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When it comes to doing projects around the house, cost is always an issue. But in recent months, inflation and continuing supply-chain challenges have made even modest home repair and renovation costs more than ever—and still rising. That means that any way you can shave a few bucks here and there is worth looking into, and that eventually might lead you to contemplate the free non-food stuff you can still get at various online and retail stores.
The days of painting a wall with free paint samples are kind of over, as most stores now charge at least a nominal fee for samples. But you can still augment your meager budget by re-purposing some of the stuff you still get for free. Here’s a rundown of clever ways to stretch that zero as far as possible when working on stuff around the house.
Take advantage of these free paint tools
One of the last bastions of free stuff at most hardware stores like Home Depot or Ace Hardware is in the paint department. They probably aren’t giving out any free paint samples (although some stores still offer them periodically if you’re a member of their customer programs), but when you buy paint from a hardware store, you almost always get two things: apaint stirring stick (or two), and a little metal can opener.
Stirring sticks are one of the most useful free resources left in this world. Here are just a few things you can do with the growing collection of free sticks you get over the years as you paint rooms in your home:
Sanding tools. Glue sandpaper of various grits to your stirring sticks to create perfect sanding tools. The flat side can be used to sand down corners, and gluing thin strips of sandpaper to the edges will create the perfect tool for sanding in tight spaces. Stakes. If you’re plotting any kind of landscape work, or need to warn people off from stepping on wet cement or touching wet paint, a stirring stick plus some of the free red plastic hardware stores give away to mark dangerous loads will make a perfect stake. Shims. If you need to shim something into place and don’t have any actual shims, paint sticks will do a plausible job, especially if several are used or if you’re able to rip them down a bit with a sander.That little can opener you get with your cans of paint is also incredibly useful. Sure, it’s useful as a paint can opener, but it can also be used as at least two other things:
Pry bar. Even the smallest pry bars can be way too big (and destructive) for any sort of delicate work, like prying plastic pieces off of appliances. The free can opener you got with your paint order is perfect for these little projects. Bottle opener. Did you know the ring portion of a Home Depot can opener is also a bottle opener? We’re not sure what this says about Home Depot’s opinion regarding painters and adult beverages, but drop one in a kitchen drawer and/or stick one on your keyring next time and you’ll always have a can opener with you.Free materials you can get from hardware stores
You can also repurpose a lot of free samples and tools into home decor or repair materials. Scoring multiple free samples so you can lay a patchwork floor isn’t particularly ethical, but using the free stuff you got in the normal course of buying materials for a home project isn’t just cost-effective, it’s a lot better than just throwing the stuff away:
Flooring wall accents. If you ordered some free flooring sample kits when figuring out what kind of floor to have installed in your house, the unused boards can be used to create some pretty cool wall accents, either as distinct pieces of art or as backing to niches and shelving units. The multi-color and multi-finish nature of samples actually works in your favor here, allowing you to create something with real visual interest. Coasters. Free wood and tile samples (Home Depot, for example, sometimes has a limited range of free tile samples, often the remnants from cut tiles) can be ideal coasters. You can use the tile samples as-is, or glue rubber feet or cork backing to them for a no-slip, no-scratch coaster. Paint stirrers. Once again, the most useful thing you may ever get for free is a paint stirring stick. If you have a few dozen lying around from various trips to the paint store, they can be repurposed into stuff like kitchen cabinet fronts by gluing them together in a pattern, sanding, staining, and sealing them. Depending on how many stirrers you have on hand, you can make a lot of stuff: A similar approach can be used to make a headboard, for example, or to construct a free planter for your garden.How to get free cabinet knobs and pulls
Finally, if you’re missing a cabinet knob or pull (or several), you can get free samples from a lot of online sources, though they’re not exactly free because you will wind up paying a few bucks in shipping costs. Still, if you don’t mind an eclectic look, ordering a few samples from different places can fix up your busted old kitchen cabinetry for a small amount of money.
