DIY NATURAL CLEANING INGREDIENTS

As I get older, the smell of most cleaners mess with my sinuses really bad.  My solution is using cleaning concoctions I make myself with natural products that make it an awesome and frugal thing to have gotten into doing.  My favorite is white vinegar and water mixed in a spray bottle to clean counters, windows . . . small jobs.

Here is an article with a few ingredients that are natural and cheap.

This article is all about amazing ways to use hydrogen peroxide.

DIY Fabric Softner

Another use for baking soda and vinegar and one less expensive product to buy!

Click here for the tutorial.

Organize Your Spices!

How many times do you buy duplicate bottles of spices you can't find because your spices are a disorganized mess?

That mess is a money waster!

Click here for an article on how to make the pictured spice rack from the blog The Honeycomb Home.  

Take those basic directions and make it bigger or smaller to suit your kitchen.  Design your own to meet your needs!

DIY All-Natural "Soft Scrub" Cleanser

Vinegar is the one item that can save you so much money for a wide range of uses if you like to make your own stuff.  Baking soda and vinegar is a dynamic duo for all types of household chores.

Click here to learn how to make your own "soft scrub" cleanser.  

Take a big step toward frugal living and make own cleaning stuff!

DIY Screen Cleaner

It is so funny . . . sometimes I will be working on photo editing or graphics and there will be a spot or mark that doesn't look right, so I pull down the eraser tool and try to erase it.  After trying to figure out why the tool won't erase it, I realize it is my dirty screen!

I found a DIY screen cleaner recipe that costs pennies to make that is safe to use on our computer, television and phones.  Click here for the recipe.

Be safe . . . don't forget to spray onto the cloth, not the device!

Make Stained Bakeware Like New Again

I must admit that I'm so frugal that I will hold on to bakeware that looks like that one indefinitely and cover with aluminum foil.  Well, it is still functional and you know . . . I'm frugal!

You know I was so happy to find the article at Tip Hero that shows how to make your bakeware sparkle like new again.

Click here to go to the article . . . save some money!

Economical Castile Soap Uses

Lately we have been using artisan natural soaps and shampoo soaps that we love, but they are a bit pricey.

As a result, I've set out to educate myself on making my own concoctions and soaps.  It seems I keep hearing about castile soap for a wide array of  DIY projects that will hopefully save us lots of money.

When I ran across this article from One Good Thing by Jillee, I was amazed at all the practical uses for castile soap in my DIY endeavors.  Hopefully you will find one you like!

DIY and Minor Home Annoyances

Anything DIY home improvement that will save time and money is of great interest to me!  I know most of you will agree with me . . .

One of my Twitter friends, Steven Davidson, shared the article Don't Sweat The Little Things from the website 411HomeRepair.com.  

The website is an awesome reference website with tons of DIY tips and tricks for home repair and more.  Check it out!

If you are interested in learning 1001 ways to improve your home, you will want to follow Steven on Twitter.

Happy Home Repair!

Tips to Find Pallets and Reclaimed Materials

If you are reading this blog, I know the "if it is free it is for me" mentality is your mantra!

The DIY blogs and websites are bursting with fabulous projects using wood pallets.  I haven't paid much attention to them since I don't have wood pallets readily available and had no idea where to start.  Until now!!

One of my newest blog discoveries, Old World Garden Farms, has a very informative article on how to find wood pallets and other reclaimed materials.  Although many of these found objects are not free, but are usually next to nothing compared to buying new stuff.  

Click here to go to the article.

DIY Stain Remover

Can't wait to try this DIY Stain Remover

 that was sent to me by a friend.

Original source unknown!

1 tsp. Dawn dish washing detergent

3-4 tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide

couple tablespoons of baking soda

Scrub on with a scrubbing brush. 

How to clean burnt pots and pans

I love my stainless steel pots and pans that I purchased way back in the day when I was in high school.  One thing I am kind of anal about is keeping them clean and shiny.

Well, since I married The Captain, the poor pots and pans stay scorched and burned inside and out.  He's a great cook, but thinks that everything has to be cooked on high heat.

No matter how much I scrub them . . . and I have used many different methods . . . they don't come out as clean and shiny as I would like.

Hopefully this is the solution to the problem . . . click here for Jessica's solution!

Nail Fungus Home Remedies

Nail fungus can be difficult and expensive to get rid of . . . here are some relatively inexpensive DIY solutions to taking care of this problem:

Vinegar & water: Soak 15 minutes each day in a 1:2 vinegar and water solution.

Tea tree oil: Apply a few drops to affected area at least twice daily, rub into surrounding skin then cover with a bandage.

Eucalyptus Essential Oil: same as above.

Grapefruit seed extract: Apply twice daily.

Vicks VapoRub: Rub this in covering the area entirely each morning and night.

Listerine Mouthwash: Soak twice a day in full strength Listerine mouthwash for at least 10 minutes a sitting.

