3m read

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Finally, a Way To Find Anything in Your Storage Bins

Trying to locate a single item in a wall of storage bins is as difficult as searching for a needle in a haystack. Even worse, you may end up emptying all the bins before finally finding what you’re looking for, leaving you with the painstaking task of repacking everything.

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Trying to locate a single item in a wall of storage bins is as difficult as searching for a needle in a haystack. Even worse, you may end up emptying all the bins before finally finding what you’re looking for, leaving you with the painstaking task of repacking everything.

To borrow a catchphrase from TV infomercials — there’s got to be a better way! Well, thankfully, there is. Here’s how you can simplify storage and find exactly what you’re looking for at the click of a button.

Use Your Phone’s Notes App

A lot of people just use their notes app for writing grocery or to-do lists, but it can also serve as a simple and free organization tool for anyone with a smartphone. While this hack involves a little work up-front, it’ll make your life much easier in the long run.

First, gather your storage bins and clearly label each one with a large number on the outside. At the same time, create a new note on your phone, dividing it into sections that correspond to each of those numbered bins. As you place an item into a specific numbered bin, write it down in your notes app under the appropriate section.

Once all the bins are full, you’ll have compiled a list of every item in each numbered box. When you need to track down one of those items in the future, just go into the notes app and use the search function to pull up that keyword. It will show you which numbered box the item is in, allowing you to easily retrieve it.

If you’d rather not use your smartphone, consider creating a similar document on your computer using a word processing program such as Microsoft Word or Google Docs. Alternatively, you can keep a running list by hand — but the major downside to this method is that you can’t easily search through the list at the click of a button.

Hopefully, this helpful numbering system makes home storage as easy as one, two, three.

What About QR Codes?

Instead of numbering your bins, consider affixing QR codes to their exteriors. These codes are easily generated using free online tools, and when scanned by a QR code reader (your smartphone’s camera, for example), they’ll take you directly to the webpage they’re connected to. You can even connect QR codes to a cloud service such as Google Docs, where you can write out lists of each bin’s contents for safekeeping. That way, whenever you’d like to know what items are in any given storage bin, just scan the code, and it’ll take you to the appropriate online document.

Organizing

3m read

0

The ‘Five Things’ Method Is the Secret to Easy Cleaning

If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed when there’s a messy room to clean, the “Five Things” tidying method by KC Davis will be a total game changer.

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If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed when there’s a messy room to clean, the “Five Things” tidying method by KC Davis will be a total game changer.

Davis is a licensed professional therapist, author of “How To Keep House While Drowning,” and founder of the mental health platform Struggle Care. She posted a helpful video to TikTok explaining her method, and it’s truly the secret to easy cleaning, especially for those with ADHD, depression, anxiety, or other mental health struggles.

The Method

Davis says that when cleaning a room, think of it as if there are only five categories in the space: trash, laundry, dishes, things that have a home, and things that don’t. To ease those overwhelming feelings when faced with a mess, focus on one category at a time, picking up only the items within that category.

How It’s Done

Let’s say you can barely see the floor in your bedroom due to dirty clothes, bath towels, dishes, and trash strewn about. Decide what you want to focus on first. If it’s clothes, walk around the room, pick up everything in the laundry category, and put it in a hamper or directly in the washing machine to get it out of the way. You don’t need to start the load unless that helps make you feel more productive. Ignore everything else until this part is done.

Then you can move on to the next category with less stuff in the way. Maybe the next category you choose is dishes. Collect any water cups, coffee mugs, and bowls of unpopped popcorn kernels, and put them in the kitchen sink.

While you’re in the kitchen, grab a trash bag for the next category and pick up any wrappers, price tags, or facial tissues cluttering your bedroom’s surfaces. Then, focus on putting away items that have a home; if you uncover anything that doesn’t, add it to a pile.

Once your space is clear, you can decide where the miscellaneous items should go in a much calmer environment. You’ll be left with a livable space and a clearer mindset.

