Why Didn't I Think of That?

At least once a day, I think "why didn't I think of that?" to myself. This morning I was looking for a tip on pulling weeds (more on that later), and I thought I'd make a list of my favorite clever DIY tips and tricks, from our friends in blogland, or Pinterest, with a few tips and tricks I've learned along the way. <br /><br />If you think of any cool tips or tricks you use in your home, feel  free to jump in and leave me a comment! That said, here's my list I made while <strike>sulking and procrastinating</strike> getting psyched-up about weeding: <br /><a href="http://food.sndimg.com/img/recipes/10/38/93/large/picCG3UIA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="http://food.sndimg.com/img/recipes/10/38/93/large/picCG3UIA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Foam Soap Refill. Photo by gailanng" border="0" class="smallPageImage photo" id="i265410" itemprop="image" src="http://food.sndimg.com/img/recipes/10/38/93/large/picCG3UIA.jpg" title="Foam Soap Refill. Photo by gailanng" /></a><br /><a href="http://food.sndimg.com/img/recipes/10/38/93/large/picCG3UIA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a><br /><br /><br />Make your own foaming hand soap and save $. Just mix 3 tbsp. liquid hand soap with 2/3 cup warm water and stir (don't shake) to mix. Obviously, you do have to use the foaming hand dispenser and not the regular kind. <br /><br />(photo/recipe <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/foam-soap-refill-103893">here</a>)<br /><br />Speaking of soap - who hasn't heard of the Dawn/Vinegar miracle? Probably you all have, but it bears repeating! Heat 1 cup of vinegar for 1 minute in the micro, and mix with 1 cup of Dawn. Particularly amazing at cleaning showers and tubs.  PLUS, spritz some on laundry stains - let sit for a few minutes, and the stain will wash right out. <br /><br /><br /><br />And similarly, did you know baby wipes are awesome for cleaning leather shoes? Dingy white leather sneakers get a new lease on life with baby wipes. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Dryer sheets have about a billion different uses, but my favorite is to give the dog a rub down when she's been out in the rain - no more stinky doggie. Plus, the dryer sheet gets rid of the static electricity and can help the pup with anxiety during thunderstorms. (We have a big dog, don't know if I'd do this on a little guy, but you could check it out.) <br /><br />Using tools? Here's a tip - flat thumbs are not sexy. Use a comb to hold a nail and save your digits.<br /><img alt="" class="image pinImage" src="http://media-cache-ec3.pinimg.com/736x/67/0c/6d/670c6d2230fddf3c5b233ac74c221e27.jpg" style="height: 429px; margin: 0px auto; padding: 40px 0px; width: 645px;" /><br /><a href="http://www.home-dzine.co.za/2013/apr/186.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="left" border="0" height="301" src="http://www.home-dzine.co.za/2013/apr/186.jpg" width="320" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><em>OR</em>, use pliers to hold fabric tacks or nails. Again, save your fingers, they aren't pretty when they're black either. Check out more DIY tips on the website <a href="http://www.home-dzine.co.za/diy/diy-clevertricks.htm">here</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><em>However</em>, a French Manicure <em>IS</em> sexy. This is a cute idea for perfect nail tips every time. (Not sure I'd go with yellow, but...) <br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0SlS5VP2szp69A0AHBbd_2DiNXQHglOqpH6ESnqYgH7p30byn4AV0LeUOGpq0DemjgTcB0xhAT78xWmAR3qajB7SSGtsB-Yh7PU7ysUoBka942M9E6rxjr3DgtHT4-gQNwYfEhqEVg-Y/s1600/DIY+French+Manicure.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="DIY French Manicure" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0SlS5VP2szp69A0AHBbd_2DiNXQHglOqpH6ESnqYgH7p30byn4AV0LeUOGpq0DemjgTcB0xhAT78xWmAR3qajB7SSGtsB-Yh7PU7ysUoBka942M9E6rxjr3DgtHT4-gQNwYfEhqEVg-Y/s1600/DIY+French+Manicure.jpg" title="DIY French Manicure" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Photo <a href="http://easyhomestead.blogspot.com/2013/05/diy-french-manicure.html">here</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;">Random fact, but, I love eggs. Not as much as ice cream, but they're up there!</div><div align="left" style="text-align: center;"></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT7QZWqxXVUkJnlmSsAwfKZyGyHyBNxQInTHBVipyhwYCUjfmZqCMzEVthxS14Xmlbsoy2-u5rc6PTjKJRfIK9_BsNpsZPET-y71iPT_vPm2jq62UwrrsvJ4vqDk-nEx09iO6Sw7yPrTHg/s1600/056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT7QZWqxXVUkJnlmSsAwfKZyGyHyBNxQInTHBVipyhwYCUjfmZqCMzEVthxS14Xmlbsoy2-u5rc6PTjKJRfIK9_BsNpsZPET-y71iPT_vPm2jq62UwrrsvJ4vqDk-nEx09iO6Sw7yPrTHg/s400/056.JPG" width="400" /></a>Here's a cool idea. To separate eggs, I usually crack the egg into my hand and let the whites separate through my fingers, keeping the yolk in tact. Easy, but kinda yucky. This is not only cleaner, but a way cooler way to separate egg yolks! (Visit the website where I saw this <a href="http://butteryum.blogspot.com/2013/04/separating-eggs-neat-trick.html">here.