Hang paper towels the easy way at your outdoor events this summer. When you’re manning the BBQ, or watching a bunch of kids at a pool party, you don’t have time to trek back to the kitchen to grab a paper towel every time you need one. Try this: cut the […]
This DIY stain treatment is easy to make and gentle on your baby’s clothes. You don’t want to use harsh chemicals on your child’s clothing and, let’s face it, babies are expert at making their own stains (spit-up being their specialty). Mix up your own pre-wash treatment with equal parts […]
A DIY flea bath is easy to make and you’ve probably got everything you need in your kitchen. When Fido or Kitty comes home with fleas, you’ve got to act fast. Mix together these three ingredients: 1 cup Dawn + 1 cup vinegar + 1 quart of warm water. Massage the […]
Store hair tools the easy way when you travel–whether on a long-distance flight or a short-distance drive home from the gym. Use a clean pot holder to tuck away your curling iron, crimper or flat iron. The pot holder’s padding will protect your tools, and its heat resistance will come […]
Iron away deep indentations in your carpet. Furniture can leave deep indents in carpeting, but there’s no need to replace it or even to spring for a steam cleaning. You can create your own mini steam cleaner with an iron. Cover the indentation with a clean, damp towel. Set your iron […]
Portion snacks before you indulge yourself so you’ll never have to say, “I can’t believe I ate that whole bag of cookies!” It’s easy to keep reaching into a bag of chips or a package of chocolate chip cookies until there’s nothing left. And then you feel bad. Enjoy your snacks […]
Get emojis the simple way on your laptop or desktop–whether you use a Mac or PC. From the folks at Pocket-Lint.com, here are the shortcuts you need: “For Mac: Press control+command+spacebar to get the emoji menu. For PC: Windows 7 users can paste emoji from getemoji.com, while Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 users […]
Cook pasta with less water and less mess. Most packaged pasta advises you to boil something like six quarts of water before adding the dry pasta. Then, once the pasta is cooked, you end up pouring all that water down the drain (and sometimes getting burned by the steam while […]
Untangle doll hair without pulling your own hair out. Barbie, Skipper and even baby dolls come with long hair that looks shiny and pretty at first, but can turn into a complete mess after a night in the toy box. Mix fabric softener and water in equal parts, and put […]
A rubber band is all you need to fix a French manicure in a jiffy! Grab a thick band from your office supply drawer, and wrap it around your nail, leaving the tip exposed. Now you can remove polish, re-apply, and even add a top-coat–without affecting the main part of […]
Bobby pins are a long-time beauty staple: helping to create hair styles from retro pin-up pin curls to modern “dos.” These little helpers have been around since the 1920s and have evolved to include mini-bobbies, camo bobbies and even Hello Kitty bobbies. Yet still there hasn’t been a good way to carry them […]
Decorate cookies at the holidays–or any time of year–without the hassle of special tools. (Yes, there are special tools for this task, but you can do it for a fraction of the cost!) Decorating cookies and cakes adds some cheer to dessert–and it’s a fun way to keep the kids busy. […]
Prevent luggage leaks of shampoo, suntan lotion, or anything else that can leak onto the contents of your suitcase and get your vacation off to a soggy start. If you’ve ever opened up your luggage and found a mess of lotion or soap (and no dry clothes), this hack is just what […]
A soda bottle sprinkler is super easy to make–you can make it with your kids or on your own, simply to stoke your childhood memories. Start with an empty 2-liter soda bottle, which will be the basis of the soda bottle sprinkler. The neck of the bottle is just about the right […]
Mustard helps heal minor burns by reducing inflammation, which means less pain and a quicker healing process… Did you forget to grab a pot holder when you were checking to see if your casserole was hot? And it was hot! For a minor burn (that is, the type that smarts but doesn’t blister), dab a […]
Free insurance is a great travel perk! But did you know that you don’t have to save up tens of thousands of travel miles to get it? Many credit card companies offer free travel insurance when you rent a car with one of their credit cards. It is not just […]
Penny pie weights are an old-school hack for an all-time favorite: pie. If you’ve ever tried to make a pie crust from scratch, it may have turned out a bit differently than you’d planned. Without using pie weights when you bake the crust, it can turn into something that looks […]
Unstick a difficult zipper with one of three secret style hacks. You can use crayon wax, Vaseline, or even the tip of a graphite pencil along the zipper to loosen it up. Just pull the zipper taut, and add your substance of choice (or convenience) along the zipper’s “teeth.” Then–holding […]
Candy canes are delightful at the holidays–you can hang them on the Christmas tree, use them to decorate garland, make place cards, and of course, eat them! For the kiddies enjoying hot cocoa, and for the grownups sipping on some eggnog, try using them as candy-coated stir sticks. Just melt chocolate (in […]
Estimate remaining daylight without a cell phone, chart, or even a watch! When you’re camping or hiking and need to know if it’s time to set up your campsite for the night, you can do it with your fingers. Hold your hands in front of you, fingers closed and parallel […]
