Readers' Tips
I have had a lot of luck caring for boots by carefully
brushing dirt from the area where the sole meets the upper,
then applying leather cream generously. I then stuff the toes
with crumbled newsprint. I recently read that a great way to
store winter socks is to jam them into the toes of
boots/winter shoes. The boots or shoes keep their shape and
you don't need another place to store the socks. If the calves
of the boots are long enough to need support, I roll a piece
of cardboard to the shape needed and insert it into the leg of
the boot. Store them lying down; if you put the soles on the
floor, wrinkles can develop in the leg/ankle of the boots as
gravity pulls the leather down.
Marcie
more on "Caring for Leather Boots"
Save a lot of money with a battery tester. I went into a
battery store and bought a little black 2" x 2" battery tester
for $6.99. We have a Wii game and the controllers each take
four batteries and one time al l of the controllers went out.
I checked each battery with the tester and only one was low in
each controller. I thought of how many people replace all of
the batteries! Since I recycle my batteries, I went through
the entire container and checked each battery and discovered
that 3/4 of them were still good. This battery tester has a
red and green meter on it and tests all types of batteries.
It's a great little investment. Why pay for something that may
still be good?
Pam in Bloomington, MN
Getting paid weekly, I budget on 48 weeks (four paychecks a
month) rather than 52 weeks. I hardly notice the difference
across my budget items until it comes to those extra four
paychecks per year and having that money to spend as "extra."
Those four checks get earmarked for really unusual expenses
that might come up, get put into savings or are used for a
vacation.
K.
I have to disagree with the article you ran on 4/21 about
saving money on insurance. Some years ago, a
friend's wife cancelled their uninsured and underinsured
motorist coverage to save money. He was then involved in an
accident with a drunk, unlicensed, unregistered, uninsured
motorist. Between medical bills, paying off a totaled car,
lost work and nine months of physical therapy, he lost about
$40,000. The drunk went to jail for 7 years. In fact, he is
there now (for the second time) for another drunk driving
accident. My friend will never see a dime of the $60,000
judgement and will have daily pain for the rest of his life.
Delete uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage at your
own risk!
Nancy
I do quite a bit of shopping at one of the very low cost groceries where we either bring our own bags or purchase theirs and then bag our own groceries. I save a paper towel roller when the towels are used up, fill the empty cardboard "container" with used bags from other shopping trips and stash it under the seat in my vehicle.
It's surprising the number of bags that tube will hold, and
there's no mess. The bags are always available when I go to
this discount store. With supplemental runs to other
groceries, of course, I always seem to have a ready supply to
replenish that semi-empty tube.
Ruth Ann
When my second daughter (now 2 yrs old) started drinking juice it was too
strong for her little body to handle...so we started watering it way down
and have recently started taking one 64 oz. bottle of juice from the store
and splitting it between (3) 64 oz. bottles and filling them up with water...both my 7 and 2 yr olds love it. My 7 yr old thinks she's getting
flavored water with lots of flavor and my 2 yr old thinks she's getting
juice. And I feel they are both drinking healthier and getting more glasses
of water in each day. Way cheaper than 3 bottles of juice or even flavored water for that matter.
Tina D.
Olin, NC
Every spring I look forward to the warmer weather and "new" spring/summer clothes. Often these are simply last year's spring or summer clothes pulled out of a box, but I need to fill in those gaps every year when children have grown or things have worn out. This year, with the rising gas and food prices, I have felt a need to cut back on things. Looking at the winter clothes I was packing away or giving away, I got an idea. First, I put away things that would still be nice and fit someone next fall.
Then I took a look at all those pants with worn knees and long sleeved t-shirts that had seen better days. I got out my scissors and started to cut. Long sleeved shirts became short sleeved shirts and pants were soon cropped, capris or shorts, depending on where the holes were located. One or two items will need a patch or a strategic bit of dying, etc, but I managed to transform worn out school clothes into quite presentable play clothes for summer. A little hemming around the edges and I'm finished!
Pam R.
