My BEST cleaning Budddy!

I have a cheap way of getting things clean in my house. If anyone asks me how to clean certain areas and what I use, the answer is almost always the same....


BAKING SODA!!!Buying a big 13 lb bag at Costco or Sam's Club for like $5 is one of my favorite investments. I was working on a part of my spring cleaning while I was waiting for my hubby to come home and decided to clean the grout in my kitchen (it was looking sad when I tried to mop/scrub the floor). I wanted to see the original color of the grout again so I made a paste consisting of about 3/4 cup baking soda and a couple of Tablespoons of water. I just added until it was a thick paste-like consistency. Then I scooped the paste onto the grout and grabbed an old toothbrush. The results were not surprising....nice and like new!!
Other ways that making a baking soda has saved me have been:

getting crayon off the wall - use a non abrasive scrubber with paste
getting scuffs off the wall- paste and scrubber
cleaning a glass top stove- paste and washcloth
Cleaning any stove top (especially close to the burner drips) -paste
Keeping my garbage disposal fresh - sprinkle a half a cup in and let it sit
A Non-stinky trash can - sprinkle a little in the bottom of a can
laundry booster - a 1/4- 1/2 cup works like oxi-clean
Clearing a shower drain with a scoop and some vinegar
deodorizing floors just before vacuuming - sprinkle in areas and vacuum up!
keeping mattresses fresh - sprinkle on mattress and leave on until next sheet cleaning

There are more ways than this, but I just had to share my cleaning secret!!!

Cutie Clippies!

I had a few minutes to do a little something while I was waiting for my husband to get home from work. I remembered that my neighbor gave me a bunch of alligator clips to make my little girl some hair clippies! I didn't realize how EASY they are to make. I had some scrapbook ribbon that was just a tad wider than the clip, some hot glue and a few minutes and I just made these!
They are some of the easiest little things to make. Just line the ribbon up with the clip and squirt a line of hot glue down the middle of the prongs and fold the ribbon over the top. Add a little more glue to the ribbon and wrap around the hinge.Do the same on the bottom side and press together again.

**if you want, you can tie a cute bow with the ribbon and glue it to the top to make it a little more dressy or add whatever you like to them!

Voila!!! YOU ARE DONE!!!
I made 2 in each of the ribbon prints that I had and I think they turned out pretty darn cute and sooooooo much cheaper than buying them at the store.

Under $5 and 15 minutes!

Ok...my husband usually works until 11:30 at night and I don't like to go to bed by myself, so I try to find ways to pass my time. I was at the dollar store about a week ago and got a small round wreath form and a couple of loose silk flowers.
I got to crafting around 11:15 because I was cleaning and just lost track of time. I decided that this was something that I wanted to get done that night and sure enough....I did it in 15 minutes and under $5!!

Step 1: Cut flowers off of stems (leave about 1-2 inches to stick in wreath form.
Step 2: Place same color flowers a few inches apart on the ring.
Step 3: Fill in all the way around the ring with as many color/variety flowers that you like (I used blue and fuchsia hydrangeas and mini while calla lilies) I also saved a few of the leaves to use as a filler in sparse areas on the ring.
Step 4: Cut a piece of cardboard about 1/2-1 inch longer than inner diameter of the ring.
Step 5: Cut scrapbook/craft paper to fit cardboard ( I even used some thin scraps to accent the sign on top and bottom) and adhere to the wreath with crafter's glue or hot glue.
Step 6: Using a sharpie or nice pen, write a fun spring saying on your sign.

THAT'S IT!!!!!
How much simpler could it get??

I like getting super cheap magazine subscriptions, especially when they have coupons or recipes in them. One way to get great deal is to go through Tanga. They offer magazines like ESPN, Parents, Taste of Home, and the deal I just scored for Weight Watchers Magazine for only $3.99!! I keep an eye on this site because sometimes I miss a good deal and they have it a few weeks later for the same price. They offer super cheap deals on more than just magazines too. Check out Tanga tp see what they have around!