy a splash pad rather than an amusement park or a petting zoo rather than one with lions and tigers.
One time I took my son for a ride to the end of the streetcar line and back. We had an ice cream at the end. The total cost included one child's transit ticket and $4 for ice cream. I have a transit pass. On the streetcar, we passed a lot of interesting sites, including the recycling center where we could see the bales of paper and plastic bottles piled up.
Go to the school yard and draw an obstacle course with sidewalk chalk in the parking lot. Then let your kid(s) ride around it. Or use remote-control cars if you have them. I used to play traffic policeman and have the kids answer a question like "What is your address?" in order to change from stop to go (make a sign on a paper plate with a popsicle stick). Invite other neighborhood kids.
Set up the sprinkler. We had a great time when we put a wading pool at the bottom of our backyard slide, making our own waterpark! I duct-taped the hose to the top of the slide and let some water dribble down to keep the slide slick.
Evelyn S.
I go to garage sales throughout the spring and summer. I buy all the new, still-in-the-box things they have to offer. I also purchase gift paper and gift bags. You can buy them cheaply then. Most were gifts they could not use.
Then in October or November, when people start thinking about Christmas, I have an "in the house" sale. They look much better there than in a garage, and people pay twice to three times what you purchased them for.
Pat H. in Independence, MO
Instead of paying for mulch for your garden/yard, I lay down old newspapers (free from my library) and then spread grass clippings (free from my yard) over the papers. This holds in moisture and prevents weeds/grass from coming through. With two orchards, a vegetable garden, and a flower garden, I've found this to be nice to look at, and it's absolutely free.
Lori K.
I love sparkling clean windows. I use white vinegar mixed one part to three parts water and yesterday's newspaper to get them that way. I no longer have to buy glass cleaner and paper towels.
Linda O.
I collect free samples to use for holiday gifts, Christmas stockings, or extras for any gifting occasion throughout the year. My sister loves little samples and trying new products.
So far I have received a beautiful two-ounce pricey body wash, upscale nail file and buffer, various samples of creams and lotions, a full size name brand rosemary/mint hair conditioner, and two fragrance samples all for free! I'm still signing up for more free samples and there are several months left before the holidays arrive, so I will have quite a collection of items!
This is a nice way to give someone you love little luxurious treats. They might also find a great new product that they might not otherwise have known about!
Trisha in NJ
editor's note: If you have a method for making you or your family feel good without spending money, please send it to gary@stretcher.com.
I found one more good use for the abundance of old tube socks left over from when
I had teens in the house. I use pint-sized glass jars for freezer storage instead of plastic, but without some kind of protection around the jar, they are easily broken and can make a big mess. I cut up the old, but clean tube sock and slip a jar into it before filling. I cut the sock short enough so it doesn't cover the lid. I then put my label on the lid. While thawing, I leave the jar in the sock.
H.
When children are taught to do things for themselves, it gives them opportunities to learn independence and to be responsible. I pay my children to do various chores around the house. I have taught them to vacuum, mop, clean the toilet, and fold the towels. They also help out with yard work and mowing the lawn.
My mother-in-law told me that my children do a lot more and are more capable than some other children she knows. I know my kids don't always do a perfect job, but I believe that a good attitude and a best effort is more important than perfection. I also believe that my husband and I are teaching them life skills that they will need when they move out of our home. I believe paying them to help out with chores is good incentive because that is how the real world works, and if they don't do their chores, they don't get paid. I believe that we all function well as a team.
We have our ups and downs, but we have two really great, independent, and creative kids. I am very proud of both of them. Considering that they also have Autistic Spectrum Disorder, they are even more amazing. I am very privileged to have them. I believe that in putting in the effort to teach them to help out, they will have excellent life skills.
Lori W.
editor's note: For more on giving kids household chores, please click here.
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