Food & Drink

2m read

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The Secret to a Stable Cutting Board

An unstable cutting board is no cutting board at all, as anyone who’s ever had a mishap just as they began slicing a bell pepper can attest. At best, this is a minor inconvenience, while at worst, it can result in injury.

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An unstable cutting board is no cutting board at all, as anyone who’s ever had a mishap just as they began slicing a bell pepper can attest. At best, this is a minor inconvenience, while at worst, it can result in injury.

Whether the cutting board has been warped by normal wear and tear, a manufacturing error, or lack of maintenance is ultimately beside the point when you’re attempting to prep dinner and finding it far more difficult than it should be.

The good news is that there’s an easy fix to prevent your cutting board from slipping and sliding — one that doesn’t require anything you don’t already have in your kitchen. Though you could simply buy a new nonslip cutting board, it’s possible (if not likely) that the universe has conspired against you in such a way that will ensure the problem recurs.

Stop the Slide

All you need for this hack is a kitchen towel or paper towel, both of which will be equally effective. If you opt for the former, a flour sack kitchen towel is best. These are made from thin, tightly woven cotton or linen and are a nod to the flour sacks of the past, which people often reused as towels.

Whichever towel you choose, ensure that it’s thin and smaller than your cutting board. This prevents the towel from adding unwanted height or sticking out, which could affect the board’s balance.

Thoroughly wet your towel, wring out the excess water, and place it under the board. The moisture creates a gentle suction, preventing the board from sliding or wobbling as you chop, slice, or dice — some much-needed stability that even your onions, carrots, and potatoes will celebrate as their form is forever changed. Once you’re finished, use the same towel to clean your countertop and celebrate this simple tool’s multifaceted usefulness.

Decorating

2m read

0

Follow This Design Rule for Better Flow in Your Space

While finding the right furniture is important, it’s the styling that truly makes a room feel like home. There are endless design tips and tricks for creating a more “aesthetic” home, whether it’s using the triangle method to style your bookshelves or making vignettes look more cohesive. However, there’s one design rule that any space can benefit from, and it’s all about flow.

All featured products and deals are selected independently and objectively by the author. House Outlook may receive a share of sales via affiliate links in content.

While finding the right furniture is important, it’s the styling that truly makes a room feel like home. There are endless design tips and tricks for creating a more “aesthetic” home, whether it’s using the triangle method to style your bookshelves or making vignettes look more cohesive. However, there’s one design rule that any space…

Go With the Flow

Don’t underestimate the importance of good flow when designing your space. Not only does it look good, but it also makes a home feel more harmonious. So, what is it exactly? A key part of good flow is a layout that allows for unrestricted movement, which can be achieved through thoughtful furniture arrangement.

How To Arrange Furniture for Better Flow

As much as we may love the look of certain furniture — be it an oversized sectional sofa or a vintage coffee table you spotted at the thrift store — you’ll want to make sure it fits comfortably in your space. Keeping proportions in mind is key. Then, carefully consider your furniture placement.

Awkwardly placed furniture can overcrowd rooms and block pathways, while spacing it out to create walkways will improve foot traffic. When arranging larger furniture in an open layout — for example, a sofa and dining table — try to leave a few feet of space or enough room to comfortably walk between them.

When it comes to smaller furniture, you have more flexibility. Place pieces a few inches to about a foot apart for better visual appeal. The goal is to create breathing room between furniture to prevent a cluttered look.

While the exact measurements will vary depending on the size of the room, a good rule of thumb is to leave 4 feet of space between large furniture pieces and 14 to 18 inches between smaller pieces. This negative space allows for free movement and creates a balanced feel that’s pleasing to the eye.

Gardening

2m read

0

Save This Kitchen Scrap for Pest-Free Plants

Oranges aren’t just juicy and delicious; as it turns out, their peels can help you naturally maintain pest-free plants. Citrus peels contain limonene, a chemical compound that most insects dislike. The strong citrus scent disrupts pests that use their olfactory receptors to locate food, such as mosquitoes, flies, ants, aphids, and slugs. Harmless to plants and animals, limonene offers a safe and cost-effective alternative to commercial insecticides, which can be toxic.

