With the emphasis firmly on protecting our environment, it makes sense to look at the way you can re-use products in your home.

 

Clean hard-to-reach spots

Before you toss out that clumpy Maybelline, save the mascara wand and use it to whisk gunk out of tight spaces.

To clean the wand thoroughly, fill a small bowl with warm water and two to three drops of liquid detergent. Separate and soak the tube and wand in the soap-and-water solution for about 10 minutes. If the wand still has residue, apply a couple drops of soap directly onto the bristles and lather up. Rinse well, air-dry, and get down to the dirty work.

Now I'm not Martha Stewart but there are some areas I like to get clean. Here are some areas where a mascara wand works its magic best:

- Behind kitchen and bathroom taps
- Between the keys on a computer keyboard
- Along the edges of light-switch plates
- Inside sink and countertop seams

Whenever I get a touch of spring fever, I decide to start organising my closet. As I rummage, I wonder: How do I end up with so many pairs of nylon stockings with runs in them? And why do I keep them? The answer to the latter question is probably that in the back of my mind, I know I'll end up with a few ways to reuse them (after I wash them, of course).

True to my suspicions, those stockings have come in handy when I tackle cleaning projects, like combating cobwebs and dust bunnies all over the house, filtering olive and vegetable oil, and removing lumps from paint!

Away cobwebs and dust-bunnies!

Cut one of the legs off and slip it over a regular paint roller on an extension handle. Then, use it to reach those high spots that are so tricky, like ceilings and high mouldings where cobwebs like to hide. The paint roller covers contours to curves in the surface you're cleaning, and the clingy texture of the nylons grabs dust and cobwebs easily as it swipes past. When you're finished, you can peel the nylons off of the roller and toss it right in the garbage.

Pull the leg of a nylon stocking over a broom handle and you can clean easily under refrigerators and ranges without the need to pull those appliances away from the wall. This tool is is also great for reaching under and behind hard to move furniture, like beds, armoires, and sofas, grabbing dust bunnies, dust and dirt from those hard-to-reach spots.

Get rid of food particles

Cut the lower leg from a pair of nylons and stretch this over a suitable container. Now slowly pour the oil into the stocking filter, remember to go slowly to avoid filling up too fast, and your oil will be cleaned of all food particles so that you can use again.

No more lumps

Or use the same way to remove paint lumps. When you use a Bosch PFS spraying system you want a perfectly smooth finish but sometimes there are small lumps in paint that can easily clog up the paint gun or mar the surface of your project. By filtering the paint you get a perfect lump-free and smooth finish.

Spray away

When children go quiet it usually means that they are either sleeping - or up to something. And by something I mean drawing on walls or attacking mom's makeup bag.

Bet you didn't know that WD-40 removes pencil and crayon marks from walls - quickly and easily. If your walls are painted with a satin or sheen (not matt) all you need to do is spray a small amount of WD-40 on the marked spots and wipe clean with a paper towel. You can also use WD-40 to remove those stubborn stickers from newly bought items. Simply spray a small amount of WD-40 on the sticker, wipe with a paper towel and wash in dishwashing detergent.

 


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