Simple Household Tips: The Amazing Power of Rubbing Alcohol

Many problems can arise around your home and rubbing alcohol can be a solution to some of these problems. Rubbing alcohol is a common household staple and there are so many ways that you can use it. You can use it to cool yourself down on a hot summer's day or you could even use it to make your own hairspray. The possibilities are virtually endless and here are just a few of the ways that you can use rubbing alcohol around your home.

Make your own summertime body spritzer

Living in an area where the temperatures can reach the 100's and higher, it can get pretty difficult to stay cool and comfortable. That's why when I learned this little tip; I welcomed it with both arms wide open. The tip is making your own body spritzer to keep you cool and happy, and believe me, it works.

To make this amazing homemade body spritzer, get a lime and squeeze the juice from it into a bowl, making sure to filter out the pulp. Take a clean spray bottle and pour about ½ cup of rubbing alcohol and about 3 teaspoons of orange or lemon extract into the spray bottle with the lemon juice. Replace the lid securely and shake.

Now you have a homemade body spritzer to keep you cool in the blistering heat. Make sure to store the body spritzer in the refrigerator with a label identifying its contents. You don't want anyone reaching into the refrigerator thinking it's a cool, refreshing drink.

Cleaning your curling iron

After using my curling iron so many times, I really wasn't shocked at how much hair product residue was left behind. To remove this sticky build up, all I used was a terry cloth washcloth and some rubbing alcohol.

Just apply about 2 tablespoons of rubbing alcohol onto a clean, dry terry cloth washcloth and wipe down the whole curling iron. Yes, even the handle section, because this section gets dirty too. The terry cloth washcloth's texture along with the rubbing alcohol works well with removing the most stubborn residue.

Make your own hairspray

Getting ready in the morning shouldn't be a problem even if you have run out of your favorite hairspray. With a little bit of prep time, you can still get the hairstyle that you've been eye balling out of the latest hairstyle magazine.

Get a medium sized pot from your kitchen cupboard and add about 2 cups of water. Then add a chopped up lemon and boil. Boil the water and lemon until the water is reduced to about half. Set the pot of water and lemon aside to cool, then strain. Now pour the solution into a clean spray bottle and add about 1 ounce of rubbing alcohol.

To make the hairspray solution last longer, store it in the refrigerator and it will last up to 3 to 4 weeks. Store out of the refrigerator, and you can expect it to last about 2 weeks.

These are just a few ideas to make the most out of the rubbing alcohol sitting in your medicine cabinet. Try them and you will be amazed at how well it actually works.

More from this contributor:

Simple tips for cleaning your hair curlers

How to get melted crayon out of a dryer drum

Amazing ways to use Cream of Tartar

Sources: Personal experience