With the holidays so close, and so much shopping, cleaning and decorating to do, I thought I might share some of my household tips with you. Some of these tips may be familiar, but I hope some will be new to you and help you with a lot of your household chores.
When you use scouring soap pads like Brillo or SOS, if you’re like me you never seem use the entire pad and it sits on your sink and rusts. From now on when you buy soap pads cut them in half and use half at a time. It keeps …read more

We all need help now and then when it comes to saving money.  I always seem to be low on money right before the holiday.
Here are few tips that I hope will help.
Turn off the television when you are not in the room. The pennies you save can add up over time.
Make your own gifts instead of buying stuff from the store. You can make small crafty gifts or some goodies in a jar which can consist of anything from soup to cookie mix. Follow my blog on Home & Living and I’ll show you how to make some great …read more

I was on a field trip today at the pumpkin patch.  They had a gift store which had a nice covered porch, complete with rocking chairs and decorations.  I’m glad I walked up to the porch because I spotted these cute planters which are simply old dresser drawers.  My husband and I enjoy antiques, rustic decorations, and repurposing old items so I really liked this idea. 

Seeing these dresser drawer planters has stirred a curiosity for other things you can do with dresser drawers.  Rather than tossing your old drawers to the curb, consider one of these ideas:

Underbed storage – Better Homes & …read more

Brrrr!  I didn’t realize we were going to bypass fall and go right into winter.  Given that fall is my favorite season, this cold weather is a disappointment to me. 

Since winter is on the way, here are some ways to save on your winter energy bill.
1)  Install a programmable thermostat.  Have your thermostat drop down a few degrees each day while you’re at work.
2)  Change your filters every month.  Dirty filters can increase your bills by 20% each month.
3)  Keep your thermostat at 68F or below.  Wear a sweatshirt if you need to.
4)  Make sure your fireplace damper fits well.  …read more

You’ve heard it said many times that paper napkins are not good for the environment and that we should switch to cloth napkins and washable products as much as possible.  While I’m no self-proclaimed Tree Hugger, I do many things to cut back our our expenses and I try to recycle and cut back on waste as well.

I had been giving a lot of thought to our family using cloth napkins.  The problems that I faced were:

We have three kids; three young kids.  Trust me, these three kids are so messy.
The extra washing from the napkins.  I have enough laundry …read more

September is the best time to buy plants and patio furniture. Home improvement stores and garden centers are anxious to move their summer inventory so that they can make room for the fall and winter merchandise. It’s a great time for you to save.

Now that’s it’s the end of summer, stores are drastically marking down their patio furniture.  Most stores have marked their inventory down 75% percent!  I found chairs, tables, and benches, but unfortunately I could not find a matching set of anything.  Perhaps you will have better luck than I did.  I’m still hoping for an unexpected bargain somewhere.
Another …read more

Free year, free cookbook, and free decorating tips!
Better Homes and Gardens is having a pretty good sale right now. Order now and get one free year of Better Homes and Gardens magazine and two free gifts.  You’ll get two full years (24 issues) for the one year rate of $22.  Plus, you’ll get their All Time Favorites cookbook and a free digital copy of Quick & Easy Decorating.  If you’re thinking about getting this deal, don’t hesitate too long. I’m not sure how long it will last. 
Each Better Homes and Gardens issue is packed full of recipes, housekeeping, and gardening tips and …read more

A few weeks ago, I gave you a recipe for Sausage Cranberry Quiche.  I normally don’t purchase Craisins because they are a bit pricey, however, this week Harris Teeter has them on sale.  The Ocean Spray Craisins are buy 2 get 3 free.  I ended up with 5 packs of Craisins for only $5.58, which is $1.12 each. 

If you’re interested in making the Sausage Cranberry Quiche, now would be a great time to purchase the Craisins.  They also work well as snacks or in baking other items, such as muffins.  It’s a great way to sneak in some healthy food …read more

Better Homes & Gardens has come up with some neat crafts made with recycled materials.  The picture frame shown below really caught my eye. It is made from magazine pages and cardboard.  I’m thinking that this would be a colorful and creative way to bring an old picture frame back to life. 

There are 12 low cost recycled craft ideas, which include:

fabric scrap balls
patterned paper book covers
yardstick frames  and vintage tin crafts supplies organizer
painted jewelry box
homemade license plate art
magazine page frame and storage box
paint cans turned organizer
beaded luminarias
paper covered jewelry boxes

Some of these crafts use items that you might have lying around the house …read more

Last weekend, we went back to our old house to pack up the rest of our things before it was sold.  While I was walking around the yard, I was reminded of all the volunteer plants that could be put to good use.  There were volunteer azalea bushes, ivy, trees, and many other kinds of plants and bushes. 

Several years ago, my parents gave me some volunteer bushes they had growing in their yard.  I planted the small bushes in my yard and within a year or so, the bushes were tall and well developed.  The bushes didn’t cost me any …read more