Home and Garden Inexpensively

We've become a throwaway society: something isn't working right, and our first instinct is to replace it altogether. But, there are a lot of things around the house that could be repaired just as easily — and for a lot less money. That's why we still have the "temporary" dining room table my parents gave us when we moved in here 10 years ago. Instead of replacing the entire set when the chairs began falling apart, we have made a few minor adjustments. First, we upholstered the dying chairs. We finally did replace the chairs when but have kept the perfectly functional table. We have been using a tablecloth to hide the imperfections on the tabletop. (Bonus: update your kitchen with an inexpensive linen purchase.) The decision to repair or replace depends on several factors — your personal finances at the time, the difficulty level or cost of a repair, the age of the item, and how often you actually use it in the first place. If money is tight, I'm more likely to fix it myself. If the repair costs almost as much as a replacement, I'm going to just get a new one. And, if it's not something I use often in the first place, I'll either make do or get rid of it altogether. Check out a few tips for the broken stuff in your house on Babble.com...

{The New Home Ec} 24 Awesome Ways to Reuse Baby Wipes Containers

I still have baby wipe containers all over the house, even though we haven’t had a baby in diapers for more than 3 years. They make such great storage containers — the toy room has stacks of containers filled with cars, puzzles, and more ti…


{The New Home Ec} 10 Inexpensive Updates for Your Kitchen

I spend a lot of time in my kitchen — breakfast, lunch, dinner, supervising numerous snacks — so it doesn’t take long for the look to get stale. Unfortunately, everything in there is just so big that I’m kinda stuck with it. We don&#821…


{The New Home Ec} How to Save Money on Holiday Electric Bills

You may consider utility bills as an expense you can’t do anything about, but you are wrong. If you pay attention to your energy use each month, you’ll notice a spike in December. In my home this is usually the result of being home from wor…


(The New Home Ec} 20 Amazing Ways to Reuse Toilet Paper Rolls

A few weeks ago, I saw a post on using empty toilet paper rolls to store & organize cords. I thought it was so brilliant that I immediately started saving our empty rolls. Then, I stumbled on a tip for using one as filler for frugal holiday decor, …


How to Survive a Heat Wave With No Air-Conditioning

The temperature has been over 90° every day this week—finally hitting the 100° mark yesterday. But, as we say in Indiana, it’s not the heat…it’s the humidity! The “feels like” reading on my weather map has been over 100° all week. Yet, our central air hasn’t been on all summer. We typically leave the air [...]


Receipt Storage & Tax Organization

I completed my taxes a couple weeks ago—it took several days of almost nonstop sorting through paperwork, emails & online accounts. I actually thought it would take longer—which likely means I’ve missed some receipts & deductions. My disorganization costs money all the time! I am so excited about my recent discovery—Shoeboxed is going to change [...]


Winter Storms = Power Outages: Are You Protected? (Ad)

It’s only when the power fails in our homes that we’re reminded of how much we rely on it—and electrical cover can take care of things should you suffer a blackout. Because whatever time of the year it happens, a power failure can be a huge hassle. Most of us will have experienced this type [...]


31 Day Budget (Day 10): Lowering Utility Costs

31 Days to a Better Budget Lowering Utility Costs Each day of the series offers new tips, ideas and a challenge to start the year with a solid financial plan. Some expenses are unavoidable—you need food, water, shelter—but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do about it. Many household expenses can easily be reduced [...]


Taming the Stockpile Challenge with Coupon Teacher

If you are cleaning out your cupboard with Denise from Shopper Strategy, you may want to check out the January challenge on Coupon Teacher as well.  I am inviting you to Tame Your Stockpile this month! Part One: Eating from Your Stockpile—One of the best ways to “Tame” your stockpile is to use some of [...]