Stay ahead of the drain: Pour a tea kettle of boiling water down the drain once a month, or if you notice the drain slowing. The hot water can break up material collecting inside the drain. Half a cup of baking soda added to the water will absorb any odors that are building.
A hanging shoe rack is a handy place to keep office supplies and school supplies for the whole family. Pencils, markers, assignment cards, and even papers. You can give each person a row, or label the pockets.
Have a bright flashlight handy in the laundry room. It's much easier to identify stains with the right lighting. Sending a still-stained garment to the dryer can set the stain, making it much harder or impossible to remove.
Three easy steps to sear your meat: Preheat the skillet, wait 30 seconds before you add oil and pat your meat dry before placing in the skillet.
Clean the cracks in your keyboard with a paperclip covered by tissue.
If you leave a load of laundry too long in the washer, you can re-run it and add a cup of white vinegar to the load to kill the musty smell of potential mildew.
Things you can freeze in small portions using an ice cube tray: tomato paste, coffee, coconut milk, broth or stock, wine, herbed butter or herbed olive oil.
If you have trouble holding your cat still to clip his claws, sneak up on him while he's asleep. You might only get a couple done before he catches on and wriggles away, but you'll get there.
If you fill a flowerpot with clean sand, you can use it to store your garden hand tools. It looks cute, and they are accessible, too!
