Thrifty Mommy » homemaking

10 Time Saving Cleaning Tips

Karen Weideman — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 03:24:52 +0000

I miss the easy days of having a clean house. I would clean my house as needed. I would go to work and when I came home it was still clean.

Since having kids, things seem to mysteriously appear throughout my house. No matter how many times I clean and tidy up the house, there seem to be things out of place. To make up for some of the extra time I spend mothering and tidying up the house, I’ve had to figure out some quick cleaning tips. Here’s a few to try:

1) Clean your bathroom while your kids are taking a bath. Be sure to use safe cleaning products such as vinegar. You can also take this time to clean out a bathroom drawer.

2) Keep a few extra trash bags in the bottom of your trash cans. When you take out the trash, there will be a clean bag waiting.

3) Do a quick 10-15 minute family clean-up. Set the timer for 10 minutes and have everyone participate in cleaning up the house. At first you may have some resistance but if you make this a daily routine, the kids will know what’s expected and participate.

4) Grab a basket for a quick pick up of out of place things. Put items into the basket and it will be easy to put them away as you walk through each room.

5) Before leaving a room, make sure you take something with you. This goes for your car too. Each time I get out of my car, I usually pick up a few pieces of trash or grab a few things that need to go into the house.

6) Do a load of laundry each day. This will avoid laundry piling up and will make it easier to put away each load as it’s completed.

7) Unload your dishwasher as soon as the load is complete. It’s easier to keep dirty dishes out of the sink if the dishwasher is ready to be loaded.

8) Keep cleaning supplies in each bathroom and in the kitchen. Using an all purpose cleaner such as vinegar will cut down on the supplies you need.

9) Assign daily chores to each person in the house. Each person needs to contribute and if each person has a regular job, they will know what’s expected of them. The chores need to be age-appropriate.

10) Do a quick vacuuming in common areas once during the week. Save the time consuming vacuuming and furniture moving for cleaning days. Having clean floors makes a home more attractive.

What time saving cleaning tips can you share?

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Wordy Wednesday: Trash to Treasure

Karen Weideman — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:17:36 +0000

I’m not the kind of gal that goes into a furniture store and picks out her home furniture. My hubby and I find this to be a bit of a “cookie cutter” style for us. We prefer to find unique pieces that are functional. Of course, they need to be inexpensive. TodayI’m going to show you how to take a few old pieces and make them into something great. I hope this will inspire you to look around your home to repurpose some items.

Here are two apple crates that we’re using as bookcases. My hubby and I found these in a yard sale many years ago as we were traveling up the mountain to Virginia. I think we paid $10 for both of them. We have been using these for about six years and have really enjoyed them.

If you have any old dresser drawers, you could use them as potting boxes. I saw this recently at a pumpkin patch and thought it was so cute. If you use these on a railing (as shown here), don’t forget to attach them so that they don’t fall.

This old chair is a favorite in our home. My husband found it a few years ago at a yard sale for about $5. He cleaned it up and now Emma sits proudly on it in our dining room. We really like the rustic look of the chair.

These are a few ideas of how you can take some old junk and make it into a special treasure. What ways have you repurposed your old things?

images (c) Karen Weideman

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Fall Decorating on the Cheap, Part 3

Karen Weideman — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 08:06:06 +0000

The season is changing. The air is a bit cooler, the days are getting shorter, and I’m feeling the need to see the colors red, orange, and yellow. Here are some tips for keeping the costs down with your fall decorating.

7) Grow your own. It’s a little late in the year for this option, but next year you might want to consider planting some things that you could use for decorating. Perhaps you could have a garden with pumpkins and gourds.

8) Take something you have and give it a new purpose. That plain glass bowl you have would look great if it were filled with water and had autumn colored floating candles inside. Or fill it will bright red cranberries, water, and floating candles. Think outside the box and use what you have.

9) Shop thrift stores, antique malls, consignment stores, and flea markets. Someone else’s junk is always someone else’s treasure . . . and it’s cheaper too!

10) Keep it simple. Rather than decorating the whole room for fall, try a few simple things. A table centerpiece, wreath, or colored napkins can really liven up a room. Also, when purchasing items try to buy things that you can use during the whole season. For instance, it would be better to buy decorations with pumpkins rather than some with jack-o-lanterns and ghosts. Try accenting with fall colors and other items that can be used throughout the entire season.

What tips do you have for saving money on fall decorating?

You might also want to read Decorating on the Cheap, Part 1 and Part 2.

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Fall Decorating on the Cheap, Part 2

Karen Weideman — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:18:50 +0000

It’s time for another season of the year. Why not bring some color to your home with some fall decorations? Here are some ideas for saving money while decorating for fall.

4) Look for sales. A few years ago, I needed to plan an inexpensive fall craft for our women’s church group. I found that some craft stores have their fall flowers and accessories 50% off at the start of the season. I bought bunches of fall flowers and we made fall wreaths.

5) Check Craigslist or Freecycle. People are constantly getting rid of things and you never know what kind of good deals or free stuff you can find.

