Our New Blog

Lord of the Rings-Remove white water ring from wood by turning on the heat: Cover the stains with a cotton cloth, and press with a dry iron (don't use steam!).  It may take a minute or two, but the watermarks should disappear.

Dust buster-Before emptying a bagless vacuum cleaner, suck up a strip of used dryer sheet and let it swil around for a few seconds.  The sheet combats static and prevents dust from sticking to the canister.

Brush off-Keep the rim of your paint can clean while applying a fesh coat: Stretch a large, wide rubber band across the opening, then use it to wipe excess paint from your brush.

Rock and Bowl-Remove stubborn toilet rings by scrubbing them with a pumice stone-the abrasive rocks gets rid of stains without damaging the porcelain.

Spot treatment-Before you toss stained clothing in the hamper, loosely tie the arms or legs together.  On laundary day the knot will remind you to pretreat or soak the spot.

Crafter's Cure-Got a splinter? Before you start poking around with tweezers, try removing it with white glue.  Spread the sticky stuff over the injury, let it dry, then peel it off to pull the splinter out.

Separation Anxiety-If a pair of stacking glasses stick together, full the inner one with ice water and dip the outer glass in hot water.  The cold vessel will contract, and the warm one will expand, allowing them to separate. 

Collection Agent-If your soup, sauce, or casserole seems high on the fat factor, drop and ice cube in the pot.  The ice will attract the grease, making it easy to scoop out with a spoon.

Keeping stock-Avoid running out of kitchen staples like pasta and butter by adding them to a running gorcery list as soon as you open the last box.  The trick works for cleaning supplies, too.

Eggs-it Strategy-Determine the freshness of an egg-regardless of its expiration date-with this simple test: Place the egg in a bowl of water and see if it floats.  If the egg lies on it side at the bottom, it's fresh; if it stands upright on the botton, its fine but should be eaten soon or hardboiled.  If it floats, send it to the compost pile.