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    Another Use For . . .: 101 Common Household Items
    Another Use For . . .: 101 Common Household Items
    Another Use For . . .: 101 Common Household Items
    Ebook239 pages2 hours

    Another Use For . . .: 101 Common Household Items

    By Vicki Lansky and Martha Campbell

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    About this ebook

    ANOTHER USE FOR... has a 10 page index making it easier to find the solutions to household problems. Common household items are listed alphabetically, followed by five to ten additional and often surprising uses for that item. Beginning with ALCOHOL (to remove grass stains from clothing), ALUMINUM FOIL (to wrap doorknobs before painting to avoid drips), to WAX PAPER (to rub across closet rods for easy-sliding hangers.) You will be amazed at the ingenious ways you can use the ordinary things you have at home.
    Whimsical line drawings add a touch of humor to this clever compendium of handy suggestions for recycling, reusing or repositioning common items. Frugality is the watchword. This book should help throwaway habits and strike back at planned obsolescense.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBook Peddlers, The
    Release dateMay 1, 2012
    ISBN9781931863780
    Another Use For . . .: 101 Common Household Items

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      Book preview

      Another Use For . . . - Vicki Lansky

      ALCOHOL, RUBBING

      •Clean computer and cell phone keyboards and a computer mouse with a cotton swab or cloth dampened with just a bit of rubbing alcohol.

      •Clean paint brushes with alcohol, which will dissolve shellac and shellac-based primers.

      •Remove grass and dye stains with alcohol instead of spot remover. It is also effective on removing ink stains from ballpoint pens.

      •Clean a sanded surface with an alcohol-dampened rag before staining or applying a finish.

      •Use alcohol as a handy cleaner for the silicone caulking around bathroom tubs. It also shines chrome.

      •Wipe candles with rubbing alcohol to clean them.

      •To temporarily solve the problem of shoes being a bit tight, saturate a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol and rub it inside the shoes at the tight spot and stuff the shoe with newspaper while it dries.

      •Dilute alcohol with water and apply it to plants with cotton balls to kill aphids. Or fill a pump spray bottles and use it to control mealy bugs on African violets.

      •Dispense with fruit flies in your kitchen by fine-mist spraying them with alcohol. It is safter than using a poison around foods.

      •Dampen a soft cloth with alcohol and use it to remove hair spray build-up on a curling iron.

      •Use to remove sticky stuff like tree sap from your hands.

      •Fill a small, strong self-closing plastic bag with 1/2 water and 1/2 alcohol and store it in the freezer. It serves as an ice pack that will mold to the area that needs a cold compress as it will never freeze completely.

      •Apply rubbing alcohol to a tick you are trying to remove before pulling it out. It causes ticks to lose their ‘grip.’

      •Dry mosquito bites with an application of alcohol to help itch subside.

      •Fill a spray bottle with rubbing alcohol and spritz the frosted car glass windshield. You’ll be able to wipe the frost right off.

      •Saturate a hard-to-remove sticker with alcohol and it should come off easily.

      ALUMINUM FOIL

      •Cover cookie sheets with foil. They can be wiped with wet paper towels, dried and reused for continuous cookie baking. And at the end of the baking session, cleanup is a snap.

      •Wrap foil around doorknobs when painting, to avoid drips.

      •Brighten outdoor lighting in your yard or at a campsite by placing shiny, reflecting aluminum foil behind the lamp.

      •When rooting plants in water, place aluminum foil across the top of the glass and poke holes in it. Insert the cuttings. The foil will hold the cuttings securely and the water won’t evaporate as quickly as it would uncovered.

      •If you don’t want your dog on the furniture, put pieces of foil on it. The rustle of the foil frightens the dog.

      •Make a substitute funnel in a hurry by doubling aluminum foil and rolling it into a cone, reducing the small end to the required size.

      •Wrap the ear pieces of your eye glasses with foil when your hair is being colored to prevent the dye from staining them during waiting time.

      •Use aluminum foil as a good, impromptu placemat.

      •Polish the chrome on strollers, high chairs and playpens with a piece of wadded-up foil. This works especially well on older items that have begun to look dingy.

      •If you use a color on gray hair but like a light streak or more of grey, wind up those strands in aluminum foil you don’t want darkened. Apply the color, according to the directions to your hair. Remove the foil when the time is done, wash according to directions and you’ll have your own natural light streak(s).

      •Wrap heavy-duty foil around a panel of insulation board and tuck it behind radiators and baseboard heaters to reflect heat into the room.

      •Remove rust spots from car bumpers by rubbing with crumpled foil dipped in cola.

      •Line the fireplace with foil, bringing it up the sides 4 or 5 inches. When ready to clean up after the fire is out, just fold up the foil and toss it in the trash. No mess.

      •Wrap kitchen matches in foil to keep them dry on fishing, camping and other outdoor trips.

      •Enjoy a cold drink outdoors by covering your glass tightly with a piece of aluminum foil and sticking a straw through it to keep insects out.

      •For winter protection, cover the vents on your air conditioner with aluminum foil.

