money
Teen finance fun
is a website that tracks teens’ chores and allowance to help parents teach them about money management. The site recently teamed up with Visa Buxx to create a prepaid card, and teens are being asked to design it with their own digital photos. Teens who create a design will be entered in a drawing for a free Apple Macbook, and the chance to earn royalties from their work. More information at .
energy
efillable cleaning bottles
The eco-minded Minnesota company Restore Products has developed a grocery store filling station that dispenses five nontoxic, plant- based cleaning products into reusable bottles. “Americans use over 4 million plastic bottles per hour,” says Restore founder Laurie Brown. “If a large company like Procter & Gamble alone were to install Restore Refill Stations in all of the Wal-Mart locations across the country, we estimate that it could save 22.5 million pounds of plastic from reaching the landfill each year.” Restore will show off its Refill Station this weekend during the Earthworks Expo at the Denver Merchandise Mart. (See Room to Grow on Page 2F for event details.)
space
Kitchen TLC
When a kitchen is too crowded and cluttered it stops being the heart of the home and starts being the place everyone avoids. Follow these tips from Organized Living and Liz Witts, host of HGTV’s “Mission: Organization,” to get the galley back into shape. Learn more at .
Conquer counters. Clear counter clutter by consolidating what’s there and capitalizing on vertical space.
Flex your fridge. The front of the fridge tends to hold grocery lists, to-do lists and kid art. Keep it tidy with a magnetic dry erase board, magnetic clips for displaying pictures, and magnetic hooks for everything else.
Pantry power. Witts suggests storing food in clear containers for easy identification. Tame canned goods with a can dispenser that loads from the top and distributes from the bottom. Stack dispensers for even more storage.
