Genius Flour Hacks You’ll Wish You’d Known Sooner
Updated: Nov. 28, 2022If you're only using flour in the kitchen, you're tapping just a fraction of its potential.
Smart household uses for flour
Polish brass and copper
No need to go out and buy expensive cleaner for your brass and silver. You can whip up your own at a fraction of the cost. Just combine equal parts of flour, salt and vinegar, and mix into a paste. Spread the paste onto the metal, let it dry, and buff it off with a clean, dry cloth.
Use flour to make modeling clay
Keep the kids busy on a rainy day with modeling clay—they can even help you make the stuff. Knead together 3 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup salt, 1 cup water, 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, and 1 or 2 drops food colouring (if desired). If the mixture is sticky, add more flour; if it’s too stiff, add more water. When the “clay” is a workable consistency, store it until needed in a self-sealing plastic bag.
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Restore lustre to your sink
To buff your stainless steel sink back to a warm glow, sprinkle flour over it and rub lightly with a soft, dry cloth. Then rinse the sink to restore its shine.
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A safe paste for kids’ crafts
Looking for an inexpensive, non-toxic paste that’s ideal for children’s paper craft projects, such as papier-mache and scrap-booking? It just so happens this is one of the best household uses for flour. To make the paste, add 3 cups cold water to a saucepan and blend in 1 cup all-purpose flour. Stirring constantly, bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring until smooth and thick. Cool and pour into a plastic squeeze bottle to use. This simple paste will keep for weeks in the refrigerator, and cleans up easily with soap and water.
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Repel ants
Sprinkle a line of flour along the backs of pantry shelves and wherever you see ants entering the house. Repelled by the flour, ants won’t cross over the line.
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Freshen playing cards
After a few late night rounds of poker, cards can accumulate a patina of snack residue and hand oil, but you can restore them with some all-purpose flour in a paper bag. Drop the cards into the bag with enough flour to cover, shake vigorously, and remove the cards. The flour will absorb the oils, and it can be easily knocked off the cards by giving them a good shuffle.
Now that you’ve got these household uses for flour under your belt, check out our best-ever baking soda hacks.
