In my family, we’ve been using these household tips for generations. These tips have been passed down from my great-grandmother. They’re tried and true old-fashioned tips that still work in our modern day. I hope they help make your life a little bit easier. I’m excited to share them with you!
When my great-grandmother, Ma Horton, died, I was 13, and she was 85 years old. She left us with beautiful memories and many lessons for life.
I have a rich farming heritage because of who they were, and my grandparents taught me all their parents taught them. Whether or not I remember it all is another story!
Ma Horton’s wisdom has been handed down because her daughters wrote some of it down for those of us in the younger generations. They recorded her recipes, gardening advice, and kitchen and household tips as well.
These are a few of those household tips that I use in my own home.
Homestead Household Tips From My Great-Grandmother
- Use an old toothbrush to clean the crevices of the handles of your knives, your can opener, and your hand grater.
- I use one to clean the tight places of my drain rack.
- Boil away stuck-on food from your pots by adding a couple of tablespoons of baking soda to a pot half full of water and boiling until the burnt-on food loosens and floats.
- Rub a little oil on your hand grater before use to keep food from sticking.
- Make a baking soda and vinegar paste and rub it on the stove to remove stubborn stuck on food or stains.
- You may have to let it sit for 10 to 15 minutes.
- I use this to clean my sinks and tub, too.
- Rub a small amount of beeswax onto your dusting cloth to polish and dust at the same time. I do use beeswax to make my own dusting polish and if I am out of the polish, I just use the beeswax.
- If you keep popcorn in the freezer, it will stay fresh and eliminate “old maids” (kernels that don’t pop). We don’t eat a great deal of popcorn, so this works well for us.
- For a fluffier omelet, add a pinch of cornstarch to your eggs before beating them.
- To quickly soften butter, place a heated pot over the butter dish for just a few minutes.
- Always heat the pan before adding butter or oil to prevent fires or burning.
- If your brown sugar gets hard, place a piece of bread in the canister with it to absorb moisture and soften it up. (I make my own brown sugar now, but I did use this one in the past.)
I hope you enjoy using these household tips or at least reading them. Do you have helpful hints from your grandmother, great-grandmother, or mother to share?
You can read more of my great-grandmother’s tips from her kitchen on TFL.
I really enjoyed your blog post and the following comments! All my grandparents are gone, and I don’t remember much of their tips and tricks, so really appreciate hearing from others. My mom was a depression baby, and we grew up using much of what came from her experience, like wearing bread bags over our shoes in winter (we didn’t have galoshes). I did that with my children, too, although they thought me crazy! We also always had moth balls in the house plants to keep pets out, although I think it was more of a deterrent to us kids than to the cat. Anyway, thank you all for sharing!
Angel, Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts. I’m glad you mentioned moth balls. My grandmother had them all over her house, especially in the quilt stack. I still to this day like the smell of them. I guess that’s because they remind me of her house. My mom and others think I’m crazy for liking the smell, but that’s OK. 🙂
Congratulations Rhonda! This post was chosen as the feature on this week’s Simple Saturday’s Blog Hop! Hope you will be back to link up again this week. Also, feel free to grab the featured button Your post will be pinned on the Simple Saturdays Blog Hop as a #FabulousFive!
Janet, Thanks so much for the letting me know about this honor. I enjoy participating in the Simple Saturday’s Blog Hop. Thanks for the invitation.
Rhonda, : Oh thank you for inviting me over, I have just had another, few chapters of a detailed autobiography dancing through my mind as I was reading the other comments. and agree with all Magghymay, said regarding what you could use a BAKING SODA paste for, it is a product that I have never been without because of the multiple things it can be used for. my most constant one is cleaning my hairbrush, like your hair in your profile photo, mine is also long and thick ( not as thick as it was 20 years ago) and after brushing, my brush is full, of hair, ( after I have finish I look at the hair that I have pulled out of the brush, and think I should learn how to make wigs, But like many of my great ideas, it only took couple of minutes to realize it was not one of my ” really great ideas”, ) and of course the base of the bristles collect all the dust, TIP; put hot water in hand basin, shake a tablespoon,or so, in, and mix with hands till dissolved drop brush in and let it be for a couple of hours or so, (next time you want to use the basin) give it a good shake and pat excess water out on to a towel, wella!! spanking new hair brush looks brand new.
Thanks, Lady Marion, that is a good tip for cleaning your hairbrush. Sometimes I add a little soap to the mix, if I’ve done an oil treatment or something. I know what you mean about the hairbrush being full. I actually keep mine and use it as a deer deterrent! 🙂 Mine isn’t thinner though, I just keep getting more and more new growth…that’s a good thing, not complaining.
