2.5 House Hacks From Kelly

Lately I’ve been seeing a lot of great tricks to make life just a bit easier. Here are a few that I love and wanted to share.

What makes a great housewarming gift? Comfort and ease.Soup in a Jar

If you have ever moved into a new home you know it can be many things. Exciting, time consuming and let’s face it, exhausting too. Here is a great housewarming gift that makes a super delicious comfort soup. It requires only a pot and some water.

 

  • First, choose a Mason jar or other jar with a lid – about 1 liter in size.
  • Then layer about 1/2 cup of yellow lentils, 1/2 cup of red lentils, 1/2 cup of split peas. Repeat.
  • Add 6-7 sun dried tomatoes (not in oil).
  • Mix 2 tsps turmeric, 2 tsps curry powder, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp garlic powder and a dash of salt in a sealed bag. Place next to the sun dried tomatoes.
  • Top with 1-2 chile peppers and 2 bay leaves.
  • Tighten the lid, add a bow and a little tag with “Home Sweet Home” or something cute and you have a nice housewarming gift that requires very little effort to enjoy some homemade soup. For added comfort, include a side of french bread. Hmmmmm 🙂

 

Another great housewarming gift – a bucket or container with tools!

Tool Bucket

While we love us some tool boxes, sometimes it’s easier to have a quick and easy container for more common household things. Hence the tool bucket. Not only has this saved the day for me many times but it also makes a really great housewarming gift. Head to your neighborhood hardward store and choose some items below or any others you feel would be helpful:

 

  • A little bucket
  • A hammer
  • A screw driver with an interchangeable head (flat and phillips)
  • A little package of assorted screws and/or nails
  • A tape measure
  • A level
  • Some tape (duct tape is like gold!)
  • And an extension cord

This is my bucket. As you can see, it’s been put to good use.

Finally, the .5 hack. I saw a really cool idea – to cover up the heat/ac display on the wall with a photo on hinges. Open it when you want to turn the heater on or off, close it and live in bliss right? Seems like it would work like a dream but at the end of the day it can affect the way heating and cooling works. So this hack should be avoided. Do not try to cover up your heater/ac display.

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