Coconut oil: Use each morning and night (before bedtime).

Hydrogen Peroxide: Saturate the area with a drop or two daily.

Tea tree & lavender Essential Oil : Apply this 50/50 mixture morning and night.

Apple cider vinegar: Saturate with apple cider vinegar twice a day.

DIY Home Maintenance and Repairs

These days we are all feeling the pinch of the poor economic times and are finding ways to stretch our precious dollars.  When it comes to home maintenance and repairs, it is one of the most expensive, often non-budgeted item and most of the time we are at the mercy of those repair people who are not so honest (especially when they are dealing with women).

As money becomes tighter, it becomes more important than ever to learn how to be self-sufficient and do as many of those DIY home maintenance and repair projects that we can!

How do you know where to learn how to tackle these projects yourself?

Home improvement centers as Home Depot, for example, have excellent workshops to empower you to get those little things done around the house.  The internet is a search away from finding "how to" instructions for many of those projects.

Pretty Handy Girl is one of those websites who claims to "empower you to complete your own DIY projects."  Why not?  It just takes a little education and knowing what tools you need to get the job done. Join Brittany Bailey and see what she has to offer before you pay that pricey repairman to do a simple repair that you can tackle yourself at a fraction of the price!  

Click here for her section on Home Repairs and empower yourself!

An Abundance of Oranges?

This post is for those who are fortunate enough to have orange trees on their property or if you have an abundance of oranges for one reason or another.

For the first time in many years, we are blessed with an abundance of oranges since our baby orange trees have matured and put out lots of sweet oranges.  Yes, this makes me happy, happy, happy since oranges, even in the State of Florida, have become rather expensive.

Of course I have lots of recipes using oranges that I will be posting on my food blog, but the following are general pages about the use of orange marmalade.

Click here for a page dedicated to cooking with orange marmalade.

Recipes using orange marmalade from Thrifty Fun

Different uses for orange marmalade from eHow

If orange marmalade is not your thing, here are some other ideas for using oranges . . .

Uses for oranges from eHow

Household uses for oranges

10 Unique Uses for Orange Peels

Beauty Uses of Oranges

24 Uses for Oranges

Natural Lemon Vinegar Cleaner (updated)

This cleaning recipe is a frugalista's dream!

I'm really excited about finding so many natural cleaners without toxic chemicals to use around the house.  Especially when it is stuff I already have!  

Our lemon and lime trees produce lots of fruit, so there is an abundance of lemon and lime peels that usually get throw into the compost pile or the trash.  And I always keep a large jug of white vinegar to keep the drains clean and smelling good!

Click here for instructions . . . can't wait to try this cleaner!



UPDATE:  
Click here for 25 uses for lemon peels
from One Good Thing by Jillee

Clothes dryer problems?

Appliances are one of those things that I hate to go out and buy.  Being the frugal person that I am, all home remedies are exhausted before even calling the repair man . . . they are very expensive too!

It has been a while since the clothes dryer has been acting up and not drying the clothes in one cycle. We would have been grateful for two drying cycles!  It would take forever to get laundry done!

After cleaning out the lint vent and replacing the thermostat (ugh, the part alone was expensive . . . The Captain changed it out, saving on labor costs), it still was not working properly, although a little better.

Stubbornly frugal and still not wanting to give in and buy an expensive dryer, I decided to do some digging around the internet to see if anyone else was having the same problem.

I finally found the answer that eventually solved the problem and I am so sorry that I can't think of where I found the information since I am so grateful to whoever that was!!

Sometimes it is simple, little things that make a difference in the way things work.  It was so simple, I almost felt silly for even trying the suggestion . . . and I dismissed it for a while.  After continuing to struggle with the laundry, I thought, why not try?

Fabric dryer sheets and fabric softener container waxy ingredients that clog up the lint screen, making it impossible for proper air ventilation.  I imagine it could also start a fire!

So . . . out came the lint screen for a good cleaning . . . and voila . . . the dryer is working perfectly!

Check your lint screen out and see if water doesn't penetrate it.  Water will just bead up on the screen if it needs to be cleaned.  All it takes is water, a little dishwashing liquid and a toothbrush.  Problem solved or prevented!

Most people would go out and buy a new one.

Anyway, it sure is nice to be able to get the laundry done quickly :)

The Wonders of Dawn Dishwashing Liquid

TUB AND SHOWER CLEANER

Take a spray bottle and fill it halfway with white vinegar. Heat in the microwave. Fill the rest of the way with blue Dawn. Put lid on and shake to mix well. Spray on your tub and shower walls. Allow to sit for a few minutes and rinse away. It will totally melt all the gunk, slime, sludge and other stuff that builds up including a bathtub ring.

Click here for an awesome article . . . Original Blue Dawn, Not Just for Dishes Anymore from the blog One Good Thing by Jillie, where you will find a listing of lots more uses for Dawn that will save you money!