Household Tips - Day 4

Happy Thursday!  How the heck are ya?  Things are good here - just ready for another wonderful weekend.  Yeah, I know, it's only Thursday, but still... I can dream right?! :o)  Anyway... today we are going to learn about some of the many uses of Salt! :o)  I hope you find some of these useful and again, if you have any other tips to pass along, please feel free to do so! 

SALT

1.  Prevent fruits from browning - Drop your apples, pears, etc. in lightly salted water to help them keep their color.

2.  Remove Odors from hands - Rub your fingers with a salt and vinegar combo to remove bad odors like garlic and onion.

3.  Exfoliating Massage - After bathing and while you are still wet - give yourself a massage with dry salt.  It freshens skin and boosts circulation.

4.  Deter Ants - Sprinkle salt at doorways, window sills and anywhere else ants sneak into your house.  Ants don't like to walk on salt.  

5.  Kill Poison Ivy - Mix three pounds of salt with a gallon of soapy water (use a gentle dish soap) and apply to leaves and stems with a sprayer, avoiding any plant life that you want to keep.  

6.  Tame a wild barbecue - Toss a bit of salt on flames from food dripping in barbecue grills to reduce the flames and calm the smoke without cooling the coals (like water does).

7.  Shell nuts more easily - Soak pecans and walnuts in salt water for several hours before shelling to make it easier to remove the meat.   


8.  Repair Walls - To fill nail holes, fix chips or other small dings in white sheet-rock or plaster walls, mix 2 tablespoons salt and 2 tablespoons cornstarch, then add enough water (about 5 teaspoons) to make a thick paste.  Use the paste to fill the holes.

9.  Clean a glass coffee pot - Add salt and ice cubes to a coffee pot, swirl around vigorously, and rinse.  The salt will scour the bottom and the ice will help to agitate it for a better scrub.  (This is one of my absolute favs!)


10.  Basic Soft Scrub - Make a paste with lots of salt, baking soda and dish soap. Safe to use on appliances, enamel, porcelain, etc.  (This is my next one to try)

Well I hope that you are getting some good use out of these tips.  Some of them I have used for years and others I am just learning myself.  

Have a great day my friends and thanks for stopping by to say hello!  Stay tuned for tomorrow - where I will give you some ideas to pamper yourself with!  Tomorrow is Friday and the weekend - WOOT! WOOT!! :o)

Lots of love and hugs,

Household Tips - Day 4

Happy Thursday!  How the heck are ya?  Things are good here - just ready for another wonderful weekend.  Yeah, I know, it's only Thursday, but still... I can dream right?! :o)  Anyway... today we are going to learn about some of the many uses of Salt! :o)  I hope you find some of these useful and again, if you have any other tips to pass along, please feel free to do so! 

SALT

1.  Prevent fruits from browning - Drop your apples, pears, etc. in lightly salted water to help them keep their color.

2.  Remove Odors from hands - Rub your fingers with a salt and vinegar combo to remove bad odors like garlic and onion.

3.  Exfoliating Massage - After bathing and while you are still wet - give yourself a massage with dry salt.  It freshens skin and boosts circulation.

4.  Deter Ants - Sprinkle salt at doorways, window sills and anywhere else ants sneak into your house.  Ants don't like to walk on salt.  

5.  Kill Poison Ivy - Mix three pounds of salt with a gallon of soapy water (use a gentle dish soap) and apply to leaves and stems with a sprayer, avoiding any plant life that you want to keep.  

6.  Tame a wild barbecue - Toss a bit of salt on flames from food dripping in barbecue grills to reduce the flames and calm the smoke without cooling the coals (like water does).

7.  Shell nuts more easily - Soak pecans and walnuts in salt water for several hours before shelling to make it easier to remove the meat.   


8.  Repair Walls - To fill nail holes, fix chips or other small dings in white sheet-rock or plaster walls, mix 2 tablespoons salt and 2 tablespoons cornstarch, then add enough water (about 5 teaspoons) to make a thick paste.  Use the paste to fill the holes.

