ThriftyFun Contest Results

We have dedicated one night a week to be our family fun night. On this night, we set up a themed dinner. The possibilities are endless and we have so much fun deciding

Having run out of tissue paper for packing around gifts, I shredded some wrapping paper. It looked great. Now instead of paper gift wrap (even the most crumpled bit! ) going to the

Due to cold weather and power outages over Christmas, many households had to leave their homes to find a warm place. My son was one of these. He was worried about his water pipes

I keep my large Germ X bottles or even the small ones. I fill one of the large ones with dish soap and keep it by the sink. I have another one I fill with white vinegar

Per serving: I take 3/4 cup chopped broccoli (fresh or frozen, cooked), crumbled fried bacon (1-2 strips), and mix with cooked ramen noodles.

To make a healthy tuna salad sandwich add 1 can of tuna, salt, pepper, and 1 Tbsp of light cream cheese instead of mayo. Then put it on your favorite low fat or wheat bread.

Wooden mug trees make great places to keep watches and bracelets. Just hang them where you would put mugs. Do not have one? You can find them at thrift stores or garage or

We love canned chicken noodle soup but always seem to have more broth than noodles. My husband got the idea to add ramen noodles to the soup and it satisfies the desire for more

Before using a bar of soap, open wrapper and let your bar of soap dry out for a week or so. This really makes it last much longer.

If your cats fight over food, separate cat food bowls where they cannot see one another eating; or in more flowery terms, here is a poem which describes this tip.

My family would love to take baths, but not clean the tub. I finally got them into the habit of before leaving the bathroom, sprinkle cleasner into the tub. The next

When you put the water in the pot to boil eggs add 1 tsp of baking soda to the water. This will help after the eggs come out, and they will be much easier to peel.

We use our small George Foreman grill a lot, and have a great tip for easy cleaning. Once we take the food off the grill and unplug it, we take a doubled up paper towel and

After my parents died, when going through the house, I'm finding old towels, sheets that are no longer good for sheets, stained tablecloths etc. I've donated what's appropriat

I use a plate holder on my desk to put my iPad in. It keeps it out of the way and I can charge it at the same time. A plate holder also works for organizing papers and

I have found that the best and cheapest way to clean the inside of bottles is to use vinegar and baking soda. The soda will cause the vinegar to fizz; so, it reaches

You can cover many smooth containers (such as bread crumbs or nut cans) with decorative Con-Tact or wrapping paper and fill them with homemade cookies or candy for gifts.

Our kids were too old for baskets and egg hunts. However, we went to doing a basket per person. I thought it might be fun for the adults that were in their 80s, 70s,

I recently hurt my knee and could not put any weight on it so in order to get around the house. I used my computer chair and rolled from room to room.

My husband had a pair of gardening pants which he had worn out at the knees. He asked me if I could mend them. So I decided to visit the dollar store to see if I could

While it is great to be thrifty, there are certain things that should never be re-used. It amazes me how many tips are submitted for using or re-using dryer sheets.

Take non stick cooking spray and spray the inside of the holder. After the candle is done burning, the last bit of wax will just fall out.

Cook noodles then stir fry with fresh green beans and carrots. Add 1/2 flavor packet for low salt. Now add one large Tbsp. peanut butter and some hot sauce to taste.

Add an apple to your brown sugar in a glass jar. Works every time.

Save money and help the environment by making your own eyeglass cleaner. Just use 3 parts rubbing alcohol and 1 part water. Add a couple of drops of dish soap. Pour into

I never throw away any of these small boxes. They include Altoid and other brands of mints. Russell Stover sometimes have their Whitman samplers in tin boxes.

I have a large yard with a lot of trees that requires a lot of work. I am always having to pick up limbs , spread mulch, etc. Then I came up with the idea to use my

I am a mother and a full time student working towards my college degree. I have financial limitations and constraints and I was always looking for practical ways to save money

Make fitted bed sheets. That's right! Last week I was going through my sheet sheets and found I had more king sheets than queens. I didn't really need the extra kings so

When making French toast, I use my waffle iron to cook it. My iron is non stick so I don't use extra fat to fry in. I usually make a whole loaf at a time.

Many people I know store their flour, corn meal, cake mixes, etc. in their freezer or refrigerator. While this does keep pests from showing up in the dried goods, it takes up a lot of

Medications that I normally get from my vet can be gotten from the local drug store at less than half the price.

I keep my grocery list on the "notepad" of my cell phone, so that when I go to the store, all I have to do is check on my phone to see what I need. No more forgotten grocery

I discovered that if I use circular knitting needles to knit long winter scarves, I can use bits and pieces of yarn in all colors and textures to knit up unique scarves that

I keep a butter container full of flour. Occasionally I have mixed it with cake or cookie mix when it was low because I didn't have any flour. It is kind of hard to turn the pancakes

Ripen tomatoes and other vegetables in your window.