All featured products and deals are selected independently and objectively by the author. House Outlook may receive a share of sales via affiliate links in content.

Oranges aren’t just juicy and delicious; as it turns out, their peels can help you naturally maintain pest-free plants. Citrus peels contain limonene, a chemical compound that most insects dislike. The strong citrus scent disrupts pests that use their olfactory receptors to locate food, such as mosquitoes, flies, ants, aphids, and slugs. Harmless to plants…

What To Do With the Orange Peels

When you have enough orange peels saved, chop or grind them to disperse around your patio, garden, or wherever there are problem areas. The peels can be fresh or dried, or you can create a natural formula by boiling them in a cup of water for 10 minutes, then straining the cooled mixture into a spray bottle. The spray formula can be used in gardens and on houseplants; for best results, give the affected greenery a spritz every three to four days.

How To Properly Store Orange Peels

It only takes around two to three days for orange peels to mold and start decomposing. To keep the peels fresh for about a week, store them in a sealed container in the refrigerator. For longer storage, save and freeze peels in a Ziploc bag and scatter them around your garden in the spring.

Tips To Keep in Mind

While biodegradable, orange peels take longer to decompose than you probably have patience for. It’s important to replace the orange peels regularly so they don’t get moldy or lose that strong limonene smell. Use only the peels, not the orange flesh, to avoid attracting rodents and other unwanted animals.

Cleaning

2m read

0

The $1 Tool That Removes Hair From Your Vacuum Roller

Vacuums are a quick and effective way to remove pet and human hair from carpets. But so much of that hair doesn’t reach the vacuum chamber — it instead wraps tightly around the brush roller, which can lead to jams if you don’t clean it out regularly.

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Vacuums are a quick and effective way to remove pet and human hair from carpets. But so much of that hair doesn’t reach the vacuum chamber — it instead wraps tightly around the brush roller, which can lead to jams if you don’t clean it out regularly.

If you’ve ever flipped over your vacuum and tried to remove the wound-up strands of hair yourself, you know how tricky it can be to cut through it all without damaging the roller brush. Scissors are usually too big (and can accidentally cut the brush bristles), a knife is too dangerous, and pulling it out with your hands is too tedious. The best tool for removing hair from a vacuum brush is hidden in your sewing kit — or, if you don’t have one, is just $1 a pop on Amazon.

The Best Way To Remove Hair From a Vacuum Roller

The tool in question? A seam ripper. This small sewing notion, typically used for ripping out seams and fixing stitching mistakes, can also be used in other fiber art — it’s excellent for cutting out stitches in a needlepoint project, for example. But aside from that, the inexpensive tool has several home uses, including cutting out the pesky tangled hair wreaking havoc on your vacuum cleaner.

All you have to do is place the seam ripper at one end of the brush and push it through the wound-up hair, slicing the strands like thread. Since it’s such a small tool, it gets the job done without causing damage to the brush, cleanly cutting through the hair buildup for easy removal.

Its compact size and needlelike tip are also ideal for removing other stuck debris from a vacuum roller, such as loose threads from rugs or hang tag ends.

Decorating

3m read

0

The Interior Design Trick That Makes Any Room Look Bigger

It can be tricky to arrange all your furniture when you live in a small space or are decorating a compact room. While you might be inclined to push everything against a wall to form a larger central area, some designers say you should do the opposite. They argue that “wallflowering” your furniture doesn’t create the illusion of more space. Instead, it boxes everything in and makes the room look smaller.

All featured products and deals are selected independently and objectively by the author. House Outlook may receive a share of sales via affiliate links in content.

It can be tricky to arrange all your furniture when you live in a small space or are decorating a compact room. While you might be inclined to push everything against a wall to form a larger central area, some designers say you should do the opposite. They argue that “wallflowering” your furniture doesn’t create…

This also holds true for open floor plans, where wall space is often limited. Instead of cramming everything into the corners and along the perimeters, try a technique known as floating your furniture to open things up and make the space feel bigger.

