Benefits of Using Silicone First, let’s go over why you’d want to choose a silicone beauty tool and personal device over other types of materials. According to Ben Segarra, co-founder of meejee, silicone is more hygienic for skin (and down under) than other materials. “It is almost impossible for bacteria to grow on silicone due to its non-porous surface and natural antimicrobial properties,” he says. “This prevents you from putting unwanted bacteria onto your skin, unlike nylon bristles or other materials that grow bacteria after the first use....

Read on for a dose of much-needed sanitation realness. Refrigerator Crisper and Meat Drawers This one’s surprising because a well-functioning fridge is the only place in your kitchen (heck, your home) that you can count on to keep your food at a low enough temperature—i.e. below 40 degrees—to prevent it from growing potentially unsafe bacteria. But alas, this doesn’t mean it can’t harbor germs. According to the NSF, the crisper drawers are often found to have traces of Salmonella, Listeria, bacteria, and mold, and same goes for the meat drawer (which is also at high risk for E....

When was the last time you cleaned your range hood filter? If you use our 30 days of spring cleaning guide, chances are good you’ve wiped it down recently. However, like many homeowners, you might be surprised to learn you even have a range hood filter, let alone need to clean it. We asked Sarah McAllister, founder of the cleaning company and Instagram sensation Go Clean Co, to share her best advice on range hood filter cleaning....

What Is Co-Washing? Co-washing is short for “conditioner-only washing.” It means skipping shampoo and relying solely on conditioner, whether you’re a daily or a weekly washer. Most conditioners contain trace amounts of detergents called cationic surfactants, or “quats” for short. (Some common types that you can find on your conditioner’s ingredient list are cetrimonium and behentrimonium chloride.) When mixed with water, the quats pick up tiny amounts of dirt, leaving unshampooed hair feeling clean, but not too clean (a common beauty mistake to avoid)....

Whether you’re planning on hosting immediate family or just a few friends—and taking the party outdoors or hosting a digital Thanksgiving dinner—you may want to consider springing for a smaller turkey. Here’s what you should know about picking out and preparing a delicious little bird. Where to Buy a Small Turkey Since most supermarkets only carry standard 20-pound turkeys, it’s a good idea to call your supermarket ahead of time (several weeks is ideal) to ensure they have what you want....

For those who get particularly antsy while waiting for their manicure to finish, rest assured that some hacks can help dry your nails more quickly. Granted, it won’t make your manicure completely dry in seconds unless you’re getting a gel manicure, but it can cut down that wait time so you can get to show off your manicure sooner. From quick-drying topcoats to using cooking spray, here are some tips and tricks professional nail artists say can help dry nail polish quickly....

As manufacturers strive to create sustainable and earth-friendly products, they are beefing up their take-back and recycling programs. To incentivize us as consumers to take advantage of these programs, many companies now offer cash back or other rewards when you participate. Ahead, steps for how to keep more items out of landfills—while earning rewards for your good deeds through these programs. Clothing The United States is awash in used clothes....

Buy It: Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea ($32, Jackson & Perkins) Where to Plant Vanilla Strawberry Hydrangea Like most panicle hydrangeas, ‘Vanilla Strawberry’ does best in full sun, though it appreciates afternoon shade in warmer climates in the southern and western regions of the country. Its mature height is 6 to 7 feet with a spread of 4 to 5 feet, so make sure to plant it where it will have room to reach its full size....

How to accomplish that goal exactly? Setting aside the possibility of a lottery windfall, it takes focus, dedication, and some financially savvy moves to attack your mortgage principal more quickly. Here’s a closer look at how you can be mortgage-free on your own timeline. “This strategy involves refinancing your mortgage for a lower interest rate but continuing to pay the same amount as you did before [the refinance],” explains Johannes Larsson, CEO of Financer....

Perhaps the most well-known type, wax begonias are named for the waxy look of their leaves. These reliable plants come in a variety of sizes to fit just about any space, from as small as six inches to nearly three feet tall, and can often handle partial shade or full sun. Their boldly colored flowers, which may be single or double, last throughout the summer. In the wax family alone, you’ll find multiple shades on the white-to-red spectrum....

