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 & Gardens suggests putting casters on drawer bottoms to use them as under the bed storage.
• Bookcase – Country Living shows us how to build an adaptable modular storage system.  (Cool idea, btw!)
• Shelving – Mount an old drawer to the wall and use it for storage or knicknacks and decorations.  If your wall is made of drywall, be sure to drill into studs or use anchors.  This will help to hold the weight of the shelf.

What ways could you repurpose dresser drawers?

image (c) Karen Weideman

Post from: Keeping the Castle

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.  Close it when not in use.  Install a glass fireplace door.

5)  Remove window air conditioner units.  These let a lot of cold air into your home.

6)  Get a tune-up on your furnace to make sure it’s working properly.

7)  Put caulking and weather strips around doors and windows. 

8) Don’t block vents or radiators with furniture or curtains.

9)  Let the sunlight in.  Open the blinds on the sunny side of your house.  The sunlight will help to warm up the rooms.

10)  Seal your heating ducts.  Sealing and insulating ducts can improve the efficiency of your heating by as much as 20 percent.

What ways do you save on your winter energy bill?

image sxc.hu

Post from: Keeping the Castle

Mini Waste Hanging Basket – While this container isn’t the most attractive out there, it’s convenient and inexpensive. The hanging basket hooks on to the waste basket which makes recycling easier. This would be a convenient way to recycle at work. Simply throw your plastic bottles and paper into the hanging basket. At $4.51, it’s affordable.

Scrolled Metal Newspaper Rack – This is a perfect example of an attractive recycling solution.  This piece keeps your newspapers neatly together and is nice enough to go in your living room.

Set of 4 Recycling Bags – These are great if you like bright colors or want to several bins for sorting.  At $30, these are fairly inexpensive.  My concern is the amount of floor space that these would take.

Flip Lid Recycler – This one is probably my favorite.  It’s a bit pricer than the others, but it seems to be well-made.  I think this is something that would get plenty of use and could be set out in your kitchen without being an eye sore.

What do you think of these recycling containers?  Do you recycle?

images are from sites linked above

Post from: Keeping the Castle

1)  Take a 5 minute shower.  If this is hard for you, consider getting a timer.

2)  Make sure your shower head is one that is designed to reduce water usage.

3)  Use your dishwasher.  According to Consumer Reports, even if you are frugal with your water, an efficient dishwasher can use less water than washing dishes by hand.

4)  Only use your dishwasher and washing machine for full loads.

5)  Adjust the washing machine water level to match the amount of clothes.  If you have a HE machine, there may be an automatic setting where the water level can adjust on its own.

6)  Chill water in the refrigerator, rather than running the faucet for water to cool down.

7)  Install aerators on your faucets, which will reduce the flow of water.  You can usually purchase an aerator for just a few dollars.

8)  To reduce water usage from your toilet, fill a small water bottle with sand or water and place inside the tank.  Do not use a brick because the brick can dissolve and cause future problems. 

9)  Check toilets for leaks.  The inside plumbing for a toilet is only a few dollars.  A few years ago, our water bill kept rising every month.  The water dept suggested that we put a packet of unsweetened Kool-Aid in the tank to see if it drained into the bowl.  The color immediately drained into the bowl and we got our toilet fixed, which saved us a lot of money.

10)  Shut off the faucet when shaving, brushing your teeth, and doing dishes.

What easy ways do you save water?

image sxc.hu

Post from: Keeping the Castle

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 to do already.
• Having enough napkins to get through each day.

Since we had some cloth napkins that my mom had given me, I decided to go ahead and try it out.  I figured that even if we used them one day a week, it would still help out some.  Suddenly, I have found that my kids aren’t so messy.  I’m not contributing this to the napkins, but really, it has happened.  Perhaps it’s because the napkins are dark blue and I’m just not seeing the mess.

