I don't usually have something I consider worthy of Works-For-Me Wednesday, but today, I think I'm on to something.
(ETA: I just realized I rambled a bit more than I planned in this....go figure. So, short version of WFMW: bread storage containers aren't just for bread. Keep reading for the details!)
My WFM moment started at Heather's (as so many of my great ideas d0--what did I do before her?). I can't find (read: I'm too lazy to look for) her post that talks about how she saves on dishwasher detergent, so I'll give you the Cliff-Notes version. Floating around the interest are many recipes for frugal dishwasher detergent. They all boil down to using a half and half mixture of borax and baking soda, and vinegar for the rinse. While some people swear by this, I've read far too many reviews that say that this just doesn't work (Heather's included), and I wasn't in a rush to try it out myself.
But then Heather posted that she had combined half dishwasher detergent, one-quarter borax, and one-quarter baking soda with wonderful results. Since she has yet to steer me wrong, I decided to give this a try. I didn't have enough baking soda to use that, so I did a mix of half detergent, half borax. I was thrilled to note that my detergent actually seemed to work better this way. Note only that, but I can now erase any guilt I had felt over spending so much on Seventh Generation detergent. (Interestingly, Seventh Gen's liquid dish soap is quite comparable to Dawn, my usual brand. The dishwasher detergent though is more than double the cost of Cascade.)
So while that was and is a delightful discovery, I was now faced with the dilemma of what to store my mixture in. I wanted to be able to mix a full box of detergent, so it needed to be something large. Suddenly, I had a flash of brilliance. I went to the coat closet and emerged with this:
Yes, that's a Rubbermaid bread storage container. You're probably wondering why it was in the coat closet. When we first moved into the apartment, in, oh, February, I wanted a bread container. I purchased this one, only to discover it wouldn't fit in our drawer. I had fortunately saved the receipt, so I tucked it all in the coat closet so I would remember to grab it and take it to Walmart the next time I went.
I promise, I have been to Walmart many times since February. Obviously, the bread container never made it out the door with me. But in this case, my scatter-brained nature was a good thing. It works perfectly for my dishwasher detergent mix. So perfectly, in fact, I'm considering getting two more and using them to store my flour and sugar (clearly labeled, of course).
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