What Small, Inexpensive Things Make Your Life Better?

– Tweezerman tweezers in the car where the light is good and the mirror can be angled just right. – Wide shallow bowls for pasta (and salads and other things too) that just make eating it that much more pleasurable for some reason. – Rechargeable book light for reading while my partner sleeps and for airplanes when you feel like a jerk with the overhead light on.

Electric egg cooker – so easy and quick to make boiled eggs to your preferred hardness. Such a good healthy snack and now I eat more of them! Also a little pack of glow in the dark stars to stick on the furniture around my baby’s nursery so when the black out blinds are down and I’m rocking her at night, I don’t bump into anything in my sleepy state.

BAG BALM. That is all.

This is my favorite post! The tub shroom (I have 2 so I can switch out mid-shower) https://www.tubshroom.com Metal gloves for grating (This is going to be what everyone gets for Xmas this year) these have saved my knuckles so many times https://www.cabelas.com/p/cabelas-cut-glove Mini re-fillable condiment bottles (for camping!) https://www.target.com/p/snaplock-2-condiment-bottles/-/A-93699732#lnk=sametab Banana saver for lunches https://www.bananasaver.com/ Plastic bag dryer for re-using ziplock bags https://www.target.com/p/lehman-s-economical-and-eco-friendly-wooden-8-arm-bag-holder-and-bottle-dryer/-/A-92549748 Cup holder expander for car https://www.target.com/p/maison-products-car-cup-holder-car-cup-holder-expander-with-adjustable-base-matte-black/-/A-92959319 Kitchen towels with a built-in hole so they loop on the oven bar and don’t fall off Velvet hangers for the closet

In the category of non essential but life improving items, I vote for a 4 cup glass measuring cup. You can melt butter in it, often can mix all wet ingredients in it, fits in the dishwasher easily, I love it! I don’t know why I waited until I was almost fifty to get one.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a good bedside light for reading, preferably a plug in sconce? My kids have the ikea ones above but the clip part broke almost immediately. They’re also super bright so I find I have to point them at the wall to dim them a little for nighttime. I saw someone recommended a red light one but ideally I’m hoping for something a little less industrial. Bonus points if it’s available in Canada :)

-eye mask with headphones built in – lc dolida or something on amazon – amazing for listening to things while falling asleep -a carafe with cup that fits on top for keeping by bed -ikea makes these magical clips in a huge multipack for $2 or something that are perfect for closing plastic bags, esp great in freezer, like plastic bags of frozen peas IKEA also sells silicone round soft lid things that fit over the top of bowls, to put in fridge. Powdered unsweetened matcha sachets from trader joes (and instant coffee) in my bag because who wants to spend $8 on a drink anymore and you can always get ice and water from somewhere to make your own. Muji pens and notebooks, so cheap and so excellent. Illiyoon ato gel or cream, Korean face moisturizer that comes in a big container, is great, I buy in bulk from stylevana and it goes a long way, plus has clean ingredients. Community acupuncture – sliding scale as you do it in a room with other people, very affordable. And it WORKS MAGIC. Trader joes pound plus dark chocolate bars OBVIOUSLY Also, hair cutting scissors and a couple YouTube hair cutting tutorials. If you have med-long hair, look up how to cut a wolf cut – it’s foolproof. You put your hair in a ponytail on the top of your head and cut across, that is IT, and it comes out literally fantastic and weirdly looks great on everyone. Idk about super curly/textured hair though. But I’m never going to a salon again. I cut my male partners hair now too after watching a video or two, it’s easier than you think -insight timer app meditations (free!!) -a nice coffee is always a similar price pretty much no matter where you go, so while traveling I love getting a coffee at a super gorgeous hotel and soaking in the atmosphere, using a really nice bathroom, etc.

I grew up with not a lot–things like hair elastics, chapstick, tape, pens, pencils, working markers, scissors, were always in short supply and it stressed my mom out to buy them AGAIN. It feels so lovely and luxurious to have many pairs of scissors, piles of hair elastics, a drawer of Costco tape, and new sets of markers when they get dry. I try very hard not to be wasteful, but abudant supplies is my kryptonite.

