The Homemaker’s Guide to Easy Home Solutions Part IV: Nail Polish Edition

When you think of nail polish, you think of the hottest shades of the season that will make the nails on your hands and feet stand out above everyone else. But nail polish has several other uses besides being a nail protectant and an essential in a mani/pedi combo splurge. Nail polish can be a secret weapon in your household. It’ll help fight against rust in your bathroom and keep buttons falling off of your favorite blouse.

Read ahead for more uses of this pretty yet functional product.

Label your children’s sports equipment. With your children’s gear looking much like other children’s, you can use nail polish to uniquely label your children’s equipment. Take a bright nail polish color and paint a small dot of the bottom of the equipment or another subtle spot. This way, it won’t affect the gear’s overall appearance, but at the same time, will let your children know which bat or skate is theirs.

Keep a ribbon from shredding. Paint the ends of a ribbon with clear nail polish to safeguard against the natural shredding of the fabric ribbons are made from.

Never lose another button on a shirt or jacket. Paint the tops of the buttons on your shirts to strengthen the thread that is interwoven through the holes of the button so it won’t fall off.

Always find the right setting on your bath or shower. It’s annoying when you’re fiddling with the hot and cold settings in your shower or bathtub, trying to find the perfect water temperature. Don’t waste another second trying to find the right setting by marking it with your favorite nail polish color on the hot and cold knobs.

911 highlighter. Help your kids easily find the 911 speed dial on your telephone or cell phone by painting the button a bright shade.

Keep away rust in the bathroom. It’s hard to keep a can of shaving cream on the bathroom counter of bathtub without it rusting from water splashing. To keep rust away, paint the metal bottom with clear nail polish.

Stop cabinet door knobs from falling out. Stop another knob in your cabinet from falling out by dipping the pesky knob in a container of clear nail polish and screwing it back into place.

Store nail polish in the fridge. When you’re not using the nail polish, store the bottle in the refrigerator because it’ll keep the formula from clumping up, and the color from fading.