Good GOD Mumsnet tips actually work!

[stinkingbishop]

1. Have smeared the twins' cradle cap liberally with rapeseed oil, left, combed through, left Dentinox on in the bath for ten mins, rinsed through, and it all came off in big satisfying clumps. I got a bizarre amount of pleasure from this.

1. I bit the bullet and got Plumbs round to reupholster my awkwardly shaped sofa and it's gorgeous! And the covers are just about less tricky to take on and off than a sleeping bag is to put back in its bag IYKWIM and they're machine washable. I, embarrassingly, may have punched the air. I need to get out more.

1. Storing complete bedding sets inside one of the pillow cases has led to uncrumpled sheets and duvets that MATCH.

1. Tomatoes out of the fridge are sweet and juicy.

I is DELIGHTED with the MN service. Please continue revolutionising my life .

The dishwasher tablet is incredible - has lifted set-in grease left behind by the people who lived here before us (ew) and it's been Oven Prided at least twice!

But use marigolds for goodness' sake. I didn't have any. Dishwasher tablet goop in a papercut is AGONY.

LOVE this thread! Here are mine -
Travel sickness tablets are excellent for hangovers, they completely take away dizziness & nausea.
Contact lenses stop your eyes watering when chopping onions.
Make a double-bed out of two sofas pushed together for a guest staying over, it is SOO comfortable

Motilium is brill for hangovers too (to cure them, not to give you one!)

Sticky or stiff zip? Run the point of a pencil along the teeth when open, or a dry bar of soap. Close & open it a few times & it should glide.

I just invented a new method of chopping eggs for egg mayo - used the potato masher (plastic flatended type with slots). Marvellous and done in ten secs, put the mayo in first to make it stick together so no egg piece missiles across the worktop.

Did i really just invent this or am i the last person in the world to discover it?

Oh, and you can mash potatoes using a handheld electric whisk.

Another non-housekeeping one is that if you are using a mooncup and having trouble getting it in the position, having an orgasm will move it into the right place automatically.

potatoes can go gluey if you use a whisk as it releases all the starches.

zoflora disinfectant in the fabric softener bit of the washing machine helps make smelly gym/football kit smell much fresher. Does the same job as the dettol in wash sanitiser stuff but at a fraction of the cost (plus there are lots of scents to choose from)

Great thread. I have a couple.

radiator grill cleaning. I discovered this by accident when doing our bathroom one. I used a wooden cuticle stick inside a damp microfibre cloth. The stick was slim enough to get into the gaps and get all the muck out.

green gunk on trampoline. I did ours last year and used fairy liquid and stiffish brush and hosed it all off. It worked really well. On a couple of stubborn areas I used cream cleaner.

wee stains on mattress. Yes, bleurgh. If you clean the mattress as usual with bio powder etc, then it dries and leaves a brown ring, try the following. I did it on DD's mattress on a dried stain and i couldn't beleive my eyes.

You will need 3 % hydrogen peroxide, from the pharmacy, fairy liquid and bicarb of soda. Put the hydrogen peroxide into a spray bottle with a drop of fairy liquid. Sprinkle the stained area with bicarb - use a seive if it's lumpy. You are aiming for an even layer. Agitate the bottle a little then spray onto bicarb. It will froth and fizz. Go away and come back 15 minutes later. The brown stain will be gone. Seriously. If there are any stubborn areas, repeat and when it's fizzing use a brush to scrub the stain a little. You'll need to vacuum off any bicarb residue when dry.

prolonging cut herbs. This was on Mary Berry Cooks and does work. I've only tried it with coriander so far. Put the bunch of herbs into a glass of water, cover the whole lot with a bag/sandwich bag. Lasted for over a week and no slimy coriander in the fridge drawer.

You can make your own "cake release" by mixing vegetable oil and flour. It works well on cake tins with intricate designs.

You can wash Little Swimmers nappies and use them several times.

I always put washing powder directly inside the drum - no disgusting drawer full of goo to clean.

