FOR ALL YOUR "GLASS" CLEANING
WINDOWS
For FAST clean-ups, wash with a cloth soaked in white vinegar. Dry with crumpled newspapers. Your Windows will sparkle when washed with 1 quart of cold water and 2 capfuls of Woolite Cold Wash.
Quick Fix for Wet, Drippy Condensation in the Winter -- Wipe the moisture off the windows and be sure they are dry. With a couple of tissues, apply undiluted hair shampoo to the windowpanes. They may look cloudy at first but should clear up.
Dusty Curtains! -- If your curtains are dusty but you don't want to send them to the dry cleaner, just take them down and run them through the dryer on fluff cycle. This shakes the dust out.
CRYSTAL AND GLASS
To Clean -- Soak the crystal or glass object in 2 parts white vinegar with 3 parts water. After 30 minutes, scrub off the dirt, rinse, and dry it with a lint free cloth.
MIRRORS
Cleaning Mirrors -- Pour equal parts of water and white vinegar into a bowl, then dip a scrunched up newspaper page into it. Squeeze and wipe mirror with it over and over. To give a finishing shine, rub with a cloth, paper towel or dry newspaper. Use old pantyhose, lint-free coffee filter, or gift wrapping tissue paper to give a lint-free shine.
OR Use a cup of tea for cleaning a mirror - it works great!
Mirror Worn? -- Tape a piece of aluminum foil to the back of the mirror where it is worn.
DIRTY GILDED Mirror Frame -- Wipe gilded mirror frames clean by pouring beer directly on a soft rag and rubbing gently. Wipe dry with a soft rag.
To Prime your Windows -- Mix ¼ cup cornstarch in 1 quart water. Drench a coarse washcloth in mixture, squeeze out and wash the window. Dry with soft cloth or paper towel. After a few of these treatments, you should be able to just polish with a clean, dry cloth.
To Clean Windows -- Mix 1 cup white vinegar with 3 cups water. Optional is adding 1/8 cup rubbing alcohol for a brighter shine. Dip scrunched up newspaper into solution, squeeze and clean the window. Wearing rubber gloves will keep the newspaper print off your hands. Dry the window with dry newspaper. Buff with soft cloth or a clean BLACKBOARD ERASER. Always clean windows on an overcast dry to prevent streaking.
OR Mix ½ cup ammonia, ½ cup of white distilled vinegar and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch to a bucket of warm water for a perfect window-washing solution.
OR Mix 2 ounces of rubbing alcohol, 2 ounces of ammonia and 12 ounces of water. Add a drop of blue food coloring and mark it clearly to distinguish it from other cleaners. Pour into a spray bottle and use it as you would a purchased spray cleaner.
Windows Stuck? -- To make sure that your windows move easily, spray the window, storm and screen tracks with vegetable spray (PAM).
OR Rub tracks with dry soap, wax or paraffin.
Curtain Hanging Trick -- To easily glide curtains on a curtain rod, put a thimble or a finger from a discarded old glove on the end of a round curtain rod
OR if you are using a flat rod, stick a butter knife into the rod's slit end. When you slide the curtain over the thimble, glove finger, or butter knife, it will go on faster -- without tearing or snagging.
To Clean a Glass Top Table -- Dampen a cloth with a mixture of 2 teaspoons liquid fabric softener with one pint warm water and wipe the table. Dry with cloth or paper towel.
To Clean TV & Computer Monitor Screens -- Wipe with a cloth moistened with rubbing alcohol. To make Dust proof, wipe the screens with a fabric softener sheet.
To Clean your Telephones -- Pour alcohol or white vinegar on a soft cloth and scrub until spotless.
Piano and Organ Keyboards - Ivory or Bone -- Wipe the keys with soft cloth and one of these agents: yogurt, milk, rubbing alcohol, 1 tablespoon peroxide in 1 cup water, 2 parts salt to 1 part lemon juice, non-gel toothpaste, or paste of baking soda and water. Wipe with one of the above and then buff with a dry cloth.
CLOUDY GLASSES -- Get rid of soapy film on glassware by shaking a mixture of 1/4 cup vinegar with 1 teaspoon loose tea leaves in the glass or vase. Transfer the mixture from one glass to the next.
Imperfections on Glassware -- A small nick in the rim of a glass can be smoothed out by using an emery board. Scratches on glassware will disappear if polished with toothpaste.
Narrow Neck Bottles and Vases -- Toss a couple of tablespoons of dry, uncooked rice + ¼ cup white vinegar and shake-shake-shake.
OR Drop in 1 or 2 denture cleaning tabs and ½ to 1 cup water. Shake while it fizzes.
OR Place two fizzy antacid tablets and a handful of sand in the decanter. Add some warm water, swish the mixture a few times and let it sit for a minute or two. Swish the mixture again, and then rinse the bottle thoroughly.
Is your favorite VASE CRUDDY? -- Mix 2 parts strong tea to 1 part white vinegar and let it stand for at least a day. Then wash as usual.
To Remove Hard-Water Deposits -- Fill the vase with warm water and add a cut up grapefruit rind. After a full day, wash, rinse and dry.
Leaking VASE? -- Coat the inside with a layer of paraffin and allow it to harden. The paraffin will last indefinitely and the vase will not leak.
For More GREAT WINDOW & MIRROR Care Tips submitted by users or submit your own, visit THE CLEANING STATION from IVillage and Dirt Devil