I have found that we are able to use the napkins for 2-3 days before washing them.  We simply fold them in half and hang them over the back of the chairs.  While I was unpacking recently, I also found the other napkins that my mom bought me.  Now we use our napkins and have another set until I can wash the towels and napkins.  And since there’s always a napkin on the kids’ chairs, they’re using their napkin more and no longer reminding me that they need one.  This system has worked for us. 

Have you switched to cloth napkins yet?

For more Works for Me Wednesday ideas, visit We Are THAT Family.  image sxc.hu

Post from: Keeping the Castle

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 such as cigar boxes, magazine pages, paint, glass telephone line insulators, and paint cans.

Which project do you think you’d like to try?

image from bhg

Post from: Keeping the Castle

Everyone knows it’s good to be as green as possible, but the high price of many organic products can have people reaching for conventional chemical-based pesticides and fertilizers. Well, there are plenty of ways to be frugal – and eco-friendly – with gardening and yard maintenance.

Weed Control
There are many ways to deal with weeds. You could use stand-bys like Round-Up, which is readily available. But did you know that there are eco-friendly options that are safer for pets and kids – and cheaper? One option is to get a weed puller. There are many options out there, with names like Weed Twister, Weed Queen, and more. These can be found at most hardware/home improvement stores, and work for weeds in the lawn – and do some aerating at the same time. For weeds that are in sidewalks and patios, mix vinegar with a splash of dish soap (the dish soap helps it stick to the weeds). This works best if you get the weeds while they are still small. Pickling vinegar is more effective than standard kitchen vinegar. You can also pour boiling water on these weeds. Be careful with these two methods though – they’ll kill everything, whether or not it’s a weed. For good pre-emergent weed control, spread corn gluten-based fertilizer on the lawn. This is usually not much more expensive than traditional fertilizers, and if you live near a feed mill you can get plain corn gluten for very cheap.

Fertilizer
Natural fertilizers are the best bet for safety of pets and kids, and are also much better for our water systems because of run-off. As mentioned above, corn gluten makes a good fertilizer. You can also make your garden and landscaping using native plants, which grow more easily and require less care.

Lawn Care
Keep your lawn right around 3 inches. It will require less water. When you mow, leave the clippings behind. It takes less effort than bagging and is good for the law. Consider replacing your gas mower with less expensive electric or manual ones – save gas and get a better workout at the same time. Buy a rain barrel – just an inch of rain from part of our roof runoff filled our 55-gallon barrel last week. We’ll use that to water the garden and our freshly planted trees until it runs out (or rains again). And don’t over-water. Lawns are typically healthy with only an inch per week. Water early in the morning for the most effective watering – and don’t water at all unless it’s been over a week without rain. Use sprinklers that go low to the ground to avoid water loss from evaporation.

image by Karen Weideman

Bekah blogs at Motherhood Moment where she shares freebies and tips on eco-friendly living, parenting, and saving money and time.

Post from: Keeping the Castle

Some of the ways I try to help are:

1.  I bring my own reusable bags to the grocery store.  Yes, sometimes I encounter some rolled-eyes from the baggers or heavy sighs, but I like bringing in my own bags.  I can’t stand all of those plastic ones filling up my house.  Besides, the reusable ones hold more and don’t break.

2.  I reuse the plastic bags. If I happen to forget my plastic bags or didn’t bring in enough reusable ones, I try to find a use for the plastic ones.  I don’t bring home many of them, so it doesn’t take much effort to find other uses.  Typically I use them for trash bags for my bathroom or for cleaning up nasty messes.  We no longer have a garbage disposal, so sometimes I wrap food in them before throwing the food into the trash.  This keeps the house from getting smelly.

3.  I try not to buy prepackaged foods.  Prepackaged foods are too expensive anyway.  I am too cheap to buy them and this frugalness inside me is good for the environment.

4.  I pay my bills online and over the phone.  I pay the majority of my bills this way and only have to write a few checks each month. 

