Double Duty Products and Savings

United States
December 3, 2009 11:43am CST
I was watching The View today and they had a lady named Stacy Cox and talking about every day products that we use that can be used for other interesting things as well and I thought how neat so I thought I would share a few of them.... •Vasoline: Use a pink highlighter marker and a dab of Vasoline in lieu of lip gloss if you are at the office and forgot your makeup bag. •Vasoline: Use vasoline around the edge of nails to help remove nail polish mistakes easily. •Lemon: Use a lemon wedge to whiten nail beds by rubbing it over each nail •Olive Oil: Use olive oil to treat your cuticles. •Olive Oil: Dip a cotton swab in olive oil to help dislodge a stuck zipper. •Milk: Use it in lieu of shaving cream to shave your legs with. The lactic acid gently exfoliates the skin making each hair easier to remove. •Milk: Use milk and a cloth to buff away scuffs on patent leather shoes and purses. •Ice Cube Tray: Use it to organize necklaces, earrings and other accessories. •Banana Peel: If you scrape your knee or elbow, emollient properties in a banana peel will help heel the wound faster. •Banana Peel: use the inside of a banana to polish scuffed shoes •Clear Nail Polish: Use it to help save snagged pantyhose and paint over belt buckles to maintain and protect the shine. •Clear Nail Polish: Dab some clear nail polish under the flap of an envelope to seal it with ease. •Toothpaste: Use it to remove crayon marks off the wall. •Toothpaste: For scratched DVDs, take non gel toothpaste on a cotton ball and wipe from center out to the edge and then use a cloth to wipe the toothpaste away. •Toothpaste: Mix white toothpaste with baking soda to make a paste that will fill holes in white walls. •Hairdryer: Use the cool setting on the hair dryer to set the icing on your cakes and cupcakes giving them a more professional look and finish. •Hairdryer: Use the heat setting to melt crayon marks off the wall •Marshmallows: Stuff in the bottom of an ice cream cone to prevent the ice cream from leaking out the bottom. •Marshmallows: Place 2 or 3 in your box of brown sugar, they prevent the sugar from hardening. •Cornstarch: Use it to help unlock a knot in a shoelace or chain necklace •Parmesan Cheese Shakers: Make great bud vases and more decorative way to store your baby powder then in those big plastic containers •3 Tiered Cake/Dessert Trays: Use it to help reorganize your jewelry •Matchbooks: Use it as a substitute nail file. •Matchbooks: If you light a match, blow it out and wet the end will give you instant eyeliner. •Baby Teething Rings: Chill in the freezer and use on puffy eyes. •Sugar cube: Rub a sugar cube across your lips a few times to exfoliate the dead skin away so your lip color goes on smoothly. So what about you do you know of any other products that can be doubled duty and save some money?
6 people like this
11 responses
@celticeagle (159058)
• Boise, Idaho
4 Dec 09
These were really interesting. I thought the match book being used for a substitue nail file, marshmallows in the brown sugare to keep it from drying out, and the milk being used to shave your legs were really different and things you wouldn't think of at all. Thanks for sharing them with us.
@celticeagle (159058)
• Boise, Idaho
7 Dec 09
Some were new, the ones I mentioned. Cute idea.
• United States
6 Dec 09
Hello celtic, most of the ones on here were new to me but a few I have heard of but forgot so it was nice to be refreshed on them. Your welcome and thanks for your response
1 person likes this
@PeacefulWmn9 (10420)
• United States
3 Dec 09
I saw the episode this morning, too. Interesting, wasn't it? Here are a few of the uses I know for some of the things on there: Toothpaste: takes the sting out of a bug bite, fills in nail holes before repainting a room, removes crayon marks from walls. Baking soda: fills in as a tooth cleaner, or a gentle scrub for cleaning sinks, tubs, etc., and also soothes bug bites when made into a paste with water and dabbed on the bite. Peanut butter: helps remove scratches from Cds and gum from hair, rugs, etc. Mashed fruit: Makes a great homemade facial mask Sugar: good body scrub when mixed with a bit of water, extends the life of a live Christmas tree when added to the water Vinegar: soothes sunburn, cleans windows, disinfects counter tops, helps remove odors from the air when left sitting about in small bowls, mixed with soda it helps unclog drains, mixed with water helps remove residue and add shine to hair Olive oil: makes a good skin scrub/moisturizer when mixed with sugar, a dab rubbed between palms and applied to hair adds shine and tames frizzies Coca cola: good toilet bowl cleaner, declogs sink and tub drains when poured in and allowed to sit 20 minutes, cleans car batteries, one can diet cola mixed with 1 cup ketchup makes great bbq sauce according to weight watchers Karen
• United States
3 Dec 09
Hello Karen, these are some other great ideas...i really like the Olive oil witht he hair idea, I will have to try that one sometime. I have heard of using coke in the drains and I am sure it would probably work good I have just never tried it myself Thanks for your ideas and your response
1 person likes this
• United States
9 Dec 09
Thank you for the best response honor. I enjoyed your discussion very much :) Karen
@gabs8513 (48686)
• United Kingdom
4 Dec 09
Wow Froggie these are great Ideas, I knew about the Nail vanish and Pantihose as I used to do that on the occasional time I wore them lol but the rest I had not heard of Thanks for this
• United States
5 Dec 09
Your very welcome gabs........I knew there was something that you could use to fix a pantyhose snag but i wasn't sure exactly what it was till i saw this Thanks for your response
• United States
7 Dec 09
This is a great list. There are so many things on here that I have never thought of. One thing I double use a lot is salt. I use it to cook with of course, I melt ice in the winter, kill snails in the summer and I use it to scrub when I am cleaning. It is usualy fairly cheap and I always have it on hand so it saves me time and money.
