I’M JUST CURIOUS: Unusual uses for toothpaste

by Debbie Walker

Hi! I want to share some things I came across today. Pour a cup of tea or coffee and find a comfortable seat. Relax. Some of these things you may already know so I apologize , but just maybe you needed a reminder, as I did with some of these items.

I collected these from numerous magazines and online.

The first I came across today was just plain old fashioned white toothpaste (not gel or whiteners). One way was to use the toothpaste is to clean your faucets. I believe I have done a little cleaning with it but quite by accident, pure laziness. And little did I know…

You can also clean your car headlights with that white pasty stuff. Just use paper towels to rub the paste on then wipe clean with a damp cloth.

Toothpaste can be used to remove ink from fabric (so can hair spray. That one I have used.) Put a dab of toothpaste on the spot, put fabric face to face, rub until stain starts to disappear. Rinse and toss into washer.

This tidbit was perfect timing for me to use to hang pictures. It said to put a dollop of toothpaste on the hanging loop of each frame, level it and press it against the wall. Toothpaste will be left on the wall. Ta-Da, a spot for the nail or hanger.

I can’t wait until one of you try this one and let me know. I don’t have any glass tabletops. The story is to rub a dime size dollop of toothpaste into the scratch on the glass top with your fingers. Let set until dry, then wipe away with a soft cloth.

When I was still dying my hair, I could have used this information. Auburn dye is hard to clean up. Massage a dab of toothpaste onto counter areas until pigment disappears. Warm water washes it away.

One little tidbit is if you are having trouble lighting a candle, match not long enough to reach. Clip a match into a clothespin and you have a longer match. No burns.

With wet hands in the shower, I often lose my grip on my shampoo bottle, before next use put a wide rubber band around the bottle. This gives you a grip without a slip.

Other hints to help:

Cut snow shoveling in half, spread one cup of shortening over the paddle of your shovel (or move to Florida).

To remove food odors from your skin sprinkle salt on your palms, rub all over hands then rinse clean.

There is also a note about salt sprinkled over a carpet for ridding fleas, let sit overnight, then vac in the morning.

These were someone’s version of new words:

Prairie Dogging: When someone yells or drops something loudly in a cube farm and people’s heads pop up over the walls to see what’s going on.

Woofs: Well-off Older Folks

I’m just curious if you will find these helpful or at least interesting. Contact me at DebbieWalker@townline.org with your questions or comments. Have a great week and thank you for reading.