People are creatures of habit, and we don’t like to hear we’ve been using something wrong for years. But when you hear these life hacks you’ll be glad you’ve finally found out how to use them as they’re pretty darn cool.
Here are all those products you’ve been misusing for years:
1. Tic Tacs
You know what it’s like with Tic Tacs, you open them and try to shake out just one and end up with four. Of course, rather than put them back in the packet you put all four in your mouth giving youself mouth-mint burn. But did you know the Tic Tac lid is also a neat little dispenser? No, us neither and now we feel silly.
2. Takeout boxes
Ordering takeaway is supposed to be the ultimate in lazy nights, so why don’t these restaurants send their food with plates so we don’t dirty our plates? Well apparently they have been, for years. All you need to do is fold out the box and boom you’ve got a plate.
3. Cans
Do you know those tabs you use to open your cans? Have you ever wondered what the little hole was for? Well so have we, and apparently it’s for holding your straw. Which makes perfect sense as otherwise your straw keeps lifting out.
4. Juice boxes
See those tabs on the side of juice bottles, well they can be unstuck to become little cute handles for your kid. They’ll probably still spill juice everywhere but at least you tried.
5. Spoon holder
We bet a good proportion of us have bought a spoon rest for cooking, but did you know your pot already had an in-built spoon rest? So that’s what that hole is for!
5. Soft drink lids
It makes perfect sense that the lids you get with your soft drink double as a coaster – why else would there be so many bumps on the lid? Now you’ll never go without a coaster again.
6. Dental floss
In order to stop yourself from garroting your fingers off with dental floss you should tie a not in the string. Now you’ll have perfect teeth and all your fingers.
7. Toblerone
You know how hard it is to try and break pieces of toblerone off, you always end up with 2 or 3 pieces and covered in chocolate. Instead you just just break it like the picture above. Seems far too simple. And you don’t get as much chocolate.
8. Extension cables
To stop your extension cables coming our you can simply tie a knot in them to there’s no pull. And here’s us thinking you need to spend hours getting knots out of cables.
9. Toilet seat covers
For anyone who hates sitting on a public toilet seat – especially at festivals – toilet seat covers are a must. Until you go to sit down and find it’s fallen off and you’re on the seat – yuck. Well never experience that again, because you’ve been putting it on wrong. The flap goes to the front preventing it from falling off.
10. Corner pot yoghurts
Have you ever sat and spooned all the corner goodness into your yoghurt? Don’t worry, us too. What you’re actually supposed to do is bend the corner over and all the topping falls in.
11. Toothpaste
Contrary to all those toothpaste adverts that encourage us to put loads of toothpaste on our brushes, you only actually need a pea-sized drop. And you should never rinse your mouth with water after brushing.
12. Sauce cups
Who knew that those sauce cups you get in the likes of McDonalds for tomato sauce actually fold out so you can hold lots more sauce than you thought you could.
13. Peanut butter
You need to store your peanut butter upside down in order for all the the oils distribute evenly. Otherwise your peanut butter will be oily on top and crumbly on the bottom.
14. Foil packets
Aluminium foil and plastic wrap is always falling out the box – probably because none of noticed the instructions at the side which have tabs to press in that hold your tube in place. Ooops!
15. Hair pins
It might seem more logical to put the wavy side face up but it’s wrong! It’s actually the wavy side that should go head down.
16. Bananas
For some reason us silly humans think bananas should be peeled from the top, but it’s actually much easier to pinch the bottom as the banana will crack much easier. Just how monkeys and apes peel them!
17. Wooden spoons
You may have thought that a wooden spoon was just for stirring but, in fact, if you put a wooden spoon over a boiling pan it will prevent the liquid from boiling over too.
18. Coca Cola
For some Coca Cola is a just a drink, for others these cans of coke have many uses. For instance, did you know you can use coke to clear your frozen windscreen, loosen rusty bolts and even neutralise jellyfish stings!
