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[Pagan]

No, I would relish the excuse to buy a gorgeous ring holder!

(I bought the Pottery Barn leopards recently when they went on sale )

[RedHeadedWench]

Oh yes, I postpone lots of buying until I find what I want, and it's on sale. LOL

[jeanlake]

On 3/18/2015 nevergivesup said: You ladies make me smile with your ingenuity. My elderly mother who grew up during the Depression used to have a saying. Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without! I think she wore the same winter coat for fifteen years but she got a new hat and scarf every year and nobody realized about the old coat. She was such a pretty little lady! I miss her.

N - your post made me smile. Thank you

[jeanlake]

Making more 'planned' purchases is how I 'make do' now, with the goal of fewer impulse buys.

Making do was a more creative effort when the kids were young and the house was full. I do appreciate the creativity on this thread.

[Sooner]

No I don't. I had enough of that growing up. Sorry, but that's something I am glad to put behind me.

[house_cat]

I do! All the time! I love "shopping" in my own garage and cupboards for things that I can repurpose. So often I see some gadget or organizing tool in a catalog and immediately think of something else I can use for the same purpose.

If you enjoy this sort of thing, try Pinterest - there are gazilions of ideas there.

The first 10 (maybe 20) years of my marriage were difficult financially. We bought a fixer-upper house and my dad said we were wrong.. it wasn't a fixer-upper.. that we had years of work ahead of us to get it to that status. He was right and I did most of it myself with elbow grease and creativity. When we put that house on the market it sold the first day and we had two couples waiting for it. Everyone said it was so "charming" and they felt that they could just move right in, as-is. My favorite item was a coffee table that my son, who was 10 years old at the time, saw in someone's trash. It was plain, wooden and beat up, but we went back and got it. The two of us painted it to look like it had a granite top. When the movers came years later to give us an estimate, they were charging extra for the "granite table". I had to show him that it wasn't granite.

[Agent K]

On 3/17/2015 pommom said:

This has happened a couple of times and I have to say, it's rather empowering.

For instance, I need two ring holders - one for the bathroom and one for the kitchen. I went online and saw some real cute ones that are reasonably priced. Then I realized I had the perfect solution by hanging my ring on the pump of a hand lotion container that has an indented area about 1/4" from the opening of the pump. So that solved that problem.

My paper towel holder works as my kitchen ring holder. The thingy that keeps the towels from unraveling is perfect!

***

I wanted to purchase organizers for my foil, wax paper, plastic sealing wrap, etc. Then it dawned on me to use a couple of napkin holders that were no longer in use to keep them from slipping.

Do you have some creative ways of making use of your things and saving money?

Yes! It's one of my passions. The saucers under pots, did that, used a plastic hanger and some jute for a paper towel holder for the laundry room, re-use old pans, baskets and bowls for storing potatoes and onions, and so on. Have used old icky plastic lawn chairs to hold pots of herbs or vegetables so there's no bending double to tend them. Great thread, thanks!

[ValuSkr]

Always, always, always make-do for some time. After a while, I find a less expensive solution or find I didn't need it after all. Have saved a lot of money that way.

[Serenity-Now]

Ok, this is probably going to rock your world: if you are a member of Pinterest, go on there & do a search on Life Hacks. Enjoy! You might resurface in a few days, LOL.

[sfnative]

Always. I can't imagine a mind-set that would not use "time" as a friend in order to complete at least moderate research, vendors and let ideas swirl in ones right brain.

If, however, I/we have an emergent purchase, such as a washer requiring replacement we make a list of major brands and then go directly to the internet, look for our price range, find models we might be interested in and then read at least 500 reviews.