5.  I recycle.  I keep a small box in my pantry that I put recyclables in.  When it fills up, the items go into a big blue tote on my back porch which gets hauled off to the recycling bins each week. 

6.  I teach my family to recycle.  I’ve been known to pull things out of the trash and say, “This is recyclable, you know!”. 

7.  I shop for used clothing and graciously accept hand-me-downs that others offer.

8.  I use a lot of vinegar for cleaning.  Vinegar has become my new family friendly, inexpensive, environmentally safe cleaner.  At all times, I keep a bottle filled with 1/2 vinegar and 1/2 water.  I use it to clean the kitchen table, the kitchen counters, mirrors, bathroom counters, the floor, and more.  I also use vinegar as a laundry softener. 

9.  I use worn out washcloths and towels for rags. 

10.  I wash out the plastic peanut butter jars and frosting containers and use them for crayons, loose change, or other little items.

11.  The kids ride the school bus home from school. 

12.  We live close to my husband’s work.  When we were searching for a place to live, we intentionally chose one very close to his work.

13.  I combine errands and I don’t do a whole lot of driving.  I try to combine my errands so that I’m only out riding around one day each week.

14.  Most of the time I wash our clothes in cold water instead of hot or warm.

15.  I bought an energy efficient and water saving washing machine.  I couldn’t see paying the outrageous price of a new one, so I bought one that was only two years old (for a great price).

16.  I shop at yard sales and thrift stores for household items, toys, books, and clothing.

17.  We plant some vegetables.  Last year,we planted tomatoes and peppers.  The tomatoes did pretty well.  This year, I’m going to try some other vegetables and see how they do.  It rained more this year, so hopefully they’ll do better.

18.  I use gray water to water my plants.  Last year, we did some landscaping to our yard and the new plants and bushes needed to be watered each night.  To help conserve water, I would save my children’s bath water or water that I had used when cooking to water those plants.

19.  I teach my children to conserve.  Just tonight I was explaining why we don’t leave the refrigerator hanging open and how it wastes electricity.  We’ve also had several conversations about wasting water.

20.  I have cut back on the amount of paper towels that I use.  I used to clean with paper towels.  Now I am more aware of how many I am using and most of the time, I use cleaning rags.

Those are the easy ways that I help the environment (and my budget).  What ways do you contribute?

image by Karen Weideman

Post from: Keeping the Castle

The Green Works Natural Biodegradable Cleaning Wipes are 99% natural and are made from 100% cellulose fibers and derived from renewable farm grown trees.  They are formulated using biodegradable ingredients, packaged in recycled materials, and are not tested on animals.

These wipes work on grease, grime, dirt, soils and messes, and are safe to use on multiple surfaces through the home.  I like to use my wipes on the kitchen table.  I clean the table before we eat dinner so that I know the germs are gone and I don’t have to worry about unsafe chemicals getting on to our hands or food.

Green Works has also announced its new “Green Heroes Grant Program” where five grants worth $10,000 each will be awarded to eco-friendly community projects across the county.  For more information, visit the Green Hero website.

Have you used the Clorox Green Works products?

image from Green Works 

Post from: Keeping the Castle

Over the past year or so, I have become quite a fan of vinegar.  I have learned that it cleans very well, is inexpensive, and safe for your family and pets.  Here are some of the ways to clean with vinegar:

1.  Add 1/4 cup vinegar to laundry, along with the usual soap, to brighten colors and make whites sparkle.  Also helps kills athlete’s foot germs on socks.

2.  Soak or simmer stuck-on food in 2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of vinegar.  The food will soften and lift off in a few minutes.

3.  Remove ink stains from clothes by soaking them in milk for 1 hour.  Then cover the stain with a paste of vinegar and cornstarch.  When the paste dries, wash the garment as usual.

4.  Appliances sparkle if cleaned with a vinegar and borax cleaner.  Mix 1 teaspoon borax, 1/4 cup vinegar, and 2 cups hot water and put it into a spray bottle.  Spray it on greasy smears and wipe off with a cloth or sponge.

