Using It UP Ideas~Dryer Sheets

Beginning here, I will post what I am going to call: Using It Up Ideas on items that we either throw away or could have another use other than the advertised or intended ones so that we can get as much utility as possible for our items~and save the landfills a bit! So while I was in the laundry "palace" today, I realized that using all those dryer sheets and then throwing them away needs to come to some "greater good" for a second go around of use! I examined those white thin "airy" looking rectangles and gave it some thought. I came up with a few ideas, but I want to thank my mother, Betty for her ideas too! Mamas know best~this is undisputed!

Here's the ideas~

1. Dryer lint remover
2. Sachet craft idea or perfumed for a dresser drawer or suit cases
3. Static remover
4. Dust rag
5. Doll clothes pattern material
6. Stuffing for crafts
7. Material for scrapbooking/card cutouts


Dryer Lint Remover

The lint filter of an electric or gas dryer if not properly cleaned can make the machine operate so poorly! I use my dryer sheet from the load I am taking care of to wipe the lint out of the mesh screen. This really does a nice job, and reduces any static that might accumulate in the area. With one easy swipe, I have all the lint and into the trash it goes! Easy!!


Sachet or scented "cloth" for dresser drawers/suit cases

I knew a lady once who made the cutest sachets for her dressers~she utilized the used dryer sheets which have a thin and airy look to them~almost like homemade paper to put popourri into and tied them with a pretty ribbon. Now the trick was to cut the rectangle into a circle with some sharp scissors that can have a decorative edge or straight. The idea though is a nice neat edge. After tying in a pretty bow, then silk flowers were added. The scent was very nice. These made nice little favors or gifts for "Just Because!"

Put used dryer sheets into your luggage to keep it smelling fresh between uses. You can also save them and layer them into your clothing being packed. Smells good!


Static Remover

Carry one in your purse during the windy seasons in your area to use to rub on your clothing if you find yourself with static cling. For those who wear nylon hosery or unmentionables, this use can really help if you find you are clinging in unbecoming ways~always rub the undersides of the cothing next to your skin as that's the direction of the charge pulling the fabrics toward you...or rub it in between your layers if that's where the problem is occurring. You don't want to be clingy!



Dust Rag

I'd make sure my dryer sheet had gone twice in the dryer before rubbing it on my monitors and TV screens...you don't want to smear the softner there~what a mess that could be! But after using all the softening agent, then the tiny bit left will draw the dust and make cleaning easier! I know what to call this~Magnetic Cleaning with DRYER SHEETS!!


Doll Clothes Pattern

Granted dryer sheets won't make a pattern for large items, but for some doll clothes they will make nice permanent patterns. Just trace the original onto the dryer sheet and cut it out. Be sure to mark which piece that it is and what the pattern is so that if a single piece gets seperated, it can be easily found and placed with its coordinating items. This is a great idea to piece together!



Stuffing for Cloth Crafts

If you save enough you can use them to stuff things with instead of purchasing additional materials. This definitely saves on the overall cost of the project~whoohoo more savings!

Material for Scrapbooking and Cardmaking Cut Outs

I love making my own cards. In recent years I've not made very many, but I even like to handmake the embellishments for my cards and scrapbook pages. The almost lacy or handmade paper look makes dryer sheets a unique material to make objects~snowflakes, snowmen, hearts, candles...anything you could use white: wedding motiffs and more! Use good sharp scissors and go to town! With some good craft glue, these will adorn anything you are doing in the paper craft world!

This is the Using it UP Ideas~Dryer Sheets post. If you have an idea to share I'd love to hear from you! Look for more Using It Up Ideas!

Eating Cheap Means...

Everybody's talking about economy~folks are writing books for me to buy on all sorts of subjects where thrift is concerned! Bloggers like me are posting and Twits (oooo this sounds bad~) Twitter about it...but the TOTAL truth is that if you don't spend it, you either SAVED or Didn't have it...but whichever way, when it comes to FOOD~one must eat! I can do without things~fancy or not, but I have to eat...well, I actually LOVE to eat~but that's a whole 'nuther' blog. . . but to sustain life, food must be consumed~but WHAT FOODS, and HOW MUCH foods? OK...since I am not the "know it all" about it all, I did find a cool blog article over at TIME for your consideration. There's a website and a book coming...hey, it's not necessary to GO THAT FAR and buy...just read the interview and hit the site to gain some knowledge of the subject. When I read the interview, I wanted to jump up and down...ok ok! I didn't~WANTED is the operative word here B E C A U S E they were saying some of the same things I have been saying...or rather, they proved what I do AND what I am saying:
Foods prepared at home are less costly~but I go further in saying that we have loads of resources to stretch our dollar savings that we WASTE everyday. Read the article http://cheapskate.blogs.time.com/2009/08/18/how-to-eat-on-a-dollar-a-day/ There are some really awesome points about HOW to do this! AND it's a thrifty-monger's (ME) fuel and FOOD for thought!

