the space between

upcycle, repurpose and reinvent your space

Day #4 – diy swiffer cloths

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Look at us go.

Day #4 of the 31 day series and things seem to be going strong without a hitch. Get started at the beginning here. And I’ll apologize now if there’s a delay in adding this weekend’s links to the main page. I’m headed to Cali, baby!!

That’s right, I’ve been sharing pictures all week on my Instagram feed from when Joel and I lived in Carmel, CA and I am beside myself excited to be heading back.

I begged Joel to come with me but something about work and a job is keeping him home. Stupid job.*

*By stupid I mean awesome and keeps all of my randomness funded. Love that job. Really, I do.

Today’s little tip is one of my favorites!

What costs $1, was totally bought for a different use and is going to save you and me a bunch o’ money?

diy swiffer cloths

I bet the words “Handy Shammy” were at the tip of your tongue. 😉

Update:  Here is an affiliate link to the exact shammys I bought.

And holy cats I can totally share the real reason why I bought the Handy Shammy in another 31 things post because that is something I have practically forgotten about but is definitely something you need to know!

Anyway, you can tell from that picture above what I ended up using these bad boys for.

DIY swiffer cloths!

And they’re reusable.

And you can just toss them in with your regular laundry.

I’ll apologize for this little picture duo right up front.

diy swiffer cloths

It is supposed to illustrate that I use both sides of the cloth. Tell me you do that too. I always did it with swiffer cloths to save money, but even though these are reusable I couldn’t stop myself. I guess thrifty habits die hard. 🙂

What these pictures actually illustrate is that I have no shame am an infrequent swifferer. Let’s just agree that I wanted to let the dog hair pile up for proper photos for this post.

Yeah, let’s go with that.

But, take that hot mess and toss it right in with a regular load of laundry and it comes out ready for more abuse.

diy swiffer cloths

Does it make any sense that I actually swiffer more now because I know I don’t have to go buy new pads? It’s true. Insane, but true.

I bought the two pack of Handy Shammys at the Dollar Store. So that’s $1 for FOUR diy swiffer pads.

And, technically, they fit like this when you cut one shammy in half.

diy swiffer cloths

But whatevs, it covers the whole bottom of the swiffer which is all the matters.

I seriously love this.

diy swiffer cloths

Please tell me you think this is awesome, too?!?! And what do you think of the series so far?

31 things you need to know

Comments

  1. I have thought about using something other than the actual Swiffer cloths, however, I have too much dog hair even when I Swiffer every day. I don’t want the dog hair in my laundry and one of the dogs has medium length hair which means more dog hair. You have a good idea, however, I will continue to buy the Swiffer sheets for now. Thanks for all of your great ideas and fun and informative reading. Have a nice trip.

  2. I’ve been doing exactly this for years…I inherited a Swiffer from the previous homeowner, but I can’t stand the chemicals, cost, or waste of the refills, so I’ve been using a shammy as my reusable refill. It works great for the big dog’s dog hair, the big guy’s coffee spills, and the little guy’s everything else spills. I usually wash the shammy in hot water with our towels and the dog hair doesn’t get stuck. Another option is to use paper towels and hot water, if you just must throw something away.

  3. What a great idea! … Since those swifter pads can get expensive when you gotta lots of floors to keep clean.
    It’s amazing how small the world really is … It was a surprise to read you are heading to CA and mainly the Carmel area because we live about 45 minutes from Carmel and my husband works at the firehouse there. I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing visit on our west coast … You deserve it!

    • I had so much fun in your neck of the woods. Was bummed that JD was actually in Miami for the weekend but got to spend some great time soaking in all the beauty!!

    • I primarily use them for dry, but I have been known to just spray antibac cleaner right on what I’m cleaning and scrub a little with the shammy to get it up.

  5. I’ve used them for dry and wet mopping. I don’t have those exact shammy’s. I purchased something like this at Big Lots years ago. It has saved me a ton of money over hte years. When I do laundry, I have a bunch of my cleaning cloths that are used for a variety of reasons that are washed together. It helps….Wet mopping-I used a mix of orange scented vinegar and hot water. The vinegar orange sent is made through orange peels in a mason jar for a couple of weeks. It works great.

    • Rebecca, do you just spray the vinegar ahead of your mop or on the floor? I’ve got a big space, so, i’m trying to figure it out. Thanks.

      • I have a spray bottle I mix about 1/2 and 1/2 with…spray lightly and swipe. I have 2000 square feet of wood, tile, and linoleum floors to clean 2-3 times a week. I only
        Wet wash one time a week. That’s about it. I used to pay a lot of money for an orange cleaning solution. Spray lightly and you are good to go.

  7. “And what do you think of the series so far?” LOVE IT! But I pretty much love everything you do/write. [fyi, I said ‘pretty much’ so you don’t think you have some creepy stalker on your hands]

  8. Using both sides of swiffer cloth….brilliant!! Thanks for the tip!

  9. I bought microfiber cloths that I cut down and serged the raw edge and use both sides and throw in the washer. Never thought of using the handy shammy. I too got tired of paying for swiffer sheets and then throwing them away.

  10. i have wondered about pet hair, as i have 2 cats & there is hair everywhere…i had bought the exact same thing for the exact same reason, but right now they are just stacked away cuz i wasn’t sure about running them thru my washer. didn’t want to risk a costly clog….plus i don’t have a dryer & i sort of figured i may need the help of the dryer to further remove left over hair. glad to see i’m not the only one flipping over the cloth….

  11. hey, this is great timing. having this issue precisely and would love to try your solution. do you have dimensions for the shammy / link to purchase online?

  14. No the shammy is not a microfiber cloth. It is very similar to a sponge but not a sponge either. I do not know what they are except that they are not microfiber. lol

  15. I hated mopping until I got the Swiffer and quickly decided that cutting up old towels (have many) into Swiffer sizes allows me to dry or wet mop as you described with the option to toss in the laundry to reuse or the trash. I like that the rough towels are still good for scrubbing spots off the floor or walls. Loving your tidbits!

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