If you’ve spent any extended length of time on Pinterest, you’re bound to come up with a zillion pins having to do with the Magic Eraser. They’re all super helpful tips, too, but they mostly come from blogs targeted to women who are also moms and probably own houses, which is why I saw them and went “Cool… wtf are baseboards?” Then, I kept looking and found all these awesome other ways a Magic Eraser could change your life. For those of you who don’t know, they’re these little square dry-sponge like things from Mr. Clean that once you wet them pretty much turn to magic and can make your weird “How do I get this gunk off?” problems go away.
I’m a card carrying lazy girl who’d rather NOT clean, I already know about the wonders of a Magic Eraser – and most of them aren’t typical chores-based cleaning jobs, either – thank god. Basically, if there’s a weird stain, smudge, or mark on anything that feels impossible to remove, just use a Magic Eraser and it’ll go away. Life? Changed. Mind? Blown. Pretty sure your parents aren’t going to mind if you suddenly take up a (safe) interest in the cleaning products that live in your house, so by all means, grab one of these bad boys and get cracking. If you’re late to the Pinterest-fueled Magic Eraser game: welcome. Let me walk you through 10 of these life changing ways you never knew you could use a Magic Eraser.
1) It gets rid of smudge marks on iPhones.
Same goes for iPads, other smart phones and tablets, etc. If there’s a screen you touch repeatedly with your fingers or hold against your face, you’re going to notice the marks left from the oil on your hands and face, even if you don’t typically have oily skin. There are those little cloth things that come with your product you’re supposed to use to wipe that film off with, but that’s more of a wipe, not a clean. If you’re a little germaphobic, grab a Magic Eraser, spritz it with some water, WRING THAT WATER ALL OUT SO YOU DON’T WRECK YOUR DEVICE, gently scrub those smudge marks away, and dry it off with a clean cloth. It’s like factory-new again.
2) It blots away weird stains.
Weird grease stains that don’t stain with color, but do make a weird blotch on your clothes are the worst (probably because I’m still convinced no one notices and I can still wear it. Don’t judge me.) When that happens and you happen to be home or somewhere else you can grab a Magic Eraser really quickly, put a cloth under the stain and take a damp Magic Eraser making sure you blot, not rub. Rinse it clean and no more stain! It’s magic.
3) It polishes your gold jewelry.
I love my gold jewelry. Most of my pieces are gifts from my family, so I’ve had them for a long time and they tend to dull after a few years. Rub your jewelry gently with the Magic Eraser to pretreat it and get the tarnish/stains off. Then, wash it with soap and water and pat dry. It’s going to look shiny and new again. Please, please, please make sure you only do this with your real gold jewelry, not things that are plated or coated unless you want it to all rub off with the Magic Eraser.
4) It removes hair dye off of countertops.
I’ve never dyed my hair, but as someone who’s frequently called to help box-dye a friend or relative, I’ve been repeatedly told to not get it on anything other than the person’s hair OR ELSE. So yes, if you dye your hair at home, please still be careful with you do it, but if there’s an accident, it’s totally fixable. Rinse a Magic Eraser with water, wring it out, and get to scrubbing. The dye should lift right off.
5) It gets rid of stains from nail polish spills.
Bless you, Magic Eraser, for saving my furniture and carpet when I accidentally elbow the nail polish and tip it over. If you’re worried about the acetone in nail polish remover wrecking the thing you spilled your nail polish on, worry no more. The magic stuff that’s in the Magic Eraser is going to lift that stain right off and not ruin the thing you spilled it on.
6) It scrubs away built up hairspray gunk.
That sticky stuff on my curling iron? You guessed it! Shout out to the great state of New Jersey for giving me a killer arm, but only when it comes to getting hairspray all over my entire bathroom. Like I said, if it’s sticky and you’re frustrated because nothing is making it go away – you’re probably going to wind up using a magic eraser. Spray all you want! When you’re done, scrub that gunk away with a damp Magic Eraser and you’re good to go.
7) It gets crayon off of walls.
This one’s for you, babysitters. No one asked for that mural, kiddo. Thank you, #nannylife for dropping this knowledge on me. If the kid you’re watching starts scribbling on the walls with a crayon, spritz a Magic Eraser with water, and scrub it off. The paint won’t lift off, the crayon basically disappears, everyone’s happy. Wipe off any residual wetness with a dry cloth and you’re all set.
8) It gets rid of magic marker, Sharpie marker, and ball point pen off of pretty much anything.
Oh, permanent marker pranks. Outsmart any “permanent” ink based stain by rubbing (white boards) or blotting (clothes) it away with a Magic Eraser. For every time pen gets on your dining room table, there’s definitely an easy solution for that. Of note: don’t try to scrub ink stains off your skin with a Magic Eraser – it’s going to leave burn marks.
9) It cleans the rubber bottoms of your sneakers.
Your sneakers are supposed to get dirty! That doesn’t mean you don’t want to keep them looking fresh. Most sneaker rubber is white, so it stains super easily, even with a regular nbd-no-dirt walk outside. Dampen a Magic Eraser and it’ll scrub the dirt off of your sneakers and it’s like they’re basically all sparkly new again.
10) It makes your laptop look like new.
I audibly gasped when the Apple guys took the case off my laptop and I saw all that gunk underneath. Even if you don’t have a case, are trying to remove residual sticker goop, Magic Erasers are pretty much your laptop’s new best friend. Make sure your computer is all the way powered off and that you only use a super small amount of water and that you’ve wrung out all the excess before you start cleaning. It works on the outside of your computer as well as your charger! It also cleans your keyboard, but be warned that Magic Erasers have been known to scrub off the letters. Oops.
Which of these tips did you find most helpful? What did we forget to include? Let us know in the comments!
You can follow the author, Aliee Chan, on Twitter.
11 Secret Beauty Items In Your Kitchen
Follow Gurl, Pretty Please!
Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, and Instagram
The post 10 Ways To Use A Magic Eraser That Will Change Your Life appeared first on Gurl.com.