I recently bought double of all my toiletries and make up (including toothbrush and razor) for storage in my travel bag. Now I don’t have to pack and unpack it when I travel for work, which is about once a month. Who knew that having 2 razors could save so much mental stress!?

Definitely my tiny pot scraper, so useful to cleaning pots but also on caked on maple syrup on the table, etc. Libby app is another one- totally free and I can peruse most magazines that I love at my leisure. No $ and no paper to recycle. I ❤️ libraries. When my kids were younger I kept a wicker basket of socks in the front porch, as they were forever needing to go back upstairs for socks- total game changer in the morning.

an electric can opener and cloth napkins

I’ve lived in my beloved 1BR for about 14 years and never had a wastebasket in my bedroom until last month! It seemed silly with my bathroom and kitchen just a few feet away, but I finally bought a small wooden wastebasket for my bedroom and cannot believe I lived without it for so long. Now I’ve gotten a tiny one for my “office” (a corner of my living room) as well. I am rejoicing as if I invented wastebaskets, which I know I did not, but it’s been such a good life upgrade! Joy was not meant to be a crumb, people!

Electric corkscrew… I’m sure this offends some but after too many frustrating incidents where I couldn’t get wine bottles open with the myriad of devices in the drawer, this one has never let me down. Built in foil cutter, great red color and soooo easy to use!

Menstrual cup, every time.

Maldon salt! Salt is so cheap that you can have the fancier ‘chef-y’ version of it and it’s still cheap. My grandmother was so surprised by how much better it tastes when I got her some in her late 80s, after a lifetime of using bog-standard table salt. Regarding those coin/ button batteries – please just remember that they are a horrifying danger to small children, not just as a basic choke hazard but because they can cause internal burns. I didn’t know this until reading about baby-proofing when having my own baby, and it really seems like something everyone should know. Even my police officer friend who has first aid training and attend all kinds of emergencies knew nothing about it! https://capt.org.uk/button-battery-safety/

quarter baking sheets – for baking, prep, stacking things to dry in the fridge. I love them so much. Also smart lights – no more arguing over who is the last in bed and should go flip a switch. LIP BALMS EVERYWHERE (purse, bedside table, work table, car, coffee table). … and this is kinda niche, but we ordered ready to assemble kitchen cabinets and I hate the feeling/sound of exacto knives on cardboard so I got an electric cardboard cutter to break down all the cardboard and man it was worth it.

Petra 0103HP flour from Brick Oven Baker. Ali Stafford recommended it on her site to mix with regular flour for peasant bread, and now that’s the only way I want to bake that bread. It adds excellent flavor, dark color, and makes a wonderful texture.

Dior Creme Abricot for cuticles, and CeraVe Diabetics’ Dry Skin Relief for feet. Every night.

My quarter and half sheet pans are my power house items. I use them almost everyday that I cook!

I’ve just got 15 white thick baby muslin squares. I’ve been using them to wipe up in the kitchen, dry my hands and as a napkin. A bit damp/dirty? throw it in the washing machine and pull out another one then wash the lot once a week…….fab!

I’m going to go ahead and say this 100% free picture of a darling baby in a teddy bear hood is exactly the type of small, inexpensive thing that makes my life better :) Thanks, Cup of Jo.

I hope I am not offending to the woman here who are scared of chefs knifes: they are scary you haven’t learned to use one. I was there once. But you do you!

Handheld battery-operated frother for coffee, waterproof bath pillow with suction cups, cover for the tub overflow so you can actually take a hotel-tub sized bath that covers your entire adult body. Coffeehouse coffee and a luxurious bubble bath at home, all for under $20 together? Indulgent.

Silicone toe-spacers to wear in bed or in your shoes, if large enough, eye drops to combat sceens dryness

I bought chip clips (in the shape of chips) for the half eaten bags of chips. I like to pour chips in small bowls to eat to feel fancy. The chip clip is great! I love it too much

stainless steel kitchen scissors that fully come apart for cleaning. I use them to cut apart basically everything but squishy foods. also my go to wedding gift as most people don’t really think of them but then they are like, my life has changed.

