Plastic Shopping Bags Uses and Storage

I know many of you have already started using those wonderful reusable "green bags" when you go shopping.  But, if you are like me, sometimes I get to the store and realize I forgot them.  Or, you are just running in for a couple items and you forget them in the car or don't want to bother for such a small order.  You opt for plastic over paper and now you have some of those plastic shopping bags.  Most would maybe reuse it in it's original form to carry things once or twice, recycle it, or toss it, but I have found some great additional uses for these bags that save me money.  I also found a great way to store them so they don't take up too much room either.

1. Free trash liners for your bathroom trash cans.
2. If you have cats, they are perfect little trash bags for scooping the litter clumps.
3. If you are already recycling or composting, you probably don't have half as much kitchen trash as you used to.  Why do you still need the industrial size trash can in your kitchen?  Downsize to a 3 gallon/11 liter waste basket, roughly the size you might use under a desk.  The plastic bags fit perfectly so you don't need to purchase kitchen trash bags anymore, either. Just make sure the bag doesn't have a hole in the bottom or you might end up with a mess if you put wet stuff in the trash.  Mine fits perfectly under my sink, so its out of sight and the pets can't get into it.  With these smaller size trash cans, you might even have room under your sink for a separate trash and recycle waste basket.  This will make it more convenient to recycle, so you will be more likely to do it.  With a smaller trash container, obviously, it will fill up a little quicker than a big one, but you will be able to keep smells to a minimum inside your home since you will be taking the trash out more frequently.



Upcycled plastic baskets by bagsagain.etsy.com

4. This one might be a stretch for some of you to make yourself, but I have actually seen people cut these into long strips like yarn and knit, crochet, or weave them into rugs, beach bags, purses, place mats, baskets, accessories, and other amazing creations.  Check out some some of these very affordable items others have made out of plastic shopping bags that are for sale on etsy.com  They will blow your mind!!  Some Etsy sellers even sell patterns for those of you who might want to try to make some of these, and "yarn" that is already pre-made for these creations, if you don't want to take the time to cut it up yourself.

Now that I have you thinking a little differently about these plastic shopping bags, here's my trick to making them compact for easy storage.  

1. Stick a couple fingers of your right hand through the handles of the bag.  Keep your fingers in these holes the whole time until right at the end at step #4.
2. Using your left hand, starting near the handles, smooth and pull the bag into a long plastic strip.
3. Grasp the "bottom" of the bag with your left hand and with a twisting wrist action, roll the bottom of the bag up around two fingers on your left hand all the way up to the handles creating a little "ball" around your left hand fingers and twisting the bag around your right fingers creating a small "loop"
4. Flip the "loop" from the handles around your right hand fingers over the "ball" wrapped around your left hand fingers.  This will keep this tight little ball secured and compact for easy storage.  
5. A small box, basket, or drawer will hold a ton of them in this compact form until you are ready to use them.  Simply unhook the loop, unwind, and they are ready to use again.

Homemade Laundry Soap

I know some of you have been waiting patiently for this post, so here it goes.  I don't know about you, but it used to kill me to drop $20 or more to get the large economy size HE name brand laundry detergent at my local big box membership club.  I had tried some of the cheaper brands, but was not very happy with their cleaning ability.  I was also not very happy to be paying for a large percentage of water or fillers in the formula and many chemicals that are not earth friendly.  I have a septic system at my house, and I was told by a septic repair man that one of the worst things you can put into your septic system is household detergents, mainly laundry, dish washing detergents, and bleach.  The main active chemical ingredients throw off the natural balance of good bacteria, which is the key to a properly working, trouble free system.

Over several months time, and giving samples to family and friends to try and get their feedback, I have come up with a formula that I have been using for several years.  When I first started making it, I used store bought soap bars made specifically for laundry use.  Since I now make my own cold process soap, I now make my own bar soap to grate for my laundry soap.  For those of you interested in experimenting with soap making, I'll share that recipe in a later post.  For those of you not quite ready to jump in and make your own bar soap, the store bought laundry bars, such as Fels Naptha or Zote Soap, will work just fine for this recipe.