I dropped my monthly cellphone charges by getting a 20 dollar cellphone.

I can't imagine giving any type of party, where the guests, decorations, etc. are all white. It would remind me of the child dressed in their very best clothes and told to

You know how rolling out dough when making pizza, bread, or pie crust can be a pain. The dough sticks to everything, but the pan that you are rolling the dough in.

If you keep big chunks of ice in reserve for when you hard boil eggs, you will not waste the small ice that the rest of the family uses. I boil eggs all the time,

When your hair is all staticky and you're in a hurry, grab a dryer sheet and rub it on your hair. It will cure the flyaways and your hair will smell good too.

I found this blouse but it has tiny baby clothes buttons. There is no way I'll be able to get up early enough to button that shirt. The weight of the fabric and the ruffles on

Air freshener dispensers and some laundry products have colorful caps. One way of reusing them is to use as luminaries or candle holders.

It would be cool to bake something for the guy and have a GIANT poster that reads "TOLO?" Then you give the guy a clothing item. My BFF is asking his best friend so

We all have tossed away "fabric softener" sheets; but if you have clothing coming out of the dryer wrinkled or have clothing that is wrinkled coming off of a hanger...

I have suffered from RLS for years, but cannot tolerate the prescription for it. My doctor, who also suffers from it, drinks 8 oz. of tonic water every evening.

To clean the worst burnt pots and pans in just a few minutes, put about 1/2 to 1 inch of water in the pan then shake a generous amount of Comet and boil.

I use phone pages for the garden, flower pots AND to line the cat litter boxes (I do cat and dog rescue). The cats don't use clay litter, although, I do, in the beginning,

Extra-virgin olive oil is full of health benefits, but loses a great deal of those when the oil is heated.

DH and I are southern people and we love pinto beans. For a long time I bought them canned at the super market since there are only 2 of us living here.

Take those little plastic tubs of yogurt and cut a little slit in the top. Insert a popsicle stick. You can freeze them and have pops.

When preparing fruit for pie filling, crisps, cobblers, etc., mix in a teaspoon or two of baking soda before adding any sweetener. Then start out with adding 1/4 to 1/2 the

To keep your outside water faucet from freezing and getting damaged, keep the hose unhooked during freezing weather. Also, Walmart carries a Styrofoam cover made to hook onto the faucet

Our grandsons love waffles and especially love chocolate chip waffles. We just got a new waffle maker that makes the larger Belgian style waffles. We found that mixing chocola

This trap uses: disposable container, like a baking pan water 

To remove odors from a pressure cooker gasket, simply "fold" the gasket to make it smaller, and put it in a pot. Cover with water and sprinkle with about a tablespoon baking

Stop buying expensive bug killers. Get rid of them the easy way! Fill a spray bottle with water and dish soap, and spray them. The soap breaks down the protective outer

Add about 10 oz. liquid starch to a large spray bottle, then fill with water. It works best on damp clothing and/or on the clothesline. Spray clothing and let dry, or smooth

Get some Wrigleys Juicy Fruit gum. You chew it just until it is soft and the flavor is starting to come out. Then you poke a hole in the hill or run and drop the

When you pick up your dry cleaning use the clear bags as trash bags in your smaller cans by simply tying a knot in the end where the hanger comes through.

I keep a file on my computer in "my documents" for gift ideas. Whenever I run across a particular idea for a handmade gift or a basket gift or even something to buy for a gift, I will

While it won't do anything about any little hitchhikers already in your food, bugs absolutely hate cedar, so sprinkling a few shavings or hanging up a little bag of it in your pantry may

My husband loves to eat fruit mixed with oatmeal, bananas, peaches, and strawberries. Since I sometimes go to the free food give away, they always load us down with cans

You can freeze any leftover wine in ice cube trays. It saves you a fortune.

Many moons ago when I was teaching pre-school and pre-K I had a reward system which worked great for me and the kids loved it.

We all know how frustrating it can be if a screw is stripped and you need to remove it.

I have a friend who has young children and she uses glow in the dark stars attached to the floor as a pathway to the bathroom. I thought this was such a neat idea.

I have always had trouble getting my thread started on my bobbin before loading it onto the bobbin winder on the sewing machine. It seems that the hole in the bobbin gets

I hated cleaning our outside windows. It was a lot of work. Expensive too.

A friend of mine puts her toothbrush in the dishwasher about twice a month to clean it, top rack only. Also soak it in about a tsp. of peroxide and rinse. Vinegar also

Turn eating their veggies into a game. Give them some dice, let them roll the dice and then eat the amount of peas, beans, or whatever it is on the dice. Now some kid's will

Sometimes one can remember items needed without a list by using the first letters to spell a word. If that doesn't work, make up a silly sentence with each letter standing for

I bought a used white formica bedroom set with chips. The moving man told me to use white Liquid Paper correction fluid to cover it up. This was for a matte finish.

