SWB from another forum had the simple but effective answer..."World's cheapest hand-held stabilizer: put the camera strap around your neck and hold out your arms until the strap goes taut. I shot plenty of silky smooth D90 footage with this technique."

Sounds simple but the difference is night and day.

Nearly as cheap: Take a 1/4"-20 threaded eye bolt + a matching wing nut + a piece of string, say 6 or 7 feet long. Total cost @ Home dept: $0.42. Put wing nut on bolt, tie one end of the string to bolt eye. Keep the whole thing in in your pocket when not using it.

To use: Screw bolt into tripod socket, tighten with wing nut. Raise camera to shooting height, step on string to keep it taut. Pull UP on the camera to stabilize....

Variant: the neck strap around the neck and a Magic Arm under the cam, pressed on the waist. Rock steady.