9.  Clean a glass coffee pot - Add salt and ice cubes to a coffee pot, swirl around vigorously, and rinse.  The salt will scour the bottom and the ice will help to agitate it for a better scrub.  (This is one of my absolute favs!)


10.  Basic Soft Scrub - Make a paste with lots of salt, baking soda and dish soap. Safe to use on appliances, enamel, porcelain, etc.  (This is my next one to try)

Well I hope that you are getting some good use out of these tips.  Some of them I have used for years and others I am just learning myself.  

Have a great day my friends and thanks for stopping by to say hello!  Stay tuned for tomorrow - where I will give you some ideas to pamper yourself with!  Tomorrow is Friday and the weekend - WOOT! WOOT!! :o)

Lots of love and hugs,

Household Tips - Day 3

Happy Hump Day my friends! Hope you are all having a great week so far.  As promised, we are onto day 3 of the household hints I wanted to pass along and share with you.  I hope that you are getting use out of the ideas so far.  We have already had Baking Soda and Toothpaste and today we are on:

VINEGAR:

1.  To Remove Fruit Juice and Berry Stains - blot and dilute the stain, then apply straight white vinegar and then rinse with warm water.

2.  Stemware - If your stemware is cloudy from the dishwasher, wrap the glasses in paper towels soaked in vinegar, let them sit, and the cloudy deposits will rinse right off.

3.  Tile Grout - There's no need to use bleach when you can let vinegar soak on it and then scrub with a toothbrush - Easy Peasey! :o)

4.  Shirts - Spray vinegar onto deodorant-stained shirts before the wash to remove the discoloration.  Spray vinegar directly on mustard, tomato sauce or ketchup stains to get rid of the stain before laundering.

5.  Wash Cycle - Add a cupful of vinegar to the rinse cycle of your washing machine to freshen up bright colors and give you cleaner laundry.  Vinegar also acts as a fabric softener, static reducer and mildew-inhibitor.

6.  Chewing Gum - Vinegar will loosen chewing gum that is stuck in car upholstery, rugs or carpeting.

7.  Car Windows - Wiping down your car windows and windshield with a 3 to 1 vinegar-water mixture can keep them frost-free in the wintertime. - This is a great tip that I plan to try this summer and hope it works!  Let me know if you've used this before and if it works or not.

8.  Weeds and Crabgrass - Kill weeds and crabgrass that is growing in your sidewalk cracks and driveway cracks by pouring vinegar directly onto them.  A half and half solution of vinegar and water can kill garden slugs if you spray directly onto them.

9.  Flowers - To extend the life of fresh cut flowers, add a few tablespoons of vinegar to the water in your vase along with a teaspoon of sugar.

10.  Restore Shine to your hair - Vinegar works to restore luster by removing build up from other hair products. It leaves hair smooth and silky and is said by many to remove tangles. Depending on your hair type, you may want to use it once weekly, or as often as three times weekly. It may cause minimal dryness to hair, so some people like to condition first, then use a vinegar rinse. To make a vinegar rinse, add 1 cup vinegar to 2 cups warm water, add a a drop of essential oil if you like, and work into hair.

There you go!  Easy stuff.  Of course, there is a lot more uses for Vinegar like cleaning, etc. but I can't put them all in this one post so.... :o)  I really like the use of vinegar for my hair - it really makes a big difference in the shine of it.  

Well... I hope you have a wonderful day today and thanks for stopping by to say hello.  Be sure to stop by tomorrow for more household hints! :o) 

Lots of love and hugs,

Household Tips - Day 3

Happy Hump Day my friends! Hope you are all having a great week so far.  As promised, we are onto day 3 of the household hints I wanted to pass along and share with you.  I hope that you are getting use out of the ideas so far.  We have already had Baking Soda and Toothpaste and today we are on:

VINEGAR:

1.  To Remove Fruit Juice and Berry Stains - blot and dilute the stain, then apply straight white vinegar and then rinse with warm water.

2.  Stemware - If your stemware is cloudy from the dishwasher, wrap the glasses in paper towels soaked in vinegar, let them sit, and the cloudy deposits will rinse right off.

