Readers' Tips

Particle board shelving units are easily "fixed up." Before doing anything else to them, wash them down and dry them well. Then consider the following suggestions:

1. One of the telltale signs of cheap shelving units is the inset area (usually about 4" high) at the bottom front of the unit. Get a piece of lumber that fits into this area; glue and nail or screw it to bring the base even with the rest of the unit. Fill spaces with wood putty. Then apply some baseboard molding, mitered at the corners, to the bottom of the front and both sides of the unit.

2. If you really want to dress it up, and feel like spending a little extra, add some decorative molding to the front surface of the sides and top of the unit. Get something wider than the front surface, and mount it so the extra width extends over the inside of the shelves and the molding is flush with the outside. Again, fill in any spaces.

3. Depending on what's exposed to the rest of the room, you can dress up the side surfaces by adding molding that simulates the panels on a door; four pieces mitered at the corners, to form a "picture frame" effect.

4. Paint the entire unit, inside and out, with BIN or some other primer made to help additional coats of paint adhere to the surface. To make it easier to paint, first take out any removable shelves.

5. Paint the unit. It can be very attractive to paint the interior a contrasting color or different shade of the same color. Several thin coats are always better than one thick one. Seal with a few coats of an appropriate sealer.

6. If you have several short units that are the same width, consider stacking them. They must be well secured to each other and the spaces between the two units filled in. Then treat as one unit. From a decorating standpoint, a tall piece looks more like "real" furniture.
Linda in NYC

Editor's note: more suggestions at www.stretcher.com/stories/99/991227a.cfm

A lot of shopping websites offer substantial discounts or free credit for first-time users. For someone willing to shop a new site every time, the savings van add up. For example, vitamins.com offered $25 off your first purchase, and shipping is free. I added up products totaling $25.62 and got them all delivered to me a few days later for 62 cents. For someone like me who only takes one simple multi-vitamin, that's about a year's supply practically free! Healthquick.com has a similar offer -- $15 off for first-timers, but you have to pay for shipping.
Sara D.
New York City (a hard place in which to live frugally!)

My three-year-old daughter likes to play out in the snow, but I hate to see her mittens come up and the snow and wind get to her wrists. So today I cut the ribbed cuffs off an old pair of my socks and pulled them on over her mittens and up over the cuff of her snowsuit. It gave her a chance to play without getting cold! Another thought would be to just cut a hole in the heel of the sock (for the thumb part to slip through) and slip it on over the mitten, kind of extra protection for not-so-warm mittens! I would do the same for the boots and pant legs too . It's like making your own leg warmers!
MM

Here is something else to think about with the after holiday sales. As a teacher I buy everything that's red....and save it for Valentine's Day. Even candy canes, when put together, make hearts! The green? Why St.Patrick's Day of course.
Staci

This is something I've done for years. Every year I go through my Christmas cards after the holidays and figure out ways to cut and/or fold them into gift enclosure cards. Each year I come up with enough of these to take care of gift enclosures for presents the following year. During the year I do the same with any other type cards received. Also, card fronts can do double duty as postcards, which gives me a collection I can use for quick messages or even business responses at the lower postage rate.
Marie H.
Salinas, CA

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