Blender blasting

No perfect tool has ever been made to clean the sharp blades and awkward spaces inside your blender. The best solution? Fill the blender about halfway with hot water, add dish soap and turn it on. The churning action usually removes the mess, no matter how encrusted.

Blood Stains

·Put a paste of water and cornstarch, cornmeal or talcum powder on fresh spots. Let dry and brush off.
·Cover fresh or dried stains with meat tenderizer and add cool water. After 15 to 30 minutes, sponge off with cool water.
·Fresh blood on leather? Dab on a little hydrogen peroxide. After it bubbles, wipe it off.

Bubble Gum and Chewing Gum In Hair

If your child gets bubble or chewing gum in his/her hair use the same method. There is no need to cut it out anymore. After you freeze the gum off simply wash hair normally. Bubble or chewing gum on furniture, carpet, cloths or in the car is simple to remove. Use your Ice pack and chill it well, then scrape it off.

Cleaning Brick Fireplaces

If the fireplace is to be used for family entertainment such as popcorn popping, or marshmallow toasting, etc., it would be wise to have brick or stone fireplace front surface sealed so as to resist absorption of grease or oils, and smoky soot.

Formulas For Cleaning Fireplace Surfaces (Wear rubber gloves to protect hands):
Mix one ounce of soap and one ounce of table salt with enough water to make a cream. Rub mixture into brick surface with cloth; allow to dry at least ten minutes and remove with stiff brush; or

Make a thick mixture of soap or detergent, pumice, a little ammonia and hot water. Paint the mixture on the surface and let dry. Rub off with a wet scrub brush. You are using alkali and a mild abrasive to remove the greasy soil; or

Shave a bar of soap into a container and add 3 quarts of water. Bring mixture to a full boil until the soap melts. Cool. Add 1 cup ammonia and one pound of pumice. Mix thoroughly. Brush in onto all sooty surfaces and let stand one hour or more. Rub off with a stiff-bristle brush. Rinse "gook" away with warm water, then finish off with a medium to strong detergent and rinse again with warm water.

Note: Some weathered old brick (50 years or older) may be soft and damaged by vigorous cleaning. Test a corner, and if this is so, just dust or sweep it.

Candle Wax

·For spilled wax on carpets and upholstery, put a brown paper bag over the dried wax and run a hot iron over it. The bag will absorb the hot wax.
·Dried wax on wood floors can be removed by softening the wax with a hair dryer, then removing with paper towels. Wash spot down with a combination of vinegar and water.

Cleaning Chandeliers

Take out all bulbs and put them aside.

Lay a folded towel over the bottom of a sink or dishpan. Half fill this with medium hot water. Add soap or detergent and swish up suds.
Fill a large pan with clean hot water for rinsing. Add a little ammonia to this rinse water for extra sparkle. Also pad this pan with a towel to keep fine glass from breaking.

To wash, take the crystal drops and saucers off of the chandelier, a few at the time. Wipe the frame or "arm" of the chandelier with a cloth wrung out of suds. Wash the parts in the sudsy water. Rinse them with hot water and wipe them dry. Then put them back right away to make sure that they go in the right places. If any pins or wires look weak or rusty, put in new ones.

Keep on taking down, washing, and rehanging more parts until the whole piece is clean.

Sponge off the bulbs. Rinse them, wipe them dry and put them into their sockets again.

Closets

Give old clothes and furniture to charity. Vacuum floors. Dust shelves. Hang cedar blocks to freshen the areas.

Cleaning Combs and Brushes

Use a combination of baking soda and hot water to clean hair brushes and combs.

Cobwebs

If you can't reach the cobwebs with your feather duster, use the detached vacuum wand as an extension.

Fresh Curtains

Freshen curtains in the dryer with a fabric softener sheet and a damp towel.

Doorknobs

Always disinfect doorknobs, switchplates and telephones. They collect germs from everyone who touches them.

Dusting Tip

Spray broom or dust mop with you favorite furniture polish and the dust and dirt will be easier to collect when you sweep.

Removing Deodorant Stains from Washables

Sponge area with white vinegar. If stain remains, soak with denatured alcohol. Wash with detergent in hottest water safe for fabric.