Danville Ky
I'm glad to see that you've written something about Upromise (r)
You only get Upromise dollars when you use a CREDIT card! I couldn't believe it! Our family has made a commitment to purchase groceries with cash only (in the form of a Debit card, most of the time). But since Debit transactions are PIN based, not signature based, we don't get our Upromise dollars!
This is incredibly disappointing. Hope your readers also read the details with Upromise before signing up expecting a windfall.
Melanie A.
Bremerton, WA
My family travels alot and often visits science centers. Last year we went to one in Virginia and the gentleman suggested that we consider a membership. We were not from that area but when he mentioned that with your membership you would also have free admission to over 200 other science centers around the US and in other countries, we signed up. Over the course of the year we saved more than the cost of the membership by going to other science centers. This past weekend we went to a science center in New York, purchased a membership for $55 and got free admission to the local zoo and discovery center. If we had paid for admissions to the three places it would have cost us $67. The membership paid for itself in one weekend.
Deborah D.
When I have an issue with my appliances, like washing machine or even the coffee maker, I have often saved a service call by doing the following. I go to a search engine and type in the appliance name and the symptoms. Many times, I have found that it is a common problem, and people have offered simple instructions on how to fix it. In some cases, it is a simple adjustment that you just need to know where to find the screw to tighten or the panel to take off and clean behind. Other times, I have found that I can fix it by replacing a part that costs less than $50.
Many times, this has even included detailed instructions on where to order the part and how to install it. I have also found out occasionally that it is a complex problem that costs more to fix than to replace the item, or it is a complicated or delicate repair that requires an expert and well worth the service call charge. Sometimes, it doesn't give me any help, but since it takes only a minute and doesn't cost anything, I'm not any worse off for doing it!
I have even done this with my computer when I start getting
weird messages. I type in the message and find that it is a
simple fix, find that it is a complex fix I don't want to mess
with, or find nothing at all.
U.
If you use natural sponges to apply make-up, check for sponges at art or craft supply stores, such as Michaels or Hobby Lobby. These are the same natural sponges you get at the cosmetics counter or drug store, but they're cheaper. You can buy a bag of small sponges for under $5 at a craft store, but you'd pay about that much for one sponge at the drug store.
Also, instead of cotton squares for removing eye make-up, I
use the soft microfiber cloths that come free with eyeglasses
or sunglasses. I can use one for a few days and then toss it
in the wash with the towels. These cloths are soft enough for
the eye area, and they are indestructible, as I've put them
through the wash a few dozen times now.
Annette
As an insurance agent for 10 years in the state of VA, I would really like to caution every one on reducing coverage on the un/underinsured portion of their policy. What happens if someone, whose policy lapsed yesterday, rear-ends you and you don't have sufficient coverage in this area? You end up paying out of pocket for something that (depending on your state/company/rating information) only costs you a few dollars a month.
I would really like to stress that you should review your
policy with your agent and not to arbitrarily remove coverage
that costs only a few dollars a month when the removal of the
coverage could cost you thousands in the long run.
A.
Our family loves to shower with body wash and the bath poufs,
but it is so expensive! My kids always use too much of the
liquid soap and the poufs wear out too fast. To solve this
problem, I cut a square from a mesh bag (like the kind that
oranges come in), put a bar of soap in it, and tie a knot at
the end. We still get the lather of the body wash and the
feeling of the bath pouf for only a fraction of the cost. You
can also save soap scraps to tie up in the mesh to reduce the
cost even more.
Christy S.
Do you have moles tearing up your yard and gardens? Eating the roots off your prize plants and flowers? If you have moles and have cats, you may have the perfect mole repellent. One of the main predators of moles is a cat. A couple of years ago, we had moles tunneling through our yard and tried the fancy (but hazardous) mole traps. Then we tried poison peanuts, which were dangerous to our pets as well as our grandchildren.