</a>)<br /><br />How cool is that? Don't you want to just run to the fridge and grab an egg? <br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Speaking of eggs. My lil guy loves to help cooking. His motor skills aren't quite up to egg-cracking yet, so we remove a lot of egg shell pieces. Just use a piece of the shell to fish out the tiny pieces from your cracked eggs - for some reason, the shell pieces are attracted to each other. (Awww). <br /><br />One more egg tip: fresh eggs are way harder to peel than the older eggs. So if you're making hard-boiled eggs, try to use the "older eggs". (Not <em>too old</em>, "green eggs and ham" makes a cute story, but I'm pretty sure would make you sick.) <br /><br />And now for something completely different: <br /><a href="http://media-cache-is0.pinimg.com/736x/24/e8/56/24e8565ca5443767435014e8be1597ac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" class="image pinImage" src="http://media-cache-is0.pinimg.com/736x/24/e8/56/24e8565ca5443767435014e8be1597ac.jpg" style="height: 281px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 40px 0px; width: 225px;" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Martha Stewart strikes again - make an extra fold in your wrapping paper to create a pocket for the card. Love it. <br /><br /><br />(Note: I don't buy expensive wrapping paper. I use a roll of brown paper used for shipping. You can decorate it with stamps, twine, burlap, etc...) <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Now on to one of my favorite tips, because with very little effort, this cooking tip makes you seem like a <em>Chef</em> to your guests. So here it is:  <em>Everything tastes better with bacon</em>, and that's the truth! (You can use vegetarian bacon, too!). Make veggie bundles with green beans or asparagus. Nice presentation and delicious. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj23Qi-Uw9tFVMj2YyjbYjZcuR8bsqgFfoQszBJGJZRupFKSO5o-hldPyuSnXHVt-T4idcweMO23Y6tz9kgJQYWrCVrUIFu2PHkwr3z-jWA-I6_sJxLSArDcTzIw6VXnkLqCSypu9vhNxg/s1600/Bacon-Wrapped-Green-Beans.jpg" imageanchor="1" sizcache04567054404492974="4 18 201" sizset="false" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="paleo friendly side dish" border="0" closure_uid_82658218="1" jquery182008095448076891676="4" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj23Qi-Uw9tFVMj2YyjbYjZcuR8bsqgFfoQszBJGJZRupFKSO5o-hldPyuSnXHVt-T4idcweMO23Y6tz9kgJQYWrCVrUIFu2PHkwr3z-jWA-I6_sJxLSArDcTzIw6VXnkLqCSypu9vhNxg/s1600/Bacon-Wrapped-Green-Beans.jpg" title="Bacon Wrapped Green Bean Bundles" /></a><br /><br />Do I need to tell you that chicken, pork, shrimp and fish are awesome wrapped in bacon too? Visit skinnytaste.com for tons of cool recipes. <br /><br />Do you make your own wreaths? There are tons of ideas out there, so I bet you do!<br /><a href="http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/736x/d1/60/24/d1602453928a9d8c5aaabec3121d3bd5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" class="image pinImage" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/736x/d1/60/24/d1602453928a9d8c5aaabec3121d3bd5.jpg" style="height: 240px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 40px 0px; width: 320px;" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here's a super clever idea for wreath making: go to the plumbing department at Home Depot and grab a six foot long piece of foam tubing for $.97! Snip the length you want and duct tape the ends together.  Wreath tutorial <a href="http://www.thepennyparlor.com/2010/09/coffee-filter-wreath.html">here</a>.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/736x/9e/f4/8a/9ef48a4c3a88e370c2158c0fb2222fd1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" class="image pinImage" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/736x/9e/f4/8a/9ef48a4c3a88e370c2158c0fb2222fd1.jpg" style="height: 320px; margin-top: 0px; padding: 40px 0px; width: 213px;" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Speaking of wreaths: Here's an easy way to hang a wreath with no damage to the door - hang a command hook on the opposite side of the door, like so. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />So that's a pretty good list to start with.  I now have to stop playing and go out and pull weeds - Boo! I know, I'm a baby because I hate pulling weeds - so as I mentioned, I tried to look up "tips on pulling weeds", and didn't find any useful ideas. I'm not too happy about that, but I think I have a plan: <br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" class="image pinImage" src="http://media-cache-ec4.pinimg.com/736x/18/ff/da/18ffda88fa9c9bb0cc73f50a9af046d1.jpg" style="height: 300px; margin: 0px auto; padding: 40px 0px; width: 400px;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em>So what have you got for me? What are your favorite tips or tricks for around the home?</em></strong> <br /><br />Parties I'm at Saturday:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">SATURDAY</div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><a href="http://www.houseontheway.com/google-blog-hop/#comment-7766"><span style="color: magenta;">Google+ Blog Hop at House on the Way</span></a><br /><a href="http://cheeriosandlattes.