I hung my diapers on the line too, nothing like it for getting them clean and fresh. For whitening them I used my grandmas tip, lay them in the green grass in the sun, flip after a few hours. My daughters diapers were always the whitest you ever saw! I work at a nursing home and collect great tips all the time. You are right about us losing important life skills knowledge with the loss of the greatest elders around.
Nancy, When I retired from nursing (after 21 years), I had been a geriatric nurse for almost 8 years. I loved being around the old people. I am glad you are enjoying them too. Thanks so much for sharing.
A GOOD BAKING TIP FROM GRAM WHEN YOU RUN OUT OF BAKING CHOCOLATE SQUARES…..TO MAKE 1 SQUARE OF BAKING CHOCOLATE USE 3 TABLESPOONS OF COCOA POWDER + 1 TABLESPOON OF VEGETABLE OIL. ANOTHER GOOD TIP FOR BUG BITES, MAKE A PASTE OF BAKING SODA AND WATER, APPLY TO BITE UNTIL SODA BECOMES DRY……OR USE HOUSEHOLD AMMONIA ON THE BITE …….AMMONIA ALSO WORKS GREAT ON BEE STINGS…TAKES THE SWELLING AND PAIN RIGHT DOWN…..ESP GOOD FOR WASP STINGS… I LOVE THE WISDOM OF OUR ELDERS, AND TRY TO LEARN WHAT I CAN FROM THEM…….IT MAY SOUND “ODD” TO US NOW, BUT THEY WORKED WITH WHAT THEY HAD AND DID WELL WITH IT……NOT SO RELIANT ON TECHNOLOGY AND MACHINES. 😀
Those are some really great tips you shared. I haven’t heard of ammonia on stings. I’ll have to remember it this summer. I invariably put my hand on a wasp when I’m picking peas. 🙁 It doesn’t sound weird at all that you love the wisdom of the old timers, that would mean I’m weird too and that just can’t be 🙂 I too feel we have lost so much wisdom and talk to every older person I can to learn from them. We strive to not be dependent on technology here on the farm, we are considered “a little odd”, but that’s OK with us. Thanks again for stopping by and sharing such wonderful tips.
My paternal grandmother passed away a couple of years ago at the age of 98. There are a many things that she taught me or little bits of advice she gave. Here are just a few:
– I remember her teaching me to make a bed and I loved how she would lift up the pillows and tuck the blanket under to give it a clean neat look. I now have a daughter of my own and I love making up the bed with her and knowing that as I teach her she’s learning the same method her great grandmother used.
– She also taught me to always put my right shoe on first so I would “have a right day”.
– And of course having lived through the Great Depression I remember her and grandpa always have at least 6 loaves of bread on hand and she would take used tin foil that had been on a casserole and wash it off and use a quarter to straighten it back out to reuse again. As a child I thought it was the smartest idea and even today I find it hard to throw away good tin foil:).
Amy, Thanks so much for taking the time to share your tips with me. What a blessing to have your grandmother until 98. I can imagine she did have much to share and teach you. These tips are timeless. The memory of bed making and sharing that with your daughter warms my heart, I thank you for opening that part of your life to me. I had to chuckle at the right shoe tip, I’ll probably think of it every time I put my shoes on now! 🙂
Amy you are so correct, if you don’t put the RIGHT shoe on first, things will go WRONG
Wow Rhonda, I spotted your initial entry on Jan 28th, and made a comment back, on Jan 31s. At that time I read down the rest of the comments that were made, ( only learned one thing cornstarch in scrambled eggs, the main reason being that I was brought up by my grandmother, on a farm. I was born in the thirty’s, so life was hard, no electricity, for easy appliances, etc, it is now Feb 6th and I have just read down to your last comment, and had a lot of laughs. My tip that could still be very useful today, is that if you ever get an unexpected visitor, just as you were going to dish up, an already cooked dinner, and you have only cooked, enough ” meat mashed potato’s and veg.” for those that are there, just pop a teaspoon of milk, and 1-2 teaspoons of baking SODA, ( start less, you can always add, you can’t take out) to the potato’s and give them a good whipping with a fork, you will be surprised at the bigger part of the plate, will be covered, so that the other portions are not noticeably smaller. So many memories have passed through my mind since I started reading a few hours ago, Had to read and delete so much before posting. Tks Rhonda from New Zealand.
