Sneaky ways to save the pennies

doire_2

Uses for bicarbonate of soda . Found this on another website. Hope it helps

1. Washing Up To a bowl of hot water, add 1 tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda & the juice of half a lemon .
2. Dishwasher Powder Make up a powder for the dishwasher by mixing 2 tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda with 2 tablespoons of borax substitute.
3. Cleaning Sinks Either place bicarbonate of soda directly onto a damp cloth or make up a paste of soda with a little water. Wipe around the sink & rinse well.
4. Cooker Tops As above, make a paste of soda & water and apply with a cloth. Wipe over well and rinse with cold water.
5. Blocked Drains Pour about 16 tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda down the sink and then pour in about 120ml of white distilled vinegar. Put the plug in for a couple of minutes as the 2 chemicals will fizz. Rinse through with boiling water
6. Scouring Powder Mix together equal quantities of bicarbonate of soda, borax substitute & salt as a scouring powder on heavy grease and dirt.
7. Oven Cleaner Dampen the floor of the oven, sprinkle with bicarbonate of soda and dampen again. Leave the mixture overnight and then remove with a cloth. Rinse with hot water.
8. Fabric Conditioner To make your own fabric conditioner, mix equal quantities of water, bicarbonate of soda and vinegar in a storage bottle, take care as the vinegar & soda will fizz up. Add ¼ cup of conditioner to your wash.
9. Deodorising Drains To freshen drains & help prevent blockages, pour a cup of bicarbonate of soda down the drain and then wash down with some boiling water.
10. Bathroom Cleaning To clean all areas in the bathroom, including baths, sinks, tiles etc, make a paste of bicarbonate if soda and water. To give a fresh smell add a couple of drops of lemon essential oil. Using a cloth, wipe around the bathroom & rinse well to remove the white residue.
11. Toilet Cleaning To clean the toilet bowl, sprinkle in bicarbonate of soda, add white vinegar and scour with a brush.
12. Grout Cleaning To clean grout make up a paste of 2 parts bicarbonate of soda and one part vinegar or lemon juice (this will fizz up). Apply the paste to the grout with a toothbrush, leave for 10 mins and then rinse off with warm water
13. Pet Odours To help freshen carpets, sprinkle bicarbonate of soda on the carpet, leave for 10 mins and then vacuum up.
14. Fridge Odours To eliminate smells in the fridge, leave a box of bicarbonate of soda, opened in the fridge. Stir occasionally and replace after about 3 months.
15. Air Freshener Mix 8 tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda with 3- 4 drops of essential oil and place in a bowl.
16. Clean Fruit & Vegetables Place the fruit or vegetables in a bowl of water with a sprinkle of bicarbonate of soda, wash and then rinse.
17. Laundry Add ½ cup of bicarbonate of soda to a load of washing to help with the removal of stains and grease.
18. Thermos Flasks To get rid of smells in a thermos, fill the thermos with hot water and add a spoonful of bicarbonate of soda. Leave to soak for at least 30 mins then empty and rinse.
19. Chopping Board. Regularily give your chopping board a deep clean by spreading bicarb over the surface and spray with vinegar. Let it bubble for a while and then rinse with hot water.
20. Onion Odour. To remove the odour of onion and garlic from wooden or other porous surfaces, sprinkle some bicarb on to a damp cloth and rub into the surface. Rinse with water.
21. Dishwasher Cleaning. Freshen up your dishwasher by adding about 150g of bicarb and running it through a rinse cycle.
22. Plastic Food boxes. Remove odours from plastic food boxes by filling them with very hot water, add 1 tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda. a few drops of liquid detergent and 1 tablespoon of vinegar. Leave to stand for 15mins, or longer, then rinse clean.
23. Tea & Coffee stains. Use a paste of bicarb to remove tea & coffee stains from cups.
24. Microwave Cleaning. To clean the microwave wipe the inside with a solution of 4 tablespoons of baking soda to 2 pints of water. Another method is to p lace some bicarb and water into a microwave-safe cup and place in the microwave. Allow to boil for 3 – 5 mins. The damp inside walls of the microwave can be now be easily wiped clean with a cloth.
25. Cleaning Silver. Remove tarnish from silver by applying a paste of water and bicarb with a damp sponge, rinse & buff dry.
26. Rust. To remove rust from metal chair or table legs, make a paste of 1 tablespoon baking soda with a teaspoon of water. Apply to the rust with a damp cloth, scrub lightly with a piece of aluminium foil & wipe clean with a paper towel.
27. Wooden floors. Remove water spots from wooden floors by applying a bicarb solution on a damp cloth. (Remember not to get the wood too wet as this may damage it)
28. Walls. To clean marks, such as crayon, pencil or grease, off washable walls use bicard on a wet sponge and scrub gently.
29. Carpet Stains. Remove wine or grease stains from carpet by lightly sprinkling area with baking soda. Dab it up and add a little more if necessary. Leave on until the wine is absorbed, then vacuum up any residue left.
30. Septic Tanks. Wash a cup of baking soda down a toilet or drain once a week to help maintain or restore the pH of a septic tank. The regular addition of baking soda helps prevent corrosion of concrete as well as metal septic tanks.

