Savings
>> Friday, May 14, 2010
It's not just about the money Aarti Kapur Singh tells you how to run your home more efficiently and add to your kitty.
2. Save on beauty products. Microwave that nearlyover lipstick on low heat and use the thick liquid like a lipgloss-simply apply with a brush. No need for mascara; use petroleum jelly instead. Smear a bit of petroleum jelly on your finger and hold it in front of your lashes and blink several times, across the jelly. You'll get easy shine and definition without using an extra product. Don't overdo it - it may make your kajal run.
3. Save your empty tetrapacks-whether milk or juice. Cut them into half, poke drainage holes in them (along the sides as well as the base), and bury them, cut side up, near a plant (or between plants) that needs extra watering. While on your watering rounds, fill the container with water. Water will slowly leak out directly into the soil at the level of the roots. You will lose less to evaporation - this is especially effective during the dry summer months, and won't parch your greens.
4. Collect leftover soap and sew into an old wash cloth. Use this as a scrub. Or fill a liquid soap container with the leftover bits and water, and use as liquid soap. Yet another use of soap bits is to microwave them and pour into soap molds. Your local craft shop should have soap molds especially for this purpose. You can even give these leftover scraps a complete makeover by adding some food colour, aromatherapy oils and fragrances to the molten soaps. If you can't find soap-specific molds, simply use pastry or candle molds.
5. Don't throw away flat, aerated drinks and sodas. They make great bathroom cleaners, simply because of their acid content. Just pour some into your toilet bowl. Wait for about five minutes, brush and rinse. The result - a sparkling-clean toilet. You can use flat sodas on tiles as well, but not so frequently on marble. Flat beer can also be used as a good conditioner for hair. The proteins from the malt and hops found in beer coat, rebuild and repair damaged hair. Rinse hair with beer to add body and shine. Choose a mild-smelling brand, or add a few drops of lemon to partially mask the smell.
7. Dry out citrus peels, pound them, and put into a home scrub; cut out into fine juliennes to add flavour to your bakes or just throw a handful into the fireplace to fill the air with a fresh, citrusy fragrance.
8. An old wicker or cane basket with a slab of heavy glass on top acts as a coffee or side table and provides storage. You can even give it a coat of paint in a colour such as warm brown, dull green or even silver and gold for a luxe look that matches your decor.
9. Dried leaves make great gift tags. Find as many as needed. If they've started to become brittle they won't work, so you'll need a keen eye. Large leaves such as peepal, banyan or rubber plant work best. You may also try interesting shapes such as kachnar, palash and so on. To protect the leaves, you'll need to coat them with wax - place the leaves between two sheets of waxed paper and iron to melt the wax. It won't hurt the iron if you wipe it off with a cloth a few times while it's still hot. Gently pull the wax paper away from the leaves when cool. Write the address on the leaf tags, using a permanent marker that can write on wax.
10. Gift from the heart. Spend a relaxed Saturday fashioning homemade gifts-beauty scrubs from your kitchen jars, food mixes, candles, bread, cookies, soap. Anything and everything. Pack into attractive containers, tie with a bit of ribbon and stock. Remember to include a personal, handwritten note with the gift. Cheaper and more fromthe-heart. Beats the most expensive and exotic wines and flowers.
