Genius Toothpaste Hacks You’ll Wish You Knew Sooner

Use toothpaste to remove scuffs from shoes

A little toothpaste does an amazing job of removing scuffs from leather shoes. Just squirt a quick dab on the scuffed area and rub with a soft cloth, then wipe clean with a damp cloth. The leather will look like new.

Did you know… Ancient Egyptians used a mixture of ox-hoof ash, burned eggshells, myrrh, pumice and water to clean their teeth. It wasn’t until 1850 that a formula we would recognize as toothpaste was developed.

Prevent fogged goggles with toothpaste

Whether you’re doing some woodworking, going skiing or scuba diving, nothing is more frustrating (and sometimes dangerous) than fogged goggles. Prevent the problem by coating the goggles with toothpaste and then wiping them off.

Use toothpaste to clean piano keys

Has tickling the ivories left them a bit dingy? Clean them up with toothpaste and a toothbrush, and then wipe them down with a damp cloth.  (Makes sense since ivory is essentially elephant teeth.) However, toothpaste will work just as well on modern pianos that usually have keys covered with plastic rather than real ivory.

Psst—this is how often you should be replacing your toothbrush.

Deodorize baby bottles with toothpaste

Well-used baby bottles inevitable pick up a sour-milk smell. However, toothpaste will remove the odour in a jiffy. Just put some on your bottle brush and scrub away. Make sure you rinse off the toothpaste thoroughly.

Discover more ways to get rid of odours using items in your pantry.

Use toothpaste to clear up pimples

Dab a bit of non-gel, non-whitening toothpaste on the offending spot, and it should be dried up by morning. The toothpaste dehydrates the pimple and absorbs the oil. This remedy works best on pimples that have come to a head. Caution: This remedy may be irritating to sensitive skin.

These homemade facial mask recipes can also help clear up your complexion.

Clean smells from hands

The ingredients in toothpaste that deodorize your mouth will work on your hands as well. If you’ve gotten into something stinky (mincing garlic, for instance), wash your hands with toothpaste and they’ll smell great.

Check out 20+ thrifty tricks to make your home smell amazing.

Clean your sneakers

Want to clean and whiten the rubber part of your sneakers? Get out the non-gel toothpaste and an old toothbrush. After scrubbing, clean off the toothpaste with a damp cloth. Find out more easy ways to clean white sneakers.

Clean your clothes iron

The mild abrasive in non-gel toothpaste is just the ticket for scrubbing the gunk off the bottom plate of your clothes iron. Apply the toothpaste to the cool iron, scrub with a rag, then rinse clean.

Here are 20 clever uses for club soda you’ll wish you knew sooner.

Polish a diamond ring

Put a little toothpaste on an old toothbrush and use it to make your diamond ring sparkle instead of your teeth. Clean off the residue with a damp cloth. Here’s more about how to polish silver and jewelry using toothpaste and other household staples.

Prevent bathroom mirrors from fogging

Ouch! You cut yourself shaving and it’s no wonder—you can’t see your face clearly in that fogged-up bathroom mirror. Next time, coat the mirror with non-gel toothpaste and wipe it off before you get in the shower. When you get out, the mirror won’t be fogged.

These simple home hacks can save you as much as $500 a year!

Shine bathroom and kitchen chrome

They make commercial cleaners with a very fine abrasive designed to shine up chrome, but if you don’t have any handy, the fine abrasive in non-gel toothpaste works just as well. Just smear on the toothpaste and polish with a soft, dry cloth. Find out how to clean absolutely everything in your kitchen, according to The Marilyn Denis Show‘s Charles the Butler.

Clean the bathroom sink

Non-gel toothpaste makes quick work of a scummy bathroom sink. The tube’s sitting right there, so just squirt some in, scrub with a sponge, and rinse it out. Bonus: The toothpaste will help neutralize any odours emanating from the drain trap. Check out more brilliant bathroom cleaning tips.

Remove crayon from walls

Did crayon-toting kids get creative on your wall? Roll up your sleeves and grab a tube of non-gel toothpaste and a rag or—better yet—a scrub brush. Squirt the toothpaste on the wall and start scrubbing. The fine abrasive in the toothpaste will rub away the crayon every time. Rinse the wall with water. Check out more cleaning hacks for hard-to-remove stuff.

Remove ink or lipstick stains from fabric

Oh no, a pen opened up in the pocket of your favourite shirt! This may or may not work, depending on the fabric and the ink, but it is certainly worth a try before consigning the shirt to the scrap bin: Put non-gel toothpaste on the stain and rub the fabric vigorously together. Rinse with water. Did some of the ink come out? Great! Repeat the process a few more times until you get rid of all the ink. The same process works for lipstick. Here are more brilliant laundry hacks to save you time, money and effort.

Remove watermarks from furniture

You leave coasters around, but some people just won’t use them. To get rid of those telltale watermark rings left by sweating beverages, gently rub some non-gel toothpaste on the wood with a soft cloth. Then wipe it off with a damp cloth and let it dry before applying furniture polish.

Find out more ways to remove water stains from wood.

Stop bug bites from itching

Put toothpaste on your bug bite to keep it from itching. Dab a dime-sized amount onto your bug bite. This method also helps to cool down burns on your skin. Find out more home remedies for bug bites that actually work.

Clean your foggy headlights

Make the headlights on your car shine like new. Put toothpaste onto a sponge and scrub your headlight in circular motions. Wipe the toothpaste off with a damp cloth. Check out more pro tips for cleaning cloudy headlights.

Remove small scratches from your phone screen

Rub toothpaste on the front or back of your phone (wherever there are scratches). The toothpaste will work to reduce the look of the scratches and make your phone screen look much better. Find out how often you should be cleaning your phone (and how to do it properly).

Remove a stain from the carpet

Rub toothpaste into the stain on the carpet with a toothbrush or sponge. Rinse with water and repeat until the stain comes up. Now that you know these clever things to do with toothpaste, check out 20 brilliant uses for bananas.