Cell Phone Batteries

Save money by helping your cell phone's battery last longer.

~Turn it off when you're sleeping or obviously not going to use it. (skiing? at the gym? swimming?)
~Bluetooth devices drain the battery quicker, so avoid using them if you can.
~Keep the battery cool. Sun and heat exposure reduce the life of the battery.
~Drain the battery the whole way before re-charging.

Transform a T-Shirt into a Shrug

I saw this idea on a blog I often read and really love! The idea was to take a t-shirt and turn it into a shrug. I love new clothes, but I don't like to spend much money, so this seemed like a great idea! I modified a few things (the shrug was for a little girl, had ruffles, required hemming of the ruffles and I don't like to hem, especially jersey material!)

It actually turned out pretty well! Sometimes my sewing projects don't work out, but I'm pretty pleased with my first attempt this time! I may make some more of these!
I still need to top stitch all around it, but I didn't have the right color of thread today and wanted to post it anyway. Cut the shirt off below the armpits. I left about 5".
Then cut the bottom part of the shirt into strips. I made my strips 2" wide. The key is to end up with enough strip length to go all along the edge of the shrug. I had way too much and wished I would've made the strips wider.
Cut down the front of the shirt and cut the neck off.

I pressed the strips in half, pinning as I pressed. This enabled me to NOT have to hem the edges!

I zig-zagged the edges of the pressed strip. Then, I pinned the strips to the edge of the shrug.

See?

I sewed the strip to the edge of the shrug. I used a "regular" stitch.

Then, I pressed the new edge out (looks like I should've gone ahead and pressed the whole shirt!) I want to top stitch the hem down, but I'd like to use a 'funner' color than white thread. Maybe pink?? I love pink and brown!

Here are some pictures of me modeling the (mostly) finished shrug! I took them in the bathroom for better lighting...

I may actually be able to wear this in public! That has never happened with any of my other sewing projects! This took me a few days to finish and I think that taking my time on it helped make it successful!

Spreadsheets and Saving Time

My husband loves to make spreadsheets. I really don't. But I do like making lists, particularly if we're going somewhere. Two weekends ago, we went camping (a great frugal way to take a vacation). We noted that we make the same list every year but forget at least a few things.

This year, we came home, didn't throw away the list, but added a few things we'd forgotten. Then we made a spreadsheet and saved it on the computer. What a great way to save time next year!

Making Spaghetti Sauce

There are lots of reasons one might want to make spaghetti sauce from scratch. I like to do it because I can control how much sugar is added. I have made it with fresh tomatoes when I am lucky enough to have an abundant crop in the late summer. This tutorial won't show how to use fresh tomatoes; it will show how to use canned tomatoes which I feel are more economical most of the year.

Start by gathering the ingredients. I started with four 28-ounce cans (any brand) of whole, peeled tomatoes. I do recommend draining most of the liquid. Pour them into a large pot. I then added an onion, a carrot, 8 cloves of garlic, a bunch of basil (dried, my fresh basil is still growing), crushed red pepper (don't add too much, it seems to grow hotter as it cooks) and majoram. Stir all the ingredients around, crush up the tomatoes with the spoon. They will release their seeds and juices, don't panic.Bring the sauce to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer it for several hours. I did add some salt and some sugar. If you don't want to add any sugar at all, make sure you don't mind the bitter taste. I can't really say how much sugar I added; maybe 2 tablespoons? Stir it every once in awhile. The idea is to boil away the watery part. No one likes watery spaghetti sauce.

...after about four hours, my sauce looked like this (note how it looks thicker and not so watery):

You can see that it "shrank" as the water evaporated. Then I put it in the blender. This chops up the seeds, onion, tomato skins, etc...

And it ends up nice and smooth. Just like from a jar. Except you made it yourself! And it tastes better! I am considering trying to make it in the crock pot next time. I'm not sure that would allow the water to evaporate, though.

If you know how to put it up in canning jars, one could do that. I have never done that and with a toddler stumbling around all over the house, I am not sure I'm up for that this year. It is an interest I'd like to learn at some point in the future.

This can also be used as pizza sauce!

Cleaning the Fridge

I don't love cleaning the fridge. But I've started to just zap it with my 1:4 mixture of vinegar and water. I just clear off one shelf at a time and scrub with a rag. The vinegar keeps the glass looking good yet eliminates odors and spills.