3.  Tile Grout - There's no need to use bleach when you can let vinegar soak on it and then scrub with a toothbrush - Easy Peasey! :o)

4.  Shirts - Spray vinegar onto deodorant-stained shirts before the wash to remove the discoloration.  Spray vinegar directly on mustard, tomato sauce or ketchup stains to get rid of the stain before laundering.

5.  Wash Cycle - Add a cupful of vinegar to the rinse cycle of your washing machine to freshen up bright colors and give you cleaner laundry.  Vinegar also acts as a fabric softener, static reducer and mildew-inhibitor.

6.  Chewing Gum - Vinegar will loosen chewing gum that is stuck in car upholstery, rugs or carpeting.

7.  Car Windows - Wiping down your car windows and windshield with a 3 to 1 vinegar-water mixture can keep them frost-free in the wintertime. - This is a great tip that I plan to try this summer and hope it works!  Let me know if you've used this before and if it works or not.

8.  Weeds and Crabgrass - Kill weeds and crabgrass that is growing in your sidewalk cracks and driveway cracks by pouring vinegar directly onto them.  A half and half solution of vinegar and water can kill garden slugs if you spray directly onto them.

9.  Flowers - To extend the life of fresh cut flowers, add a few tablespoons of vinegar to the water in your vase along with a teaspoon of sugar.

10.  Restore Shine to your hair - Vinegar works to restore luster by removing build up from other hair products. It leaves hair smooth and silky and is said by many to remove tangles. Depending on your hair type, you may want to use it once weekly, or as often as three times weekly. It may cause minimal dryness to hair, so some people like to condition first, then use a vinegar rinse. To make a vinegar rinse, add 1 cup vinegar to 2 cups warm water, add a a drop of essential oil if you like, and work into hair.

There you go!  Easy stuff.  Of course, there is a lot more uses for Vinegar like cleaning, etc. but I can't put them all in this one post so.... :o)  I really like the use of vinegar for my hair - it really makes a big difference in the shine of it.  

Well... I hope you have a wonderful day today and thanks for stopping by to say hello.  Be sure to stop by tomorrow for more household hints! :o) 

Lots of love and hugs,

Household Tips - Day 2

Happy Tuesday my friends! How are you?  How was your Monday?  Great, I hope!  Mine was good, but very very slow.  So... all this week, I am going to pass on to you some wonderful household tips I found and use quite often.  Some of these are tried and true and others I've not used at all but am collecting the ingredients to try out soon.  I hope that these will be useful for you as well.

BAKING SODA

Baking Soda is one of my most FAVORITE household items to use for cleaning among other things.    One of the best things about it is that it is very inexpensive! :o)  Here are just a few things you can do with Baking Soda:

Treat Insect Bites and Itchy Skin - Make a paste out of baking soda and water and apply as a salve onto the affected area.  To ease the itch, shake some baking soda into your hadn and rub it into damp skin after your bath or shower. 

Help Your Hair - Sprinkle a small amount of baking soda into your hand along with your favorite shampoo.  Shampoo as usual and rinse thoroughly.  Baking soda helps remove the residue that styling products leave behind on your hair.  Your hair will be cleaner and more manageable.

Clean Brushes and Combs - Remove natural oil build-up and hair product residue by soaking combs and brushes in a solution of 1 teaspoon of baking soda in a small basin of warm water.  Rinse and allow to dry.  

Make a Surface Soft Scrub - For effective cleaning of bathroom tubs, tile and sinks including fiberglass and glossy tiles - sprinkle baking soda lightly on a clean damp sponge and scrub as usua.  Rinse and wipe dry.  

Polish Silver Flatware - Use 3 parts baking soda to 1 part water.  Rub onto the silver with a clean cloth or sponge.  Rinse and dry for shining sterling and silver-plate serving pieces.

