The Dollar Stretcher Tips 05.24.2007

My son and daughter-in-law are traveling to Rome in a few weeks and are allowed only one suitcase each. They are packing half of her clothes and half of his clothes in each of the suitcases just in case one is sent to some other airport. They are also carrying a backpack for passports, a change of underwear, their medications, and the rest of their pockets’ regular contents.
Hope O. in Charleston, SC

I hang dh’s clothes on dark plastic hangers (blue, black, green) and my clothes on light plastic hangers (white, pink, yellow), so that when I go to hang them in our closet, they are easy to separate. Also, I can see at a glance if something was hung up on the wrong side of the closet.
Beverly G.
Marion Jct, AL

I don’t think anyone needs to take out cell phone insurance especially if you’re like me with used cell phones you’ve not disposed of. Here’s why. My son’s cell phone was run over by a car and smashed to pieces. He had one month to go on his cell phone contract and would be eligible for a discounted upgrade in 30 days. What to do? He borrowed a friend’s old, used cell phone (from the same provider), called the company and they transferred my son’s service to the used phone. I learned from this to keep at least one of my old cell phones.
C.

If you have a stain you just can’t get out, try disguising it with fabric paint. My son had a very nice kelly green t-shirt that I just couldn’t get the stain out of so with the help of a stencil and some fabric paint I turned it into a lizard on a rock. Turned out really cute and it’s still nice enough to wear to town. Give it a try, what’s the worst that can happen…
Iris S.

Last summer, I used some “STP Son Of a Gun Tire Cleaner” on my tires. It dripped onto our driveway. The spots where it dripped still repel water to this day. That got me thinking. Why not try this stuff on my faded vinyl shutters? So I tried it, and I am pleased with the results. It cleans grime and it does a very good job of bringing the color back out on vinyl shutters. Just spray on and wipe with a paper towel.
Brent R.

When my girls were little, I used to package up little puzzles, games, etc., and as we were traveling, one package would be given out every hour. This made the trip easier for the girls. They had something new to look forward to while traveling long miles.
Tasha S. in Abbotsford BC

In my hometown in N.C., the local solid waste service has a great thing! It is called the “Swap Shop.” The Swap Shop is for residents to bring/take useable items. When we have a yard sale, we drop off the items that have not sold, and we have gotten things in return, like a RCA TV, Vicks humidifier (new in the box), toaster, and a bunch of books for my kids!

I have checked and a lot of local solid waste services have this program too! The purpose of the swap is to encourage waste reduction through the practice of reuse. The goal is to divert good, useable items away from the waste stream and conserve valuable landfill space.
Arlene in Raleigh, NC

As a mother of five, there isn’t a lot of extra money. A repair bill would be an unexpected expense. Our icemaker quit working so I decided to remove the cover and look inside to see if I could tell what was wrong. I figured I couldn’t make it any worse! First, I disconnected the electricity. It was easy to see the problem. I removed the broken piece, took it to the parts store, got the replacement and put it back together being careful to not over tighten the screws. It works wonderful and I saved a lot of money!
Janice

I found that I am saving money (and stress) in a surprisingly easy way. I’m staying away from the “Big Box” superstores. While the super store’s prices are usually lower on many grocery items, I find myself browsing around for clothes, CDs, craft items and other items that I don’t really need. I can resist anything but temptation! I recently became very frustrated with our local superstore never having enough cashiers, making for seemingly endless wait times in the checkout line. I realize less help translates to lower prices, but my time spent in line also has a value that I am no longer willing to waste.
Michelle D.

In remodeling our kitchen, my husband came up with a great idea to provide ample lighting, while keeping the cost down. He put in canned recessed lights in four sets of three lights. One set is over the sink, one set is over the kitchen island where food prep occurs, one set is over the counters and stove, and one set is over the breakfast nook. We can have all the lights on when we feel like we need bright lighting in the kitchen (like when I’m preparing a meal), or we can have fewer lights on when we are just eating or doing the dishes. It’s nice having the ability to light the kitchen brightly to read recipes and see the texture of food cooking on the stove. It’s also a big money-savings to not have to have all the lights on when they are not needed. You can easily swap out the incandescent light bulbs for the more energy-efficient fluorescent light bulbs in each of these recessed lights.
Jill in Santa Cruz, CA