10 secret ways to reuse these items in your pantry

Whether you know it or not, your pantry is most likely home to a variety of useful cleaning tricks. These 10 quick tricks from BrightNest will help you put the items in your pantry to a variety of cleaning and organizing uses.

Use Salt to Keep Flowers Fresh

Have a beautiful bouquet of flowers that are showing some signs of wilting? Add a dash of salt to the water in the vase – the salt is essentially food for the flowers and prevents bacteria growth.

Brighten Your Laundry with Pepper

Add a teaspoon of black pepper to your wash to keep brights staying bright. Pepper naturally prevents colors from running in the wash.

Eliminate Smells from the Kitchen with Tea

Whether you’re frying fish or baking it in the oven, the odor can linger after a meal, and that’s not always a good thing. Simmer a pot of boiling water on your stovetop and then add 3-4 tea bags into the boiling water to rid your kitchen of the smell. Pro Tip: You can also rinse your hands with cold tea after preparing the meal to help eliminate odors.

Prevent Fruit from Browning with Lemon Juice

This is a great trick if you’re hosting a party and expect to have fresh fruit on the table. Sprinkle a few drops of lemon juice on the cut halves to prevent browning. No lemon juice handy? This can also work using citrus soda!

Hide Scuff Marks with Coffee Grounds

Have leftover coffee? Take a cotton swab and dab it on old coffee grounds. Then, dab it on dark wood furniture – it will help hide white scuff marks.

Use Old Paper Towel Holders for Jewelry Storage

Keep your old paper towel holders for bracelets, bangles and belt storage. Slide your bracelets onto the towel holder, or use it to wrap your belts and keep them in place.

[Find out all 10 tricks here.]

Anna Young