Second people saying phone charger in living room, bedroom and car! Plus buy the extra long cord….so much more ease! This foldable reusable tote bag is the best!! It is so sturdy AND it has an external pocket too! I never forget it because it folds up so small and It’s only 2.99!! https://www.target.com/p/burst-print-foldable-tote-bag-black-red/-/A-77377107 Also this USB re-chargable book light is the best: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09PR1BTM7?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title&th=1 I think someone on cup of jo recommended it!!

A smart plug! It lets you turn items in your home on and off using a schedule or an app. My favorite way to use it: Every evening at dusk, my porch string lights turn on automatically with the “sunset timer.” After walking my dog on a chilly night, seeing my warm house glowing makes so happy.

My tiny Swiss army knife that clips onto my keychain…do take it off before you go through airport security! So handy to open pesky granola bars or packets of pistachios. So helpful. Also…not so small but Whole Foods sells a cooler that folds up and is just wonderful to bring on a trip. We always travel with one stashed in our outer luggage compartment. However we travel, airplane or car, they come in very handy and work well at keeping drinks and sandwiches.

My husband and I have a senior dog who is in his final days with us, so we are regularly cleaning up after him. Our house has a lot of carpet, so puppy training pads have been a lifesaver — we can lay him down, stick one under his butt, and get a few things done without worrying about the clean up!

My citrus squeezer do-hicky. I use a lot of citrus in cooking and thought a palm press squeezer was too fiddly but then I was gifted one and wow – I’ve grown to love it. Love a useful kitchen tool! The electronic shoulder massager. I recently upgraded to this one and while it’s weird looking and I’m still getting the hang of how to position it well, it is undeniably good. I like that I can use it on my leg muscles as I just joined the gym and am SO sore. https://www.amazon.com/Ohiele-Cordless-Massager-Kneading-Shoulder/dp/B0G4LPNW4K

This is the absolutely most tiny thing, but I love my pot scraper. I’ve upped my composting game because it’s so dang easy to scrape right into a bowl, I no longer pre-rinse things before the dishwasher, and there is less scrubbing all around. I got mine at a little local kitchen supply place, but here’s a another one: https://thegoodfill.co/products/pot-scraper

This is so random, and i am SURE this is the weirdest place to put this but…. I was just given the news I have “Stage 0 Melanoma”. I am very pale skinned, very blonde hair, and have had my fair share of irregular/suspicious things removed, biopsied, and sometimes surgically fully-removed. This one is … different? Maybe? Also, why did I see the results before my doctor even had….. gah. So stressful. Does anyone have any history with this? Should I be fully panicked? Also what Vitamin D supplements does anyone like for us very pale-skinned friends. Thank you, friends <3

I don’t know where I read about it (probably here!) but having multiple sets of measuring spoons is SO NICE. I can just grab a fresh set if I need it, rather than pausing to clean them in the middle of cooking. A very small thing that makes my life smoother!

Masks in fun colors and patterns! Keeps me safe and makes me smile. And a dog harness with a handle. Can haul her over logs and rocks, help her get steady on her feet, grab her when she’s dashing for cat turds. And it’s nice to know if she falls in a river, she’s got an easy way to fish her out.

Bench scraper. Wine bottle foil cutter. Reading glasses and Dr Bronner’s lip balm in EVERY conceivable place. Luxury is having a million cheap small things you always use in all the places so you never have to think about them.

Loop earplugs are my new baby shower gift. Perfect for keeping next to the rocking chair when witching hour appears. Also baby bandanas that snap in the back. Fun and colorful, but also easier to change throughout the day than the baby’s whole outfit when they spit up or drool.

over the door hooks! For freshly ironed clothes, tomorrow’s outfit etc. Very handy! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09VK3WK6M?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_3&th=1

I keep a pen and stamps in my wallet. You would be amazed how many times you or someone else needs both. I also keep masking tape, a sharpie and scissors in my kitchen utensil drawer.

clip-on lights, yes, but make them blue-light blocking: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BHTSMRS1?th=1 saved my life during those early post-partum days fumbling around in the dark and now they’re perfect for reading, running to the bathroom in the night, strange hotel rooms where you just need a lil red light. the battery lasts FOREVER and i’ve had zero issues with mine since 2022 when i first bought it. for $15, it’s a real gem.

