The Brits Favorite Household Hints

I am a sucker for household tips. I scour the internet for them and regularly have my Mum giggling at my outrage at the preposterous ones to be found in weekly magazines like Take A Break. Tips are in fact hacks for the modern day housekeeper: she all too willing to shave off a minute or two from her day for herself, or make life infinitely easier by consuming vintage wisdom and using it to inspire a modern day solution…

I have often wondered whether the other housekeepers of this land are equally as familiar with all the tips and tricks in my domestic armor now that discussing domesticity in polite company is no longer really the done thing: but according to a national survey compiled by the Duvet and Pillow Warehouse, we are all at it, and though we as dedicated housekeepers will no doubt be familiar with almost all of the tips on the list, even I would never have thought of crushing a dishwasher tablet to do battle with grubby floors or the rather wonderful salad saving idea….
So without further ado allow me to present Britain’s favorite household tips…
1. Open a blister pack: Use a tin Opener. 
2. Keep white bed linen really white and smelling lovely: Add the juice of one or two lemons to your wash cycle.
3. Keep bananas fresh for longer: Pull bananas apart before displaying them in your fruit bowl. They’ll ripen and go brown slower.
4. Make Candles last longer: Put them in the freezer a couple of hours before burning!
5. Get rid of unwanted kitchen smells: Bake some orange peel in the oven for 10 or 15 minutes.
6. Clean windows: Use vinegar and scrunched up newspaper.
7. Clean a really grimy tiled floor: Mash up some dishwasher tablets with hot water into a runny paste then scrub onto the floor and leave for half an hour to soak in. Scrub off with a stiff brush and wash.
8. Remove chewing gum from clothes: A lightly beaten egg white dabbed on chewing gum causes it to crumble and lose its gummyness, it can then be sponged away on most fabric!
9. Remove limescale off a showerhead: Immerse it in a bowl of hot white vinegar. Leave it for one hour. Take it out and scrub.
10. Stop drafts in open chimneys: Put an inflated balloon up the flu.
11. Keep a bag of salad fresh for longer: Once opened put a paper kitchen towel in the bag with any left overs, it will absorb the moisture and the salad will last longer.
12. Keep flies away from food: Hang up a clear plastic bag filled with water, this really works as the flies see their own reflection magnified a million times!
13. Easy clean paint tray: Line it with foil or put it in a bin bag for easy clean up.
14. Reduce dust mites: Always remember to vacuum your mattress when you change your bedding.
15. To keep spiders out the house: Place horse chestnuts (conkers) in the corners of each room.
16. Cleaning rugs: Take them out and beat them face down on snow. 
17. Storing bedding sets: Place matching duvet cover and pillowcases inside one of the pillowcases to make it easier to find the set.
18. Freshen up a duvet: Hang your duvet over the line when washing your cover so it can air and stay fresh.
19. DIY air freshener: Sprinkle a few drops of your favorite essential oil onto the filter of your vacuum cleaner. It’ll make the room smell great every time you vacuum, (note does not work on bagless).
20. Clean the loo: Pour half a large bottle of the cheapest coca cola down the toilet and leave for an hour. Flush away and the bowl will be left shining and clean.
Finally the best tip of all? One cited frequently by the homemakers of Great Britain? Invite people over. Heck yes. And I say that if you truly want he who thinks he is in charge to be motivated to help you get the house looking tip-top shiny, then inviting his boss over is definitely the way to go…
Have a nice day darlings.x
Hints and images courtesy of the Duvet and Pillow Warehouse…