5.  Deodorize your sink drains: Pour a cup down your drain, let stand about thirty minutes, then run cold water.

6. Use vinegar instead of laundry softener.  Vinegar prevents your clothes from getting that waxy build up on them.  Vinegar is suggested for using to rinse cloth diapers to keep them absorbent. 

7.  Remove water stains from leather by rubbing with a cloth dipped in a vinegar and water solution.

8.  Loosen food grime and clean the microwave: Place a microwave-safe bowl with 2 cups water, 1/2 cup vinegar inside the microwave and microwave on full power for 3-4 minutes (it needs to boil). Keep your microwave closed for a few minutes to allow the steam to loosen the grime, then open your microwave, carefully remove the bowl, and wipe clean.

9.  Remove grease from kitchen walls: Put straight vinegar on a dishcloth to wipe grease off kitchen walls, or the stovetop.

10.  Prevent mold and mildew in the shower: Wipe down tile or Formica shower walls with a sponge or cloth dampened with water and vinegar. The vinegar will clean the walls and inhibit the growth of mold and mildew.

11.  An excellent toilet cleaner can be made from 1 cup borax and 1 cup vinegar.  Pour the vinegar all over the stained area of the toilet.  Then sprinkle the borax over the vinegar.  Allow it all to soak for 2 hours.  Then simply brush and flush.

12.  Add a cup of vinegar to your mop water or mop floors with vinegar and water after a normal mopping.  Vinegar removes the soap scum.

13.   Annie Berthold-Bond says her favorite window cleaning recipe is to combine 2 cups of water, 1/4 cup of white distilled vinegar, and up to 1/2 teaspoon of liquid soap or detergent in a spray bottle.  Annie says the liquid soap helps remove the waxy residue.

14.  Boil vinegar and water on the stove to soak up bad smells from your house.

15.  Fill your water reservoir halfway with vinegar to clean your coffee pot.  Follow up by running 1-2 pots of clean water through to remove the vinegar.

16.  Vinegar also works as a safe degreaser.  No harsh fumes.  Use it on grease, undiluted.

17.  Clean vaporizers and humifiers by soaking unit in vinegar.  Soak unit and then run water through it.  I got this tip from the actual directions that came with my vaporizer, but it really does help to remove the deposits and also to sanitize.

18.  After washing your whites with bleach, run another rinse cycle with vinegar.  The vinegar will help to remove the bleach smell.

19.  If you have fruit flies, put some vinegar in a jar on your counter.  (I wish I would have known this one a few years ago.  I had some fruit flies and bought an expensive fruit fly trap.  It probably just had vinegar in it.  Errrr!)

20.  If your puppy (or child) has an accident on the carpet, apply full-strength plain white vinegar for about 10 minutes and then blot dry. You may want to test an inconspicuous spot first.

21.  Adding a cup of vinegar to a dishwashing cycle will help clean your dishwasher and will also help prevent spots from forming on your glasses.

22.  Vinegar helps to kill bacteria.  Mix up a solution of vinegar and water in a spray bottle.  Keep it in your kitchen to spray your sink and countertops. 

23.  Use vinegar to clean your garbage disposal.  Run a tray of ice cubes with 1/2 cup vinegar poured over them.

24.  Use vinegar, hot water, and a little soap to clean baby’s toys.  Rinse well.

25.  For cleaning laminate floors, mix 1/3 part white vinegar, 1/3 part rubbing alcohol, 1/3 part water, and 3 drops diswashing liquid.  Mix this into a (recycled) spray bottle and you have the equivalent of the Pergo floor cleaner. Just spray and mop; also great for deodorizing a room and for a fast cleanup. I also use this on my tile floors with great results. Pergo is better off when water doesn’t sit on it too long, the alcohol is added to make it dry faster.

Have you tried cleaning with vinegar?  Do you have any other ways to add to the list?

Post from: Keeping the Castle