your stupid little life hacks that make even a tiny difference

[Anonymous]

I use a sharpie to write on the lid the date I open a jar of whatever so that we’re not all trying to remember when we opened it the next time we use it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Chapsticks and phone chargers in every room you could ever want a chapstick or phone charger so I never have to hunt one down.

I do this with scissors and tape.

I do this for beer.

[Anonymous]

When traveling I wrap shoes in a shower hat
When boiling cauliflower, add a little milk to the water to make the cauliflower nice and white
Burn a candle when cutting onions
Use salt a lemon to clean a bread board
Bicarbonate of soda to clean a kitchen sink

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Chapsticks and phone chargers in every room you could ever want a chapstick or phone charger so I never have to hunt one down.

I do this with scissors and tape.

I do this with post-its and Sharpies (ADHD and need to leave myself lots of notes).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I use a sharpie to write on the lid the date I open a jar of whatever so that we’re not all trying to remember when we opened it the next time we use it.

I do this for spices too.

[Anonymous]

This is OP and I have another one! I just recently brought a lot of clothes to the tailor - I think seven things. Just things that could work as they were - but that I thought would be better with just a little change. Got two shirts cropped a little bit, had the straps taken up on a shirt and a dress, had a dress shortened, etc. I had these weird bubble sleeves taken off a dress, and turned into short sleeves.

Well I just picked up all these clothes and I feel like I have a whole new wardrobe. Whole lot cost me $108 to tailor - so much cheaper than a whole new wardrobe.

So that's my new stupid little life hack - bring your clothes to the tailor if you don't quite love them as they are but they could be fantastic with a little tweak.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Listening to audiobooks from Libby while I fold laundry or clean the kitchen makes it so much better.

Yes! I almost look forward to some of these things now. If your library has Hoopla it often has a better choice of available audiobooks.

I do this and love it! I also listen to the WaPo and NYT if Im waiting for a hold book to come through or feel like I need to catch up on current events. I'll put in one headphone and keep listening while I walk the dog.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I use an app called AnyList that works with my Alexa. Whenever we run out of an ingredient I can just say, "Alexa, add ___ to my shopping list". You can also say, "Alexa, let's make a shopping list" and just read off additional items you need from the store. I then use the list on the app to do my shopping either in person or online. It helps because you can share the list with anyone in your family so it doesn't matter who does the shopping - everyone has access.

We use Alexa's shopping list, too! I don't use AnyList, but I can see it in the Alexa App on my phone. It is so helpful because I can add things while I am cooking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They rearranged my supermarket so it doesn't work anymore, but during the height of Covid when I tried to be in and out the supermarket as fast as possible, I took pics of the signs above every aisle. Then I made a blank shopping list in order of the aisle. So I never had to back track - produce, dairy, each aisle in between in order, then frozen. I've always gone by general category, but once I knew the exact aisle it was so much faster.

I hate when they rearrange. I don't use a list very often but I know the route and then they change it up for a few kinds of things, I swear they do it for no reason at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I gave up fighting the pens that like to congregate on my dresser (like why? I dont even have a notepad there) and put them in a container. Yes, ideally that would not be there either but it really beats pens scattered all over the dresser top. Try something similar with some other category of items that always seem to collect in some random part of your house; let them live there, just get a container for them

Years ago I would find myself with off little items--extra buttons that came with a garment I got rid of, small pieces of jewelry I had before I realized I can't stand wearing jewelry (it's a tactile thing), odd tiny pieces of hardware that might be for something but no idea what, and so on. I ended up at one point combining them--mostly by color--into small jars and have had those little jars forever, use as paperweights sometimes. The jewelry is pretty, just can't stand wearing it.

[Anonymous]

My paternal grandfather was a farmer (born in 1881, my dad was the youngest in a very large family). My dad once told me that whenever my grandpa was walking from one part of the farm to another he would always pick up something he might need at a location along the way although not right now and carry it with him. It stuck, and I will do that when I go upstairs and downstairs.

In college I worked part time in a nursing home. I noticed that the old ladies who were still able to get around, whenever they used the bathroom they would use a piece of toilet tissue to polish up the sink, like around the faucet handles. I do that to catch dust and link or small drips in the bathroom ever since. I do have an old house that gets dusty easily and have pets whose hair drifts unto surfaces and become dust catchers so this keeps up with it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If we are driving to the beach etc for vacation - we pack in laundry baskets.

We do this but in Ikea blue bags.

+1
Love the handles or shoulder option on these.

Also use IKEA bags for “outings” roundup of gear - lunch bags, blankets, extra jackets, sports gears, boots, etc.

I do this too, much, much easier than those hard plastic baskets.

I use an IKEA bag for laundry. Each person has a hamper in their room, so I collect from there, but it’s much easier for going up and down stairs than baskets.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I gave up fighting the pens that like to congregate on my dresser (like why? I dont even have a notepad there) and put them in a container. Yes, ideally that would not be there either but it really beats pens scattered all over the dresser top. Try something similar with some other category of items that always seem to collect in some random part of your house; let them live there, just get a container for them

Years ago I would find myself with off little items--extra buttons that came with a garment I got rid of, small pieces of jewelry I had before I realized I can't stand wearing jewelry (it's a tactile thing), odd tiny pieces of hardware that might be for something but no idea what, and so on. I ended up at one point combining them--mostly by color--into small jars and have had those little jars forever, use as paperweights sometimes. The jewelry is pretty, just can't stand wearing it.

As a kid I loved sorting through my grandmother's jars of buttons and charms and bits and bobbles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:instead of buying a bunch of bananas at the supermarket, buy single bananas in various states of ripeness.

Doesn't that mean you're ripping them off the bunch??

Me, I only buy them when the store puts red tape around the bananas with freckles and halves the price and then enjoy bananas on my oatmeal and peanut butter and banana sandwiches and banana for snack (and once in awhile banana pudding) for a few days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is OP and I have another one! I just recently brought a lot of clothes to the tailor - I think seven things. Just things that could work as they were - but that I thought would be better with just a little change. Got two shirts cropped a little bit, had the straps taken up on a shirt and a dress, had a dress shortened, etc. I had these weird bubble sleeves taken off a dress, and turned into short sleeves.

Well I just picked up all these clothes and I feel like I have a whole new wardrobe. Whole lot cost me $108 to tailor - so much cheaper than a whole new wardrobe.

So that's my new stupid little life hack - bring your clothes to the tailor if you don't quite love them as they are but they could be fantastic with a little tweak.

That's a great price! Are they in DC? I think most times I've tried to get something tailored it was like $50 a piece