Odds N’ Ends
Here are a few things to do with some of the things you might just have on hand:
Don't throw away the mesh bag that onions (and sometimes potatoes) come in. Wadded up, this makes a great scrubby for cleaning potatoes, pans, sticky plates, and the kitchen sink.
Fold it back in on itself a few times and put your soap scraps in it, twist it at the opening and fold it back again to make a soapy scrubby for the shower.
Larger mesh bags (five pound bags of oranges, potatoes)- can be used for beach bags and for bagging toys in the bathtub (they drain nicely),
You don't need a garlic masher if you have a good heavy coffee cup or small baking dish- just use it to crush the garlic into mush.
Save the stem ends of vegetables like carrots, turnips, parsnips, and rutabagas. Use them to make a little root garden on the kitchen windowsill.
Use clothespins and paper clips to hold bags of chips, crackers, cereal, and other foods closed so they stay fresh longer. They actually work better and last longer than those cheap giant 'snack saver' clips.
You can eat broccoli stalks Peel the tough, somewhat stringy outer edges, then slice the pale, juicier inside stem and eat. I like this part better than the rest of the broccoli.
Worn out ironing board cover? Use it to refurbish (or line new) hot pads.
Find out the minimum amount of a product you need to do the job and make sure everybody knows what that is. I have found that most products 'exaggerate' on their labels. If a laundry soap bottle tells me I need half a cup of soap, 1/4 cup is usually plenty. This is particularly useful if you have many 'helpers.'I actually measured the dish-soap we needed to get the job done and kept the right sized measuring spoon on a nail near the sink in one house where we lived (it took 1/4 of a teaspoon for one sinkload of dishes). Show the kids how to use a whisk to whip up suds if they feel they need more bubbles (which make you feel like you are doing something, but don't actually clean anything).
What are some of your favorite new uses for old things?
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4 Responses to “Odds N’ Ends”
March 21st, 2008 at 7:02 am
Great advice about the measuring. I tend to dump on the soap, until it nearly runs out and then boy am I stingy! Just proof that you really don’t need so much. I have to go to the $ store and pick up some extra measuring spoons.
March 22nd, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Excellent idea, measuring dish soap! I’ve got to try that.
I save all of my veggie peelings in a ziploc in the freezer…when it’s full, I make stock with them.
March 23rd, 2008 at 4:53 am
Love the idea of whisking up the the soap in the kitchen sink. (My kids will too – when I let them have a go tomorrow morn).
Thankyou!
My husband always growls at my miserly amount of dishwasher soap, laundry detergent etc. etc.
“Measly it is darlin’, but it still gets things clean”, I always quipQ
I have to look away when I see how much he loads up the soap dispensers – he is not convinced!
March 26th, 2008 at 4:46 am
You can also use the mesh bags from onions and fill them up with the lint from the dryer screen. You can then put it outside for the birds to use in their nests.
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