Homemade Laundry Soap

• Roughly 2 1/2 cups loosely packed grated laundry soap bar (see note below)
• 1 cup washing soda (AKA soda ash, or sodium carbonate)
• 1/2 cup borax
• 1/2 cup baking soda (AKA sodium bi-carbonate)
• A few drops of Essential oils of your choice (optional)

This recipe makes approximately 4 1/2 cups of dry laundry soap.  Depending on the capacity of your washer, the size loads you wash, and if you have a HE or regular washer, you will need roughly 1 to 2 tablespoons per load.  At one tablespoon per load, this will get you about 72 loads per recipe, for 2 tablespoons per load, roughly 36 loads.  Buying the store bought laundry bar soap, bulk baking soda at the wholesale club, borax at my local big box retailer, and soda ash at my ceramics supply store (I will explain a little farther down in this post), the cost per load is roughly $.018/load for 1 tablespoon or $.036/load for 2 tablespoons!  Compare that to roughly $.20 to $.40 per load for your typical store laundry detergent.  With coupons you can get it down a little cheaper, but nowhere near less than 5 cents per load unless you are a coupon goddess and have double coupons in your state.  Don't have that here in Florida. :o( You are also saving on the cost of fabric softener since with this formula, you don't need any.  Your clothes and towels will come out super soft.  If you are still having static issues in the winter, add a little white vinegar to your rinse cycle, where you would normally add the fabric softener, and that will help.  If you like some scent to your laundry, adding a few drops of your favorite essential oils to the mix will do the trick.  The amount will vary based on the essential oil, since some are much stronger scented than others.

I make laundry soap in an old food processor.  If you don't have one, a box grater will work well to grate your bar soap.  It will just take longer.  Some say the rhythm of the grating process is therapeutic.  Personally, I would rather get it done fast so I can move on to other things.  I first slice the bars into small enough strips to feed into the top feed tube.  Allowing them to dry for a few hours at this point will also help the shredding go a little easier.  Then I shred it with a shred disk you might use for carrots or cheese, then set the shredded soap aside.  After all my soap bars are shredded, I measure out my recipe in the food processor with the chopping blade at the bottom.  Give the whole batch several long pulses until it is all well blended and it is ready to go.  I store mine in an old 5 gallon paint bucket, even a re-purposed cat litter container would be perfect, as long as it has a lid to keep moisture levels down.  As you can see by the size container I use, when I make my laundry soap, I make a big batch, so I will have enough to last me several months. 

All of these ingredients you should be able to find in your local big box store, or even your grocery store, but I shopped around for the best prices on each item.  One ingredient in particular, sodium carbonate (NOT sodium BI-carbonate), AKA washing soda or soda ash, is typically found in the laundry aisle, but I found an even cheaper, more obscure place to purchase it.  Believe it or not, soda ash is an ingredient used to make some glaze formulations in ceramics.  If you have a ceramics supply house near by, you might be able to buy soda ash by the pound from them way cheaper than in the laundry aisle.  It works good for other cleaning purposes, as it is also sold as washing soda.  It is also the same active ingredient in coffee machine cleaners you would typically pay several dollars for a small 8 oz container.  Mix it 1 tablespoon to 4 cups of water and you have another money saving use to keep your coffee maker clean.  Just make sure to run 3 batches of clean water through your machine afterwards to rinse out the cleaner solution.

If you are worried if this laundry soap recipe will work in an HE machine, don't.  This is a very low suds formula that works great in HE machines as well as regular machines.  When I had people test my formula, I had people with both kinds of machines try it with great results.  It also works great for baby clothes and people with sensitivities to many laundry product additives.  I only had one person complain it bothered her, but later found out she has sensitivities to baking soda.  You can also make the recipe without baking soda, but here in Florida with the harder water, it really seems to help soften the water and help with the rinsing.  Tweak the formula for your water conditions and see what works best for you. 

If you are finding bits of soap left undissolved after the wash, you are likely using too much. If you are used to store brands, the amount of this recipe you need will seem like too small of an amount to get the job done.  Keep in mind, most conventional store brands include water or other fillers to make it looks like you are getting more for your money.  When you strip it down to the essential cleaners you really don't need much.  I have seen other on-line recipes dissolve or cook their soap formula to make a liquid soap.  I guess you could also do that, but who wants the extra work, plus it will just take up more room with the added water. 

Speaking of other online formulas for laundry soap, many will recommend using left over scraps of regular bar soap you might use for washing your hands or your body.  Don't do it.  These bars are mostly either detergent bars, since in production the skin friendly glycerin is removed to sell for a higher price in lotions, or the bar is what they call "super-fatted."  If you don't already know, soap is made by chemically changing the physical properties of oils, butters, or fats into soap using lye, also known as sodium hydroxide.  In soap speak, super-fatting soap means having excess oils added to the soap that do not completely saponify, or turn into soap, during the chemical and curing process.  These unsaponfied oils are great for moisturizing your skin, but not so good for your laundry.  Excess oils will build up on your clothes and in your machine over time.  Not good!  Please use only soap designed for laundry purposes or cold process soap that is not super-fatted.  Lard or tallow based soaps also seem to work a bit better than vegetable oil based soaps, in my opinion.  Over time, the vegetable based soaps seemed to make my whites a little dingy.

