Dear Heloise: I hope you can solve my problem in your column — which, by the way, I find very helpful!
I have two wicker standing mirrors, one white and one natural. They get very dusty, and the white looks so dirty. Dusting and brushing just do not clean them. Could you help me out as to how to CLEAN THE WICKER? I would appreciate it. — Joan Tooher, Stuyvesant Falls, N.Y.
I'll be happy to help you. Since you dusted and brushed them well and they are still not clean, you can wash them. It's best to do this outside, because it can get messy.
For ground-in dirt, make a solution of 2 pints cool water and 1 tablespoon salt, and use a soft brush to get into all the crevices. As for the natural wicker, you can polish it with a good furniture polish to bring back the luster, but DO NOT polish the white-painted wicker. — Heloise
P.S. You can also repaint the white one — just ask for help at your home-improvement store.
Dear Heloise: Hope this hint will preserve satin bindings for the life of those beautiful blankets. When making the bed and pulling the covers around the shoulders, grab the blanket well below the lining so it will take the strain.
I have used so many of your hints and hope this will make the rounds. — Merla May Russell, Marion, Iowa
Dear Heloise: I've had a favorite soup and sauce pot with white enamel interior that I just couldn't remove the cooking stains from. It is 25 years old and has no cracks!
No matter what I used, it just didn't remove the stains.
I finally hit upon the idea of using household bleach and dishwasher detergent in hot water and letting it soak overnight. By the next morning, the pot was once again bright white and like new inside.
I've used this method on my white kitchen sink for many years but never even thought of using it for inside the pot.
It goes to show that you are never too old to learn new tricks! I am 79. — Fan Saunders, Elizabeth, N.J.
Dear Heloise: How do you remove a stain made by a marker pen? My 3-year-old daughter decided to do a little artwork with a blue marker on the fabric of my dining-room chair. I hope you can solve this problem. I did my part and removed all the pens from her reach — should have done that a long time ago. — A Reader, Via E-mail
This can be very tough, but here's something to try: Use a non-acetone fingernail polish remover (with no color/fragrance). Put a little on a cotton swab and try rubbing a hidden area on your chair to make sure it doesn't remove any color. Then dab at the stain gently in a patting motion and see if it lifts the color. If so, continue a little at a time. DON'T overwet or overrub, as you don't want to spread the stain.
This should work. Good Luck! — Heloise
Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000, or you can fax it to 210-HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com