Friday, August 5, 2011

When Life Gives You Lemons...!


Life will give you lemons in large numbers at some point in your life, but that isn't always a bad thing!

But just in case you wind up with an overabundance of lemons, these hints from the Farmers Almanac can possibly be of some use to you! I certainly hope so!

Household Uses for Lemons

For a sore throat or bad breath, gargle with some lemon juice.

Clean discolored utensils with a cloth dipped in lemon juice. Rinse with warm water.

Toss used lemons into your garbage disposal to help keep it clean and smelling fresh.

Use one part lemon juice and two parts salt to scour chinaware to its original luster.

A few drops of lemon juice in outdoor house-paint will keep insects away while you are painting and until the paint dries.

Remove scratches on furniture by mixing equal parts of lemon juice and salad oil and rubbing it on the scratches with a soft cloth.

To make furniture polish, mix one part lemon juice and two parts olive oil.

To clean the surface of white marble or ivory (such as piano keys), rub with a half a lemon, or make a lemon juice and salt paste. Wipe with a clean, wet cloth.

To renew hardened paintbrushes, dip into boiling lemon juice. Lower the heat and leave the brush for 15 minutes, then wash it in soapy water.

To remove dried paint from glass, apply hot lemon juice with a soft cloth. Leave until nearly dry, and then wipe off.

Rub kitchen and bathroom faucets with lemon peel. Wash and dry with a soft cloth to shine and remove spots.

Fresh lemon juice in rinse water removes soap film from interiors of ovens and refrigerators.

Create your own air freshener: Slice some lemons, cover with water, and let simmer in a pot for about an hour. (This will also clean your aluminum pots!)

Fish or onion odor on your hands can be removed by rubbing them with fresh lemons.

To get odors out of wooden rolling pins, bowls, or cutting boards, rub with a piece of lemon. Don’t rinse: The wood will absorb the lemon juice.

Save lemon and orange rinds to deter squirrels and cats from digging in the garden. Store rinds in the freezer during the winter, and then bury them just under the surface of the garden periodically throughout the spring and summer.

After a shampoo, rinse your hair with lemon juice to make it shine. Mix the strained juice of a lemon in an eight-ounce glass of warm water.

Mix one tablespoon of lemon juice with two tablespoons of salt to make a rust-removing scrub.

Before you start to vacuum, put a few drops of lemon juice in the dust bag. It will make the house smell fresh.

Get grimy white cotton socks white again by boiling them in water with a slice of lemon.

Clean copper pots by cutting a lemon in half and rubbing the cut side with salt until the salt sticks. Rub the lemon onto the metal, rinse with hot water, and polish dry.

Suck on a lemon to settle an upset stomach.

See? Even if you don't like lemonade, there are many other uses for all those extra lemons. Life can be funny that way, ya know?

I got sweet tea and fresh coffee on the patio this morning. Any takers? Sorry, no lemonade!

8 comments:

Dani said...

Hermit - Brandy with lemon juice and honey make a really good toddy and pick me up for when you're feeling low :)

Thanks for the tips - will be trying the hot lemon juice on the cement mess on our windows - works for paint should work for cement - right? :)

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

HJ, thanks again some great tips. We always have a couple of fresh lemons and a bottle on lemon juice in the fridge...now they will be used for other than cooking.

Anonymous said...

That thing with dry paint on glass is really useful here at the moment! I´m painting my cottage and naturally I´ve managed to get some paint on my windows :-) I´ll try this when it doesn´t rain here!

About those danish laws and rules, no they wouldn´t affect me, if we would get them here in Sweden as well, since I live out on the countryside. But I think laws like that just are plain stupid! It is the owners one must reach when they can´t take care of their dogs.

Have a great day!
Christer.

HermitJim said...

Hey Dani...
Who knows? Might be just the thing! Sometimes the most unlikely product seems to be the one that works wonders, ya know?

I really appreciate you coming by today!


Hey Beatrice...
I do hope that some of these tips turn out to be useful to you.

Certainly can't hurt to make those lemons do some double duty, right?

Thanks for dropping by today, my friend!


Hey Christer...
I do hope that the lemons help to remove the paint from your windows. I never seem to keep from getting at least a little paint on the glass when I paint.

I have to agree with you on the laws as they apply to not owning dogs seem pretty stupid! But, as you say, at least you live in a rural area where they won't affect you.

Hopefully, those laws won't make it that far!

Thanks, buddy, for coming by today!

MyBulletinBoard said...

Hey, Jim! Thanks for the list. Just ran a lemon through my disposal last night. Smells better. ~Liz

HermitJim said...

Hey LizBeth...
Glad something on the list has already come in handy for you! I love it when something I suggest works out!

I don't know what I would do without the Old Farmer's Almanac! Sure does come in handy!

Many thanks for coming by this morning!

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TROUBLEnTX said...

I've always used a razor blade scraper on my windows. Also, when i'm painting and stop, even overnight, i put my rollers, brushes, into the plastic bags my paper comes in. No cleaning til ur thru, that way.