Product warranties and guarantees — What we need to know
“Guarantee” sounds stronger than “warranty,” doesn’t it? (I always thought it was. I mean, we say we “guarantee” we’ll do something, right? We never warranty it.) When it comes to …
How to take care of a wood cutting board
Cutting boards may just be the hardest-working equipment in my kitchen. I have a large cutting board for rolling out dough, a medium board for chopping most vegetables, a small …
Fall maintenance for your home and yard
There’s a nip in the air, which means it’s time to prepare your home and yard for winter. There’s something so satisfying about taking care of things, indoors and out, …
Keeping a laundry hamper fresh
When’s the last time you washed your laundry hamper? Whether you use it just for dirty clothes and linens or put your clean clothes back in it after folding, cleaning …
How to store leftover paint
Paint has a way of multiplying in our basement. And not in a tidy way. In fact, finding the matching paint to touch up some woodwork or repaint a stool …
Area rugs — How to take care of rugs so they look good and last
Area rugs are terrific at defining and warming up a space. They can dress up a room or calm it down. They can introduce art or color or simply provide …
Clotheslines
Hanging laundry on a clothesline isn’t a chore for me — it’s a delight! And climbing into freshly line-dried sheets at night is one of life’s simple luxuries. I’ve almost …
Taking care of your paintbrushes — How to clean them without using toxic solvents
There are good options for naturally cleaning paintbrushes — including those used with latex and chalk paints and those used with oil-based paints, stains, and varnishes. I do a lot …
Gutters — How to clean your house gutters
Is cleaning gutters on your spring to-do list? It’s (still) on mine, and I’m kinda looking forward to it. It’s an outside chore (I’m eager to be outside), it’s doable …
Brooms — How to clean and care for your household broom
Why did it never occur to me that my brooms need to be washed? Oh, I pulled off the dust bunnies and bumped them on a tree once in a …