Boost Your Liquid Laundry Detergent - Add 1/2 cup of baking soda to your laundry to make your liquid detergent work harder.  A better balance of pH in the wash helps get your clothes cleaner, fresher and brighter.  (I use this all of the time and can tell a big difference)

Extinguish Fires - For small cooking fires (frying pans, broilers, ovens and grills) turn off the gas or electricity if you can safely do so.  Stand back and throw handfuls of baking soda at the base of the flame to help put out the fire.  When baking soda is heated it gives off carbon dioxide, which helps to smother the flames.  NEVER EVER USE WATER ON KITCHEN FIRES!!  

Fruit and Vegetable Scrub - Sprinkle a little bit of baking soda on a clean damp sponge (or vegetable scrub brush if you have one) and scrub the vegetable and rinse clean.  

Soak Oral Appliances - This can be used for retainers, mouthpieces and even dentures.  Mix a solution of 2 teaspoons baking soda dissolved in a glass or small bowl of warm water.  You can also brush appliances clean using baking soda.  

Again, some of these are ones I've tried and some aren't, but they are all good ones to try either way. :o)  I hope you can get some good use out of these ideas like I have.  If you have any other ideas and uses for baking soda, feel free to pass them along - I can always use more tips!

Have a great day my friends and thanks for stopping by to say hi!

Lots of love and hugs,

Household Tips - Day 2

Happy Tuesday my friends! How are you?  How was your Monday?  Great, I hope!  Mine was good, but very very slow.  So... all this week, I am going to pass on to you some wonderful household tips I found and use quite often.  Some of these are tried and true and others I've not used at all but am collecting the ingredients to try out soon.  I hope that these will be useful for you as well.

BAKING SODA

Baking Soda is one of my most FAVORITE household items to use for cleaning among other things.    One of the best things about it is that it is very inexpensive! :o)  Here are just a few things you can do with Baking Soda:

Treat Insect Bites and Itchy Skin - Make a paste out of baking soda and water and apply as a salve onto the affected area.  To ease the itch, shake some baking soda into your hadn and rub it into damp skin after your bath or shower. 

Help Your Hair - Sprinkle a small amount of baking soda into your hand along with your favorite shampoo.  Shampoo as usual and rinse thoroughly.  Baking soda helps remove the residue that styling products leave behind on your hair.  Your hair will be cleaner and more manageable.

Clean Brushes and Combs - Remove natural oil build-up and hair product residue by soaking combs and brushes in a solution of 1 teaspoon of baking soda in a small basin of warm water.  Rinse and allow to dry.  

Make a Surface Soft Scrub - For effective cleaning of bathroom tubs, tile and sinks including fiberglass and glossy tiles - sprinkle baking soda lightly on a clean damp sponge and scrub as usua.  Rinse and wipe dry.  

Polish Silver Flatware - Use 3 parts baking soda to 1 part water.  Rub onto the silver with a clean cloth or sponge.  Rinse and dry for shining sterling and silver-plate serving pieces.

Boost Your Liquid Laundry Detergent - Add 1/2 cup of baking soda to your laundry to make your liquid detergent work harder.  A better balance of pH in the wash helps get your clothes cleaner, fresher and brighter.  (I use this all of the time and can tell a big difference)

Extinguish Fires - For small cooking fires (frying pans, broilers, ovens and grills) turn off the gas or electricity if you can safely do so.  Stand back and throw handfuls of baking soda at the base of the flame to help put out the fire.  When baking soda is heated it gives off carbon dioxide, which helps to smother the flames.  NEVER EVER USE WATER ON KITCHEN FIRES!!  

Fruit and Vegetable Scrub - Sprinkle a little bit of baking soda on a clean damp sponge (or vegetable scrub brush if you have one) and scrub the vegetable and rinse clean.  

Soak Oral Appliances - This can be used for retainers, mouthpieces and even dentures.  Mix a solution of 2 teaspoons baking soda dissolved in a glass or small bowl of warm water.  You can also brush appliances clean using baking soda.  

Again, some of these are ones I've tried and some aren't, but they are all good ones to try either way. :o)  I hope you can get some good use out of these ideas like I have.  If you have any other ideas and uses for baking soda, feel free to pass them along - I can always use more tips!

Have a great day my friends and thanks for stopping by to say hi!