A phone charger in my bedroom, office, kitchen, and car. A pair of scissors in the kitchen, my office, my bedroom, and my hallway drawer.

O’Keefe’s Lip repair night treatment lip balm. I put it on every night when I go to sleep, especially in the cold months. For work, I have a Quartet desktop whiteboard, which sits behind my keyboard and lets me jot quick reference notes like phone numbers, etc., so I don’t forget them or waste post-its

I’ve been trying to kick the coffee out habit, and two things have really elevated my afternoon pick-me-up Cafe-Bustello-Instant-Coffee-from-Sam’s-game: – Chobani Creamer (either vanilla or hazelnut – the others are too cloying) – The Intelligensia Cocoa Coffee Sugar with Espresso mix from Spice House (https://www.thespicehouse.com/products/cocoa-coffee-sugar). A cup of decent instant coffee with a dash of creamer and a sprinkle of that espresso mix, and I don’t even miss my SBX latte at all. And at a total cost of ~$15 (plus the coffee) it’s WAY better for my wallet.

A USB lighter. Never runs out of fuel. Works forever. A reading light that is worn around the neck. So much nicer to use than the type that clips onto books. A sleeping mask. I don’t wear one but my husband got one and wears it for my benefit so that I can leave the bedside lamp on longer. :) Satin pillowcase — it really does cut down on hair breakage SO much. A little package opener thingy. I think the brand is called Slice. A days of the week pill holder. I could never remember if I had taken vitamins or medication. This truly has made such a difference for me and is also sleek and nice for travel so that I don’t need to pack multiple bottles of things. I use one from a company called Dosey and it holds lots while still maintaining a slim profile. Trader Joes Ultimate Moisturizing Hand Cream. I’m always noticing how dry my hands are when I glance down at the steering wheel, so I keep a tube of this hand cream in the car and moisturize at stop lights. It rubs in quickly and isn’t greasy at all but the thick cream doesn’t separate when left in a hot car like some thinner lotions do.

I have what I call an “emergency pouch” I keep in my purse that has: a sewing kit, bandaids, pads, sanitizing wipes, lip balm, a tiny tin with a few altoids, a small pill box with otc meds, safety pins, a nail file, and probably a couple odds and ends I’m forgetting. It’s only about 4×7” and an inch wide all packed up, and it unzips like a book and has a few pockets to hold things. It’s great because when I swap bags, I can just toss it from one to the other without having to move all those individual bits. My next thing that I want to add to it is a tiny multitool.

Chef’n Zoom Garlic Chopper!!!!! If you don’t want pressed but chopped this is amazing. One Christmas everyone I love received one from me and they still all rave about it. It is now my mother’s go-to hostess gift.

This might not be the precise spirit of this piece, but my small inexpensive hero piece is my journal. I’ve been a lifelong journaler since young childhood, but off and on. When I finally picked it back up as a regular practice again about 3-4 years ago, my mental health improved by magnitudes. It astonishes me how much this little pen and notebook improve my life!

My first thought on seeing the cover image and the headline was “that baby might be small but it is by nooooo means inexpensive!”

An Ikea phone holder that looks like a miniature version of a wire chair that belongs at DWR. It’s sturdy, functional, and makes me smile every day.

A rechargeable LED light up dog collar! Great for evening walks and easy spotting of our dog when she’s out in our large yard. Also, rechargeable hand warmers, for taking the above evening walks in winter.

An under cabinet jar opener. The only wedding gift I use to this day.

My lamps. They are all perfectly placed and have their time of day to shine. Each has her own name and personality so I can say “turn on marge” from upstairs when i notice the lighting is off. makes my home so cozy.

Oxo good grips meat chopper for breaking up ground beef while cooking .

