caring for home:
Friend, occasionally I find one of life’s little secrets that quite literally change my life for the better. Oh, I’m not over here curing world hunger or balancing the budget, but in my tiny corner of the world, these little secrets make my life (and yours) so much simpler. The funny part is…I stumbled across these household tips accidentally. Who doesn’t love a happy accident? Come on, I’ll share my secrets with you right now!
Refrigerator baskets to organize
It’s no big secret that refrigerator storage and organization is paramount to a well-run kitchen. I didn’t really understand (or more likely, remember) until we moved this past April. Our family home had a double wide refrigerator with a freezer drawer. We also had a chest freezer in our basement. We had plenty of storage for our everyday items, left overs, plus room to host a large gathering (like Thanksgiving or Christmas.)
Our apartment refrigerator, however…that’s another story. Don’t misunderstand me. The refrigerator is amazing! It runs well, we have a side by size freezer. It’s just…well…small. It’s a normal fridge. We have three shelves and three drawers; a drawer we use for lunch meat and cheeses, and the other two hold produce and drinks.
I often find myself lacking room in that produce drawer. That’s why I decided to grab one of my plastic baskets from the garage and use it to hold my surplus veg. It’s a total game changer. It slides out like a drawer, I can see everything at a glance, and it’s washable…in the dishwasher! What????
I also use a clear container for our eggs, utilizing the bottom of the egg carton cut to size, to cushion the eggs. I can see at a glance how many eggs we have on hand and when it’s time to order more. We also use mini baskets inside our produce drawer to keep various items separated and organized.
Like Martha used to say: Refrigerator baskets…”It’s a good thing.”
Cooking oil to remove residue
Some household tips are better than others, right? Well, this one was a last-ditch effort, let me tell you! Do you ever come across a label residue that simply will not budge? That was the situation I found myself in. After soaking, scrubbing, and scraping, I was ready to throw in the towel…or at least throw away my glass jar.
Did you know that if you simply apply a liberal amount of cooking oil (or olive oil) to a label residue – on any hard surface – it will loosen the adhesive?
Here’s what you’ll need to do to try this tip: Cooking oil, paper towel or a disposable cloth, and a little elbow grease. Pour the oil onto the residue, begin rubbing with your fingertips or a soft cloth until the residue begins to loosen, then scrub until it is easily wiped away! That’s it. Here are the before and after shots.
Faucet sprayer to remove stains
I can’t take all the credit for this, and it is the last of my household tips. I saw a video of someone who used a pressure washer to remove ground in dirt from a baseball uniform. When I was faced with a few kitchen stains on my new white dishcloths (what on earth was I thinking in the first place?) I decided to give a similar method a try.
First things, first. When faced with a stubborn stain on dish cloths or dish towels, I always soak them in a skin full of warm water and one dish washer tablet. Dish washer tabs are formulated to break down food enzymes, so it stands to reason it would work on dish cloths too. Well, it does!
After soaking for approximately 30 minutes (or overnight), I empty out the water. Flattening the dish cloth out on the bottom of the sink, I use the faucet sprayer to ‘pressure wash’ the dish cloth to rinse out the soaking solution. It may take a couple of tries, or a longer soaking time, but nine times out of ten, this removes the stain. I’ve had it remove coffee stains, tea stains, tomato sauce, blackberry jam, and so many more.
I’ve made a little video for you. The quality isn’t amazing, but you’ll get the picture…
Give it a try. Let me know if it works for you!