White vinegar instead of fabric conditioner keeps bath towels soft (disclaimer : I live in a hard water area - I don't know if it makes a difference if your water is soft)

prolonging cut herbs. Should have said that you put the glass in the fridge.

Great tips, keep them coming! Mine is to stop chopped apples from going brown soak them in 7-up for a few mins.

wow. didn't believe the pencil on a stiff zip thing would work - - but hey presto! thank you!

is there an easy cleaner for leather sofa/chair?
the plumbs reupholstery - can they do cheapo leather? the seat cushions are fixed in place IYSWIM

Here's another one . If you want to make guacamole ahead of time and don't want it all brown.

Make it and store it in a tall slim container with a small surface area. I use a pint glass. Sprinkle the top of the guacamole with lemon juice then cover with clingfilm but put the cling film directly onto the guacamole. I've done it without lemon juice too and it's been fine. You can also stick the stone into it, then press clingfilm on.

I read this somewhere (as I don't garden)
Gardeners- scrape your nails through soap before digging in the garden, even if using gloves. Stops mud building up under your nails and makes them a doddle to clean.

Thanks Deux - off to attack the radiator with a cuticle stick at once!

Potatoes don't go gluey with a whisk. Possibly I don't mean a whisk. A handheld electric mixer thing with two intertwined thick spinning mixy bits. Softer and fluffier than with a ricer.

Potatoes go gluey in a food processor but a whisk should be fine.

I have just tried cleaning the oven door with my usual Aldi creme cleaner, such hard work so I gave up. Then tried the brilliant advice on this thread, scraping it with a wet dishwasher tablet…oh my goodness, my door has never looked so clean! Thanks whoever recommended it. Brilliant tip.

So then I thought it might do the same with my ceramic cooker hob and it did….it got rid of every little bit of encrusted glob and now it is sparkling clean, not one bit of encrusted egg or whatever is left. In the past I have tried the razor blades they sell for the purpose, really expensive cooker cleaners and now this works best of all :)

Silverten you've made my day with the bag clip thingie. My seatbelt has lost the bobble on it that keeps the metal bit from falling down to the ground. I may just try the clip on the belt to see if that works. As long as it doesn't cut through the seatbelt material.

Who asked about tomatoes in the fridge? Pretty much anything tastes better when left out of the fridge to get to room temperature before eating. Chilling food and drinks stops the aromatic chemicals from evaporating as much so the food does not taste and smell as "full" as it would otherwise. Beer, soft fruit, Wine ... anything chilled too much loses its taste when too cold.

Lots of "taste" is actually the smell at the back of your nose/mouth - if you don't believe me try holding your nose and eating a teaspoon of cinnamon powder. Half-way through let go of your nose...

Spritz a mixture of a few drops of lavender essential oil diluted with water in an old household cleaner onto children's hair before school to make it easier to style but most importantly - it REPELS NITS so your kids will never catch 'em

Love this thread! One of my favourite tips is that WD40 gets blood stains out of most carpets. Obviously test on an inconspicuous area first and I wouldn't try using it on a huge patch but for smallish stains it's great. That's a tip from family friend who is a carpet fitter.

You can wash Little Swimmers? Seriously? That is going to save me about 10m pounds .

Peg your duvet cover and quilt together at the top with clothes pegs to make putting the cover on so much easier ??

Feckin - brilliant.

The clip on the seatbelt - also brilliant. Would a clothespeg work as well? I use pegs for sealing bags. Also handy for holding a nail or tack when hammering in.

If you are re-heating food in the microwave, make a hole in the centre - it heats quicker.

Use empty loo rolls to keep cables tidy when not in use.

If you haven't got a long candle lighter, light a stick of spaghetti to use as a taper.

Don't buy expensive cleaning products. Mix water and Flash All-Purpose (or own brand equivalent) half and half, then add some Zoflora in a spray bottle. For kitchen and bathroom and saves £££

Tile grout - make a paste of bicarb and bleach. Work in with a toothbrush and leave for an hour. Looks great.

If you have an iphone, put it in airplane mode to charge faster.

I'm sure there's more. This is a great thread