I hope this post has been worth the wait, and you now have a whole new insight to your laundry.  It may be far more than you ever thought you would know about soap or laundry, but typically knowing too much is far better than not knowing enough. :o)  Please post your comments and results, so if you have tweaked your formula for different parts of the country others can also benefit from your findings.

Microwave Potato Chips

You read the title correctly.  Yes, you can actually make crunchy chips in the microwave.  I was watching a Dr. Oz episode and was inspired by one of the kitchen gadgets he was showcasing.  Being the frugal person I am, I thought, "Why spend the money on the gadget?"  Who needs another gadget cluttering up their kitchen, anyway?

Slice the potatoes paper thin.  If you have a mandolin slicer already, that is the perfect tool used on the thinnest slice setting.  Place a reusable non-stick silicone baking sheet in your microwave and turn off the turn table to keep it from spinning.  Place your potato slices on the sheet making sure to not over lap.  Sprinkle with a little sea salt, then nuke on high for 2-3 minutes.  The time will vary based on how thin your slices are and the power of your microwave.  If they turn out a little chewy and not crunchy, your chips are either cut too thick or it needs to cook a little longer.  If they are cooked a little too long, they will taste a bit burned.  Play around with a few small batches until you get it just right.  They are delicious, light & airy, and much healthier than any fried chip.

You can also try this trick with a variety of veggies & fruits like sweet potatoes, apples, pears, or other root veggies like parsnips, beets, etc.  Check out some of the variations you see in the snack aisle for inspiration. You will probably have to play around a little to find the perfect cook times for each type.  I found with apples, and other items that have a higher sugar content, the sweeter they were, the more likely they had a tendency to be a bit more chewy than crunchy, but they are still delicious.  With the apples, I found putting them in for 1 minute and 50 seconds, flipping them, then putting them in for another 30 seconds came out the best.

It's much quicker than a dehydrator, so you can make them fresh whenever you get the craving.  I haven't tried it yet, but I would think they would store for a few days at room temperature in an airtight container or baggie. I'm sure you could also do the same thing in the oven on a low bake setting, but when you don't want to wait or heat up your kitchen, try this instead.  Imagine the possibilities!

Plant a Fruit Tree

Trying to eat more fruit?  Why not plant a fruit tree?  Even if you don't live in a warmer climate, with the large variety of fruit trees available, many will survive in areas that get quite cold.  Some trees will even bear fruit if grown in containers, which can be moved to a more sheltered area when the mercury drops.  While you enjoy your bountiful harvest, every year, your property values will likely also increase.  Here in Florida, did you know that your property value increases $1,000 for each mature citrus tree?  That's quite a return on your essentially maintenance free, $20-$50 investment for only a few short years to sit and wait. 

One mature tree will likely produce more fruit than your family can eat all by yourselves.  Why not see if a neighbor would also plant a different variety, so when the trees start producing you can swap?  You can maybe even sell your excess to a local farm stand, keep your neighbors supplied, or donate your excess to a local food bank or church to help feed those in need?

Before you buy, do your homework.  Online resources and local nurseries are a great place to find out information on which trees will do best in your area, growing habits and size of a mature tree, how long you will have to wait to get fruit, what maintenance or pruning will be required or not, if a second tree is needed for pollination or not, and how much fruit you can expect from a mature tree.  Check out local smaller nurseries before opting for the big box retailers.  You will likely get much more valuable growing information, a healthier tree more fitting for your climate, and help support your local small businesses.

Grow your fruit organically and you can really benefit.  You can reduce the amount of pesticides and fungicides your family ingests, and your cost, versus what you would pay for organic fruit elsewhere, will save you bundles!

Double it Up to Save Time and Energy

When you do take the time to cook dinner, why not make a batch twice as large as you actually need for that day?  This way you only really cook once and can heat up left overs on a night when you are too tired or pressed for time to cook.  You only need to turn your oven or stove on once instead of twice.  Your microwave uses much less power to reheat your meal.