I then read an article about cats catching moles when they surfaced at night and being natural predators. An old farmer that I talked to suggested that I find one of the large mounds that the moles make and then carefully dig down to find the run. Then he suggested that I pour contaminated cat litter to cover it up. The odor will go throughout the run, and in most cases, the moles will leave the area. You can even find the run, expose it, and do the same thing. You might have to do it in more than one area a couple of times.
If you're planting a small garden that may have some tubers or
subterranean bulbs, consider scattering some contaminated cat
litter over the area and then till or turn the soil. The first
rain or watering will dissipate any surface odor, and it
doesn't transfer to the plants. This works well for flower
gardens as well.
R. H. in Fenton, MO
Do you have gobs of toothpaste left in your sink after
brushing your teeth? Did you know that this could clog the
plumbing if allowed to build up when washed down the drain?
There is a simple solution that will also save you money.
Toothpaste commercials demonstrate a heaping amount of
toothpaste on the brush. Contrary to what the commercials
show, the amount of toothpaste needed on your brush for
effective cleaning does not have to be a massive amount. Just
use a pea-sized dab of toothpaste on the top half of your
toothbrush. If you brush correctly, holding the toothbrush at
a 45-degree angle and brushing inside, outside and between
your teeth, the paste should foam enough to cover all of your
teeth. Using a smaller amount will stretch your money further
and avoid a potential plumbing problem.
Wanda in Chicago
I have a tip for saving on paper clutter (and costs). Now that I have a good backup system for my computer, I have started creating pdfs of documents that I used to print out as reference. Sometimes you really need a paper copy, but when you don't or just want to have the item available for reference "just in case," a pdf is a great option.
There's free software out there that allows you to create a
pdf of any document, web page or computer scan. Just make sure
you give the file a name that you will be able to find later.
Jodi
Don't throw away that sprouting onion! Pop it into some water
(just covering the root end) in an old tin on the windowsill,
and you will not need to buy spring onions or chives again. My
"original" onion is now six months old and has been "joined"
by others, and they just keep on producing more and more
sprouts. I have gotten to the stage where I have filled three
small plastic bags in a month and use them to flavor mashed
potatoes. It's yummy and free!
Ang
Water bills can get high when you have a garden. By using a rain barrel, you can collect the water from your roof. Not only are you giving your plants water without chlorine or fluoride, but also it's water at the ambient temperature, so it won't shock your plants the way that cold water from the hose can. Also, since your sewer bill is measured by the amount of water that you use, it should reduce that as well.
Many water quality groups offer special discounts and incentives for rain barrels. Look for watershed groups in your area, or contact your local library for more information. You can also make your own rain barrel, using a food-grade barrel. You can pick these up from feed stores or even used from food processing plants. They can range in price from free to $10 or $15. Depending on how sophisticated you want to get, you can make one that simply catches water that you must scoop out, or one that has a spigot and overflow valve. Besides using the water for plants, you can also use it to wash the dog, the car, gardening tools, etc.
In any case, you can feel good about the money you save,
because you are also keeping the rainwater from becoming urban
run off, which is a growing concern. You are also returning
the water slowly to the ground where it can recharge the
aquifer.
Marina
My boyfriend lives out in the country and occasionally gets
groundhogs, skunks, etc. that burrow in his yard. I buy a
large tin of common black pepper (cheapest I can find) and
dump a good amount down the hole(s). Do this only during the
day for skunks since they are nocturnal. Stay away from the
area for a day or two. One treatment takes care of the
problem. It also works the same for the chipmunks that make a
mess burrowing in my front yard.
H.
What would you do with an extra $100? One lucky Dollar Stretcher "tipster" will win a $100 check each month just for sending in their favorite time or money saving idea. It could be you. Just send your suggestion to Tips@ stretcher.com. If we use your tip in any of our publications, we'll send you the next three issues of our print newsletter as a "thank you" and you'll automatically be entered into our monthly $100 drawing!
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Do you have a time or money saving idea that wasn't included in this article? Please send it to tips@ stretcher.com. We get the best ideas from our readers!
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Smart ways to spend your hard-earned money
Radical Cost Cutting
What to do when your budget is seriously out of balance
