Tag Archives: stains

Removing a Cooking Oil Stain

Cooking oil can find its way into the strangest places. The most obvious place is clothing of course, but I recently had a run in with cooking oil on our playroom couch. A little imp got into the lazy susan where I keep all of our spices and oils for cooking and baking. He proceeded to open up a jar of olive oil, which inevitably spilled. With oily hands, he moved on to the couch. Yikes. I mentioned in an earlier blog that chalk can sometimes be used to help get out oily stains including cooking oil. Here are some … Continue reading →

Your Home: Got Any Questions?

If you have a question, tip, idea, or comment, please let us know. For now, I’ll share a question I was asked recently, and offer an answer that I hope will prove helpful. “My husband loves to barbecue. The only problem is that he is messy. Like the other day, when he touched the wall outside the back door with soot and barbecue sauce on his hands. I didn’t notice it right away since I don’t use that door but go in and out the front door the most since my car is parked in front. By the time I … Continue reading →

Laundry Turning you Inside Out?

It’s not difficult to get overwhelmed with laundry. It can pile up quickly, but that’s a different article. This one is actually about turning your clothing inside out when washing, drying, ironing, putting away, and storing it. Washing from the Inside Out Some clothing will last longer if washed inside out because printed designs or embroidery will be better protected. Printed items will have more protection in the dryer too, because color won’t touch hot surfaces directly. Turning shirts wrong side out while washing and drying helps keep them from collecting too much lint on the good side. Pants with … Continue reading →

Tips for Household Stains

Here are a few tips for getting rid of those dreaded household stains: Greasy Stains If you don’t happen to have a specialized grease remover on hand, you can use a few drops of grease cutting dish washing liquid. Wet the area, apply the dish detergent, and rub the soap into the stain well. Rinse and repeat as necessary. Allow the fabric to air dry and check to make sure the greasy spot is removed. Reapply if necessary then wash and dry as usual. For stationary items that cannot be machine washed, apply dish soap, rinse with a clean damp … Continue reading →

Prepping and Painting Stained or Damaged Surfaces

A leak? Oh, no! What a mess. After you get the resultant dampness out of the way, treat to prevent mold, and repair the area where the leak occurred, you’re probably going to need to repaint. If you’ve replaced wood, drywall, or other surface materials, you can prep as usual and get down to business. In other situations, say you’ve replaced the outer materials and the insulation, but the inside materials are still useable (and have been thoroughly cleaned and dried) you may need to do a little extra prep work before pulling out the paint brush. First, make absolutely … Continue reading →

How To Frugally Fix a Laundry Mishap – Over Dried Fur Items

Let’s face it – clothing is expensive. Period. As adults, we often do not have to purchase clothing as regularly as we did when we were younger and we were growing more often. However, clothing for children is expensive too. Sometimes we purchase items that require extra care, such as a trip to the dry cleaners, and sometimes we do not even mean to. I avoid dry clean items like the plague. All I see are dollar signs! Recently I received a gift. A beautiful faux fur jacket that looks like a vest with a black sweater. It was dry … Continue reading →

How To Frugally Fix a Laundry Mishap – Stains

Let’s face it – clothing is expensive. Period. When stains occur, the price goes up when it cannot be removed. Typically as adults we don’t stain our clothing quite as quickly or as often as a child does. Those grass stains, mud, blood, spaghetti and pizza sauce and other food stains add up, and can cost a fortune when you have to replace the item. Stains on white are not that difficult to remove if you use a little bleach. Often the bleach will remove it, and if you apply equal parts bleach and water and allow it to sit … Continue reading →

Holiday Headaches: Dealing With Stains–Part 2

Nothing takes the Merry out of Christmas or the Happy out of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa than a big grease stain on your brand-new winter white linen tablecloth. Family get-togethers are the highlight of the holiday season, but when you put together rich and colorful foods with, well, colorful family members you could be looking at major messes in the making. In our family we don’t let stains caused by Uncle Fred’s enthusiastic arm gestures dampen our holiday spirits. My mom is the queen of stain removal and uses the following techniques to keep her holiday best from turning into… rags. … Continue reading →

Holiday Headaches—Dealing With Stains

We will NOT be hosting Christmas at our house this year. Which means I will not have to spend the week prior to Christmas cleaning, cooking and coordinating events in preparation for the onslaught of parents, siblings, their spouses and their children. WHEW! (My mom drew the short straw this year.) The holiday season is considered the “most wonderful time of the year.” And when you are spending it with your favorite family members and friends… and foods it certainly can make for an enjoyable time. However, toss in your favorite linens and your favorite holiday outfit with a feast … Continue reading →

Handy Tips for Life after School Starts

Is the back to school schedule getting hectic? With school pictures, homework, sports practice and other extra curricular activities, as well as your usual household needs, are you getting overwhelmed? It happens to the best of us, but there are some tips that you can use to help make weekday life a little smoother. New Clothes not looking New? Sometimes kids come home and their brand new clothes no longer look new. There are all kinds of stains they can get into at school, from ketchup to grass stains. Pick up a pocket size package of stain remover and slip … Continue reading →