Take a picture of your plumbing problem

Does this story sound familiar? You go to the hardware store spend forever trying to buy what you need, go home and realize you bought the wrong thing.

Or how about this story? Something goes wrong and you don't know how to fix it so you hire someone and pay a minimum of $50 for the repair.

I've found a much better solution. Take a picture of your problem before heading to the store. In the past year all 3 of my toilets have broken, a pipe corroded under my kitchen sink and most recently I had a leak at the connection under my kitchen sink (pictured). I have been able to fix these problems for less than $4 each time there has been a problem. Much less than it would have cost to pay a professional.

I simply take a picture of the problem area and take my camera with me to Lowe's. I show the worker where I have the leak and seek their advice on what tools I will need to fix it. They then show me where to find the parts as well as give whatever advice they may have on fixing it. In the instance of the pipe that corroded I also took a picture of the writing on the pipe so that I would know exactly what size I needed to get, not allowing my handwriting to confuse me if I had written it down.

Some plumbing problems can be very complicated and I would recommend a plumber for those but a simple problem such as a leaky faucet can be easily remedied by anyone as long as you know what parts you need. The best part of it all? The satisfaction of acomplishing something and not spending a lot of money doing it!

An Inexpensive Way to Update Your Light Fixtures

My house was built in the 1970's and the light fixtures have been hanging around since then. I don't have the money to buy new ones and to be honest the thought of switching the wires terrifies me. This is a simple and easy way to give them a little update without doing a whole lot of work or spending a whole lot of money.
1. Buy a spray paint that you can easily apply to metal surfaces. This is a hammered finish spray paint that I bought for less than $7. I wanted my fixtures to look like dark metal but there are all kids of paints for all kinds of decorator styles.

2. Clean off you light fixture and lightly sand it if necessary.

3. Remove glass and bulb. Also, make sure you turn off the power to that light.

4. Unscrew the knob that connects the sconce to the wall.

5. Tape paper to the wall to protect it from the spray paint. I used old Christmas wrapping paper that I buy for pennies at the after Christmas sales.

6. Replace the sconce carefully. Do not put the main screw back on, paint it separately, you do not want it to get stuck as it dries.

7. Spray the sconce until all parts are covered. I made a mistake and didn't get the underside. I'm going to have to redo mine so make sure you got it everywhere the first time.

8. Let dry. Make sure that the paper isn't sticking to the sconce.

9. Remove paper and put main screw back in place.

10. You can also put the bulb back in and even change out the glass. Our Church did a swap earlier this year of old items we didn't need. It was basically a free, multi-family garage sale. There I picked up a big box filled with glass for light fixtures. This one is a little too clear or my taste so I think I will lightly paint the inside white.

This project was super easy and took much less than an hour to complete. I'm happy with the finished product and I'm ready to work on updating the rest of the fixtures in the house. Good bye gold!!!!

Only buy select-a-size paper towels

After a visit to my parents house I became shockingly aware that not everyone in the world knows of the beauties of the select-a-size paper towel.

I went to grab a paper towel to clean up a small spill and it was as if I pulled a bath towel off the roll. The paper towel was huge! What a waste of money, since I just needed a 1/3 of the towel.

Select-a-size paper towels are no more expensive than regular paper towels. They are the regular paper towel but perforated into thirds. This way if you have a small spill use one towel, medium, two towels, etc.

You will save so much more money in the long run because you will be wasting less. Don't even ask questions. Get the select-a-size next time you buy paper towels. You'll thank me for it.

Never Buy Another Shower Curtain

Is your shower curtain or shower curtain liner disgusting? Don't beat yourself up about it, it happens to the best of us. Just don't throw it out and buy another one!

Instead of throwing it away and buying a new one you can just throw it in the washing machine with a little bit of detergent and bleach. When it is done washing just hang it right back up to dry and it will be as good as new.

I have a fabric shower curtain (that I bought on clearance for $4) that I will wash with my other linens but the liner I have has been washed this way several times. It is still as sturdy as ever.

Don't Throw Out Those Old Pots and Pans!

When I was in college I had the pots and pans that my parents used well before I was born. I have gradually updated my kitchen supplies but I didn't throw much of the old stuff out. There are many uses for pots, pans, lids, Tupperware, wooden spoons etc.

The following are other possible uses for these old items. Get creative and discover your own uses!




Pots and Pans: Tie-dye, make soap, melt candle wax
Pot Lids: Use as a "catcher" or a hot pad for your hot glue gun.
Bowls: Tie-Dye, soak your feet
Tupperware: Store Play-Dough, store small kids toys, store nails or nuts and bolts
Tupperware lids and old plates: Use as a paint pallet

The options are endless. What are some of the things you use old kitchen stuff for?

Create your own fabric baskets

I got sick of looking at the ugly yellow bucket that my laundry soap came in and the pile of dirty dish rags and bibs that accumulated on the floor of my laundry room, so I created these cute little fabric baskets for them, for FREE!

I see cute fabric baskets at the store for a minimum of $10 each (and that's talking Walmart, can you imagine Pottery Barn?!) . Since I am a cheapskate mom, I searched my basement for suitable sized boxes and covered them with fabric items I had laying around my house.

The big basket is made from a crock pot box and a table cloth that doesn't fit my new table. I got the table cloth for $1 at an after Christmas sale a few years ago. I simply wrapped and folded the table cloth around the box and slid the laundry soap bucket in.

For the small box I used an Eggo waffle box from Sam's club and put an old flannel pillow case that we never use over top. I secured the corners underneath with clear packing tape. I chose to leave the fabric bunched on my baskets for texture but you can wrap these up as tight as you want to. Both boxes are very sturdy.

I now feel much better about my laundry room and it didn't cost me a penny. Feels good...