'Find ways to make what you have in your home work for you'

Find ways to make what you have in your home work for you

By Rachelle at 05/04/2009 11:04

Finding ways to make supplies do double duty is always exciting to me. I know that may sound boring, but when I think of the money I save, I can laugh all the way to the bank.

Here are some ways I learned to make what I had in my supply closet work a double shift:

• Scotch tape vs. Sortkwik fingertip moistener
  I was never without my fingertip moistener when I was sorting through the stacks of paper on my desk. I couldn't stand to try and riff through pages especialy when my hands were dry. I was out of Sortkwik, which is the brand I am fond of, so when I found a roll of regular old scotch tape in my drawer, I wrapped it sticky side out a few times around my index finger and voila...no problem turning those pages!
• Binder clips vs. laptop cooler
  This is one of my favorite finds! Take four large size binder clips (all the same size) and four pieces of paper (recycle something you were going to throw away). Fold the pieces of paper in half several times until you have a strip about an inch wide.

  Use one binder clip at each corner to fashion the paper into a rectangular shape about the size of your laptop computer (the large side of the clip should be on the outside of the rectangle). You can fold two pieces of paper side to side for a longer strip and then the other from top to bottom for the shorter ends of the support.

  Then, you just situate your laptop on the whole assembly. The result is that you have some airflow space underneath to help prevent your computer from overheating. Mine kept shutting off because it wasn't getting enough air to the cooling vents. Great idea and saves time opening all your windows again and again! Way less expensive than buying a product for the task.

• Binder clip vs. toothpaste tube
  Tired of everyone opening a new tube of toothpaste because they are too lazy to squeeze the remaining paste out? Use a binder clip to secure the end of the tube after you roll it up to push the toothpaste to the end. No more waste.
• Sheet protectors vs. scrapbook pages
  If you have lots of photos lying around waiting for your next trip to the scrapbook store because you ran out of pages, try using some of those poly sheet protectors and some colored paper to make pages of your own. You can store them in a three ring binder or tie them together with colorful ribbon through the holes.

There are a thousand ways to save money on things you might already have lying around instead of buying more. Office supplies are versatile and easy to find.

My favorite double duty item: a digital picture frame cup holder. I know...it is used for what I bought it for...but it still performs two functions beautifully. I can store my pens in it AND look at my favorite photos while I work, which puts me in a more productive mood!