It gets shoved in the back of a drawer until it's needed, but when its moment to shine arrives, the lint roller rarely disappoints. Pull off the top sheet to reveal a fresh, sticky canvas below that's strong enough to pick up a lot without damaging surfaces. It's good for more than removing errant fibers from your clothes: Your lint roller serves a purpose in every room of the house. (Car, too!)
Video of the Day
1. Grab Pet Hair
You love your pet — you must, or you wouldn't put up with something that leaves that much hair on every surface. A lint roller is a huge asset for pet owners. Not only will it pull up hair from furniture, rugs and car seats, but you may even have success with running the lint roller over your pet itself. If your furry companion cooperates, this strategy can minimize how much hair ends up all over your stuff.
Video of the Day
2. Clean Up Glitter
Once you invite glitter into your home, you'll never truly get rid of it all. There will always be flakes lurking under rugs and stuck to floor tiles. The next time you drop a sparkly ornament or your kids make a mess with an art project, use a lint roller to pick up the mess before it gets tracked around.
3. Dust Lampshades
When was the last time you cleaned inside your lamp shades? The answer is "never" for many of us, but it's time to banish those dart particles clinging there and dimming your light. Lamp shades are too delicate to clean with wet cleansers. Instead, carefully remove the shade from its base and run a lint roller over the inside and outside.
4. Clean Car Seats
Keeping your child clean is hard enough. Once they start snacking in their car seats, keeping that seat clean is just one more task you don't need. Make it quick and easy by stashing a lint roller in the car. Use a fresh sheet to quickly clean crumbs out of the seat's nooks and crannies.
5. Dust Throw Pillows
Everyone thinks of using a lint roller to freshen their clothing. But when was the last time you freshened your throw pillows? They can go months between washing, if they're ever washed at all. Run a lint roller over pillows every so often to remove some of the dust that settles on them.
6. Keep Sheets Fresh
It's best not to think too much about what's accumulating in your sheets between washings. After all, you can't change your sheets every day. A lint roller can help you keep them as crisp and clean as possible, though. Run it over sheets to pick up stray hairs, dust and other particles.
7. Safely Collect Broken Glass
There's no use crying over spilled milk, but someone does have to pick up the pieces of the broken bottle. Use a very sticky lint roller to safely collect broken glass. Sweep away the largest pieces first, then use the roller to pull up smaller shards.
8. Banish Bugs
For those among us who can't stand bugs, gathering the courage to kill them is tough. A lint roller may help. Use it to capture insects creeping around in your home. This may also be useful as a hands-off way to pick up and dispose of bugs after you've killed them.
9. Prep a Paint Roller
Loose fibers on your paint roller will be transferred to whatever you're painting. They may be noticeable after the paint dries, affecting the texture. With some types of paint rollers or brushes, running a lint roller over the surface will remove those loose fibers before you add paint.
10. Freshen Stuffed Animals
Like throw pillows, stuffed animals don't get washed as often as they probably should. Because they're likely to get manhandled by crumb-covered kids, the stuffed animals in your home are probably a little... crusty. Run a lint roller over those critters to pull off some of the stuff that clings to their fur. This is also useful for collectible stuffed animals that are likely to attract dust.
