Comments on: Timeless Household Wisdom

By: Ethel Richardson

Ethel Richardson — Sun, 10 May 2009 23:08:02 +0000

The kind of ants that will not go for sugar or grease can be gotten rid of by putting baking soda on your cabinets and sprinkling a little over the ants.They will leave and never come back.

By: andybaker

andybaker — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 15:55:46 +0000

None of these work for sugar ants: cloves, red pepper, sage, bay leaves

What works for ants is borax powder mixed with sugar or really powerful and toxic ant poison.

I have never found an earthy-friendly method of getting rid of ants that actually works and I have tried dozens and dozens of things.

By: Wok

Wok — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 21:29:30 +0000

Are these for real? I don’t know whether or not to try. I mean, I’ll feel foolish if they’re fake.

By: snarkychef

snarkychef — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 03:57:47 +0000

I found an old Héloise book at a garage sale (where I also get my most interesting cook books), and I found a tip that I use at least once a week: When spraying a pan with Pam, open up the dishwasher and hold the pan over the inside of the door. All the excess spray will end up on the inside of the door instead of all over the floor or counters. And it washes off when you run the dishwasher.

By: Frau

Frau — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 00:00:37 +0000

To make a glass of water more refreshing. Add an few ice cubes.

I remember some of these things from home economics class. (I am in my mid thirties) But I also grew up conserving and recyling things.

The “recipe” for getting rid of ants was a piece of drinking straw filled with peanut butter that was mixed with boric acid.

By: Courageous Grace

Courageous Grace — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 20:46:19 +0000

I already do the one where you put the turkey stuffing in cheesecloth before putting it in the bird. I usually make more stuffing than will fit in the bird and will put what will fit inside, then when the turkey is done I mix the marinated stuffing with the rest and it’s great (stuffing mixes don’t have to be cooked in the bird, it just gives it flavor from the juices).

Another trick my mother and grandmother taught me was to slip the turkey in a lightly greased (I use PAM) brown paper bag before baking, adding just a bit of salt and pepper to flavor. The bag soaks up the fat and makes the meat literally fall off of the bones. If you reach in to lift up a leg to see if it’s done and you end up with just a leg bone in your hand, it’s done. In our house, a turkey ain’t done until it falls apart or is “ruined” according to my late grandfather. Truly an excellent feast.

By: Cori

Cori — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 20:08:59 +0000

To keep out ants, put cloves wherever they were infesting.

By: Edward

Edward — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 19:56:18 +0000

Héloise would be proud.

By: Melissa

Melissa — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 19:56:18 +0000

Especially with the tough economy and the renewed interest in environment, I see a lot more tips like these being used and shared. A lot of women of my generation (I turned 30 today), grew up in homes where how to make things last and how to get the most use of every single thing in the home wasn’t necessarily a priority, so we missed out on some of these tidbits of wisdom. It wasn’t fashionable, or even necessary really, in the boom economy to learn that stuff. But now, I can see it really making a comeback.