Helpful Hints

DEAR READERS: Winter is a good time to clean out stuff that we all have. Here are a few Heloise hints to jettison junk. My "two minutes or 120 seconds" plan is all it takes. Every day, focus on one task for two-minute intervals of time. Keep going if you are "on a roll," but just get started!

Bathroom: Change out towels or wipe the toilet tank. Clean a mirror or counter.

Living room: Pick up and straighten pillows. Dust end tables or coffee tables.

Kitchen: Clear a counter. Add items to the dishwasher. Clean off switch plates. Or select one shelf in the fridge to clean out.

Readers, what is your quick method of cleaning?

DEAR READERS: Linda in Pennsylvania sent us a picture of her beagle, Charley, hiding under a blanket. Charley is wearing the "cone of shame" after some recent surgery. No worries; he is just fine!

DEAR HELOISE: I have read many times a reader's difficulty in getting rid of wine or red-sauce stains. My mom's method is very simple: Just pour boiling water over the stain, and in seconds it will be gone. Don't do any pretreatment! It must be poured slowly and directly on the stain. (I have not tried this on silk.)

-- Terry in Alabama

DEAR READERS: Terry, this is an old, old, old hint from way back. It was suggested to stretch the stained area over a bowl, then pour boiling water through the material. It does work on some stains, but on others it may not.

DEAR HELOISE: In a recent column, you mentioned how to deal with sour-smelling towels. Your hint referred to adding baking soda (Heloise here: add a cup of baking soda to the rinse cycle). How do you do this for front-loading machines?

-- A Reader, Bozeman, Mont.

DEAR READER: A simple solution. Wash towels as you normally do. When the cycle is done, put 1 cup of baking soda in the machine and run it one more time, only on rinse. Baking soda is a wonderful freshener and cleaner, and it's cheap! Baking soda makes a quick, safe and handy tooth polish on a damp toothbrush. Brush, rinse and you'll have fresh breath.

DEAR HELOISE: Last winter, I found some pliers that were rusted shut so bad you couldn't hammer them open. I put them in a bath of vinegar for several days, and they finally loosened up. Now, they work like a new pair!

-- Shirley in Oklahoma

Send a money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, Texas 78279-5000; fax to (210) 435-6473; or email

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HomeStyle on 01/31/2015

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