Old style things that 'only you' do...

Jadeytee

Its surely not something only I do, but I thought I'd share anyway.

I only use baby oil, on wet skin straight out the shower or bath (I know someone might have mentioned this)

Also a great product is argon oil for hair. Apply to damp hair and dry and style as normal.

Both products are inexpensive, and a little goes a long way. (I've had my tiny 30ml bottle of argon oil for about 4 months and use it everytime I wash my hair 4-6 times a week.)

It really cuts down on expensive moisturizer and hair treatments as I suffer dryness with both.

Argon oil is available in boots

Jadeytee

P.S I also "steal" sauce packets

Im loving the idea of the soda crystals, Im definately going to be trying that!

You guys are all great! :T

Barbeduk

Wow! Hope if I post it'll bump this fab thread!

I do a lot of these things, must be my Northern roots! Must write washing soda on my next shopping list though and will definitely try the vinegar in the tomato sauce trick.

One thing I do which I'm sure is quite common, is that every time I bake a cake, I freeze 4 slices. That way if we're going out for the day, or people come round unexpectedly, there's always a nice treat even when there's no time to bake.

I also cut DH, DS and my father's hair. Did dad's yesterday, needed a comb and he produced the very same comb that he had when I left home . . . 28 years ago!:rotfl::rotfl:

Becky_2

Hi Barbeduk

I agree this is a great thread.

There is a similar thread here
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2426287
where I post most of my money saving tips.

Becky

BitterAndTwisted

Crikey! "Stealing" sauce packets is a bit low and possibly not in the spirit of MSE OS-ing. Making the most of my money and not creating un-needed waste is my motivation but I suspect none of the things I do are unique because I either learned them all from my granny and my mother or gleaned them from the experts on this site.

I once admitted to a couple of work-colleagues that I bought nearly all of my clothes from charity-shops or on eb@y. They were disgusted with me because they misunderstood and believed that I bought second-hand socks and knickers as well. Fools. Fools! It took me a while to fiure out why they started giving me a very wide berth for a while.

ubamother

Sauce packets - the more upfront the better. When the waiter/ress arrives to clear, I always say - oooh, do you mind if I take this (unopened sauce packet) with me? Nobody has ever said no - I think they are too shocked that someone has actually asked! I once went into a Starbucky type place and told the manager I really wanted some of the thin wooden stirrers for making stars with children to decorate the church at Christmas. Two boxes of five thousand handed over - I still have about two thousand left! Amazing what asking gets.

faerie~spangles

Well everybody does the salt, sugar, ketchup... thing don't they?:o

I cut dishwasher tablets in half.

If clothes just need freshened up I toss into the machine without using any detergent and hang outside. I use less than a third of the manufacturers' recommended dose when I do use detergent.

I dilute bleach and put it in a spray bottle.

Use vinegar for all the purposes previously mentioned.

Freeze used lemons, limes and orange peel, to use whenever I need the flavour.

Freeze fresh ginger and chilli peppers.

Freeze black banans.

Rinse and use again ziplock bags.

Stale bread, I blitz in the processor, spread out on a tray to air dry then store in a recycled glass jar.

I used to blitz cooked chicken carcasses and feed it to the cat and dog. You must get your hands into the mixture to check for any shards of bone.

I plant seeds from my spice cupboard.

Hrrrrrm that's enough to be going on with. :beer:

miasnanny

:eek:I must get out more!

I do an awful lot of these things, in fact terrifyingly! In my defence I was brought up by my Gran and 13 Great Aunts, who were countrywomen. Preserving, baking, breadmaking etc was what I was brought up on. They taught me to knit, sew and crochet and they treasured every resource available to them and reused everything. I have a wormery, I patchwork,knit,sew,dressmake, bake, cook, clean with the old fashioned stuff. I save stepsons worn out jeans, the ones that have gone at the knee's, I cut the legs off and turn them into handbags using the legs to make straps, they can be embelished to personalised. Jeans also make great cushions too. I have hubbies shirts when he has worn the collar and cuffs out, I remove collar and cuffs, remodel with scissors, change the buttons and I end up with a new blouse!! Old cushion covers get made into shopping bags and when things have really reached the end of their upcycling life they then get cut into shapes for patchwork or cleaning clothes:A

Yes I really must get out more

Outer_Limits

smokeystarling wrote: »

Does anyone have tips for what to do with plastic bottles? We go through tons in this house as me and the bf are big cordial fans... any suggestions welcome!

I cut the bottom off one, use it (upside down) to transport the birdseed out to the feeder where it's the perfect shape to pour the seed past the fixed handle.

Also cut them in half, then cut a slit in one half so the edges will fit inside the other half, for safe disposal of broken drinking glasses and lightbulbs.


Some pump bottles leaves loads in the bottom - I use a swizzle stick, the long plastic cocktail type with a small ball at the base - excellent to get in narrow necks. Sorry if that's already been said, I haven't caught the whole thread yet. Good to find other people squeeze the last bits out of things too!

BitterAndTwisted

faerie~spangles wrote: »

Well everybody does the salt, sugar, ketchup... thing don't they?:o

No faerie, not everybody. The people who raised me had a very judgemental and uncomplimentary term for people who did things like that. So I don't do it. But then, back when I actually had a job to go to I didn't "borrow" biros or other useful stuff out of the stationery cupboard either. That either makes me slavishly mentally-conditioned or a fool, I expect.