• United States
8 Dec 09
What do you scrub while cleaning? I have also used salt for snails..I think that is something so many parents show their kids is how the snails shrivel up when salt hits them. It also works great for melting salt and to cook but I am just wondering what you can use it for to clean that may be interesting...thanks for sharing and for your response happythoughts
@paula27661 (15811)
• Australia
4 Dec 09
Those are great tips; I will be saving them, thank you! I love using a match as eyeliner and how is the highlighter pen and Vaseline as a lip gloss? The only ones I can think of are bicarbonate soda to clean the oven, soda water to remove stains from carpets and rugs and 1/2 cup vinegar Or ammonia to 1 gallon of water to clean windows. Tips like these are ever so useful; they are great if you’re caught out or if you simply want to save some money, not to mention being kind to the environment!
• United States
6 Dec 09
Your welcome...I am not sure if i myself would ever use the highlighter and vaseline on my lips I think I would rather spend the few extra dollars and just buy regular lip gloss...I like your idea for cleaning the windows I think I have heard that one before but forgot, I have also heard that using newspaper over paper towels work better to wipe windows to because it doesn't smudge or smear as much. Thanks for sharing and for your response paula
1 person likes this
@JenInTN (27514)
• United States
5 Dec 09
Wow..that's some intersting stuff! i have to say that I would have never thought of most of these things. Ok...the things I know as a household double..lemon juice will alos lighten dark spots on a persons face and if it's put on your hair in the sun..it will highlight it. Dry beans or rice in a salt shaker will keep your salt fresh and not chunky. Vinegar to treat laundry with deodorantstains..Oh and lemon juice will also break up kidney stones and help them to be passed. Hairspary to keep the runs in your pantyhose from running further. Oh and you can temporarily replace a belt on your car with a pair of pantyhose too..lol..Newspaper instead of paper towels for cleaning glass..it leaves the mirrors streak free! That's all I can think of right now.
• United States
6 Dec 09
Wow those are some really good ones too...I like the lemon juice with the dark spots. I just mentioned that newspaper one above too and I also have heard the rice in the salt shaker one, I do that myself especially because I keep my shakers on the stove. Thanks for sharing and for your response JenInTN
@deebomb (15304)
• United States
3 Dec 09
I try to make every thing do double duty. The new ones that I see on your list is using olive oil to help unstick zippers. I have used 2 tubes of whiting toothpaste to get a dingy white white kitchen floor white again. Bar soap is great for getting stains out of clothes even after they have been in the dryer. After I clean my kitchen counter, bathtub, bathroom sinks and counter really good I give them a good coating of car wax. This makes them so much easier to clean every day. Usually just give them a good rinse. A foot bath in black tea everyday for a week will help to lessen foot oder. I have tried the coke in the toilet and it hasn't worked for me.
• United States
6 Dec 09
Hello deebomb, I also try to double duty as many products as I can but it never happens mostly because I forget half of them until it is too late. i especially like finding double duty items that make it easier on my daily household cleaning..thanks for sharing and for your response
@ANTIQUELADY (36440)
• United States
3 Dec 09
Thanks for the info, that's some neat sounding tricks.
• United States
5 Dec 09
Your welcome and thanks for your response...
@maezee (41997)
• United States
4 Dec 09
These are REALLY cool! Thanks! The only one I can think of is using baking soda when you brush your teeth - it supposedly helps whiten your teeth. I'm not really sure if it's true or not, but because I can't afford to spend $40 on Crest White Strips, it's something I do! It seems like it sort of works!
• United States
6 Dec 09
Hello maezee, I have never heard of using baking soda for whitening teeth but I have heard of using peroxide..I tried it a few times with no results but it may also be because I didn't do it that long..I can't afford whitening strips either so I would have to find an alternative too...thanks for your response
@lelin1123 (15595)
• Puerto Rico
3 Dec 09
Thank you so much for sharing. I missed most of this segment of the show. The ice cream cone with the marshmallow and the cornstarch for tangled necklace were great ideas that I did see on the show. Some of the others are great ideas. The only thing I can come up with right now is cucumbers over dark circles and instead of bleach for your whites you can use baking soda.
• United States
5 Dec 09
I have heard of the cucumbers over the eyes too although I haven't heard of baking soda for your teeth but I have heard of using peroxide to help whiten the teeth. I love the marshmallow idea though that will work wonders in the summertime with my kids..Thanks for your response lelin
@jewels49 (1776)
• United States
3 Dec 09
I never thought of a hair dryer for setting icing. I will have to try that. I have used hair conditioner to shave my legs before, milk is too expensive here, won't be trying that one..Shampoo is good for removing ring around the collar on shirts, it's made to break down the oils that caused the ring in the first place. an eraser from a pencil can double for the lost back of an earring. Those little plastic cups pudding come in make great paint cups for kids. Dry Spaghetti is a great match for lighting jar candles that have burned way down.A funnel makes a great string dispenser..nail it up by the work bench drop in a ball of twine with the end coming through the bottom. I probably know 100 more but when you try to think of them, or of ones no one else already has it gets harder. Saw a few new ones here today, can't wait to try a couple of them out.
• United States
5 Dec 09
Wow those are also some really great tips and ideas. There are some on here that I have heard before but forgot until now but some that I also haven't so it is nice to see them. Thanks for sharing, I am going to defintely try the shampoo sometime and yes i agree with you that milk costs way too much to be rubbing it on my legs and watching ti go down the drain. Thanks for your response jewels