With an estimated $2,000 worth of food thrown away every year in the average American household, being savvy about food waste is both ecological and economical. Take advantage of the plethora of recipes online to turn ingredients destined for the trash into delicious new things to eat. Overripe fruit can be made into fruit leather; vegetable peelings and tops come together for a flavorful veggie broth; and even stale bread and crackers can be transformed into bread pudding or crispy breadcrumbs to adorn salads. Be clever to cut your food waste as much as possible.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

One of the tricks interior decorators use to make a space feel more special is to install dimmer switches so the amount of light from a fixture can be controlled. But that control comes with an extra bonus: A dimmer switch can contribute to energy savings. Dimmer switches actually reduce the flow of electricity to lighting fixtures, which means the bulbs work while using less energy. Less power usage and less light output equals less wear and tear, which means your lightbulbs will last longer, too.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION

One of the top reasons household paint is "wasted" is because the color we chose is the wrong shade. It can be hard to choose the perfect shade from a myriad of paint chips, and often when we pick something we like, it appears to be too bright, too dark or just wrong on our walls. To help avoid this financial and material waste, look to other homes and spaces for color inspiration. When you find a wall color you like, you can use a number of apps to immediately color-match it on your phone. Then order that exact shade, so you have the perfect color in your soon-to-be-perfect home.

ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION