NOW HERE'S A TIP

• To stretch your laundry budget, cut fabric softener sheets in half. They work just as well. Also, save them after they come out of the dryer. They make excellent dusters in the home.

• Love Sudoku puzzles? M.K. of Montana suggests that you might love it even more if you color code your grid. Each number 1-9 is assigned a color, and you solve the puzzle as normal, excepting you color in the box to denote your answer. When it’s all finished, she says, “it looks like a colorful quilt.”

• If the vegetables you’re cooking give off an unpleasant smell, grab a small saucepan and simmer a bit of pla...