Package your left overs in convenient sizes that serve one person.  I recommend the low cost stackable containers so many companies sell now.  Why invest in expensive ones when the cheapies last quite a long time and if you want to send home leftovers with a friend, they don't have to worry about returning your container.  Many containers that you might normally toss in the recycle bin will work also, think sliced lunch meat.  I personally like ones that are somewhat see through so you can see how large the portion is without opening it and you remember that it's not something else when you go back to find your leftovers later without having to notice the label.  Label them with a piece of scotch tape and a sharpie, so you know what it is, and don't forget the date you made it.  The labels will peel off easily later and they are super inexpensive.  If you don't eat your leftovers in a day or two, pop it in the freezer.  On those busier days, open up the freezer and you have a smorgasbord of healthy options to pick from with a delicious homemade taste, which are ready in minutes.  Just like a restaurant, each person can pick their favorite because you thought ahead and froze them in individual serving sizes. They heat up quicker in the microwave this way, too.  Pop them onto a plate or in a bowl.  Never heat your leftovers in plastic containers or use plastic wrap in the microwave because harmful chemicals, like BPA, leach from the plastic into your food when heated.  Cover with a paper towel if it will have a tendency to splatter.  Prevent the mess now and you have less to clean up later.  Your personalized healthy meals will be ready in minutes.

Pre-made store bought microwave meals are expensive, even with coupons, and typically don't include too many veggies or contain very small portions of protein.  Overall, most are lacking in the nutrition department.  They are usually carbohydrate heavy, since carbs are cheaper for companies to produce and they help fill you up, so you think you had a good size portion for your money. Unfortunately, these simple carbs, like white rice, regular white flour pasta, or breads like in a pizza crust, cause your blood sugar to spike shortly after eating them.  In an hour or two your blood sugar will crash causing you to feel hungry again.  Then you start craving the stuff you probably shouldn't be eating and start packing on the pounds.  When you do the cooking, if you go a little heavier on the veggies, add complex carbs like brown rice, whole grain flour items, or add a normal size protein portion, the meals are much healthier for you and will fill you up just as well, or even better, but keep also your blood sugar normalized without the crash and subsequent cravings later.

Removing Red Wine Stains

Aw, Man!  You just dripped red wine on your shirt, or worse yet, on your friend's light colored carpet.  Don't panic, but don't let it sit there too long, either.  First try to dab up the excess with something absorbent, like a white paper towel, or a clean rag.  Don't rub, Dab.  Also, try not to spread the stain over a larger area in the process.  Now you need two basic things you will likely find in any household:

• a bottle of dish soap, the kind with the squirty pop top, 
• and a bottle of plain old cheap hydrogen peroxide

Did you know that the size opening and threading on most dish soap bottles is exactly the same as the ones used on pretty much every hydrogen peroxide bottle?  Divine intervention?  Maybe?  Here's the trick....  Unscrew the pop top from the soap bottle, don't rinse the soap off of it, then screw it right onto the hydrogen peroxide bottle.  You now have the perfect tool for your wine removal.  The little bit of dish soap remaining on the pop top works with the hydrogen peroxide so you can apply it exactly where it needs to go.  Use the tip of the bottle to gently massage the fabric or carpet to get between the fibers and remove the stain.  If on a carpet, use a clean white paper towel or clean rag to soak up the excess liquid as you go, so the carpet doesn't get too soaked.  Like magic, the soap and peroxide mixture makes the stain almost vanish before your eyes.  After the stain has disappeared, rinse with cool, clean water and dab up the excess with a different clean white paper towel or clean rag.

Many online cleaning tips tell you to mix up a batch of this and that, using up a bulk of the hydrogen peroxide solution, and getting out more mixing stuff than what you actually need.  Don't waste time or more supplies than you really need.  The pop top allows for precision placement of your cleaning solution with little to no waste.

I used this trick for one of my parent's friends over the holidays.  They were shocked at how simple and quick it worked.  This trick will work on colored fabrics as well, but make sure you rinse it afterwards.  It will also work on many more organic type stains that are typically tough to get out.  Hydrogen peroxide is very similar to the active ingredient in cleaners like Clorox 2, so it will also be safe on most color fabrics.  On your fancier fabrics, you might want to spot test on a hidden area, just to make sure, but I've never found a problem when I have used it... knock on wood!

Slay Soap Scum

A wet sponge and the good old fashioned 20 Mule Team Borax blasts through soap scum and hard water spots better than any spray I've used.  Even better than other powder cleaners I've used.  With little to no elbow grease, soap scum is history.  Give a little rinse and your shower doors and tiles are nice shiny.  It's cheap and found in the laundry aisle of your local supermarket or big box store.  I've tried other "green" cleaning concoctions of baking soda with vinegar and water, but those still required quite a bit of elbow grease and I wasn't completely satisfied with the results.  Borax works so much better.

It's Cold Outside!

I know.  I hear some of you already.  "You are in Florida.  You don't know what cold is!"  Well, last night it got down in the 20's here.  With the humidity here in FL, I don't care what anyone says... It's COLD!!  With the wind, it rips right through to chill you to the bone.  Maybe my blood has thinned from living in the South too long.  Who knows?  Burrrrr

Anyway, thought I'd share a little tip to keep your toes warm on those chilly nights.