      •Put a piece of aluminum foil under the ironing board cover to reflect and make ironing go faster. Or, if you’re afraid of scorching a fabric, place it between two pieces of foil and iron.

      •Crumple aluminum foil into a ball to make a good pot scrubber, especially when camping, or to make an inexpensive cat toy.

      •When applying an iron-on patch, put a piece of aluminum foil under the hole in the garment so that the patch won’t stick to the ironing board.

      •To save cleanup time on a paint job (oil or latex) that will take several days, wrap brushes in foil and pop them in the freezer. Defrost for about an hour before getting back to work. Also save cleanup time by lining your paint roller pan with aluminum foil. Keep skin from forming on the surface of the paint in the can by placing a circle of foil directly on the paint. Lastly, mix paints on a piece of foil for a disposable palette.

      •To prevent staining a carpet when shampooing, place small squares of aluminum foil under the feet of furniture that cannot be moved.

      AMMONIA

      •Treat ammonia cautiously but it can be great for eliminating stains and tarnish when other cleaners have failed.

      •To keep dogs from getting into garbage cans, soak a rag or an old sock with full-strength ammonia and tie it to the handle of the lid.

      •Stop mildew with ammonia. It works like bleach without causing decoloration.

      •Get scorched spots off pot bottoms with ammonia.

      •Wash away baked-on grease by first soaking the oven shelves overnight in ammonia. Pour the ammonia into a large, heavy-duty plastic bag, insert the shelves and seal the bag.

      •A good solution to clean combs, brushes and jewelry can be made with equal parts ammonia and water. On windows use 1/2 cup of ammonia per quart of water, plus 2 tablespoons white vinegar. For laundry use 1 cup of ammonia per load with half of the usual amount of detergent. On carpets and upholstery use 1 cup of ammonia per 1/2 gallon of warm water (clear ammonia only).

      •Clean the oven itself just as easily, if it is neither self-cleaning nor automatic-cleaning(but not for ovens with a gas pilot light). Warm the oven, turn it off, then set a small bowl of ammonia in the closed oven overnight. Wipe off oven walls and floor the next day. Air out oven and rinse clean with a cloth or sponge.

      •Make crystal sparkle by letting glassware soak in a solution of 2 cups of water with ½ cup ammonia added. Rinse clean and dry with a soft cloth.

      •Equal parts of ammonia and turpentine will take the paint spots out of clothing, no matter how long the paint has been dry. Saturate the spot several times then wash with warm soap suds.

      •Clean golf balls by soaking them in 1 cup of water to which 1/4 cup of ammonia has been added.

      •Mix a small amount of ammonia with water to make a fertilizer for plants that prefer alkaline environments, including lilacs.

      BABY FOOD JARS

      •Use as small pots to grow herbs on a windowsill.

      •Put prepared gelatin in empty baby food jars and freeze. Pack frozen gelatin in your child’s lunch box and when lunchtime arrives, the gelatin will be defrosted and ready to eat.

      •Make a first drinking cup out of a baby food jar. Replace cap after you’ve cleaned and refilled the jar and punch a small hole in the top of it near the edge. Let baby drink away.

      •Use clean jars as take-along containers for Cheerios, raisins or other small snack items.

      •Use as small pots to grow herbs on a windowsill.

      •Pack clay inside the lid of a jar. Arrange dried flowers in the clay and screw the bottle, upside down, over the arrangement.

      •Store nails or screws in baby food jars. Just nail the caps to a wood base and screw the jars into place.

      •Buy garlic in bulk, peel the cloves and put them in baby food jars in the freezer. They keep indefinitely.

      •Fill one full with heavy whipping cream and put lid on securely. Now let kids shake the bottle until it becomes a thick cream. Refrigerate and later serve over fruit or dessert.

      •Store excess garden seeds from year to year. Be sure to add a label, preferably with a picture of the flower.

      •Place a small candle in a baby food jar and put it in a brown bag to use as a luminary It eliminates or minimizes the need for sand.

      •Paint the jar with craft glue and roll in sparkles to make an attractive votive candle holder.

      •Fill with colored sand. Paint the lid and screw it on when dry. It makes an attractive paperweight.

      •Use baby food jar tops to make large-scale checker sets for kids. Paint them black and red and make a board out of construction paper. (They are easy to replace when lost!)

      •Use a large collection of the jar tops as a safe and fun toy collection for a one year old. Store them in a plastic container. Babies love to dump them out and pick the lids up and put them back in the container.

      BABY OIL

      •Try baby oil to remove oil based paints from the skin.

      •Use baby oil as another remedy for getting gum out of children’s hair.

      •Rub baby oil gently into white rings and spots on wood. It may remove them.

      •Blend a tablespoon of baby oil with 1/4 cup milk and add it to bath water to make skin feeling soft and smooth.

      •Use baby oil as a gentle make-up remover. Pat it on with your fingertips, leave for 5 minutes and remove with cotton balls.

      •Rub lashes with it to condition them, or for added shine instead of mascara.

      •Use baby oil as

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