posted 07 November 2002 08:38 AM                   

On this thread someone (believe it was 'lance) suggested that I remove scale from my antique loo by leaving vinegar in it overnight. Worked very well. My hair got really matted recently (it is extremely curly) and a Moroccan friend told me to warm up some olive oil and put it in the knots, leaving it for several hours if possible, before shampooing out the oil. At the market here, Haitian ladies pick up overripe avocados to use as a hair conditioner.

posted 08 November 2002 04:47 PM                   

I also use olive oil for a hot oil treatment. No need to buy those wasteful little plastic tubes of individual portions, just warm a bit of olive oil on the stove or in the microwave and comb it in to your hair, and then wrap your head in a towel for a while (like 1/2 hour or an hour--or for the length of a whole movie, if you're so inclined ) and shampoo it out later.

posted 10 November 2002 03:28 AM                   

Javex disinfects everything, but it doesn't smell very nice on skin. Use rubbing alcohol for acne and athlete's foot (followed by a cheap lanolin cream to prevent drying).

posted 10 November 2002 04:00 PM                      

the thing with the onions works well with beet-water too, although it does make hair have a pink-ish shine to it... blond hair even goes magenta sometimes.

posted 10 November 2002 05:25 PM                   

You can also use baking soda in your bath to soften the water and make your skin smooth.

posted 10 November 2002 05:39 PM                   

Shall we all try this tonight? Says here that it does not wear away any of the silver, as all abrasives will. Do we believe this?

posted 10 November 2002 08:05 PM                   

Save yourself some money, next time you need to get "cleaner" for you leather shoes, coat, whatever, go buy some glycerin soap from a saddlery store. Same thing, less money than the leather stores sell it to you for. Oh, and those pet mitts - the ones you brush your dog or cat with that cost like$10-15?? Get them at the saddlery store too - they make big ones for horses, costs about $3-5. They do exactly the same thing, brushes yout pet.

posted 10 November 2002 08:36 PM                      

So I took him back to my place, looked on the internet quickly, and discovered the peanut butter trick. I tried it and sure enough, it worked like a charm. Just rub it onto the gum and surrounding hair while in the bathtub (dampen the hair first), and rub the spot between your fingers, and the gum will break down. Then you just pull it out with your fingers and it comes out quite easily. Rinse well with water to get all the last bits out.