Parents! Please teach your children how to get help if they get lost. I volunteer at a huge zoo and today discovered a lost child quietly crying in a corner. I was close

When cooking, shake your spices into the lid of the spice bottle or even your hand (unless it is hot pepper), then add them to your dish. Why not sprinkle them in right over

When traveling long distance with children, keep them entertained by playing car baseball and the ride will go smooth.

You cut green pepper into rings, and then put in a buttered skillet. Crack the egg into the pepper ring and cook it this way.

I like to make oatmeal in the microwave.

I use a squeegee to clean dog hair from the area rugs. It really works well. It works as good as a rubber broom, and it is much cheaper.

When entertaining this holiday season and you find that you are in need of an extra platter, use the glass platter that's inside your microwave oven. Works like a charm.

Last minute company coming and you have a icy sidewalk? A fast way to make it not slippery is to use cat litter or fireplace ash if you have a fireplace. Just spread

Cut a magic eraser into four pieces. Drop one piece into toilet. Leave for a few hours or overnight. Dream of clean, sparkley, toilets.

Cut open a toilet paper roll and use it a a cuff to save your wrapping paper and keep it from unrolling.

I have a car coffee cup that has a screw on lid, and a little tab that opens up to a little hole, where I can drink coffee from. I got tired of getting flour all over

I remember when I was young I had these wonderful rats! We must have bought them from the pet store, and they mated and had babies.

Quite by accident several years ago at a fall fair, I found a cheap way of getting a side serving of pickles, generally 3 or 4 slices.

I make simple cloth bags from fabric remnants or clothes that have seen better days, curtains, sheets, even pant legs, and cloth napkins. Kids recognize a favorite flannel shirt every

I use leftover wrapping paper from holidays to practice my origami sea turtle craft. I still have to perfect the feet on the sea turtle. I don't like to practice with the

In Canada, we have coins for $1 and $2. I start saving them in mid-November and put about $20 worth in my coat pocket at Christmas time whenever I go out. Each time I see

I needed a replacement lid for my Rival slow cooker. I called the 800 number on the bottom of the pot and gave them the model number. As a one time courtesy they said they will

Store bought cakes will last longer if stored with 1/2 of an apple.

I like to keep ready made wax paper squares with margarine or butter that I get out of an empty butter container or margarine container.

In order to make a clean slice of meringue pie, use a knife that has both sides lightly coated with butter.

You can make a sock bun as the basis for a bun in your hair simply by cutting off the end of a dark sock (or one that matches your hair) and then rolling it up inside

My friend, who cooked this tonight, is very good at cooking high protein meals that are good for you.

Instead of the usual gift of cookies or candy, take about 10 minutes to call or visit a shut in person and it will be the best gift you could possible give. If possibl

Here's how to use an elevator without stopping.

I have credit at Brylane Homes, The Avenue, Roamans, Seventh Ave., Ginny's, Gettington, Massey's, and Bill Me Later. I pay around $200/month total and I have about $4000

My dear sister-in-law has a new baby. She is a little over a year old. They have taken a little medium tree and made a little "Baby's First Shoes" Christmas tree in one

Whenever I eat an orange or use a lemon, I always use my microplane to grate the zest. I then put it in a small plastic container and freeze it. I always have zest for any recipe.

When you use the laundry cap from the big shelf bottles and the cap has to be rinsed, don't bother. Fill the cap as needed, when done slide the cap forward so it scrapes the dispens

If you want to have a turkey or chicken that has that beautiful golden bronze color, just add this to your "rub".

I have small Venetian glass manger set that had lost some pieces over the years until I realized that they could fit into the little pockets in gift candy boxes and be

You can make a dressy clutch for very little by covering a wooden craft box!

I made a batch of chocolate fudge tonight and it was down right grainy. I searched and searched and finally found a site that told how to fix it.

If you find that you are baking the same cookies, cakes, and other baked goods every holiday season, save them to a file on your computer by either typing them in or scannin

Run a can opener along the edges of the plastic package to open the clam shell or blister packaging easily.

I saw a photo of a crib recycled into a nice desk. The front rail was gone and the bottom board was painted with chalkboard paint. It was really cute!

Rub a walnut on damaged wooden furniture to cover up scratches.

Clean house plant leaves using a sock. Slip your hand into the sock. You are able to clean the top and bottom of the leaves at the same time. I always use milk to

Whites will be whiter if you soak them in hot water for 10 minutes along with a few lemon slices.

I have found that it helps me when I am cutting onions to wear swimming goggles. I also have to keep my mouth closed. I am a great onion fan, but my eyes hate them,