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Saturday Show and Tell at Cheerios and Lattes</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://funkyjunkinteriors.net/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.lifeonlakeshoredrive.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">A Bouquet of Talent Party at Life on Lakeshore Drive</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://sixsistersstuff.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Strut Your Stuff Party at Six Sisters' Stuff</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.sassylittlelady.com/blog/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Show and Tell Saturday at Sassy little Lady</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://too-much-time.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Get Schooled Satuday at Too Much Time on My Hands</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.foxhollowcottage.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Power of Pinterest Party at Fox Hollow Cottage</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.oneshetwoshe.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Your Great Idea Party at Or So She Says</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.itsoverflowing.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Overflowing with Creativity party at It's Overflowing</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://gingerbreadgem.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Craft Country Cottage Party at Old Red Barn</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://sew-licious.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="background-color: white; color: magenta;">Saturday SHOW-licious Craft Showcase at Sew-licious</span></a></div><div align="left"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: magenta;"> </span></div><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><br />Parties I'm at Thursday:<br /><a href="http://www.whitelightsonwednesday.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #38761d;"></span></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"> <a href="http://ahandfulofeverything.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Great Idea Thursdays at A Handful of Everything</span></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.the36thavenue.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Party Time at The 36th Avenue</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://jannolson.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Share Your Cup Party at Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.houseofhepworths.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Hookin' Up with HOH at House of Hepworths</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://designeddecor.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Talkin' about Thursday at Designed Décor</span></a><br /><a href="http://domesticsuperhero.com/2013/04/25/sharing-with-domestic-superhero-8/"><span style="color: orange;">Sharing with Domestic Superhero</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://livelaughrowe.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Live Laugh Linky at Live Laugh Rowe</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://adelightsomelife.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="color: orange;">Home and Garden Thursday at</span> A Delightsome Life</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.craftberrybush.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">The Inspiration Gallery at Craftberry Bush</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://madeinaday.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Made U Look Linky at Made in a Day</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.thevintagefarmhouse.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Creative Things Thursday at The Vintage Farmhouse</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.myrepurposedlife.net/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Catch as Catch Can at My Repurposed Life</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Time Travel Thursday at The Brambleberry Cottage</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.aglimpseinsideblog.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Catch a Glimpse Party at A Glimpse Inside</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.52mantels.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">52 Mantels</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://staceyembracingchange.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Creative Inspirations Linky Party at Embracing Change</span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.redflycreations.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: orange;">Simply Create Link Party at Redfly Creations</span></a><br /><a href="http://thecharmofhome.blogspot.com/2013/05/home-sweet-home-120.html"><span style="color: orange;">Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home</span></a></div></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"> </div></div>

Why Didn't I Think of That?

At least once a day, I think "why didn't I think of that?" to myself. This morning I was looking for a tip on pulling weeds (m...

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