Save money: Make your own sausage and sauces

Q. My husband has a great recipe for homemade sausage. Last time, he made it in corn husks, but he asked if I could ask where he might be able to find sausage tubes (or wrap, whatever it is called).

- Chrissy, Florida

A. Natural casings can be found at a butcher shop or meat department. You'll need a sausage stuffer, too. If you don't want natural casings, you can use plastic wrap or aluminum foil to form a tube for freezing the sausage. Visit www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/tips-techniques/how-to-grind-your-own-sausage-079778 for a sausage-making tutorial using plastic wrap.

Q. I've been using vinegar as a shower cleaner, and the smell about knocks us out. What can I do to it to make the smell less strong?

- Andrea, West Virginia

A. You can add essential oil, such as eucalyptus, lemon, lavender or peppermint, to it. You can combine lemon oil, peppermint oil or eucalyptus oil, dish liquid and water with vinegar, too. Use no more than 10 drops total of essential oils, a squirt of dish liquid and roughly 3-to-1 ratio of vinegar and water. Or simply add lemon juice to the vinegar. Place in a spray bottle, and shake before using.

Q. I need some help or ideas for a piggy bank. We want to make our own piggy bank for my 4-year-old son. My husband wants it to be a project they can both work on together, but we want to use recycled items and possibly some wood to make it fun and functional. The concept I have in mind is a bank that encourages spend, save, share or spend, save, donate and invest.

- Stacey, Missouri

A. You can use plastic pop bottles, coffee cans, peanut-butter jars, margarine tubs or oatmeal, Pringles, mixed nuts or coffee-creamer containers. There are tons of containers that can be reused. Most of these containers can be covered with Contac paper or construction paper. You can use three different-sized containers to represent each category of spend, save or share.

Q. I made a pork roast and roasted veggies. I usually just make stew out of the leftovers. But that's getting old. Any other ideas to use them?

- Vail, Washington

A. You can make lo mein, fried rice, stir-fry, BBQ pork or mushroom gravy and pork sandwiches, pork burritos or fajitas, quesadillas, potpie, pork croquettes, sweet-and-sour pork or make home fries and pork and serve at breakfast with eggs.

Here's a sweet-and-sour-sauce recipe from Constance in New Jersey.

In a small saucepan combine 6 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 4 tablespoons wine vinegar, ½

cup pineapple juice and 3 tablespoons ketchup; bring to a boil. In a small bowl, whisk ½

cup water and 2 tablespoons cornstarch; stir into sauce and cook 1 to 3 minutes until dark and thick.

• Sara Noel is the owner of Frugal Village (frugalvillage.com), a Web site that offers practical, money-saving strategies for everyday living. Send tips, comments or questions to Sara Noel, c/o United Media, 200 Madison Ave., 4th Floor, New York, NY 10016, or sara@frugalvillage.com.