DEAR HELOISE: Because children are naturally curious and playful, spray bottles filled with cleaning agents (homemade and commercial) and indoor-plant liquid fertilizer should be specifically labeled in thick, black permanent marker. Each spray bottle should be identified with the contents and, if needed, an unhappy face for a poisonous mixture.

I would recommend that the telephone number of your state's poison control center be posted on the refrigerator. Also, this helps make your home safe for furry friends, too.

– Margarette Mattern, Temple, Texas

DEAR MARGARETTE: You are right, especially when making up homemade cleaning solutions. I always write on a 3-by-5-inch card what the solution is, plus the date.

This is then taped to the bottle with packing tape. The national Poison Control Center number is (800) 222-1222, and it should be posted in every home. Your call will be routed according to the area code and exchange of the phone number you are calling from.

If you are using a cellphone, you will reach either the Poison Control Center in the area where you are, or in the home area of your cellphone.

DEAR READERS: Here are some uses for shower caps from hotels:

• Keep one in the car in case of unexpected rain.

• Place one over a camera while near water on vacation.

• Place around the bottom of a hanging plant before watering to catch runoff.

• Use to keep shoes from touching clothing when packing.

• Use to collect and carry seashells on the beach.

– Heloise

DEAR HELOISE: I read your hints every day and need help on a problem I now have, which is squeaky shoes. Maybe you can help.

– Debra O. In Bucyrus, Ohio

DEAR DEBRA: Here is one thing you can try: Make sure there is no moisture in your shoes by sprinkling cornstarch or talcum powder inside before and after you wear them.

Shoes made from man-made materials can squeak; you can take them to a shoe-repair shop and ask for advice. Finally, if you are not happy with the shoes, take them back to the store.

DEAR HELOISE: I have a toilet-cleaning hint and a question. My mom taught me to "force flush" the toilet for better cleaning. I quickly pour about half a bucket of water into the toilet bowl. This forces the water down the drain without allowing the bowl to fill back up.

My question is: Is this a safe way to clean the toilet? It really does make cleaning easier, because the water doesn't dilute the cleaner.

– Julie Rogers, Via Email

DEAR JULIE: Julie, this is a safe method for cleaning your toilet and an old hint, going back to my mother's column in the 1960s! Especially if your toilet has lime marks, you can use this method, then cover the marks with commercial lime remover or paper towels soaked in vinegar.

Just don't flush the paper towels down the toilet.

For more money-saving ways to use vinegar around your house, send for my six-page vinegar pamphlet that is chock-full of great vinegar hints. To receive a copy, just send $5 and a long, stamped (64 cents), self-addressed envelope to: Heloise/Vinegar, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 78279-5001.

DEAR HELOISE: I have small feet (5 or 5 1/2 shoe size), and shoes fit better if they're wide. However, most shoe stores don't carry my size. That makes it extremely difficult to find shoes. Even catalogs seldom carry my size.

Please tell shoe manufacturers that there are adult women out there who don't wear shoes in the 6-10 range. If you could give a voice to my plight, I would be grateful.

– Katie D., Mansfield, Ohio

DEAR HELOISE: I was hanging my wind chimes today and thought your readers would like to know how I store them.

I take each wind chime and place it on cardboard. I tape the chimes to the top. I fold the cardboard over and tape it shut. Once I have all my chimes individually secured, I place them in small plastic bags. I use the ones that come from places that I have ordered clothing, etc., from. This sure saves me from having to untangle the chimes when I am ready to hang them.

– Pat Zoccali, Warren, Ohio

DEAR HELOISE: In a pinch, if your sink's stopper will not stop the water from draining out, put a piece of plastic wrap over the drain before placing the stopper on top, and it will form a tight seal. No more water leaking down the drain!

– Nancy D., Louisville, Ky.

DEAR HELOISE: When my husband and I travel together by airplane, I always pack one of my outfits in his suitcase and he packs one of mine in his suitcase. I used to worry about one or the other suitcase being lost, but this way if one of them is lost, we both will have at least one change of clothes. Thankfully, it has never happened, but this way we are prepared.

– Sarah In Kentucky

© Copyright The Sacramento Bee. All rights reserved.

Send a great hint to Heloise, P.O. 79500, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000, or email it to Heloise@Heloise.com.

• Read more articles by