@muldoonthief You know, I would think that there is a special spout or cap that you could already put on it. Me, I often save things like other caps, if I think I may need it in the future. Your idea does sound interesting. Just one question though: how do you keep it from leaking? Or at least evaporating?
There’s a plastic cap that screws on and off. Under that is the seal that’s glued to the plastic bottle that you’re supposed to remove. Instead of removing the seal, poke a small hole in it.
Tell me more about this strainer bag! Is it an old pillowcase, or do you fashion it from cheesecloth yourself?
~VOW
I have sometimes sewed a crude strainer bag out of mesh or muslin, or as you say just approximated it with cheesecloth wrapping. But there are also all kinds of commercially available “soup sock” bags like this one. (With some of them you might have to break the turkey carcass apart to fit the bones in.)
Baking soda and water will also make stainless steel pans shine like new, regardless of how blackened they might be from baked on grease and the like. Boil the mixture and let much of it evaporate, then let it sit, then scrub out. For white build-up, use distilled vinegar and water.
If you use a knife block, store your knives cutting side up to prolong the edge.
Dried herbs go in at the beginning of cooking. Fresh herbs go in at the end. For soups, put the fresh chopped herbs in the bowls, then ladle hot soup over them for a blast of flavor.
Keep your spray bottle of spot remover next to your laundry bin in your bedroom rather than next to the washing machine. That way, you’ll treat the spots right away as you disrobe at night. The spot remover has time to sit and work on the spots until laundry day.
Helpful stain-removing advice that has been passed down to me thru the years.
As a kid, I apparently heard somewhere, that the only way to remove a red wine stain, is with white wine. Never tried that one, so I don’t speak from experience. Yeah, I heard a dry cleaner on TV say that IIRC. (I was so proud as a kid, that I could share that information with people 
. Don’t know if anyone ever took my advice either, though.) If you try it, tell us 
. Makes a lot of sense, actually.
I myself have discovered, a little rubbing alcohol at least 70% on a cotton swab is great for getting small marks off walls. It’ll take the paint off too. So dab it gently.
Also, again on TV, one guy said, to get stains out of carpets, do this. Soak a cloth or paper towel with solution. Wring out as much liquid out as you can. Then put the cloth over the stain. Then pound as hard as you can. Don’t break your hand. But realize you can’t use something like a hammer. It’s got to be your hand. I think I have tried this. And it does work.
Also bring moist towelettes in your pockets or purse. Then when you’re out, as at a restaurant e.g., you can deal with a stain as so as it happens. I always have towelettes, napkins, kleenex, etc. handy everywhere I go, to deal with every emergency. EDIT: Oh, and I have advice for you germaphobes out there. Bring an antibacterial moist towelette with you, everywhere you go. That way, you can automatically disinfect doorknobs, toilet seats, etc. as needed.
'NO SUBSTITUTES!!!":
A couple of things I simply will allow no substitutes for. One is petroleum jelly. Did you know that some companies put fragrance in it? And don’t even tell you on the label? I have to put Vaseline in my nostrils around winter time, to prevent dry nosebleeds. Now what would happen if I put that other stuff I just described in there?
Also, cotton swabs. Q-tips are all I’ll use. Those other swabs just have the cotton fall off too easily. You don’t want that in your ear, do you? Oh, wait a minute. You’re not supposed to put the Q-tip in your ear. So forget I just said that. But still.
I might as well ask: anyone else have an example of a household product that you’ll accept no substitute for? Give the reason (if you respond to this query 
).
For cat barf stains on your rug: forget all those special cleanesr you buy at the pet stores, and even carpet cleaners like Resolve. Just squirt some Dawn on the stain, then use a wet paper towel to rub it. Stain is gone.
Unfortunately, I have discovered that ANY stain removal in carpet or upholstery is temporary.
The stain eventually comes back. Why? The crud penetrates to the padding. All your removal ideas are for the surface only.
That’s why I’m having hard floors installed in my home. If anyone’s tootsies need something soft, area rugs are easy to find. You can flip over an area rug and treat the stain on the back side, as well as the front. And if the area rug gets too cruddy, well, throw it out, find another.
I’m never, ever having wall-to-wall again.
~VOW
I ripped out all of our carpet years ago and never looked back - it was the best decision I ever made. Carpet is always dirty, no matter how often you clean it. Sweaty feet, pet butts, dirty shoes, spills, pet vomit, pee, you name it. Last year I removed all area and throw rugs for the same reason and because it was one more thing I had to vacuum. I only have a mat in the entryway and a bath rug that hangs over the side of the tub when not in use.
Sounds like Heaven to me!
Mr VOW grew up poor, and it was always cold bare floors. So, to him, carpeting means he has risen above his beginnings.
Because of all the nasties you mentioned, I’ve had it. Carpeting is wonderful when it’s new. But after the first spill, it’s a slippery slope all the way down to Carpet Filth Hell.
He’s been pampered enough. I’ll get him a fluffy throw rug for his side of the bed.
I wear slippers all the time, anyway.
~VOW
Retta has the show Ugliest House, frequently showing carpet in the bathroom. It squicks her right out, deservedly so. One of the most recent houses had the same carpet in every room, including the kitchen. The house was in Phoenix; I can’t imagine living in a hot climate with carpet everywhere.
Amen to the no carpet idea. A week after its installation, wall-to-wall carpeting starts feeling dirty to me and it never again really feels clean, even after shampooing. Modern laminate flooring looks really good and it’s a snap to clean. I like that new tile that looks like wood planks.
And cheapo area rugs that look good are to be had anywhere. Use one for a few years until you get sick of looking at it, then chuck it and replace it with a different one like VOW says. And get a patterned one - it doesn’t show every smudge and spot instantly.
When you make homemade biscuits, make a double or triple batch. Cut them out with the biscuit cutter, then freeze them on top of parchment paper. Once they’re like frozen hockey pucks, collect them up in a ziplock bag. When you want a few biscuits, get them out and pop them, frozen, right into the oven. They bake up fine. In fact, they like freezing and should puff up nice and tall.
The Turkey Store sells those frozen hockey pucks bagged up. They are so good and so reasonably priced, we haven’t made them from scratch in ages.
I couldn’t agree more about the carpet. I had indoor allergies as a kid that seemed to be tied to it. I will never have it in my home again.
Let your hockey puck biscuits thaw a little bit, then cut them into fourths.
You can throw them into a pot of stew or soup. Simmer ten minutes with the lid on, then simmer ten more minutes with the lid off.
Voila! You have dumplings!
~VOW
I was making some slow cooked chicken tacos, and it reminded me of a tip if you’re cooking for people who don’t eat spicy food: Eat the decorations!
Probably easier to just buy a bag of dried mild chili de ristra at the grocery store than clean off the ones hanging on the porch. Grind or chop a few of them, and add them to chili or whatever other slow cooked thing your making. It will bring lots of depth of flavor that is usually missing when you’re forced to leave out the spicy peppers.
Similarly, mild chili powder can also be pretty good. It’s been real hit or miss finding it since the pandemic, but occasionally it’s in the bulk spice section of the grocery store.
Cooking with stuff you can get at the grocery store is a pretty mundane household tip. However, the realization you can make chili, taco meat, or whatever that actually tastes like it has peppers in it, but with no heat, can be a game changer when cooking for the heat intolerant.
If you’re replacing a microwave with the same or a similar model, save the glass turntable from the old one. It will most likely fit the new one, and it’s convenient to have a spare to use while you clean the other one.
Huh.
What a waste of perfectly good plastic wrap.
Our ice cream never lasts long enough after opening to develop crystals