Don't pay for recipes, research for free online!
Don't buy other's ideas, loads of folks LIKE ME give them away!
Don't waste another thing~use it ALL up!

I've heard that in other countries they use all their resources and waste nothing. In apartment complexes there is almost no garbage and little in landfills~hmmm....Guess they are USING it ALL! This takes some creativity and planning~along with some work! But to eat on a dollar a day~read that article...also I was blessed to hear a Mp3 download today on organization and budgeting. Thank you Values Driven Family http://www.valuesdrivenfamily.com/HomeschoolFreebie.htm for this opportunity! Resources equal time or money. ALWAYS! Waste Not!

Just not impressed with the $3 per person or the $5 meal plans. . . IT CAN be done on less!


HANG ON to your money~don't ship it out to the landfill in the trashbag~LET it hang around and grow!
SisterTipster<3

The Cost of Freedom~It Isn't FREE!

Happy Fourth for our nation's 233 Birthday~

Despite our troubles, our nation is the greatest on earth and prayerfully we will remain so~

Freedom costs us all, and many of us more than others. First I think about and REMEMBER our fallen HEROES! From the very beginning of the idea of freedom, the idea that a people could self rule without a monarchy or dictatorship, lives were forever changed either in death or losses as they pursued the ideals of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I have read accounts of the signers of the Declaration of Independence what happened to many of them~and it was not good results for many of them! Oh we all know about some, like the ones who went on to become our Founding Fathers: George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, but there were others who lost so much~their lives, economic stability and even their families. But Freedom rang in their hearts in that time when only a dream of becoming a free people was not much more than a hope for a reality that in the end would forever change the world~England's 13 colonies were destined to become 13 United States of America! Today with fifty states and US territories around the world, our nation has emerged to become the greatest nation and strongest "super power" the world has ever seen. But this freedom comes with cost. Cost not just in the lives of our brave men and women of our armed forces, but in the very lives of the people who enjoy the benefits of this freedom as responsible citizens, the keepers if you will of this freedom.

What are the costs of freedom to the citizen of a free nation? Costs of knowledge, responsibility, patriotism and honor. Each bares the burdens to the public for certain actions to sustain and promote the freedom of our nation. Knowledge alone is a burden we must bare to be educated in arenas such as world history, economics, morality, and more. This isn't easy as homeschoolers know~we spend so much of our time looking for good curricula to educate our children and thereby educate ourselves. The statistics are staggering at the success of homeschooling verses the lock-step political mind control of public education (It's not just a moral value that is good rationale for home ed.)

Responsibility has become almost a dirty word in society today as often folks are prone to blaming and passing the proverbial buck when personal choice and responsibility play such crucial roles in the everyday of sustaining society, the part of our nation in which we all live! How in the world can our citizens practice personal responsibility when so much blaming and shifting around truth is an everyday occurance. I have to indict the media for some of this, but also the moral fibers of our churches are weakening as families comprised of people are failing. All this to remind us that our freedom isn't FREE.

Yes, I have the freedom to say what I want to, but in your hearing my personal responsibility is to consider you my fellow citizen. Consideration for others is key in responsibility. It goes right back to the Garden of Eden where the sin or trouble wasn't in the actual act, although it was wrong, it was the motive of Eve: to be as wise as God. Who in their "right mind" would attempt to be God? But we do it ALL the time when we usurp His authority as God to do things our own way with disregard for His authority as Creator. Then when Adam and Eve were cowering and God was looking for them, "Where are you?" God called, they were not taking personal responsibility with the One who knew the truth of their actions but blamed everyone from each other to the serpant. Personal responsibility is necessary and comes at a price. We must pay it each day to remain a free and thriving nation.

Patriotism is love of country~have we forgottnen to love our nation? National pride, standing UP for our country~having a heart for our great land and more. . . Are we willing to do what is necessary to remain free? Remember there is cost we must ALL pay~no free loaders allowed! We must demand that all our citizens work for the common good of our nation!

Does anyone know the meaning of honor anymore? HONOR~truthfulness, fidelity, trustworthiness: ideals that must accompany all that makes freedom possible. These do not come easy, but they are a necessary cost for FREEDOM and a nation that has such a high price tag~

No wonder we have so much to celebrate today~it's more than just a day of cookouts, fireworks and patriotic music~it's a day to reflect on the costs associated with having such a wonderful nation and to continue in committment to the United States of America~the home of the free because of the BRAVE!

Happy 4th of July~celebrate all that is STILL so right with our nation! AND hey, these costs, yea, they cost a bunch even to the extent of our very lives, but what a bargain~FREEDOM!

God Bless America, my home sweet home!

blessings
SisterTipster <3