Sounds like you had an amazing childhood. I’m glad you have such pleasant memories. To think that the article and the comments brought you happiness thrills me. I’m honored that someone of your “life experience”(I wouldn’t say age 🙂 ) enjoyed the article and took the time to share, it really means a great deal to me. Thank you for sharing your tip with us. I have never heard that one before. I’m always eager to learn old-timey tips and tricks. Please stop by any time. You may enjoy 10 Tips From my Great-Grandmother’s Kitchen as well. Let me know what you think.
I do enjoy reading the Tricks of Yesterday from folks much Wiser than we live in todays society. Thanks for sharing.
Life back then may have seemed simple to us, but it was hard living thru it all. As my mother and dad used to say, ‘A need is the Motherhood of ‘Invention’..thus it was cheaper for them to use what they had available than to go find some place to buy it ‘readimade’..’Making Do’, is what it was all about.
Thanks again for the pleasure of being able to read these Wise Shares.
Midilang
Excuse the misquote: let me correct that error:
“Necessity is the Motherhood of Invention”
Midilang, Thank you for taking the time to share your encouragement and memories. You’re right, “Necessity is the Mother of Invention” and there are good things about our modern day, but like you, I too feel we have lost so much wisdom in today’s society. Life was harder then, but simpler. I often think about how all of the modern time saving devices don’t save us any time. The old-timers worked hard all day long, but still had time to sit on the porch and visit and share a cup of coffee or glass of water with passers by. Most people don’t even know their neighbors’ names. Thanks again for sharing.
Loved the tips, many we use in our household. One of my favorite tips I just learned was when canning jam/jellies you do not have to buy pectin but can use 1-2 green apples grated into the jelly to make it set. I have not tried it yet on jelly but I was having the darndest time with my jellied cranberry sauce setting, I added one green apple (grated) into my sauce while it cooked and it set up perfect!
Wow! That is awesome, I experimented without using pectin this year and didn’t have great success. Do you strain the apple out or leave it in? I am curious to know and am going to try it. Thanks so much.
I leave it in, did not strain it at all and it seemed to have just dissolved into the cranberry. Apple does not have a very strong flavor and it seems to compliment most other foods well.
Thanks so much for letting me know. I can’t wait to try it this year. I wrote it down so I could remember it when the time comes.
Thank you for the tips from your great grandmother, one that has been passed down in my family hasn’t anything to do with household chores but with the structure of the family. It was never go to bed with a bad word between you and always tell plus show a person that you love them because you never know what’s going to happen.
Belinda, Yes, that is a wonderful tip. It’s so true that we cannot know what the next 5 minutes holds so we should be careful with our words and actions as you said. Thank you so much for sharing this with us.
So very, very true!
Love the receipe for brown sugar … We all need to get back to the basics … Like my huaband said today the young people wouldn’t know what to do if the grid would collapse…thank you for your knowledge of the days gone by !
Sherry, Thanks so much for stopping in to share your comment. I agree with your husband that the day is coming when there will be a great many hurting people because they won’t know what to do. That’s one of the reasons I try to share with everyone who asks. I am glad you like the post and the site.
My great -grandma was Scottish, and had all sorts of expressions and superstitions like throwing salt over your shoulder if you spilled the shaker, or not bringing a shovel into the house (it would bring death with it). Her pie-baking tips were to roll the crusts out between wax paper sheets, then peel off one sheet and flop it into the pie plate. Also, to line the empty pie plate with wax paper or plastic wrap, put in the filling & freeze it, then after it’s frozen, bag it and freeze to make super-fast pies for later. (You can make big batches of fruit filling in season, and have pies all year long!)
Liz, I am Scottish Celtic descent, so I am sure your great-grandma was full of wisdom! 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing her wonderful pie crust and pie making tips. She sounds like she was a pro!
When my son had diaper rash 30+ years ago my mom said brown some flour and put that on it. It worked!!!
Debbie, it worked? Boy, wish I had known about that when my boys were little, but now I know it for future, way future, grandkids. 🙂 Thank you for stopping by and sharing.
I used the browned flour too. I’ve never heard anyone else mention it till now 🙂 Also, I used cotton diapers and hung them in the sun on the line; makes them really white, and kills the bacteria. Love this article, thank you.
Pamela, I used cotton diapers with my boys too and you are right, the sunshine made all the difference. Thank you for stopping in to comment, I am so glad you liked the article.
Do not be a chicken, go out in the cool and hang the diapers on the clothes. Bring them back (they will still be frozen _ the stains will be gone and they will smell so fresh, that you won’t believe it.
