* If your dryer is taking a long time to run its cycle and the clothes STILL aren’t dry, check your lint trap. Follow the hose all the way to the end, and be sure to check the grate that is in place where the hose exits an exterior wall. Lint can build up here, making it hard for heat and steam to escape. It’s also a fire hazard.

* “In our house, we use nail polish to distinguish whose plastic leftover containers are whose. My roommate and I both bought the same set (a good deal!), and we painted a little X on the bottom and on the top of the lids in contrasting colors. So I only use the red dot ones, and she uses the dark blue.” -- M.T. in Florida

* “I purchased a couple glass-cleaning cloths that were nice and big. I used my sewing machine to sew the edges together and make a little sack. It stores my reading glasses, and I can keep them clean and not scratched up.” -- R.E. in Missouri

* “I wanted to use my staple gun to attach a cord along a board for a craft project. I taped a craft stick to the bottom so that the staple would not go in all the way, leaving an allowance for the cord. I just used extra-long staples. It worked great and turned out very secure, and I didn’t have to worry about a staple slicing up an electrical cord!” -- F.D. in Texas