Mrs_Thrify

I've run out of bubble bath so used a bit of shampoo last time, today, thought of thoose little packs you get at Chtistmas and keep in your holiday bag for going away. They are getting used with the thought I can always refill when needed. It is saving the pennies by not spending - well I have not got any large bottles untill I go shopping later in the week.
I am also using Simple face cream from a freebie site.They sent a generous 10ml tube. Ek! the things we get up to on here.

Mrs_Thrify

Gosh, there is a lot you can clean with bicarb. Thanks for posting all Dorie.
I sometimes mix bicarb with water on a saucer for cleaning with a microfibre cloth. I use 50/50 white vinegar in an old spray bottle too.

mama67

Aril wrote: »

I often find it's much cheaper to buy a decent pack of sausages and take the meat out of the skins than buy sausagemeat itself.
Aril

I usually do this as well.

Aril

The plastic cartons that come with the mushrooms in are just the right size for storing CDS. Not very glamorous but they're hidden away:D I usually buy mushrooms in the paper bags and have found when I have got these cartons on the odd occasion they are unrecycable otherwise.
Aril

mama67

we had a pub style wooden garden bench which has lasted us 8 summers but was rotten some places.
Dh took it apart got some wood from a pallet and a couple of scaffolding planks at work, he has completely remade said bench and all it cost was some new scr€ws as we had the wood paint anyway.

approx £80 saved and this is now stronger than when first bought new

mama67

Aril wrote: »

When I make flapjacks I put all the broken bits up and put them aside to use up on cereal.
When baking I wipe inside the egg shell with my finger to make sure I've got all the egg out [yes I know I'm a very sad person:D]
For a cheap present I cut out a frame from thick cardboard and then embellished it with ribbon before adding a photograph. I've also seen some very effective necklaces made from buttons or threaded together on elastic to make bracelets. Last year I bought a cheap notebook and copied out 50 or so unusual jam or chutney recipes as my Dad's keen on making things in jars!
Aril

Aril, I do that with the egg as well, as did my mum and my Nanna

Lesley_Gaye

Aril wrote: »

I treated myself to a new lipstick yesterday but for the first time I've taken all the old ones with only a little bit in and melted them together. This has given me a whole new pot and a lovely colour. Normally I'd have just thrown them away:o
Aril

I've done this too. I have a lovely Bobbi Brown lipstick case that holds 3 different lipsticks in small trays, with a small lip brush in a separate tray. I really like and use it often. When the colour I used the most was finished, I melted some bits of old lipsticks that weren't quite the right colour so never got used and mixed them together in one of the trays so I can use them - took a bit of experimenting, but I have now got a new colour I really like from lipsticks that were just stuffed in the back of the drawer.
I was surprised how many similar colours I had, they just need a bit of adjustment to be usable

Frugalista

I do something similar with nailvarnish. Pour (very carefully) oddments of leftover colours together to create a new colour. For example, if I have a red colour that is just too "in your face" I mix it with a pale pink or peach to tone it down. Also, if a nailvarnish has gone a little "claggy" I buy a bottle of clear nailvarnish and pour some of that in to make it runnier - Tip: the cheap clear nailvarnishes are normally runnier which is exactly what you want HTH

foxy-tigger

Frugalista wrote: »

I do something similar with nailvarnish. Pour (very carefully) oddments of leftover colours together to create a new colour. For example, if I have a red colour that is just too "in your face" I mix it with a pale pink or peach to tone it down. Also, if a nailvarnish has gone a little "claggy" I buy a bottle of clear nailvarnish and pour some of that in to make it runnier - Tip: the cheap clear nailvarnishes are normally runnier which is exactly what you want HTH

I havn't done this for a while but I used to pour a little nail varnish remover into an old nail varnish if it got a little too thick (old!) then give it a really good shake! its like new then!