Agnes, Your comment made me smile. It reminded me of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s book The Long Winter. In it they took the clothes out and lay them on the snow in -30 degree weather, brought them in frozen, rolled them up and then ironed them the next day. Thanks for taking the time to share with me.
Yes I did this as well. Worked like a charm.
Of all the things I appreciate most in my life, it is being born in a family of farmers. This is a wonderful place that is bookmarked, and one I will visit again. Thank you for sharing your farm tips with an old farm girl.
Charlino, like you, I too think being born into a farming family is one my greatest blessings. Thank you for such kind compliments. I hope you always enjoy The Farmer’s Lamp, one farm girl to another. 🙂
Ii enjoyed reading these old-timey tips! I’m sure my grandma is full of them 🙂 (I like the way to heat up a stick of butter!)
Your grandma was so cute!!!! 🙂
Katie, I bet your grandma would shock you with how much she knows! I’ve been told I look like my Granny who looks just like my great-grandmother, so I will take that compliment! 🙂
Tspn of cornstarch, 1/4 c vinegar the rest in a spray bottle. Best window cleaner I’ve found plus other uses. Use newspaper for best results
Oops sorry, the rest water 🙂
Wow, Karen, cornstarch in vinegar and water! I would never have thought about cornstarch. I will be trying that. Thanks so much for taking the time to share it. No white residue? I just can’t wait to try it.
Wonderful ideas. Reading made me smile and glance at the picture of my Grandmother. “Nanny” was my mentor, warrior and the most frugal woman I knew. There were always freezer bags filled with what appeared to me as a youngster to be the neighbor’s garbage. Each bag was carefully labeled however. One for beef bones, one for chicken parts/bones, one filled with kitchen scraps like carrot peels, the ends of celery, etc., and one with bits of leftover vegetables (This one was transformed into a soup she called “Trash”). When it was time, out would come the biggest stew pot you have ever seen. Six or eight hours later and Nanny and I would can the most amazing broths and stocks for the pantry. My eldest daughter and I carry on Nanny’s tradition today. It not only warms the tummy, but the heart every time.
Kaye, I’m so glad you enjoyed the article and that it triggered warm memories. Your Nanny sounds like such a special blessing. I love “trash” soup, we don’t call it that, but the same idea. You’re keeping her alive by continuing the tradition and I think that’s so wonderful. Thank you for sharing your memories with me.
One I use a lot is putting vinegar in the wash with the laundry to remove odors from the clothes and for things too big to go in the washer use a mix of equal parts vodka and water to eliminate odors.
Cammi, thanks so much for stopping by to comment. Vinegar in the wash is a staple here too. But now the vodka and water is new to me, I will give it try on my comforter. Thanks for sharing your great tips.
In theatre, we call a mix like this “French Spray”… vodka & water, perhaps with a touch of essential oil (also prevents it from being a tempting drink! hehehe). The costumes that are dry clean and non-wash are sprayed with the French Spray between shows to remove odors and freshen up the fabric. It would be rather tragic not to have this option. Phew!
Diane, I can imagine that it is a necessary option! I would add essential oils to stop the temptation too 🙂
Vodka huh :P. If the wife sends me down to the basement to do clothes with a bottle of the stuff she probably won’t see me for the rest of the day :D, so chances are she wouldn’t go for the vodka idea 😀 lol. 1 for the wash, 3 for meeeeee :D.
Zak, Thanks for the laugh this morning! You are too funny. I’ve not had vodka, but maybe it’s time? 🙂 Thanks so much for stopping in.
So happy to find this place feels like home !!
Peggy, your comment is so heart warming for me. I really appreciate your sharing. I want you to always feel at home with The Farmer’s Lamp family. Please let me know if I can ever be of help in any way.
My Granny told my Daddy one time not to worry about having enough money to pay a hospital bill,she said tell them to charge it to the ground and let the rain settle it.lol
Thanks so much for sharing this with us. Your story made me smile and chuckle. Your Granny sounds like she was a treat to know.
Oh, I love the butter softening tip! Our kitchen stays pretty chilly during the winter months, and our butter is always rock hard. I can’t wait to give this a try!. Thanks for sharing at the Homestead Blog hop. Hope to see you again this week!
Angi, I’m so glad you enjoyed the article. Thanks so much for stopping by for a comment. I appreciate the opportunity to participate in the Homestead Blog Hop.
Lady Locust; I had to do a giggle at this, and felt thankful that we only had newspaper to soften, we never had magazines, of any kind
Some of these I knew but it was nice to learn new ones.(the comments are great too!) I can’t wait to try the cornstarch one for the omelets Thanks for your memories!
