Surprising Household Cleaners

1. Shine Leather Shoes with Vegetable Oil - Use a damp cloth to wipe away dirt, then apply a small drop of oil to a soft cloth and rub the surface to remove scuff marks. (Scuff marks give shoes character.)

2. Clean Your Dishwasher with Lemonade Kool-Aid - Pour a packet of lemonade Kool-Aid (the only flavor that works) into the detergent cup and run the dishwasher while empty. The citric acid in the mix wipes out stains, so you don't have to. (Someone actually scrubs the inside of their dishwasher?)

3. Mesh Veggie Bag as Pot Scrubber - Cut ends open, scrunch, add soap and water — and hand to husband. After a gooey mac-and-cheese cleanup, you can throw this freebie sponge away guilt-free. (What is a pot scrubber? Is that sort of like a pot licker?)

4. Dust Lamp with Lint Roller - Run the roller up and down the outside to get rid of what shouldn’t be there. (Like I would ever do this - Not! Just blow real hard and then run like hell.)

5. Remove Food Stains with Lemon - Slice a lemon in half, squeeze onto the soiled surface, rub, and let sit for 20 minutes before rinsing. (Easier solution - throw it away and buy another one.)

6. Baking Soda as Silver Polisher - Wash tarnished items, then place on aluminum foil in the bottom of a pot. Add the baking-soda solution (1/4 cup soda, a few teaspoons salt, 1 quart boiling water) to cover for a few seconds. Reward: A chemical reaction that gets the black off the gravy boat so you don’t have to. (I thought the black gunk on silver made stuff taste better...what's a gravy boat anyway?)

7. Sop Up Spilled Egg with Salt - Heap a handful of salt on the mess, leave for two minutes or so, then wipe up. (Won't be trying this one either. Easiest method - use a roll of paper towels if necessary. Better yet, send in the hounds!)

8. Use Coasters to Catch Drips in Pantry - Catch escaping drips of sticky stuff from bottles and jars in cupboards. (Yeah, right! You think I'm going to use coasters inside my three cabinets I have in the kitchen? No way, Jose.)

9. Deodorize Shoes with Dryer Sheets - I'm not even going to take the time to copy and paste directions for this one. Who the hell does stuff like this?

10. Remove Adhesive with Oil - Apply cooking oil to the sticker using a paper towel or a soft cloth, rub firmly, then rinse with warm, soapy water. If the adhesive is stubborn, use a dab of toothpaste along with the oil. (If it's really stubborn, drag the sticky part over the couch to pick up cat hairs - wow, I'm a regular freakin' Heloise!

11. Car Wax as Fixture Polish - Turtle Wax leaves behind a protective barrier against water and soap buildup, so your hard-earned sparkle will last past the next tooth-brushing. (Crusty mold around your fixtures means you have a life.)

The Grand Finale...
12. Deodorize Food Containers with Newspaper - Stuff a balled-up piece of newspaper into a plastic container, seal it, and let sit overnight. By morning the paper will have absorbed lingering food smells. ( See number 5)

Surprising Household Cleaners | Cleaning : RealSimple.com