A plug in pencil sharpener that sits on a table in the kitchen. No more scrabbling around at homework time looking for a sharpener!

A small clock for our kitchen. Weirdly, non of our appliances have a clock and I was so tired of looking at my phone. Also just here to say that Loop earplugs are also a game changer for blow drying your hair. I’ve always hated the whole process, especially the sound, and now it’s actually bearable with the sound blocked.

I’d be interested in a spin off list. Products so good that (fingers crossed) you will never have to buy another one. I went through 3 other garlic presses that broke before landing on this one, Kuhn Rikon Epicurean Garlic Press. It isn’t cheap, but it looks and works perfectly after 7 years. I am so tired of basic stuff that breaks quickly. I don’t want to shop for garlic presses. I just want the same one in the drawer until my grandkids come along.

GRATITUDE. And, it’s free!

I buy trader joes greeting cards at a completely unreasonable rate, maybe 6 a month? I keep them in my glove compartment with a pen. I have all categories for all ages covered and then some. Forever prepared! Because writing a card on the dash of your car absolutely means you’re arriving prepared!!

I love our USB lighter to light my favorite incense. On a recent trip to Tokyo we stayed in two AirBnB apts. At Muji I was so happy to buy tiny scissors and food storages clips to use during our stay. They were so useful and small enough to bring along for all of our travels.

I love my little rotary cutter! Rather than amassing unflattering tee shirts that get relegated to pajamas or the back of the closet, I can cut them easily to make shirts I actually want to wear. Best $11 I’ve spent in a bit, and a fun activity that takes little time to do!

A little note about coin batteries/button batteries (they have so many names!): If swallowed, they are imminently deadly (and there is pretty much no way to retrieve them or reverse the effects!). Since I have a little one at home who constantly puts things in her mouth, we just don’t keep them in the house. A recommended “policy” for anyone with pets or little humans who can’t keep their tongues to themselves!!

Bic Flair pens and Ink Joy Gel pens…it’s a teacher thing! Old Navy ruffled cuff athletic socks, $12.99 for a 3-pack. Olli Pop probiotic soda, about $2.50 a can…low sugar, and 30% of your RDA of fiber! Trader Joes $4.99 Chilean Sauv Blanc!

I was stuck in an urgent care exam room with my boys (2yo & 7yo) and I had NOTHING to help with the wait. My songs weren’t cutting it and Simon Says isn’t as fun with the 2yo yelling NO the entire time. I ended up tearing a wad of paper off of the exam room table, forming it into a ball, and playing catch with my boys. They loved it. We survived.

I love my kitchen scissors! Easy to chop herbs, proteins, pizza then throw in dishwasher. I also have a pair for the garden to cut flowers and chop stuff back.

I carry a small black leather backpack and it was starting to feel like an abyss so I bought this soft clear zippered case to keep make-up and liquids in. It makes it easy to see and grab things and it is convenient to be able to take it out when I’m looking for other things. https://www.target.com/p/clear-plastic-pouch-up-up/-/A-1011020874?preselect=94881637#lnk=sametab

A cold brew maker. My husband does not drink coffee and I don’t like to waste a full pot, and after our daughter was born, I accepted that my coffee would never be as hot as I wanted it to be. So, I started making cold brew in my mother’s 1970s french press. Fast forward to the French press breaking and my husband going out the same day and getting a cold brew maker. This and the metal Ikea condiment cups that hold about an ounce and are perfect for a tiny little snack.

Having to buy pick flossers on a road trip once because I couldn’t get something out of my teeth, I now keep them in the car and use them daily! I was *never* a flosser before and now I can’t live without doing it.

An enamel lapel pin, glossy black with gold outlining, that just says FACTS.

A julienne vege peeler. Makes quick work of a zucchini to stir through a stirfry for zoodles, shreds a carrot in no time to add to gravy or vietnamese salads etc, and tiny to wash.

Ms Rachel’s new cd in the car. Suddenly 2.5 year old likes the car. 10/10 no skips, Ms. Rachel 4ever.