2/2/10

Transform a little-used wall into a functional message center. For your home office, paint the inside of a closet door or a small wall using chalkboard paint; it's a nontoxic latex paint mixed with carbon (which allows you to write on it with chalk), and it is sold in most home improvement stores. Slather two coats of paint on whatever you want to make into a chalkboard. Then jot down your ideas, reminders and messages on the board.

2/1/10

While it would be great if you could just touch dusty surfaces in your home and they'd be sparkling clean, here's the next best thing: Stick your hand in a clean cotton sock and dust away. For better results, use an all-purpose, non-toxic spray cleaner and wipe up the dust particles with the sock. The best part? Throw the sock in the washing machine and use it over and over again.

Wine Not? Time to pull out all those extra champagne and wine corks from the holiday festivities. If you only have a few corks, shave off slivers and glue them to the bottom of an uneven chair or table legs. It'll keep them steady and -- since cork is soft and springy -- it will protect the floors, too. If you have a bunch of corks, combine them together inside of a large pipe clamp (available from the hardware store plumbing department). Screw the clamp tight around the corks and you've made an instant trivet! Use it in the kitchen to keep surfaces protected from hot pots.

1/31/10