How To Float Furniture

When you’re decorating your living room, certain furniture pieces — such as bookshelves or TV stands — may need to sit snugly against a wall, but items like sofas and side tables can be floated.

In an open floor plan, use your couch to create a designated seating area by pulling it away from the wall and anchoring it on a rug, about two and a half times the length of your TV screen. You can even add an L-shaped console to give yourself some extra storage.

In small spaces, positioning the couch slightly off the wall and incorporating a narrow console can give you a usable surface. Accent furniture, such as armchairs and side tables, should also float to give your space some wiggle room.

You can achieve the floating furniture effect in other rooms, too, including your kitchen, office, and bedroom. In small kitchens, for example, placing the table in the center, instead of against a wall, not only maximizes seating but also frees up wall space and makes the room appear larger.

Even if you only have a few inches to spare, pulling your furniture away from the walls offers some breathing room and might even give your space more dimension, depending on how you decorate. You can also use this technique to define zones and walkways in an open floor plan, which can create a more purposeful layout.

Gardening

3m read

0

This Natural Method Kills Weeds Instantly

Weeds are the bane of any home gardener’s existence. They’re annoyingly persistent — like a telemarketer who won’t take no for an answer — and as unsightly as an inflamed pimple that shows up the morning of a big event. Some gardeners may think that weeds are inevitable, but we have a helpful hack for easy eradication. Best of all, it doesn’t involve any harsh chemicals and costs nothing at all.

All featured products and deals are selected independently and objectively by the author. House Outlook may receive a share of sales via affiliate links in content.

Weeds are the bane of any home gardener’s existence. They’re annoyingly persistent — like a telemarketer who won’t take no for an answer — and as unsightly as an inflamed pimple that shows up the morning of a big event. Some gardeners may think that weeds are inevitable, but we have a helpful hack for…

Getting Out of the Weeds

Whenever you boil with rage at the sight of a new weed, boil up some water, too. Boiling water acts as a chemical-free contact herbicide, scalding the foliage and killing it without the use of any harmful additives. This tip is best applied to newer weeds with shallow root systems — picture those tiny weeds that form between paving stones or along gravel pathways.

We recommend using a kettle over a saucepan for a more precise pour — let’s save the burns for those intrusive plants. Pour the boiling water directly onto the weeds, using about ½ cup of water per plant. In 24 hours, the weeds should change color from green to brown. Digging out the weeds will also be much easier, if you’re willing to take that extra step.

Unfortunately, this method isn’t as effective on older weeds with deep root systems, as the boiling water loses its effectiveness as it seeps into the soil. Although a scalded weed might look dead, its roots can survive, allowing it to regrow. Instead, you should use this method to inhibit any new weed growth. So long as you stay on top of it, you can prevent young weeds from becoming established.

Safety First

While this method is entirely natural and chemical-free, it still comes with its own set of risks. The boiling water can easily kill other plants in your garden if you’re not careful. Always take extra caution when using this method to avoid any boiling water splashing onto other plants or, worse, your hand, which could result in a burn.

To play it safe, we suggest using a kettle with a narrow spout for targeted pouring. Also, be sure to position the spout as close to the weeds as possible, lessening the risk of potential splashback.

Food & Drink

3m read

0

This Kitchen Staple Helps Your Cheese Last Longer

Cheese is a prime example of food-related human ingenuity. It takes a highly perishable protein source (milk) and turns it into a longer-lasting, tastier, and more versatile product. That’s a neat trick, even before you consider the thousands of different cheeses developed throughout history.

All featured products and deals are selected independently and objectively by the author. House Outlook may receive a share of sales via affiliate links in content.

Cheese is a prime example of food-related human ingenuity. It takes a highly perishable protein source (milk) and turns it into a longer-lasting, tastier, and more versatile product. That’s a neat trick, even before you consider the thousands of different cheeses developed throughout history.