Though not the main reason they are grown, many varieties produce small flowers that grace the attractive foliage. Most often these three-petal blossoms are pink, purple, or white and typically at the stem tips. However, in some species these flowers are at the base of the leaves in oysterlike clusters, hence the common name of oyster plant. Where to Plant Tradescantia If you’re planting tradescantia indoors, put it near a window that gets bright, indirect sunlight....

Test Your Smoke Detectors Almost three out of five home fire deaths occurred in buildings without smoke alarms, according to data from the National Fire Protection Association. How many smoke alarms you need will depend on the size of your home, but at minimum, you want an alarm on every floor of your home, one in each bedroom, and one outside of each sleeping area. Special alarms with strobe lights and bed shakers can be installed for those who are deaf or hard of hearing....

Impulsive buying is a difficult habit to break, especially at grocery stores. It’s easy to start filling your cart with buy-one-get-one snacks, bottles of wine on sale, and some new salad dressings that sound tasty. Next thing you know, you’ve spent an extra $100 on groceries you never intended to spend. It adds up fast-especially when you’re grocery shopping on a weekly basis. Breaking the cycle Spending ridiculous amounts of money on groceries (some averaging out to $250 or more per haul) is pretty easy to do....

“Some people will go into debt to give money to someone else, and that’s a huge financial mistake,” says personal finance advisor Lynette Khalfani-Cox. “You have to set firm boundaries and determine the type of help you will give and under what circumstances.” Yes, this includes siblings, children, and aging parents—all people with whom it may be especially hard (but all the more important) to set those boundaries. So, how do you stop family members from asking for money?...

How to Store Dry Pasta Tight, secure seals will prevent bugs from infesting dry pasta. Once you’ve opened the original box or container of pasta, it’s important to transfer any leftover dry pasta to a fresh, airtight storage container. Keep airtight pasta containers in a cool, dark, dry place, like a cupboard. Stored in this way, dry pasta lasts indefinitely. How to Store Fresh Pasta Fresh pasta hasn’t been dehydrated, so it doesn’t last as long as dry pasta does....

How to Store Red Wine Red wine and white wine can be stored together, no wine fridge required. “Still wine in general benefits from being stored in a consistently cool, dark place that isn’t too dry,” says Amy Racine, sommelier and beverage director at JF Restaurants. “If there isn’t enough humidity, sometimes the cork can shrivel up and dry out, but most homes and basements already are just fine for this....

How Often Should You Wash Towels? Before we dive into the right technique for washing your towels, let’s cover how often you should be washing them. Towel washing frequency is one of those things that divide even the closest of families—some believe they should be switched out after every use, while others swear they can survive for weeks without a soak. You only use your towel after getting clean, so it can’t get too dirty, right?...

With a bag of chocolate chips, you’re a handful of ingredients away from chocolate chip cookies at any time of the day (or night) and any day of the week. The other cookie ingredients—sugar, flour, butter, salt—are always in my pantry, too. You’re also one microwave melt away from turning those baked goods into presentation-worthy drizzled cookies for a pot luck or welcoming gift for your new neighbor. Chocolate chip-zucchini bread for my friend who just brought her baby home from the hospital?...

I spent the second half of last year testing various products designed to make your life easier, and these are my favorites. Favorite Tested Products Favorite cordless vacuum: Shark WandvacWhile this vacuum didn’t win the “best” in our guide, it was my personal favorite due to its small size, powerful suction, and trending color options. Smartest Vacuum: Tineco PureOne S11I won’t recommend a robot vacuum here because there are better innovative options like this Tineco vacuum with a color-changing dirt-detecting smart screen....

In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued an eviction moratorium order preventing the eviction of any tenants who could not make payments. This eviction order ended on August 26, 2021, and the Eviction Lab website, which tracks evictions in six states and 31 cities, found sharp increases in eviction rates. In September, 2021, over 510,000 households received emergency rental assistance from state and local governments, according to data from the Department of the Treasury....