Repurpose your grocery bags
Dear Heloise: Please ask your readers to dispose of plastic shopping bags correctly. They are easily carried off by the wind, and they get stuck in trees and on fence posts — unsightly and dangerous to birds and other wildlife. — Louise W. in Ohio
Louise, repurposing these bags as trash can liners, wrappers for breakable items, as liners over seating areas that can get dirty and for another trip to the grocery store can all work well.
To recycle: When you’ve accumulated a bunch, make sure the bags have a No. 2 or No. 4 printed on them (indicating they are recyclable) and roll them, soccer-ball size, and insert into another bag and take to the recycling center. — Heloise
ORGANIZATION NATION
Dear Readers: Did you know? The drawer below the oven is not for the storage of extra pots and pans. It was designed as a food warmer, to hold foods from other courses and keep them warm as you go through serving a meal to your family or guests.
Pretty ingenious, because the drawer uses the radiant (extra, existing) heat generated from the oven. — Heloise
DON’T ASK!
Dear Heloise :I’ma hairdresser, and I’m confused. Sometimes a client will come in and ask for “just a trim.” Presumably, she is expecting to pay less money than for a regular cut. A trim is a cut, and not offered at a lower price. I have to put in just about the same amount of time and effort, so I don’t discount a “trim.”
A bang trim is different; it is priced less than a full cut. — Jessica G. in Texas
SHAVING FACE
Dear Heloise: This would shock my mother, but I shave my face, and here’s why. Shaving my entire face (I use warm water and soap and shave in gentle, upward strokes) removes “peach fuzz” and exfoliates my skin.
My serums and moisturizers absorb into my skin better, and my makeup goes on smoother. My skin appears brighter. — Ainsley R. in California
Ainsley, women shaving their faces has become more common nowadays. Let’s go on rumor control: The hair WILL NOT grow back thicker, darker or bristly. When the hair grows out, it will feel rough and sharp because by cutting the hair, you’ve created a blunt end, but that will dissipate. Don’t forget the neck. Ask your dermatologist what she recommends. — Heloise
ORANGE YOU GLAD I MENTIONED THIS?
Dear Readers: Orange is a bright, sunny and happy color, but it can be difficult to wear. Here are some hints to help:
— Accessorize an orange button-down with bright yellow chunky gold jewelry.
— Faded denim jeans complement orange tops nicely.
— If you’re feeling bold, pop orange with another bright color, like a French blue or canary yellow.
There’s still no word that rhymes with orange, but orange can get along well in your wardrobe. — Heloise
NEAT SWEETS
Dear Heloise: I like to bring doughnuts home for the family as a treat, but I disguise them from the small, shifty prying eyes on the extremely short and terribly young people who live in our home.
I pop the donuts into an old bread bag or tortilla wrapper bag. Sweets in the non-sweet packaging. —
Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 78279-5001, or you can fax it to 1-210-HELOISE or email it to Heloise@Heloise. com. I can’t answer your letter personally but will use the best hints received in my column.