Lots more Sneaky Ways to save the pennies

Ezek

building_with_lego wrote: »

Last week I melted down the stubby little wax crayons that the children had left at the bottom of the pencil tin and poured the wax into (Lego figure shaped;)) silicone ice cube trays. Voila, lovely new-looking crayons that put a smile on their little faces

That's such an ace idea. (Also, much love for the They Might Be Giants sig).

Ezek

If you are a bit addicted to energy or Lucozade type drinks, here's a very cheap (and much, much healthier) alternative that I've recently started making. Helps keep energy levels up without the reliance on taurine, caffeine or copious amounts of sugar.

For a big bottle of water (475-500ml)

450 ml of water
2 teaspoons of sugar
A small pinch of salt
50 ml of lemon or lime juice - or 25ml of lemon and 25ml of lime

Mix it all up and voila. A big drink of isotonic goodness for pennies, as opposed to £1.29 for a 330 ml bottle of Lucozade.

mumofthetwins

I have to second the stardrops tip. I used to buy flash this and mr muscle that but now thanks to MSE i only use the white star drops diluted in a spray bottle - and it works on anything from glass to oak kitchen worktops
I also now use a window wiper to clean the shower doors and a dry microfibre cloth for the chrome shower after each wash, so i only have to give the shower a good clean once a week ( and i am always prepared for those house viewings - if anyone ever comes )
I have also been using the wrights coupons which means i can get at least 10 yummy buns for dinner - hubbies packed lunch for 2 days and its only 9p mmmmm ...
Ontop of this i have also just started baking all cakes, scones and treats, its not only better for the diet but it does hubbies and kids packed lunches and after dinner cake at a fraction of the price
Not sure if this is mentioned but i always set the dishwasher/washing machine on overnght as the rate is cheaper too.
Lisa

sparrer

Two solutions (literally) as alternatives to using expensive chemicals in the garden, which I don't like using, and object to paying silly money for...

Vinegar diluted 50/50 with water in a washing up liquid or other squirty bottle. Squirt it along the cracks in paving slabs and it will kill weeds/grass growing through.

The alternative, if you bought salt for the winter and didn't use it all up, is to disolve the a cup of salt in a jug of boiling water and pour that into the cracks.

Have tried both and they're both successful. A Warning! don't pour too close to lawns, flowers etc in case the solutions 'bleeds' along the cracks. It will kill anything it reaches, so stop a couple of inches from the end

Uniscots97

I've been experimenting with dishwasher cleaner and used to use half a dishwasher tablet. I now use a desert spoonful of stardrops (the orange one) and a desert spoonful of white vinegar. The stuff comes up perfect every time.

mumofthetwins

Oh not sure if this has been said before but i now always buy the astonish dishwasher tablets (cheap in b&m) and i half then before i use them - they still work great and a box lasts twice as long
I have also found that the astonish 4 in 1 laundery liquid is really good .. its only £1.99 for 26 washes in homebargains.
Lisa

mumofthetwins

unixgirluk wrote: »

I've been experimenting with dishwasher cleaner and used to use half a dishwasher tablet. I now use a desert spoonful of stardrops (the orange one) and a desert spoonful of white vinegar. The stuff comes up perfect every time.

You must have posted whilst i was typing i think i will give this a try :T

Does anyone know where to get some cheap white vinigar - i looked in morrisons the other day and it was crazy prices - i know its cheap out there somewhere

Lisa

Uniscots97

sparrer wrote: »

Two solutions (literally) as alternatives to using expensive chemicals in the garden, which I don't like using, and object to paying silly money for...

Vinegar diluted 50/50 with water in a washing up liquid or other squirty bottle. Squirt it along the cracks in paving slabs and it will kill weeds/grass growing through.

The alternative, if you bought salt for the winter and didn't use it all up, is to disolve the a cup of salt in a jug of boiling water and pour that into the cracks.

Have tried both and they're both successful. A Warning! don't pour too close to lawns, flowers etc in case the solutions 'bleeds' along the cracks. It will kill anything it reaches, so stop a couple of inches from the end

Must try that Sparrer (can't belive we're on this thread at the same time again), I use the water I cook my potatoes in as a weed killer. Very effective on the spiky weeds but not so much on grass between the slabs.

sparrer

mumofthetwins wrote: »

You must have posted whilst i was typing i think i will give this a try :T

Does anyone know where to get some cheap white vinigar - i looked in morrisons the other day and it was crazy prices - i know its cheap out there somewhere

Lisa

Our local farm shop sells white vinegar in 1 gallon containers for £3.99, might be worth seeing if there's one near you

Uniscots97

mumofthetwins wrote: »

You must have posted whilst i was typing i think i will give this a try :T

Does anyone know where to get some cheap white vinigar - i looked in morrisons the other day and it was crazy prices - i know its cheap out there somewhere

Lisa

Great minds think alike mumofthetwins

The best places to get white vinegar is markets, ethnic food stores or cash n carry's. Before I found somewhere that kept it locally to me I cheekily asked in my local chippy if they would get me some.