Heloise's 40 lemon tips

 Ask Heloise Handy Household tip book has provided 40 things we can do with lemons.  With Spring around the corner I thought this was the perfect time to share. 

1. Hair – For extra shine, dilute 1 tsp lemon juice in a cup of water, and use to rinse your hair after shampooing.
2. Hands – Remove smells and stains with a rub of lemon juice.
3. Nails – Whiten fingernails with a rub from a wedge of lemon.
4. Rough elbows - Hold your elbow in half a lemon for a few mins, then rinse.
5. Spots – Wet a paper towel with lemon juice and apply to help treat spots and blackheads.
6. Hand wash – Make your own liquid handwash
7. Exfoliating body scrub - Mix chopped lemon peel, half a cup of sugar and olive oil into a paste. Use to exfoliate rough areas of skin such as feet.
8. Minor wounds - Dab with lemon juice to disinfect scratches and scrapes. It might sting a bit!
9. Travel sickness – Suck on a slice of lemon to help you stop feeling nauseous.
10. Laxative – Mix 2 tbsp of lemon juice and warm water, then drink.
11. Sore throat & coughs - Mix 2 tsp of lemon juice with half a tsp of honey and drink. Or mix juice and honey with hot tea.
12. Wasp stings - apply lemon juice for relief.
13. Dandruff - Mix 2 tbsp lemon juice in 2 cups of water and rinse after shampooing

Cleaning

14. Stained plastic - Rub plastic containers or tupperware with lemon juice to help shift food stains.
15. Stains – Remove stains from wooden chopping boards and cloths. Mix lemon juice with water, apply and rinse.
16. Mirrors – Mix 2 tbsp lemon juice with half a gallon of water for an effective mirror cleaner.
17. Grease – Straight lemon juice acts as a general degreaser.
18. Stains – Clean copper and brass with salt and lemon juice (three parts salt to one juice).
19. Microwave - Add lemon slice to small bowl of water, then microwave for 5 minutes and wipe clean.
20. Grater - Remove dried food from your grater by rubbing with the pulp side of a cut lemon.
21. Polish – Make furniture polish from 1 part lemon juice and 2 parts cooking oil.
22. All-purpose cleaner – mix equal parts lemon juice and water in a spray bottle.
23. Taps - Cut lemon into slices and leave on limescale stains around taps for 10 mins (or as long as overnight). Scrub with old toothbrush and rinse.
24. Toilet – Use lemon juice to help clean dirty toilets.
25. Windows - Make your own eco friendly window cleaner.
26. Dishes – Instead of washing up liquid, try soaking a cloth / sponge in lemon juice, give them a scrub, then rinse in warm water.

Laundry

27. Mildew - Rub stained clothes with a lemon and leave in the sun for 12 hours or more.
28. Rust – Remove stains from clothes by applying lemon juice and dry under a hot sun.
29. Whiter whites - Mix lemon juice with water to whiten whites.
30. Fresh smell - A tsp of lemon juice added to your wash  will make clothes smell fresher.

Aromas

31. Firelighters - After cooking, use residual oven heat to bake discarded orange or lemon peels until they darken. These create natural, fragrant firelighters.
32. Pot pourri - Dry peels to add to your pot pourri.
33. Fridge – Cut lemon in half and let it absorb fridge smells.
34. Bins - Throw lemon peel in the bin from time to time to keep it smelling fresh.
35. Odour – Neutralise the smell of vinegar-based cleaning products with a small amount of juice.

Food and drink

36. Cut waste #1 - Waste less of your lemon by cutting into quarters / slices, and freeze until you need them.
37. Cut waste #2 - ‘Massage’ your lemon or roll it in your hands before you squeeze it to get more juice out.
38. Make food last longer – Add a squeeze of lemon to cut fruit, home made juice and salads to help them stay fresh longer.
39. Salad - For a simple, cheap and healthy dressing, blend lemon juice and olive oil.
40. Lemonade - Put juice from 3 lemons and water in blender and liquidise. Add sugar to taste. Strain, add ice and serve

Last but not least.......one last thing....tequila