Scraping off excess chocolate, then dabbing the spot with equal parts white vinegar and cold water, lifts a chocolate stain from fabric or upholstery. Delicate fabrics like silk do better with baby shampoo in place of the vinegar.
Four Hints for Holiday Party Messes
Between holiday parties and cold, sloppy weather, a handful of familiar messes tend to show up again and again this time of year.
Lift Chocolate Stains
Lift Casserole Gunk With Epsom Salts
Sprinkling Epsom salts over a baked-on casserole dish and letting it sit for 10 minutes dries up the moisture holding stuck food in place, so it breaks off with barely any scrubbing.
Outsmart Candle Wax With a Quick Freeze
Rubbing an ice cube over a wax drip before it fully hardens makes it brittle enough to scrape off cleanly with a dull knife.
Clean Muddy Shoes With a Foamy Fizz
A paste of a half cup of baking soda and a teaspoon of Castile soap, spritzed with white vinegar until it foams, dislodges caked-on mud from shoe soles and treads for an easy wipe-off.
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This edition is part of the Genius House Hacks archive: 20+ years of tips, rebuilt from the original Handy Hints newsletter. Browse more hacks →