Thanks to when our dog, Chewbacka [nicknamed 'Chewy'], was a puppy, a chewed up hose has been coiled in our shed for months, almost 2 years. I wouldn’t throw it away because I just knew there was something I could do with it, eventually.

Low and behold, the other day, while going to dig up some purple potatoes, I found that someone had left our pitch fork (of 15 years) out under some bushes last fall and to say it’s weathered now is an understatement:

But it’s still quite sturdy and, frankly we don’t want to buy something if we can already use what we have , so my wheels in the wheels in my head started turning and I grabbed the exacto-knife, scissors and some electrical tape:

With the scissors, I cut four equal pices of hose, then with the exacto-knife, I split them in the center: Look at that guilty culprit in the background….

I wrapped them around the weathered, rough handle of the pitch-fork by opening them up at the split:

Then wrapped it with electrical tape:

The gripes are cushioned and smooth. No splinters and less blisters now – time to get to work!

Now my husband jokes with me that there’s no room for being lazy and just working for 3 hours in the garden, with this ‘cush-handle’ I should be able to dig and pitch all day long! Oh my! What have I done??

Seriously though, reusing things that may have thought of as trash or something not worth the time to keep is one of the top tips to developing a good homestead. Of course it’s a money saver too!

By sharing these tips, I hope it inspires you to look outside the ordinary and challenge yourself to make the most of what you already have!

Best Blessings and Happy Homesteading!

Donna

Donna Miller is an author, teacher and entrepreneur. Her favorite roles are that of wife and mother to three home-school graduates. The Millers own and operate Millers Grain House which offers Organic and Chemical-free Whole Grains, Bosch Mixers, the NutriMill, instructional tutorials, recipes and more.

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