One thing most cheeses have in common is that they need proper storage to stay at their best. Storing cheese is easy if you keep cheese bags or cheese paper on hand, but not everyone does. If you want to do it right, ordinary parchment paper, an everyday kitchen staple, works surprisingly well.

Why Keeping Cheese Can Be Difficult

It’s important to remember that cheese isn’t simply a product like potato chips. Think of it as a complete ecosystem in miniature — a complex alchemy of proteins, acidity, salt, and microbiology. Although cheese is commonly sold shrink-wrapped in plastic, it keeps best when there’s just a bit of air flow. Cheese “respires,” or sheds moisture, as it ages, and proper air circulation prevents it from becoming too moist and spoiling. To put it simply, cheese needs to breathe.

Using Parchment Paper as Cheese Paper

This explains why high-end cheese shops, or fromageries, wrap their products in paper. It’s a practice you should adopt as well, though pricey, specialized cheese paper isn’t necessary. The paper you choose needs to protect the cheese from both drying out and mold-promoting moisture buildup. Ordinary parchment paper does both of those jobs perfectly well.

The kitchen staple works best with straight-edged cuts of cheese, whether blocks or wedges. Cut a piece of parchment that’s big enough to wrap around the cheese, and then place the cheese in the middle of it. Fold the parchment around it, sharply creasing the edges to form neat corners, ensuring the paper is pressed against the sides of the cheese. Then fold the edges over the wrapped cheese to make a neat bundle, and secure the end with a piece of tape.

After you take it out and cut off a slice or two, rewrap the cheese in the same piece of parchment, refolding it so it’s a snug fit for the now-smaller cheese. It’ll keep much better than it would in plastic.

Decorating

3m read

0

This Design Trick Makes Any ‘Flaw’ Look Intentional

Every home has its quirks. Unless you built your house from the ground up, chances are, it has a few features you wouldn’t have chosen for yourself. Perhaps you’re glancing around the room you’re in right now, glaring at an outdated brass light fixture or an orangey finish of your hardwood floors. If updating these features isn’t in the budget, try an unexpected decorating trick that interior designers and stylists swear by. The secret? Add more of the finish you don’t like.

All featured products and deals are selected independently and objectively by the author. House Outlook may receive a share of sales via affiliate links in content.

Every home has its quirks. Unless you built your house from the ground up, chances are, it has a few features you wouldn’t have chosen for yourself. Perhaps you’re glancing around the room you’re in right now, glaring at an outdated brass light fixture or an orangey finish of your hardwood floors. If updating these…

It sounds counterintuitive, but as stylist Kristen McGowan explains on her YouTube channel, it really works. Rather than hide unsightly details, embrace them. This ensures an intentional appearance, making the finish part of a cohesive design. When a finish pops up sporadically, it stands out. Alternatively, when that element is repeated throughout a space, it feels purposeful. It should look intentional, not like an afterthought.

For example, if your home has cherry-toned flooring that’s too red for your style, don’t hide it under an area rug and hope no one notices. Instead, pair it with a wooden coffee table in a similar warm tone. This approach can be applied to a dining table with the same wood finish, open shelving in a kitchen, or a mirror with a matching frame. Suddenly, that cherry floor — which you once despised — looks like a deliberate design choice.

Bonus Hack

This decorating trick works for wall colors, too. If a room in your home has a paint color you’re unsure about, instead of rushing to repaint, first bring in inexpensive decor — such as throw pillows or artwork — that complements the hue.

Maybe your entryway is outfitted with an ornate brass light fixture that gives off ’90s vibes. Try bringing more brass accents into the space. A small brass catchall for your keys is a good start. Then, add a warm, metallic-framed mirror or switch out the pulls on a credenza to beautiful brass ones. Alone, the light fixture is an outdated eyesore. With other similarly toned elements, it’s a stylish, coordinated feature.

By embracing existing elements, you can transform any space into a designer-approved room that feels thoughtfully curated and uniquely yours.

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