Make every cake of soap last twice as long

To make a cake of soap last twice as long, simply paint the top or bottom with some PVA wood glue and let dry. Doing this means only one side of the soap dissolves, enabling the cake to last double the time. I paint the top side of the cakes of soap when we bring them home. Sometimes my granddaughter even glues a pretty picture to the side!

Keep the straws from unwanted drink bottles

If you have a drink bottle with an internal straw, when the bottle cracks, leaks or dies, don't throw the straw out! Remove it from the bottle and keep it in your cutlery drawer for whenever you need a straw, or keep a couple in your bag for use when you're out. I keep three in a little cotton bag in my handbag for when we order a drink that would normally come with a disposable straw (milkshakes, iced coffees, spiders, soft drinks). After use, I just give the straw a quick rinse in the restroom sink, or wrap in a serviette, and give a good wash when I get home. A simple way to reduce waste and help the planet!

Compost for small gardens

This idea is for those who live in a home with a garden that is too small to have a compost bin. I use an empty garden pot, cut a square of one of those net bags oranges come in to cover the hole of the pot. Put in a layer of old potting soil (from a pot where the plants have had their day). Each day save your fruit and vegetable scraps in a container. Place in a layer of scraps, then cover with another layer of old soil. Repeat layer by layer until the pot is nearly full, ending with a layer of soil (water as you go).

Then, while the compost is breaking down and baking, plant some seasonal seedlings on top and in no time you will have potted colour and compost underneath, not only feeding your seedlings but ready for the garden when the flowers are spent at the end of the season. I sometimes benefit from crops of vegetables germinated from the seeds in the compost such as tomatoes, cucumbers, capsicum and butternut pumpkin.

This is a multi recycling exercise using unwanted orange bags, unused pots, old soil and fruit and vegetable scraps and, of course, it is a great medium for the latest seedlings. Instead of flowers on top you could plant your favourite herbs while the compost is baking.

The secret to freezing cream

Want to freeze cream without it becoming a watery mess once it's defrosted? The secret is to whip it before you freeze it. Defrost it naturally and you would never have known it was frozen.

This method lets me buy brand name cream when it’s on sale, usually as it's reaching its use by date. I whip it up, portion it off into 100ml containers and throw it in the freezer. I no longer have to worry about buying a full container of cream, then trying to think of how to use it all up before it reaches its expiry date. No more waste!