Lots of love and hugs,

Household Tips - Day 1

Happy Monday, my friends! How was your weekend?  What fun things did you do?  We went to Connecticut on Saturday to pick up our daughter from her friend's house and then hubby and the kids worked in the yard of our rental property there for about 5 hours.  I pretty much ran a lot of errands while they did the hard labor.  Afterwards, we drove back to New Jersey, showered and went to dinner at Chevy's Mexican Restaurant.  It was great food as usual but slower than normal service.  On Sunday me and the kids slept in until 11:00 and then me and my daughter ran and did some shopping.  Afterwards we came home and I did laundry, cooked, cleaned, etc.  Just the normal weekend, right?! :o) 

Okay, so like I told you on Friday, I have came across some "Green", helpful and inexpensive household tips that I wanted to share with you.  If you already know and use these, then disregard this post.  Otherwise, I hope that they will come in handy for you as they've done for me already. 

USES FOR TOOTHPASTE (besides the obvious)

1.  Relieve irritation from bug bites, sores and blisters - Apply a drop of toothpaste to a bug bite or insect sting to stop the itching and decrease any swelling.  When applying to sores or blisters, it dries them up and allows the wound to heal faster.  It's best when used overnight.

2.  Soothe a stinging burn - Apply toothpaste delicately to the affected area immediately after a burn develops.  It will temporarily relieve the sting and prevent the wound from weeping or opening.

3.  Decrease the size of a facial blemish - Apply a tiny dot of toothpaste to the pimple at night before bed.  Wash it off in the morning.  This will speed up the healing.

4.  Clean up your fingernails - For cleaner, shinier, and stronger nails, simply scrub the underneath and tops of fingernails with a toothbrush and toothpaste. 

5.  Keep hair in place - If you are looking to style and hold an extreme hair creation, try gel toothpaste as your go-to product if you are out of regular hair gel.  The gel toothpaste contains the same water-soluble polymers that many hair gels are made of.

6.  Scrub away stinky smells - Scrubbing your hands and fingertips briefly with toothpaste removes all traces of smelly odors including Garlic, fish and onion.

7.  Remove stains - This works on clothes and carpets alike.  For clothes, apply toothpaste directly to the stain and rub briskly until the spot is gone then wash as usual.  (Please note - using a whitening toothpaste on colors will bleach the fabric).  For carpet stains - apply to the stain and scrub with an abrasive brush - then rinse immediately.

8.  Spruce up dirty shoes - This works great on running shoes or scuffed up leather shoes.  Apply toothpaste directly to the dirty or scuffed area, scrub with a brush and wipe clean.

9.  Make silver jewelry and other silver pieces sparkle - Rub the toothpaste onto jewelry and leave overnight.  Wipe clean with a soft cloth in the morning.  To make diamonds shine - give them a gentle scrub using a toothbrush, toothpaste and a little water.  Rinse to remove all traces of toothpaste.  Do NOT use on pearls - it will damage the finish.

10.  Remove scratches on DVDs and CDs - This works fairly well on shallow scratches and smudges.  Apply a thin coating of the toothpaste to the disc and rub gently.  Rinse clean.

11.  Remove the burned crust on irons - Rub the toothpaste on the burned area and wipe clean.  The silica in the toothpaste will gently grind away the rusty-looking layer.

12.  Burns - As soon as you burn yourself (flat iron, stove, etc.) - immediately find WHITE toothpaste and smooth it on the burn.  Let it dry and then rinse off later.  This works WONDERS! There will be NO scar and the burn will completely stop hurting.  I cannot tell you how many times I have used this trick due to burning myself on my flat iron or just getting burned in general.  I always keep a tube of the white toothpaste at my desk at work too just in case.  My mom taught me this trick many years ago and I've also taught it to my kids as well.  I promise this is one use for toothpaste that I tell everyone about! :o)

So... do you have any tips or tricks for toothpaste that isn't on the list?  I'd love to learn more uses for them if you do so please feel free to pass them along. 

Have a great Monday and thanks for stopping by to say hello.

