Plastic Lids, Potatoes and Wading Pools Have This In Common

Potatoes, wading pools and plastic lids are all super stars when it comes to usefulness and easily done.  Easily done means no crazy ingredients or weirdness. Those are the two requirements that must be met for any tip to get my attention. They all passed the test with flying colors.

I know for sure I will never look at a plastic lid the same way again. A bag of potatoes will become a staple again in my kitchen. And I guess I'm just speechless when it comes to the wading pool.

Potatoes on Overtime

• Dye your hair darker with potato water. Dip a comb in the water that potatoes were boiled in and then comb through hair. To speed the effect and help set the darker color, dry hair in the sun or a blow dryer. Heat is what we are going for here. I have had success with putting on a shower cap. The heat coming from my head is trapped which intensifies the effects of dye.

• Black paint is made by baking potatoes until they are completely dried out and black. Grind thoroughly with a mortar and pestle. I bet there is a setting for that on a fancy blender or maybe food processor. I don't have either so it's up to you to let me know by leaving a comment. Add enough linseed oil to form a paint like consistency. I never have enough black paint.
• First aid kit inclusion as a compress after an accident. Boil a potato for a warm compress. Put that boiled potato in the refrigerator for a cold compress.
• First aid kit as itch relief. Salt a thin slice of a raw potato. Rub on hives or insect bites for itch relief.

Plastic Lids Do Double Duty

• Use the caps from spray paint cans to organize the screws, nails and other small find-me-not items that scatter about. Attach caps to a sturdy bottom so it's easily removed or maybe just setting them down in a drawer is just as good. An easy trim if they are a little too tall.  
• A three or four inch plastic lid from a tub of butter with an X cut into the center becomes an impromptu ponytail holder. The same plastic lid and the same X slid onto the handle of a paint brush becomes a shield to catch accidental paint drippings that can cause havoc.
• Rim down and placed over a drain makes a plastic lid a sink stopper.
• Be on the lookout for those lids that will be a perfect fit on a magnifier, binoculars or camera lenses. I really like this idea. I'm on the hunt.
• Plastic lids can be cut and used as stencils. Hey, haven't we heard that a potato... no wait, I'm thinking about a raw potato used as a stamp. Never mind. But this is a good one to remember.

Image by Pixabay

Wading pools are not just for keeping cool in the summer, but for looking cool too. Obviously, just look at him. So cool. Even though the price was right when I saw wading pools on clearance a couple of months a go. I could not figure out where to store my bargains until next summer, so no deal. Until now. I might even  buy a wading pool at full price when summer gets here

During the summer months fill with fresh cold water from the hose for your feet. Toddlers will love to swim in them and when your back is turned so will the birds. Filled with ice, they make a great cooler for drinks at your next party. Or corral toys and other yard stuff laying about.

Here's where my mind is blown. A new approach. I missed it plain and simple. An easy fix to my problem, couldn't see it. Completely missed it. I think two or three wading pools would be fun and functional in the summer.

During the winter months wading pools become storage containers for what ever fits into them leaving enough clearance to slide easily under a bed. Out of sight. This is a personal favorite of mine. Wading pools can be used in several different ways all year long, useful multiplied. Fairly inexpensive and available for purchase just about anywhere during the summer, easily done.

I think I have seen quite a few wading pools thrown away at the end of summer, either in a dumpster or setting beside the road for trash pick up. You betcha I'll be watching out for them now. And when buying a new one probably gonna consider how sturdy and dimensions.
Wading pools could be super useful for those long tubes of wrapping paper. And what a great organizer. Portable and stocked with everything needed on Christmas morning for Santa's helpers.

Tag you're it. Leave a note. Thanks

Resources:
Images from Pixabay.com
1991 Reader's Digest's Practical Problem Solver