Fix glue-stick mess

DEAR SARA: How do I remove hot glue from clothes? My son left some hot-glue sticks in his pockets, and they got washed. I have hot glue on socks, and now I found some on some undies. Do you know how to remove it? Thanks. — Jettsmom, e-mail

DEAR JETTSMOM: Take a paper grocery bag and place it over the glue. Iron over the bag on low heat, and the glue should adhere to the bag. You might have a bit left on the clothing, but what is left should come out in the wash.

DEAR SARA: I have a real problem with shoes. It’s not as if I have a lot of shoes. I don’t, but I can’t seem to keep them all in one place. I tend to take them off wherever I feel like it, and they never make it up to my pretty little shoe holder hanging over my bedroom door. My husband’s shoes are spread all over the floor in front of his dresser, and my daughter and I are always tripping over them. Do you have some sort of method of keeping shoes together that may be helpful to me? I own a shoe organizer that hangs over my door and a shoe rack on the floor of the closet for my husband. They just aren’t used faithfully (which is probably all we need to do, but I’m hoping you may have a system). — Amy, New Jersey

DEAR AMY: Creating new habits can be difficult. You have great systems in place, but they don’t sound like the best solution for your family. The main problem is where your organizers are located. They’re too far away to be practical solutions. Either move them into your coat closet or try a wooden shoe organizer that has cubbies or open shelves or a storage bench. They can be kept against a wall versus in a closet. It’s easily accessible when you first walk in. A cheaper solution is a floor basket or tote.

DEAR SARA: I need help with my rice cooker. I can never seem to get rice to turn out properly. It always comes out too hard or burnt to the bottom. Granted, my rice cooker is a $12 deal I bought, but seriously, it should be able to do a better job than cooking for 20 minutes and the rice is still crunchy! — Lady Nada, Canada

DEAR LADY NADA: You can use the index-finger method of measuring for both rice cookers and traditional rice cooked on the stovetop. You simply add the amount of rice you want to cook, keeping in mind that 1 cup of uncooked rice equals 3 cups cooked rice. Add water to your rice and rinse. Slowly add more water and place your index finger into your cooking pot so it touches the top of the rice. Continue to add water until it fills to the first joint on your finger. This equals about 1/2 inch of water above the top of the rice. If this method doesn’t work, it’s possible that the heating element on your rice cooker is broken.

Posted by Sara Noel on February 12 2008. Filed under Frugal & simple living, Question & Answer.
Sara Noel owns Frugal Village, LLC and is a nationally syndicated columnist with United Media. Bio, Follow me on Twitter, Join us on Facebook.