Comments on: Everyday things: Are you buying quality or quantity?

By: Char

Char — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 00:22:49 +0000

Ditto!

By: quench

quench — Sat, 14 Jul 2007 05:24:06 +0000

Um, my olive oil is more expensive than wood polish!

By: Gretchen Rubin

Gretchen Rubin — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 22:46:40 +0000

The humble Zip Lock bag is the most useful thing in the house — the huge ones are better than plastic boxes, for things that aren’t very heavy, because they take up less space and let you squish stuff into odd corners.

By: Anamika

Anamika — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 17:58:54 +0000

Baking Soda and Vinegar are two must have ingredients for most of the cleaning around the house. These are non-toxic and very GREEN.

By: Andamom

Andamom — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 17:22:46 +0000

Interestingly, Real Simple does this monthly in their magazine — Some of it is obvious stuff — but a neat one they had was using a fork to fluff up the carpet when furniture is moved. I’m going to write up a list of useful stuff too on my blog in the near future — because if I can declutter by using one product or object for multiple purposes — fabulous!

By: Anne (in Reno)

Anne (in Reno) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 16:16:29 +0000

Um, you don’t need to own wood polish but I wouldn’t use olive oil instead, it can go rancid.

By: Debi

Debi — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 15:28:28 +0000

Like Melissa, I also use baking soda. It’s cheap, nontoxic, and works well without scratching the surface.

By: Melissa

Melissa — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 14:04:21 +0000

Baking soda- I use it to scrub all the sinks and tub and the toilet. I don’t buy Comet or Ajax or Bon Ami anymore.

By: Pierre Louren

Pierre Louren — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 13:24:37 +0000

We use vinegar and water on our windows. We don’t bother buying a ton of disinfectants for our counters, either. Just keep a sponge around and wet it. You can disinfect every once in a while.

Also, I don’t own a TV because I wouldn’t watch it. If I want to watch a movie, that is what my laptop is for.

By: Jacki Hollywood Brown

Jacki Hollywood Brown — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 13:02:07 +0000

The little silica packages that come in shoe boxes (that say: Do Not Eat) are great for absorbing moisture. You can add these packets to:
clothes, shoes, suitcases, purses in storage
toolboxes, cans of nails and screws (so they don’t get rusty).
Pieces of chalk (like chalkboard chalk) work well too and it is inexpensive.