I could try to find some theme for this list of clever lifehacks , but whatever I tried would obviously be forced and you’d totally notice by the time you reached hack #7.
These are 100% totally randomly selected lifehacks, in no particular order.
1. Unclog a drain with baking soda and vinegar.
Chemical options for clearing drains totally work, but they’re bad for the environment and often aren’t required for simple clogs. Instead, sprinkle baking soda into the drain and pour some vinegar down. Leave overnight and your drain should be good as new.
2. Repair lost zipper pulls with paracord.
When you’ve got a great bag that you carry with you every day, that poor zipper goes through a lot of abuse. No wonder they seem to be the first thing that breaks. If the bag is otherwise fine, use a loop of paracord as a replacement zipper pull.
3. Recycle the nozzle from a spray bottle to turn any water bottle into a mister.
Cool down on a hot day with a light mist of water, or hydrate delicate plants. Just make sure that if the nozzle comes from a cleaner bottle, you scrub it very thoroughly first.
4. Collect hats? Dollar store display easels make perfect hooks.
Each of the metal easels can hold two hats, meaning fewer nails in your wall when you want to display your hat collection.
5. Keep salad greens good for longer.
Salad greens need just the right amount of humidity to stay crisp and green without going brown or mushy. A damp paper towel laid over them in their packaging can help a lot.
6. Retain your privacy when the stall gap is wide.
I don’t know why we’re still dealing with gaps in the stall doors. It’s the 21st century! If you don’t have a coat or bag to block it with, you can hang a strip of toilet paper from the top hinge.
7. Cover the windshield to save yourself having to brush off the snow.
Now, this picture uses a towel, which technically works. You just wedge it in the doors when you close them to hold it in place and then pull it off when you return. But I don’t like the idea of a wet towel in my car, so I’d probably use a tarp instead.
8. Organize brushes with rocks.
The soft, fluffy bristles for makeup brushes get squashed so easily. Store them upright by putting some decorative rocks in a jar or bucket. This also works great for artist brushes, though you’ll want to make sure they’re dry before storing them bristles-up.
9. Keep a little espresso cup handy to hold your used tea infuser.
We all know that we should toss used tea leaves and rinse out the infuser right after we finish steeping, but we never do. This trick will keep the drips contained until you get around to it.
10. Remove a stubborn wall anchor with a corkscrew.
The whole point of wall anchors is to make sure your stuff doesn’t fall down, but it can be a pain to remove them when you actually do want to take it all down. A corkscrew can work in a pinch.
11. Watch videos while traveling with the help of a rubber band.
If you’re stuck on a flight with no media screen or in the backseat for a road trip, a snug rubber band can allow you to hang your phone up on the back of the seat.
12. Organize spare cables with toilet paper rolls.
Not only is this recycling stuff we all have kicking around, the cardboard rolls are easy to write on, so you can label everything with its type and length.
13. Keep your beverage warm with a power brick.
Now, since this is an electrical hazard, I would probably put something heat and waterproof between my mug and the actual brick, but this’ll definitely keep your tea warm.
14. When roommates or coworkers share a kitchen, sometimes you need to take steps.
Maybe you brought in a paring knife specifically for cutting up your mid-morning apple, or maybe there’s a pair of scissors that never stay in the drawer. Either way, this will keep them from straying ever again.
15. Never lose another gas cap with this simple hack.
Some cars have the cap attached to the tank or maybe have a hook on the tank door to hold it, but not all of them do. If you have to set your cap somewhere, put it on the nozzle rest. You can’t miss it when you finish.
16. Make big decorative candles last beyond their wick.
Big candles aren’t cheap, but they often run out of wick long before the wax is gone. Keep the look by dropping a tea light down into the hollow. You’ll get the same warm glow and no one will see the tea light.
17. Make ironing more efficient with aluminum foil.
A layer of foil under your ironing board cover can help speed up laundry day. The foil will warm up as you iron your clothes, helping loosen the wrinkles on the underside.
18. Sometimes, you just need to improvise.
When a Reddit user had a flat and an incomplete car jack, they bent a random metal fork to given themselves a makeshift handle.
19. Store cupcake liners in a jar to prevent squishing.
There’s nothing worse than mixing up a delicious cupcake batter only to find that your liners got crushed in the pantry. Storing them in a jar will prevent that and look really cute.
20. Use a vintage muffin tin to sort small supplies.
This could be office supplies like pins and paperclips or other arts and craft supplies like tape or beads. It looks great on a desk, but can also keep a drawer neat and tidy.
21. Replace a broken glasses arm with a bendy straw.
This definitely isn’t a longterm fix, but it’ll solve the problem of how to see where you’re going as you drive to get them fixed properly or replaced.
22. If your baby likes to flail during a diaper change, the onesie can help.
This is one of those little genius hacks that’s so perfect in its simplicity. When rolling the onesie up and out of the way of the diaper, let it roll over the arms. It’ll keep baby’s arms from getting in the way.
