6/20/12

Buying home accessories from antique shops, thrift stores and flea markets is a simple and economical way to decorate your home and be green. But many people worry about bringing in dust mites, bedbugs and allergens that may be lurking inside old fabrics and hard-to-clean accessories. One way to "detoxify" them is to place them inside a plastic bag and freeze them overnight. Allergens will die, and your vintage find will be a clean one.

6/19/12

When a tennis ball loses its bounce, upcycle it into a useful hand weight and piggybank -- at the same time! Use the point of a sharp knife to make a small slit on the side of the tennis ball. Fill the ball with spare change; the more coins you add, the heavier it will be. When full, you have a useful weight perfect for exercise. To prevent coins from spilling out, you can add a piece of duct tape over the slit to create a secure closure.

6/18/12

A slow computer isn't always the result of a virus or lack of memory -- sometimes, it can be a surge protector that the computer is plugged into. Surge protectors are necessary to help prevent damaging electrical surges to your computer, but they, too, wear out every three years or so. To test to see if your surge protector is the reason for the slowdown, simply swap it out with a different one, and see if the computer runs faster that way.