6) Look to nature. Look around for twigs and beautiful leaves. Purchase some apples. Check with a local farmer and see if you can cut down some of their corn stalks.

What ways do you save money on your fall decorating?

You might also want to check out Fall Decorating on the Cheap, Part 1. Stay tuned this week for part 3 of this series.

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Fall Decorating on the Cheap, Part 1

Karen Weideman — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:58:16 +0000

Fall is my favorite season. I just love the smell, the crisp air, and the beautiful bright colors. If you’re looking to bring some of fall into your home or work place, you might try some of these tips for saving money on your decorating.

1) Do it yourself. I’m certainly not the most crafty or creative person, but many times if I can see an idea I can copy it or make it my own. There’s no need in paying $50-60 for a fall wreath when you can make your own for $15. Look online for do-it-yourself fall decorating ideas.

2) Check your closets. Perhaps those bright yellow sheets or tablecloth can be used for something. You could make pillows or a tablerunner with your old sheets.

3) Use the weekly craft store coupon. Check your local newspaper for craft store coupons. These are usually in the Sunday paper. You can also sign up online for their newsletter. Most craft stores will send coupons and sale information via email.

Stay tuned for more inexpensive fall decorating tips. What ways do you save money on your fall decorating?

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Decorating on the Cheap, Part 2

Karen Weideman — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 07:11:34 +0000

Last week, I discussed some ways to save on decorating your home. We learned that money could be saved from shopping for used items by using Craigslist, yard sales, and thrift stores and also how an inexpensive item like paint can transform a room. Today we’re going to see that there are more ways to decorate on the cheap.

4. Repurpose what you have. Paint that old lamp or picture frame. Change your night stand into a bookshelf. Recover your old pillows with fabric. Use a sheet for window treatments.

5. Get an outside opinion. It helps to ask someone else’s opinion for ways to help your decorating space. Many times others will see things you didn’t see and have ideas you had never thought about. They may suggest moving a piece of furniture or changing a wall hanging. Those small inexpensive tips can make a big impact.

6. Borrow furniture. When I first got married, I didn’t have any living room furniture. I ended up borrowing some things from my parent’s house. All you have to do is get the word out to friends and family that you need some items for your home. Some people have things in their basement that are just sitting around collecting dust. Some will let you borrow things and others will just let you have the stuff.

7. Be patient. You can’t expect your home to look perfect right away. It takes moving things around, searching for deals, and tweaking things a bit. It will all come together eventually.

What tips do you have for decorating on the cheap?

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Decorating on the Cheap, Part 1

Karen Weideman — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 07:55:55 +0000

Many of us think of our home as our castle. We want it to look warm, inviting, and relaxing, yet we don’t have a lot of money to spend on decorating. Today, I’ll begin to share with you some tips for decorating and furnishing your home on the cheap.

1. Shop yard sales and thrift stores. I’ve been doing this for years. Just a few months ago I was at a yard sale and found a really nice living room couch and oversized chair. The person I bought it from had only used it for a year. She paid $1200 for it and I got it for only $120. Sometimes you can find some really unique items by shopping this way.

2. Check Craigslist. You just never know what you’ll find on Craiglist. We’re getting ready to move into our house and the home inspector found some issues with the bathtub. My husband found a brand new tub with jets on Craiglist for 1/5 the price. It was one a contractor didn’t use.

3. Think paint. Paint is one of the least expensive ways to add warmth and color to your home. It really is amazing how $30 in paint can transform a room. I am not very fond of white walls and in our last house, all the walls were white. Once we painted the living room a taupe color, the whole look of the room changed and I could hardly wait to paint the rest of the house.

Stay tuned for more ideas and tips on inexpensive decorating. In the meantime, we’d love to hear the ways that you save.

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My New Writing Project

Karen Weideman — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 16:22:22 +0000

b5 has been nice enough to trust me with another blog. You can also find me at Keeping the Castle where we can discuss tips, resources, and give advice for housekeeping and homemaking. See you there!

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101 Helpful Thrifty Mommy Articles

Karen Weideman — Fri, 23 May 2008 04:23:34 +0000

Happy Frugal Friday! I have hundreds of tips for you today!

Sometimes at Thrifty Mommy we give you tips on sales and other things that are only relevant to that week. But then there are times that we have lists of ways to save time and money that can be beneficial for years to come.

I decided to surf around the archives and pull together some of our helpful articles. Most of these articles are relevant to men and women, whether or not you’re married with children.

I hope you will enjoy these articles. Let us know which ones are your favorite or if there are some other Thrifty Mommy articles that should have been included.

Happy browsing!

Housekeeping

15 Summer Cooking Tips

25 Ways to Clean with Vinegar

60+ Frugal Ways to Use Baking Soda

10 Tips for Spring Cleaning Success

4 Thrifty Stain Removers

More Help with Common Stains

10 Tips for Saving Money While Doing Laundry

10 Ways to Clean with Baking Soda

Quick Cleaning Tips

10 Organizing and Decluttering Tips