Confiscate one of hubby's old sweat socks.  You know the kind.  The long ones that go halfway up his calf or higher.  Fill it about half way with white rice.  This is a good way to use up some of that "not as good for you" white rice.  Brown rice will work also, if that is all you have.  Yes, it does sound silly.  Just do it!  Tie off the top as close to the top of the sock as you can without it coming loose, or if you are a bit handy with a needle and thread, stitch it up good and tight.  Don't be lazy and staple it, like I've seen some people try to repair a hem on their pants on the fly at work, or you will be in trouble later.

Here's the magic part.  Pop your sock in the microwave for 30-45 seconds on high.  See, if you had stapled it closed, you might have blown up your microwave or started a fire.  Not good.  BEEP, BEEP, BEEP  Take it out.  Oooh, Ahhh, so nice and toasty! Throw it down at the foot of the bed and you have a toasty toe heater.  It retains the heat surprisingly long.  Best part is that it didn't cost anything.  You already had everything in your house already.  I wouldn't advise eating the rice anymore though. :o)

This also works well as a heating pad for sore or tight muscles, or for those dreaded monthly cramps.  Sock isn't big enough to wrap around your neck to get those tight, stressed out, neck and shoulder muscles?  Try an old pillow case or cut up and old towel (or use two hand towels) and sew it into a loose kidney shape like you see those travel pillows that wrap around your neck in those fancy executive gadget stores.  Want something a little prettier?  Try some cute fleece on the remnant pile at your local craft/fabric store.  Maybe you even have a coupon that you can use to get some extra money off.  (More on couponing later)

All those packing peanuts when you order online

More and more of us are avoiding the crowds during the holiday shopping madness and opting to visit online retailers instead.  When you are looking for that hard to find item, and especially with the free shipping deals, that it the ticket!!  Unfortunately, for many, there is a little problem that results....

Your order arrives safe and sound, but now you have oodles and oodles of packing peanuts to deal with.  They make a mess and seem to float little pieces everywhere.  Many municipal recycling programs don't accept them or other forms of Styrofoam.   You hate to just put them in the trash to fill up the landfill.   Here are some options that you may or may not have thought of:

1. The most obvious - reuse them yourself if you need to ship anything.  That's a no-brainer.
2. There is actually a network of companies called The Plastic Loose Fill Council (PLFC), many members are pack-and-ship type stores, that will accept your clean Styrofoam packing peanuts at their "Recycling Centers."  By accepting your donations of packing peanuts, these companies can lower their overhead costs by not having to purchase as many new packing peanuts to ship their orders or mail customer packages for them.  It helps these companies out, you have a place to bring your peanuts, and it helps save the planet a little at a time by keeping those peanuts out of the landfills.  A win-win!! There is more information on this network and their members at www.loosefillpackaging.com.  You can find a local member participating in this program by calling toll-free 1-800-828-2214 or going to their website.  Simply enter your zip code and you will be provided with a list of local Recycling Centers.  The annual membership fee for businesses to become members is currently only $30 per year.  This is literally peanuts, pun intended, considering the cost of packing peanuts and the fact that as part of their membership fee, PLFC provides its members with literature, signage, and media information to help them spread the word about providing this service to their area.  This good press in the media for their business will also likely increase traffic to their business, likely increasing their sales.  Another win-win!!
3. If there are no members of PLFC in your local area, try seeking out a local business you think might benefit from your packing peanuts donation.  Maybe tell them about PLFC, if they hadn't heard about it already?  If they are big enough to use a large quantity of packing peanuts in their daily operations, they might just join.  You can help your local area by adding another resource for your friends and neighbors to drop off their packing peanuts, the business can save money, plus you can feel good about making a big step to help reduce the packing peanut impact on your local environment.
4. There are also many free online resources to offer your packing peanuts to others, so someone else who might need them can link up with someone who has them, but doesn't want them.  Checkout websites like www.freecycle.org or even www.craigslist.org   You can simply leave them outside for the individual to pick up.  Safety first!
5. There are more and more people selling stuff online out of their homes, on sites such as www.Ebay.com and www.Etsy.com, to help make ends meet in this tough economy. They would LOVE your packing peanuts.  Maybe someone you know or a neighbor already does this.  Ask around.  You will likely be surprised at how many places would gladly accept your packing peanuts.

Next time you have packing peanuts you don't need or want, don't trash them.  Be proactive and find a way to reuse them or find someone else who can.