Lots of love and hugs,

Household Tips - Day 1

Happy Monday, my friends! How was your weekend?  What fun things did you do?  We went to Connecticut on Saturday to pick up our daughter from her friend's house and then hubby and the kids worked in the yard of our rental property there for about 5 hours.  I pretty much ran a lot of errands while they did the hard labor.  Afterwards, we drove back to New Jersey, showered and went to dinner at Chevy's Mexican Restaurant.  It was great food as usual but slower than normal service.  On Sunday me and the kids slept in until 11:00 and then me and my daughter ran and did some shopping.  Afterwards we came home and I did laundry, cooked, cleaned, etc.  Just the normal weekend, right?! :o) 

Okay, so like I told you on Friday, I have came across some "Green", helpful and inexpensive household tips that I wanted to share with you.  If you already know and use these, then disregard this post.  Otherwise, I hope that they will come in handy for you as they've done for me already. 

USES FOR TOOTHPASTE (besides the obvious)

1.  Relieve irritation from bug bites, sores and blisters - Apply a drop of toothpaste to a bug bite or insect sting to stop the itching and decrease any swelling.  When applying to sores or blisters, it dries them up and allows the wound to heal faster.  It's best when used overnight.

2.  Soothe a stinging burn - Apply toothpaste delicately to the affected area immediately after a burn develops.  It will temporarily relieve the sting and prevent the wound from weeping or opening.

3.  Decrease the size of a facial blemish - Apply a tiny dot of toothpaste to the pimple at night before bed.  Wash it off in the morning.  This will speed up the healing.

4.  Clean up your fingernails - For cleaner, shinier, and stronger nails, simply scrub the underneath and tops of fingernails with a toothbrush and toothpaste. 

5.  Keep hair in place - If you are looking to style and hold an extreme hair creation, try gel toothpaste as your go-to product if you are out of regular hair gel.  The gel toothpaste contains the same water-soluble polymers that many hair gels are made of.

6.  Scrub away stinky smells - Scrubbing your hands and fingertips briefly with toothpaste removes all traces of smelly odors including Garlic, fish and onion.

7.  Remove stains - This works on clothes and carpets alike.  For clothes, apply toothpaste directly to the stain and rub briskly until the spot is gone then wash as usual.  (Please note - using a whitening toothpaste on colors will bleach the fabric).  For carpet stains - apply to the stain and scrub with an abrasive brush - then rinse immediately.

8.  Spruce up dirty shoes - This works great on running shoes or scuffed up leather shoes.  Apply toothpaste directly to the dirty or scuffed area, scrub with a brush and wipe clean.

9.  Make silver jewelry and other silver pieces sparkle - Rub the toothpaste onto jewelry and leave overnight.  Wipe clean with a soft cloth in the morning.  To make diamonds shine - give them a gentle scrub using a toothbrush, toothpaste and a little water.  Rinse to remove all traces of toothpaste.  Do NOT use on pearls - it will damage the finish.

10.  Remove scratches on DVDs and CDs - This works fairly well on shallow scratches and smudges.  Apply a thin coating of the toothpaste to the disc and rub gently.  Rinse clean.

11.  Remove the burned crust on irons - Rub the toothpaste on the burned area and wipe clean.  The silica in the toothpaste will gently grind away the rusty-looking layer.

12.  Burns - As soon as you burn yourself (flat iron, stove, etc.) - immediately find WHITE toothpaste and smooth it on the burn.  Let it dry and then rinse off later.  This works WONDERS! There will be NO scar and the burn will completely stop hurting.  I cannot tell you how many times I have used this trick due to burning myself on my flat iron or just getting burned in general.  I always keep a tube of the white toothpaste at my desk at work too just in case.  My mom taught me this trick many years ago and I've also taught it to my kids as well.  I promise this is one use for toothpaste that I tell everyone about! :o)

So... do you have any tips or tricks for toothpaste that isn't on the list?  I'd love to learn more uses for them if you do so please feel free to pass them along. 

Have a great Monday and thanks for stopping by to say hello.

Lots of love and hugs,