Vickie, Thanks commenting. I’m glad you found a new tip. I too am always delighted to learn some new “old timey” wisdom. 🙂 The cornstarch works great – they look like a real chef made them.
Love your site!
One of the tips from your grandmother said she made her own brown sugar. How can I do this?
Thanks,
Marie
Oh yes, Marie. Making your own brown sugar is so easy. Since brown sugar is just sugar with the molasses not removed, all we do is add it back. 1 cup of sugar, 1 Tablespoon of molasses for light brown sugar or 2 Tablespoons molasses for dark brown sugar; Mix them until well blended. There you go! Let me know if I can be of any further help. Thanks for taking the time to comment and ask.
Heehee….the first one that came to mind was when you are sitting in the outhouse and tear a page from the Sears catalog, crumple it and straighten in several times to make it softer for intended use:)
I love the softening butter idea –
Oh my, what a funny first idea and a great tip at the same time 🙂 Thanks for sharing the laugh and idea. I appreciate your taking the time to comment.
I love these tips. I really needed to know to oil my grater before grating cheese – we have an issue every Saturday morning when we finally get around to washing the Friday Night Pizza dishes.
We often enjoy Friday night pizza and a movie at home together. It’s kind of our date night. I’m glad you found them helpful. Thank you for taking the time to comment.
I love reading about others learning from their elders, and the experiences they and wisdom they share. This post is near and dear to my heart. I wrote about my 98-year-old grandmother shortly before she passed away recently, in “My Homestead Inspiration”: http://lettersfromsunnybrook.com/homestead-inspiration/ and then my younger grandmother in a series about growing up during the Great Depression. Thank you for sharing yours as well. 🙂
Rebecca, Thank you so much for your sweet comment. I read your series about your grandmother during the depression and I really enjoyed it. I am like you in learning from the old timers and in hearing what others have learned from them. There is so much knowledge lost that can never be recovered.
Hi Rhonda! I so enjoyed reading ideas from the past. So much to learn and benefit from. I was wondering/hoping if maybe your grandmother had any cures for earaches. I have been fighting one off and on for a few months and the antibiotics just don’t seem to be helping. Maybe she had something that would. You have yourself a blessed day.
Peggie, I am so sorry you are suffering with this earache. They are debilitating, I know. I am not a doctor, so I can’t give medical advice, but I will share with you what we do in our family. We were raised using hydrogen peroxide in our ears for earaches. Not more often than once every 5 days, Granny said it “dried your ears out”. But I think she meant that it upset the equilibrium? Not sure. We do this at the first sign of cold or any respiratory issue. I use a dropper to fill the ear canal with the hydrogen peroxide and let it bubble until it stops or slows down greatly. Then drain it and use a cotton swab on the outer ear. Since most ear issues are related to the ears, we treat them too. I bring water to a boil and then turn off the burner. Add 5-7 drops of organic tea tree oil to the pot and immediately put a towel over our head to make a tent over the pot, breathing the vapors in deep. There is a burning/tingling in your sinuses and sometimes one of us may have to take a break, but after a few deep breaths, in through your nose out through your mouth, the tingling goes away. We add a few more drops to the hot water if needed to continue the treatment. We are careful not to put too many drops at first because it will burn too much. When we have a cold or sinus issues, I do this for my family 2-3 times a day and by the 2-3 day, there is no drainage or pressure left. I would add raw, organic apple cider vinegar to your diet, It boosts your immune system. We have 1 Tablespoon in 10 oz of water 2-3 times a day, every day. I would like to know how you do. Feel better soon.
If you are lucky enough to raise your own chickens. This is a good trick. I loved watching my Great Aunt Clara place a glass egg on her hens. She said it help them to stay on the next more. She must have been right as there was always a lot of baby chicks around. I have one of her glass eggs–this makes me very happy!
Agnes, I haven’t used ceramic eggs when they are setting, but I do put a few in the nests when my young hens are just beginning to lay. I do this so they will know where they are supposed to “go to work” 🙂 I have to say it works. Thanks for sharing your tip.
I learned this tip from my husband’s grandmother who still tends goats, chickens and a garden at 88. She puts a golf ball in her nests to kill off or deter snakes. She says it works and other friends who have chickens use the same method. But of course Tim’s grandfather’s shotgun works well on snakes too! 🙂
Amy, I am so happy to hear about people who are “mature” still living the life they love. I’m sure it keeps her going. Using golf balls is a good idea, I have used ceramic eggs, eggs with fish hooks, and eggs filled with red pepper to do that. Like you, I think the shotgun approach is an excellent option! 🙂