Indoor Plants
Remember, plants get dusty too. You can clean small plants in the kitchen sink, and larger ones enjoy a shower in the bathroom.

Cleaning Lampshades

Sprinkle lampshade with bi-carbonate of soda, leave for 5 minutes then using a clean paint brush, brush it over, vacuum to remove the soda from fabric. This also helps to remove the smell of tobacco smoke residue and odours.

Lime deposit in teakettles

May be removed by a solution of vinegar and water. Bring to a boil.

Linen Closets

Linen closets can be a jumbled mess, especially when you have children making their own beds. Organize bed linens in sets. Fold flat sheet in half twice lengthwise, then fold fitted sheet the same way and lay it on top of the flat folded sheet. Add one or two pillow cases folded long ways and roll them all together into a neat roll. Whoever is making the bed can grab only a roll instead of rummaging around and making a mess.

Cleaning Marble

To remove stains, sprinkle salt on a fresh cut lemon. Rub very lightly over stain. Do not rub hard or you will ruin the polished surface. Wash off with soap and water.

Cleaning Miniblinds

Slip your hands into a pair of socks for cleaning the miniblinds. Dip one hand into a bucket of warm, soapy water and hold the blinds between your two hands. Rub back and forth until you've cleaned the whole surface. Then reverse sides so the dry sock dries the blinds.

Wipe miniblinds with damp fabric softener sheets to eliminate static that collects dust. The same trick works for your T.V. screen.

Piano--Care and Cleaning

Care:
Avoid extremes in humidity if possible, as excessive dampness or dryness is damaging. Sudden changes in temperature affect both the tone and the wood. Do not put near a register, radiator or window. Have it tuned regularly.

Cleaning:
Follow manufacturer's instructions for cleaning. The lacquer finish on the wood only needs to be dusted with a vacuum cleaner brush, and sometimes wiped with a soft, untreated dusting cloth or paper towel. It may not require waxing. Vacuum the keyboard.
If waxing of wood finish is desired, use a wax or polish to give the desired amount of gloss. Old ivory keys yellow with age which is natural and cannot be changed; clean them with a cloth barely moistened with denatured alcohol as too much moisture loosens the keys; ever use soap which stains ivory.

Modern keys are made of plastic (usually acrylic) and may be wiped with a damp cloth, followed by a dry cloth. Follow manufacturer's instructions in guide with piano.

For stubborn soil, wipe keys with a cloth wrung out of mild detergent and water solution; wipe with damp cloth; dry with dry cloth.

Polishing Furniture

Carved furniture- dip old toothbrush into furniture polish and brush lightly.

To remove polish build-up mix one cup water and one cup vinegar. Dip soft cloth in the mixture and wring out before wiping furniture. Dry immediately with another soft, dry cloth.

Rust Stains

Can be removed by using commercial rust remover or by using a solution of 1 tablespoon oxalic acid crystals (poison), dissolved in 1/2 cup warm water. Apply to stain, allow to stand a few minutes, then rinse well.

Soiled Shirt Collars

Take a small paintbrush and brush hair shampoo into soiled shirt collars before laundering. Shampoo is made to dissolve body oils.

Soap Holders

Place a sponge in your soap holders and leave cakes of soap on the sponge. You then have pre-soaped sponges for use in bath or shower, and you won't have soapy scunge left on your bathroom surfaces.

Stone Fireplaces

If fireplace is to be used for family entertainment such as popcorn popping, or marshmallow toasting, etc.,it would be wise to have brick or stone fireplace front surface sealed so as to resist absorption of grease or oils, and smoky soot.

Smoke and soot may be removed from stone fireplaces by the TSP method. Be sure to wear rubber gloves to protect hands from strong alkalis. Dissolve 8 teaspoons (1/2 cup) Trisodium Phosphate (TSP) in 1 gallon of hot water. With stiff scrub brush, scrub stone surface. Rinse with plenty of warm water. Repeat if soot or greasy stain not removed. More TSP may be added if necessary, up to 1 cup per gallon. This is a very strong solution; avoid getting on skin, carpet, or fabrics.

Urine Spots
Get to them quickly with a solution of dish detergent and water.