COOKING OILS

Vegetable- and plant-based oils, such as olive and sunflower, dislodge dirt, diminish scratches and imperfections, and "hydrate wood that has aged or dried out from exposure to the sun," says Hunter. Price: About $7 a pint at supermarkets.

Use Them to Clean Your…
Cast-iron pans:

Make a scrubbing paste with vegetable oil and a teaspoon of coarse salt to combat cooked-on debris, then rinse with hot water.
HANDS:

To get paint off your skin, rub with vegetable oil, then wash thoroughly with soap.
LEATHER SHOES:

Wipe away dirt with a damp sponge, then apply a drop of vegetable oil to a soft cloth and rub the surface to remove scuff marks. Buff the shoes with a chamois to a shine.
RATTAN AND WICKER FURNITURE :

To prevent rattan and wicker from drying or cracking, lightly brush them with vegetable or sunflower oil and gently rub in with a cloth. Warm the oil on the stove first to thin it and make it easier to apply.
STAINLESS STEEL SILVERWARE:

For extra sparkle, pour olive oil onto a cloth and buff.
WOOD FURNITURE:

Make your own polish by mixing 2 cups olive or vegetable oil with the juice of 1 lemon; work it in with a soft cloth. To smooth out scratches in light-colored wood, rub them with a solution of equal parts olive or vegetable oil and lemon juice.

BORAX

When added to a laundry wash, borax makes detergents even more effective. It's also "quite alkaline, so it kills mold and fungus and softens water," says Robert Wolke, Ph.D., author of What Einstein Told His Cook: Kitchen Science Explained (W. W. Norton & Company, $16, amazon.com). Price: About $5 for 4 pounds at supermarkets.

Use It to Clean Your
Baseboards, countertops, and walls: Dissolve 1/2 cup borax in 1 gallon hot water and pour the solution into a spray bottle (which you can store for later use). Spritz generously, wipe down with a damp cloth, and let air-dry.

China (including hand painted): Soak china in a dishpan filled with warm water and 1/2 cup borax; rinse well.
Dishwasher: If the machine is smelling like last night's chicken cacciatore, sprinkle borax in the bottom, let it sit overnight, then wipe down with a damp sponge. No need to rinse; just run the next load.
Pots and pans: Rub borax into cookware with a damp sponge; rinse well
TOILET:

Pour borax in the bowl and let it sit overnight, says Annie Bond, author of Better Basics for the Home (Three Rivers Press, $19, amazon.com). Swish the bowl a few times with a toilet brush and flush the next day. "Borax really gets rid of rust stains," she says.