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Thread: Helpful Hints ... add yours!

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  1. #1
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    Helpful Hints ... add yours!

    Sometimes there are things one thinks are common knowledge, but are not! Yesterday evening, I discovered one I though "everybody" knew no one else did but me! We were at a fellow choir member's house, and the pastor got pine pitch on his hat, didn't realize it, went to wipe it off, thinking it was bird poop, and ended up with his fingers stuck together no matter how much soap and water he tried. He was wearing yellow rubber gloves to drive home so he didn't get stuck to his steering wheel, when I told him, "when you get home, use vegetable oil, the pitch will come right off.

    At church this morning he wiggled his clean hands at me, delighted that it worked. Said, in surprise, "It was great, came right off! How did you know that?" I explained my parent's house has two big pine trees, and as a kid, I also would pick up pine cones wherever I went because I think they are neat! So my grandmother, my mother - everyone knew veggie oil of any sort was the key for removal!

    Pine pitch removal: vegetable oil of any kind

    And skunk smell remedy - Listerene - soak the dog, cat, object in Listerene for 5 minutes, then wash with normal soap, and it's gone!

    What similar remedies do you know for everyday problems? Let's make this a resource thread!
    I've Been Frosted

  2. #2
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    To sharpen scissors - use a piece of aluminum foil about the length of the blade; fold it in half. Cut into the foil in 4 or 5 places. Done!

    Recycle the foil if you can.
    "Do or do not. There is no try." -- Yoda

  3. #3
    Pine pitch removal: vegetable oil of any kind
    Hmmm, I think that may be what Jake and Layla get in their fur now and then. They seem to have it in their fur after being under my trees. One is a blue spruce, the other a pine. I thought it was birdy do do and their fur is stuck together. I've even had to cut it out a few times! Will have to remember this.
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  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by chocolatepuppy View Post
    Hmmm, I think that may be what Jake and Layla get in their fur now and then. They seem to have it in their fur after being under my trees. One is a blue spruce, the other a pine. I thought it was birdy do do and their fur is stuck together. I've even had to cut it out a few times! Will have to remember this.
    Yup - bird poop will break up once it's dry, but pine (or spruce - any evergreen) pitch is sticky forever!
    I've Been Frosted

  5. #5
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    Karen will this also help if you get sap on your car? I sometimes get this on my car and it's so hard to get it off.

    One thing that I thought that everyone knew is that if someone was just using the bathroom and they left a stinky or gasy smell then all you have to do is to light a match and this will get rid of the gas in the bathroom. My mom had to do this a lot whenever my dad used the bathroom before her.

  6. #6
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    My sister showed me this ... if you want to cut meat into pieces for cooking (as for a stir fry), freeze it for about half an hour before you are ready to prep; and that will make it easier to cut.
    Praying for peace in the Middle East, Ukraine, and around the world.

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  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz View Post
    Karen will this also help if you get sap on your car? I sometimes get this on my car and it's so hard to get it off.

    One thing that I thought that everyone knew is that if someone was just using the bathroom and they left a stinky or gasy smell then all you have to do is to light a match and this will get rid of the gas in the bathroom. My mom had to do this a lot whenever my dad used the bathroom before her.
    It should, give it a try!
    I've Been Frosted

  8. #8
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    Great tip on cleaning your washing machine

    I couldn't find the thread about handy-dandy tips, so I am posting this anew.

    http://ca.shine.yahoo.com/blogs/at-h...181200212.html

    Somewhere along the way, I failed to pick up on the fact that cleaning your washing machine should be done with some regularity - not, like, never. I figured that the soap in the detergents kept it squeaky clean, and why wouldn't anyone? Oops. The thing is, soap residue and minerals in commonly used detergents are apt to build up in the washing machine, and over time, you might notice that your clothes just don't seem to get as clean as they used to. My washer had just started to feel icky. And here I was just thinking that maybe I had been cramming too many garments in the same load and not letting the rinse cycle perform as efficiently.


    I searched around and found about as many different approaches for cleaning a top-loading washer, but one tutorial, a two-step approach, seemed easy, inexpensive and do-able.


    Getting your laundry back on track starts with just two items:

    • 1 quart of bleach (many tutorials went without the bleach step, if you're concerned about using harsh agents in your laundry)
    • 1 quart of white vinegar

    Fill the empty washer with hot water, as if you're doing a large load of laundry. Add the quart of bleach, and let the full machine run for one minute to mix up the bleach with the water. Open the top of the machine and let it sit, all bleach-y and full, for an hour. At the end of the hour, shut the cover and let the machine run a complete cycle.
    When it's done, start again. This time, when you fill the washer with hot water, add the quart of white vinegar to the water and down the bleach channel and let the machine run for a minute to agitate the water and vinegar. After that minute, open the top of the machine and again, let the hot water sit in the basin for an hour before you let the cycle complete.

    Not only did the process make the basement smell so fresh, but I noticed a big difference in how the inside of the basin felt. Smooth and clean, like after you exfoliate your face, no longer rough to the touch with the hard water spots and soap build-ups. It also only took about 2 hours and less than $3.


    I've never had a front-loading machine, but there is a different way of cleaning those. (Check out the tutorial on homeguides.sfgate.com if necessary.) Now you've got laundry on the brain, don't you? Here's some more inspiration for your laundry...
    -By Emily Fazio for DIYNetwork.com
    I have a coin front-loader in the building here, so will check that out.
    "Do or do not. There is no try." -- Yoda

  9. #9
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    Candace, I added your post to this thread.
    I've Been Frosted

  10. #10
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    Thanks! Could this thread be stickied?
    "Do or do not. There is no try." -- Yoda

  11. #11
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    Re-use greeting cards - 18 ways

    "Do or do not. There is no try." -- Yoda

  12. #12
    Join Date
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    I did "Sticky" this thread, and unstuck the holiday card ones now that the season is mostly over.

    It is better to post the actual "18 surprising ways" than just a link, as websites may change over time, but text is text!
    I've Been Frosted

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