Spray light bulb with perfume.
One of my favorite times of year is spring. Along with the anticipation of gophers crawling out of the dens, I love how the weather begins to warm, the scent of blooming flowers fills the air and the chirp-chirp of the neighborhood birdies gently awakens me. It’s also the time to fluff our nests and ready them for a new season. Today, I thought I’d share some fun home tips and tricks that shows us how to recycle and utilize some of the old and needing-to-be-thrown-out items in our pantry. Some are for sprucing up, having fun and even shedding light in our homes when we find ourselves caught in a wintery springtime storm. Sorry Punxsutawney Phil, you might need to get some new glasses!
Tip #1 (top photo): Spray light bulbs with perfume for lovely scent
This home trick was emailed to me from my Uncle Joe. When you spritz a bit of perfume on a light bulb, you’re in for a lovely, subtle aroma when turned on at night. Try this in different rooms for a re-freshening throughout your home.
Tip #2: Clean BBQ Grill with Tin Foil
Clean BBQ grill with ball of tin foil.
Clean BBQ grill with ball of tin foil works!
Okay, so on the Today Show this morning, I learned this fabulous cleaning tip to ball up a wad of tin foil for cleaning BBQ grills. Apparently, this creates a sort of metal on metal super scrubbing effect that’s also quite safe. According to the Today Show, one of the leading reasons for spring visits to the emergency room is when BBQers clean old, summertime residue off grills with the well-known metal brushes. Unfortunately, the bristles can break off onto the grill, which then inevitably gets into the food and can be swallowed or be injurious. I tried this myself and it really worked fantastic!
Tip #3: Clean out your pantry to make a gingerbread house in April!
Clean out your pantry gingerbread house in April!
A mom-friend of mine shared this fun tip on my Facebook feed. She had loads of holiday candies sitting stale in her pantry (as well as an unassembled gingerbread house kit), so, needing something to do during spring break, she cleaned out her shelves and gave the kiddos a fun and memorable activity. Double-whammy tip!
Tip #4: Use Doritos chips to create a candle
Light Doritos.
A fabulous Doritos candle!
Lined up Doritos will burn a good while.
With late in the season storms and summer just over the horizon, blackouts and camping trips could require some impromptu and unconventional lighting options. Several years ago, while taking a wilderness survival class, I learned one of the most fabulous tricks using Doritos chips as a natural wick for creating a candle (note: you can also use potato or any kind of greasy chips you’ve got stashed in your pantry). The oil in these fried crisps are perfect for slow burning. Here’s how:
- Fill a container with sand or dirt – I used a medium sized ramekin, but tin buckets or metal bowls work, too.
- Overlap several chips, placing their corners into the sand or dirt.
- Light just one chip. That chip will begin to burn and thus eventually light the next chip and so on!
The larger the container and the more chips you nestle into the sand or dirt, the longer your candle will burn…olé! Note: this is perfect for blackouts OR camping!
Tip #5: Use outdoor solar path lights for emergency lighting
Solar path light-charging and ready to light up the dark!
Use a solar path light for emergency lighting…backgammon game uninterrupted by power outage!
Here’s another home tip I received from my Uncle Joe that teaches us the genius of simplicity. For easy and no-fuss emergency lighting, grab your solar path lights and bring them inside. Place them in vases, drinking glasses or any tallish container to create lit up walkways, stairways or game tables. Now that’s a “solar light bulb” moment!
Check out these tips to make spring cleaning easy!
How ’bout it HomeJellies? Got any home tips or tricks up your sleeves?
All photography (except the gingerbread house) by Skaie Knox, HomeJelly
